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The Bold Ones: The New Doctors, The Americans on DVD this week
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John Saxon, left, David Hartman and E.G. Marshall star in "The Bold Ones: The New Doctors," a late 1960s TV series that is now on DVD for the first time. - photo by Chris Hicks
The vintage series The New Doctors is on DVD this week, along with the latest seasons of several more recent TV programs.

The Bold Ones: The New Doctors The Complete Series (Timeless/Universal, 1969-73, nine discs, 43 episodes, crossover episode of Ironside). With this DVD set, all four of the wheel series that rotated on NBC under the umbrella title The Bold Ones are available, the others being The Senator, The Lawyers and The Protectors. The New Doctors was the longest-running of the four, playing out its final season alone after the other three were canceled.

E.G. Marshall is a world-famous neurosurgeon who opens a clinic with John Saxon as chief of surgery and David Hartman as a recruited specialist, all interested in advancing medical procedures as they encounter an array of topical issues, from organ transplants to psychosis, as well as rare and unusual diseases. Robert Walden replaced Saxon during the fourth season.

Guests include Richard Dreyfuss, Louis Gossett Jr., Ida Lupino, Jane Wyman, Ron Howard, Dorothy Malone, Carl Reiner, William Shatner, Jack Klugman, Della Reese, Carol Lynley, Stefanie Powers, Milton Berle, Don Johnson and future M.A.S.H. stars McLean Stevenson, Loretta Swit and Mike Farrell.

The Americans: The Complete Third Season (Fox, 2015, four discs, 13 episodes, deleted scenes, featurette). This thriller is about married KGB spies posing as Americans in a suburb of Washington, D.C., during the Reagan administration. This season, they are threatened with exposure as the Cold War heats up. Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys star, with Holly Taylor and Kiedrich Sellati as their kids. Richard Thomas co-stars; Frank Langella has a recurring role. (Season 4 begins later this month.)

The Fall: Series 2 (Acorn, 2014, two discs, six episodes, deleted scenes, featurette, photo gallery). The second season of this police procedural (with some coarse language, violence, sex and nudity) is set in Northern Ireland and continues the story of police superintendent Stella Gibson (Gillian Anderson of The X-Files) trying to locate serial killer Paul Spector (Jamie Dornan), who has fled Belfast. But a mistake on Spectors part brings him closer to capture. (Series 3 will be shown later this year.)

Strike Back: Cinemax Season 4 (HBO, 2015, three discs, 10 episodes, featurettes). This season of the gritty action series (with R-level violence, language, sex and nudity) has the elite British anti-terrorism unit led by a British soldier (Philip Winchester) and a former U.S. Delta Force operative (Sullivan Stapleton) investigating a missing-persons case in Bangkok. Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) has a recurring role in this final season of the show.

Childhoods End (Syfy/Universal, 2015, two discs, three episodes, deleted scenes). Based on the classic science-fiction novel by Arthur C. Clarke (2001 A Space Odyssey), this engaging miniseries begins with a massive alien invasion in 2016 that is seemingly quite benevolent. In fact, by the second episode, the world seems to be living a Utopian existence without poverty or war. But, of course, all is not as it seems, and eventually this seemingly pure existence will reveal a chilling cost.

The Unauthorized Collection 4-Film Set (Lionsgate, 2014-15, four TV movies). General audiences beware, but fans of tell-all celebrity gossip will enjoy these Lifetime channel TV movies purporting to tell the unauthorized backstage stories of Beverly Hills, 90210, Melrose Place, Saved By the Bell and Full House.

Drunk History: Season 3 (Comedy Central/Paramount, 2015, two discs, 13 episodes, five uncensored episodes, deleted/extended scenes, featurettes). As the title suggests, this skit series has an inebriated narrator attempting to retell historical incidents as actors mime each event, a format that gets old fast. Guests include Octavia Spencer, Will Ferrell, Dennis Quaid, Jack Black, Henry Winkler, Nathan Fillion, Sam Rockwell and Greg Kinnear, among many others.

In Defense of Food (PBS, 2015). This is a two-hour documentary based on Michael Pollans best-selling nutrition book, which suggests people should Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants. The film has Pollan traveling to Tanzania, where hunter-gatherers eat in the way of their ancient ancestors; to Loma Linda, California, where a group of Seventh-day Adventists live a vegetarian life; and to Paris, where the French diet is surprisingly healthy.

Lego Star Wars: Droid Tales (Lego/Disney, 2015, five episodes). This funny animated miniseries offers a Lego spoof of the first six Star Wars movies told from C-3POs point of view, with R2-D2 kibitzing.

Angry Birds Toons: Season Two, Volume Two (Sony, 2015, 13 episodes, featurettes, trailer, game intro).

