What's On TV

Pick of The Week

SMALL STEPS, BIG STRIDES: THE BLACK EXPERIENCE IN HOLLYWOOD (1903-1970)

Tuesday, Feb. 10 10-11 p.m. (AMC)

TV highlights for the week of Feb. 7-13. All times are Eastern; check local listings.

SUNDAY 2/8

NBA All-Star Game (NBC, 6:30-9 p.m.): For more reasons than one, this will be a noteworthy all-star game. Larry Bird will make his 13th NBA All-Star Game, this time as a rookie coach. Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant is set to become the youngest starter in All-Star Game history. And Chicago Bulls Michael Jordan says this could be his last year.

Celebrity Profile - Robert Duvall (E!, 9-10 p.m.): Robert Duvall and a "bad role" just don't go together. Critics say other actors shore up their skills by simply being in his presence. Now he's back in the news for starring in, writing, and directing "The Apostle." In this profile, Dennis Hopper, George Lucas, and Jon Voight tell why. (TV-G)

TUESDAY 2/10

No Time 2 Be a Child (PBS, 10-11 p.m.): A compelling and heart-wrenching report on child abuse in the home. According to the program, child-abuse cases have grown from 1 million in 1970 to about 3 million today. The first half focuses on young children and features an interview with an 11-year-old girl. Among the professionals interviewed in the second part are counselor Tim Anderson of Arrowhead Ranch (a refuge for abused teens located four hours west of Chicago), who helps troubled teens learn to trust again. (TV-PG, L)

Small Steps, Big Strides: the Black Experience in Hollywood (1903-1970) (AMC, 10-11 p.m.): Will Smith, Angela Bassett, and Whitney Houston have all played leading roles in box-office hits. But plenty of black actors can't relate to their kind of success. This engaging special, narrated by Louis Gossett Jr., highlights the struggles and progress blacks have made in Hollywood. Clips featuring Hattie McDaniel in "Gone With the Wind" and Dorothy Dandridge and Harry Belafonte in "Carmen Jones" (pictured) illustrate how their indelible marks in film have helped black actors today. (TV-G)

WEDNESDAY 2/11

The Living Edens: 'Etosha: Africa's Untamed Wilderness' (PBS, 8-9 p.m.): This is a piggyback ride on a camera into the heart of Etosha, a 6,000-kilometer swath of southwestern Africa. For eight months each year, Etosha, which means a place of mirages, is a baked and blistered lake bed. When the monsoons arrive, life is transformed into a joyful song. (TV-PG, V)

THURSDAY 2/12

Glory (WB, 8-10 p.m.): A stirring tribute to the first African-American regiment in the United States, the 53rd Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, which fought in the Civil War. A confrontational relationship between the white Col. Robert Shaw (Matthew Broderick), who headed the division, and a runaway slave (Denzel Washington) is at the heart of this true-to-period movie. Washington won the best supporting actor for this role in 1989.

FRIDAY 2/13

Circle of Friends (NBC, 9-11 p.m.): Minnie Driver, now receiving high marks as the love interest in "Good Will Hunting," and Chris O'Donnell, of "Batman and Robin" fame, star in this charming coming-of-age drama set in 1957 Dublin. (TV-PG)