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Thursday, December 28, 2006
TV Says “Amen” to James Brown
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Quick! Hurry up and turn on TV One and you can catch James Brown … sort of. To honor the memory of the late, great Godfather of Soul, TV One has switched around episodes — now in the 2:30 p.m. Thursday time slot, it’s an “Amen” rerun in which Deacon Frye (the singular Sherman Hemsley) impersonated Brown singing “Living in America.”
Even better, Brown himself — the real deal — shows up at 9 a.m. Friday on another episode of “Amen.” It’s the two-part series finale, with Brown guest starring in the second part. And it’s just one of many different ways that television is choosing to honor the Hardest Working Man in Show Business over the next few days.
First, the funeral (that is, the public ceremony honoring Brown Saturday in Augusta): The all-news cable channels are still working on their coverage plans at this moment, while the local network affiliates say they’ll cover events in the course of their newscasts. Same for VH1 and MTV, which plan to air news briefs and some online features.
Then there are the specials looking at Brown’s life and legacy: On Friday at 10 p.m. GPB (the major public television network here in Georgia) re-airs the excellent American Masters film, “James Brown: Soul Survivor.” From his humble beginnings and unmatched showmanship, the funk music he helped create and the Civil Rights era he helped provide the soundtrack for, to interviews with everyone from Little Richard to Chuck D, it’s all here. Meanwhile, BET has two different Brown specials slated to run several times over the next few days. “Soul Brother # 1: Remembering James Brown” debuts Saturday at 9 p.m. (re-airing 2 a.m. and 9 a.m. Sunday, and 11:30 p.m. Monday). At 9:30 a.m. Sunday, it’s “The Godfather of Soul: Celebrating the Life of James Brown,” BET’s recap of the various Brown memorial events. That re-airs at 11 p.m. Monday.
Finally, TV is dipping back into its archives to showcse other examples of Brown at his best — that is, when he was being James Brown, albeit in the unlikeliest of settings. Friday at 10 a.m., TV One has a classic episode of “Showtime at the Apollo,” which Brown guest-hosted. That’s followed at 11 a.m. by a rerun of “New York Undercover,” the gritty cop drama in which Brown somehow showed up as the musical guest (“Wait, stop or I’ll sing “I Feel Good!”)
But wait, it gets better! GSN — aka, the Game Show Network — has come up with an old “What’s My Line” in which Brown was the mystery guest! It first aired in November 1968, and featured Arlene Francis, Phyllis Newman, Gawn Grainger (don’t ask me, I have no idea who that is) and Soupy Sales trying to guess Brown’s identity. It airs at 3:30 a.m. Monday on GSN (right after one at 3 a.m. starring a then little-known congressman, Gerald Ford, in case you care).
Soupy Sales helping to send of James Brown. That sounds just about right for a man who broke all the molds, twice….