Angry Birds: Stella The Complete Second Season (Sony, 2015-16, 13 episodes, featurettes, game trailer).

Piggy Tales: The Complete Second Season Pigs at Work (Sony, 2015, 24 episodes, trailers, featurettes). Angry Birds Toons is a spinoff of the popular Angry Birds video game, and Stella and Piggy Tales are spinoffs of Angry Birds Toons and all three are animated series available on third-party platforms (Xfinity On-Demand, Samsung Smart TVs and Roku set-top boxes). And now, of course, on DVD.

Barbie: Spy Squad (Universal, 2016, featurette, bloopers, music video). Barbie and BFFs Teresa and Renee transition from gymnasts to undercover secret agents, tracking down a cat burglar in this latest straight-to-video feature (76 minutes).

My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic Friends Across Equestria (Shout! Kids/Hasbro, 2015, five episodes, sing-along). Included in the five episodes is the 100th show, Slice of Life.

Digimon Fusion: Season 2 (Flatiron, 2011, five discs, 24 episodes, trailer). Mikey and his Digimon partner, Shoutmon, continue their fight to win back the Digital World in this animated series.

Paw Patrol: Brave Heroes, Big Rescues (Nickelodeon/Paramount, 2014-15, six episodes). The animated pups rescues include dangerous caves, bunny-filled woods and icy tundra.

Kate & Mim-Mim: Flight of the Flowers (SkipRope, 2013, six episodes). Stories in this animated series revolve around 5-year-old Kate (inspired by a real-life girl) and her toy rabbit Mim-Mim, whose adventures take place on the fantasy world of Mimiloo, where Mim-Mim becomes a larger-than-life playmate.

Thomas & Friends: Start Your Engines (Hit/Universal, 2015, six episodes, sing-alongs, interactive game). Here are six new episodes of the beloved animated series for preschoolers about anthropomorphic trains, this time having them race to get to the castle on time.
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New Medicare cards are in the mail and scammers are on the prowl
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The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has begun mailing new Medicare Health Insurance ID cards. The program no longer uses Social Security numbers to identify people. - photo by Lois M Collins
The federal government is beginning to send out new ID cards to the 58 million Americans who benefit from Medicare. But since many of the people who will receive them don't know they're coming or why, scammers are already gearing up to take advantage.

An AARP survey shows as many as three-fourths of Americans 65 and older have no idea the cards are coming, so some individuals may be duped with claims that they're supposed to pay a fee or provide personal information that will be used, instead, to defraud them.

The new cards are the first reissue in years, and the most striking part of the redesign is that the cards no longer carry the beneficiary's Social Security number. Congress mandated the removal of that number as an identifier for Medicare beneficiaries by next April. Instead, the card has a Medicare Beneficiary Identifier number, an 11-digit combination of numbers and letters.

The new Medicare cards are now being mailed out in batches, starting with the Eastern seaboard and moving west. Most Medicare beneficiaries will receive their cards over the next six months, as long as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has their correct mailing address. Once the cards are in hand, people can share the new identification number with their health care providers. During a transition period, either card is valid.

The old cards, which used Social Security numbers as the personal identification number, should be destroyed.

AARP recently launched an education campaign to warn consumers about scams related to the new Medicare cards.

The membership organization's "Fraud Watch" consultant, Frank Abagnale reformed con man, scammer and the subject of the movie and book "Catch Me If You Can" tells senior citizens the only time they need to carry the actual Medicare card is to health care appointments. Otherwise, it should be left in a safe place. If they want to carry one in their wallet or purse, he says, make a copy and black out the first seven numbers.

Since the cards were announced, scammers have already:

  • Called seniors and asked for their bank account information so that money on their old card could be returned. There is no money on the old card and CMS never asks for personal information over the phone.
  • Offered to send the new card after Medicare beneficiaries pay a $25 fee to cover expenses related to the card. The card is free.
  • Said the card will be mailed out as soon as the older person verifies his or her Social Security number, mailing address and other personal information. CMS already knows the beneficiary's Social Security number and it's no longer being used in conjunction with health care.
AARP and the Federal Trade Commission will hold a free online seminar about the cards and the fraud attempts they have spawned on Thursday, April 19, at 7 p.m. EDT. Register at: www.aarp.org/FraudWebinar. CMS also offers a "frequently asked questions" guide to the new cards.

The AARP Fraud Watch Network says consumers can sign up for its Watchdog Alert emails that deliver breaking scam information, or call a free helpline at 877-908-3360 to speak with volunteers trained in fraud counseling. Abagnale also hosts a weekly podcast for AARP, called The Perfect Scam.
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