A Winter Ratings Safari

February sweeps is jampacked with movies, miniseries, specials, as well as a celebration of Black History Month, as the networks try to boost viewership in one of the three tracking periods that help determine advertising rates. NBC has another fanciful miniseries, the Grammy Awards visit Los Angeles and cable elbows its way into the game with movies, such as a sweeping civil rights drama on TNT, and specials, such as the Discovery Channel’s homage to man’s best friend.

Here are highlights of the sweeps period:

MOVIES AND MINISERIES

A Storm in Summer: Oscar-winning Robert Wise (“The Sound of Music”) directed this remake of the Rod Serling drama about an embittered Jewish deli owner and an inner-city African American boy. Showtime. Sunday.

Poirot: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd: David Suchet returns as Agatha Christie’s brilliant Belgian detective. A&E;, Feb. 13.

Homicide the Movie: The cast of the terrific ‘90s NBC detective series, including the great Andre Braugher, return for this thriller. NBC, Feb. 13.

Sally Hemings: An American Scandal: Sam Neill and Carmen Ejogo star in this two-part drama about the controversial love affair between Thomas Jefferson and his slave mistress. CBS, Feb. 13 & 16.

Flowers for Algernon: Matthew Modine stars in the classic tale of a gentle, childlike man who becomes the subject of an experiment that raises his IQ to genius level. CBS, Feb. 20.

The Wishing Tree: Alfre Woodward and Helen Shaver star in this drama about the power of the human spirit. Showtime, Feb. 20.

Little Richard: Leon stars as the rock ‘n’ roll legend in this movie directed by Robert Townsend. NBC, Feb. 20.

Freedom Song: Phil Alden Robinson (“Field of Dreams”) co-wrote and directed this drama focusing on the civil rights movement in a small Mississippi town. Danny Glover stars. TNT, Feb. 27.

Perfect Murder, Perfect Town: Marg Helgenberger, Kris Kristofferson, Ann-Margret and Ronny Cox star in a four-hour drama about the investigation of the JonBenet Ramsey murder case. CBS, Feb. 27 and March 1.

The 10th Kingdom: Kimberly Williams stars in the latest Robert Halmi extravaganza, a 10-hour miniseries about a New York waitress who is transported through a vortex in Central Park to an alternate reality. NBC, Feb. 27, 28, March 1, 5 & 6.

The Beach Boys: Four-hour dramatic examination of the early years of Brian, Carl and Dennis Wilson; their cousin, Mike Love; and Al Jardine, showing how, as surfing teenagers they went from humble beginnings to fame and fortune in the ‘60s and ‘70s. ABC, Feb. 27-28.

SPECIALS

It’s Black Entertainment: Vanessa Williams hosts a tribute to great musical performances by black entertainers in film. Showtime, Feb. 13.

A Dog’s Life: Kelsey Grammer narrates this three-hour look at man’s best friend. Discovery Channel, Feb. 14.

Westminster Kennel Club: National coverage of the Super Bowl of Dog shows from Madison Square Garden. USA, Feb. 14-15.

History Alive: World War II in Color: Roger Mudd hosts a three-part special featuring unseen color footage and stills from the war. History Channel, Feb. 15-17.

Whatever Happened to Micheal Ray?: Documentary on the rise, fall and redemption of basketball star Micheal Ray Richardson. TNT, Feb. 16.

Ellis Marsalis: Jazz Is Spoken Here: Profile of the pianist, teacher and father of musicians Branford, Wynton, Delfeayo and Jason Marsalis. KCET, Feb. 17.

The 42nd Annual Grammy Awards: Santana and Ricky Martin are two of the top nominees for the recording industry’s highest accolade. CBS, Feb. 23.

SERIES

Masterpiece Theatre: Francis O’Connor and Greg Wise star in a two-part adaptation of Flaubert’s tragic romance, “Madame Bovary.” KCET, Sunday and Feb. 13th.

The Lyricist Lounge Show: A new urban-variety sketch-comedy series. MTV, Tuesday.

Diary: A unique take on the biographical format documenting the life of an artist as he or she lives it. MTV, Feb. 16.

The X-Files: The sci-fi series mimics the look of “COPS” for its 150th episode. Fox, Feb. 20.

Dilbert: Jerry Seinfeld is the voice of an arrogant super computer. UPN, Feb. 22.

The Hughleys: The comedy presents a new musical version of “Jack and the Beanstalk.” ABC, Feb. 25.