‘Beatles ’64,’ ‘Blue Bloods’ Retrospective, Mancini’s Music, Spy Intrigue in ‘The Agency,’ Ben Stiller in ‘Nutcrackers

Beatles ’64

Beatlemania was at its height in 1964 when The Beatles paid their memorable first visit to America, captured in an evocative documentary produced by Martin Scorsese and directed by David Tedeschi, taking advantage of newly discovered footage to give eternal fans a new angle on the Liverpool moptops in their youthful glory. “We were kind of normal and the rest of the world was crazy,” reflects the late George Harrison in archival material. The special features remixed footage from the band’s first American concert at the Washington, D.C. Coliseum and excerpts of their legendary debut on The Ed Sullivan Show, which attracted a TV audience of 73 million. The screaming is indelible, a cathartic response from a nation still reeling from JFK’s assassination. “Maybe America needed something like The Beatles to be lifted out of sorrow,” suggests Paul McCartney in a new interview.

Blue Bloods: Celebrating a Family Legacy

In advance of the Dec. 13 series finale, fans of the beloved police drama get an inside look at the show from its cast as they reflect on Blue Bloods’ 14-season run in an Entertainment Tonight retrospective hosted by Nischelle Turner. With new cast interviews and archival ET footage, the special goes backstage for the show’s signature family-dinner scenes, including details about the first time the cast gathered around the Reagan dinner table before they had jelled as an ensemble. The cast reminisces about filming in New York City and tease the final episode.

Great Performances

Henry Mancini 100 at the Hollywood Bowl: Henry Mancini’s melodic music, which netted him four Oscars and 20 Grammys, is instantly recognizable, and to celebrate what would have been his 100th year, the Hollywood Bowl honors the composer (1924-1994), who conducted there 29 times, with a concert of his greatest film and TV hits. Saxophonist Dave Koz teams with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra for renditions of “The Pink Panther Theme,” “Baby Elephant Walk” from Hatari! and the Peter Gunn theme, with Wicked star Cynthia Erivo performing “Days of Wine and Roses,” “Crazy World” and “Le Jazz Hot” from Victor/Victoria, and Michael Bublé crooning “Moon River” and “It Had Better Be Tonight.” The composer’s daughter, Monica Mancini, delivers “Two for the Road” and “Anywhere the Heart Goes.” Also featured: scenes from the recording of a 100th-anniversary album, with the last televised appearance of the late Quincy Jones.

The Agency

Michael Fassbender is the latest spy to come in from the cold—or in his case, the heat of Ethiopia—in a chilly espionage drama based on the French hit The Bureau. His code name is Martian, which well describes his feeling of dislocation when the CIA abruptly calls him back to the London office from a six-year mission. He leaves behind a married lover (Jodie Turner-Smith) whose sudden arrival in London raises red flags for him and his bosses (who include Richard Gere, Jeffrey Wright and Dominic West). The disappearance of an asset in Belarus, which could disrupt critical operations in Russia and Ukraine, adds to Martian’s full plate of existential angst. Usually known for comedy, Harriet Sansom Harris co-stars as an agency psych expert assigned to monitor Martian’s mental state. Launches with two episodes, with a linear premiere Sunday at 9/8c.

Outlander

Fate once again separates Claire (Caitríona Balfe) from Jamie (Sam Heughan) in an eventful episode of the time-tripping historical romance, when she leaves Scotland for Revolutionary War-era Philadelphia to attend to a wounded Henry Grey (Harry Jarvis). Along for the ride: Young Ian (John Bell), who hopes to reconnect with his Quaker soulmate Rachel Hunter (Izzy Meikle-Small). In another timeline, Roger (Richard Rankin) experiences more flashes from his ancestral past in 1739 Scotland.

Nutcrackers

Ben Stiller stars in the irreverent slapstick heart-warmer Nutcrackers (streaming on Hulu) as Michael, a Chicago workaholic transplanted to rural Ohio after a tragic accident orphans his four unruly nephews, who barely know their new guardian. Also on Hulu: a new five-episode season of Dear Santa: The Series, showcasing the U.S. Postal Service’s “Operation Santa” program that fulfills the Christmas wishes of young letter writers, including children who ask Santa to bring gifts for less fortunate kids.

A Hallmark Channel double feature includes A ’90s Christmas (6/5c), with Eva Bourne as Lucy Miller, a workaholic (sound familiar?) lawyer whose magical Christmas Eve rideshare whisks her back to 1999 to reclaim the high school crush (Chandler Massey) who got away. Followed by Deck the Walls (8/7c), starring Ashley Greene as Rose, a Chicago interior designer who heads to suburban Ohio (sound familiar?) to help with a Christmas charity house flip, where she flips for her brother’s best friend (Wes Brown). On Great American Family, A Cinderella Christmas Ball (8/7c) features waltz choreography from Dancing with the Stars’ Gleb Savchenko in the story of a dance instructor (Danica McKellar) who travels to the royal hamlet of Havenshire in search of her birth family, where she teaches some moves to a headstrong prince (Oliver Rice) after sneaking into his castle.

INSIDE FRIDAY TV:

• Elf (8/7c, TBS): The beloved 2003 comedy starring Will Ferrell as the irrepressible Buddy airs consecutively in a 24-hour marathon through 8 pm/7c on Saturday.
• Lady of the Dunes: Hunting a Cape Cod Killer (8/7c, Oxygen): Over two nights (concluding Saturday at 9/8c), a true-crime special follows the 50-year investigation into the murder of a Jane Doe whose body was found in the dunes of Provincetown in 1974.
• Children Ruin Everything (9/8c, The CW): The domestic sitcom returns for a fourth season with back-to-back episodes. First, harried parents Astrid (Meaghan Rath) and James (Aaron Abrams) cope with their son Felix (Logan Nicholson) revealing signs of pre-teen rebellion, then James tries to juggle a job interview with stay-at-home dad responsibilities.
• Music Box: Yacht Rock: A Dockumentary (9/8c, HBO): The latest installment of the Music Box docuseries pays respect to the genre of West Coast soft-rock popularized in the late 1970s and early ’80s, with practitioners including Kenny Loggins, Michael McDonald and Christopher Cross weighing in.

ON THE STREAM:

• Black Friday Football (3 pm/ET, Prime Video): For the second year, the NFL stages a Black Friday football match, with the Kansas City Chiefs taking on the Las Vegas Raiders.
• Senna (streaming on Netflix): A six-episode biopic miniseries tracks the exciting but too-short life of Brazilian racing champion Ayrton Senna (Gabriel Leone), who earned three Grand Prix titles before his untimely death at 34 in a crash at the San Marino Grand Prix in Italy.
• The Later Daters (streaming on Netflix): If The Golden Bachelorette left you wanting more, executive producer Michelle Obama complies with an upbeat series focusing on six baby boomers who re-enter the dating pool with the help of their grown kids, the encouragement of friends and advice from a relationship expert.
• Silo (streaming on Apple TV+): While Juliette (Rebecca Ferguson) gains insight while trying to draw the eccentric survivor named Solo (Steve Zahn) out of his vault, the dystopian sci-fi drama cuts back to her original silo, where Bernard (Tim Robbins) attempts to impose order on the restless workers who saw their sheriff hero walk over the hill.