Memorial Day 2013 TV programming and marathons

Memorial Day 2013 TV programming and marathons

Updated May 22, 2013, 2:43pm CT

Memorial Day 2013 in the United States is Monday, May 27. Leading up to and including that day, over Memorial Day 2013 weekend, there will TV programs remembering veterans; special programming of other sorts; and also several programming marathons of series and movies.

Here are some of the notable Memorial Day 2013 TV programming and marathons. All times ET. Programming subject to change; check back for updates and additions.

Syfy Memorial Day Weekend Marathons — Starting May 24 at 9am. Syfy has a variety of movies, shows and marathons going on over Memorial Day 2013 weekend. Starting at 9am on May 24, there will be several monster movies, including Mega Piranha; Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus; and Mega Python vs. Gatoroid (starring Debbie Gibson and Tiffany). May 25 starting at 4pm will feature a marathon of Syfy’s new series Defiance. On May 26 starting at 9am, Syfy will air a marathon of Paranormal Witness (Paranormal Witness Season 3 premieres June 5). And on Memorial Day, May 27, starting at 8am, Syfy will air a marathon of Roger Corman films, including Camel Spiders; Cyclops; Supergator; Dinocroc vs. Supergator; Dinoshark; Sharktopus; and Piranhaconda.

Storage Wars Texas Marathon — May 24 from 3pm-4am on A&E.

Law & Order: SVU Memorial Day Marathon — May 24 from 4pm-11pm; and May 25 from 10am-2am on USA Network.

Americans on Everest — May 24 at 8pm on National Geographic Channel. Fifty years ago this month, a team of expert climbers became the first Americans to summit Mt. Everest, in an expedition sponsored in part by the National Geographic Society. Two years later, National Geographic released its first ever TV special, Americans on Everest, which followed the climbers from base camp to the top of the world. To mark the anniversary this month, National Geographic Channel (NGC) is airing this classic 1965 special, narrated by Orson Welles.

Star Wars Movie Marathon — Starts May 24 at 8pm on Spike. It’s not a holiday weekend without some sort of Star Wars appearance on Spike. Over Memorial Day 2013, they will be showing the prequels, with Episode I — The Phantom Menace May 24 at 8pm and May 25 at 5:30pm; Episode II — Attack of the Clones May 25 at 9pm and May 26 at 5:22pm; and Episode III — Revenge of the Sith May 26 at 9pm and May 27 at 8pm.

Manhunt — May 24 at 9pm and midnight on CNN. This two-hour HBO documentary makes its basic cable premiere tonight. It’s based on the best-selling book by CNN terrorism analyst Peter Bergen, and takes an in-depth look at America’s people and intelligence apparatus on the frontlines of protecting the homeland, featuring the tales of the actual CIA insiders who led the search for Osama bin Laden. Along with this documentary, Fareed Zakaria will host Beyond the Manhunts: How to Stop Terror (May 24 and May 27 at 11pm), a one-hour special that explores current domestic and international terror threats to America, the use of drones and enhanced interrogation in intelligence collection, and the role of women agents in counterintelligence. Zakaria also discusses insights into the hunt for bin Laden, and how U.S. intelligence agencies have slowly evolved to take on some activities associated with the U.S. military.

Da Vinci’s Demons Catch Up Marathon (Episodes 4, 5 & 6) — May 24 starting at 9pm on Starz. Episodes 4 (“The Magician”); 5 (“The Tower”); and 6 (“The Devil”) of this new Starz drama about the early life of Leonardo da Vinci.

Elvis Film Marathon — May 25 starting at 5am on Encore. A day of The King of Rock ‘n’ Roll in some of his movies, starting with Blue Hawaii, and also including Clambake; Fun in Acapulco; Spinout; Paradise, Hawaiian Style; Change of Habit; Roustabout; Girls! Girls! Girls!; Viva Las Vegas; King Creole; Jailhouse Rock (pictured); G.I. Blues; It Happened at the World’s Fair; and This Is Elvis.

War Movies on TCM — starting May 25 at 6am on TCM. All weekend (through early morning Tuesday, May 28), Turner Classic Movies (TCM) will air war movies of various types — some made during wartime, like Destination Tokyo (1943) and Back to Bataan (1945); some chronicling the effects of war on veterans and those they return to, such as The Best Years of Our Lives (1946); and many more.

