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TV: Something old, something new

‘Development’ not so arrested, ‘Psycho’ gets reboot and interesting reality participants sign on

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13 years ago

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Bates Motel, Norman Bates, Freddie Highmore, Vera Farmiga, gay news, Washington Blade
Bates Motel, Norman Bates, Freddie Highmore, Vera Farmiga, gay news, Washington Blade

Freddie Highmore as Norman Bates and Vera Farmiga as his mother in A&E’s new series’ ‘Bates Motel.’ The famous creepy old house, seen here in the background, was rebuilt in Vancouver for the new show. Look for it March 18 at 10 p.m. (Photo courtesy A&E)

The 22nd season of CBS’s “The Amazing Race” is in full swing. Contestants include a team of YouTube hosts, Joey Graceffa and Meghan Camarena. Episodes air Sundays at 8 p.m., and the season will run until May 5.

After seven years off the air, “Arrested Development” fans will rejoice when the show returns for a fourth season in May on Netflix. Portia de Rossi, Jason Bateman and the rest of the Bluth family are reuniting along with some of the series’ famous recurring stars, including Liza Minnelli. Kristin Wiig will join the cast, playing a young Lucille Bluth.

In addition to his time as a Bluth, Tony Hale returns to “Veep,” starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Vice President Selina Meyer. The new season premieres April 14 on HBO.

“Celebrity Apprentice” returns to NBC with its first All Star edition on Sunday at 9 p.m. Celebrities returning to the competition include Penn Jillette, LaToya Jackson and Lisa Rinna. Omarosa will compete in the show for the third time. Past winners Joan Rivers and Piers Morgan will appear as guest judges.

CBS’s “How I Met Your Mother,” starring Neil Patrick Harris, continues to air Mondays at 8 p.m. This season saw the return of Rachel Bilson as Ted’s lesbian ex-girlfriend and the latest installment in the Robin Sparkles opus. The season finale is on May 13.

A new web series, “The 3 Bits,” launches soon. Promoted as “a queer show about sex, love, booze, drugs, friendship, family and amazing acts of stupidity,” the show stars Cole Escola who tries to navigate issues like online dating, STDs and foot fetishism. A preview for the upcoming series can be found on the3bits.com.

A&E premieres “Bates Motel” on March 18 at 10 p.m. The series depicts the early life of Norman Bates, a character immortalized by late gay actor Anthony Perkins in “Psycho.” The show stars Freddie Highmore as Norman Bates and Vera Farmiga as his mother Norma.

“Happy Endings,” starring Adam Pally and Casey Wilson, returns from its hiatus on March 29 at 8 p.m. on ABC with back-to-back episodes. RuPaul will make a guest appearance this season, as will Abby Elliot, reuniting with fellow SNL alum Casey Wilson. With the show’s move to the “Friday night death slot,” the future of the GLAAD Media Award-nominated sitcom is uncertain.

Bravo debuts a new reality show called “Dukes of Melrose” on March 6 at 10:30 p.m. The series will follow Christos Garkinos and Cameron Silver, owners of the couture store Decades. It follows the season premiere of “It’s a Brad, Brad World” at 10 p.m.

“Ke$ha: My Crazy Beautiful Life” airs on MTV on April 23 at 11 p.m. The documentary covers the drama in Ke$ha’s personal and professional life over the past two years and the making of her album “Warrior.”

Courtney Cox will join fellow “Friends” alum Matthew Perry in an April episode of NBC’s struggling sitcom “Go On.” This will be Cox and Perry’s first television appearance together since playing married couple Chandler and Monica. The series airs on Tuesdays at 9 p.m.

Sarah Chalke stars in ABC’s “How to Live with Your Parents (For the Rest of Your Life).” Chalke plays a recently divorced mother forced to move back home with her parents. Elizabeth Perkins plays her vulgar mom with a rich sexual past. The show premieres April 3 at 9:30 p.m.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vWkCY_NQJg

Just because the Oscars have passed doesn’t mean awards season is over. Rebel Wilson hosts the MTV Movie Awards on April 14 at 9 p.m., and Blake Shelton and Luke Bryan will host the Academy of Country Music Awards on April 7 at 8 p.m. on CBS. Taylor Swift is nominated to win her third consecutive Entertainer of the Year at the ACMs.

“Shameless” continues its third season on Showtime on Sundays at 9 p.m. Fiona tries to keep the Gallagher family together despite issues with her alcoholic father, a run-in with child protective services, and Ian’s affair with Jimmy’s dad Lloyd. “The West Wing” alum Bradley Whitford will appear on the show in a multi-episode arc, playing a sophisticated gay man and political activist. The season finale airs April 7.

