shatners raw nerve

Skating with the Stars - Monday November 22, 9PM ET/PT, CTV/ABC

No, it's not a typo. It's 'Skating with the Stars,' not 'Battle of the Blades' or 'Dancing with the Stars' or the long-canceled 'Skating with Celebrities.' ABC's latest foray into mismatched-pairs-competitive-reality-show launches tonight, just as that other dancing show is undergoing its final performance.

During the reporter scrum after CBS's '$#*! My Dad Says' panel, William Shatner implored the gathered mob of reporters to write about his new show, 'Aftermath with William Shatner,' which debuts on the Biography channel on August 2, but has a preview tonight at 10PM ET on A&E. In the preview, Shatner talks with some of the survivors of the infamous Beltway sniper team that terrorized the Washington, D.C. and other areas in 2002. He also got a chance to speak to the younger member of the sniper team -- and the only one still alive -- Lee Boyd Malvo.

Yes, you read that right. Lee Malvo, who has rarely if ever granted an interview before, was interviewed by William Shatner. When I caught up to Shatner at CBS's party later that night, I asked him what the experience was like.

"Monumental," he said. "A guy who was a cold-blooded killer at the age of 17 begins to thaw, begins to find remorse. And that's one of the thrusts of the show. Joel, if there's anybody you can reach to watch the show (tonight), you must do it. It's exciting as hell."

• HBO has a True Blood marathon all night.
• At 8, ABC has Rudolph's Shiny New Year.
• PBS has a new, two-hour Nova at 8.
• ESPN has the Champs Sports Bowl, Miami vs. Wisconsin.
• TCM has On the Waterfront at 8.
• At 9, CBS has The Kennedy Center Honors.
• Discovery has a new Dirty Jobs at 9, followed by a new Ghost Lab.
• A&E has a new Psychic Kids at 9, then two new episodes of Paranormal State.
• Also at 9: BBC America has a new Britain's Missing Top Model.
• At 9:30, ABC has a new Better Off Ted, followed by a new 20/20.
• At 10, Bravo has a new Tabatha's Salon Takeover.
• Syfy has a new ECW at 10.
• Biography has two new episodes of Shatner's Raw Nerve at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk shows.

I've really been enjoying Shatner's Raw Nerve on the Biography channel. He has great guests, and he's just so Shatnerific with them. On the one hand, you sort of feel like you're listening in on a conversation between old friends. On the other hand, he's so intense that you're afraid he might jump up and start leaping around the room gesturing wildly. Which brings me to ...

The Chair. You know, it's different. But I don't think I really like it. My husband thinks it's called a "lover's chair" or something along those lines, and I can see that. The two people sitting in it are sort of in the perfect position to embrace and kiss. But from what I've seen, most of the guests seem a little uncomfortable with it. I mean, just look at Henry Winkler. He looks really uncomfortable, probably because he's not sure if Shatner might try to embrace him.

What do you think of the chair? Any experts out there who can tell us the origin of this particular type of chair?

...the Bio channel hopes that you do. Bio is looking to expand its programming schedule for the new TV season with a number of new shows and pilots, including Celebrity Ghost Stories.

The show will offer eight hour-long episodes featuring celebs like Carrie Fisher, Joan Rivers and Scott Baio talking about their real-life run-ins with ghosts.

OK, this show sounds crazy, but I'm gonna watch it anyway. I'll skip the Joan Rivers ep (she's nuts, so I buy that she sees ghosts, giant purple elephants and God knows what else all day), but I'm curious to hear what Carrie Fisher has to say.

I'm one of those nerds who are convinced that William Shatner will show up in the final minutes of J.J. Abrams Star Trek movie to, I don't know, shag a green hooker or give Eric Bana a judo chop to the neck. Why? Because William Shatner is awesome.

Shatner's best known for zipping through the galaxy as Star Trek's Captain Kirk, but as this Topless Robot list points out, the man has done many awesome things outside of Star Trek.