Rob Owen stories, Page 8

Rob Owen
Rob Owen
Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff, dies at 88
TV Talk at TCA: PBS previews ‘Moonflower Murders’; filmed-in-Pittsburgh ‘Deliverance’ trailer released
PASADENA, Calif. — This fall “Masterpiece Mystery!” debuts “Moonflower Murders” (9 p.m. Sept. 15-Oct. 20, WQED-TV), a follow-up to 2022’s “Magpie Murders.” Book editor Susan Ryeland (Lesley Manville, “The Crown”) is living in Crete with long-time boyfriend Andreas (Alexandros Logothetis) but a murder at a British hotel eight years earlier...
TV Talk: Chariot races, gladiator battles fill ‘Those About to Die’ 
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. The next few weeks should bring new subscribers to Peacock with its wall-to-wall coverage of the Summer Olympics from Paris beginning July 26, so the streaming service will use those increased eyeballs watching to also...
TV Talk: Pittsburgh native joins CBS’s ‘Big Brother’
Pittsburgh native Leah Peters, a 26-year-old “VIP cocktail server” living in Miami, is among the competitors on this year’s 26th season of “Big Brother” (9 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday beginning this week, KDKA-TV). Peters is one of 16 initial houseguests who will, for the first time, have the power...
TV Talk at TCA: ‘Elevated’ procedurals reign this fall, including Pittsburgh native Zachary Quinto’s show 
PASADENA, Calif. — Procedural dramas — episodic shows that tell a story with a beginning, middle and end in one hour — were TV staples from the 1950s through the 1990s. In the ‘80s, serialized dramas with ongoing storylines began to emerge with “Hill Street Blues,” “St. Elsewhere,” and later...
TV Talk at TCA: ‘Tracker,’ ‘Elsbeth’ prepare 2nd seasons; ‘Young Sheldon’ spin-off to premiere
PASADENA, Calif. — CBS enters the 2024-25 TV season this fall from a position of strength thanks to the successful launches of “Tracker” and “Elsbeth” earlier this year. Justin Hartley stars in “Tracker” as a for-hire hunk who tracks down missing people. Hartley describes his Colter Shaw character as a...
TV Talk at TCA: ‘Shōgun,’ ‘Hacks’ win big at TCA Awards; ‘PITT’ adds cast
PASADENA, Calif. — Friday night at the Langham Huntington Hotel the 40th annual Television Critics Association Awards offered the most recognition to FX’s “Shōgun” (best new program, program of the year, best drama and individual achievement in drama for star Anna Sawai) and Max’s “Hacks” (best comedy, individual achievement in...
TV Talk at TCA: Go behind the scenes of latest Disney’s ‘Descendants’ premiere party
PASADENA, Calif. — No two Hollywood premieres are alike but often they are lavish affairs, the swankiest wedding reception you’ve never been invited to, only more extensively themed and entertaining. After all, Hollywood knows how to put on a show, whether it’s on screens — big or small — or...
TV Talk at TCA: FX keeps the quality shows coming; WTAE-TV anchor exits 
PASADENA, Calif. – The summer 2024 edition of the Television Critics Association press tour kicked off Wednesday at the Langham Huntington Hotel with Disney-owned properties ABC, FX and Hulu/Onyx presenting panels with the stars, writers and producers of upcoming programs. FX, home to “Shogun” and “Fargo” and producer of “The...
TV Q&A: What’s going on in WTAE’s sports department?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: What happened to all the female sports reporters on Channel 4? The anchors have been doing the sports reporting lately. — Patty via email Rob:...
TV Talk: Shark attack survivor becomes ‘Shark Week’ mainstay 
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. Shark attack survivor Paul de Gelder has been a mainstay of Discovery Channel’s “Shark Week” programs since 2013. For one of the five shows he appears in this year that will air on Discovery and...
TV Talk: Eddie Murphy’s back in 4th ‘Beverly Hills Cop;’ KDKA-TV hires meteorologist 
Now streaming on Netflix, “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F” is the type of tentpole film that would have been a holiday weekend theatrical release in the pre-streaming era. Despite the rough reception to “Beverly Hills Cop III” in 1994 — 11% fresh among critics, 35% fresh among audiences on RottenTomatoes.com...
TV Q&A: Where can one watch a new classic cartoon network?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: Has any local station become an affiliate for the new MeTV Toon channel in the Pittsburgh area? It’s a channel that plays classic cartoon shows....
