Morrow TV: A look at weird ways people have died ... Other shows

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On "1,000 Ways To Die" (10 p.m. EDT Sundays, Spike TV), viewers witness re-enactments of weird ways people have died in recent years.
Some are stupid. Most are gruesome. All of them are creepy.
"That's what we were going for," says executive producer Thom Beers. "Every day you live, you face a thousand ways to die. Ice could fall on you from an airplane overhead.
"The ground could swallow you up. It's amazing when you realize how vulnerable the human body is."
How strange are these deaths? Well, here's one: a man, with burns over 80 percent of his body, lights up a cigarette and burns to death because the gauze in which he's wrapped catches on fire, igniting his oxygen tank.
Another installment profiles the story of a man who swallows a cue ball to impress his friends, and he chokes on it.
Beers is fascinated by how oddly death can come. The series doesn't re-enact ordinary occurrences of deaths. All of them are rare and strange.
"These (stories) are about people who have died either through a weird set of circumstances or by their own stupidity," Beers says. "Haven't you ever wondered in your mind how many times you've been close to death but didn't know it?"
"1,000 Ways" was a special a year ago and did so well for Spike TV that the channel commissioned a series out of it. The appeal of "1,000 Ways" comes from the same curiosity that causes rubbernecking at a bloody car accident, Beers says. "You want to see a little bit of your own mortality," he says. "This takes the edge off the morbidity."
Other highlights for the week of March 22 to 28 (all times EDT; listings subject to change; check local listings):

SUNDAY

-- "Big Love" (9 p.m., HBO). The season finale has the family in turmoil, and Bill is at a crossroads.

MONDAY

-- "Gossip Girl" (8 p.m., CW). Lily and Rufus agree to share a list of past lovers. Bad idea.
-- "Crossroads" (10 p.m., CMT). Shooter Jennings and Jamey Johnson share the stage.

TUESDAY

-- "Chuck Jones: Memories of Childhood" (8 p.m., Turner Classic Movies). The iconic animator's body of work is examined -- and what's an evening of this without the classic "What's Opera, Doc?"

WEDNESDAY

-- "They Killed Sister Dorothy" (8 p.m., HBO). An Ohio nun's murder in the Amazon is the focus of this documentary.

FRIDAY

-- "Friday Night Lights" (9 p.m., NBC). When his grandmother needs him most, the star quarterback has to make some tough choices.

SATURDAY

-- "Kids Choice Awards" (8 p.m., Nickelodeon). Do we care who the nominees are? We have the Jonas Brothers and Hugh Jackman making appearances. Nuff said!
-- "The Penguins of Madagascar" (9:30 p.m., Nickelodeon). The sassy penguins from the hit movie are back in this new feature.

(E-mail Terry Morrow of The Knoxville News-Sentinel in Tennessee at morrow2(at)knews.com.)
TV HILIGHTS