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What to Watch on Saturday: Take the hippest trip in America

Temple Grandin (8pm, HBO) - The story of animal scientist Temple Grandin (played by Claire Danes) who in the 1950s and 1960s overcame the stigma of Autism to become a leading advocate for the humane treatment of animals. Here's our review.

The Hippest Trip in America (9:30pm, VH1) - This fantastic new documentary on "Soul Train" features clips from the show and interviews with Don Cornelius, Aretha Franklin, Patti LaBelle, Smokey Robinson, and more. Not to be missed! If you don't believe me, read this review.

Saturday Night Live (11:30, NBC) - Ashton Kutcher (aka @AplusK) hosts, and the musical guest is Them Crooked Vultures

Verdict on Jon Hamm's SNL show: Excellent!

Whaddaya know. Last night's "Saturday Night Live" was about as solid as any complete episode I've seen in ages. I believe in my soul that Jon Hamm was working extra hard to make up for the god-awful hosting job by his "Mad Men" co-star January Jones.

Hamm's opening monologue had him reviewing some of the projects from early in his career, from lame teen sitcoms to a QVC stint and even a performance on Def Comedy Jam. The joke being that he pretty much played Don Draper in all those shows, even as he delivered the punchline from a dirty Redd Foxx stand-up bit.

Other favorites had Hamm as Scott Brown, the distractingly hot new Senator from Massachusetts, and Hamm in a commercial with musical guest Michael Bublé hawking their new joint venture, the "Hamm and Bublé" (pronounced bubbly) restaurant.

Check out some of the clips below.

What to Watch on Sunday: Grammy show and SNL sports special

Grammy Awards (8pm, CBS) - The 52nd annual awards show from the Staples Center in Los Angeles will feature performances by Beyonce, Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, Dave Matthews Band, Bon Jovi, the Black Eyed Peas, and more.

Simpsons (8pm, Fox) - Chris Martin of Coldplay guest stars as himself in an episode in which Homer buys a million-dollar lottery ticket. 

SNL Sports All-Stars - (9pm, NBC) - Jason Sudeikis and Will Forte play their sports commentator characters (Twinkle and Stink) to host a clip show featuring some of SNL's most memorable sports moments: Will Ferrell's Harry Caray impression, Ray Romano's SportsCenter bit, and segments featuring Peyton Manning (a classic!), Derek Jeter, LeBron James, Michael Jordan, and Charles Barkley

Brothers & Sisters (10pm, ABC) - Kitty considers running for Robert's senate seat, while Robert and Nora serve as guest chefs in Scotty's struggling restaurant to boost business. Also, Sarah has a breakthrough in her relationship with Roy. 

What to Watch on Saturday: Miss America and a side of Hamm

Miss America 2010 (8pm, TLC) - Ratings for the Miss America pageant have been in a steady decline for years now. Do we care about this any longer? If you do, this year's pageant is hosted by Mario Lopez and airs live from the Planet Hollywood Casino in Las Vegas. Judges include gymnast Shawn Johnson, actress Vivica A. Fox, and broadcaster Rush Limbaugh.

Lying to be Perfect (9pm, Lifetime) - A dowdy magazine editor (Poppy Montgomery) leads a double life as anonymous online advice columnist. But her secret identity is threatened when her friends want to make a pact to lose weight together, using the advice of her alter ego. Based on the book, "The Cinderella Pact." 

Saturday Night Live (11:30, NBC) - "Mad Men's" Jon Hamm is back to host again, and I'll watch pretty much anything with Jon Hamm. Apparently, he has shaved his beard. Not sure how I feel like that because I was kinda diggin' it. Although, gun to my head, he's probably more handsome without it. Sigh. Musical guest is Michael Buble

Austin City Limits (Midnight, UNC-TV) - Steve Earle and Kris Kristofferson. Austin native Earle performs from his 2009 cd "Townes" and Kristofferson plays from his 2009 cd "Closer to the Bone."

What to Watch on Saturday: SyFy's spooky "House of Bones"

NFL Playoffs: Ravens vs. Colts (8pm, NBC) - Baltimore goes to Indianapolis for the AFC divisional game.

House of Bones (9pm, SyFy) - An original SyFy movie about a group of paranormal scientists and a television crew who get more than they bargained for when they visit a notorious haunted house in New Orleans. Starring Charisma Carpenter, left ("Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Angel," "Greek") and Corin Nemec.

The Wanda Sykes Show (11pm, Fox) - Wanda's guests are Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Aisha Tyler, and George Wallace

Saturday Night Live (11:30pm, NBC) - Sigourney Weaver is the guest host and the musical guest is the Ting Tings.

