TV Best Bets

Tuesday, Sept. 8: ‘Biography: I Want My MTV’ on A&E

A&E

All Times Eastern.

Tuesday, Sept. 8

Biography: I Want My MTV
A&E, 9pm
This documentary, which premiered at Tribeca Film Festival in 2019 and became a crowd favorite at festivals around the world, details the story of a network that evokes youth for a generation now grown, and influenced the global media landscape for decades to come. It weaves together exclusive interviews with the network’s founders and VJs, artists and journalists, along with rarely seen archival footage and outtakes, including an interview with the late David Bowie that was never broadcast on television.

Live With Kelly and Ryan
Syndicated
After hosting from home since March, Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest are back in the studio. Whether guests will visit in-person is still TBD.

Ocean’s 11
TCM, 3:45pm
Catch a Classic!

The Rat Pack was at the pinnacle of their film appearances in this very enjoyable heist comedy about World War II vets Danny Ocean (Frank Sinatra) and Jimmy Foster (Peter Lawford), who recruit nine of their former military comrades to help them rob five Las Vegas casinos on New Year’s Eve. The fun ensemble cast also includes Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Joey Bishop, Angie Dickinson, Cesar Romero, Norman Fell and plenty more.

Love, Romance & Chocolate
Hallmark Channel, 8pm
Original Film!

An American accountant enters a contest to become the chocolatier for the royal family of Belgium. Stars Lacey Chabert, Will Kemp, Maarten Ketels, Kevin Van Doorslaer, Loriane Klupsch, Brittany Bristow, Charlotte Bongaerts, Floriane Bibauw and Guillaume Dolmans.

America’s Got Talent: “Semi-Finals 1”
NBC, 8pm Live

Live from Universal Studios Hollywood, 11 semifinalists perform for a chance to win $1 million and be named the most talented act in America. The episode will re-air this Friday.

American Experience: The Vote: “Hour One”
PBS, 8pm

Learn about the first generation of leaders in the decades-long battle to win the vote for women. In the 19th century, a time when women had few legal rights, Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton galvanized thousands to demand equal citizenship.

Women Make Film: “Believability, Introducing Character, and the Meet Cute”
TCM, 8pm

Tonight’s episode features a master class in believability in films from Lois Weber’s The Blot to Maren Ade’s Toni Erdmann; a look at the many ways to meet people and be introduced to characters in films, like going to a house, overhearing people and witnessing bizarre action; and an examination into the classic Hollywood trope of a “meet cute” between characters.

Homicide City
Investigation Discovery, 9pm
Season Premiere!

Season 3 of the series takes a deep dive into the crimes that shook Philadelphia to its core. The series explores cases from a darker time that had police detectives banding together across the metropolitan landscape in a sequence of manhunts. In the season premiere, a birthday ends in tragedy when the beloved Nunez family is brutally murdered in their corner store. The triple-homicide orphans two girls and leaves detectives in the dark until a chance encounter breathes new life into the case.

Frontline: “Growing Up Poor”
PBS, 9pm

The experience of child poverty is explored against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic and increasing racial tensions. Set in Ohio, this film follows children and their families navigating issues of poverty, homelessness, race and new challenges due to COVID-19.

Backyard Envy: “You Grow Girl!”
Bravo, 10pm

The Manscapers are challenged with their biggest task yet — creating a minimalist space for Mel’s friends Nayla and Kevin, which is totally out of their comfort zone. Meanwhile, James is excited to take on a big project — a World Pride float for a hotel giant. He struggles with focusing on the residential jobs, pushing the Manscapers further and further apart.

Eddie Eats America: “Florida”
Cooking Channel, 10pm

Strongman Eddie Hall gets a lesson in pro wrestling from his childhood idols and WWE legends, the Headbangers. Then, he tours the Florida Everglades with guide Jesse Kennon to meet some alligators before eating fried alligator tails and frog legs. Finally, at legendary Jaxson’s Ice Cream Parlor, Eddie attempts the “Kitchen Sink” challenge of a mobile sink filled to the brim with 9 pounds of ice cream and 2 pounds of toppings.

