Television

Subterms

    More stories

    • 138 Shares36 Views

      in Television

      James Carter Cathcart, Voice Behind Memorable ‘Pokémon’ Characters, Dies at 71

      by

      Mr. Cathcart was known for playing the characters Professor Oak and Meowth in the long-running franchise. He also made appearances in other popular animated series such as “Yu-Gi-Oh!” and “One Piece.”James Carter Cathcart, a voice actor who portrayed some of the most indelible characters in the “Pokémon” franchise and became a familiar presence in several other popular animated series, died on Tuesday. He was 71.His wife, Martha Jacobi, confirmed in a social media post that he died at Calvary Hospital in the Bronx. His ex-wife, Jeanne Gari, said in an interview that the cause of his death was throat cancer.For more than two decades, Mr. Cathcart was the voice of several popular characters in the “Pokémon” series and movies, including the genial Professor Oak, his grandson Gary, the antagonizing James and the wisecracking feline creature Meowth, one of the few Pokémon who could speak.Mr. Cathcart joined the cast of “Pokémon” in 1998, just as the franchise exploded into a global craze. While many of the characters cycled in and out through the series’s more than 1,000 episodes, his voice remained a steady presence.Mr. Cathcart also had roles in an array of other anime series, video games and animated shows, including “Yu-Gi-Oh!,” “One Piece” and “Shadow the Hedgehog.” He retired from voice acting in 2023 after he was diagnosed with cancer. Mr. Cathcart appeared in more than 100 roles, according to the entertainment database IMDb, but his work in “Pokémon” is his best known.The voice actors who also had roles in the “Pokémon” universe acknowledged his death on social media. Erica Schroeder, who played Nurse Joy and the creature Wobbuffet, said: “The community will miss you. The world will miss you.”James Carter Cathcart was born on Jan. 4, 1954, in West Long Branch, N.J., and graduated from Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan.He is survived by Ms. Jacobi; his daughters Nicole Zoppi, 41, and Mackenzie, 30; and his son, Carter, 31.Mr. Cathcart said in an interview in 2017 that he was grateful the “Pokémon” franchise had continued to thrive and that he wanted to keep voicing the characters for as long as he could.“Who could imagine 20 years ago that we would still be doing the show and it would be doing so well, but there’s a new generation of kids that loves the Pokémon?” Mr. Cathcart said.Sheelagh McNeill More

    • 88 Shares38 Views

      in Television

      A Tiny Chef Inspires an Outsize Outpouring

      by

      When Nickelodeon canceled “The Tiny Chef Show,” fans rallied around the wee gourmand. But his TV future remains uncertain.After the creators Rachel Larsen and Ozlem Akturk learned that their Nickelodeon series, “The Tiny Chef Show,” was canceled, they had to break it to their star.“Once we learned of the news, we just knew we needed to tell Chef,” Larsen said in a video call.Chef, by the way, is a small, cylindrical fellow with black eyes and an adorably garbled voice who lives in a tree stump and enjoys singing. He is animated, but Larsen and Akturk occasionally speak of “Cheffy,” as he is also known, as if he’s a real person.The result was a stop-motion video in which the Tiny Chef gets a phone call from what he calls “Mickelfodeon.” He then sits down to cry after he is told there will be no more new episodes.Since the clip was posted to social media about two weeks ago, the little vegan gourmand has received an outpouring of love as well as about $140,000 in donations from fans hoping to keep his content flowing. The character’s newly relaunched fan club, which is called a “Fan Cwub” to mimic Chef’s distinctive way of speaking and requires a paid membership, has drawn more than 10,000 members.Famous fans have also expressed their support. Dionne Warwick, X commentator nonpareil, posted the cancellation video with strong words for Nickelodeon: “are you proud of making this thing cry? Who is in charge over there? I want a name.”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

