TONIGHT'S BEST
The Greatest Show on Earth 6 p.m. on
Some were miffed that this 1952 epic took the best picture Oscar over such formidable competition as “High Noon” and “The Quiet Man.” Perhaps it was a sympathy vote for director Cecil B. DeMille, whose only Oscar up until then had been honorary. The main storyline is a love triangle involving a circus manager (Charlton Heston), his trapeze artist girlfriend (Betty Hutton) and the new star (Cornel Wilde) who steals her spotlight and her heart. The film airs as part of TCM’s “Under the Big Top” November event, airing each Friday for the rest of the month.
World’s Funniest Animals 7 p.m. on
In the new “Episode 109,” host Elizabeth Stanton welcomes “The Flash” actress Danielle Nicolet as a special guest to screen this week’s collection of video clips showing animals demonstrating some unusual, and mostly funny, behavior. Among the featured critters are a tetherball-playing horse, fish in a feeding frenzy and a pig who keeps literally losing his grip.
The Nature of Things 9 p.m. on
The new documentary “Rebellion” from Mark and Caitlin Starowicz looks back on the summer of 2018, which the filmmakers see as a flashpoint in the global fight against climate change. Leading that charge is Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg, who was just 15 when she stood before her country’s parliament with a handmade sign reading “School Strike for Climate.” Meanwhile, In Washington, D.C., actress Jane Fonda rallies her friends to gather weekly on Capitol Hill to take a similar stand. In London, Sir David Attenborough also hears the call to action.