Hard Knocks: Los Angeles
HBO, 10pm
Season Finale!

Find out which hopefuls make the cut as the docuseries wraps its time inside the L.A. Chargers and Rams training camps and the NFL season begins.

Living a Nightmare
Investigation Discovery, 10pm
New Series!

This series tells the stories of real people who face the surreal horror of losing loved ones to vicious crimes. With every tick of the clock, detectives work to seek justice for the families, all while never forgetting the victims whose own dreams were so callously interrupted. In the premiere episode, a bloodstained bicycle hidden in an Ohio cornfield sets the stage for an unspeakable crime. While police race to find missing college student Sierah Joughin, a vicious predator lurks somewhere in the rural Midwestern countryside.

Harbor From the Holocaust
PBS, 10pm

In a Holocaust story of hope, 20,000 Jews find refuge in Shanghai during World War II. This film explores the relationship of the refugees and their host city, and the survivors who carried on the traditions that would have been consigned to oblivion.

Wednesday, Sept. 9

Get Organized With The Home Edit
Netflix
New Series!

Join Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin, the master organizers and bestselling authors behind the innovative home organization company The Home Edit as they bring their skills to their new Netflix lifestyle series, Get Organized With The Home Edit. Over eight episodes, Shearer and Teplin conquer clutter with their unique brand of interior styling, practicality and humor, dramatically transforming the lives of their featured clients. Each episode dives into an organizational project for a celebrity and a civilian, while showcasing the influential duo’s unique form-meets-function approach providing inspiration to every aspirational organizer. Celebrity clients featured include Reese Witherspoon, Rachel Zoe, Khloe Kardashian, Eva Longoria, Retta, Jordana Brewster, Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka, and Kane and Katelyn Brown.

The Social Dilemma
Netflix

We tweet, we like and we share — but what are the consequences of our growing dependence on social media? As digital platforms increasingly become a lifeline to stay connected, through this documentary, Silicon Valley insiders reveal how social media is reprogramming civilization by exposing what’s hiding on the other side of your screen.

Baseball: Chicago White Sox at Pittsburgh Pirates
FS1, 7pm Live
The Pirates host the White Sox on Roberto Clemente Day, honoring the Pirates great and the first Latin American and Caribbean player inducted into the hall of fame.

The 100
The CW, 8pm
The last time that the planet Sanctum saw a solar eclipse, it drove everyone under its red sun insane.
The ominous event strikes again — just as hero Clarke (Eliza Taylor) is setting her latest plan in motion.

America’s Got Talent: “Results Show 5”
NBC, 8pm Live

Only five of last night’s 11 Semifinals performers will move on to the Finals. Tonight, viewers will have one last chance to send their favorite performer to the next round by participating in the Dunkin’ Save by using the America’s Got Talent official app or going to nbc.com. Tonight’s show will also feature a surprise guest performance.

NOVA: “Human Nature”
PBS, 8pm

Our DNA can determine attributes from eye color to medical predispositions. An extraordinary technology called CRISPR allows us to edit human DNA, possibly eliminating genetic diseases or choosing our children’s features. But how far should we go?

Back to School
TCM, beginning at 8pm
Catch a Classic!

Get an education tonight as TCM airs a lineup of film comedies about grownups finding themselves back in the classroom. The evening begins with Mr. Belvedere Goes to College (1949) and continues with Mother Is a Freshman (1949), Blondie Goes to College (1942), She’s Working Her Way Through College (1952) and Start Cheering (1938).

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills: “Reunion Part 2”
Bravo, 9pm

Kyle takes a turn in the hot seat when she is left to answer for her attitude toward Dorit and Erika. When her daughters are brought up in conversation, Lisa bares all and addresses Garcelle’s implication that she has a need for attention. A defiant Denise comes under fire for her connection to Brandi Glanville, but Garcelle and Dorit maintain their loyalty and quickly come to her defense.

