Media Menu, October 23, 2010

Here are home viewing suggestions for the week, selected from online advanced TV program listings and aligned with the state and national K-12 academic standards available online. Please consult local listings also, since actual broadcast times may vary. The Websites cited in the “Log on“ box below the tv listing provide further details about the show’s topic and may contain links to video clips from the show or a complete streaming video version of the show.

Saturday, October 23, 2010,
6-7 p.m. E/P
Sundance Channel
Arts and World History
Middle and High School

"Picasso and Braque Go The Movies ”

Among the first generation of cinemagoers in turn-of-the-century Paris were two young painters, Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque. Soon to revolutionize the history of art, Picasso and Braque were so smitten with early film that they formed a film club. Martin Scorsese narrates filmmaker Arne Glimcher's documentary exploration of early cinema's influence on the birth of Cubism and visual modernism. Featuring art historian John Richardson and contemporary masters of the canvas such as Chuck Close, Julian Schnabel and Eric Fischl. What holds the film together, is the steady stream of clips from early cinema — especially Georges Méliès’ photographic magic tricks — whose playful spirit found its way into Cubist paintings and drawings, especially those of Picasso. A voracious consumer of popular culture, he was first exposed to the movies in 1896, at 15, and was immediately smitten.

Log on http://movies.nytimes.com/2010/05/28/movies/28picasso.html

Sunday, October 24, 2010,
7-8 p.m. E/P
CBS
Economics, science and Technology
Middle and High School

"60 Minutes”

The main story in this newsmagazine is about the “99ers”. Even after an extension of unemployment benefits to 99 weeks, many of those about to go off the program are in a quandary. Scott Pelley talks to some of them in California’s Silicon Valley. Dr. Jane Goodall is the topic of the second story. She brings news cameras back to the forests of Tanzania, where she began her studies of with chimpanzees 50 years ago, to remind the public that chimps are endangered. Finally, a quirky British television show about cars has become a hit almost everywhere but the U.S. Steve Kroft reports on “Top Gear,” whose witty humor, outrageous speed, destructive vehicle stunts and car reviews attract an estimated weekly worldwide audience of 350 million according to the BBC.

Log on http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/60minutes/main3415.shtml

Sunday, October 24, 2010,
9-9:30 p.m. E/P
Nickelodeon Channel
U.S. History and Government
Middle and High School

“Nick News With Linda Ellerbee: Foster Care - A Reality Check”

The teens featured in the half hour interview special are from Brooklyn; Troy, N.Y.; Tampa, Fla.; Espanola, N.M.; and Omaha, Neb. “We don't have parents that were able to take care of us,” one says. “That's not our fault.” And that's the exact definition of a foster kid—from a foster kid. Foster care is when another grownup or family takes you in, because your parents can't or won’t provide for you properly. Close to half a million kids are currently in foster care. How did they wind up there? How do they cope with moving from home to home? And what happens when they're no longer kids? Those are all questions foster kids face every day. For many of them, a foster family is an oasis of stability and sanity in a world where they're not in control. But for others, foster care is filled with loneliness and longing for something most kids take for granted: a family of their own.

Log on http://news.nick.com/10/2010/15/what-is-a-foster-kid

Monday, October 25, 2010,
8-9 p.m. ET, 5-6 p.m. PT
CNBC Channel
Government and Economics
Middle and High School

“ Executive Vision: Leadership in Action – Infrastructure”

More than a simple network of roads and rails, infrastructure is a crucial building block of capitalism – and source of jobs. Its ingredients – energy, metals, materials – are all traded on the stock exchange, and these trades have far-reaching impact. Governments are just now realizing that there is money to be made from trading infrastructure, making this one of the hottest markets around. Participating in this news-discussion special are representatives of business and building. Daryl Dulaney, Siemens Industry President & CEO, Jay H. Walder, Metropolitan Transportation Authority Chairman & CEO, Barbara Weber, Capital Partners, Founding Partner, Frank Gehry, architect, Felix Rohatyn, Special Advisor to Lazard Chairman and CEO Kenneth M. Jacobs.

Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/39673241

Tuesday, October 26, 2010,
8-9 p.m. E/P
History Channel
U.S. and World History
Middle and High School

" The Real Story of Halloween ”

This is a documentary about Halloween observances. They began centuries ago as a pagan holiday that honored the dead that warned of a netherworld of spirits and ghosts. Today, Halloween has morphed into a day for breaking rules, pushing boundaries and wearing disguises. But Halloween remains a time for us to deal with our own mortality. Our modern Halloween traditions have ancient roots – people were going door to door and begging for treats on Halloween night as far back as the Middle Ages. We may think our Halloweens are crazy, but Halloweens past have been wilder and more dangerous than they are now. During the depression, Halloween became so violent and destructive that civil authorities had to step in and prevent wide-spread vandalism in cities across America. Their solution, the ritual of "trick or treat," now generates $2 billion dollars in candy sales each season. And these days adults get dressed up for the holiday almost as much as kids do. But no matter how many jack-o-lanterns get carved or kids yell "trick-or-treat!" Halloween is still all about the "scare." Two thousand years and counting, and we still like to be scared on the night of October 31. TV-PG

Log on http://www.history.com/topics/halloween

Tuesday, October 26, 2010,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. History and Economics
Middle and High School

" FRONTLINE: The Spill”

Through interviews with current and former BP employees and executives, government regulators and safety experts, this documentary examines the trail that led to the disaster in the Gulf. Long before the Deepwater Horizon explosion in the Gulf, BP was widely viewed as a company that valued deal-making and savvy marketing over safety, a “serial environmental criminal” that left behind a long trail of problems — deadly accidents, disastrous spills, countless safety violations — which many now believe should have triggered action by federal regulators. Could the spill have been prevented? Through interviews with current and former employees and executives, government regulators and safety experts, correspondent Martin Smith joins with the investigative non-profit ProPublica to examine the trail that led to the disaster in the Gulf. From BP’s vast oil fields in Alaska to its refineries in Texas and its trading rooms in New York and London, the film raises new questions about whether BP’s corporate culture will finally be forced to change.

Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline

Tuesday, October 26, 2010,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. History and Economics
Middle and High School

" INDEPENDENT LENS: Art & Copy”

This documentary provides an intimate look at the people behind the curtain of modern consumer culture. Viewers may want to thank ( or curse) the ad-makers in the film for creating evocative slogans such as “Just Do It,” “I ♥ NY,” “Where’s the Beef?” “Got Milk?” “Think Different,” and campaigns for everything from cars to presidents. The program reveals the works of the most influential advertising creatives of our time — people who've profoundly impacted our culture, yet are virtually unknown outside their industry. Emerging from advertising's "creative revolution" of the 1960s, these artists and writers all brought a surprisingly rebellious spirit to their work in a business more often associated with mediocrity or manipulation: George Lois, Mary Wells, Dan Wieden, Lee Clow, Hal Riney and others featured in the film led the way in the creation and constant redefinition of the ad business. Interwoven with their stories, TV satellites are launched, billboards are erected, and the social and cultural impact of their ads is brought to light in this exploration of art, commerce, and human emotion. The film serves as a history lesson in a time when we celebrate advertising entrepreneurs in TV shows such as Mad Men, but also are increasingly concerned about privacy issues and the sheer volume of spam, junk mail, and targeted marketing messages we are bombarded with daily. What does the crush of advertising do to our psyches? What makes truly good advertising both effective and entertaining? How do advertising creatives exploit the human brain to manipulate us into wanting things we might not even need? And most of all, what would we do without them?

