Worth Noting on TV

WEDNESDAY

Live From Lincoln Center (PBS, 8-10:30 p.m. EDT): Tenor Luciano Pavarotti delivers his seventh edition of the popular "Pavarotti Plus!" series with opera selections from Mozart, Puccini, Rossini, and Verdi. Joining him onstage are the New York City Opera, conducted by Marco Armiliato, and friends including mezzo-soprano Elena Zaremba and baritone Dwayne Croft.

In celebration of the 20th anniversary of "Live From Lincoln Center," the program presents a special intermission feature, "The Making of Live From Lincoln Center," introducing viewers to the TV-production team. "Live From Lincoln Center" is the only prime-time, live performing-arts series on television.

Barbara Walters: 20 Years at ABC (ABC, 9:30-11 p.m.): Lucille Ball, Jimmy Carter, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Saddam Hussein, Elton John, John Wayne: That's just the start of a long, diverse, and impressive list of public figures whom Barbara Walters has interviewed over the past two decades. This tribute to the ABC News correspondent looks back to her first, somewhat-rocky days at the network, when she co-anchored the evening news with Harry Reasoner. The program also looks at her successful and long-running "Barbara Walters Special," highlighting its best, worst, and other unique moments.

Though Walters's accomplishments have been many, she considers this year her most successful: She landed first interviews with Gen. Colin Powell, Christopher Reeve after his accident, and Robert Shapiro and Christopher Darden after the O.J. Simpson trial.

THURSDAY

Smithsonian Fantastic Journey (CBS, 8-9 p.m.): The second special celebrating the Smithsonian Institution's 150th anniversary highlights projects around the globe led by Smithsonian scientists and researchers. Among the segments: a visit off the shores of South Africa to learn about the behavior of white sharks, and rarely seen footage from the United States space program.

*Please check local listings for these programs.