You have questions. I have some answers.
Q: I started watching “Ordinary Joe” and it seems to have disappeared. Will it return? And if it not, why?
A: The series about the different paths a man’s life could have taken had a first season of 13 episodes, all of which aired. But the ratings were disappointing, and NBC decided not to order a second season. Those 13 episodes are available on streaming service Peacock.
Q: Whatever happened to the series “Blood & Treasure”? Its episodes in 2019 showed promise.
A: While it looked as if the adventure drama could quickly come back to the CBS schedule, COVID-19 concerns in 2020 reportedly delayed production. CBS announced plans for a second season in the 2021-22 season. But as of late March the network did not have a date set for its return. It’s possible it will show up in May, since that was the month that the first season premiered. The first season is available on streaming service Paramount+.
Q: We loved the series “The Gilded Age” and are wondering if the house interior shots were in actual homes or were they just sets?
A: Creating 1880s New York City for the delicious HBO drama involved a variety of techniques including visual effects, set construction, location shooting and the use of historic places for interiors and exteriors. House Beautiful tallied 18 different historic homes used in the “Gilded” first season “all of which can be visited and toured in person.” Among those used for interiors are Newport, Rhode Island, sites including the Breakers, the Elms, Chateau-sur-Mer and the Hunter House.
The series, by the way, has been renewed for a second season.
Q: I vaguely remember a sitcom from the 1970s that featured a family in the then Soviet Union. Am I correct or imagining?
A: “Ivan the Terrible,” which aired briefly on CBS in 1976, starred Lou Jacobi as Ivan, a Moscow waiter sharing a small apartment with eight other people and a dog. The reference book “Total Television” calls it “forgettable” — but at least it was memorable to you.
Q: If I remember correctly, there was an episode of “Bonanza” that guest starred a young Wayne Newton. He was driving a wagon and he sang “Scarlet Ribbons” Am I right?
A: Yes. That was in the 1966 episode “The Unwritten Commandment.” Newton played a young man named Andy Walker and reprised the role later that year in a “Bonanza” Christmas episode.
Q: In the new Britbox series “Murder in Provence,” Antoine (the main character) is described as a “judge,” but he doesn't act like one. He seems to be more of a chief detective. Is he a member of the police? I never see him carry a gun or arrest anyone.
A: In the series inspired by the novels by M.L. Longworth, Antoine Verlaque (played by Roger Allam) is, according to one show description, an “investigating judge," which is different from what we think of as a judge in the United States. Several law references note that, among other things, he can oversee the collection of evidence and question witnesses.
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