Mike Hughes on TV

1) Election coverage. It will be blanket coverage from the news channels and most broadcast networks. Plans call for NBC to start at 6:30 p.m. ET, CBS at 7, ABC and PBS at 8. Most will pause for local news at 11 and ABC has Jimmy Kimmel at 11:35, but coverage may continue afterward. Kimmel and Jon Stewart (11, Comedy Central) will be taped earlier that night. And yest, there are alternatives, including “Best Medicine” (shown here). Read more…

1) “St. Denis Medical” season-opener, 8 p.m., NBC. It was 36 years ago that David Alan Grier and Damon Wayans linked in the Emmy-winning “In Living Color.” Now they’ve re-united for this episode, a funny one: Ron (Grier, 70) is recovering from heart surgery; his temporary replacement (Wayans, 66, shown here) spews slogans and pep talks. Read more…

1) “The Gilded Age,” HBO. The third season reruns at 1 p.m., leading into the season-opener at 9, finding lives re-arranged. Bertha got her way, with her daughter Gladys marrying a duke; now, however, her own husband George has left. (Those three are shown here, in better times.) Peggy and William are engaged; Jack Trotter is adjusting to prosperity and Ada is learning to be in charge. Read more…

1) “Simpsons” marathon of “Treehouse of Horror” episodes, 8 a.m. ro 1 a.m., FXX. Here’s a fun way to spend time before or after trick-or-treating. Each half-hour has three tales. Some are gory, most are funny, all are wonderfully imaginative. (One example is shown here.) This time, it runs in reverse: The 35th one (2024) is 8 a.m.; the first (1990) is 1 a.m. that night. Read more…

1) “Jimmy Webb — American Songwriter,” 9 p.m., PBS. After a so-so start — Webb singing lead on “Up, Up and Away” — this soon soars. It adds great singers, some relatively unknown (Ashley Campbell, shown here, and Ryan Shaw) and some stars. Vince Gill and Lyle Lovett lead a terrific stretch of songs that Webb wrote for Glen Campbell, Ashley’s dad. Read more…

1) “Ghosts,” 9-10 p.m., CBS. This had some so-so episodes last year and was shelved until mid-season. But it always shines on holidays, so CBS set Halloween and Christmas specials. Here’s a good one, starting with a mirror that has one flaw — a ghost trapped inside. There are gasps (shown here) and things get wilder and funnier. Read more…