You have questions. I have some answers.
Q: I鈥檝e always wondered whether, when you DVR a show, it is actually counted as being watched live in the networks rating system. Or aren鈥檛 they able to detect that?
A: They are. As the ways we watch television expand and change, the people making television have sought new ways to figure out who is watching. Ratings service the Nielsen Company says in homes with its meters it tracks 鈥渢he watching of recorded programming up to seven days after an original broadcast.鈥� As if ratings weren鈥檛 tricky enough to follow before, you can now find reports focusing not only live-same-day audiences but live-plus-seven-days or live-plus-three days. Nielsen has also been studying other ways people watch TV, inside and outside the home, on an array of devices, as part of its plan 鈥渢o measure viewing everywhere that viewers enjoy content.鈥�
Q: What can you tell me about Jon Batiste, the bandleader on 鈥淭he Late Show With Stephen Colbert鈥�?
A: Part of a renowned Louisiana musical family, 31-year-old Batiste is a Juilliard-educated pianist, composer and bandleader (with the group Stay Human). According to CBS, he has played with Stevie Wonder and Lenny Kravitz, among others, and 鈥減aid homage to his unique musical philosophy with his debut album, 鈥橲ocial Music.鈥欌�� Batiste also has a Christmas album, and appeared as himself in 鈥淭reme,鈥� HBO鈥檚 acclaimed series about New Orleans, and acted in Spike Lee鈥檚 film 鈥淩ed Hook Summer.鈥� And he has been active with the National Jazz Museum in Harlem, where he is co-artistic director.
Q: I was wondering why the Freeform channel doesn鈥檛 show the 鈥淗arry Potter鈥� films anymore. They used to have a 鈥淗arry Potter鈥� weekend at least once a month.
A: Freeform no longer has the rights to those movies. Later this year NBC will reportedly begin offering the movies on its channels, including Syfy and USA. And right now HBO is making them available across its platforms, including HBO On Demand and its HBO Go app.
Q: Please tell me if 鈥淩ookie Blue鈥� will ever come up with a new season.
A: That series ended in 2015. You can find its star, Missy Peregrym, on CBS this fall in the new drama 鈥淔BI.鈥�
Q: I remember seeing and enjoying 鈥淪crooge,鈥� the musical version of 鈥淎 Christmas Carol鈥� in 1970. I bought the album and memorized the songs. I especially remember the scene where Scrooge gets taken into hell. However, when watching the film many, many times since then (on TV during the holiday season), the 鈥渉ell鈥� scene is gone. What happened to it, why, and is there anywhere I could find a version to purchase that includes the hell scene? I feel cheated!
A: There was indeed such a scene, which according to online fans was cut from network broadcasts. I do not know exactly why, except that programmers may have wanted to trim some time out of the film to make room for more commercials, and that scene was not essential to the overall story. That said, the scene is available in some presentations of the film, including the 2003 DVD release and a streaming version on Amazon.
Q: I have seen Season 1 of 鈥淟ondon Spy鈥� on Netflix. Is there any word on when or if there will be a Season 2 of this well done, gripping show? The suspense is killing me!
A: It appears unlikely that the drama starring Ben Whishaw will continue. Tom Rob Smith, who called the series 鈥渁 relationship drama refracted through the prism of the spy genre,鈥� told The Guardian in 2015 that 鈥渢he BBC have asked (for more) and my instinct is that it probably shouldn鈥檛 continue.鈥� He had worked through the central relationships and 鈥淚 don鈥檛 have any desire to explore the real-world spy consequences of what was going on.鈥�
