Survival of the fit

And not afraid of being seen naked: A Marysville man doffs his duds and braves the Botswana back country in “Naked and Afraid” on the Discovery channel Sunday night.

While popular, this reality show won’t be winning any Emmys — except, perhaps, for outstanding achievement in body part-obscuring digital blurring.

It’s BLAND!!!!! An activist investor is criticizing the parent company of Olive Garden for what it claims are declining food standards at the Italian restaurant chain, from doling out too many hot dog bun-like breadsticks to overcooking pasta in unsalted water.

As part of its takeover plan, the investment firm wants to control the company’s board of directors, tighten procurement policies, and hire TV chef Gordon Ramsay to scream at the kitchen staff at all 1,500 Olive Garden locations in the U.S.

Once were giants: Theodore, Franklin Delano and Eleanor Roosevelt get the Ken Burns treatment in “The Roosevelts: An Intimate History,” premiering Sunday night on PBS. Expect a stately pace, reverential readings of the Roosevelts’ writings by well-known actors, and the like.

Now, if Burns were to make a documentary about today’s politicians, all of that would be replaced with Three Stooges sound effects.

— Mark Carlson, Herald staff