Weekly Best Bets

Jason Lee

Thursday

7 p.m. on NBC

My Name Is Earl: No. 18 on Earl's (Jason Lee) list is a tall order. He once told an inappropriate story at his friend Hank's (Tim Dekay) party. Now Hank's been arrested, and Earl wants to give him a day full of goodness before he goes to the big house. But this plan - involving a visit from Hank's grandma, a copy of his hometown paper and some special doughnuts - proves the old adage about not biting off more than you can chew. Fun to watch, though.

7:30 p.m. on NBC

The Office: Michael (Steve Carell) goes blue collar when Jan (Melora Hardin) decides to hold a "women in the workplace" seminar in "Boys and Girls." Well, not exactly blue collar, but he takes the male employees down to the warehouse for a little bonding, which results in considerable trouble downstairs in the form of destroyed equipment and insulted workers. Rainn Wilson and John Krasinski also star.

9 p.m. on CBS

Without a Trace: You gotta love watching a knowit all get knocked down a few pegs, so we're liking the arrival of Elena Delgado, an accomplished NYPD vice cop but a rookie with the FBI. As the newest member of the Missing Persons Squad, she has a mysterious past with one of her new colleagues, and she has some strong opinions about how things ought to be done. What she doesn't have is a clue about finding missing people who may not be dead yet. Don't worry; that'll change.

9 p.m. on NBC

Windfall: Despite the goofy premise and the plot holes, this summer drama about lottery winners has proven, well, a winner. Maybe there's something about summer that makes us receptive to "what if" scenarios and soapy stories. The suds pile high in this episode, which finds Cameron and Nina's (Jason Gedrick, Lana Parrilla) affair developing complications - no, really? - and Peter and Sunny (Luke Perry, Nikki DeLoach) celebrating the unveiling of a new product.

Friday

7 p.m. on TNT

Save the Last Dance: We dare you to keep your feet still while watching this MTV-produced drama, one of the first big theatrical hits of 2001. Julia Stiles plays an aspiring dancer whose mother is killed on the way to one of her recitals. Transferred to an innercity school, she finds her place - in terms of both emotions and desired career - by learning hip-hop moves from a sympathetic new peer (Sean Patrick Thomas).

8 p.m. on NBC

Las Vegas: Superchef Wolfgang Puck! Sexy Olympians! A ghost! This very busy episode has Puck opening a restaurant at the Montecito, which draws a crowd of reporters and has Delinda (Molly Sims) excited at the potential exposure for the Mystique. Not everyone has come to see Puck's place, though; reports that Monica Mancuso's ghost is haunting the casino have brought out the curious, as has a visit from Olympic snowboarders Gretchen Bleiler, Ross Powers and Kelly Clark.

Saturday

6 p.m. on ESPN

Faces of Sports: One of a Kind - The Rise and Fall of Stu Ungar: He was both the Michael Jordan and the John Belushi of the card table -

brilliant at his game but plagued by

deadly addictions. This poignant profile remembers the man many consider one of the greatest poker players ever, who turned to the game when his unbeatability at gin rummy - he won his first tournament at age 10 - dried up the gin action. His story is an American tragedy and a cautionary tale worth watching even if you're not into poker.

7 p.m. on CBS

NCIS: Two-time Oscar nominee and real-life World War II veteran Charles Durning guest stars in "Call of Silence" He plays a Medal of Honor winner who comes to the NCIS team with a shocking confession: He murdered his best friend ... almost 60 years ago. Talk about cold cases! Mark Harmon and Sasha Alexander star.

Sunday

7 p.m. on TBS

Secondhand Lions: A youngster (Haley Joel Osment) gets much more out of a summer vacation than he anticipated in this fanciful 2003 drama. His irresponsible mother (Kyra Sedgwick) drops him off with his Texas great-uncles (Michael Caine, Robert Duvall), who captivate him with tall tales about their alleged exploits. Nicky Katt ("Boston Public") and Josh Lucas ("Sweet Home Alabama") co-star.

8 p.m. on ABC

Desperate Housewives: Cat fight! Gabrielle and Tom (Eva Longoria, Doug Savant) share a kiss as a joke of sorts, igniting Lynette's (Felicity Huffman) jealousy and causing a rift between the two women. Paul (Mark Moses) is also having green-eyed monster issues as Mike (James Denton) tries to get closer to Zach (Cody Kasch). Andrew (Shawn Pyfrom) attempts to blackmail Bree (Marcia Cross) in "One More Kiss."