TV tonight: Prison Break leads

It's officially winter here in Southern California. It's been pouring rain for hours and there are yellow and red leaves whipping around on the ground thanks to the sudden winds. It's a nice change, listening to the rain fall, but I'm glad I'm not out in it. Los Angeles drivers don't do well in heavy rains. A perfect day to stay home and watch TV! (Like I need an excuse.)

Yesterday, I got a sneak peek at a new drama coming to TNT in January. It's called Trust Me and it stars Eric McCormack and Tom Cavanagh as Mad Men in the modern world. Cavanagh is a copywriter with focus issues who is having a little trouble dealing with the promotion of his best friend and partner, art director McCormack. It's got a nice pace, plenty of laughs mixed in with the drama and there's an interesting range of supporting characters. I'll be talking with the stars of Trust Me later today, so keep an eye on SheKnows for more scoop as the premiere draws near.

For now, let's look at what's on TV on this blustery winter day.

TV tonight -- December 15

FOX starts the night with the fall finale of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles then the action continues on Prison Break.

NBC is also action packed. It begins with a Christmas Eve hostage taking at the Buy More on Chuck, then Nathan and Peter have a few issues to sort out on Heroes and it's the last episode of My Own Worst Enemy so don't start watching it now.

ABC tries for a win with a newer Christmas special, I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown, then it's an extended edition of 20/20 that follows a group of students as they prepare for their high school musical.

The CW delivers reruns of Gossip Girl and One Tree Hill.

CBS has lots of laughs with The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, Two and a Half Men, and Worst Week, then it's 'there goes the neighborhood' when street gangs move in on CSI: Miami.

TV tonight -- over on cable

The ghost of movies past preside over AMC as they present George C. Scott's A Christmas Carol and the family favorite Prancer.

Hallmark has A Town Without a Christmas and Lifetime airs the Jennie Garth movie Secret Santa.

Cooking for the holidays is easy with Sandra Lee's Semi-Homemade Holiday Party on Food Network. Then start ringing out the old year with VH1's Best Year Ever at 10:00.

TV news and notable

Gilmore Girls star Lauren Graham is ready to begin production on her new series for ABC. No title yet, but she plays a self-help instructor who really should follow her own advice.

Moving into January, Animal Planet will introduce a new Saturday line-up on the third which includes Underdog to Wonderdog -- kind of What Not to Wear for pooches.

Later in the month, Spike will debut Toughest Cowboy, a reality rodeo show where the winner gets his own ranch in Wyoming.

Oxygen has a few new shows on their schedule including Addicted to Beauty, a docu-drma about a California spa, Hogs & Heifers, about a female bar owner and her "fire-blowing bartenders," and Lady and the Champ which follows boxer "Sugar" Shane Mosley, and family.

And finally, Hugh Jackman will host the 81st Academy Awards. That makes me happy.

Photo credit:
Chuck: Chuck vs. Santa Claus -- Pictured: (l-r) Zachary Levi as Chuck Bartowski, Adam Baldwin as Major John Casey -- NBC Photo: Mike Ansell
Worst Week: The Gift -- When Sam (Kyle Bornheime) learns that Dick buys Angela (Nancy Lenehan) the same Christmas gift every year, he offers to help him get something really special for her but Sam's attempt to deliver the perfect present does not go as well as he planned. Photo: Adam Taylor/CBS