VARIOUS

Road of Hope: The Spiritual Journey of Cardinal Nguyen Van Thuan

EWTN The Vietnamese Communists imprisoned Cardinal Francois Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan (1928-2002) of Saigon for 13 years, kept him under house arrest for three more years, and then exiled him for life. He wrote, “I spent nine years in solitary confinement and … I said Mass every day at three o’clock, the hour of Jesus’ death on the cross. I was all alone and could sing and chant whatever I wished, in Latin, in French and Vietnamese. They were the most beautiful Masses of my life.” This biography airs at 2am May 23, 1pm May 26, and 2pm May 29.

SUNDAY, May 23, 8pm

Nature: Why We Love Cats and Dogs

PBS Animal behavior experts and pet owners analyze our affection for America’s 90 million cats and 73 million dogs, discussing relationship styles, “shared emotions and empathy,” “personality traits” and pet training.

TUESDAY, May 25, 10pm

Independent Lens:

A Village Called Versailles

PBS Vietnamese refugees who settled in the New Orleans section of Versailles starting in 1975 were used to overcoming obstacles; they were the first to rebuild after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. When the New Orleans mayor put a toxic waste landfill nearby in 2006, they organized under Father Luke Nguyen and others and got the dump closed.

SUNDAY, May 30, 8pm, live

National Memorial Day

Concert

PBS The National Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Jack Everly and accompanied by famed singers, performs patriotic favorites on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol in a salute to all who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation. Re-airing at 9:30pm.

THURSDAY, June 3, 9pm

Modern Marvels: Enter & Exit

HISTORY This new episode features doors and how they’re made: home, office, revolving, vault, blast, bulletproof, and hidden doors, plus airlocks, turnstiles, airplane exits, ejection seats, and the world’s tallest doors at the Kennedy Space Center.

FRIDAY, June 4, 10am and 8pm, live

Scripps National Spelling Bee

ESPN, ABC “Take care that you never spell a word wrong,” Thomas Jefferson advised one of his daughters. Today, dozens of spellers, most of them ages 12-14, compete in our nation’s capital. The semifinals are on ESPN at 10am, and the finals air on ABC at 8pm.

SATURDAY, June 5, 5pm, live

Belmont Stakes

ABC Post time is 6:30pm at Belmont Park, Long Island, N.Y., for this 141st running of the 1 1/2-mile final leg of thoroughbred horse racing’s Triple Crown.

Dan Engler writes from
Santa Barbara, California.