Remote patrol

Possibly not since "The George Gobel Show" in the 1950s has domestic misery been grist for so much comedy as it is on "Titus" (7:30 p.m., Channel 4). Based on the bleak one-man play written by its star, comedian Chris Titus, the show is plainly hitting a nerve with the young men who watch Fox. Last season I wondered if "Titus" hadn't tried to put too much fun into dysfunction. Consider the premise: Dad, as played by Stacy Keach, has been married five times. His cruel treatment of Titus and his brother has haunted them into adulthood. Keach, however, is never seen as much more than a lovable, misguided lug, albeit one still capable of making his offspring miserable. Where is the funny in a sadistic father's behavior? As it turns out, "Titus" masterfully walks a tightrope between exploration and exploitation. The more conventional sitcom scenes are broken up by quick monologues that are darker, more brooding and shot in black and white to set them apart. The show becomes a cathartic interplay between the unspoken meanness of the sitcom and the wickedly honest asides of Titus. Beyond that, "Titus" offers an appealing cast that includes Titus' girlfriend (the sparkling Cynthia Watros), troubled brother (Zack Ward) and unusually well-adjusted best friend (David Shatraw). Tonight: Titus fixes his father's truck, prompting a rare compliment from the old man. >>>

Remote patrol

Three years, countless magazine covers and an Emmy Award later, "Ally McBeal" (8 tonight, Channel 4) finally has settled down and become - at least by the measure of hype - just another TV show. And what a juicy good show it still is. Judging by last week's top-notch season premiere, this may even be a revival year for Ally and the gang. The big change at the Fish law firm is the departure of Billy and Georgia, the show's increasingly out-of-place Ken and Barbie dolls. Now I hardly remember they existed. That's because Hollywood bad boy Robert Downey Jr. has been so exquisitely cast as a fast-talking lawyer who immediately establishes a love-hate tension with Ally (Calista Flockhart). And then there are all the little things that have always made "Ally" so oddly enjoyable: the personal and professional story lines that flow like parallel streams; the bizarre tics of Biscuit (Peter MacNicol); the perfectly matched song stylings of Vonda Shepard; and the trademark rants from the pen of executive producer David E. Kelley, who will more than atone for his obnoxious "Boston Public" if he keeps churning out "Ally" episodes like last week's. Tonight: Ally holds a "male models night" at the bar while the firm defends a woman who pressured her assistant into sex. @ART CAPTION:Flockhart @ART:Photo (color) >>>

Latest ratings put Dare and Wells at top of morning heap

Johnny Dare and Murphy Wells are the undisputed royalty of Kansas City morning radio. The KQRC-FM (98.9) tandem ran away with the summer 2000 radio ratings book just released by the Arbitron Co. and helped "The Rock" win the summer book. It was the Entercom-owned station's first overall win since fall 1999. Among all listeners 12 and older, Dare and Wells had nearly twice the audience of runner-up WDAF-AM (610) between 6 and 10 a.m. weekdays. And they pulled in a staggering 28 percent of all listeners ages 18 to 34, more than three times the number of young listeners tuned in to the next closest competitor, KPRS-FM (103.3). "Hot Jamz 103" finished second overall, and the station's summer talent shuffle appeared to pay off as well. New KPRS afternoon-drive man Tony G was ranked No. 1 ahead of perennial winner Kelly Urich of KMXV-FM ("Mix 93.3"). When Entercom moved classical KXTR from the FM band to AM 1250, it was predicted that the station would lose about half its audience. Those estimates were somewhat low; KXTR-AM scored a 2.0 rating compared with 3.8 in the spring book, when it was KXTR-FM. For the summer book the station finished in a tie - ironically with "The Buzz," the station that replaced KXTR at 96.5 FM. The top-rated stations, followed by their average daylong "share" (percentage of radios in use) among listeners 12 and up, as measured by Arbitron: 1. KQRC, hard rock, 7.8. 2. KPRS, urban, 7.5. 3. (tie) KFKF-FM (94.1), country, 6.0. 3. (tie) KMXV-FM (93.3), current hits, 6.0. 5. KMBZ-AM (980), news-talk, 5.6. 6. WDAF, country, 5.1. 7. KCMO-FM (94.9), oldies, 4.7. 8. (tie) KCIY-FM (106.5), smooth jazz, 4.6. 8. (tie) KUDL-FM (98.1), adult contemporary, 4.6. 10. KBEQ-FM (104.3), young country, 4.4. 11. KSRC-FM (102.1), adult contemporary, 4.3. 12. (tie) KYYS-FM (99.7), classic rock, 4.1. 12. (tie) KCFX-FM (101.1), classic rock, 4.1. 14. KNRX-FM (107.3), R&B oldies, 3.6. 15. KCMO-AM (710), talk, 3.4. 16. KCHZ-FM (95.7), current hits, 3.0. 17. (tie) KRBZ-FM (96.5), current hits, 2.0. 17. (tie) KXTR-AM (1250), classical, 2.0. 19. WHB-AM (810), sports talk, 1.9. 20. KPRT-AM (1590), gospel, 1.1. To reach Aaron Barnhart, phone (816) 234-4790 or visit the TV Barn Web site at www.tvbarn.com >>>

