Sure, June is the beginning of fun in the sun, picnics, camping out, and all that. But for those of us who can’t take the Texas heat, get tired of shooing bugs from our food, and refuse to use facilities with non-flushing appliances, a little TV in air-conditioned comfort is the perfect summer getaway. Here are a few guilty pleasures to check out in June:
E! Entertainment Television premieres The Brady Bunch: The E! True Hollywood Story (6/6, 7pm). The wholesome Brady family was a staple of prime-time television from 1969 to 1974, featuring well-scrubbed and obedient kids, a doting mother, a wacky maid, and a father whose nice job as an architect enabled him to immaculately feed, clothe, and house the Brady brood. That was the show. Behind the scenes, it was more like real life. Between Robert Reed‘s (Mike Brady) temper tantrums, raging hormones among the young cast members, and disputes over money and creative direction, the Brady experience was much different for the stars and creators of the show. The two-hour E! program features interviews with nearly all the Brady kids, Florence Henderson, Ann B. Davis, and The Brady Bunch producer, Sherwood Schwartz, to provide the flip side of the pop culture phenom. Repeat showings are Monday at 9am and 3pm.
Crusade (6/9, 9pm, TNT), a spin-off of the Emmy- and Hugo-award-winning series, Babylon 5, premieres for a 13-episode run. Launching the series will be a repeat presentation of the final Babylon 5 installment, “A Call to Arms” (6/9, 7pm, TNT), which sets the stage for Crusade. Gary Cole stars as Matthew Gideon, captain of the destroyer Excalibur, who must lead his crew in a quest across galaxies for the cure to a deadly plague unleashed upon the earth by the warring Drakh. Tracy Scoggins and Carrie Dobro reprise their Babylon 5 roles as Captain Elizabeth Lochley and the alien Dureena, whose people were destroyed by the Drakh. Other stars in the limited series include Daniel Dae Kim, David A. Brooks, and Peter Woodward.
Cartoon, cartoons, and more cartoons on, where else? The Cartoon Network. New for the summer, Cartoon Cartoon Fridays(6/11, 6:30pm, Cartoon Network) begins next week, featuring premieres of network favorites, Dexter’s Laboratory, Ed, Edd n Eddy, Cow and Chicken, The Powerpuff Girls, Johnny Bravo, and I Am Weasel. Beginning Thursday (6/10), I Am Weasel graduates from a cartoon short to a half-hour series, airing at 7pm.
Take a station break at TVEye@auschron.com
This article appears in June 4 • 1999 and June 4 • 1999 (Cover).