Reruns rule Saturdays
This weekend brings us a new chapter in NFL programming, several original new series and the offer of a movie marathon you can’t refuse. But you’ll have to wait until Sunday. Saturday, particularly during the summer, remains a night for leftovers.
¢ Colin Farrell, the unshaven star of “Miami Vice,” teams with Al Pacino in the 2003 espionage thriller “The Recruit” (8 p.m. today).
¢ “Feasting on Asphalt” (8 p.m. today, Food) returns for another easy ride through the culinary back roads of the American South, feasting on all things pork and shaking the hands of a celebrated colonel. A repeat of last week’s “Asphalt” (7 p.m.) precedes this installment.
¢ A&E will repeat the multipart 2000 series “Hooked: Illegal Drugs and How They Got That Way” tonight, beginning with a survey history of “Cocaine” (7 p.m. today), its cultivation, popularity and the political and police response to its widespread use. Hourlong looks at “Opium, Morphine and Heroin” (8 p.m.) and “LSD, Ecstasy and Raves” (9 p.m.) follow.
¢ In select markets, “Great Performances” (7 p.m. today, PBS) airs “Liza with a Z,” a 1972 concert starring then 26-year-old Liza Minnelli, fresh from her Oscar-winning turn in “Cabaret.” Directed by Bob Fosse, “Liza” was broadcast for a nationwide audience on NBC. Cleaned up and remastered for a recent Showtime exposure, this concert may appeal to Minnelli’s many fans. But to some it may seem Dated with a capital D.
¢ The Oakland Raiders and Philadelphia Eagles meet in preseason NFL action (7 p.m. Sunday, NBC). And a new era opens for network NFL broadcasting. After a hiatus of some years, the NFL returns to NBC, which will broadcast games Sunday nights throughout the regular season.
¢ Just when you think you’ve seen every variation on the design and makeover series, along comes “Designing Blind” (4 p.m. Sunday, A&E). Sightless interior decorator Eric Brun-Sanglard and host Alexandra Hedison demonstrate how Eric’s lost sight gives him a unique perspective on colors, textures and special arrangements.
¢ Ten years is a long time in pop culture and an eternity in children’s programming. While “Teletubbies” products gather dust or remain buried in landfills across the globe, “Blue’s Clues” (7 p.m. Sunday, Nickelodeon) keeps going strong. The gentle toddler favorite celebrates its first decade.
Today’s highlights
¢ Astrology points the way on “What’s Your Sign? Design” (8 p.m., HGTV).
¢ Scheduled on “48 Hours Mystery” (8 p.m., CBS): The murder of a professor leaves a bizarre trail of evidence.
¢ A deadly fire has suspicious origins on “Crossing Jordan” (9 p.m., NBC).
Sunday’s highlights
¢ Scheduled on “60 Minutes” (6 p.m., CBS): global warming; the supersizing of the American home; a video-game champion.
¢ A widowed father of three gets a new home on “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” (7 p.m., ABC).
¢ “True Hollywood Story” (7 p.m., E!) profiles Kelly Ripa.
¢ A kidnapper provides clues in the form of a puzzle on “Cold Case” (8 p.m., CBS).