Sports burgeon this week. On Friday, Feb. 6, the 2026 Winter Olympics commence in Milan and Cortina, Italy. It will involve 3,000 hours of television coverage on NBC, Peacock, and other outlets such as the NBC Sports Network, CNBC and USA. Pretty much all of anyone’s favorite events, highlight mom ents, medal ceremonies, etc. can be found in various streaming and cable platforms. Xfinity, through X-1 and various other technological advances, allows for pinpointing exactly what a viewer wants to see at the time he or she wants to see it, with the caveat that isn’t in the future, although Xfinity can provide immediate gratification to viewers who want to see victories without time lags or delays. The weekend of the Olympics’ opening ceremony and first competitions also brings the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks together for Super Bowl LX, airing at 6:30 p.m. Sunday Feb. 8, also on NBC (locally Channel 10), from Santa Clara, California. Mike Tirico will be one busy guy. He, as usual on NBC, will be handling play-by-play with Cris Collinsworth doing analysis. He is also the primary host of NBC’s Olympic coverage and be at the helm of most discussion and wrap-up shows. Xfinity subscribers again have an advantage. Through a multi-screen feature, viewers can split their screen and watch up to four programs or events at once. That means there will be homes in which the same television can show an Olympic competition in one or more sections of its screen and Super Bowl LX in another. Technology, research and experiments, which were motivated by both fan response and Comcast’s programming and engineering teams suggesting improvements to viewer experience, has changed the game in watching sports and other types of entertainment. Many of us remember having to make an appointment to be at the TV at a specific time to see a specific event, assuming the event you sought was chosen to be aired. Vito Forlenza, Comcast vice president for sports entertainment, connectivity and platforms, and Michael Pilquist, principal software architect and engineering fellow at Comcast, outlined during a Zoom interview how all of that changed and why 2026 offers options that give viewers, whether of ice skating or curling, the chance to personalize their experience to the point that each individual viewer tuned to NBC, Peacock, etc. via Xfinity, could be watching something different from any of his or her neighbors or anyone else in the world. Forlenza and Pilquist had their ducks in a row. They made the use of available technology clear in ways even a Luddite technophobe like I, who calls his 10-year-old nephew for help when stuck, can understand. “The point is to make accessibility easy,” Forlenza says, while Pilquist says, “Engineering’s task is to create ways for viewers to watch events in the way they prefer to do it today.” “Viewers tell us if doesn’t make a difference if you offer 3,000 hours of coverage and make every event available in real time if they can’t find the one they want to see. Xfinity says it is the only place fans can enjoy USA Network’s 24/7 coverage of the Winter Olympics with its new RealTime4K technology. (COURTESY OF XFINITY) “The challenge was to make that happen and make it easy. Every minute of the Olympics can be seen in one place, the television in your home. Not only that, but the experience is enhanced to bring viewer the closest thing to live via real-time 4K.” In addition to individual competitions, any competition, viewers will be able to keep up with general Olympics news, medal winners, and highlights via a number of available programs such as “Olympic Zone,” “Gold Medal Moments,” and “The Gold Zone.” These will be accessible by voice control. Say “Olympics” or “Super Bowl” to your remote device. Also if one goes to Xfinity and chooses the Olympics, a simple menu will come up to lead a viewer to the place he or she wants to be. There are also large, conspicuous boxes specifying different events or categories of programs. In addition to events and medal ceremonies, a viewer can keep track of a favorite athlete or team. He or she can watch the opening ceremony, Greece entering first by tradition, as often as desired. “We made the navigation simple, so viewers can customize their experience,” Forlenza said. “We want to keep people from being overwhelmed and guide them to where they want to to go. Sports are fun. “Watching them should be fun, too. We don’t want people getting lost in the available content. We made finding your event and how to watch more than one event as easy as possible.” “This was important. The Olympics are popular. We had a 78 percent increase in time spent watching the Paris Olympics, and 87 percent