Heldenfels’ Mailbag: Is Linda Hunt leaving ‘NCIS: Los Angeles’?

You have questions. I have some answers.

Q: I have not been watching “NCIS: Los Angeles” this fall, so perhaps I have missed something that everyone else knows? Is Linda Hunt, who plays Hetty, leaving the show, or has even already left? I usually am a loyal fan during the winter, so was surprised when I tuned in last week and Hetty seemed to be gone.

A: Quite a few readers have been asking about Hetty’s status, perhaps because they missed the episodes that revealed she is being held hostage in Vietnam. The NCIS: LA team has not known her whereabouts, but she has shown up in several episodes, which, according to CBS, explained why she went to Vietnam and why she is in danger now. I’m told the team will get a clue to her location in a January episode and that will lead to a search for her.

Q: We have been following “The Collection,” and it wasn’t on Nov. 26 for what we thought would be the final episode of the season. The internet suggests there are eight episodes, but only seven have appeared. The seventh had an odd ending if in fact it was the finale.

A: The series about the fashion world in Paris after World War II has had a somewhat complicated broadcast history. An international production whose partners included Amazon Studios, the series was made available online via Amazon Prime well before it was televised on PBS’s Masterpiece.

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In addition, there are two versions. Eight episodes were shown overseas and on the U.K.’s Amazon Prime. The first two episodes were then edited into a single show, making seven episodes for U.S. presentation on Amazon Prime and then on Masterpiece. Those concluded their Masterpiece run on Nov. 19, though your local station may have scheduled it differently.

This is not the first time a British series has been reconfigured for the U.S. Downton Abbey, for one, also saw edits between the British and American telecasts. Pacing, content, time slots and other factors can cause such decisions. But, if you want to see The Collection as it first aired, the now-available DVD and Blu-ray sets promise the original U.K. cuts.

I am not sure if there will be another season. One source said the show is done, but an Amazon representative said, “We currently do not know if there will be a second season.”

Q: When will “Better Late Than Never” be back? We have been waiting!

A: The reality series following the travels of Henry Winkler, George Foreman, William Shatner and Terry Bradshaw, along with Jeff Dye, will have a special preview of its new season on Dec. 11 on NBC. The second season then officially begins with a two-hour premiere on Jan. 1, followed by weekly hours starting Jan. 8.

NBC says the new itinerary includes “Munich, Berlin, Lithuania, Sweden, Barcelona, Madrid and Morocco. … They will sample crazy culinary delicacies, participate in Oktoberfest in Munich, celebrate World Pride Day, ride camels in the middle of the Sahara Desert and face off against a bull in the oldest matador ring in Madrid.” And meet one of the members of ABBA.

Q: We found “Living Single” reruns on Bounce TV. It’s really funny, and we like Max and Kyle. But we can’t tell what year it was on.

A: The comedy about six African-American friends originally aired on Fox from 1993 to 1998. It starred Queen Latifah (as Khadijah), Kim Coles (Synclaire), Kim Fields (Regine), Erika Alexander (Max), T.C. Carson (Kyle) and John Henton (Overton).

The series had a following, but nothing compared to that for a similar show, Friends, which premiered the year after Living Single and came from the same studio. The people making Living Single felt they were too often shoved into the shadow of the NBC hit, especially when Fox scheduled it opposite Friends. Fields (who was Kim Fields Freeman for part of the show’s run) even told the Los Angeles Times, “The minute they start referring to us as ‘Black Friends,’ that’s when I’ll go off. It’s better to call them the ‘White Living Single.’ ”

Rich Heldenfels has retired from the Beacon Journal but continues to answer your questions about entertainment past, present and future. Write to Rich Heldenfels, P.O. Box 417, Mogadore, OH 44260, or brenfels@gmail.com. Letters may be edited. Individual replies are not guaranteed.