The Thanksgiving Day TV marathon … it’s probably responsible for thwarting more family dramas than we’ll ever know. When the fam gets to be too much, the boob tube can provide a bit of solace (i.e. escape), whether it be from a Brady Bunch marathon (“My nose, my nose, my nose!”) or the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade or NBC’s annual National Dog Show, hosted by the not real J. Peterman.

Whatever’s your TV pleasure – and your family drama to avoid – there’s surely something on TVScreener.com‘s Thanksgiving Day (and Friday, for nursing those tryptophan hangovers) Viewing Guide to make your Turkey Day less of a turkey. And don’t call me Shirley.

PS – A general channel surfing rule of thumb: Lifetime Movie Network … always something worthy of your guilty pleasure viewing hours there.

THURSDAY (all times ET)

MARATHONS:
Cake Boss (TLC): 6AM-3AM Friday

Supernanny (Style): 6AM-3AM Friday

House (USA): 7AM-7PM

The Godfather I, II and III (AMC): 7:30AM-8PM

Cool Tools (DIY): 8AM-4AM Friday

First 48 (A&E): 8AM-11PM

Genius of Photography (Ovation): 8AM-2AM Friday

James Bond movie marathon (SyFy): 8AM-5:30AM Friday (includes Dr. No, License to Kill, Live and Let Die, The Spy Who Loved Me, Tomorrow Never Dies, Casino Royale, For Your Eyes Only and The Man with the Golden Gun)

House Hunters and House Hunters International (HGTV): 8:30AM-6PM

The Brady Bunch (TV Land): 9AM-6PM

Cats 101 and Dogs 101 (Animal Planet): 9AM-7PM

Food Paradise (Travel): 9AM-8PM (including episodes on donuts, breakfast, ice cream, sandwiches, hot dogs, steak, hamburger, bar food, barbecue and more steak)

MythBusters (Discovery Channel): 9AM-3AM Friday

Top Chef (Bravo): 9AM-4:30PM

Band of Brothers (Spike): 9:30AM-9PM

The Closer (TNT): 10AM-6PM

My Fair Wedding with David Tutera (WE): 10AM-5PM

Snapped (Oxygen): 10AM-2AM (Saturday)

Biography on CNBC (CNBC): 11AM-6PM

Lockup (MSNBC): 11AM-5AM Friday

Home Alone (FX): Noon-midnight (is Home Alone the new A Christmas Story with this all-day airings?)

World’s Strictest Parents (MTV): Noon-8PM

Real Housewives of Orange County (Bravo): 4:30PM-11PM

Pawn Stars (History): 8PM-3AM Friday

George Lopez (the sitcom) (Nick): 9PM-6AM on Friday

AND:

– Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade (NBC): 9AM
– Tommy Boy (a classic) (TBS): 10AM
– The National Dog Show (NBC): Noon
– The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (Nick): 3PM
– A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (ABC): 8PM
– Beyonce: I Am … Yours (ABC): 9PM
– CNN Heroes: An All-star Tribute (CNN): 9PM
– Elf (USA): 9PM
– Love Actually (Lifetime): 9PM (PERFECT holiday movie. Trust me)
– Martha Stewart’s Christmas Special (FLN): 9PM
– NBC’s People of the Year (NBC): 9PM
– Punkin Chunkin (Science): 9PM
– Paul McCartney: Good Evening New York City (ABC): 10PM
– Great Performances with Mary J. Blige, Andrea Bocelli and David Foster (PBS): Check local listings for time and channel

FRIDAY (all times ET)

MARATHONS:
Say Yes to the Dress (TLC): 6AM-10PM

NCIS (USA): 6:30AM-12:30PM

Criminal Minds (A&E): 8AM-11PM

James Bond movie marathon (SyFy): 8AM-5:30AM Saturday (includes Thunderball, From Russia With Love, You Only Live Twice, Diamonds Are Forever, Casino Royale, GoldenEye, Goldfinger and Never Say Never Again)

