Let’s get right to the fireworks! Washington, D.C, New York City and Boston, home of the Pops, provide a pyrotechnic finale to summery week of television debuts and highlights:
MONDAY
HBO gets things rolling on a cheery note tonight, with Ganja Queen, a documentary about an Australian woman who was busted with 10 pounds of marijuana in Indonesia, where trafficking is a capital offense. That’s at 9.
TUESDAY
Teen pregnancy is the focus and Juno must be the inspiration (and selling point) for the family drama series, The Secret Life of the American Teenager. Starring Jamie Lynn Spears– just kidding! But former teen star Molly Ringwald plays a mom! The series premieres on ABC Family at 8 pm.
NBC’s Celebrity Family Feud is carting out a real rogue’s gallery of tabloid and controversy. Last week’s season premiere featured Ice-T and Joan Rivers. Its second episode’s got The Sopranos‘ Vincent Pastore, Hugh Hefner’s Girls Next Door, Dog the Bounty Hunter and Kathie Lee Gifford! And the Kardashians are still in the wings. Maybe they should move this show to E! 8 pm.
At 9, NBC tries once again to convince us that America’s Got Talent. At least it’s fun to see them try.
And Petrozza or Christine? Fox has the Hell’s Kitchen finale at 9. One of them will become the executive chef at a Gordon Ramsay restaurant in Los Angeles, and one of us may one day have the misfortune of finding out we’re eating there!
Check your local listings for the PBS Wide Angle series, featuring a documentary about Darfur, where as many as 400,000 have died from violence and disease. At the very least, you can find out why all those celebrities have made this a cause.
WEDNESDAY
Shear Genius on Bravo at 10!
THURSDAY
CBS was once known as the Tiffany network. This Seventies sex-themed Swingtown series features Deep Throat star Harry Reems as a guest star. 10 pm.
FRIDAY
Fireworks! If you can’t find the real thing, there’s always the big events, and they’re stacked up one after another so you can visit all three.
PBS has A Capitol Fourth from Washington, DC at 8 pm, featuring an All Star, All-American musical cast, including Jerry Lee Lewis, Huey Lewis, American Idol Taylor Hicks, Broadway star Brian Stokes Mitchell, sopranos Hayley Westenra and Harolyn Blackwell, and conductor Erich Kunzel and the National Symphony Orchestra.
NBC has the Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular, 9 pm from New York City, featuring an All Star, All-American cast including Kenny Chesney, American Idol Jordin Sparks, American Idol’s Katharine McPhee, and, umm, Natasha Bedingfeld, who’s a Brit.
And if you’re looking for something even more traditional, head to CBS at 10 pm for The Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular, with conductor Keith Lockhart, the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra, The 1812 Overture and all those cannons.
