Tuning in: On TV this week.
Sunday May 30
2004 National Memorial Day Concert (PBS, 8 to 9:30 p.m.): Commemorating the 60th Anniversary of D-Day, this live special from the Capitol stars, among others, Alison Krauss, Joe Mantegna, and violinist Joshua Bell.
Ike: Countdown to D-Day (A&E, 8-10 p.m.): It's hard to imagine Tom Selleck as General Eisenhower, but he turns out to be terrific in the role. This riveting drama opens with Eisenhower demanding that British Prime Minister Winston Churchill give him full command of the European theater of war. As supreme commander of the Allied Forces, Eisenhower had a talent for strategy that was only slightly greater than his capacity to unite the most difficult men (the generals) of the Allied armies into a strong team.
Cosmopolitan (PBS, 10-12 p.m.): From the writer of "Monsoon Wedding" comes this charming story about an Indian man who finds himself deprived of wife (gone to live a monastic life in India) and daughter (gone to teach English in Mongolia). Now single, he reads women's magazines to find out how to woo women. Every time he thinks of the divorcée next door (Carol Kane), he breaks into song à la Bollywood. But his triumph is a little short of inspired.
Come to Papa (NBC, 8:30-9 p.m.): A fresh new sitcom is welcome in the midst of rerun season. This one is based on the certifiable standup comedy of Tom Papa. Guffaws abound in the opening episode as Tom tries to write a story for his local paper on "Crazy Benny," the tire-store salesman. All Tom's fine work goes up in smoke, however, when Benny accidentally sets fire to the garage.
