How’s this for programming? Nothing. As in a dark screen, a blank slate, an invitation to do something else. For the sixth year in a row, Nickelodeon and its affiliate networks, Nicktoons Network, NOGGIN, The N, Nick.com, Noggin.com, Nicktoonsnetwork.com and The-N.com will all go dark to encourage children to do something truly radical: Go outside and play.

More than 1,000 local events have been planned as part of a Worldwide Day of Play. The screens will not be dark all day — only from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., enough for a long hiatus from passive entertainment.

l A series overly dependent on long, disjointed pop-culture digressions, “Family Guy” makes the most of its spinoff, “The Cleveland Show” (7:30 p.m., Sunday, Fox).

“Cleveland” begins with obvious references to spin-offs past and lampoons the very process of setting up a new series. And to make matters even sillier, “The Cleveland Show” offers a consciously copy-cat version of “Family Guy,” giving Cleveland a sassy wife, a dim son, a rebellious teenage step-daughter and a pint-sized wise-guy prone to violent asides. There’s also a talking bear, to parallel Brian the Talking Dog.

• Do not adjust your sets. Ken Burns takes over PBS prime time this week for a 12-hour, six-part tour of “The National Parks: America’s Best Idea” (7 p.m., Sunday, PBS, nightly through Friday, check local listings). The subject lends itself perfectly to the filmmaker’s touch: gorgeous photography accompanied by down-homey acoustic music and described by period letters, proclamations and diary entries voiced by actors known and unknown.

In many ways it’s Burns’ most austere, assured and beautiful project since “The Civil War.” And like that TV classic, it’s shot through with a deeply felt spirituality. Sunday’s installment, “The Scripture of Nature,” explores the parks as a part of a peculiarly American notion of nature worship. John Muir, a 19th-century naturalist and the “star” of part 1, abandoned the stern religion of his preacher father to embrace nature in ways that contemporaries found both eccentric and exalted.

Today’s highlights

• Megan Fox hosts “Saturday Night Live” (10:30 p.m., NBC), featuring musical guest U2.

Sunday’s premieres

• Scheduled on the 42nd-season premiere of “60 Minutes” (6 p.m., CBS): Afghanistan; recovering Madoff loot; the earning power of dead celebrities, from James Dean to Michael Jackson.

• The mad dash resumes on “Amazing Race” (7 p.m., CBS) for the 15th time.

• Homer stars in Comic Book guy’s movie as “The Simpsons” (7 p.m., Fox) enters its 21st season.

• Brian and Stewie leave the planet on “Family Guy” (8 p.m., Fox).

• Mike reveals his Mrs. on “Desperate Housewives” (8 p.m., ABC). Drea de Matteo and Jeffrey Nordling join the season -six cast.

• Family responsibilities can be murder on “Dexter” (8 p.m., Showtime).

• Becca pushes Hank’s buttons on “Californication” (9 p.m., Showtime).

Sunday’s highlights

• Larry sends Loretta to a specialist on “Curb Your Enthusiasm” (8 p.m., HBO)

• Betty becomes civic minded on “Mad Men” (9 p.m., AMC).