A bunch of cable premieres tonight — SyFy has “Ghost Hunters International” with a new season starting at 9. FX has “Nip/Tuck” at 10, and TLC has “Tailgate Takedown” also at 10.

The big news today is that Discovery and ESPN are creating 24/7 3D television channels.

Discovery Communications is teaming with Sony to develop an all-3D network by 2011, hoping to spur the purchase of special 3D televisions. Discovery promises content on the topics of history, space, adventure, engineering, tech, and children’s programming. Discovery is also working with IMAX on this deal.

At the same time, ESPN is working on its own 3D plans, and it said yesterday it would launch ESPN 3D this year to present 85 FIFA World Cup games starting on June 11. ESPN said it has been developing and testing ESPN 3D for more than 2 years, and will soon include the Summer X Games and college sports.

FOX Reality Channel is giving the always popular, often naked Cindy Margolis her own reality dating series called “Seducing Cindy,” starting January 30 at 9 p.m. The single mother of 3 will narrow down 24 would-be seducers in an attempt to find true love.

The People’s Choice Awards are on CBS tonight–btw.

Not much today. Bravo has the premiere of “The Real Housewives of Orange County” at 10 p.m., and Investigation Discovery starts “Cold Blood,” also at 10.

ABC announced that “The Bachelor: On Wings of Love” will premiere January 4 at 8 p.m. This is the 14th edition of the reality show, and it will feature commercial airline pilot, Jake Pavelka, from Dallas, who was in the most recent “Bachelorette” only to fail.

FOX has a cool new CIA drama in the works from Chernin Entertainment, Variety reported. It’s untitled but it will be about a unit of the CIA that does “remote viewing,” finding out information using paranormal skills. No word on the cast.

In other FOX news, Colin Hanks will star in “Jack and Dan” opposite Bradley Whitford. Hanks will play Jack, a detective teamed up with a drunken maverick partner. This one will premiere in early 2010.

Just a few premieres tonight, and they’re all on cable.

ESPN starts up “30 for 30″ at 8 p.m. Discovery opens new seasons of “Dirty Jobs” and “Ghost Lab” at 9 and 10 respectively. SyFy has “Scare Tactics” at 9, and A&E has “Parking Wars” at 10.

CBS has new episodes of “NCIS” and “NCIS Los Angeles” tonight, and we expect the network to carry the night.

MTV will air the Adam “DJ AM” Goldsten hosted/created series “Gone Too Far” starting October 12 at 10 p.m. The network had to get consent from the entertainer’s family. Goldstein died from a drug overdose in August.

Showtime has renewed “Californication” for a 12-episode fourth season in 2010.

Sony and Mark Barnett are re-booting “Fantasy Island” and developing a new hour-long elimination reality show involving 12 contestants at an exotic island resort, battling to become the next “Mr. or Ms. Roarke.” The contestants will battle to best fulfill the fantasies of the guests arriving on the island.

Ubisoft today confirmed rumors of a DS Assassin’s Creed II project naming the game and dating it for this November.

Dubbed “Assassin’s Creed II: Discovery,” this portable project was developed by Griptonite Games and makes use of the DSi’s camera to slap your mug around town on “wanted” signs.

The plot is predictable. Main charatcer Ezio travels to Spain to rescue fellow assassin’s from the Inquisition only to discover that the Templars have other ideas; finding the new world.

“Assassin’s Creed II: Discovery is a great way for fans to experience a new chapter of the Assassin’s Creed II storyline,” shared John Parkes, EMEA marketing director at Ubisoft. “We think Nintendo fans will be impressed with all the unique features in the game designed specifically for Nintendo DSi and Nintendo DS.”

Assassin’s Creed II: Discovery for DS and DSi is due out November 20 three days after the Nov. 17 release of the console version for PS3 and Xbox 360.

Meet up with Jamie, Adam, Tory, Kari and Grant in the Mythbusters Season 4 DVD.

