David Bianculli
David Bianculli is a guest host and TV critic on NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross. A contributor to the show since its inception, he has been a TV critic since 1975.
From 1993 to 2007, Bianculli was a TV critic for the New York Daily News.
Bianculli has written four books: The Platinum Age Of Television: From I Love Lucy to The Walking Dead, How TV Became Terrific (2016); Dangerously Funny: The Uncensored Story of 'The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour (Simon & Schuster/Touchstone, 2009); Teleliteracy: Taking Television Seriously (1992); and Dictionary of Teleliteracy (1996) .
A professor of TV and film at Rowan University, Bianculli is also the founder and editor of the website, TVWorthWatching.com.
-
Legion began its second season in early April on FX. David Bianculli says the new episode of the series, "Chapter 11," is strange and compelling in a way that reminds him of the original Twin Peaks.
-
Critic David Bianculli highlights two new TV dramas: an HBO film starring Al Pacino as Penn State football coach Joe Paterno, and an eight-part BBC America series about a sociopathic killer. -
Bochco, who died Sunday, created numerous series, including Hill Street Bluesand NYPD Blue.TV Critic David Bianculli looks back on Bochco's impact, then we listen to his 1989 Fresh Air interview.
-
Filmmaker Judd Apatow examines the major influences in Shandling's life — as well the ways the late comedian influenced others — in his two-part documentary, The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling.
-
Thirty years later, the Conner family returns, with many of their squabbles centering on current issues. Critic David Bianculli says the new Roseanne is good — "but nowhere near required viewing."
-
Netflix's drama about a woman who rebels against conformity and power structures returns for a second season on Thursday. Critic David Bianculli says Jessica Jones "transcends the superhero genre."
-
Scientists and filmmakers capture images in unprecedented, truly breathtaking ways in the BBC nature documentary series. Critic David Bianculli calls Blue Planet II a "dazzling piece of television."
-
Fred Rogers debuted on national public television in 1968 and quickly became known for his deliberate manner of relating to children. "Every one of us longs to be in touch with honesty," he once said. -
Critic David Bianculli says both shows are part of the revival of a TV genre that's been dormant for too long. "The beauty of the anthology series is that anything could happen," he says. -
The former late night host returns to what he does best — interesting, unpredictable talk — in his new series, My Next Guest Needs No Introduction.