of our viewers tuned into at some point to the Paris Olympics. “Be careful about knocking curling. People love it. It draws a lot of viewers.” Olympic coverage, Forlenza and Pilquist say, goes beyond the events and commentary on NBC outlets. “We want to provide a 360-degree view of the Olympics,” Forlenza says, “so people will have access to podcasts as well as YouTube, Spotify, and other platforms to see coverage. This might include highlights, analysis, interviews, or comments from some Comcast-sponsored athletes. “There will also be sports movies, especially those that feature the Olympics, available.” I don’t know whether it’s one of the selections, but I’m suddenly humming the theme to 1981’s “Chariots of Fire.” Then, of course, there’s Multi-View, a Comcast feature that lets a viewer see four programs at once. “Multi-View” started in 2024,” Pilquist says. “It was developed in response to what customers told us they wanted. You can use a menu to choose up to four events or programs.” Picture and sound enhancement are ongoing and are state-of-the-art for the Olympics and the Super Bowl. “Because of 4K, it feels like you’re almost on the field,” Pilquist says as he mentions HDR color and Dolby sound and video, which he says make people feel as if they’re in the stadium. “All of this not only provides a better atmosphere, but it minimizes lag and adds buffers, unseen, to make everything as sharp and clear as possible.” From what I understand, all of this means seeing a game or event more clearly and in what amounts to real time. There’s no delay between event and transmission. It explains something that happened while I was in Las Vegas. I was watching the Eagles-Bills game, the nail biter than ended 13-12 in favor of the Eagles. My niece, home in Bucks County, texted in all caps, “WE WON.” But I was looking at the game, and it wasn’t over. The outcome was yet in doubt. Now I know how she knew the result and I didn’t. She was watching on Xfinity and technology designed to be immediate, providing a surer grip on real time. Pilquist said it could be up to 30 seconds faster in transmission. I was agonizing over a game thousands of others knew was decided. Besides keeping track of any event or ceremony, including one that passed, Xfinity is also providing medal tallies and other statistical data its viewers can access. It all looks complete. Forlenza and Pilquist demonstrated the navigation needed to see the Olympics your way. I understood and could duplicate what I was shown, which bodes well for others who may have trepidations about technology Go Team USA! Go Pats! Enjoy the games! Andreas, Silvestri coming home in ‘Love is Good’ “How can it be ‘another date’?” Christine Andreas animatedly asks me after I ask her if coming to Philadelphia is special for her or just … “Philadelphia is home,” Andreas continues. “It’s our roots,” she goes, referring to herself and her husband, Martin Silvestri, who will be appearing in tandem in a cabaret show, “Love is Good,” at Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Grill for shows on Feb. 16 and 17. “I grew up in Camden. The Camden City Hall is a touchstone. The minute I see it, memories come flooding in, including all the times I crossed the Benjamin Franklin Bridge. “Marty has a million more memories. He grew up in Willow Grove. He cut his musical teeth there. He can’t wait to see his La Salle High School buddies.” As for Marty, he says, “I love going home. Not only to see friends, but to visit the places my life as a musician began: 18th and Chestnut where I began taking lessons at age 14 and the Shubert Building on South Broad Street, where I went to the conservatory. Martin Silvestri and Christine Andreas bring their show, “Love Is Good” to Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Grill for shows on Feb. 16 and 17. (COURTESY PHOTO) “Christine has played many times at the Prince Music Theater on Chestnut Street. I remember it from my youth at the Midtown, a movie theater. I also remember playing dates around Philly and New Jersey when I was in my teens and early twenties.” Christine Andreas indeed has appeared in Philadelphia several times. She was here as Eliza Doolittle in the 1976 revival of “My Fair Lady” opposite Ian Richardson and George Rose. She was Laurie in a Broadway-bound revival of “Oklahoma!” in 1979. She earned a Barrymore Award for her lead performance in “Pal Joey” at the Prince and appeared in the Prince’s cabaret series several times. She was also seen in New Hope at Odette’s and the nightclub in what is now the New Hope Inn and Suites. Each performance is a treat. Andreas has a remarkable voice and fully expresses the story within songs. I can’t think of one of