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      Stephen Colbert Retires His Joe Biden Sunglasses

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      The “Late Show” host is putting his aviators on a shelf, now that the president has ended his re-election campaign.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.Biden’s Retirement PartyPresident Biden bowed out of the 2024 presidential race on Sunday.“It’s shocking, but this makes sense,” Stephen Colbert said. “It’ll give him time to rest up for 2028.”“He steered this country out of a horrific pandemic, he saved countless lives by encouraging people to get vaccinated, he brought the economy back, he rallied our allies, he reasserted America’s place in the world stage, and most inspiring of all, at no time was he Donald Trump.” — STEPHEN COLBERTColbert officially retired his Joe Biden aviator sunglasses on Monday, saying they had done “the hardest job of all:They made it seem like I had a Joe Biden impression.”“But I do not have a Kamala Harris impression, so she’s wearing aviators, too.” — STEPHEN COLBERT“I am officially retiring all of my ‘Joe Biden is old’ jokes, OK? They were starting to get tired anyway. Just like Joe Biden. That was the last one! I swear. Now I’m going to unretire them to use on Donald Trump.” — STEPHEN COLBERTThe Punchiest Punchlines (Bye Bye, Biden Edition)“Typically, on Sundays, everyone thinks about quitting their job, but Biden is the first person to actually go through with it.” — JIMMY FALLON“Yeah, it was one of the rare times every cable news graphic said ‘Breaking news’ and it was breaking news.” — JIMMY FALLON“Well, he didn’t, like, drop out so much as he kind of just, like, wandered off, you know what I’m saying?” — LAMORNE MORRIS, guest host of “Jimmy Kimmel Live”“Biden is now getting credit for guiding us through the pandemic, creating millions of jobs, rebuilding our nation’s crumbling infrastructure and eliminating billions in student loans. Democrats heard that and were like, ‘Hey, this guy should run for president!’” — JIMMY FALLON“Following the big news, Biden supporters gathered around the White House to thank him for dropping out of the race. Biden’s not quite sure how to feel, you know? I mean, ‘thanks for leaving’ is not really a compliment, you know?” — JIMMY FALLONThe Bits Worth WatchingJimmy Kimmel’s guest host, Lamorne Morris, offered a few helpful tips for being “Caucasian at the Cookout.”What We’re Excited About on Tuesday NightHugh Jackman, star of “Deadpool & Wolverine,” will appear on Tuesday’s “Tonight Show.”Also, Check This OutJames Earl Jones, left, and Andre Braugher in “Homicide: Life on the Street.” The series begins streaming on Peacock on Aug. 19.Michael Ginsburg/NBC, via Getty ImagesAll seven seasons of the acclaimed 1990s police procedural “Homicide: Life on the Street” will finally be available for streaming next month. More

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      ‘Two American Families’ Is a Knockout Documentary

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      This latest installment in a long-term Frontline series is an intimate look at two American families, who work hard but struggle to make ends meet.The Frontline documentary “Two American Families: 1991-2024,” arriving on Tuesday, follows two Milwaukee families, one Black, one white, over the last 30-odd years. “Families” is intimate and dignified, unwavering but gentle. At a time when so much documentary television feels generic, disposable and even straightforwardly pointless, this is both a master work unto itself and a glaring reminder of what is largely absent in television narrative nonfiction.“Families” is the fifth installment in the tales of the Stanley and Neumann families, a long-term portrait series produced and directed by Tom Casciato and Kathleen Hughes, with interviews and narration by Bill Moyers. The specials began with “Minimum Wages: The New Economy” in 1992, after the breadwinners of each family were laid off from union manufacturing jobs. (This newest entry covers the full timeline and does not require previous familiarity.) Since then, neither family has ever truly recovered, despite ceaseless — ceaseless — hard work, as the parents, and eventually their children, all struggle to find their way into the middle class.Faith is a huge theme here, with each family turning to religious practice as a respite from suffering and as reservoir of hope. In one scene, the white family, the Neumanns, stand on the altar as their priest thanks God for providing the dad with an $8-per-hour nonunion job with no benefits. Even that job doesn’t last. Prayers and preaching weave through the decades, gratitude for the riches ostensibly to come.“Families” intercuts moments of everyday strain with Inaugural Addresses going back to Bill Clinton, in which each president promises jobs, jobs and more jobs, and each declares the American economy to be growing and glorious. And yet. “Despite all the hard work, these two American families had barely survived one of the most prosperous decades in our history,” Moyers narrates. And that’s barely at the halfway point in the story.The latest installment is available Tuesday on the PBS app and website and airs on PBS that night at 10 p.m. (Check local listings.)SIDE QUEST“Two American Families” reminds me a lot of the 1998 series “The Farmer’s Wife,” also a Frontline documentary. That’s available on the PBS Documentaries app, and it’s one of the most memorable and powerful documentaries I’ve ever seen. More