Level 9

Airs: 8 p.m., UPN (Channel 29) Stars: Tim Guinee, Kate Hodge, Michael Kelly, Romany Malco, Fabrizio Filippo, Esteban Powell, Kim Murphy and Susie Park. In brief: Super-secret agency uses young hackers to nab evildoers. But is it any good? "Level 9" sells itself as a 21st-century cyber-thriller but is really one part technology, two parts car chases, shoot-em-ups and things that go boom. Tough-as-nails agent Hodge leads the multicultural crew of 20-somethings who gather surveillance data from around the world - satellite photos to chat rooms - then match the data against a seemingly endless database of voiceprints and mug shots to identify suspects. After that, and for reasons unexplained, the same people who identify these murderous psychopaths are expected to go out and arrest them. Lots of action, but "Level 9" is more like Level 2 when it comes to plausibility. Is it a survivor? Friday is a notoriously tough night for drawing young viewers. Just because UPN has opened its wallet for "Freedom" and "Level 9" doesn't mean people will watch. "Freedom" (7 p.m., UPN, Channel 29) also has its premiere tonight but will not be reviewed because a preview tape was not made available. >>>

Remote patrol weekend

Think all TV judges are created equal? Meet Greg Mathis, the reformed street punk who became a social activist, real-life justice and now TV's "Judge Mathis" (10 a.m., Channel 62). You'll learn his story in today's one-hour special episode, which is one part autobiography, one part "Scared Straight." Mathis recalls his teen years in a gang and the sobering announcement from his mother that made him turn his life around. He also recounts a fateful encounter with the Rev. Jesse Jackson in 1977 that pointed him toward law school. (After a youth rally at which Jackson spoke, Mathis rushed backstage and told the minister he wanted to "go to war" with him. Jackson rebuffed him, saying, "You don't have the ammunition" - that is, a college degree.) In the program's second half, Mathis corrals a group of ne'er-do-well teen-agers and hauls them off to Detroit's Wayne County Jail for an old-fashioned chew-out session with several longtime inmates. As unlikely as it seems, this may be the place where tomorrow's leaders are made. >>>

Cursed

Airs: 7:30 p.m., NBC (Channel 41) Stars: Steven Weber, Chris Elliott, Wendell Pierce, Amy Pietz In brief: Nice guy goes on blind date from hell, winds up with hex. But is it any good? "Cursed" is better than it was a couple of months ago. But that's not saying much. NBC executives wisely called for a change of producers after seeing the brain-damaged pilot episode of "Cursed" this summer. The new producer has raised the IQ level of the show, but he, too, is cursed - with an unappealing premise and with cast members who look like they can hardly stand to be in the same room with each other. Is it a survivor? Reruns of "Friends" have been doing surprisingly well in this time slot. If "Cursed" can't match those ratings, it will vanish quickly. And that would be a blessing. @ART CAPTION:Steven Weber (center) stars in "Cursed" with (from left) Amy Pietz, Wendell Pierce and Chris Elliott. @ART:Photo (color) @ART CREDIT:NBC >>>

