CATEGORY: COMEDY
Home run
Tracy (Tracy Morgan) decides to coach an inner-city little league team from Knuckle Beach, a really bad fictitious neighborhood. Jack (Alec Baldwin) wants to turn the underprivileged kids on the team into winners and opens up his wallet. Soon, the team has a new scoreboard, a fresh pitcher’s mound and uniforms – but the gesture backfires and Jack loses his temper. Meanwhile, back at the studio, the new studly coffee boy at the asks Liz (Tina Fey) out on a date. The poor guy thinks that Liz is only 29!
30 ROCK
Thursday, 8:30 p.m., NBC
CATEGORY: MUSIC
Clapton plays
Everyone is reading the new “Clapton” autobiography. Now there’s a new Clapton music special, on PBS. The Crossroads Guitar Festival unites the blues guitarist with some of this favorite musicians and proceeds go to Clapton’s Crossroads Centre in Antigua, a drug and alcohol treatment facility. Joining the living legend on stage in Chicago are Jeff Beck, Robert Cray, Sheryl Crow, Buddy Guy, Los Lobos, John Mayer and Steve Winwood, among many others.
ERIC CLAPTON CROSSROADS GUITAR FESTIVAL
Wednesday, 9 p.m., PBS
CATEGORY: VARIETY
Swift kick
The Radio City Music Hall Christmas show has been going strong for 75 years. For the first time, the show will be televised on NBC with Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira of “Today” as co-hosts. To celebrate the show’s diamond anniversary, the producers have outdone themselves. People who’ve seen the show before will be familiar with routines such as the “Parade of the Wooden Soldiers” and “The Living Nativity,” complete with camels. But this year, no one wants to miss the finale number in which the Rockettes, in silver costumes adorned with crystals, appear on stage in the shape of a Christmas tree and start kicking.
RADIO CITY CHRISTMAS SPECTACULAR
Saturday, 8 p.m., NBC
CATEGORY: COMEDY
Baby boom
The newborn pregnancy comedy “Notes From The Underbelly” is back for a second season Monday night, following “Samantha Who?” in its new, 9 p.m., time slot. Following a group of successful, young Angelenos who are about to start families, or who have already started them, “Underbelly” has moments of humor-supplied largely by the character who doesn’t want children, a free-loving woman named Cooper (Rachael Harris)-but also feels like “Friends” for young marrieds. This week, Eric (Sunkrish Bala) and Julie (Melanie Paxson) hire a nanny who won’t give her secret swaddling technique that instantly calms their son, Perry.
NOTES FROM THE UNDERBELLY
Monday, 9:30 p.m., ABC
CATEGORY: DRAMA
Bastard out of Park Avenue
Tripp Darling (Donald Sutherland) knows that his wife, Letitia (Jill Clayburgh), had a child that he did not father. The husband-wife discussion advances this week as Tripp and Letitia get down to the nitty-gritty. Letitia remembers her longterm affair with Dutch George, played in flashbacks by TV veteran Peter Strauss. Viewers see Dutch interact with his estranged son, Nick (Peter Krause) as well the Darling parents before the identity of the illegitimate Darling child is revealed. Meanwhile, Reverend Brian Darling (Glenn Fitzgerald) is arrested for trying to bribe the arbitrator into awarding him custody of his son.
DIRTY SEXY MONEY
Wednesday, 10 p.m., ABC