TONIGHT'S MUST-SEE

Olympics, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. (delayed), 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. (delayed), 10:30 p.m. to midnight (delayed), NBC. At last, the games begin. At night, NBC plans four live, gold-medal swimming events. Two are 400-meter medleys in which Americans (Michael Phelps and Katie Hoff) hold world records; the others are freestyle relays. Beach volleyball will be featured at 10:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and at night. Indoor volleyball includes games by the U.S. women (with Japan, 7:30 a.m.) and men (with Venezuela, late).

OF NOTE

More Olympics, cable. That includes 8 a.m. to 8 a.m. tomorrow on USA and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on MSNBC. CNBC has boxing, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 8 to 10:30 p.m.

"Primeval" debut, 3, 6 and 9 p.m., BBC America. Prehistoric creatures are terrorizing modern people. Our hero, an evolutionary zoologist, realizes there must be a rip in the fabric of time. This may explain why his wife has been missing for eight years. With an attractive bunch of young people, he plunges ahead. All of this may sound silly, but the BBC has a way of making things seem logical.

"True Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet," 6 p.m., Lifetime. When a teen star (Joanna Levesque) falls apart, she's told to disguise and live with an eccentric aunt (Valerie Bertinelli). Some cliches follow, but this movie (from Lola Douglas' novel) has wit, a sharp look and a fine cast. Bertinelli is excellent and Levesque — a pop star under the name JoJo — brings surprising depth and nuance.

"Shark Tale" (2004), 7 p.m., ABC. This animated tale jabs at mob-film traditions, using the familiar voices of Robert De Niro, Michael Imperioli and Vincent Pastore. A young chap (voiced by Will Smith) rescues the godfather's son and soon swims in scary circles.

"The Unit," 7 p.m., CBS. Working on their own time, Jonas and Bob try to retrieve a 17-year-old before her cult moves out of the country.

"The X-Files" (1998), 5 and 9 p.m., A&E. This original "X-Files" film had size and scope and sense — all the things the current one lacks.