Real Housewives of New Jersey (Bravo): 8AM-5PM

That ’70s Show (FX): 8AM-5PM

Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern (Travel): 9AM-8PM

Deadliest Catch (Discovery Channel): 9AM-3AM Friday

Mission: Organization (FLN): 9AM-3PM

Moonlight (Chill): 9AM-5PM

Sanford & Son (TV Land): 9AM-4PM

Everybody Hates Chris (BET): 10AM-6PM

Caught on Camera (MSNBC): 11AM-5AM Saturday

Law & Order (TNT): 11AM-7PM

Golden Girls (WE): Noon-7PM

Seinfeld (TBS): Noon-4PM

100 Greatest One-Hit Wonders of the ’80s (VH1 Classic): 1PM-6PM

Beverly Hills 90210 (SoapNet): 1PM-9PM

I’m Alive (Animal Planet): 1PM-10PM

White Collar (USA): 1:30-7PM

Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives (Food Network): 2PM-11PM

Ultimate Factories (NGC): 2PM-8PM

The Andy Griffith Show (TV Land): 4PM-10PM

100 Greatest Hard Rock Songs (VH1): 6PM-11PM

Til Debt Do Us Part (CNBC): 6PM-9PM

AND:

– Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas (PBS): 9AM
– Storytellers: Foo Fighters (VH1): 11AM and 11PM
– Toys We Grew Up With (HGTV): 1PM
– 25 Great Holiday Ideas (HGTV): 3PM
– Bowfinger (my al-time favorite movie about Hollywood – Fake Purse Ninjas!) (Comedy Central): 4:45PM
– SpongeBob SquarePants (new episode) (Nick): 8PM
– Monk (penultimate episode of the series) (USA): 9PM
– White Collar (new episode) (USA): 10PM

• 2 Comments
• Filed in Holiday Programming, TV News
• Tags: Brady Bunch, Cake Boss, CHarlie Brown Thanksgiving, Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, MythBusters, Real Housewives, Thanksgiving TV marathons, Thanksgiving TV schedule

Oh, Jan! One little joke about you and your TV sis having a lesbian affair and you’re reading to blow off the opportunity to reunite with the whole Brady Bunch on Oprah!

At least, that’s the story according to the New York Post, which claims that the Bunch – sans Eve “Jan Brady” Plumb – will reunite on an episode of Oprah in September. Why a no-show for Plumb? She’s allegedly ticked off that her TV sis, Maureen “Marcia, Marcia, Marcia” McCormick, joked that the two had had a little fling back in the day when McCormick was promoting her autobio last year.

“All of us said yes except for one person, Eve Plumb, who used to be my best friend but now apparently wants to distance herself from the show and, most troubling, from me,” according to McCormick. “I have no idea why, unless she’s mad at the joke I made a few years ago that we’d had a lesbian love affair. I made the crack to be funny — and for shock value. I’m sorry if she took offense.”

Plumb’s rep denies his client turned down a chance to sit with her TV fam and The Big O, so here’s hoping all six Bradys will be on the couch come September.

• 1 Comment
• Filed in Comedy, TV Books, TV News
• Tags: Brady Bunch, Brady Bunch reunion, Marcia Brady

As they say on Best Week Ever, in case you missed it: Winners at last weekend’s Game Show Awards on GSN:

Best Game Show: Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?

Best Game Show Host: Howie Mandel, Deal or No Deal

Favorite Classic Game Show: Match Game

Best Reality Competition Show: Dancing With the Stars

Favorite Dating or Relationship Show: The Newlywed Game

Favorite Celebrity Team: The Brady Kids (Barry Williams, Mike Lookinland, Eve Plumb and Susan Olsen) for their appearance on Trivial Pursuit: America Plays

Favorite Game Show Models: The Briefcase Models, Deal or No Deal

Most Outrageous Game Show Contestant: Excited Contestant Dances a Jig (Josh Silberman), The Price Is Right

Favorite Game Show Theme Song: Jeopardy!

