Tube Notes

By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Staff Writer

TONIGHT'S MUST-SEE:

"NASHVILLE STAR" (series premiere), 10 p.m., USA. The second season of this country music answer to "American Idol" debuts tonight with another 20 honky-tonk jukebox wannabes. Last year's champion Buddy Jewell parlayed his win into a self-titled chart-topping CD and a new career outside of cable sales. His single "Help Pour Out The Rain (Lacey's Song)" became the highest-charting debut by a country singer since the early 1990s. It probably helped that the dude looked kind of spooky sporting from head-to-Stetson black duds and an unruly mullet, but, heck, I'm just scared of those kind of guys. The department store modelesque Nancy O'Dell again co-hosts.

OF NOTE:

"THE DIRECTORS: THE FILMS OF ROLAND EMMERICH," 9 a.m., Encore. Think "Independence Day," "Godzilla" and "Stargate" were marvels of modern cinema unfairly given a bad rap by snobbish, holier-than-thou film critics? All three of you should love this tribute to the director who made these visions real — Jaye Davidson in "Stargate," notwithstanding, of course.

"CATCH ME IF YOU CAN" (2002), 6 p.m., HBO. With Leonardo DiCaprio as a con-man running from the law, Tom Hanks as the law, and Steven Spielberg directing, is it any wonder this film was a huge hit? Did we mention that Jennifer Garner does a superb cameo? The fascinating real-life story of how Frank Abignale Jr. spent his young adulthood passing bum checks totaling $4 million by passing himself off as a pilot, lawyer and doctor certainly helps. Set in a brilliantly realized swinging '60s setting, "Catch" comes off sweetly kitschy, hardly saccharin.

"'60s POP ROCK REUNION" 8 p.m., PBS. It's too late, perhaps, to make a Beatles reunion anything but depressing. But this special manages to put some spark into the truly-depressing gimmick of reuniting bands no one was really clamoring to see back together — Herman's Hermits, Tommy James & The Shonells, Chad & Jeremy. Mostly, it's all just groovy, man.