Remote patrol

The producers of the Oscar-winning documentary "The Farm" take us inside the fences of Louisiana's correctional system for a fourth time at 9 tonight on A&E's "Investigative Reports." This time it is to meet some of the inmates at the state's only maximum-security prison for women. You may recall similar recent treatments on Court TV and "Nightline." What's striking about the prison featured tonight is that it appears to be less cut off from the outside world than a men's prison. That's probably because many of the inmates have borne children and have a natural urge to be connected with them and to see them do right despite their own failings. The result is an odd nurturing process partly conducted inside the living object lesson of prison. Children make regular visits to their inmate moms and even attend a Christmas party thrown inside the prison. The party ends, inevitably, on a bitter note. >>>

New on the tube

Michael Richards Show Airs: 7 p.m., NBC (Channel 41) Stars: Richards, William Devane, Bill Cobbs, Tim Meadows and Amy Farrington. In brief: Kramer returns as a klutzy detective, a la Leslie Nielsen. But is it any good? Richards, with his rubbery features and facial tics, can still be a laugh riot even without the "Seinfeld" gang nearby. But the rest of this sitcom is a disaster area of jokes no sane person could've thought were funny, delivered by overly eccentric characters that only a complete cynic could believe audiences would like. Is it a survivor? Whatever small reprieve this show earns is due to the reputation of Richards. But it's not long for this world unless the supporting cast shapes up. @ART CAPTION:Michael Richards as Vic Nardozza @ART CREDIT:NBC @ART:Photo (color) >>>

Boston Public

Airs: 7 p.m. Fox (Channel 4) Stars: Chi McBride, Jessalyn Gilsig, Fyvush Finkel, Anthony Heald, Joey Slotnick, Thomas McCarthy, Sharon Leal, Nicky Katt, Loretta Devine and Rashida Jones. In brief: Teachers stave off insanity at an out-of-control high school. But is it any good? Screaming confrontations, shotguns in the classroom, illicit sex - and we're just talking about the faculty. We've seen the intrigues before on "Ally McBeal," the shouting and violence on "The Practice," but "Boston Public" takes it to new and repulsive extremes. When principal McBride declares it a good day, saying, "Nobody OD'd, nobody got shot, none of us lost our minds," I wanted to retch. So will most public school teachers when they see this schlock. Is it a survivor? Fox was hoping for a one-two punch on Mondays with "Boston Public" and "Ally McBeal," both from the David E. Kelley TV factory. But they didn't count on one thing: Kelley's lost it. @ART CAPTION:Chi McBride heads a troubled high school in David E. Kelley's "Boston Public." @ART:Photo (color) @ART CREDIT:Fox >>>

Remote patrol weekend

Odyssey, the family-friendly channel that is thinking about a name change to Hallmark (after its majority owner), rolled out "America!," its first original series, last weekend. It is my patriotic duty to inform you that "America!" (airing 5 p.m. Sundays on Odyssey) is so breathtakingly hokey, so earnestly contrived, you won't believe you're watching a nonfiction TV show. Each episode takes several inspirational stories, told to us by the people themselves, and weaves them together into a super-slick video greeting card. There are a lush soundtrack and an unending supply of eye candy: pristine mountaintops, green valleys and clear streams, filmed from overhead. The whole show is shot on film, like a commercial. The production values would be forgiveable if the stories weren't so schmaltzy. This week's episode bundles several Appalachian stereotypes into one oleaginous romanticized mess. We meet stoic coal miners, a maker of handmade dulcimers, a loom spinner and, for good measure, a furniture carver. With all this industry, it's a wonder that chronic poverty continues to cripple the region. Amazingly, "America!" uses one of its subjects to simply explain that problem away. "Poverty is not a word to a true Appalachian," declares the loom spinner. "I've been broke many a time but I've never been poor." She explains that what really matters is "the transmission of the culture" through people like her. Excuse me. "Transmission of the culture"? Which poor, uneducated people is she speaking for? @ART CAPTION:Appalachian rug maker Minnie Yancy, an "America!" subject. @ART:Photo >>>