Favorite Parting Gift: Turtle Wax

Favorite Interactive DVD Version of a Game Show: Deal Or No Deal

Favorite Celebrity Player: Betty White, for her appearances on Million Dollar Password

Best Announcer: Rich Fields, The Price Is Right

Smartest Game Show Contestant: Kathy Cox, Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?

Favorite Game Show Catchphrase: “Come on down!” from The Price Is Right

Favorite Price Is Right Pricing Game: Plinko

Favorite Game Show Sound Effect: New Puzzle, Wheel of Fortune

Favorite Prize: A new car!

Favorite Board/Box Game Turned Game Show: Trivial Pursuit

Favorite Online Game: Bejeweled

Did GSN get it right? You can’t argue any time Plinko or Betty White get some love, but Howie Mandel as best game show host? Better than Trebek or the delightful Drew Carey? Nah.

• No Comments
• Filed in Award shows, Game shows
• Tags: "Come on down!", Alex Trebek, Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?, Barry Williams, Bejeweled, Best Week Ever, Betty White, Brady Bunch, Dancing With the Stars, Deal or No Deal, Drew Carey, Eve Plumb, Game Show Awards, GSN, Howie Mandel, Jeopardy, Josh Silberman, Kathy Cox, Match Game, Mike Lookinland, Million Dollar Password, Plinko, Rich Fields, Susan Olsen, The Newlywed Game, The Price Is Right, Trivial Pursuit, Trivial Pursuit: America Plays, Wheel of Fortune

All the tube news that’s fit to surf …

– American Idol producers say there was no funny business with those AT&T text-messaging services that gave Kris Allen fans the chance to throw extra votes his way. You buying it? Well, then, read this story, in which one fan says the AT&T set-up helped her cast more than 10,000 votes for Allen. Whuuut?!

– John Lithgow as a serial killer on the new season of Dexter? Brilliant.

– Another surprising bit of casting: Freddie Prinze Jr. will play Davis Cole, the new CTU Field Ops head who wants to be just like Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) on season eight of 24. Not a name that would have popped into my head to play mini-Jack, but 24‘s castings have always been flawless, so I’ll trust that this one will be no exception.

– Clearly, I’m not the only one who finds Wipeout charming. And you have to love any show that puts John “Skunk Boy” Henson back on the tube every week.

– With the Gosselins‘ problems still major tabloid fodder, USA Today has a rundown of some other famous reality TV families, and the one thing that’s true about all of them: Being on TV only seemed to make their problems worse.

– Cindy Brady’s (Susan Olsen) writing a book about the bizarre bit of TV history that was The Brady Bunch Variety Hour.

– Now that the networks’ fall skeds are set, they’ve begun recasting some of their pilots. Sorry to see 24‘s Michelle Dessler (Reiko Aylesworth) out of a job.

– More 24 news: Jack Bauer and Captain Kirk will be presenting an award at Sunday’s live MTV Movie Awards.

– And, this Real Housewives business may quickly spiral out of control. Reportedly also on the list of upcoming spin-offs: Real Housewives of Chicago. Not that there’s anything wrong with that … just that there’s not gonna be much non-Housewives room left on the Bravo schedule soon if they roll out all these rumored spin-offs.

• No Comments
• Filed in 24, American Idol, Celebreality, Comedy, Drama, TV News
• Tags: 24, American Idol voting scandal, American Idol. Kris Allen, AT&T, Brady Bunch, Bravo, Captain Kirk, Cindy Brady, Dexter, Freddie Prinze Jr., Gosselin, Jack Bauer, John Henson, John Lithgow, Jon & Kate Plus 8, Jon Gosselin, kate Gosselin, Kiefer Sutherland, pilots, Real Housewives, Real Housewives of Chicago, Reality TV families, recasting, Reiko Aylesworth, Susan Olsen, The Brady Bunch Variety Hour, voting, Wipeout