‘Stars’ provide comedy for a good cause

Conan O’Brien and a pack of “Saturday Night Live” talent join forces on “Night of Too Many Stars” (7 p.m. today, NBC), a comedy-variety benefit for the Autism Coalition. Dana Carvey returns as “The Church Lady” to ladle out some tough love to Macaulay Culkin and “The Sopranos” star Michael Imperioli. Adam Sandler offers one of his cracked folk songs to guilt-trip viewers into donating funds for the charity.

Tina Fey and Jimmy Fallon dramatically re-enact some of history’s weakest awards-show patter, and Jack Black offers his unique interpretations of hit Broadway musicals. Too short at only one hour, “Stars” wraps up with Lou Reed taking the stage to “jam” with Sandler, O’Brien, Carvey, Black and Fallon on “Walk on the Wild Side.” Comedy for a very good cause, “Stars” also reminds you that “Saturday Night Live” used to be funny.

  • A superior cast can’t save the new cable drama series “Out of Order” (9 p.m. Sunday, Showtime) from its insufferably smug script and precious premise. Mark (Eric Stoltz) and Lorna (Felicity Huffman) are successful Hollywood screenwriters who see all aspects of their lives as potential movie scenarios.

If watching rich Hollywood types talking endlessly about themselves is your idea of entertainment, then help yourself.

  • Just when you thought celebrity gossip couldn’t get any more vapid, along comes the new series “It’s Good to Be …” (9 p.m. Sunday, E!). Every week, this cheeky series reveals the salaries, spending habits and conspicuous consumption of Hollywood stars. This week we get a quick run-through of Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston’s lifestyle as they rose from menial jobs to the top of the Tinsel Town food chain.

Fascinating and sadly vulgar at the same time, “It’s Good to Be …” has the heart of a tattletale and the soul of an auditor.

  • Thomas Gibson sheds his nice-guy “Dharma & Greg” image to appear in the exceptionally dumb 2003 TV drama “Evil Never Dies” (7 p.m. Sunday, TBS). He plays a detective who gets really, really mad after a serial killer murders his wife. His friends think he’ll find “closure” after the bad guy’s execution. But he doesn’t. Then he gets even angrier after the killer is resurrected from the dead by a mad scientist. Wouldn’t you?

Today’s highlights

  • Anaheim takes on New Jersey in Game 3 of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs (7 p.m., ABC).
  • “Inside Fame” (8 p.m., CMT) profiles Dwight Yoakam.
  • A soldier’s affair with a transgendered entertainer causes consternation in the barracks in the 2003 cable drama “Soldier’s Girl” (8 p.m., Showtime).

Sunday’s highlights

  • Scheduled on “60 Minutes” (6 p.m., CBS): How long should Germans atone for the Holocaust; repeat reports on Roger Clemens; and the Hubble telescope.
  • Drew Barrymore stars in the 1998 update of the Cinderella story “Ever After” (6 p.m., ABC).
  • Lisa Ling joins “National Geographic Ultimate Explorer” (7 p.m., MSNBC) as new host, with a profile of NBA star Yao Ming.
  • Lisa’s fate remains unknown as “Six Feet Under” (8 p.m., HBO) ends its third season.