TV smarts

Some broadcast and cable programs contain material included in the public school curriculum and on standardized examinations. Here are weekend home-viewing tips:

* Today. “Tell About the South” (KCET, 10-11:30 p.m.) This combination documentary-dramatic film about literature in the southern United States describes the work of African American and white writers in that cultural and historical context. The narrator is former U.S. Poet Laureate Rita Dove. For further information, log on https://www.ageefilms.org. Also, paperback compilations by two central figures in this film have recently been released: “The Complete Stories” of Zora Neale Hurston and “Collected Stories of William Faulkner.”

* Friday. “The White House in Crisis” (MSNBC, 8-9 p.m.) This program presents an end-of-the-week summary of news about President Clinton, plus analysis by journalists and officials. Keith Olbermann hosts. Also recommended: “Babe Ruth’s Larger Than Life Legacy (ESPN, 9:30-10:30 p.m.). This documentary is one in ESPN’s “Outside the Lines” series, which delves into the lives of historical sports figures. Because some kids will read sports literature even though they won’t read anything else, here’s a book suggestion: “Babe Ruth,” a biography for younger readers, by Norman Macht and Jim Murray.

* Saturday. “The First Emperor of China” (History, 3-4 p.m.) This is a documentary about Qin Shihuang-ti, who instituted the Confucian value system of laws and morals that helped the Chinese Empire endure more than 2,000 years. He was also creator of a statuary “army”--shown briefly in the film and more fully in a related book, “The First Emperor of China: The Greatest Archeological Find of Our Time,” by Arthur Cottrell. Also recommended: “Lust for Life” (Turner Classic Movies, 10:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m.). This is an Oscar-winning biographical movie about painters Vincent Van Gogh and Paul Gauguin, based on Irving Stone’s book. Kirk Douglas and Anthony Quinn star. Available on video.

* Sunday. “Rebecca” (KCET, noon-3 p.m.) This is a well-regarded 1997 “Masterpiece Theater” adaptation by Arthur Hopcroft of the Daphne du Maurier novel with Charles Dance, Diana Rigg and Faye Dunaway in the cast. Here’s an opportunity to compare and contrast this version, using the TV remote control or video recorder, with another “Rebecca” (Movie Channel, 2-4:15 p.m.). The latter is a 1940 Alfred Hitchcock adaptation, scripted by Pulitzer Prize-winner Robert Sherwood, with Laurence Olivier, Joan Fontaine and Judith Anderson in the cast. The earlier version, which won an Oscar for best picture, is available on video. Further recommendation: “Triumph of the Nerds: The Rise of Accidental Empires in the Silicon Valley” (KCET, 4-7 p.m.). This documentary, hosted by Robert Cringely, is based on his book “How the Boys of Silicon Valley Make Their Millions, Battle Foreign Competition and Still Can’t Get a Date.”

*

--Compiled and written by Richard Kahlenberg in consultation with Crystal J. Gips, associate dean, College of Education, Cal State Northridge. For references to books, videos and Web sites recommended in the past month’s TV Smarts, log on www.calendarlive.com/HOME/CALENDARLIVE/TVENT/TVSMARTS.