Food Paradise: “Monster Mashups”
Cooking Channel, 9pm

We’re going eight rounds with the craziest mashups in America, starting with a heavyweight beast known as the Pizzarito in New York and a delicious German restaurant in the middle of Los Angeles’ Koreatown. They’re combining nachos with macaroni and cheese in Wisconsin, Mexican and Asian in Arizona, and low-country boils with pizza in Chicago! Next, a restaurant dedicated to fries in Los Angeles is doing amazing things with s’mores, and there’s a brunch burger that has it all in Chicago. Finally, a creative spot in Philadelphia is mashing up dumplings with the classic Philly cheesesteak.

NFL: The Grind
Epix, 9pm
Season Premiere!
Host Rich Eisen returns for a second round of this weekly NFL highlights and news show.

Brother vs. Brother
HGTV, 9pm
Season Premiere!

Twins Drew and Jonathan Scott — famous for their home renovation and real estate expertise — will engage in an all-out property and renovation battle in L.A.’s historic Hancock Park. Two mansions will serve as the battleground for the six-week competition to determine which renovated home will earn the highest net profit and which brother will emerge triumphant and victorious.

Crimes Gone Viral
Investigation Discovery, 9pm
New Series!

This series explores the riveting stories behind shocking crimes caught on camera that gain viral fame on the internet. From business security cameras to home surveillance systems and cellphone cameras — someone is almost always watching. Each episode features compelling interviews and behind-the-scenes information of some of the internet’s most viral crime clips.

Chaos in Court
Investigation Discovery, 10pm
New Series!

This series examines clips of dramatic, unexpected and cathartic courtroom moments. Each episode brings the backstories of the crimes and legal proceedings to the forefront with insightful analysis from a diverse panel of experts including judges, defense attorneys, prosecutors and criminal psychologists. Also featured are interviews with defendants, family members and others who witnessed the action to help bring dramatic courtroom moments to life. Among the moments featured in the premiere episode, Larry Nassar faces his young sexual assault victims and their parents in court.

Hacking Your Mind: “Living on Auto-Pilot”
PBS, 10pm

Through this series, discover why it’s easy for politicians, marketers and social media companies to hack your mind, and find out how to hack your own mind to improve your life and the lives of your family and friends. In this episode, host Jake Ward takes a trip around the world to discover how we go through life on auto-pilot

Stargate SG-1
Comet, 11pm
In a popular 2005 two-parter, the space force and all of Earth are in peril when the Replicators, a virulent mechanical species, invade the Milky Way. Amanda Tapping shines as both Capt. Samantha Carter and evil Replicator Carter.

Thursday, Sept. 10

Julie and the Phantoms
Netflix
New Series!

In this musical series from director Kenny Ortega (High School Musical) and choreographer Paul Becker (Descendants), high schooler Julie (Madison Reyes) has lost her passion for music after her mom died last year. But when the ghosts of three dreamy musicians from 1995 (Charlie Gillespie, Jeremy Shada and Owen Joyner) suddenly appear in her mom’s old music studio, Julie is inspired to start singing and writing songs again. As their friendship with Julie grows, the boys convince her to create a new band together: Julie and the Phantoms.

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
VH1, 8am

Thirty years ago today, the sitcom starring Will Smith as a fun-loving West Philadelphia teen who moves in with family in California debuted on NBC. VH1 airs eight episodes this morning, plus a 15-hour marathon Saturday. You’ll smile at the awesome theme song every time!

The Song — Recorded Live @ TGL Farms
AXS TV, 8pm
Season Finale!

This hourlong Season 1 finale special cohosted by CeeLo Green highlights the best moments and outstanding performances from across the season.

