Worth Noting on TV

WEDNESDAY

The Siskel & Ebert Interviews (CBS, 8-9 p.m.): America's favorite film-critic duo celebrates their 20-year partnership by interviewing four individuals at the top of the movie business: Tom Hanks, Brad Pitt, Steven Spielberg, and Meryl Streep.

Arctic Kingdom: Life at the Edge (NBC, 8-9 p.m.): As summer nears in the Northern Hemisphere, many people envision hot, sunny, and sometimes dry days ahead. But for at least one region in this realm - the Arctic - the days of summer yield markedly different images. This beautifully filmed National Geographic Special captures these unique images - of hardy wildlife surviving in an icy, barren expanse where the sun doesn't set for four months.

Accompanied by Inuit guides, producer Lisa Truitt and her crew spent three summers in the Arctic for this program.

THURSDAY

Grand Ole Opry Musical Salute to Minnie Pearl (CBS, 8-10 p.m.): For 51 years, Minnie Pearl delighted Grand Ole Opry audiences with her folksy tales and country music. This tribute to the entertainer, who died in March, includes appearances by Roy Clark, Vince Gill, Patty Loveless, Barbara Mandrell, Dolly Parton, and Dwight Yoakam.

FRIDAY

The Adventures of Mole (Disney, 7-8 p.m.): This animated tale, adapted from Kenneth Grahame's "The Wind in the Willows," stars Mole, Toad, Ratty, and Badger.

Jobs - a Way Out? (PBS, 10-11 p.m.): Much has been said about escalating violence among youths and its devastating effects on the future of America's children. Taking a constructive approach to the problem is this lively program, which shows how innovative job-training projects often provide the key to success and a way out of violence. Among the projects profiled: the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship, which gives hands-on experience in forming a business; and the YMCA's Gang Outreach Program in Pittsburgh, where former gang rivals work side by side in their own businesses.

*Please check local listings for these programs.