Da Vinci’s Demons Catch Up Marathon (Episodes 1-6) — May 25 and 26 starting at 9pm on Starz. Episodes 1-3 (“The Hanged Man”; “The Serpent” and “The Prisoner”) air back-to-back on May 25. Episodes 4-6 (see above) air back-to-back on May 26.

Longmire Marathon — May 25 from 2pm-4am on A&E.

2013 UEFA Champions League Final: Borussia Dortmund vs Bayern Munich — May 25 live at 2pm on FOX.

Undercover Boss Marathon — May 25 from 2pm-3am on TLC.

Storm Hunters: In the Path of Disaster — Anderson Cooper Special Report — May 25 at 7pm and May 26 at 7pm on CNN. This half-hour special looks at the important role played by storm chasers in tracking the pathways of powerful storms. Key chasers describe how they followed the deadly Oklahoma tornadoes this week and tried to provide warnings and position information to meteorologists and disaster management officials about the strength of the twisters and the locations imperiled by the outbreaks of storms in “Tornado Alley.”

Anderson Cooper 360° Special Report – Back to Boston: Moments of Impact –– May 25 at 8pm & 11pm on CNN. In this special, Anderson Cooper looks at the iconic still photographs of April’s Boston Marathon bombing that vividly capture both the horror and the heroism of the event. CNN’s Randi Kaye interviews the photographers who filmed the most memorable images, and the people whose stories they immortalized.

2013 French Open Tennis — May 26 live from 5am-10am on ESPN2. First-round play from Stade Roland Garros in Paris.

Six Gun Salute: John Wayne — May 26 starting at 9:05am on Encore Westerns. Over 12 hours of John Wayne movies, starting with West of the Divide, and also including Blue Steel; The Man From Utah; Randy Ride Alone; The Star Packer; The Trail Beyond; The Lawless Frontier; ‘Neath the Arizona Skies; Texas Terror; The Desert Trail; The Dawn Rider; Paradise Canyon; The Train Robbers; and Rooster Cogburn.

NCIS Memorial Day Marathon — May 26 from 10am-4am; and May 27 from 6am-8pm on USA Network.

2013 Indianapolis 500 — May 26 on ABC (Pre-Race at 11am; Race at 12pm, both live).

2013 French Open Tennis — May 26 live from 12pm-3pm on NBC. Ted Robinson, John McEnroe and Mary Carillo have the call for NBC from Stade Roland Garros in Paris.

Jem and the Holograms Marathon — May 26 starting at 12:30pm on The Hub. A “truly outrageous” five-episode marathon of the ’80s cartoon.

Dog-a-Thon — May 26 from 5pm-10pm (with an immediate encore) on CMT. Specially created fan edition episodes of Dog and Beth: On the Hunt, with onscreen social interaction, air in this marathon. Each fan episode will include never-before-seen facts about the show, fan comments taken from Facebook and Twitter, and quotes from Dog, Beth and Leland. Following these episodes in this marathon, CMT plans to create new fan edition episodes weekly shortly after the regular Sunday night premieres of Dog and Beth: On the Hunt.

Hatfields & McCoys — May 26 from 6pm-12am on History. History re-runs its acclaimed miniseries starring Kevin Costner and Bill Paxton.

Bourdain Binge Marathon — May 26 at 8pm-May 27 at 5am on CNN. Several encore episodes of Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown, including his visits to Myanmar, Los Angeles/Koreatown, Colombia, Canada, Morocco/Tangier and Libya.

National Memorial Day Concert 2013 — May 26 Live at 8pm on PBS; replay at 9:30pm (check local listings). Gary Sinise and Joe Mantegna again host this annual event that honors the service and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform, and all who have given their lives to defend our freedom. Airing live from the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol, the concert features an all-star lineup performing with the National Symphony Orchestra. Candice Glover, the Season 12 winner of American Idol, will give a special performance of the national anthem. Also featured during the evening will be a tribute to the “Greatest Generation,” featuring the stirring remembrances of decorated World War II veteran and renowned actor Charles Durning (pictured at top of page as a young infantryman in World War II), who passed away last December and who was a longtime contributor to this concert. And, on the 60th anniversary of the Korean War Armistice, the broadcast will honor the sacrifices of the veterans who fought and perished in this “forgotten war.”