TCM Spotlight: Honoring Our Medical Heroes: “Military Medicine”
TCM, beginning at 8pm
Catch a Classic!

Tonight’s lineup of medical-themed films features movies about medical heroics among military doctors and nurses, often during wartime. Featured titles are So Proudly We Hail (1943), the classic satire MASH (1970), The Story of Dr. Wassell (1944), Cry Havoc (1944) and Battle Circus (1953).

NFL Football: Houston at Kansas City
NBC, 8:20pm Live

The 2020 NFL season opens under the cloud of COVID-19 at a limited-capacity Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City as Patrick Mahomes and the Super Bowl champion Chiefs take on the Houston Texans in a rematch of January’s thrilling AFC playoff divisional game.

The Real Housewives of New York City: “Reunion Part 1”
Bravo, 9pm

The cast relive some of the most outrageous moments from the season, but first they express their frustrations with one of the ladies’ behavior during quarantine. Leah revisits the highs and lows of her first season, and spills the tea on how the uptown ladies reacted to her downtown attitude. A very glowing Tinsley updates the girls on her relationship with Scott and life in Chicago, but things quickly heat up when Dorinda calls her out for not being transparent with the group and finishing the season early.

Christina on the Coast
HGTV, 9pm
Season Finale!

SoCal designer Christina Anstead has helped a lot of folks make their dreams come true. She’ll have to get extra creative when empty-nesters ask her to channel Liberace and give them the glamorous kitchen they’ve long wanted: No one’s budget covers that much bling!

Impact of Murder
Investigation Discovery, 9pm
Season Premiere!
Season 2 again uses gripping victim impact statements delivered in court as the driving storytelling technique to showcase how victims can be empowered against their perpetrator to stand up in court and confront them — and in some cases, unexpectedly find forgiveness. The new season begins with a heart-wrenching two-hour premiere episode about Botham Jean, a promising young accountant who dreamed of returning to his native St. Lucia to become prime minister. Those dreams were cut short in 2018 when Jean, a Black man, was shot and killed inside his Dallas apartment by a white female off-duty police officer.

Bin Laden’s Hard Drive
Nat Geo, 9pm

When Osama bin Laden was captured in 2011, a series of hard drives and other media devices were collected from where he was found. Piecing together every shred of evidence, this series, hosted by New York Times bestselling author and CNN’s national security analyst Peter Bergen, examines the al-Qaida founder’s layered personal psychology, his relationship with his family, the lens through which he viewed faith and religion, as well as his nihilistic legacy of violence and destruction.

Ghost Adventures: Screaming Room: “Murder Mystery Mansion”
Travel Channel, 9pm

Zak Bagans and his crew share laughs as they revisit their investigation of the Stone Lion Inn, which at the time was no fun and games. Not only were they surrounded by poltergeist activity, but they also captured one of their most incredible pieces of audio evidence.

Shark Attack: The Paige Winter Story With Robin Roberts
ABC, 10pm

On June 2, 2019, North Carolina teenager Paige Winter was swimming in waist-deep water when suddenly a shark attacked and — in an instant — life would never be the same. Following Winter’s story for more than a year, Robin Roberts and ABC News chronicle her unprecedented journey, from the harrowing attack and months of rehabilitation to the trials, tribulations and struggles.

Fire Masters: “Turn the Heat Around”
Cooking Channel, 10pm

Chefs hit the grills ready for battle, putting their personalities on a plate in the Wildfire Round. The Crossfire Round reveals who likes it salty and who enjoys the sweet. In the Feast of Fire, the judges enjoy a taste of La Dolce Vita!

My Feet Are Killing Me: First Steps
TLC, 10:30pm
New Series!
Quarantining at home hasn’t stopped everyone’s favorite foot fixers from helping patients with their foot troubles. Dr. Brad and Dr. Ebonie are teaming up with the compassionate and intelligent Dr. Sarah Haller. These dynamic foot doctors pledge to help shocking podiatric cases, one video call at a time. Each 30-minute episode follows three patients as they undergo virtual consultations to begin their journey toward surgeries that will leave their feet radically transformed and their lives changed forever.

