TONIGHT'S MUST-SEE

"The Happy Elf," 7 p.m., NBC. Eubie the Elf is a happy guy. Alas, he's confined to the Naughty-or-Nice Department, where he notices the entire town of Bluesville has been downgraded. Can he do anything about it? That might sound like your corny cartoon special, but this new one has an edge: That's the buoyant, jazzy music of Harry Connick Jr. Connick only has two original songs in the film. He sings one, and voice actor Rob Paulsen sings the other. Beyond that, however, Connick provided the instrumental background sound. "Happy Elf" zips along vibrantly.

OF NOTE

"Santa Claus is Coming to Town," 7 p.m., ABC. It's lucky that all the little kids can operate VCRs tonight, because there are near-identical choices. This cartoon was made in 1970, but it's similar to "Happy Elf." One has the joyless Bluesville, the other has the toyless Sombertown. One has Connick as narrator, the other has Fred Astaire. And both have Mickey Rooney as Santa Claus.

"Ghost Whisperer," 7 p.m., CBS. Here is a rerun of the opener. Wentworth Miller, now known as the "Prison Break" star, plays the ghost of a soldier, looking for closure for his family.

"What I Like About You," 7 p.m., WB. With ABC showing specials tonight, WB has the situation-comedy field to itself. Here, Holly fumes because Vince takes Gary (not her) to the basketball game.