Remote patrol

It's back! "Diagnosis Murder," the Dick Van Dyke whodunit, returns for its eighth season on CBS at a new time, 9 p.m. on Channel 5. This is the show of which CBS-TV president Les Moonves recently said, "You can't kill this thing." Heaven knows he has tried, putting it on TV's toughest night four years ago, only to see it turn into the Van Dyke Full Employment Program. (Besides Dick, son Barry is a cast regular and brother Jerry and grandson Tyler make guest appearances.) Now it's in an even bloodier time period, opposite "ER." Though the ratings for "Diagnosis Murder" have slipped, its audience of older viewers remains faithful (remember Uncle Junior falling asleep to it on "The Sopranos"?). And Van Dyke has made the show more than just "Murder, She Wrote" in scrubs: Recent episodes preached against HMOs and the poor treatment of Alzheimer's patients. Another was staged as a Western. Tonight: The guy hired to remodel Van Dyke's office winds up stuffed into a roll of carpet, and the hunt for the murderer leads to Egypt. Later this season: Ideal viewer Sonja Christopher, the 62-year-old woman voted off on the first week of "Survivor," is a guest. @ART CAPTION:Dick 'Diagnosis' Van Dyke @ART:Photo (color) >>>

Remote patrol

The second presidential debate airs live from Wake Forest University in North Carolina beginning at 8 tonight. The three major networks and PBS, as well as the usual cable channels, will carry the skirmish and then offer tainted post-debate analysis from the usual suspects. While you're listening to George Stephanopoulos, Frank Luntz, Arianna Huffington and all the others argue about who won, remember that for most of them - and most of us - the debates are a mere formality. The vast majority of voters have already made up their minds. The undecideds among us are a small and shrinking lot. In that sense the debates, despite their mass viewership, are niche television, just like "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" or "The Parkers." And just as advertisers on those shows care only about their "target audience" of teens or African-Americans, so Al Gore and George W. Bush will be aiming their messages at a relatively small group - perhaps 10 million out of tonight's projected 50 million viewers - who still haven't decided which candidate will get their vote. @ART CAPTION:Gore; Bush @ART:Photos (2, color) >>>

New on the tube

BETTE Airs: 7 p.m., CBS (Channel 5) Stars: Bette Midler, Kevin Dunn, Lindsay Lohan, Kimiko Gelman and Joanna Gleason. In brief: Haven't you been watching the promos? It's the Bette show! But is it any good? CBS has persuaded another long-established showbiz name to make a "sophisticated" comedy. Bette Midler joins Bill Cosby, Ted Danson, Rhea Perlman and Bob Newhart as stars who try to rekindle the flame in prime time only to fall far, far short. In "Bette," Midler plays Bette, someone a lot like the real-life Bette, but much more self-conscious and self-mocking than anyone would be in real life. She has a lot of spunk, mugging for the camera and poking fun at her career (no fewer than four Midler films get mentioned in the first episode). Next to her, however, the supporting cast is tired and colorless. And how many Bette Midler jokes can America take? Is it a survivor? Wednesdays at 7 have not been kind to CBS. On the other hand, Midler's only real competition are "Millionaire" and whatever's playing on Lifetime. Welcome to New York Airs: 7:30 p.m., CBS (Channel 5) Stars: Jim Gaffigan, Christine Baranski, Rocky Carroll, Mary Birdsong, Eric Bogosian and B.D. Wong. In brief: Indiana weatherman gets work at New York TV station, encounters storm front. But is it any good? The standout of this fall's wimpy sitcom lot has been woefully mispromoted as the Baranski and Gaffigan show. The star is, or ought to be, Gaffigan, who is the almost perfect foil for the neurotic New Yorkers he's constantly running into. When he and a newscast anchor (Carroll) lock horns over a pair of eyeglasses, the contretemps plays out with just the right note of absurdity. Is it a survivor? Depends on how well "Bette" does and whether Gaffigan can avoid getting crushed by all his co-stars. @ART CAPTION:Bette Midler @ART:Photo (color) >>>