    • 88 Shares38 Views

      in Television

      Review: ‘Too Much’ Is Not Nervy Enough

      by

      This new Netflix comedy by Lena Dunham is the surprisingly mild tale of a young woman fleeing New York after a catastrophic breakup.In a scene from the new Netflix comedy “Too Much,” Jessica (Megan Stalter), a frustrated line producer, vents to her colleagues about her resentments. A co-worker snips: “You’re realizing that middling white women feel terrible wherever they go.” Well, with frenemies like this …Created by Lena Dunham and her husband, Luis Felber, a British musician, “Too Much” follows our heroine Jessica as she flees New York after a catastrophic breakup. She moves to London for the romance of it all — the Jane Austen, the Bridget Jones, the BritBox. The distance from her grandmother (Rhea Perlman), mother (Rita Wilson) and sister (Dunham) is a perk, too, though oceans and time zones are no match for matriarchs who want to impart wisdom on vaginal health.Jessica is a pajama girlie, seen often in granny nighties, frilly tap shorts and teddies. By day, she wears baby-doll dresses and voluminous sailor-neck shifts, big bows in her hair, space buns and a pale blue manicure. She puts her gremlin dog in sweaters and gowns, and she stomps her feet when she’s angry.She also can’t stop looking at her ex’s new girlfriend’s social media. How can the knitting influencer and lizard rescuer Wendy (Emily Ratajkowski) be so happy with Zev (Michael Zegen), when she, Jessica, was supposed to be celebrating her seventh anniversary with him at this very moment? Jessica scrolls obsessively, and she records her own private video diaries addressed to Wendy, videos that bubble with post-breakup rage and confusion.But maybe all that insecurity and despair is more of the New York Jessica, because the London Jessica meets a brooding singer-songwriter, Felix (Will Sharpe), on her very first night in town. They hit it off immediately and speed-run the traditional relationship markers: the I-love-yous, the dinner with the boss, the awkward introduction to friends, the strained plus-one-at-the-wedding mishegoss, the disclosure of family baggage.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

    • 100 Shares38 Views

      in Television

      Late Night Is All Over Grok’s Antisemitic Posts

      by

      “Do you know how racist and antisemitic you have to be for Elon Musk to step in?” Anthony Anderson, sitting in for Jimmy Kimmel, asked rhetorically.Welcome to Best of Late Night, a rundown of the previous night’s highlights that lets you sleep — and lets us get paid to watch comedy. Here are the 50 best movies on Netflix right now.‘So, That Happened’Elon Musk’s A.I. chatbot, Grok, praised Hitler and expressed additional antisemitic sentiments in posts published to X on Tuesday.“Do you know how racist and antisemitic you have to be for Elon Musk to step in?” guest host Anthony Anderson said on Wednesday’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live.”“That’s like Diddy telling you, ‘Hey, hey, hey, hey Playboy, ease up on the baby oil.’” — ANTHONY ANDERSON“I mean, imagine if Hitler invaded Poland and was like, ‘So, that happened.’” — RONNY CHIENG“That’s right, Elon’s going to fix you good, Grok. That’ll teach you to embarrass him. Only Elon can embarrass Elon.” — RONNY CHIENG“I mean, I knew AI would be coming for our jobs, but I didn’t expect the job to be führer.” — RONNY CHIENG“But at the end of the day, the person I feel worse for is Elon. I mean, he just wanted to improve his AI to help humanity and then somehow, completely by accident, it just went full Nazi on him.” — RONNY CHIENGThe Bits Worth WatchingChance the Rapper talked with Anthony Anderson about meeting his favorite actor, Denzel Washington, thanks to Washington’s “Othello” co-star, Jake Gyllenhaal.What We’re Excited About on Thursday NightThe stand-up comedian Youngmi Mayer will discuss her memoir “I’m Laughing Because I’m Crying” on Thursday’s “Daily Show.”Also, Check This OutLena Dunham, Emily Ratajkowski, Meg Stalter and Janicza Bravo of “Too Much.”Caroline Tompkins for The New York TimesMegan Stalter, Janicza Bravo, and Emily Ratajkowski star in Lena Dunham’s new Netflix rom-com series, “Too Much.” More