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      ‘Homicide: Life on the Street’ Will Finally Be Available to Stream

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      The celebrated 1990s police procedural is coming to Peacock in August.The critically acclaimed 1990s police procedural “Homicide: Life on the Street” will soon be available to stream in its entirety.All seven seasons of the crime drama, which ran on NBC from 1993 to 1999, as well as the 2000 film “Homicide: The Movie,” which served as the series finale, will arrive on Peacock on Aug. 19. The show has been syndicated over the years and has been released on DVD, but its absence from streaming services — thanks largely to the challenge of securing music rights, a frequent sticking point in streaming deals — has long been lamented by fans.“Homicide” was based on a book by David Simon — then a Baltimore Sun reporter who had spent a year shadowing the Baltimore Police Department’s Homicide Unit. The series — along with “NYPD Blue,” which also premiered in 1993 — infused the cop genre with more grit and moral ambiguity, setting the stage for hard-edge cable dramas like “The Shield” and Simon’s own “The Wire,” one of the most celebrated series of all time.“Homicide” was created by Paul Attanasio and executive produced by Barry Levinson, among others. (Simon was a producer.) Tom Fontana, who would go on to create the prison drama “Oz,” was the showrunner. “Homicide” had a devoted core following during its run but was never a ratings darling. It stayed on the air for seven seasons, winning four Emmy Awards out of 17 nominations and three Peabody Awards. It also boasted a memorable cast that included Andre Braugher, who won an Emmy for his role as Detective Frank Pembleton; Melissa Leo; Richard Belzer; and Giancarlo Esposito.As the streaming boom resurfaced beloved titles from throughout TV history, “Homicide” regularly appeared on lists of shows fans most wanted to see come to a service. Simon previewed its arrival in a June post on X.“Word is that NBC has managed to finally secure the music rights necessary to sell ‘Homicide: Life On The Streets’ to a streaming platform,” he wrote, adding later in a reply: “I did nothing. Tom Fontana, Barry Levinson and [the producer] Gail Mutrux undertook the lobbying effort.” More

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      Biden’s Exit From the Election Confirms TV is Still a Big Political Arena

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      President Biden’s decision to bow out after a disastrous debate confirms that in a TikTok era, TV is still the biggest political arena.As soon as TV sets landed in American living rooms, media critics worried that television would dominate politics, and the medium wasted no time proving them right. Richard M. Nixon lost in 1960 to the glamorous John F. Kennedy after a shaky, sweaty debate that played better for him on the radio. After Ronald Reagan zingered his way to a second term in 1984, Neil Postman wrote that in the TV era, “debates were conceived as boxing matches.”But not until now had a president KO’ed himself in one round.On Sunday, President Biden announced his withdrawal from the 2024 campaign, ending an astounding disintegration that began with Mr. Biden’s discombobulated debate against Donald J. Trump late in June. Mr. Biden released his decision on X, formerly Twitter, but the moment recalled when Lyndon B. Johnson made a similar announcement on TV in 1968, or perhaps when Mr. Nixon resigned the presidency 50 years ago.This collapse, however, was not the result of an overseas war. There was no break-in and coverup. There was simply a horrendous TV outing — less than two hours that changed history.Yes, Mr. Biden, at 81, suffered doubts about his age, vigor and acuity before the debate. Yes, his mini campaign afterward to redeem himself with speeches, interviews and a news conference did not help either. Mr. Biden had a hand in his fate. So did Father Time.Still, it took a single, horrifying prime-time failure to crystallize the problem. As he and his allies argued, 14 million people voted for him in the primary. But 51.3 million people saw his faculties fail him on live TV, and that’s before it was clipped and ricocheted and repeated.Certainly the relentless digital-media cycle played a part too; maybe a pre-Twitter president could have ridden this out. But in a TikTok era, it still takes TV to concentrate that many eyes simultaneously on the one, unignorable, everybody-saw-it moment that starts the avalanche.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

