Tube Notes
By Mike Hughes
Gannett News Service
Today's Must-See
Football, all day; various networks. The bowl marathon takes over now and lets us start the new year by staring blankly at 12 hours of college football. Things won't really be settled until after the Orange Bowl tomorrow and the Rose Bowl on Thursday. Still, these six games should hold us for a while, starting at 6 a.m. with both the Cotton Bowl (Arkansas and Oklahoma) on FOX and the Outback Bowl (Ohio State and South Carolina) on ESPN. Next is the Gator Bowl (Virginia Tech and Florida State) at 7:30 a.m., on NBC. Then ABC starts its tripleheader. It has the Citrus Bowl (Michigan and Tennessee) at 8 a.m., Fiesta Bowl (Oregon and Colorado) at 11:30 a.m. and Sugar Bowl (Illinois and Louisiana State) at 3:30 p.m.
"World Birth Day," 9 p.m., The Learning Channel. On a single day, this ambitious documentary watched 12 women throughout the world as they gave birth. It found extreme contrasts. In some countries health care financing was taken for granted. In China, a dad had to race home to get cash before his twins would be taken to a hospital with an intensive care unit. In Ethiopia, a new mom was expected to stay in bed for 30 days. In Germany, a young pop singer — wary of institutions after being imprisoned by the former East German government for a year — insisted on leaving the hospital with her four-hour-old baby. The care ranges from primitive to high-tech. Either way, the dangers and the joys are similar.
Of Note
The Tournament of Roses (parade), 6 a.m., ABC, CBS, NBC, and 11 a.m., HGTV. The game is two days away, but the parade booms ahead. Two networks must leave early to catch football games. NBC quits at 7:30 a.m., ABC at 8 a.m.
"Brian Boitano's Skating Spectacular,"11 a.m., NBC. Boitano tends to counter bowl games with graceful bits of entertainment. This time his co-stars include Kristi Yamaguchi and Yuka Sato.
"Fear Factor," 7 p.m., NBC. Here's a rerun of the so-so celebrity edition. The middle part is dull but the opening and closing stunts have their moments.
"Frasier," 8 p.m., NBC. Frasier battles with his former mentor.
