In this offshoot (sort of) of Showtime's drama series "The L Word," cameras follow lesbians in Los Angeles and New York as they go about their lives. These ladies juggle their highly successful careers, social lives, relationships and families -- under the watchful eyes of viewers.
People are mortal, which is a point driven home by this series that follows people who are facing their imminent death. The ill people on "Time of Death" are supported by family, friends, health care professionals, and hospice workers. The stories told include those of a single mother with invasive breast cancer; a psychotherapist specializing in death and dying but who, herself, has pancreatic cancer; a veteran with a rare form of cancer; and a young woman who has metastatic melanoma.
This reality series follows several men in Las Vegas who work as gigolos, although -- for legal reasons -- the company's owner classifies the business as a "companion service" whose clients pay an hourly rate. The show, which delves into the guys' personal and professional lives, is surprisingly truthful and heartfelt, and it shows the wild ride that real-life escorts experience. The men providing companionship include Wisconsin native Nick, who was in the Air Force before starting his company that books entertainment for private parties, athletic Vin, who has a passion for learning, and entrepreneur Brace, whose business interests include real estate and nutritional supplements.
In the 21st century, most people use the Internet on a daily basis, but there is more to the worldwide network than what is at its surface. This documentary series explores that often-disturbing darker side of the Internet. The dark web, as it's known, was originally intended to be a hidden area where members of the intelligence community could privately meet, but it is increasingly being exploited by online predators and criminals. Each half-hour episode details a particular theme, which include cyberkidnapping, digital warfare, online cults and pornography addiction. "Dark Net" intends to raise thought-provoking conversations about technology and privacy.
Veteran writer and comedian David Steinberg sits down with comics and other entertainers for one-on-one interviews in this series that delves into the stars' lives and careers. Steinberg's guests -- a list that includes such luminaries as Chris Rock, Jerry Seinfeld, Mel Brooks, Don Rickles and Jonathan Winters -- share career-defining moments, personal struggles and the idols who inspired them. These intimate interviews give viewers a glimpse into what makes legendary comedians who they are, both personally and professionally. The hard-working Steinberg not only hosts the show but also serves as an executive producer and directs each episode.
Longtime CBS Sunday night staple "60 Minutes" has become synonymous with investigative journalism since its 1968 debut and has spawned genre-specific variations on a number of cable networks, most of which feature repackaged versions of previously aired "60 Minutes" reports. This monthly, sports-focused version on CBS corporate sibling Showtime bucks the repackaging trend by featuring original reporting from veteran journalists, including lead correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi, longtime sports journalist Armen Keteyian and "60 Minutes" correspondents Anderson Cooper, Lara Logan and Scott Pelley. In addition to original segments, which range in content from investigative reports to interviews and profiles of sports figures, episodes feature updated classic sports stories from the "60 Minutes" archive.
National Public Radio's long-running documentary series makes the leap to TV, telling stories culled from all across the nation. Host Ira Glass (who's pulling double-duty on the TV show as he's also the host on radio) and a team of filmmakers spend months on the road finding stories they think would be interesting to viewers -- stories involving Iowa pig farms, an Illinois hot-dog stand and a man who spends several hours a day in his family's mausoleum, among other tales. Many of the stories featured on the show were originally told on the radio show, with video added for the TV audience.