WORTH NOTING ON TV

February 20, 1992

THROUGH SUNDAY

Olympics (CBS, daily): Check local listings for periodic live and taped coverage. SUNDAY

Rain Man (ABC, 8-11 p.m.): This 1988 comedy-drama, having its network premiere, is worth seeing just for the penetrating insights offered in Dustin Hoffmann's subtle portrait of the "idiot savant," a deceptively one-dimensional role that earned Hoffmann the Oscar for best actor. The savant is abducted from an institution by his brother (Tom Cruise), and though the film runs on a bit, its treatment of their adjustment to each other also won Oscars for best picture, director, and original screenplay. The s tory is told with a blunt humor that averts any lurking potential for sentimentality. MONDAY

Live from Lincoln Center

(PBS, 8-11 p.m., E.T.): The ground-breaking 16-year-old music series marks its 100th live broadcast from the stage with an all-new "Pavarotti Plus! the "plus" in this case being eight concert-opera stars. The great tenor Luciano Pavarotti offers a program of operatic arias, duets, and ensembles. TUESDAY

The Grammys (CBS, 8-11 p.m., ET): The recording industry's big night - a marathon of prize-giving aired live from New York's Radio City Music Hall - boasts a huge roster of musical stars. One of them is Barbra Streisand, in a rare TV appearance, who gets a special Grammy for her career. Among other features is a jazz tribute to George Gershwin. But the heart of the matter, of course, are celebrities handing awards to celebrities - from pop, jazz, and country-western.

Please check local listings for all programs, especially those on PBS.