Friday, Sept. 11

Family Business
Netflix
Season Premiere!

The French comedy about a family butcher shop turning to a new business plan when France legalizes marijuana returns for Season 2.

The Duchess
Netflix
New Series!

Katherine Ryan will executive produce, write and star in her debut scripted series The Duchess, following the powerful and problematic choices of a fashionably disruptive single mom living in London. Her daughter, Olive, is her greatest love so she debates a second child with her greatest enemy — Olive’s dad. Can two wrongs make another right?

Disney Weekend
Freeform, 8:30am

Every weekend this month, Freeform salutes the wonderful world of Disney with classic movie marathons. Today’s bill: the 2003 Freaky Friday, Glenn Close’s 101 Dalmatians, Hercules, WALL-E, Finding Nemo, Finding Dory, Toy Story 3 and Bolt.

Bonanza
INSP, 11am

On the beloved Western’s 61st anniversary, fans can revisit the Cartwright family adventures with five back-to-back episodes — two focusing on the notoriously bad luck Hoss (Dan Blocker) and Joe (Michael Landon) had with women. Bonanza: The Return, a 1993 TV movie sequel about a younger Cartwright generation, follows.

Matching Hearts
Hallmark Channel, 6pm
Original Film!
A matchmaker must find a mate for an entrepreneur who believes staying single is the key to success. Stars Taylor Cole, Ryan Paevey, Ashley Alexander, Donna Benedicto, Lara Gilchrist, Latonya Williams, and Milo Shandel.

9/11: The Final Minutes of Flight 93
History, 8pm

On Sept. 11, 2001, one hijacked plane never reached its target when United 93 crashed in rural Pennsylvania. Now, for the first time, previously classified streams of evidence are combined to piece together what really happened in a gripping minute-by-minute account. Evidence includes Secret Service documents, air traffic control transmissions, phone records, voicemails, first person testimony and a top-secret audio recording that may reveal the details of Flight 93’s crucial final moments. It’s the story of heroism in the face of tragedy, and it sheds new light on the biggest mysteries of that fateful flight.

Starring Ursula Andress
TCM, beginning at 8pm
Catch a Classic!

From the moment she rose from the sea in her iconic bikini in the first James Bond movie Dr. No, talented Swiss beauty Ursula Andress has been a movie star. She is celebrated today with a lineup of movies that does not include that film, but does feature plenty of great titles, including the 1967 Bond spoof Casino Royale, with Andress playing Vesper Lynde. Also tonight: Andress portraying the queen of a lost empire in the 1965 Hammer Studios adventure film She; and playing Aphrodite, goddess of love, in the original Clash of the Titans (1981).

Selling the Big Easy
HGTV, 9pm
New Series!
New Orleans native and resident real estate expert Brittany Picolo-Ramos specializes in quintessential NOLA properties. The series follows Brittany and her full-service agency as they help families find the house of their dreams by showing them high-end homes with the right amount of history and charm. She also helps clients stage and sell their homes for top dollar in the city’s vibrant real estate market.

9/11: The Pentagon
History, 9pm

The image of the Twin Towers falling to the ground is forever burned into the memories of those who lived through 9/11. But on this day, 34 minutes after the second tower was struck, American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the western face of the Pentagon, killing over 100 people. Though just a fraction of the total loss of life that day, what happened in Washington, D.C., is an important and underreported part of the 9/11 tragedy. Using original interviews, new information and dramatic visualizations, this special brings viewers inside the nation’s capital on its darkest day.

Great Performances: “Romeo and Juliet”
PBS, 9pm

Experience Shakespeare’s classic as a ballet from choreographer Kenneth MacMillan, performed by dancers from the Royal Ballet and set to a score by Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev. The production was filmed on sets and locations throughout Budapest.

