By RODNEY HO/ rho@ajc.com, originally filed Thursday, July 9, 2015
11 Alive is going to air a four-week test run of a talk show starring Dallas preacher T.D. Jakes next month, from August 17 through Sept. 11. It will run at 2 p.m. subbing out repeats of "Rachael Ray."
This is apparently the summer of test runs for talk shows. Currently, Fox 5 is airing a test run with former Atlantans and married couple Boris Kodjoe and Nicole Ari Parker for a month. That began earlier this week. This will be followed by a talk show hosted by couple Ice T and Coco for a month.
If the shows do well enough, their respective production companies will pitch them for full-season runs in syndication for the fall of 2016.
Recent successful talk shows have mostly been helmed by African Americans. See "The Real," Wendy Williams and Steve Harvey. That's partly because blacks disproportionately watch daytime TV.
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Credit: Rodney Ho
Credit: Rodney Ho
Atlanta rap star and actor Chris "Ludacris" Bridges is playing the narrator in a Thanksgiving Lifetime live-action film called "Jim Henson's Turkey Hollow." It's set to air November 21.
Here's the summary:
The Travel Channel's "Bizarre Foods: Delicious Destinations" comes to Atlanta airing Monday, July 13 at 9. The focus: comfort food. Bizarre? Not really.
Andrew Zimmern, best known for his "Bizarre Foods" show (thus the reference in the show title), narrates the episode though he never actually sets foot in the city. He pops in for some visuals but he shoots from a generic restaurant clearly not in Atlanta.
To be fair, he did do an episode of "Bizarre Foods" a couple of years ago where Zimmern did actually come to Atlanta and hung with Margaret Cho when she lived here. The episode featured Buford Highway Farmers Market, Decimal Place Farm in Conley, JeJu Sauna in Duluth, the Octopus Bar in Atlanta, Heirloom BBQ in Atlanta, among others.
The producers this time around didn't venture far from downtown and Midtown, opting for some of the most predictable eateries anyone who has lived in Atlanta for more than five minutes would consider.
- The historical Atlanta Busy Bee Cafe for its fried chicken. "We prepare it with love and season it with soul," said owner Tracy Gates.
- Ivy's Heavenly Cobber, available at Atlanta's Twisted Soul. "When people bite into the cobbler, I want them to feel the hug," said owner Joshua Elijah. (This was the one pick that was not predictable so kudos for that.)
- Silver Skillet in Midtown. They focus on country ham and red eye gravy, which is spiked with coffee. Owner Teresa Breckenridge shows their particular recipe.
- Empire State South in Midtown. In the screening I watched, Zimmern mispronounces the owner's name Hugh Acheson. Instead of "Ach" like "catch," he says "Ach" like "h." (Maybe they'll fix that before air. I told the publicist.) Anyway, Acheson offers his take on the Pimento cheese sandwich using Cayenne pepper from Louisiana and red peppers.
- Mary Mac's Tea Room. Jeff Thomas, kitchen manager, said they create their fried green tomatoes old school using panko bread crumbs.
- The Varsity. To prove how unimaginative the producers are, they close out the half hour with the most cliched place to recommend to tourists and traveling politicians seeking a photo op: the Varsity. No offense to the Varsity, but really? Anyway, the focus is on their signature onion rings, which uses rice bran oil. "This oil doesn't cling to the product and make it greasy," said owner Gordon Muir.
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