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A select viewing guide for Wednesday, May 30

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PROFILE Irving Thalberg: Prince of Hollywood TCM, 6:30 p.m. Few figures from the golden age of Hollywood are more revered than Irving Thalberg. This excellent profile by documentarian Robert Trachtenberg tracks the fleeting life and times of the Brooklyn native who nurtured the movie industry from silent film to talkies and passed away in 1936 at the far-too-young age of 37. Among other milestones, Thalberg was named head of production for Universal Studios – at 20! – and held the same post at the more prestigious MGM four years later. Along the way, he produced such Oscar-winners as Grand Hotel, Anna Christie and Mutiny on the Bounty and in the process invented the “star system” that launched the careers of Greta Garbo, Clark Gable, Jean Harlow and countless others. Narrated by Stanley Tucci, it’s a compelling portrait of a Hollywood original.

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REALITY Dogs in the City CBS, Global, 8 p.m. Step aside, Dog Whisperer. New York’s most popular canine expert is in the house. Debuting tonight for a summer run, this new series revolves around the charismatic dog trainer Justin Silver, who specializes in treating problem pooches in Manhattan. In most cases, Silver traces the doggie problems directly back to the owners, as evidenced in tonight’s opener in which he butts heads with a model-agency owner over how to handle her overly aggressive dog. In the same show, Silver is called in to counsel a celebrity bulldog fiercely jealous of his owner’s new wife and explains to another client why his dog is so darn fat (too much food being the smart guess). If you love dogs, you’ll love this show.

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SCIENCE NOVA PBS, 9 p.m. Remember the old adage “What does not kill you makes you stronger?” Apparently it’s true. Tonight’s edition of this highly regarded science series follows a team of toxinologists in their travels around the globe to collect the deadly venom of spiders, snakes, snails and other creatures. Although most are frightfully harmful to humans – causing death in seconds, in some cases – the harvest is vital since many of venoms are vital in the development of life-saving drugs. The program profiles two scientists already breaking new ground with venom to create drugs to treat heart attack, diabetes, obesity and cancer.

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DRAMA The Listener CTV, 10 p.m. Thank heavens for small miracles. Back tonight for its third season, this series starring Craig Olejnik is one of the best Canadian-made programs in years. Besides Olejnik’s measured portrayal of the paranormally gifted paramedic Toby, the show benefits hugely from the comic actor Ennis Esmer as his best friend/ambulance partner, Oz, and Tara Spencer-Nairn, formerly of Corner Gas, as the tough triage nurse, Sandy. Tonight’s opener picks up the storyline of Toby renouncing his psychic abilities once they start to impact on his own health. All bets are off, though, when he walks right into the middle of a bank heist perpetrated by a desperate pair, played by Rossif Sutherland and Ian Tracey.

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MOVIE An Officer and a Gentleman AMC, 11 p.m. Richard Gere became a leading man in the 1980 film American Gigolo. Two years later, his career shot into the stratosphere with this box-office blockbuster. Gere delivers one of his grittiest screen performances as Zack Mayo, a sullen navy cadet with dreams of becoming a pilot. Immediately upon his arrival at officer’s training camp, Mayo is set upon by the shrill drill sergeant Foley, played by Louis Gossett Jr., who senses that the young man is too self-absorbed to become an officer. Pretty soon his blue-collar girlfriend Paula (Debra Winger) realizes the same thing. The film earned a best supporting actor Oscar for Gossett and best song for the schmaltzy "Up Where We Belong."

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