CBS, 8:00 p.m. ET
The first new Big Bang Theory of the New Year has Sheldon (Jim Parsons) in trouble at the university, because he’s been accused of sexual harassment. Meanwhile, in his private life, Amy (Mayim Bialik) is accusing him of not sexually harassing her enough. And Sheldon, of course, is oblivious to, and innocent of, all of it.
Comedy Central, 8:00 p.m. ET
Five vintage episodes are repeated in tonight’s mini-marathon, including “Marjorine” (8:30 p.m. ET), the episode where Butters goes undercover to infiltrate a girls’ sleepover and report back on what really happens there.
TCM, 8:00 p.m. ET
Shirley Temple already had been in films for three years – half her life, at that point – when she starred in this 1935 movie, an adaptation of the stage play that has her playing the daughter of a Confederate officer. It’s a very unlikely film, and at times a politically incorrect one, starting with Bill “Bojangles” Robinson’s subservient role as Uncle Billy. And for those who can’t get enough Abraham Lincoln on screen right now, here’s an early version: Frank McGlynn Sr. plays the U.S. President from whom “the littlest rebel” seeks clemency.
TCM, 9:30 p.m. ET
Another Shirley Temple movie shown tonight on TCM, this one, from 1936, has her playing a homeless little girl taken in by a gruff old lighthouse keeper (Guy Kibbee). I’ve always had a thing for lighthouses – and I wonder now, before seeing this film for the first time since early childhood, if those rocky roots are buried here.
Comedy Central, 10:30 p.m. ET
I note this rerun chiefly because its host is Seth MacFarlane, whose next job as emcee is at the 2013 Academy Awards. You’ve come a long way, Teddy.