Once, “About a Boy” (NBC, 11:05 p.m.) was a swell book by Nick Hornby. Then it was shined up for a Hugh Grant movie of the same name. Now it’s barely recognizable as a new sitcom, launched after weeks of Olympic-sized promotion at an odd time (it’s regular slot will be Tuesdays at 9).
There’s not much to it. It stars David Walton, who has appeared in way too many failed sitcoms as the same character – a sly operator who wants to meet the ladies. When a single mom moves in next door, he finds himself entangled with her 11-year-old son. At first it’s seen as a way to meet women, but mostly he tries to avoid him so he can be free to meet girls. But then it gets all soft-hearted and he teaches the lad a life lesson. Minnie Driver is the mom, and would be the logical romantic pairing but that will come only after a lot of bickering and tension. I’m not sure the show will last long enough for them to hook up.
The final prime time night of The Winter Olympics (NBC, 8 p.m) brings gold medal finals in all kinds of things, men’s slalom, four-man bobsled, gala figure skating, men’s parallell snowboard slalom and men’s and women’s team pursuit speed skating. Earlier, it’s U.S. vs. Finland (NBC Sports, 10 a.m.) for the bronze, followed by men’s relay biathlon.
A second season starts for the “Ripper Street” (BBC America, 9 p.m.), set in 1890 England , when the East End was still wild and police were trying to get an upper hand on the chaos. It seems set up around a lot of brutal fisticuffs involving handlebar mustaches, like secondhand Scorsese of “Gangs of New York.”
Jack the Ripper isn’t part of the action but David Merrick, the Elephant Man, is, so that’s an improvement as the second season starts, amid heroin imports to the opium dens and a kung fu guy nobody can beat.
Anthony Anderson hosts The 45th NAACP Image Awards (TV One, 9 p.m.), which has migrated to cable.Achievments in music, TV, movies and literature are honored, with Forest Whitaker getting a chairman’s award. They follow the red carpet parade at 8 p.m.
Another one of those weird spate of movies about magicians, last year’s “Now You See Me” (HBO, 8 p.m.) makes its premium cable premiere. Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Mark Ruffalo, Morgan freeman and Michael Caine. Also premiering tonight is Robert Redford’s “The Company You Keep” (Starz) with Shia LeBeouf,Susan Sarandon and Julie Christie.
After being a network showcase for well crafted documentaries last week, “48 Hours” (CBS, 10 p.m.) returns to true crime stories.
Cee Lo Green remains busy, performing at The Daytona 500 Bash at the Beach (Fox, 8 p.m.) hosted by Danica Patrick and Jeff Gordon.
“Shrek the Third” (ABC, 8 p.m.) is a pretty good use of prime time.
Matt Damon, Hugh Bonneville, Bill Murray and Paloma Faith are guests on “The Graham Norton Show” (BBC America,10:15 p.m.).
Men’s college hoops tonight includes Xavier at Georgetown (Fox Sports 1,11:30 a.m.), Wisconsin at Iowa (ESPN2,noon), Wake Forest at North Carolina (Fox, noon), Louisville at Cincinnati (CBS, noon), Indiana State at Missouri State (ESPNU, 1 p.m.), St. John’s at Villanova (Fox Sports 1, 1:30 p.m.), Notre Dame at Virginia (ESPN2, 2 p.m.), Central Florida at Houston (ESPNews, 2 p.m.), Marquette at DePaul (CBS Sports, 2 p.m.), Tennessee at Texas A&M (ESPNU, 3 p.m.), Iowa State at TCU (ESPN2, 4 p.m.), LSU at Kentucky (ESPN, 4 p.m.), La Salle at Richmond (CBS Sports, 4 p.m.), UCLA at Stanford (ESPN2, 6 p.m.), UTEP at Southern Mississippi (CBS Sports, 6 p.m.), Syracuse at Duke (ESPN, 7 p.m.), Texas at Kansas (ESPNU, 7:30 p.m.), Brown at Cornell (NBC Sports Network, 8 p.m.), Missouri at Alabama (ESPN2, 8 p.m.), UNLV at Boise State (CBS Sports, 8 p.m.), Arizona at Colorado (ESPN, 9 p.m.), Temple at Memphis (ESPN, 9:30 p.m.) and San Diego State at New Mexico (ESPN2, 10 p.m.).
The first time a foreign made film won a best film Oscar was in 1948, with Laurence Olivier’s “Hamlet” (TCM, 10:30 p.m.). Other nominees that year were “The Red Shoes” (TCM,8 p.m.), “The Snake Pit” (1:30 a.m.), “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre” (3:30 a.m.) and “Johnny Belinda” (TCM, 5:45 a.m.).
Radiohead plays a rerun of “Austin City Limits” (PBS, 9 p.m., check local listings).
“Saturday Night Live” returns next week.