New on the tube

The Geena Davis Show Airs: 8:30 p.m., ABC (Channel 9) Stars: Geena Davis, Peter Horton, Mimi Rogers, Cindy Lu, Wendy Makkena, John Daley, Makenzie Vega, Esther Scott and Katya Abelsky. In brief: "Stepmom," the TV series. But is it any good? Forget tonight's overly earnest and mostly humorless set-up episode about a widower (Horton) who asks Davis to move in with him and his two kids. This sitcom gets a lot better in the next two weeks as the joke writers remember what they're there to do. Davis, meanwhile, shows off genuine comedic skills as she tries to adapt her hard-driving single ways to the demands of family. The supporting cast is shaky: Horton, Daley (the former "Freaks and Geeks" player) and Vega are an adorable family, but Davis' workmates, well, need work. Also, all of the black people in the first three episodes are essentially servants of the white co-stars - not exactly a blow for racial diversity. Is it a survivor? Provided there are more episodes like next week's and fewer like this week's, "Geena Davis" can become the ideal companion to "Dharma & Greg," the show that precedes it. And it should provide a great lead-in to "Once & Again" (a drama, also about reconstituted families) when it returns later this month. Gideon's Crossing Airs: 9 p.m., ABC (Channel 9) Stars: Andre Braugher, Ruben Blades, Barry Miller, Rhona Mitra, Hamish Linklater, Ravi Kapoor, Sophie Keller, Russell Hornsby, Jascha Washington, Megan Gregoryn, Brian Wilshire, Eric Dane and Marianne Muellerleile. In brief: Idealistic doctor drama about a super-surgeon and his brood of young medical students. But is it any good? Braugher's Ben Gideon is more than a gifted cancer surgeon; he's a teacher who allows his own suffering to make him a more compassionate doctor. This is a very talky show, filled with Braugher soliloquies, and it will be hard to top the first episode, which plays out like a Greek tragedy (patient gets his life back, only to rue every minute he's lived). But I was spellbound, except for the jarring interludes involving Gideon's motley crew of medical students. Is it a survivor? Can't ask for a better time period on ABC. (It will air regularly at 9 p.m. Wednesdays starting next week.) Airing the premiere tonight without commercials (instead of paring down its 50-minute rough cut) is a smart move. This show is Braugher's to save or lose. @ART CAPTION:Geena Davis @ART CREDIT:ABC @ART:Photo (color) >>>

Remote patrol

Hair was big in the 1970s, and nobody's was bigger than pinup legend Farrah Fawcett's. That cursive perm was imitated by millions of women and made Fawcett the center of attention on one of the most sensational TV shows of the decade, "Charlie's Angels." TV Land is bringing back "Charlie's Angels" in a big way this week, airing repeats from the show's five-season run around the clock and celebrating all things Charlie in a new edition of "Inside TV Land" at 9 tonight. In this behind-the-scenes look at the original girl-power show - timed to the upcoming release of the new "Charlie's Angels" movie starring Drew Barrymore - many of the show's key players look back fondly on their brief reign as worldwide pop-culture queens. Aaron Spelling, the eminence grise of low-end TV, explains the historical origins of "Charlie's Angels" (yes, there were some). Fred Silverman, who was head of ABC-TV at the time, is wonderfully candid about his decision to put the show on the air ("I knew full well going into this," he admits, "that this was not going to win a Peabody Award"). Also interviewed are Angels Cheryl Ladd, Jaclyn Smith, Kate Jackson and Tanya Roberts. All seem to regard their time on the show with genuine affection, even Jackson, who was told by Spelling that she couldn't accept the lead role in "Kramer vs. Kramer." John Forsythe, who supplied the voice of Charlie, also offers his reminiscences via telephone. Another clever effect: timely drop-ins of "Charlie's Angels" scenes (as when we learn that Jill, played by Fawcett, is leaving the show, and Jackson's character declares, "No one can take Jill's place!") The only major figure missing is the toothy Texan herself. Fawcett declined TV Land's interview requests, so talk-show appearances from 1978 and 1980 are used instead. @ART CAPTION:Fawcett @ART:Photo >>>

Remote patrol

Like many CBS shows, you don't hear much about "Becker" (8:30 tonight, Channel 5), the Ted Danson sitcom now in its third season. Yet most of those overhyped NBC comedies would do well to match the writing and ensemble of "Becker," which shares the grumpy sensibility of its lead-in, "Everybody Loves Raymond." The impolitic Dr. Becker (Danson) runs a clinic supposedly in the South Bronx, though there is a small-town feel here that suggests some other borough or state. He doesn't really like his patients, or people generally, and lets them know it. But Danson is surrounded by equally jaded foils: Margaret (Hattie Winston), the overworked clinic nurse; Reggie (Terry Farrell), the sweet-and-sour coffee-shop proprietor; and Jake (Alex Desert), the blind newsstand owner who rings up some of the show's biggest laughs. Tonight: Becker gets irritated trying to find a movie to watch. @ART CAPTION:Ted Danson is 'Becker' @ART:Photo (color) >>>