Paranormal Nightshift: “Sixth Sense, Dead Wood and Beware: I’m Watching”
Travel Channel, 10pm

A single mom draws upon her intuitive abilities to protect her from a paranormal attack at the scene of a suicide; a factory worker is taunted by growls and otherworldly sounds during the graveyard shift; a dorm supervisor is stalked by an unseen entity.

Saturday, Sept. 12

Tennis: US Open: Women’s Singles Final
ESPN, 4pm Live

The US Open’s two remaining women’s singles players compete for the title at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, New York.

Secret State
Ovation TV, 7pm
Miniseries Premiere!

This four-part political thriller is based on the Chris Mullin novel A Very British Coup, and explores the relationship between a democratically elected government, big business and the banks. Gabriel Byrne stars as Deputy Prime Minister Tom Dawkins, who’s thrust to the forefront by catastrophic events, and ends up forced to take on the might of the establishment.

NASCAR Cup Series: Federated Auto Parts 400
NBCSN, 7:30pm Live

The second race of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs Round of 16 takes place tonight at Virginia’s Richmond Raceway for the Federated Auto Parts 400.

Animal Babies
BBC America, 8pm
New Series!

This three-part series about baby animals growing up in some incredibly challenging environments joins BBC America’s Saturday “Wonderstruck” programming block. The premiere episode, “Safari Babies,” follows youngsters striving to survive in the African plains.

Major League Baseball
FOX, 8pm Live

Saturday primetime regional MLB action on FOX features the Houston Astros at the L.A. Dodgers or the Cleveland Indians at the Minnesota Twins.

Coastal Elites
HBO, 8pm

Playwright and screenwriter Paul Rudnick created this satirical comedy originally conceived for the stage but updated for TV during the COVID-19 crisis. Bette Midler, Kaitlyn Dever, Dan Levy, Sarah Paulson and Issa Rae star in this study of characters in physical isolation who are looking to connect with people in a world that has seemingly gone mad.

Help! I Wrecked My House
HGTV, 8pm
New Series!

HGTV’s Jasmine Roth and her team are working hard to redeem failed home improvement projects — customizing new spaces with beautiful, functional designs tailored to each client. In the series premiere, Jasmine helps a young family who tries to tackle their own major home reno — until they realize they are in over their heads. Desperate for assistance, they hope Jasmine can turn their half-finished bathroom, kitchen and backyard into spaces where they can finally relax and connect as a family.

Deranged Granny
Lifetime, 8pm
Original Film!

Barbara finds her last hope to be a grandmother when her son, Ethan, falls for Kendall, a divorcée with children. At first kept at arm’s length, Barbara quickly infiltrates the family by using devious tactics to win over Kendall’s kids. Unannounced visits escalate to murder as Barbara will do anything to protect her relationship with her grandchildren. With her life in danger, Kendall must outsmart her mother-in-law to save her children and expose Barbara for who she really is. Stars Wendie Malick, Amanda Righetti, Josh Ventura and Dave Baez.

Directed by Jacques Tourneur
TCM, beginning at 8pm
Catch a Classic!
The compellingly moody ambience brought to a number of notable movies — often in the film noir and horror genres — by influential director Jacques Tourneur is the focus of tonight’s film lineup of two classics helmed by the master: 1947’s iconic Out of the Past, starring Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer and Kirk Douglas, and considered one of the greatest film noirs ever; and the 1944 melodrama Experiment Perilous, with Hedy Lamarr.

Hotel Paranormal: “Evil Residents”
Travel Channel, 10pm
Season Finale!

In the Season 1 finale of the spooky Dan Aykroyd-narrated series that looks at haunted hotels, a security guard encounters a well-dressed spirit at an upscale California hotel, an invisible attacker leaves scratches on a woman, and a young girl watches a shadow man emerge from the walls of her hotel suite.