What to Watch Tuesday: Honorees, Evolution, Another Bowl
There’s always something incongruous about the Kennedy Center Honors, the 2009 version of which will be seen Tuesday at 9 p.m. on CBS. Uncomfortable-looking honorees, who invariably include at least one artist known as a rebel, sit in tuxedos or gowns as an extremely staid audience, also in formal wear, applauds them and fellow performers pay tribute. this year the honorees include Bruce Springsteen, who is more accustomed to having stadiums full of fans scream his lyrics, and Mel Brooks, who is more accustomed to having theater crowds scream with laughter. Grace Bumbry, the opera star, may be the only one who feels at home in the high-toned room. Dave Brubeck and Robert de Niro are also honorees.
Not many books are still being urgently debated 150 years after they were published, but “On the Origin of Species,” Charles Darwin’s great insight, still gets a lot of buzz. At 8 p.m. the PBS series “Nova” offers “What Darwin never Knew,” an up-to-date look at evolution as it is reflected in the development of embryos.
The Coles family displays a certain defiant pride that will annoy a lot of people who watch “One Big happy Family,” which has its premiere at 9 p.m. on TLC. The four family members, each weighing more than 300 pounds, strike an attitude that seems to say: “Yeah, we’re overweight. You got a problem with that?” but they also realize that the way they live, especially the way they eat, is killing them. The series follows their efforts to change.
a lot of Who Cares Bowls have already been played, but now college football fans can settle in for some of the better matchups, among them the Champs Sports Bowl in Orlando, Fla., at 8 p.m. on ESPN. two 9-3 teams meet: Miami, which has a pretty good passing game, and Wisconsin, which has a pretty good running game. Wisconsin was thumped by Florida State in the same bowl last year.
What to Watch Tuesday: Honorees, Evolution, another Bowl