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      ‘House of the Dragon’ Season 2, Episode 6 Recap: The Black Queen’s Gambit

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      Rhaenyra sends a gift to the common people of King’s Landing. There may be some strings attached.Season 2, Episode 6The hug lasts 45 seconds before they kiss. Yes, I counted. In the terms of that episode of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” where Larry hugs Auntie Rae for a little too long, it’s nine “five Mississippi”s. And like any long, drawn-out take on this densely packed show, it stops everything in its tracks.For three quarters of a minute, we watch empathy, respect, gratitude, warmth, heat, curiosity, desire and, finally, passion all play out in the silent embrace between Queen Rhaenyra and her friend and counselor Mysaria. For the first time in their lives, each of these two very different people has found somebody she sees as an equal, and who sees her as an equal in turn, and the thought quickly goes from comforting to intoxicating. Dragons are flying, men are burning, reigns are teetering, but for as long as that embrace lasts, the world of “House of the Dragon” exists between these two women’s arms.But this week’s episode of “Dragon” specialized in all kinds of people getting the things they want and need — or trying to, anyway — in all kinds of ways. Rhaenyra and Mysaria’s interrupted clinch was just one example.In King’s Landing, the acting regent prince, Aemond, is throwing his weight around. He boots his mother from his small council, and rejects Lord Larys Strong for the position of hand in favor of his cunning but loyal grandfather, Otto Hightower. He then sends Ser Criston — the man who knows he tried to murder his brother, King Aegon — off to root Daemon out of the hotly contested Riverlands, with his uncle Ser Gwayne Hightower in tow. The two men look as if they still haven’t washed off all the ash from their previous encounter with a hostile dragon, and this time Aemond is playing coy about when, or even if, he’ll fly out to protect them.Aemond saves his harshest cruelties for his big brother the king, whom he torments in his sickbed, the threat of murder hanging thick in the air. “I remember nothing,” the barely conscious Aegon repeatedly croaks, clearly scared for his life. Fortunately for Aegon, though, someone else recognizes what’s going on: the Clubfoot, Larys Strong.In his most emotionally unguarded moment to date, the cagey Master of Whisperers lays bare the pain and humiliation of a lifetime of being looked down upon because of his physical deformity and disability. This, he says with a tear falling from his eye, is the life Aegon now has to look forward to. But it comes with an upside: He will now be underestimated, and he can use that to his advantage.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

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      What’s on TV This Week: The Olympics and ‘Surreal Life: Villa of Secrets’

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      The opening ceremony airs on NBC. MTV reboots a reality show.For those who still enjoy a cable subscription, here is a selection of cable and network TV shows, movies and specials that broadcast this week, July 22-28. Details and times are subject to change.Monday61ST STREET 9 p.m. on the CW. The second season of this series follows a high school athlete, Moses Johnson (Tosin Cole), who is Black, as he navigates the corrupt Chicago criminal justice system when he is arrested as a supposed gang member. The show originally aired on AMC in 2022 but was canceled. The first two seasons were shot back to back, though, and the CW bought the show and is debuting Season 2.GYPSY ROSE: LIFE AFTER LOCK UP 9 p.m. on Lifetime. Since Gypsy Rose Blanchard was released from prison late last December, she has rarely been out of the headlines. This reality show has followed her as she manages parole, reconnects with her family and navigates her marriage with Ryan Anderson. Since the show has begun airing, she has filed for divorce from Anderson and is expecting a baby with her ex-fiancé, Ken Urker. On an episode of “The Kardashians” that aired last week, Blanchard met with Kim Kardashian to discuss potential prison reform efforts, so who knows what Blanchard will be up to after this show wraps.TuesdaySURREAL LIFE: VILLA OF SECRETS 9 p.m. on MTV. One thing that MTV loves to do is reboot a show. “The Surreal Life” originally aired on VH1 from 2003 to 2006. (It came back in 2022). It follows celebrities as they share a house together for two weeks. This reboot has a similar premise but with higher stakes: The celebrities — including Tyler Posey, Macy Gray and Johnny Weir — will participate in challenges that lead them to be vulnerable and divulge secrets.WednesdayA scene from “Charlie Hustle & the Matter of Pete Rose.”Courtesy of HBOCHARLIE HUSTLE & THE MATTER OF PETE ROSE 9 p.m. on HBO. Pete Rose played in the M.L.B. starting in 1963 and was most prominent when he played for the Cincinnati Reds. Throughout his career, he became a record-holder for career total of 4,256 hits, most games played (3,562) and most times at bat (14,053). In 1989, Rose had retired from playing and was the manager for the Reds when the commissioner, A. Bartlett Giamatti, banned him from the League over reports that he had engaged in sports betting — even for games involving his own team. This documentary features Rose himself as he reflects on his career.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