The collection has all 30-episodes on 6 discs, giving you almost 19 hours of one of the best programs on television.

Discovery put out the entire fourth season “as they debunk, decode and demystify some of the most popular urban myths and legends. Using modern-day science, they put each myth to the test — from concrete gliders to anti-gravity devices — separating the real from the really out there,” they said recently.

They don’t just tell myths, they put them to the test. Watch for Earthquake Machine, which ends with some really surprising results. Also, Killer Cable Snaps ends by disproving that a tension cable snapping away will cut a man in half. They also revisit several myths that viewers questioned the results of.

This one is a must have. Mythbusters is one of the most popular shows around, and here’s your chance to avoid having to buy them episode-by-episode. Get the whole season in one box.

On that note, I humbly submit this news story that I recently wrote for The Boston Globe.

On December 27, a mobile home trailer exploded in the driveway of a home in Plympton, Mass., sending its occupant flying out through the front door and into the nearby woods. The lucky man was not seriously injured. The explosion was caused when the man, who had no sense of smell from a previous injury, was fixing the heat on the trailer. The trailer filled with gas and exploded.

“His eyebrows were gone and his hair was singed, but he was OK,” fire officials said. The occupant, whom Rich did not identify, refused medical treatment.

There you go, Adam and Jamie!

Episodes include:

• Confederate Rocket
• Vodka Myths
• Steel Toe Amputation
• Seasickness: Kill or Cure
• Paper Crossbow
• Shredded Plane
• Archimedes Death Ray
• Helium Football
• Franklin’s Kite
• Cell Phones on Planes
• Bullets Fired Up
• Myths Reopened
• Mind Control
• Exploding Pants
• Steam Cannon
• Killer Whirlpool
• Crimes and Myth-Demeanors 1
• Crimes and Myth-Demeanors 2
• Shattering Subwoofer
• Deadly Straw
• Earthquake Machine
• Diet Coke and Mentos
• Killer Cable Snaps
• Concrete Glider
• Air Cylinder Rocket
• More Myths Revisited
• Exploding Lighter
• Anti-Gravity Device
• Firearms Folklore
• 22,000-Foot Fall

For some reason, I resisted Deadliest Catch for the first two seasons. I was always tuning to the Discovery Channel for Mythbusters or the odd documentary.

Then one night last year, Mythbusters was over and this Bon Jovi song comes on, and I decide to watch an episode of “the fishing show.” Now I’m hooked.

What really strikes me about Deadliest Catch is that the Discovery folks put in cameras and producers, documentary style, and ended up with better characters and dramatic plots than most of the striking writers could put out.

From Sig Hansen, the third generation Norwegian to salty Alaskan Phil Harris on his boat, the Cornelia Marie, Deadliest Catch is no small achievement.

Watching these fishermen haul 700-pound crab pots from the bottom of the Bering Sea over and over again and watching them deal with everything from legal problems to winter storms, it’s often easy to forget that Deadliest Catch is unscripted. Moreover, it’s easy to forget that any of these people can die — fishermen and producers — at any time.

The reminders come from the solemn episodes where the boats break away from fishing to search for survivors from a vessel sunk by a rogue wave or storm. They rarely find many alive in the frigid waters. This came to life in the first season especially, when one of the featured boats, Big Valley, sunk early on, killing all but one aboard.

The third season starts off with the beginning of the Red King Crab season and disaster as the fishing vessel Ocean Challenger sinks, taking three men with it and showing a dramatic Coast Guard helicopter rescue where one of the crew members is saved.

Season three is contained on five DVD’s with nearly nine hours of footage. I was disappointed by the lack of special features — Discovery did a really good special called “After the Catch” where narrator Mike Rowe shared stories and beers with the captains and crew. That was another amazing part of deadliest catch, bringing narrator and subjects together.

Either way, the DVD set is an excellent gift and a great way to relive Deadliest Catch.