TV Talk: Pittsburgh native wants you to guess: Is he ‘The Mole’? 
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. Reality series “The Mole,” which began on ABC in 2001 and then got revived by Netflix two years ago, introduces a Pittsburgh contestant in the show’s second season on Netflix. Now streaming its first five...
TV Talk: CNN’s debate rules keep candidates on track
The first debate of the 2024 general election presidential cycle broke from tradition, albeit in different ways than the 2020 debates that saw then-President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden talk over and sneer at one another. Unlike for the past several decades since 1988, Wednesday’s debate was not...
TV Talk: Shaler grad writes music for ‘Ariel;’ ‘The Bear’ roars again; MeTV Toons launches 
For its latest animated series, “Disney Jr.’s Ariel,” inspired by “The Little Mermaid” story, animated and live-action films, producers enlisted Anthony M. “Tone” Jones, a 2000 graduate of Shaler Area High School, to help create one-to-two songs per episode. “Disney’s Jr.’s Ariel” (9 a.m. Thursday, Disney Junior; eight episodes available...
TV Q&A: How can WPXI make its ‘most-watched news station’ claim?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: Channel 11, WPXI-TV says they are the “most-watched news station” in Pittsburgh. What is this based on? One show or newscasts throughout the day? —...
TV Talk: ‘King Coal’ offers an elegy for connection rooted in a controversial industry
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. The critically acclaimed documentary film “King Coal” already played in Pittsburgh cinemas and its initial run was extended due to high demand. This week, “King Coal” is available for home viewing as the first film...
TV Talk: WTAE names South Hills native Ashley Liotus as sports anchor/reporter
Following Emily Giangreco’s departure in April, WTAE named Ashley Liotus the station’s newest sports anchor/reporter. Liotus has freelanced for Channel 4 since 2022, prior to Giangreco’s arrival. “We are thrilled to officially make Ashley part of our WTAE Channel 4 family,” WTAE general manager and president Charles W. Wolfertz III...
TV Talk: ‘Orphan Black’ rebooted 
In the 2013-17 BBC America sci-fi serial “Orphan Black,” actress Tatiana Maslany played multiple clones of her primary character, ultimately creating one of the better recent genre series, albeit one that grew overly convoluted as the series’ mythology expanded season-by-season. The new sequel series, “Orphan Black: Echoes” (10 p.m. Sunday,...
TV Q&A: How many sportscasters are on KDKA-TV?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: How many sportscasters are there on KDKA-TV? — Bill via email Rob: Bob Pompeani and Richie Walsh are the full-time KDKA sports reporters/anchors, and freelancer...
TV Talk: ‘House of the Dragon’ successfully toggles between heartbreak and dark humor in 2nd season 
The first season of HBO’s “Game of Thrones” prequel series “House of the Dragon” was a mixed bag: So many — too many, really — characters with similar-sounding names and blond wigs, a time jump that resulted in the recasting of roles just as viewers started to get to know...
TV Talk: Pittsburgher competes on PBS’s ‘Great American Recipe’
Western Pennsylvania native Doug Heilman wasn’t familiar with PBS’s “Great American Recipe” (9 p.m. Monday, WQED-TV), now in its third season, so when a casting producer reached out over his social media encouraging the home cook Heilman to apply, Heilman ignored that direct message for two weeks. “It seemed spammy....
TV Talk: ‘Watson’ filming locally, ‘The Deliverance’ dated
CBS’s upcoming Pittsburgh-set medical/investigative procedural “Watson,” slated to air Sunday nights in spring 2025, will film predominantly in Vancouver, British Columbia. But star Morris Chestnut and some other cast members are in Pittsburgh this week to film exterior scenes over several days that will be inserted into episodes of the...
TV Q&A: Did Alby Oxenreiter retire from WPXI?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: What’s the story with Alby Oxenreiter? He hasn’t been seen for about a year on WPXI-TV. I’m wondering if he decided to retire early because...
TV Talk: Western Pa. native films Apple TV+’s ‘Presumed Innocent’ 
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. Scott Turow’s 1987 novel “Presumed Innocent,” already adapted into a 1991 feature film starring Harrison Ford, gets the limited series treatment this week as Apple TV+ debuts its eight-­episode take on the same story. This...


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