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Had enough of Christmas with Kathie Lee? Ready to lose your lunch if forced to watch another reworking of "A Christmas Carol"? Find yourself wishing that, just once, Clarence decided the water was just too cold for him to jump in and save whiny George Bailey?May I suggest you check out Comedy Central tonight?Significant portions of the American viewing public -- for instance, those who offend easily -- should go nowhere near the Christmas episode of the animated, determinedly tasteless "South Park" (10 p.m.-10: 30 p.m.)

In addition, descriptions of tonight's "Pretender" episodes (8 p.m.-10 p.m., WBAL, Channel 11), as well as the special "Santa vs. the Snowman" (8: 30 p.m.-9 p.m., WMAR, Channel 2), were mistakenly included in yesterday's Today's TV column.The Sun regrets the error.Pub Date: 12/13/97

Tonight, TV helps pave the way for tomorrow's opening of Steven Spielberg's latest film, "Amistad."On the Discovery Channel, "Slave Ship" (9 p.m.-10 p.m., repeats 1 a.m.-2 a.m.) is a new documentary about the horrors of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. At its center is the 1839 Amistad incident, a shipboard rebellion that is the subject of Spielberg's film. Also examined are the legal battles that followed and the effect of the rebellion on the abolitionist movement.The History Channel follows with another documentary, which Spielberg introduces, called "Ships of Slaves: The Middle Passage" (10 p.m.-11 p.m., repeats 2 a.m.-3 a.m.)

A pair of cable offerings should help considerably when it comes to getting you in the holiday mood.On A&E, "A Judy Collins Christmas at the Biltmore Estate" (9 p.m.-11 p.m., repeats 1 a.m.-3 a.m.) features the singer/songwriter performing holiday classics in a concert taped the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, N.C. Selections include "I'll Be Home for Christmas," "Let It Snow" and "White Christmas."If movies are more your style, try Lifetime, where Mary Stuart Masterson stars in "On the 2nd Day of Christmas" (9 p.m.-11 p.m.)

Tonight is shaping up as something of a battle between those who adhere to the magicians' traditional code of silence about how tricks and illusions are performed and a rogue magician who promises to reveal some basic secrets.ABC's "The Champions of Magic II" (8 p.m.-9 p.m., WJLA, Channel 7; pre-empted by Towson University basketball on WMAR, Channel 2), with hosts Princess Stephanie of Monaco and Bronson Pinchot, offers tricks from an international array of performers. Then, Fox's "Breaking the Magician's Code: Magic's Biggest Secrets Finally Revealed" (9 p.m.-10 p.m., WBFF, Channel 45)

While the World Series takes a night off, HBO offers "Where Have You Gone, Joe DiMaggio?" (8 p.m.-9 p.m.), a new documentary about one of baseball's true legends. It purports to examine "the personal side of the man behind the heroic image."Pub Date: 10/20/97

It's summer, when a network's fancy turns to ridding its closet of all those canceled series and failed pilots taking up space. Witness the return of "Chicago Sons" to NBC tonight."

Judy Garland would have turned 75 today, and TCM reminds us why her life is worth celebrating."Sea World and Busch Gardens Adventures: Alien Vacation!" (8 p.m.-9 p.m., WJZ, Channel 13) -- Rodney Dangerfield and Dave Coulier are aliens (tell us something we don't know) who visit Earth to watch how we interact with the animals! What an amazing coincidence that they land in a theme park! Lucky for us, there are plenty of celebrities on hand -- R&B group All-4-One, country singer Bryan White, ice skater Michelle Kwan -- to help keep the hour moving along!

All sorts of sitcoms that won't be around come September (or at least won't be where we're used to seeing them) show up on the tube tonight."Step by Step" (8 p.m.-8: 30 p.m., WMAR, Channel 2) -- Dana and Rich (Stacy Keanan and Jason Marsden) fantasize what their life will be like when they're married. One thing's for certain: It'll unfold on a different network, since the show is moving to CBS in the fall. ABC."Dave's World" (8 p.m.-8: 30 p.m., WUSA, Channel 9) -- With the end in sight (the show wasn't renewed)

The Memorial Day weekend kicks off with an interesting documentary on AMC detailing how a bunch of Hollywood stars spent World War II."JAG" (8 p.m.-9 p.m. and 9 p.m.-10 p.m., WJZ, Channel 13) -- Two chances (both repeats from January) to get in step with the adventures of the fine folks of the military's Judge Advocate General's office: First, the gang has to track down a super-patriot who's stolen the Declaration of Independence (man, what would that fetch on the autograph market?); second, Harm (David James Elliott)