Episodes:

A Tragic Beginning
Journey back to Dutch Harbor, Alaska — the largest fishing port in the United States. The 2006 Red King Crab season kicks off as 81 fishing vessels eagerly return to stake their claim in the million dollar jackpot.

The Unforgiving Sea
After the Ocean Challenger fishing boat sinks, a Coast Guard helicopter rescues the only known survivor. Meanwhile, two bodies are pulled from the water and another man remains lost at sea.

Pain and Paybacks
After a deadly start to the season, the Bering Sea claims more victims. Deckhand Lenny Lakanoff of the Wizard suffers a crippling injury, leaving Captain Keith scrambling to shore.

Cheating Death
Halfway through the season the grind is on with crews working throughout the nights. Equipment failures, fatigue and bad weather make fishing even more dangerous.

Bering Sea Salvation
Experience the heart-wrenching tales of the Bering Sea as Captain Johnathan Hillstrand of the Time Bandit recounts a rescue attempt he made nine years ago that ended in tragedy.

The Last Lap
The grinding 2006 Red King Crab fishing marathon comes to a close as holds fill with King gold. With money in their pockets, the fishermen return home for a short rest before returning to the 2007 Opilio Crab Season.

New Beginnings
All aboard as the January Opilio crab season opens. Several greenhorns are about to experience the subfreezing temperatures and icy winter waters of the Bering Sea for the first time.

Caught in the Storm
Only days into the Opilio season, a major storm system hits the fishing grounds causing Captain Andy of the Time Bandit to call his men off deck.

Crossing the Line
A monster storm blows through the Time Bandit and Cornelia Marie grounds, and a double change of guard takes place on the Wizard as Captain Keith Colburn and greenhorn Nick both head south.

Trials of the Greenhorns
The harsh winter weather puts the greenhorns to the test, but the Northwestern and Cornelia Marie greenhorns step up to prove their worth by working through broken bones and icy decks without complaint.

Ice and Open Water
The promise of a great catch outweighs the dangerous risks faced by the Opilio Crab fishing vessels. The Far West Leader attempts to survive the loss of one engine, while the Time Bandit enjoys unseasonable weather and unprecedented catches.

A Frozen Finish
The 2007 Opilio crab tally is in and a winner is declared. After a long and difficult crab fishing season, the Northwestern enjoys a sweet homecoming with friends and family back in Seattle.

The only thing better than Dirty Jobs is eight hours and 20 minutes of Dirty Jobs on five DVD’s.

Discovery Channel has released the complete first season of Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe. Join Mike has he takes on everything from sewer inspection to hot tar roofing in this widely popular spin on educational television.

In Dirty Jobs, Mike Row redefines the traditional everyman as he dives headfirst into weird, strange and most of all dirty jobs that regular people do every day.

Episodes:

Bat Cave Scavenger & Worm Dung Farmer
Visit a cave where bat guano (a.k.a. bat poop) is collected for some of the best fertilizer in the world. Then, join Mike as he burrows his way onto a farm that specializes in worm dung.

Roadkill Cleaners & Chinatown Garbage Collector
Mike rides along with some professional road kill collectors — and takes his turn scooping up five-day-old asphalt ornaments. Plus, learn how some of your discarded scraps are turned into fine wine.

Sewer Inspector & Pig Farmer
Mike braves the cockroach- and rat-infested sewers of San Francisco as part of his latest gig. Things get even messier in Iowa as he learns the fine art of pig insemination.

Chick Sexer & Vexcon
Mike takes an “egg-cellent” vacation to the Murray McMurray Hatchery for a little chicken sex ed. Later, he joins forces with the Vexcon Pest Control group for an all-out assault on a home ruled by cockroaches.

Sludge Cleaner & Hot Tar Roofer
Mike wades into a greasy pit of sludge to help an environmental company recycle some gunky grime. In Hot Tar Roofer, Mike lands on a church rooftop and learns how to melt down chunks of black tar for roof repair.