By Rick Gables
American Masters will explore the remarkable life of one of the country’s most talented performers, Sammy Davis, Jr. when it airs American Masters — Sammy Davis, Jr.: I’ve Gotta Be Me on PBS Tuesday, Feb. 19, at 9 p.m. ET. (Check local listings.) This is the first major film documentary to examine Davis’ vast talent and his journey for identity through the shifting tides of civil rights and racial progress during 20th century America. Sammy Davis, Jr. had the kind of career that was indisputably legendary, so vast and multi-faceted that it was dizzying in its scope and scale. And yet, his life was complicated and contradictory. Davis strove to achieve the American Dream in a time of racial prejudice and shifting political territory. He was the veteran of increasingly outdated show business traditions. Trying to stay relevant; he frequently found himself bracketed by the bigotry of white America and the distaste of black America. He was the most public black figure to embrace Judaism, thereby yoking his identity to another persecuted minority. Featuring new interviews with such luminaries as Billy Crystal, Norman Lear, Jerry Lewis, Whoopi Goldberg and Kim Novak, with never-before-seen photographs from Davis’ vast personal collection and excerpts from his electric performances in television, film and concert, Sammy Davis, Jr.: I’ve Gotta Be Me explores the life and art of a uniquely gifted entertainer whose trajectory blazed across the major flashpoints of American society from the Depression through the 1980s.
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver will return to HBO for its sixth season on Sunday, Feb. 17, at 11 p.m. ET/PT. Presenting a satirical look at the week in news, politics and current events, as well as addressing broader issues, the show received four Primetime Emmys® in 2018, including Outstanding Variety Talk Series for the third year in a row.
Fan favorite series Shadowhunters returns to Freeform with all new episodes on Monday, Feb. 25, at 8 p.m. ET/PT. In the emotional midseason premiere, everyone is dealing with the loss of Clary and are trying to move on as best they can. Unbeknownst to them, the Shadowhunters face a new level of evil that they can’t even imagine with the arrival of Jonathan Morgenstern (Luke Baines), the true form of Clary’s brother. Alec (Matthew Daddario), Isabelle (Emeraude Toubia) and Jace (Dominic Sherwood) try to come to terms with what has happened.