Posted on: Friday, December 10, 2004

Tube Notes

By Mike Hughes
Gannett News Service

Tonight's Must-See

"How the Grinch Stole Christmas," 7 p.m., WB. Two great talents converged in 1966 for this perfect half-hour. One was Dr. Seuss (Ted Geisel), whose children's books provide brilliant blends of humor, warmth and wisdom. The other was Chuck Jones, the animator who helped give us the wonderful Road Runner and Bugs Bunny cartoons. Seuss added song lyrics. Boris Karloff did the sly narration and Thurl Ravenscroft sang the biting (and accurate) "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch." The result is a classic.

Of Note

"Reverse of the Curse of the Bambino," 6 p.m., HBO. Last season, HBO had a wonderful documentary, detailing the prolonged agony of Boston Red Sox fans. Now that has been adjusted because the Red Sox — in a sweep, no less — are finally the World Series champions.

"The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings" (2001), 6 p.m., TNT. If you missed all the previous chances — including one on WB — here's another opportunity to catch this epic, a brilliant, Oscar-winning film. TNT also airs it at 5 p.m. tomorrow and 6 p.m. Sunday.

"Joan of Arcadia," 7 p.m., CBS. Conflicting goals: Helen wants the kids to be more careful; God tells Joan to try something that will scare her.

"The Simpsons," 7 p.m., Fox. This rerun of the recent Halloween episode launches an all-cartoon night for Fox. The first story is a dandy, with Ned Flanders getting frightful visions when he touches Homer; the others are OK.

"8 Simple Rules," 7 p.m., ABC. Bridget faces a test that could help her get into Princeton.

"Scooby-Doo Christmas," 7:30 p.m., WB. Here's a pleasant enough cartoon, even if it does seem unworthy of its spot behind "Grinch."

"Hope & Faith," 8 p.m., ABC. Faith meets the woman who took over her soap role. She's played by Rebecca Budig, who plays a troublemaker on "All My Children" and who caused trouble among some "Bachelor" fans by romancing and marrying bachelor Bob Guiney.

"Third Watch," 8 p.m., NBC. In this rerun, a fugitive (Nicholas Turturro, formerly of "NYPD Blue") kidnaps Bosco's mother (Patti D'Arbanville) and then holds Bosco hostage.

"What Not to Wear," 9 p.m., TLC. Here's the episode that first aired Sunday giving a woman $50,000 (instead of the usual $5,000) for her wardrobe. Oddly, this hour isn't terribly interesting and the improvement is minor.

"Medical Investigation," 9 p.m., NBC. When four middle-school girls have a deadly brain disease, their parents are infuriated by a suggestion that it was sexually transmitted. Then new information arrives.