New on the tube

The district Airs: 9 p.m. Saturdays, CBS (Channel 5) Stars: Craig T. Nelson, Jayne Brook, Justin Theroux, Roger Aaron Brown and Lynne Thigpen. In brief: Police chief with an attitude comes to clean up Washington, D.C. But is it any good? Washingtonians are already up in arms over this show, which features a white commander (played by the jut-jawed Nelson) taking over a mostly black police district under a corrupt black mayor who resembles a mid-1980s Marion Barry. But charges of racism ring hollow, since Nelson's character is based on a real person, Jack Maple, whose anti-crime strategies were credited with cutting violent crime in New York in the 1990s. And if people in D.C. resent the Barry look-alike, is that our problem? Nelson clearly relishes this role, though his rah-rah approach to everything wears thin. And critics are right to note that some of the confrontations between Nelson and his black rivals are needlessly harsh. Is it a survivor? Shouldn't have any problem in a safe Saturday-night time slot. Ironically, the show's two strong African-American leads may help retain viewers from its lead-in, "Walker, Texas Ranger," which is popular among black viewers. That's Life Airs: 7 p.m. Saturdays, CBS (Channel 5) Stars: Heather Paige Kent, Debi Mazar, Kristin Bauer, Ellen Burstyn and Kevin Dillon. In brief: Jersey girl dumps boyfriend, thwarts her tradition-bound home and decides to go to college. But is it any good? The final version of this show turned out much better than the horrible pilot episode TV critics saw this summer. Still, if I were CBS I wouldn't have given this the nod over "An American Family," which would've been the first network drama with an all-Latino cast (it was scotched by CBS earlier this year). When our 32-year-old heroine is back home with her ultra-conservative family, which seems stuck in the 1960s, "That's Life" drags; when the action shifts to the college campus she's dreamed of attending all her life, the show improves considerably. Is it a survivor? This is one of TV's least watched, least competitive time slots. A show would have to really stink up the joint to get yanked here. "That's Life" has the potential to do that but probably won't. Ed Airs: 7 p.m. Sundays, NBC (Channel 41) Stars: Tom Cavanagh, Julie Bowen, Josh Randall, Jana Marie Hupp, Lesley Boone, Michael Ian Black In brief: Young man disappointed by big-city life returns to his Midwestern home in search of love and meaning. But is it any good? This sweet comic drama is the best new show of the fall. "Ed" is not only cleverly scripted but also marvelously cast and filled with little touches that make it absolutely endearing. Cavanagh is funny and poignant as the romantic lawyer who sets up shop in his favorite bowling alley. I watched the pilot episode several times this summer and each time it reminded me of why I enjoy my job so much. Is it a survivor? TV insiders don't like the show's chances in a Sunday-night slot against "The Simpsons" and "Malcolm in the Middle." But NBC knows it has a winner and has been promoting the lights out of "Ed." Could move to Mondays when, er, if "Daddio" and "Tucker" swoon. Hype Airs: 9 p.m. Sundays, WB (Channel 62) Stars: Michael Roof, Frank Caliendo, Gavin Crawford, Jennifer Elise Cox, Daniele Gaither, Nadya Ginsburg, Steve Kramer, Christen Nelsen, Shayma Tash, Chris Williams. In brief: Sketch show, like "MAD TV" only grosser. But is it any good? Glad you asked. No! Based on a tape sent to critics this summer, the parodies this troupe plans to do included a leering, sex-crazed Regis Philbin imitator (Kansas City's own Steve Kramer) making lewd comments to Kathie Lee; a dreadful Clinton-Lewinsky sketch; and an incredibly offensive send-up of Japanese game shows that showed various contestants being maimed and humiliated. Is it a survivor? Sadly, "Hype" will probably get a full-season order because the WB has nothing else to schedule on Sunday nights. Nikki Airs: 9:30 p.m. Sundays, WB (Channel 62) Stars: Nikki Cox, Nick von Esmarch, Christine Estabrook, Toby Huss and Susan Egan. In brief: Two crazy kids run off to Las Vegas, get married and pursue fulfilling careers as exotic dancer and professional wrestler. But is it any good? Bruce Helford, who brought us the "Drew Carey Show" and "Norm," is hoping the cockamamie setup of "Nikki" will appeal to a new generation. What's depressing is that Cox is a very gifted comic actress, but she can't seem to land a role that doesn't involve showing off her ample cleavage. Is it a survivor? The last time Nikki Cox did a Sunday-night comedy for the WB, it went 100 episodes ("Unhappily Ever After"). And I'll bet you never saw a single one. @ART CAPTION:The cast of 'The District', starring Craig T. Nelson (center) @ART CAPTION:Heather Paige Kent stars as a nontraditional college student in "That's Life," making its debut tonight. @ART:Photos (2, color and b/w) @ART CREDIT:CBS >>>

