USA Takes 4-Day Run at the ‘Godfather’ Saga

USA gives viewers two classics they can’t refuse this weekend. The 1974 Oscar-winning “The Godfather Part II” comes to the cable network tonight at 9 and concludes Friday at the same time. “The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television,” Francis Ford Coppola’s reedited, nine-hour chronological version of “The Godfather” and “The Godfather Part II,” is set for Saturday at 5 p.m. and Sunday at 4 p.m.

Thursday

In “The Era of the Deal,” at 10 p.m. on Channel 28, filmmakers Mitchell Koss and Lisa Ling examine the effects of global economics on several countries including India and Afghanistan.

MTV’s “Shaq Session,” at 10 p.m., features the L.A. Laker/actor/recording artist hanging out and performing songs from his third album with some of his favorite artists.

The documentary “Brigham Young,” at 10 p.m. on Channel 50, combines interviews and archival material to create a portrait of the famed Mormon spiritual leader.

Friday

The “KTLA Morning News” celebrates its sixth anniversary, from 7-9 a.m. The festivities include special guests as well as flashback moments.

Leslie Nielsen hosts the CBS special “Television’s Comedy Classics,” airing at 8 p.m. on Channel 2. The retrospective features vintage comedy clips starring such funny folks as Jim Carrey, Jerry Seinfeld, Bob Newhart, Roseanne, Bill Cosby and Billy Crystal.

The special “It’s So L.A.,” airing at 8 p.m. on Channel 13, focuses on the offbeat reasons why folks love the City of Angels.

Saturday

NBC’s “NFL Quarterback Challenge,” at 11 a.m. on Channel 4, features Super Bowl XXXI rivals Brett Favre of the Green Bay Packers and Drew Bledsoe of the New England Patriots. Also Vinny Testaverde, Neil O’Donnell, Jim Harbaugh and Troy Aikman.

The 1997 pro football season officially kicks off at 11:30 a.m. on Channel 7 with ABC’s live coverage of the AFC-NFC Hall of Fame game between the Seattle Seahawks and the Minnesota Vikings in Canton, Ohio. At 8 a.m., ESPN2 will air live the Hall of Fame induction ceremony honoring Coach Don Shula, cornerback Mike Haynes and lineman Mike Webster.

A&E;’s “Investigative Reports: Blood Money: Switzerland’s Nazi Gold,” at 6 and 10 p.m., chronicles how the Swiss banks used the life savings of Jews to finance Hitler’s war effort.

Rutger Hauer and Martin Sheen star in HBO’s latest movie, “Hostile Waters,” at 9 p.m. The thriller is based on a true incident of a Soviet and American sub collision.

David E. Kelley’s series “The Practice,” which premiered on ABC this spring, returns in a new Saturday 10 p.m. slot. Dylan McDermott stars.

Sunday

The Family Channel’s “Hollywood Legendary Directors & Their Great Black and White Films” festival kicks off at 9 a.m. with “The Egg and I.” The John Huston film “The List of Adrian Messenger” follows at 11:30 a.m. John Ford’s “The Last Hurrah” is on tap at 1:30 p.m. Billy Wilder’s “Love in the Afternoon” is at 4 p.m. The Oscar-winning 1950 classic “All About Eve” follows at 7 p.m. The festival concludes with Alfred Hitchcock’s “I Confess” at 10 p.m.

A&E; explores the era of bootleg gin and gangsters in the three-hour documentary “Prohibition: 13 Years That Changed America,” at 5 and 9 p.m.

James Garner hosts “Big Guns Talk: The Story of the Western,” at 5 and 7 p.m. on TNT, a documentary on the western film. Tom Selleck, Clint Eastwood, Sam Elliott and Bruce Dern are on hand to chat about the genre.

TBS’ “The Last River Ride,” at 6 p.m., focuses on five men who attempt to fulfill their dream by running Africa’s treacherous Tekeze River.

Richard Dean Anderson stars in “Stargate SG-1,” at 8 p.m., Showtime’s new sci-fi series based on the 1994 hit film.

Michael Dorn of “Star Trek” fame narrates the Learning Channel’s six-hour miniseries “Solar Empire,” at 7 and 10 p.m. “Listen, Paula,” at 11 p.m. on Channel 28, focuses on author Isabel Allende as she writes her family history for her comatose daughter.