    • 125 Shares42 Views

      in Television

      ‘The Gilded Age’ Enriches Its Portrait of Black High Society

      by

      The air felt different as I sat across from Phylicia Rashad, Audra McDonald and Denée Benton. I was lifted simply by being with these women, three generations of Broadway royalty. (Of course, as the former Clair Huxtable, Rashad qualifies as TV royalty as well.)Now they are together on “The Gilded Age,” the HBO drama about late 19th-century New York City and the old-money elites, arrivistes and workers who live and clash there.I was initially worried about the show when it debuted in 2022. As a long-term fan of the creator Julian Fellowes’s more homogenous hit “Downton Abbey,” I feared this American counterpart would similarly overlook the racial dynamics of its era. But I was pleasantly surprised by the nuance of the character Peggy Scott (Benton), an aspiring journalist and secretary for Agnes van Rhijn (Christine Baranski) and a member of Brooklyn’s Black upper-middle class.An early version of Peggy had the character posing as a domestic servant to gain access to Agnes. But Benton and the show’s historical consultant, Erica Armstrong Dunbar, pushed for a more multifaceted exploration of the lives of Black New Yorkers, who often interacted with Manhattan’s white elite even as they lived separately. (Dunbar and I were colleagues at Rutgers University.)This season, “The Gilded Age” has its most diverse and in-depth portrayal of Black high society yet, often pitting Peggy’s mother, Dorothy (McDonald), against the aristocratic Elizabeth Kirkland (Rashad), who arrived on the show on Sunday. Like other wealthy mothers on this show, Elizabeth spends most of her time trying to control the marital fate of her children and discriminating against other families, like the Scotts, that she believes to be socially inferior.Audra McDonald, left, and Denée Benton in the new season of “The Gilded Age,” which includes the show’s most in-depth portrayal of Black high society yet.Karolina Wojtasik/HBOWe are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

    • 163 Shares45 Views

      in Television

      These Americans Went Looking the Britain Found Onscreen. They Found a Different Story.

      by

      Like the lead character of “Too Much,” they moved across the Atlantic with visions of Jane Austen and Merchant Ivory. The reality was a little less dreamy.In the first episode of “Too Much,” Lena Dunham’s loosely autobiographical new series that premieres on Netflix this Thursday, Jessica (played by Megan Stalter) arrives in London from Great Neck, N.Y. She is subletting a flat in the fictional Hoxton Grove Estate, and expects to find verdant grounds surrounding a stately building, like something one might find in a Merchant Ivory production.“Good luck with that, love,” the cabdriver laughs as he drops her outside an apartment block with peeling paint. After all, the Britain we see onscreen — in period dramas or in modern Richard Curtis romantic comedies like “Notting Hill” — tends to emphasize a certain aspirational loveliness. It also tends to gloss over details — like the fact that “estate” can refer to both sprawling mansions and public housing.This well-established idealization means that when Jessica first meets Felix (Will Sharpe), an indie musician inspired by Ms. Dunham’s real-life indie musician husband, Luis Felber, he quickly hypothesizes her reasons for being in London: “Let me guess, you’re one of those ‘Love Actually’-loving girls?” he asks with a grin. “You’re on a pilgrimage?”Characters like William in “Notting Hill” (far left) and Mr. Darcy in “Pride and Prejudice” contribute to some Americans’ fantasies of British life, like Jessica’s in “Too Much.”From left; Alamy; Netflix; BBCWhile the British pilgrims fled to America’s shores about 400 years ago, Ms. Dunham, who moved to London in 2021, is one of the many Americans making the reverse journey today, seeking refuge in the coziness they have seen depicted onscreen or on the page. But as these Americans adjust to regional accents and codes of conduct, many are surprised by what they find. “It didn’t take long for me to understand some of the decay underneath the facade,” Ms. Dunham said in an email.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

