TVSquad

Unless you've been living in a cave or don't keep up with what's playing at the local multiplex, you probably know that one of the biggest hits of the fall was the Sandra Bullock football movie The Blind Side.

No, that's not a typo. It is a Sandra Bullock football movie, but unlike Goldie Hawn's football movie -- Wildcats -- Sandra's movie was very good. It's so good that Sandra's probably going to get her first Oscar nomination and -- depending on the competition -- she could win.

Well, ABC has noticed that The Blind Side has struck a real chord with people. 20/20 will take advantage of the interest in the true story on which the movie is based to present the true story of The Blind Side.

They're calling the special edition of 20/20, "The Blind Side: The Real Story Behind the Movie." That was in case you thought you were going to tune in and see the movie.

You might think it's surprising that 20/20 anchor John Stossel is leaving ABC for Fox, but it's not really much of shock. It seems to me that there have been other high profile names that were once considered liberal firebrands -- Geraldo Rivera and Dennis Miller come to mind -- who've grown older and changed their stripes, finding a home at Fox.

Stossel, whom I recall as a staunch consumer reporter and a man who liked to tear down hypocrisy at every turn, has been a regular at ABC News for nearly three decades. Now, he's moving on to Fox Business Network where he'll have a weekly show, and Fox News where he'll make frequent guest appearances.

With all the press coverage given to Michael Jackson, you'd think a special about his life would trample the ratings of all the other networks. Apparently, that isn't the case as an ABC special about the life of Farrah Fawcett won in the ratings against a similar Michael Jackson retrospective on CBS.

I think it likely helped that Barbara Walters hosted the ABC special (which was a 20/20 special and therefore had more name value than a generic special), whereas the special on Jacko was simply a CBS documentary. I'm still amazed at the rapid turnaround time that the networks can produce specials like these. They have turned it into an art.

It is debatable over who was the bigger name, although both were icons on their time. Jackson seems to be getting more coverage because his death was more of a surprise than Farrah's. Either way, Thursday was a hell of a day.

The announcement of an ABC News branded channel on YouTube yesterday is a little puzzling. First, if you go to the site, the info bar indicates that "ABC News" joined YouTube August 7, 2006. So, maybe they've been working feverishly for nearly three years on this, and they were finally ready to tell people about it.

The site will feature news from several ABC programs, like Good Morning America, 20/20, Nightline, ABC World News, and This Week with George Stephanopoulos. And, as a bonus, we get the "Quick Fix" segment, which ABC called "a daily dose of wit and occasionally wisdom" from ABC correspondents.

Dollhouse continues it's downward slide in the Friday ratings, with under 4 million viewers this past Friday. You know what irks me the most? That it was beaten severely in the ratings by a 20/20 special on Siegfried and Roy.

I can't believe that a decent show (not great, but decent... I'm still giving it time) was beaten by two flamboyant German-Americans who are currently best known by having one of them mauled by a tiger onstage. Did they show actual footage of that? If so, then I can understand why the special was such a ratings bonanza.

Granted, we're not at episode six yet, which Joss promises a boost in the storyline and less studio interference. Still, it's starting from a pretty low ebb. You know that cogitative point in which you're certain something is going to fail but it hasn't quite gotten there yet? That's how I feel about Dollhouse right now, despite watching it every week in hopes of the opposite.

• At 8, ABC has the premiere of Dance Machine, followed by new episodes of Duel and 20/20.
• PBS has a new Washington Week at 8, then new episodes of NOW and Bill Moyers Journal.
• The CW has a new Smackdown! at 8.
• Also at 8: TCM has Cyd Charisse movies: Singin' in the Rain, The Band Wagon, and then Silk Stockings.
• At 8:30, Nickelodeon has a new The Mighty B!
• At 9, Sci-Fi has a new Doctor Who.
• At 10, Comedy Central has a new Live at Gotham.
• History Channel has a new Shockwave at 10.
• There's a new episode of The Soup at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 8, PBS has a new Washington Week, then new episodes of NOW and Bill Moyers Journal.
• The CW has a new Smackdown! at 8.
• There's a new iCarly on Nickelodeon at 8.
• At 8:30, Food Network has a new Rachael Ray's Tasty Travels.
• At 9, Sci-Fi has a new Doctor Who, then the summer finale of Battlestar Galactica.
• At 9:30, VH-1 has a new Best Week Ever.
• At 10, ABC has a new 20/20.
• E! has a new episode of The Soup at 10.
• History Channel has a new Shockwave at 10.
• Travel Channel has a new Ecoluxe at 10.
• Also at 10: Comedy Central has a new Live at Gotham.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 8, The CW has a new Smackdown!
• PBS has a new Washington Week at 8, followed by new episodes of NOW and Bill Moyers Journal.
• At 8:30, Food Network has a new Rachael Ray's Tasty Travels.
• HBO has a First Look at the new Incredible Hulk movie.
• At 9, NBC has a new, two hour Dateline.
• Sci-Fi has a new Doctor Who at 9, then a new Battlestar Galactica.
• There's a new Man vs. Wild on Discovery at 9.
• At 10, ABC has a new 20/20.
• History Channel has a new Shockwave at 10.
• E! has a new episode of The Soup at 10.
• Also at 10: Comedy Central has a new Live at Gotham.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• USA has an NCIS marathon all night.
• At 8, The CW has a new Smackdown!
• PBS has a new Washington Week at 8, followed by new episodes of NOW and Bill Moyers Journal.
• TCM has two Jack Lemmon movies starting at 8: How To Murder Your Wife and The Out-of-Towners.
• At 9, NBC has a new, two hour Dateline.
• Larry King Live welcomes American Idol winner and runner-up David Cook and David Archuleta at 9.
• Discovery has a new Man vs. Wild at 9.
• At 10, ABC has a new 20/20.
• There's a new episode of The Soup on E! at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 8, CBS has a new Ghost Whisperer, then new episodes of Moonlight and Numb3rs.
• The CW has a new Smackdown! at 8.
• PBS has a new NOW at 8, then new episodes of Washington Week and Bill Moyers Journal.
• Sci-Fi has two new episodes of The Sarah Jane Adventures starting at 8, then new episodes of Doctor Who and Battlestar Galactica.
• At 9, ABC has a new Duel, followed by a new 20/20.
• At 10, E! has a new episode of The Soup.
• At 11, HBO has a new Real Time with Bill Maher, with Garry Shandling, Phil Donahue, Arianna Huffington, and Matt Taibbi.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 8, PBS has a new NOW, then new episodes of Washington Week and Bill Moyers Journal.
• The CW has a new Smackdown! at 8.
• Sci-Fi has a new Sarah Jane Adventures at 8, followed by the season premiere of Doctor Who and a new Battlestar Galactica.
• TV Land has an I Love Lucy marathon starting at 8.
• At 9, ABC has a new Duel, followed by a new 20/20.
• NBC has a new, two hour Dateline at 9.
• There's a new Canterbury's Law at 9 on FOX.
• Cartoon Network has a new Ben 10: Alien Force at 9.
• At 10, E! has a new episode of The Soup.
• Spike has a new UFC Fight Night at 10.
• At 11, HBO has a new Real Time with Bill Maher, with guests Cornel West, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Markos Moulitsas, and Jeremy Scahill.

Check your local TV listings for more.