television

THURSDAY: Applause. Lauren Bacall repeats her Tony-winning performance as Margo Channing in this television recreation of the Broadway hit. CH. 7. 9 p.m. Color. 2 hrs.

The Long Hot Summer (1958). A tangled amalgam of several Faulkner short stories starring Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward. CH. 56. 9 p.m. Color. 2 hrs.

FRIDAY: Naturalists. First part of a series of essays on famous American naturalists examines the life and writings of Henry David Thoreau. Filmed around Walden Pond in Concord. CH. 2. 9 p.m. Color. 60 min.

In Concert. Stephen Stills and Manassas headline a lineup that includes Brewer and Shipley and Randy Newman for this simulcast concert. Music on WBCN FM. CH. 5. 11:30 p.m. Color. 90 min.

SATURDAY: Yojimbo (1961). Akira Kurosawa's masterful samurai drama about an unemployed mercenary facing evil on its own terms. Toshiro Mifune won best actor honors at the Venice Film Festival in '61. CH. 2. 8 p.m. B-W. 2 hrs.

The Invisible Man. James Whale, of "Frankenstein" fame, directed this adaptation of the H.G. Welles Sci-Fi classic. CH. 5. 11:30 p.m. B-W. 90 min.

SUNDAY: The Red Pony. Henry Fonda and Maureen O'Hara star in a mangled version of the John Steinbeck novella. CH. 4. 8:30 p.m. Color. 2 hrs.

The 39 Steps. (1935) Hitchcock's first and finest exploration of the theme of an innocent man trapped in a web of intrigue. CH. 7. 11:15 p.m. B-W. 2 hrs.

MONDAY: CBS News Special. A powerful examination of the current power struggle between the executive and legislative branches of the U.S. government. Dan Rather and Roger Mudd report on "The Long War--Congress vs. The President." CH. 7. 10 p.m. Color. 60 min.

TUESDAY: The Old Man and the Sea (1968). Spencer Tracy delivers an award-winning performance as Hemingway's allegorical Cuban fisherman in a battle with fate. CH. 7. 11:30 p.m. Color. 2 hrs.

WEDNESDAY: Casablanca. (1943) Play it again, Sam, and we'll never tire of it. Bogart, Bergman, Rains, Heinreid, Lorre, Greenstreet, et al. CH. 56. 9 p.m. B-W. 2 hrs.