Music Is in the Air: ‘Hard Rock,’ the Monkees and Melissa Etheridge

This weekend, Ted Koppel goes prime time, a popular VH1 music series begins a new season, FX resurrects a cult comedy series and NBC reinvents a vintage show.

John Williams, Itzhak Perlman, Dawn Upshaw and Vic Damone perform music penned by Russian and German emigres who toiled in Hollywood in the ‘40s and ‘50s on “Evening at Pops,” tonight at 8 on KCET-TV and KVCR-TV.

“Nightline in Primetime: Brave New World,” tonight at 10 on ABC, is an eight-part exploration of the fundamental changes affecting everyday lives. Anchor Ted Koppel is joined by reporter Robert Krulwich for the series.

Sheryl Crow kicks off the third season of VH1’s performance series, “Hard Rock Live,” Saturday at midnight.

FX dusts off the short-lived, Emmy Award-winning comedy series “The Ben Stiller Show” with a marathon featuring all 13 episodes, Sunday at 6 p.m.

Huell Howser goes behind the camera for an up-close look at local nighttime hangouts on “Hot Summer Nights With Huell Howser,” six new programs beginning Sunday at 7:30 p.m. and continuing through Aug. 6 on KCET-TV.

Phil Morris of “Seinfeld” fame hosts the updated interactive series “You Asked for It,” Sunday at 8 p.m. on NBC. The show, based on viewer requests, will “present riveting footage capturing real and classic moments.”

E! Entertainment Television celebrates the 100th episode of “The E! True Hollywood Story” with a look at the pop group the Monkees, Sunday at 9 p.m.

Melissa Etheridge is profiled on VH1’s “Behind the Music,” Sunday at 9 p.m.

Pop sensation Jewel talks about her life and performs her hit songs on VH1’s “Storytellers,” Sunday at 10 p.m.

Lifetime’s “Intimate Portrait” focuses on the life and career of singer Natalie Cole, Sunday at 11 p.m.

Specials

President and Mrs. Clinton will be on hand for ABC’s “An American Celebration at Ford’s Theatre,” tonight at 8. The annual benefit features Kathleen Battle, teen soprano Charlotte Church, the Harlem Gospel Singers, Alan Jackson and gospel singer Queen Esther Marrow. Adam Arkin, Debbie Allen, Nathan Lane and James McDaniel also are scheduled to appear.

Leeza Gibbons hosts “Teen Files: The Truth About Sex,” tonight at 8 on KCOP-TV. Produced by Arnold Shapiro, the special also features “Love-lines’ ” Dr. Drew Pinsky, who offers practical advice to viewers. At 9 p.m., Gibbons hosts “The Truth About Hate.” Kobe Bryant and Eriq La Salle are featured.

Model-turned-actress Isabella Rossellini hosts ABC’s “Paris Fashion Collections,” tonight at 9. The special offers a preview of the autumn/winter fashions from designers Karl Lagerfeld, John Galliano, Alexander McQueen and Jean-Paul Gaultier.

Lesley Visser, Gerry Gannon and Lynn Swann report on the Special Olympics, Saturday at 3 p.m. on ABC, from Raleigh, N.C.

The History Channel offers a two-hour look at “The Inquisition,” the general tribunal established in the 13th century to punish heretics, Saturday at 5 and 9 p.m.

The extraordinary Canadian troupe Cirque du Soleil brings its acclaimed show “Quidam” to pay-per-view, Sunday at 5 and 6:30 p.m.

The Learning Channel presents the last four installments of its documentary dealing with stages of human life, “Intimate Universe: The Human Body,” Sunday at 9 p.m. The conclusion airs Monday at 9 p.m.

Movies

Showtime’s “Restless Spirits,” Sunday at 8 p.m., is a fantasy about Charles Nungesser and Francois Coll, two French aviators who vanished during their attempt to beat Charles Lindbergh across the Atlantic. Seventy years after their disappearance their ghosts turn up in Newfoundland.