TCM, 5:00 p.m. ET
Great Scott! It’s George C. Scott Day on TCM’s “Summer Under the Stars,” and one of the films shown during this particular 24-hour salute is Scott’s most famous movie role: as the gruff WWII general in 1970’s Patton, which is shown at 5 p.m. ET in the widescreen format that makes room for the entire flag.
BBC America, 8:00 p.m. ET
Two very clever, and classic, modern Doctor Who episodes are shown tonight, accompanied by behind-the-scenes info. The first is Vincent and the Doctor, in which the Vincent in the title is Vincent Van Gogh – leading to a spectacularly clever appearance by the Tardis in a Von Gogh-ish canvas (pictured). The other, at 9:15 p.m. ET, is The Doctor’s Wife, the first Doctor Who script to be written by famed fantasy writer Neil Gaiman.
Comedy Central, 8:00 p.m. ET
Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg wrote this script, about two geeky friends navigating the last weeks of high school, when they were in high school. It took a few years, until Rogen was one of the stars on Freaks and Geeks, for him to work up the courage to give his script to one of that show’s collaborators, Judd Apatow, who backed this movie comedy in 2007. By then, actor Rogen was too old to play one of the lead characters, so he played a cop instead. The stars? Jonah Hill and Michael Cera – playing characters named, respectively, Seth and Evan. Also starring: Bill Hader and Emma Stone. Greg Mattola directs, and worked with this young ensemble to make a movie that was anything but Superbad.
TCM, 8:00 p.m. ET
This 1961 movie is a smart, brooding character study showcasing three wonderful actors: Paul Newman (in a role he would reprise decades later, in 1986’s The Color of Money), George C. Scott (the star being saluted today on TCM’s “Summer Under the Stars”), and Jackie Gleason – in a fitting dramatic role, showing off his real-life skills with a pool cue.
NBC, 10:00 p.m. ET
SERIES FINALE: Mads Mikkelsen, as Hannibal Lecter, gets his last meal, so to speak, in tonight’s episode. It’s the final episode of Hannibal, which, to this point, has neither been renewed by NBC nor rescued by Netflix, Hulu or any other streaming service. So even though the story of the Hannibal in the movies kept going in sequels, this looks like the end of the road for the TV cannibal killer. For Hannibal the Cannibal, it must be bitter news to swallow.