    • 138 Shares48 Views

      in Television

      The ‘Sex and the City’ Resurgence Has a Secret Ingredient: Contempt

      by

      The show’s sequel, now in its third season, subjects beloved characters to a parade of humiliations. It’s oddly captivating.When I think of my childhood, and the moments that would have made it difficult for my parents to imagine I was anything other than a latent homosexual, I see myself sitting pretzel-style at the foot of an almond-colored couch while my mother and her three best friends drink martinis and watch “Sex and the City.” I was too taken with the show’s glamour and prurience to register the uncanny dynamic: Here were four cosmopolitan 30-something women, mostly single or divorced, convening to watch television’s foremost avatars of 30-something cosmopolitanism discuss the vagaries of sex and dating. I could not possibly have felt as “seen” by Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte as my mother and her girlfriends probably did — but I did think of these ladies as fairy godmothers of a sort, telegraphing a future where I too might gather over frothy cocktails at trendy Manhattan establishments to debate the merits of bisexuality or golden showers.More than two decades later, we are experiencing a “Sex and the City” resurgence. First came the premiere, late in 2021, of a limp postscript of a show called “And Just Like That …,” which is currently trudging through its third season. Then, last year, the original series arrived on Netflix, introducing the show to younger viewers, who took more to its screwball cadence than its bygone sense of glamour. “Sex and the City,” they found, was bizarrely suitable to the tongue-in-cheek conventions of internetspeak, and so the show has lately birthed a whole litany of memes. In almost all of them, the characters are treated as objects of amusement, not aspiration.One clever joke poked fun at Carrie’s tendency to listen to her friends’ predicaments and then respond with exasperating recapitulations of her own. Charlotte remarks on, say, the earthquake that hit New York City last year. Miranda, always smug, insists that the Richter scale is obsolete, while Samantha, always horny, wisecracks about a man who made her walls shake. And of course Carrie, whose pick-me solipsism has become a point of fascination for newcomers, declares that “Big is moving to Paris!” — wrenching the conversation back to the emotionally unavailable tycoon who would torture her for years before dying, unceremoniously, of a Peloton-induced heart attack.This is how we’ve all come to regard the ladies of “Sex and the City,” even those of us for whom they once represented some pinnacle of refinement: They now read like parodies of themselves, characters we regard with a sort of loving derision. It’s a testament not only to the comforting rhythms of the sitcom format but also to this show’s genuine achievements in characterization: No matter how much these women annoy or exasperate us, we know them so intimately that we can always imagine, with a reasonable degree of both accuracy and scorn, how each might react to any given topic.And this is what makes “And Just Like That …” such a strange and fascinating product: It is a reboot that feels, at times, openly hostile to its own source material and even to the characters themselves. It cannot seem to resist subjecting them to mounting humiliations, either in a clumsy effort to atone for the minor sin of the original’s tone-deafness or, perhaps, because viewers actually want to see beloved characters tormented this way.The characters register as lab rats in a sadistic experiment with camp and caricature.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

    • 150 Shares48 Views

      in Television

      How the Women of ‘Too Much’ Made Lena Dunham’s Rom-Com Just Right

      by

      When Lena Dunham moved to London in 2021, she had given up on love. “The rest of my life is just going to be about my family and my animals and my job,” she remembered telling herself.If you have seen Dunham’s previous work, which often skews anti-romantic, this will make a special kind of sense. In the six-season HBO series “Girls,” a generation-defining traumedy, Dunham, a writer, director and occasional actor, viewed love with a conjunctival eye — itchy, gritty, irritated.But love had not given up on Dunham. Just after her move, she met the musician Luis Felber. She didn’t anticipate anything serious. “I was seeing it as fleeting — it’s fun to hang out with a boy during the pandemic,” Dunham said on a stupidly beautiful June morning in New York. She was wrong. By the fall of that year, they were married.Soon, there were reports that Dunham and Felber were developing a show based on their relationship. That 10-episode show, “Too Much,” arrives on Netflix on July 10.“Too Much,” with Will Sharpe and Megan Stalter, was inspired by Lena Dunham’s own story of meeting her husband, Luis Felber.NetflixIs “Too Much” a romantic comedy? Yes. Is it inspired by Lena’s own story? Sure. But “Too Much” wants more — inclusivity, expansiveness, a reconsideration of the love stories we tell and about whom we tell them.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More