New on the tube

The Fugitive Airs: 7 p.m., CBS (Channel 5) Stars: Tim Daly, Mykelti Williamson. In brief: Remake of the 1960s TV classic. But is it any good? This extremely promising series combines the human drama of the David Janssen TV show with the stuntwork of the 1992 Harrison Ford movie. And while neither lead has the Hollywood aura of Ford or Tommy Lee Jones, Williamson and Daly are well-matched as the cat and mouse. The pilot episode is terrific and suggests that these two guys can carry the series, aided of course by the Sympathetic Female who will show up most every week. "The Fugitive" is filmed on location in cities around the country. Let the chase begin. Is it a survivor? It's on too early. Hope CBS gives it an upgrade to a later time period. Madigan Men Airs: 8:30 p.m., ABC (Channel 9) Stars: Gabriel Byrne, Roy Dotrice, John Hensley and Grant Shaud. In brief: Three generations of Irish men need a good woman. But is it any good? This delightful sitcom about men looking for companionship in New York comes from a "Sex and the City" scribe and is sort of like that HBO show only with an alluring brogue. Byrne is excellent here as the busy architect juggling a 17-year-old son with a frighteningly active love life and his just-in-from-Ireland dad, who spouts charming if puzzling proverbs. The writing is sharp. Is it a survivor? It's a long, long way to Tipperary for "Madigan Men." No adult sitcom has aired on a Friday night on ABC in years. And "Norm" at 8 p.m. is not exactly a powerful (or compatible) lead-in. The Trouble With Normal Airs: 7:30 p.m., ABC (Channel 9). Stars: Paget Brewster, Jon Cryer, Larry Joe Campbell, David Krumholtz, Brad Raider. In brief: The worst new show of the fall (though we haven't seen "Normal, Ohio" yet). And just how bad is it? I'd like to have been at the pitch meeting just to see how ABC executives were duped into buying this sitcom. "It's about four paranoid men and their female therapist!" Oh yes, I can see three, maybe four story lines coming out of that. Then again, that's probably all the episodes we'll get before the series is mercifully canceled. At least the show had a decent title before ABC also screwed that up. Until midsummer it was known as "People Who Fear People." Is it a survivor? ABC has been promoting the heck out of "The Trouble With Normal," but the shockingly unfunny ensemble and rotten scripts will undo all that publicity in minutes. On a positive note, this will almost certainly end the TV career of Jon Cryer. C.S.I. Airs: 8 p.m., CBS (Channel 5) Stars: William Petersen, Marg Helgenberger, Gary Dourdan, George Eads, Chandra West and Paul Guilfoyle. In brief: Forensic detectives specialize in solving tough-to-crack crimes. But is it any good? A senior sleuth, and one of this show's many cardboard characters, says, "Concentrate on the only thing that cannot lie - the evidence." And that's what "C.S.I." does, to the detriment of character development and story line. We're supposed to buy that the C.S.I. unit is the next wave of high-tech crimefighting, but their tools don't look very high-tech to me. One gizmo looks suspiciously like a canister vacuum cleaner and the only thing it "finds" is a toenail clipping that could've been spotted with the naked eye. Is it a survivor? For the sake of "The Fugitive," let's hope not so that show can have this time slot. Other than "Nash Bridges," CBS has had a hard time getting viewers to watch its Friday shows. FreakyLinks Airs: 8 p.m., Fox (Channel 4) Stars: Ethan Embry, Lisa Sheridan, Karim Prince, Lizette Carrion and Dennis Christopher. In brief: Welcome! You've got mail from the dead! But is it any good? From a producer of "The Blair Witch Project" comes this eerie mishmash designed to scare the wits out of teen-age boys watching the show with the lights off. Embry plays a 20-something gumshoe looking for clues to the mysterious death of his twin brother, whose only crime was to start up a Web site that explored the paranormal. Now the dead twin seems to be contacting him by e-mail, and his ex-girlfriend thinks he died because of what he knew about the lost colony of Roanoke. Whatever. All I know is the barrage of jittery camera angles, herky-jerky editing, scary noises, angry lighting and unexplained visitors in the background gets really boring. Is it a survivor? Speaking of spooky, the shows Fox put on Fridays last fall vanished without a trace after just two weeks. @ART CAPTION:Mykelti Williamson, above, and Tim Daly star in "The Fugitive." @ART:Photo (color) @ART CREDIT:CBS >>>