Austin City Limits (Midnight, UNC-TV) - Mos Def performs from his 2009 cd "The Ecstatic," and Somali-born hip hop artist K'naan plays from his 2009 cd, "Troubadour." 

What to Watch on Saturday: Go from "Underdog to Wonderdog"

The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love (8pm, ABC) - This repeat of Monday night's show is worth watching just to see Jake Pavelka throw a football.

Underdog to Wonderdog (9pm, Animal Planet) - The Doggie Wonder Team tries to help a mother of two overcome her fear of dogs by having her interact with a friendly poodle mix.

48 Hours Mystery (10pm, CBS) - The show looks into the 1991 murders of four teenagers in an Austin yogurt shop.

Saturday Night Live (11:30pm, NBC) - Charles Barkley hosts and musical guest is Alicia Keys.

Austin City Limits (Midnight, UNC-TV) - New Orleans musician Allen Toussaint  performs from his 2009 cd "The Bright Mississippi."

What to Watch on Saturday: James Franco hosts SNL

Wizard of Oz (7pm, TNT) - The 1939 Judy Garland classic adaptation of L. Frank Baum's story of a Kansas girl's adventures in a magical land. If you haven't seen Dorothy, Toto, the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, the Cowardly Lion and the Wicked Witch of the West in awhile, tonight's your night. The Flying Monkeys are a bonus. Repeats at 9:15. 

The Three Gifts (8pm, Hallmark) - A new Hallmark original movie starring Dean Cain and Jean Louisa Kelly as a couple who gives a home to three orphaned boys. Read Adrienne's interview with Reginald VelJohnson, who also stars.

WWE Tribute to the Troops (9pm, NBC) - Highlights from WWE's seventh annual trip to Iraq to perform for the troops.

Saturday Night Live (11:30pm, NBC) - James Franco (right), fresh off his stint on "General Hospital" (that's right, "General Hospital") hosts SNL. Musical guest is Muse.

For a complete guide to today's holiday tv programming, check out What to Watch: Santa Edition

What to Watch on Thursday: SNL builds Christmas special around "Gilly?"

Saturday Night Live: A Very Gilly Christmas (8pm, NBC) - SNL has taken one of my all-time least favorite characters and built an entire Christmas special around her. If you're sick of Kristin Wiig's Gilly, as I am, record this special and fast forward through the Gilly bits, because you don't want to miss other classic SNL holiday skits, such as Alec Baldwin hawking his Schweddy Balls on NPR. Baldwin and Steve Martin both appear to introduce classic sketches.

The Mentalist (10pm, CBS) - During an investigation into the murder of a baseball scout, Jane is hit on the head with a ball and has flashbacks to his childhood and memories of his father, played by Nick Chinlund.

Jersey Shore (10pm, MTV) - This reality show has taken on a life of its own. Tonight is the episode in which Snooki gets assaulted in a bar, but MTV is not showing the scene of Snooki getting punched in the face by a bar patron. They have standards. 

For today's complete guide to holiday tv viewing, check out our What to Watch: Santa Edition.

SNL skit: John Edwards on Tiger Woods media coverage

Last night's "Saturday Night Live" opened with a skit of South Carolina's Governor Mark Sanford, Nevada Senator John Ensign, and North Carolina's former senator John Edwards holding a press conference criticizing the media for their coverage of the Tiger Woods scandal.

But instead of taking the media to task for being too hard on their fellow philanderer, the men complain that Tiger's getting all the coverage these days.

SNL had Will Forte playing Edwards, Jason Sudeikis playing Sanford, and Bill Hader playing Ensign.

Forte as Edwards mostly reminded the one reporter who bothered to attend the press conference that he (allegedly) has a child with his former mistress. As Ensign and Sanford argue about why their affairs deserve more media coverage, Edwards repeatedly exclaims, "I had a love child!"

What to Watch on Saturday: Our favorite fish-eyed fool

Sanford and Son (5:30pm, TV Land) - A "Sanford and Son" mini-marathon starts at 5:30, but the Aunt Esther episodes commence at 8:00. In the first one, Grady (Whitman Mayo, my favorite S&S character) accidentally causes trouble between Aunt Esther (LaWanda Page) and Uncle Woodrow. Next, Fred (Redd Foxx) helps Esther prepare to compete in a beauty contest. That's not a misprint.

The Incredibles (8:30pm, NBC) - The animated action classic featuring the voices of Craig T. Nelson and Samuel L. Jackson.

12 Men of Christmas (9pm, Lifetime) - It's going to be impossible to beat Kristin Chenoweth in this holiday-themed Lifetime movie. Check out Adrienne's review.

Saturday Night Live (11:30pm, NBC) - Blake Lively is the guest host and Rihanna performs.

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