Log on http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/art-and-copy

Wednesday, October 27, 2010,
9-10:30 p.m. E/P
PBS
Arts
Elementary, Middle and High School

" GREAT PERFORMANCES: Chicago Symphony Orchestra Riccardo Muti Inaugural Festival Concert”

This fall, the big news in classical music is Riccardo Muti’s arrival as the 10th music director of the renowned Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Chicago Symphony Orchestra Conductor Emeritus Pierre Boulez leads the Windy City’s internationally renowned orchestra in Gustav Mahler’s “Symphony No. 7,” taped over two nights, October 14 and 15 for this broadcast. Boulez replaces the orchestra’s ailing Music Director Riccardo Muti who was to have led the orchestra in a different musical program over those nights. One of Chicago’s most popular conductors, Boulez, winner of 26 Grammy Awards, is a composer, conductor and tireless advocate for new music and one of the most important musical and intellectual figures of our time. He served as CSO’s principal guest conductor – only the third person to hold that title – from 1995 until 2006, when he was named Helen Regenstein Conductor Emeritus.

Log on http://www.pbs.org/wnet/gperf/episodes/chicago-symphony-orchestra-pierre-boulez-conducts-mahler%e2%80%99s-7th/preview-the-concert/1035

Thursday, October 28, 2010,
8-8:30 p.m. ET, 5-5:30 p.m. PT
Ovation Channel
Arts
Middle and High School

"Jackson Pollock”

This documentary follows his life of painter Jackson Pollock, beginning with his Depression-era days working for the WPA through the optimism and Cold War paranoia that laced the 1950s. Pollock's relationships with both Ernest Hemingway, Pablo Picasso, are explored. Archival footage, including Hans Namuth's famous cinematic rendering of the artist at work, is coupled with archival photos of Pollock's time, when atom bombs stunned the world, Kerouac addressed the Beat Generation and jazz permeated the airwaves.

Log on http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/pollock_jackson.html

Thursday, October 28, 2010,
8-9 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
Technology and Geography
Elementary, Middle and High School

"Grand Canyon Skywalk ”

This documentary provides exclusive access to the construction of a man-made marvel suspended over one of Mother Nature's greatest wonders a horseshoe-shaped, glass-floored bridge that allows visitors to walk where eagles fly. The program takes viewers behind the daring design and death-defying construction of the Grand Canyon Skywalk, formed from 1 million pounds of steel and glass, perched 4,000 feet above the Colorado

Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/man-made/4049/Overview#ixzz131ZN3vGw

Friday, October 29, 2010,
8-9 p.m. E/P
History Channel
Economics and U.S. History
Middle and High School

" Modern Marvels: The Supermarket”

Our basic need and desire for food has made the supermarket one of the great success stories of modern retailing. Making customers' visits to the market as efficient as possible has led to bar coding and a scale that recognizes the type of produce placed on it. This documentary explores the psychology of the supermarket including store layout, lighting, music and aromas that trigger the appetite. With a growing percentage of the public interested in eating healthier foods, organic grocers are carving out an increasingly large niche. According to the Food Marketing Institute, the supermarket industry’s workforce of union and non-union personnel is almost three and a half million strong. TV-PG

Saturday, October 30, 2010,
noon – 3 p.m. E/P
Comedy Channel
U.S. History and Government
Middle and High School

" The Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear ”

This is a broadcast of demonstrations planned for October 30, 2010, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., to be led by Jon Stewart and an in-character Stephen Colbert. Billed as "a rally for the people who've been too busy to go to rallies", the stated purpose is to provide a venue for attendees to be heard above what Stewart describes as the more vocal and extreme 15–20 percent of Americans who "control the conversation" of United States politics such as the Tea Party movement and the anti-war movement that opposed the presidential administration of George W. Bush. Several news reports have expressed the opinion that the rallies are a satirical response to Glenn Beck’s Restoring Honor rally and the "Reclaim the Dream" counter-rally.

Log on http://www.rallytorestoresanity.com and http://www.keepfearalive.com