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      ‘Love Island USA’ Finds Its Magic Formula for Success

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      A new host, an embrace of social media and some excellent casting led to the former also-ran becoming the summer’s buzziest show.There is no shortage of dating reality shows, but this summer one is receiving the majority of the buzz. “Love Island USA,” an American spinoff of a popular British dating show, is dominating social media discourse, breaking streaming records and making fans out of even the most curmudgeonly anti-reality TV watchers.The show, which streams on Peacock, gathers a group of contestants, called islanders, into a luxury villa (this season is in Fiji) and tasks them with coupling up, either out of true love, friendship or simple survival. Islanders who are single were kicked out of the villa, and every so often American viewers have been asked to vote out their least favorite couple. In Sunday night’s season finale, the pair voted “most compatible,” will win a cash prize of $100,000.The show is captured through 80 to 90 cameras installed around the villa, which feed footage to a war room at the resort’s reception area. There, a crew of 450 producers, editors and postproduction executives make decisions about what footage will make the cut.“What’s shot on a Monday is delivered to the network on a Tuesday, and it works that way every day for a six-week run,” Simon Thomas, an executive producer at ITV Entertainment, the production company for “Love Island,” said in an interview.Though “Love Island USA” has been on air since 2019, this season — its sixth — has been by far the most successful. The first three seasons, which aired on CBS, received moderate viewership but did not live up to the success of the original British version. This season, the show has been the top reality series across all streaming platforms since its start on June 11, according to preliminary data from Nielsen. The show has also dominated social media, overshadowing Peacock’s other fan favorites like “The Traitors.”Ariana Madix’s supportive approach as host has been a huge hit with viewers.Ben Symons/PeacockWe 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

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      Leslie Uggams of ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Is a Fan of Nat King Cole and Billie Eilish

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      The actress, nominated for an Emmy and Golden Globe for her performance in “Roots,” is still going strong with appearances in the TV series “Fallout” and the upcoming movie “Deadpool & Wolverine.”The veteran singer and actress Leslie Uggams likes to be busy.“Even when I’m home and I get to relax,” she said in a phone interview from her home in New York, “I have to be doing something — cooking, doing a puzzle — something.”The 81-year-old has kept busy since she made her debut at age 6 as Ethel Waters’s niece in the 1950s sitcom “Beulah.” The career that followed included an adolescence spent singing and dancing at the Apollo Theater; hosting her own televised variety show in 1969 (Sammy Davis Jr. and Dick Van Dyke were among her guests); winning a lead actress Tony in 1968 for the musical “Hallelujah, Baby!”; and earning an Emmy and Golden Globe nomination for portraying Kizzy in the 1977 mini-series “Roots.”Keeping ever current, Uggams appeared in the 2023 film “American Fiction,” performed in “Jelly’s Last Jam” at New York City Center last winter, then did a cabaret run at 54 Below.”After seven decades, I am still going strong,” she said.Uggams’s latest role, as the Vault official Betty Pearson on the TV series “Fallout,” has attracted a new wave of sci-fi devotees. (“I’m getting a lot of fan mail about Betty.”) And she’s returning as the feisty, foul-mouthed Blind Al in “Deadpool & Wolverine,” opening July 26.“I am still riding the wave,” Uggams said, while reminiscing about her family, the author of “Roots” and the way the Apollo toughened her up as a performer. These are edited excerpts from the conversation.1Alex Haley, ‘Roots’ AuthorHe changed my life, not just because of being cast in “Roots.” He gave me and the world an understanding of ancestry and the importance of knowing our true history, not just what’s taught (or not taught) in schools.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