Q: It was such a disappointment to all of us musical theater fans that the wonderful "Schmigadoon!" was canceled by Apple TV+ before Season 3 could be filmed. Any chance it will be picked up by another network?

A: It was indeed a treasure as it built its stories around classic Broadway musical styles, with an array of musical pros (Ariana DeBose, Alan Cumming and Kristin Chenoweth among them) joining stars Cecily Strong and Keegan-Michael Key. But the premise could not draw a wide audience. After the cancellation, creator Cinco Paul said in a social media post, "It's a miracle we even got two seasons, honestly." Could it come back sometime? These days it seems any series has a chance of eventual revival. But I'm not optimistic about this one.

A familiar face

Q: I just discovered "Iron Chef America." Then I rewatched "John Wick: Chapter 3,″ and I have to ask: Is the last assassin in that movie also "The Chairman" on "Iron Chef America"?

A: Yes. That is Mark Dacascos, an actor and martial artist. He was the assassin Zero in "John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum" and has been the Chairman in several "Iron Chef" series. You also may know him from the most recent "Hawaii Five-O" series, where he played the villain Wo Fat.

It's about time

Q: What's with the five-minute period when local stations stretch their 10 p.m. newscasts before the network late-night shows begin at 10:35? Why don't they begin and end at the half-hour like most scheduled programs?

A: It's a way for local newscasts to get in a few more minutes of commercials before the late shows begin. That's not the only occasion for odd start times. When Ted Turner was trying to bring viewers to TBS and TNT, he observed that starting on the hour and half-hour meant his networks' TV listings were jammed in with other programs at those times. So, he put the start times at five minutes past the hour or half-hour. And NBC at one time aired its hit comedies in "supersized" form running a little more than 30 minutes to deter viewers from switching to other networks.

Sci-fi no-go

Q: Between 1973 and 1975, these three TV movies were released: "Genesis II," "Planet Earth" and "Strange New World." They were pilots based on concepts by "Star Trek" creator Gene Roddenberry but never sold as series. Are they available for viewing anywhere?

A: According to Lee Goldberg's book "Unsold Television Pilots," "Genesis II" aired in 1973 on CBS and focused on a scientist who awoke150 years after going into suspended animation. Alex Cord starred. After it did not sell, a script for the series became the pilot "Planet Earth" for ABC in 1974, with John Saxon as the star. When that did not sell, the studio tried "Strange New World" for ABC in 1975, with Saxon as the leader of a team of astronauts who wind up in the future. It didn't sell, either.

All three films have been released on DVD and are for sale on Amazon. "Genesis II" and "Planet Earth" also are available as digital rentals and purchases on Prime Video, Vudu and elsewhere. "Strange New World" is on YouTube.

Write to brenfels@gmail.com.