ALSO TODAY Blade Reviewed by Charles Taylor Despite a thin plot and thick directing, Wesley Snipes' new superhero flick is a bloody good time RECENTLY IN ENTERTAINMENT Sharps & Flats Reviews of new CDs by Dr. John, MC Lyte, Randy Scruggs and more (08/19/98) Invitation to a lynching By Charles Taylor The trial that ended capital punishment in England (08/18/98) Women are from Venus, men are from Vegas By Joyce Millman ABC's girl-talk show "The View" and HBO's "Rat Pack" movie have more in common than you think (08/17/98) Mrs. Peel, we're needed Reviewed by Charles Taylor Remembering the real "Avengers" (08/17/98) Snake Eyes Reviewed by Stephanie Zacharek Cage and Sinise come up cold in De Palma's aloof thriller (08/07/98) BROWSE THE TV ARCHIVES COLUMNS FEATURES ILLUSTRATION BY JASON PORTER

blue glow SALON'S TV PICKS FOR THURSDAY, AUG. 20, 1998 BY JOYCE MILLMAN S E R I E S Veteran White House reporter Helen Thomas is profiled on a new Biography (8 p.m. EDT/9 PDT, A&E). Ross proposes to Emily on a rerun of Friends (8 p.m., NBC). On the first of two Simpsons reruns (8 p.m., Fox), Krusty retires after bombing at a comedy festival. Guest voices include Jay Leno and Janeane Garofalo. In the second episode (8:30 p.m.), Homer and Marge discover the thrill of sex in public. Fox Files (9 p.m., Fox) has reports on Internet stalkers and teen violence. Seinfeld (9 p.m., NBC) reruns the oft-rerun episode where Jerry sleeps with his maid, George gets stuck with a simian nickname, yada yada yada. The folks at ABC News keep coming up with ways to disguise their reruns: ABC News Summer Thursday (9 p.m., ABC) repackages four reports on parenting that previously aired on "20/20" and "PrimeTime Live." John Stossel hosts. 48 Hours (10 p.m., CBS) repeats an episode on survivors of disasters and other life-threatening events. On a rerun of ER (10 p.m., NBC), Benton gets in trouble while performing a routine operation, Carter asks Del Amico out and Jeanie tries to help Scotty make a big decision. S P E C I A L S Nightline in Prime Time (10 p.m., ABC) continues with Part 3 of its look at the American prison system. In this episode, Ted Koppel visits a high-security prison in Texas. S P O R T S Exhibition football: Giants at Jets (8:15 p.m., ESPN) T A L K Rosie O'Donnell (syndicated) Natasha Richardson, Hank Azaria, Rosemary Clooney David Letterman (CBS) Alec Baldwin Jay Leno (NBC) Rosanna Arquette, Lou Diamond Phillips, Dee Dee Myers Politically Incorrect (ABC) Jon Lovitz, Joey Lawrence, Mills Lane, Judith Regan Charlie Rose (PBS) TBA Conan O'Brien (NBC) Vanessa Williams SALON | Aug. 20, 1998 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Blue Glow for < href="http://www.salonmagazine.com/ent/glow/1998/08/19glow.html">Wednesday, Aug. 19, 1998

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