my favorite tunes, Rodgers and Hart’s “Glad to Be Unhappy,” without hearing Andreas’ voice as she sang it in the 1983 revival of “On Your Toes.” Silvestri is equally accomplished as a musician, Grammy-nominated composer, and music director for his wife. Silvestri and Andreas have been married for almost 40 years. Andreas and Silvestri have also accomplished something many performers don’t. They’ve each been performing with significant recognition for more than 50 years. “It’s been like one ride,” Andreas says. “Then 50 years goes by. In that 50 years, you learn what you need to take care of yourself, of your throat, of your voice. You know what you need to do deliver what you need. I think of performing as athletic and energetic. “Also, I’ve much of what I’ve done with Marty. Philadelphia is home, but we shared a life that took us around the world, performing together, whether here or the desert where ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ was shot. “I love to perform. It’s what I’ve done. It’s what I do. It’s uplifting and to sing to an audience and express myself. From the time I was a child in Camden, I knew entertaining was what I was supposed to do. Imagine a world in which everybody knew who they were and what they wanted and was able to do it. “I didn’t want to only perform,” Silvestri says. “Arranging and composing is really interesting, but it is usually done in a recording studio. With Christine, we perform in theaters, concert halls and clubs. “Arranging for her became very personal. The work I do and that we do together is satisfying. I see no reason not to keep doing it. “People ask me if I ever intend to retire. ‘Retire from what? I ask.’ This is a joy, not a job. I like thinking about music and making music.” “I’ve never wanted to do anything else, and I don’t know what else I’d do,” Andreas added. “This is what I do. It keeps the creative juices flowing. It inspires. It keeps you feeling. Andreas and Silvestri loves what they do, and love is the theme of the show they’re doing at the Rittenhouse Grill. “Our show is called ‘Love is Good’ for a reason,” Silvestri says. “It celebrates our musical journey through life. Christine and I have been together for more than 35 years. We’re performing music that confirms love is good. “It’s the first show we ever did. We put it together 40 years ago to perform at the White House for George H.W. Bush. “Christine and I had just met while doing a musical called “The Fields of Ambrosia” at the George Street Playhouse in New Brunswick.” (I saw it) “I wrote it with Joel Higgins. Christine played the lead, a woman who is about to be executed. “Then came this invitation to perform at  the White House. We did a full cabaret show in a private living room there.” “We sang songs Marty composed,” Andreas says. “There was a synergy in his music. I fell in love with his craftsmanship. Then I fell in love with him. “We already had a musical partnership. I trusted him as a composer-arranger. He trusted me as a performer.” Andreas goes on say Marty’s and her love became the kernel of a show. “We felt the romance,” Silvestri says. Andreas and Silvestri talk about the adventures they’ve had together. I say, “Sounds like you should be doing ‘Two for the Road’ in your show.” “It’s not in the show, but it’s in other shows,” Silvestri says. “You never know. It might be included after all.” Fondly recalling Catherine O’Hara Catherine O’Hara was a unique talent. From the first time I saw her on SCTV with Eugene Levy and Martin Short until the last time I saw her, as a presenter at last month’s Golden Globes, I admired her as a comedian and as a woman who brought class to her work, even when she was doing sketch comedy or playing a character whose persona was the opposite of class. Catherine O’Hara arrives at the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards in Los Angeles on Sept. 14, 2025. (Richard Shotwell -Invision/AP) O’Hara had a way of standing out. I would always notice her and smile at how different she was from any other performer I could think of. She may not have gotten the flashiest of roles, the kind Oscars are built on, but she won two primetime Emmys, one for “SCTV” and one for “Schitt’s Creek,” in which she was hilarious, and she always drew you to her characters and made those characters as distinctive as she was. O’Hara died unexpectedly at age 71. She was known to have dextrocardia with situs inverses, meaning  her organs in her torso were arranged the opposite from most people’s. Seeing her at the Golden Globes, and recently with Seth Rogen on “The Studio,” I looked forward to her next series or movie. Needless to say, Catherine O’Hara will be missed. ...read more read less