Another exceptional 'Livelyhood' takes a look at the workday

"Livelyhood," the exemplary PBS series about working in America, this weekend takes a bleary-eyed look at one of the hardest tasks most employees face at their jobs: going home. "The Workday That Wouldn't Die" is the title of this new installment airing at 6 p.m. Saturday on KCPT, Channel 19. In this hour comedian Will Durst, the always amiable host of "Livelyhood," introduces us to a cross section of toilers. As a group they're surprisingly even-handed on the matter of megawork. For an increasing number of go-go knowledge workers, long hours are the price for professional fulfillment in a booming economy. But oftentimes a long workday is what it's always been - a sacrifice, one parents gladly make so that their kids can have a better life. We ride along with a mom whose punishing 3Z x-hour daily commute makes it possible for her girls to attend good schools and live in a safe suburban neighborhood. We also stay up late with computer geeks at a software-design firm who work around the clock. "Working long hours isn't really our choice," says one of the obviously better-heeled drones. "It's a 24-hour culture." Perhaps. But "Livelyhood" makes the compelling case that in some lines of work, less is more. We meet a longtime worker at an Indiana plastics factory whose 12-hour shifts used to leave him exhausted, until his employer - desperate to reduce turnover at the plant - switched to a "30/40" system. By putting in 30 hours a week, yet getting paid for 40, the factory worker found himself summoning enough energy to enroll in night classes. This is a theme "Livelyhood" has looked at before, and to me at least it's starting to feel more like a cause: Hurray, the old work week is dead! But to the credit of the show's producers, they don't try to predict which way the new work week is heading. Will it be longer, as workers willingly blur the lines between job and life? Or shorter, as Americans start to learn the virtues of leisure time from their European counterparts? Or will it be some of both? We visit an aluminum plant where workers decide to switch to "flex-time" schedules. They still put in the long hours, but apparently it makes all the difference that they can choose which hours. What sets "Livelyhood" apart from nearly any other TV program about American business is that it tells its stories from the employee's viewpoint rather than the CEO's. But it doesn't bombard us with preachy, pro-labor sermons, either. The tone is light, and the segments alternate between the silly, the eye-opening and the inspiring. Durst handles the silly. The man who claims to have held more than 100 jobs in his life adds another one to his resume when he signs on with mylackey.com, a Seattle agency whose temps run errands for overworked professionals who don't even have time to take out their dry cleaning. In another segment, Durst follows legendary adman Jerry Della Femina around Manhattan in search of the lost three-martini lunch and the collegiality that went out with it. "Livelyhood" is gearing up for a third season on PBS, and I for one will drink to that. @ART CAPTION:Amiable as always Will Durst @ART:Photo >>>

Remote patrol

So if you're a big-shot TV producer of highly rated prime-time network shows, and you're on record lambasting shows you think "cheapen" prime time - such as game shows and reality programs - wouldn't you want to think twice before agreeing to do a reality program? "Arrest & Trial" comes from the production shop of Dick Wolf, author of two and soon to be three big hours of "Law & Order." And though, strictly speaking, it is not airing in "prime time" - you can see it twice nightly at 6 and 10 on Channel 29 - it's kind of odd to watch "Arrest & Trial" knowing that it comes from such a strident critic of reality shows. For one thing there's the way the show presents its true-life stories of crime and punishment. Wolf uses all the tricks of those oft-criticized reality shows you see on Fox: spooky music, a grave-sounding narrator, audio bites from the actual law enforcers and worst of all, re-enactments of the crimes (yuck). Would I rather watch "Cops" in prime time or "Arrest & Trial" outside of it? Shame on Wolf even for making this a tough call. @ART CAPTION:Brian Dennehy is the host of 'Arrest & Trial' @ART:Photo >>>