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TV Media Weekly | March 23 - 29, 2019 By Adam Thomlison TV Media Q: I love the series "Home- front" and would love to watch the episodes all again. Why isn't it available on DVD or in reruns? A: Assuming you mean the ear- ly-'90s period drama starring fu- ture "Friday Night Lights" star Kyle Chandler, the sad answer seems to be that the show just wasn't on long enough. "Homefront" ran for one and a half seasons from 1991 to 1993 on ABC, which canceled it midway through season 2. The show told the stories of soldiers returning home to River Run, Ohio, after serving in World War II. In hindsight, particularly given its short run, it's mostly memorable as one of Chandler's early, failed attempts to find his star-making role on TV. "Homefront" was his first real crack at being a series lead, and though it didn't last, it paved the way for further success. Three years later he was starring in another show, the heartwarming fantasy drama "Early Edition," and six years after that he finally found his career-defining gig as Coach Taylor in "Friday Night Lights." He's now an established star with major film and TV credits to his name. Unfortunately, he didn't have that kind of success with "Home- front," and that's why you can't find it anymore. As a rule, to quali- fy for airing in reruns, a show needs to have produced at least 100 episodes, and "Homefront" only did 42. Q: What has the actress who played Linda in "Blue Bloods" been doing since she left the show? A: Working on a burgeoning film career. Amy Carlson has been working pretty hard since her last appear- ance as Linda Reagan in "Blue Bloods" back in 2017. She hasn't had much to show for it yet, but that's about to change. So far she's only done one small- ish part in an oddball indie picture (last year's "A Bread Factory, Part One"), but she has two films due out later this year. "Sunny Daze" is an indie drama about the bond that grows be- tween a man and his best friend's son as they both mourn the pass- ing of the boy's father. "The Inco- herents" is a comedy about a group of aging friends who decide to reunite their '90s rock band. She's also eyeing a return to series TV, at least briefly — she has an as-yet-unrevealed role in the upcoming NBC drama "The Village." Have a question? Email us at questions@tvtabloid.com. Please include your name and town. Hollywood Q&A By Andrew Warren TV Media I t's been said that a family that cooks together sticks to- gether. Those are some wise words, and after checking out Food Network's newest competition series, I think that an extra line could be added: a family that cooks together can also win together. "Family Food Showdown" premiered a few weeks ago on Food Network, and you can catch a new episode on Sunday, March 24. It pits families against each other in a series of chal- lenges intended to test their culi- nary mettle. It not only puts cooking abilities to the test, but also family dynamics, thanks to a delicious twist that forces each competing family to bench one of its members after the first round of competition. Actress Valerie Bertinelli ("Hot in Cleveland") serves as the host and overseer of the competition, and this Hollywood star is no dunce in the kitchen herself. She's become a Food Network staple over the past few years, hosting her own show ("Valerie's Home Cooking") and co-hosting "Kids Baking Cham- pionship" alongside cake artist Duff Goldman. Each episode finds two fami- lies — each composed of three members — eager to go head to head with their favorite family recipes. In the first round, the teams are challenged to make a dish that really represents who they are as a family. Easy enough — but things get more compli- cated when each team must eliminate one of their own fami- ly members before heading into the second round. That little twist brings in a whole new level of strategy to what could otherwise be a pretty standard cooking competition. But wait — it gets even more strategic. Before the third and fi- nal round of cooking begins, each family must choose anoth- er family member to bench — but this time, they're choosing someone from the other team. So far the series has seen fam- ilies challenged to make Moth- er's Day meals, tasked with pre- paring surf-and-turf dishes and asked to make their best rice dishes. No family member wants to be seen as the weakest link and get benched early on in the competition — but everyone also wants their family to take home the win. Watch the family cooking drama play out in "Fam- ily Food Showdown," now airing Sundays on Food Network. New Food Network series brings family dynamics to the table 10 | Cooking this week Moore's Home Health 2 x 2" Family Health Clinic 2 x 1.5" White Lilies N Paradise 2 x 1.5" Valerie Bertinelli hosts "Family Food Showdown" COMPLIMENTARY CONSULTATIONS COM COM COMPLI PLI PLIMEN MEN MENTAR TAR TARY C Y C Y CONS ONS ONSULT ULT ULTATI ATI ATIONS ON O 333 North Philips Street • Kokomo, IN 765-459-0637 • www.whiteliliesinparadise.com Monday through Friday 9am-5pm. Sat. 9am- 1pm Like us on Facebook for more updates! bouquets • centerpieces ceremony fl owers •corsages boutonnieres White Lilies N Paradise adise

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