Tube Notes: 'American Experience,' 'Big Bang Theory'
By Mike Hughes
mikehughes.tv
Wondering what to watch tonight? TV critic Mike Hughes has some recommendations:
TONIGHT'S MUST-SEE
"American Experience: A Class Apart," 9 p.m., PBS.
In 1848, the treaty that ended the Mexican-American War gave a large swath of Mexico to the U.S. It also specified that the people there were U.S. citizens.
But would they be equal? More than a century later, this vivid documentary says, much of the Southwest banned Mexican-Americans from theaters, swimming pools, cemeteries and more.
After sending 300,000 people to fight in World War II, the Hispanic community began to fight back. The key came in a murder trial.
Few people disputed that the defendant was guilty, but defense lawyer Gus Garcia argued that the trial couldn't be fair. This small Texas town had never had a Mexican-American juror; indeed, Garcia had to use a separate rest room, behind the courthouse.
Garcia, the film said, was brilliant, troubled and relentless. He took the case to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1954, creating a profound change.
TONIGHT'S MIGHT-SEE
"Big Bang Theory," 7 p.m., CBS.
A night of CBS reruns starts with this terrific one.
Wolowitz -- who thinks he's a ladies' man, without much proof of it -- seems to have a real girlfriend. As played by Sara Rue, she's a lusty character who is far more drawn to Leonard.
The result is an exceptionally funny episode, even by this show's high standards.