TNT, 7:00 p.m. ET
TNT presents more showings of 1939’s classic The Wizard of Oz tonight – once at 7 p.m. ET, and again at 9:20 p.m. ET. Even with annoying commercial interruptions, it’s a movie ideally suited for viewing with the whole family. And the more members of the family who are around visiting for the holidays, the better it is. If you’re looking for one full-family TV treat tonight, The Wizard of Oz is one because – because, because, because, because, becaaaaause…!
NBC, 8:00 p.m. ET
You actually can toggle between NBC and TNT tonight and go from one Wiz to another, because TNT is double-featuring back-to-back showings of The Wizard of Oz, while NBC has decided to repeat its recent live musical telecast of The Wiz Live! The cast includes Queen Latifah as the Wiz, Uzo Aduba as Glinda, Ne-Yo as the Tin Man, Elijah Kelley as the Scarecrow, and Shanice Williams as Dorothy, but the best performance comes, surprisingly, from David Alan Grier as the Cowardly Lion. And I ain’t lion…
ABC, 9:00 p.m. ET
Tonight’s Democratic presidential debate, live from New Hampshire, features Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, and Martin O’Malley, and will be moderated by ABC’s David Muir and Martha Raddatz. Better make sure to watch, because this is the final presidential debate of the year!!!! Oh, wait… there will still be about 104 of those next year, before the candidates are selected. So there’s less of a sense of urgency. And whoever scheduled this one for the final Saturday night before Christmas wasn’t really thinking of reaching a giant audience, right?
AMC, 9:00 p.m. ET
The recent televised Frank Sinatra tribute concert, celebrating what would have been his 100th birthday, was a disappointment musically and emotionally. This event, taped Dec. 5 at Madison Square Garden, starts with John Fogerty singing “Give Peace a Chance” and “In My Life,” and includes Sheryl Crow doing “A Hard Day’s Night,” The Roots doing “Mother,” Willie Nelson doing a solo “Imagine,” and lots more. Yoko Ono is there live, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr on video, and Lauren Rauffer, one of my Rowan University students, assisting somewhere in the background.
Sundance, 10:00 p.m. ET
SEASON FINALE: This is the Season 2 finale – so after tonight, The Returned won’t be returning. At least not for a while…
NBC, 11:29 p.m. ET
Tonight’s guest hosts are former SNL regulars, and best-buddy comedy standouts, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. With the two of them fronting the show, you know it’s going to one of be the best, as well as the last, SNL of the year, and it doesn’t really matter who they’ve got as musical guest. But for the record, it’s, uh, Bruce Springsteeen. Did I say one of the best?