Part Ii

• Soledad O'Brien hosts CNN's 'Black in America'

  SHOW "The Black Woman & Family"

• Estelle Getty, 1923-2008: She had a 'golden' role

  Estelle Getty, the diminutive actress who spent 40 years struggling for success before landing a role of a lifetime in 1985 as the sarcastic octogenarian Sophia on TV's "The Golden Girls," died yesterday. She was 84.

• tv talk

  DAYTIME

• BEAUTY SPOT

  HEALTHY HAIR

• STYLE FILE

  Artful bags

• close-ups!

  WHO Emanuel Sylvano, 20

• off the wall

  SEAMY STUFF. Just what we've been waiting for! The new half-hour series "Sordid Lives" (tonight at 10, LOGO) follows the story of a Hollywood wanna-be (Jason Dottley) and his bizarro Texas family, which includes Bonnie Bedelia, Rue McClanahan and the sublime Leslie Jordan (as a Tammy Wynette impersonator!). Olivia Newton-John plays a bar singer just out of prison, with Caroline Rhea as a trailer-trash neighbor. More at logoonline.com/shows/dyn/sordid_lives/series.jhtml.

• TODAY'S PICKS

  CRISS ANGEL MINDFREAK (10 p.m., A&E) - Season premiere: The East Meadow-raised illusionist, above, walks across Nevada's Lake Mead. Or does he?

• SAMPLE SALES

  Acne Jeans and Staerk

• shop talk

  July 24-25

• hot tix

  NOW ON SALE

• The last season for the Jets in Hempstead

  This is the last season the Jets will hold their training camp at Hofstra, and they are going out in style.

• Super Saturday designer garage sale

  The annual Super Saturday designer garage sale, happening this Saturday, is one of those perfect Hamptons events - great deals for a great cause in the great outdoors, with bargain hunters elbow-to-elbow with Kelly Ripa and other celebs. "You turn around and see Molly Sims or Barbara Walters or your neighbor - everyone is fighting for the cool Donna Karan dress or Vera Wang gown," says Faith Kates Kogan, president of the nonprofit Ovarian Cancer Research Fund, which receives all proceeds.

• Amy Dickinson: ASK AMY: Three carpool pals, but only two drivers

  DEAR AMY: I am 17 and will be a senior in high school. I have a job working at a clothing store at a mall about three miles away. I work with two of my very good friends, "Jerry" and "George." We've been working at the mall for three months, on weekends and after school. I have known Jerry and George since birth. Hanging out with them and working with them is really fun. The problem is, the three of us carpool to work and George does not have his driver's license. Jerry and I don't really mind alternating the driving, but next week Jerry is going on vacation for about three weeks, and I'm not really looking forward to having to drive George and myself every day. George doesn't seem interested in getting his license, or even his permit, and I don't know what to say. Part of me says to just stick it out for three weeks, but part of me says to tell him how I feel, because we probably will face this situation again. Do you have any advice on what to tell him and how to maintain our friendship in doing so?

• Andy Edelstein: 'Billy Joel: The Stranger Live' airs tonight in WLIW

  SHOW "Billy Joel: The Stranger Live"

• THE BUZZ

  NEW MOVIE TEAM NAMED. Over the years, TV's best-known movie review show has gone from hosts Siskel and Ebert to Ebert and Roeper to Roeper and guest critics - and now it's Lyons and Mankiewicz, The Associated Press reports. Ben Lyons, a Hollywood reporter and film critic for "E! News" and others, and Turner Classic Movies host Ben Mankiewicz will take over "At the Movies" when its new season begins in September, Disney-ABC Domestic Television said yesterday. Don't look for the syndicated program's "thumbs up-thumbs down" ratings to return. Roger Ebert shares a trademark lock on it with the widow of his late co-host, Gene Siskel, and Ebert has said they're hanging on to it.

• Jonas Brothers to perform at MTV Video Music Awards

  The Jonas Brothers will perform at this year's MTV Video Music Awards, The Associated Press reports.

• Robert Downey Jr. postpones plans to write a memoir

  The "Iron Man" will not be wielding a pen: Robert Downey Jr. has postponed plans to write a memoir and has returned his advance to publisher HarperCollins, a spokeswoman for the actor told The Associated Press.

• Christian Bale denies charges of assault on sister, mom

  Christian Bale yesterday denied allegations of assault made by his mother and sister, hours after the star of "The Dark Knight" was arrested, questioned by London police and released.

• Four funny guys bring comedy to Dix Hills show

  It's been more than a decade since Richie Minervini shuttered the East Side Comedy Club, the venerable Huntington house of guffaws that helped give rise to Rosie O'Donnell, Eddie Murphy, Kevin James and Judd Apatow.