Cable programs will revisit Sept. 11
The third anniversary of 9/11 passes today with relatively little observance on television, although some cable news shows will focus on the date, including “CNN Presents” at 8 p.m. and “MSNBC Reports” at 9 tonight.
A Discovery Channel special tonight at 10, “WTC 9/11: Stories from the Ruins,” will look inside a hangar where Ground Zero artifacts are stored.
Earlier, at 4 p.m. on A&E, you can dial up the “Seven Days in September” documentary.
On Sunday it’s right back to TV as usual, with the second installment of ABC’s 8 p.m. “Pepsi Play for a Billion” game show, on which there will be a guaranteed $1 million winner. Damon Wayans and Tom Bergeron host.
The reunited Destiny’s Child will perform, and a key role will be played by a chimpanzee named Mr. Moneybags.
It’s followed by repeats of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” and “The Practice.”
Highlights
College football, ABC tonight at 5: Regional game, Colorado State at Southern California.
Tennis, CBS tonight at 5: U.S. Open Women’s Final, live from Flushing, N.Y.
Law enforcement, Fox tonight at 8: Season premieres of “Cops” and “America’s Most Wanted,” the latter with police infiltrating the Hell’s Angels in Arizona.
“The Apprentice,” NBC tonight at 8: Repeat of Thursday’s season premiere, introducing 18 new contestants whose first task will be to design new toys for Mattel.
“Crossing Jordan,” NBC tonight at 10: Repeat finds the team working to stop a wealthy killer who’s back at work.
“MAD TV,” Fox tonight at 11: Repeat with Bill O’Reilly.
“Saturday Night Live,” NBC tonight at 11:30: Best of Jon Lovitz clip show.
“60 Minutes,” CBS Sunday at 7: Pornography in the United States.
“Dateline,” NBC Sunday at 7.
“Steve Harvey’s Big Time,” WB Sunday at 7: Season premiere of the oddball variety show, with guests Nelly and Mo’Nique. Now it’s an hour long, too.
“The Simpsons,” Fox Sunday at 7:30: Principal Skinner gets cold feet over marrying Edna. Repeat. (An episode of “Oliver Beene” airs at 7.) “Cold Case,” CBS Sunday at 8: Repeat investigating the death of a military-school coach.
“Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo” (1999), Fox Sunday at 8: Rob Schneider stars as the aquarium cleaner who must start a new line of work in this lame off-color comedy.
“The Perfect Storm” (2000), NBC Sunday at 8: George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg star as two of the doomed Gloucester, Mass., fishermen who face a meteorological nightmare at sea.
“Charmed,” WB Sunday at 8: Season premiere involves a Hindu love-god spell and the start of a multiepisode guest role by Nick Lachey as a possible love interest for Phoebe. How can you resist?
“A Painted House” (2003), CBS Sunday at 9: Scott Glenn and Robert Sean Leonard star in John Grisham’s tale of hardscrabble lives in 1950s Arkansas.
“Mystery!” KSPS Sunday at 8: “Inspector Lynley Mysteries III” involves a kidnapping.
“Jack & Bobby,” WB Sunday at 9: Premiere. OK, those are their names, and one of them grows up to be president, but they’re not that Jack and Bobby, got it?
Matt Long and Logan Lerman are the McCallister brothers, who grow up in Missouri as the sons of a single mom (Christine Lahti). One of them will become president, and we’ll see here how their youthful trials shape their characters.
Don’t be surprised if there’s a teen romance or two. Think of it as “Smallville” for politics.
Family Fare
“Pop Rocks!” ABC Family tonight and Sunday at 8: Gary Cole plays a boring suburban dad who turns out to have a secret past as a heavy metal star. But now it’s time for the reunion concert. Sherilyn Fenn also stars.
Debuted earlier this week.
Cable Cast
College football doubleheader, ESPN today at 2:30: Georgia at Carolina, followed at 5:30 by Texas at Arkansas. Also, Mississippi at Alabama is on ESPN2 at 6.
NASCAR racing, TNT today at 4:30: Nextel Cup pressure is on for drivers in the Chevy Rock ‘n’ Roll 400, live from Richmond, Va.
“The Royal Tenenbaums” (2001), FX tonight at 8: Gene Hackman’s turn as the ne’er-do-well patriarch of the titular clan of oddballs makes this Wes Anderson film worth watching. But it’s no “Rushmore” (1998).