A new season of HBO’s “True Blood” starts June 9 at 9 p.m. It picks up where season five left off: Bill turned evil and empowered himself with Lilith’s blood, Sookie and the gang are trying to escape the Authority, Andy was forced to raise four fairy babies and the mystery surrounding the vampire Warlow began unfolding.

“Game of Thrones” returns to HBO March 31 at 10 p.m. Winter is coming to Westeros as Arya Stark continues her quest to reunite with her family, Sansa tries to escape from King Joffrey, Daenerys uses her dragons to reclaim her family’s throne and a swarm of White Walkers descends on the Night’s Watch camp.

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Photos

PHOTOS: Denali at Pitchers

‘Drag Race’ alum performs at Thirst Trap

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54 minutes ago

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April 14, 2026

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Denali performs at the Thirst Trap Thursday drag show at Pitchers DC on April 9. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Denali (@denalifoxx) of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” performed at Pitchers DC on April 9 for the Thirst Trap Thursday drag show. Other performers included Cake Pop!, Brooke N Hymen, Stacy Monique-Max and Silver Ware Sidora.

(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

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Arts & Entertainment

In an act of artistic defiance, Baltimore Center Stage stays focused on DEI

‘Maybe it’s a triple-down’

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1 day ago

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April 13, 2026

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Last year, Baltimore Center Stage refused to give up its DEI focus in the face of losing federal funding. They've tripled down. (Photo by Ulysses Muñoz of the Baltimore Banner)

By LESLIE GRAY STREETER | I’m always tickled when people complain about artists “going political.” The inherent nature of art, of creation and free expression, is political. This becomes obvious when entire governments try to threaten it out of existence, like in 2025, when the brand-new presidential administration demanded organizations halt so-called diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programming or risk federal funding.

Baltimore Center Stage’s response? A resounding and hearty “Nah.” A year later, they’re still doubling down on diversity.

“Maybe it’s a triple-down,” said Ken-Matt Martin, the theater’s producing director, chuckling.

The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.

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Books

Susan Lucci on love, loss, and ‘All My Children’

New book chronicles life of iconic soap star

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1 day ago

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April 13, 2026

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(Book cover image courtesy of Blackstone Publishing)

‘La Lucci’
By Susan Lucci with Laura Morton
c.2026, Blackstone Publishing
$29.99/196 pages

They’re among the world’s greatest love stories.

You know them well: Marc Antony and Cleopatra. Abelard and Heloise. Phoebe and Langley. Cliff and Nina. Jesse and Angie, Opal and Palmer, Palmer and Daisy, Tad and Dixie. Now read “La Lucci” by Susan Lucci, with Laura Morton, and you might also think of Susan and Helmut.

When she was a very small girl, Susan Lucci loved to perform. Also when she was young, she learned that words have power. She vowed to use them for good for the rest of her life.

Her parents, she says, were supportive and her family, loving. Because of her Italian heritage, she was “ethnic looking” but Lucci’s mother was careful to point out dark-haired beauties on TV and elsewhere, giving Lucci a foundation of confidence.

That’s just one of the things for which Lucci says she’s grateful. In fact, she says, “Prayers of gratitude are how I begin and end each day.”

She is particularly grateful for becoming a mother to her two adult children, and to the doctors who saved her son’s life when he was a newborn.

Lucci writes about gratitude for her long career. She was a keystone character on TV’s “All My Children,” and she learned a lot from older actors on the show, and from Agnes Nixon, the creator of it. She says she still keeps in touch with many of her former costars.

She is thankful for her mother’s caretakers, who stepped in when dementia struck. Grateful for more doctors, who did heart-saving work when Lucci had a clogged artery. Grateful for friends, opportunities, life, grandchildren, and a career that continues.

And she’s grateful for the love she shared with her husband, Helmut Huber, who died nearly four years ago. Grateful for the chance to grieve, to heal, and to continue.

And yet, she says of her husband: “He was never timid, but I know he was afraid at the end, and that kills me down to my soul.”

“It’s been 15 years since Erica Kane and I parted ways,” says author Susan Lucci (with Laura Morton), and she says that people still approach her to confirm or deny rumors of the show’s resurrection. There’s still no answer to that here (sorry, fans), but what you’ll find inside “La Lucci” is still exceptionally generous.

If this book were just filled with stories, you’d like it just fine. If it was only about Lucci’s faith and her gratitude – words that happen to appear very frequently here – you’d still like reading it. But Lucci tells her stories of family, children and “All My Children,” while also offering help to couples who’ve endured miscarriage, women who’ve had heart problems, and widow(ers) who are spinning and need the kindness of someone who’s lived loss, too.

These are the other things you’ll find in “La Lucci,” in a voice you’ll hear in your head, if you spent your lunch hours glued to the TV back in the day. It’s a comfortable, fun read for fans. It’s a story you’ll love.

The Blade may receive commissions from qualifying purchases made via this post.

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