What's On TV

All week

It's pledge month for PBS and some great programming will repeat throughout the month and into September. Check local listings for times.

Whale Rescue: Stranded Friends A few decades ago, a stranded whale could not be helped - and might even have ended up as pet food. But now they can be rescued, rehabilitated, and released. This terrific documentary tells the tale of two pilot whales saved and restored to the sea by heroic volunteers and aquarium pros.

Chapel of Love; Jerry Lee Lewis: The Story of Rock and Roll; and Roy Orbison in Concert will all delight rock 'n' roll fans as each lets the music speak for itself.

Blast! The concept of a marching band goes a step further as the dancer-musicians dance and play at the same time. It's professional and full of easy-listening tunes, both classical (Ravel's "Bolero") and popular (Leonard Bernstein's "West Side Story"). The group, which grew out of the Star of Indiana drum corps, has become a flashy act.

The Mexican Americans paints a vivid portrait of an ethnic group that has contributed a great deal to American culture. Luminaries like US Secretary of Energy Bill Richardson, actor Ricardo Montalban, writer/director Luis Valdez, and singer Vikki Carr describe their families' hardships as immigrants in the United States. The 2,000-mile-border between the US and Mexico has a long, long history we tend to forget. This film reminds us how close we really are.

Wednesday 8/23

Survivor (CBS, 8-10 p.m.): The summer reality series will put out its flame tonight when the final four become two and the $1 million winner will be chosen by a jury of the last seven contestants voted off the island. In the two-hour finale, there are immunity challenges that involve answering questions about the people they spent 39 days with on the island and another contest that includes fire walking.

Thursday 8/24

Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye (Fox, 8-10 p.m.): Jason Priestly directs and acts in this irony-filled thriller about a movie studio executive (Nick Lea) who wakes up after a night of drinking to find a dead girl at his side on the beach. A homeless man offers to help him - for a price. But nothing is the way it seems in this intriguing mystery with a surprising twist at the end. For mature audiences.

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