july 4
Fourth of July Marathons: Red, White and Boob Tube!

Some people grill hamburgers and hot dogs, some people head to the beach, some people head off to the local fireworks show and some people prefer to spend the 4th, or at least part of it, in front of the TV. If channel surfing is part of the way you say Happy Birthday, America!, here's a quick guide to the marathons and holiday specials that will pepper the tube this July 4:
The Fourth is for sunburn, hamburgers, and TV marathons
I'm not a big Fourth of July person. You'll pretty much see me in front of the television as much as you'll see me in front of the television on July 3. I'm not a big cookout/parades/fireworks/beach type of guy.Are you that way too? There are some marathons on TV tomorrow that you might like. A sampling:
- Sci-Fi will continue their Twilight Zone marathon.
- TCM has Fourth of July/historical movies all day long.
- USA will have James Bond movies all day long starting at 9AM.
- Discovery has a Deadliest Catch marathon at 9AM.
- TV Land will have a Leave It To Beaver marathon starting at 11AM.
- At noon, HGTV has a marathon of HGTV's $250,000 Challenge.
Celebrate the 4th by watching television!
It's another holiday, and that means more TV marathons and specials! Here's a handy guide to the 4th (and the 5th and 6th).
July 4
- AMC has Planet of the Apes movies all morning, then the Jaws movies starting at 10:30am.
- At 6am, USA has a Walker, Texas Ranger marathon.
- TMC has episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents (80s version) at 6, then Hitchcock movies all day.
- At 7, ESPN2 has coverage of Wimbledon Tennis.
- At 8, A&E has a marathon of Paranormal State.
- Biography has a City Confidential marathon starting at 8.
- There's a Twilight Zone marathon starting at 8 on Sci-Fi.
- At 9, TruTV has a Beach Patrol marathon.
- FX has a King of the Hill marathon at 9.
- At noon, NBC has more Wimbledon.
- At 2pm, TV Land has an I Love Lucy marathon.
- At 3, HGTV has a Design Star marathon.
- At 8, PBS has A Capitol Fourth.
- At 9, NBC has the Macy's 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular.
- At 10, CBS has the Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular.
MTV puts the spotlight on young veterans
MTV continues its commitment to inspire young people to get out there and vote. As part of the Choose or Lose campaign, on July 4th MTV2 will honor the millions of young men and women who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan. The day-long programming event will include exclusive messages from both Senator McCain and Senator Obama. The programming block will not only pay tribute to the sacrifice of these young soldiers, but also elevate their issues in light of the 2008 Presidential campaigns.
Last week was the least-watched week... ever.
Guess what, kids? We just made history! That's right... last week, the broadcast networks experienced their least-watched week. Ever.ABC, CBS, NBC, and FOX averaged only 20.8 million viewers per prime-time minute last week, according to Nielsen, beating the previous low, which was set in late July, 2005. The factors cited for the low ratings? The extended holiday weekend (many people took July 3 and 4 off) and the lack of a breakout summer hit.
The unsaid theory? That the summer shows on the networks suck hard. Think about it; Psych, which debuted on USA this past week, got the highest cable ratings for scripted programming this year, which means that there were people watching TV last week. The viewers are there; they're just all turning to cable.
Oh, and I'm sure a few people went outside, too.
[via Mediabistro... regular commenter Doc also sent us a note about it.]
Talk Talk: Brooks & Dunn, Anthony Hopkins, Seth Green, Goo Goo Dolls
- Charlie Rose: TBA
- The Late Show With David Letterman: Michael Keaton and Wolfmother (repeat)
- Jay Leno: Ellen DeGeneres, The Goo Goo Dolls, and Scott McClellan (repeat - after Wimbledon highlights)
- Jimmy Kimmel Live: Tommy Lee, Greg Fitzsimmons, and The Fixx (repeat)
- Late Night With Conan O'Brien: Anthony Hopkins, Piper Perabo, and Marty Stuart (repeat)
- The Late, Late Show With Craig Ferguson: Brooks & Dunn and Pauley Perrette
- Last Call With Carson Daly: Seth Green and Mike O'Connell (repeat)
What's on tonight: Celebrate the Fourth!
At 8pm, CBS has A Hero's Welcome, followed by a repeat NCIS, then the Boston Pops Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular. - PBS has A Capitol Fourth, from Washington, D.C.
- Also at 8: TCM has Mr. Smith Goes To Washington.
- At 9, NBC has the Macy's 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular.
- TLC has a new Overhaulin' at 9.
- Biography Channel has Tom Selleck in Ike: Countdown to D-Day. It's on at 9 too.
- At 9:30, ESPN2 has World Cup coverage.
- At 10, ABC has An American Celebration at Ford's Theater: The Fourth of July Special.
- The Sci-Fi Channel has another day of their Twilight Zone marathon all day and night (until 10pm).
- USA is showing a Monk marathon all day and night.
What are you watching today?
So here it is, the Fourth of July. Barbecues, beaches, parades, fireworks and all that. But there's TV too, if you don't want to go outside.
What is everyone watching today? It's a weekday so many of the same shows are on, but there are also a lot of specials too. USA has a Monk marathon all day and night, while The Sci-Fi Channel has the last day of their three day Twilight Zone marathon. CNN, MSNBC, and FOX News will probably have coverage of all of the Fourth celebrations and rememberances throughout the day. And the space shuttle Discovery is supposed to lift off at 2:38pm ET.
My two Fourth of July TV traditions are watching the episode of Magnum, P.I. where he goes out on the Fourth to row by himself, and gets knocked off of his canoe and has flashbacks to when his dad taught him to swim. And Wimbledon! I'll be watching Wimbledon all day on NBC and ESPN2.
What are your Fourth TV traditions?
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