Watch The 2013 National Memorial Day Concert Promo on PBS. See more from National Memorial Day Concert.

D-Day in 3D — May 26 at 10pm on Discovery Channel. This new, hourlong special looks at how 3D photography became a vital tool that helped bring victory to the Allies on D-Day — June 6, 1944 — in World War II. Allied spy planes used 3D aerial photography to create a three-dimensional map of Nazi defenses, and after years of collecting such photos, they showed that Normandy was the best place to take the Germans down.

2013 French Open Tennis — May 27 live from 5am-10am on ESPN2. First-round play from Stade Roland Garros in Paris.

Suspense Files — The Pink Panther Collection — May 27 starting at 6am on Encore Suspense. A full day of humorous gumshoe action with the classic Pink Panther film franchise. The marathon starts with Son of the Pink Panther, and also includes Curse of the Pink Panther; Trail of the Pink Panther; Revenge of the Pink Panther; The Pink Panther Strikes Again; The Return of the Pink Panther; Inspector Clouseau; A Shot in the Dark; and The Pink Panther.

Encore’s Memorial Day Marathon — May 27 starting at 8am on Encore. Encore will be showing movie trilogies today, including the Back to the Future trilogy; the Jurassic Park trilogy; and the Lethal Weapon “trilogy” (although there was actually a fourth film in this franchise …).

Pawn Stars Marathon — May 27 from 8am-9pm on History.

PBR 20-20 Marathon — May 27 from 9am-2pm on FamilyNet. A marathon of the first episodes of RFD-TV’s new series PBR 20-20, which features the best moments from the past 20 years in the Professional Bull Riders’ history. The Memorial Day marathon will include the PBR Nashville event in 1997; Tampa in 2000; and St. Louis in 2001. PBR greats like Jerome Davis, Chris Shivers and Troy Dunn will be featured.

AMC War Heroes Marathon — May 27 starting at 9:30am on AMC. Six classic war films, starting with The Dirty Dozen, and also including The Longest Day; Heartbreak Ridge; The Green Berets (45th anniversary); Where Eagles Dare (45th anniversary, network premiere); and Uncommon Valor.

Mars and Stripes! Veronica Mars Memorial Day Marathon — May 27 from 10am-7pm on SOAPnet. The first nine episodes of the fan-favorite series starring Kristen Bell air today, starting with the pilot episode, and featuring episodes with guest stars including Jessica Chastain, Harry Hamlin, Paris Hilton, Melissa Leo, Jane Lynch, Lisa Rinna and Amanda Seyfried.

Falling Skies Marathon — May 27 starting at 10am on TNT. Gearing up for the Falling Skies Season 3 premiere on June 9, TNT will air marathons of the first two seasons starting with Season 1 all day today. The following Saturday, June 1, TNT will air Falling Skies Season 2 starting at 10am.

“I Need a Hero” Memorial Day Marathon — May 27 starting at noon on Starz Edge. A day of heroic films, starting with The Amazing Spider-Man, and also featuring Spy Kids 3: Game Over; The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King; Men in Black; and Resident Evil: Retribution.

NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Championship — May 27 at 1pm live on ESPN. The final from Philadelphia.

Baby Daddy Marathon — May 27 from 2-7pm on ABC Family.

American Heroes Fishing Challenge — May 27 at 10pm on National Geographic Channel. This one-hour special follows a group of recently wounded veterans from the war in Afghanistan working to jump-start the healing process, by going fishing. Severely wounded active-duty military personnel travel from Walter Reed and Fort Belvoir military hospitals to New England to compete with 3,000 others in the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass & Bluefish Derby — one of America’s oldest fishing tournaments. Some are just days out of surgery, while others are taking their first steps outdoors on new legs. The idea came from 11-year-old Jack Nixon, son of the filmmakers Bob and Sarah Nixon, who, after seeing a story about severely injured veterans, said, “I wish those guys could fish. It would change their life; they would love it.” The film features original music by John Mayer.