What's On

PICK OF THE WEEK

The Wonderful World of Disney: Ruby Bridges

Sunday, Jan. 18 7-9 p.m. (ABC)

TV highlights for the week of Jan. 17-23. All times are Eastern; check local listings. Ratings are listed for shows when available.

* SUNDAY - 1/18

NHL All-Star Game (Fox, 4-7 p.m.): The best hockey talent from both sides of the Atlantic assembles on the same chunk of ice. The changed format divides the teams into North America and the Rest of the World. Among the stars are Jaromir Jagr, Eric Lindros, and John LeClair.

The Wonderful World of Disney: Ruby Bridges (ABC, 7-9 p.m.): One day in 1960, on the eve of integration, a six-year-old African-American child stormed a bastion of all-white Southern elementary education armed with notebooks and a great heart. Protected by armed federal marshals, the child walked past a crowd of angry, often vicious, white adults screaming cruel threats and taunts at her. It was her religious faith and her willingness to forgive and pray for the people who persecuted her that enabled her to overcome the emotional distress their racism caused her. Darling young Chaz Mont stars as Ruby in this notable family fare. Also starring Michael Beach as Ruby's dad, Lela Rochon as her mom, and Penelope Ann Miller as her devoted teacher. (TV-PG, L)

Masterpiece Theatre - Reckless (PBS, 9-11 p.m.): It's difficult to understand how a thin story like "Reckless" can sustain interest. But the program's witty writing is unusually involving, while the crack cast (led by English heartthrob Robson Green) helps keep this soapy mix of soggy sentiments boiling. A young working-class doctor falls head over heels for an older woman, who is unfortunately his boss's wife. Meanwhile, the boss is carrying on with a much younger woman and nobody in the whole series has two morals to rub together. At the end of the six-hour English melodrama, one has witnessed the mess adultery makes in people's lives - and wasted a good bit of time. Parts 2 and 3 will air at the same time Jan. 25 and Feb. 1. (TV-14, L)

Surviving the Bottom Line (PBS, 9-11 p.m.): For those interested in how the global economy works, this four-hour documentary explores the issues in an engaging way. Is downsizing good or bad? Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Hedrick Smith elicits opinions from both sides. And there's more: the migration of companies in search of cheap third-world labor; the growing superiority of Asian education; and the fruits of cooperation. Parts 1 and 2 air back to back. Parts 3 and 4 follow a week later, on Jan. 25. In a few markets the first two parts air Jan. 16.

* TUESDAY - 1/20

Dawson's Creek (WB, 9-10 p.m.): Written by screenwriter Kevin Williamson ("Scream"), this coming-of-age drama focuses on four teenagers whose lives are changing dramatically. The much-hyped program contains sexual dialogue and adult situations that limit the show's potential (see Page 13). (TV-14, DL)