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Which is why the self-effacing news anchor Charlie Gibson is always on my “Crush List,” as are/were Ted Koppel and the late Peter Jennings. But it isn’t just the veteran news dudes. I also like the older actors. They are so much more interesting to watch and to talk to.

One of my favorites on “Alias” was Victor Garber’s Jack Bristow. He could kill someone easier than he could smile. I loved that. Garber has a new show, “Justice,” premiering on Wednesday, Aug. 30, on Fox. And I’ll watch it because he’s on it. Well, that and they have some British actors, Eamonn Walker and Rebecca Mader (using American accents of course), who are beyond cool.

It’s kind of a hybrid CSI/law show. The story is interesting and the acting is better than you are used to seeing in prime time dramas. In fact, that’s going to happen a lot this season. The actors, writers and producers have raised the bar and it’s a great year for television. (More about that later.)

The show is partnered with “Bones,” and it’s a good fit. The only problem is Wednesday nights are very crowded with “Lost” and the new ABC show “The Nine,” but those don’t start until October and it may just work out that “Justice” will be on hiatus for baseball during that time. And then “Lost” is only running for six episodes until it goes away until spring. (Confused? It’s OK. We all are.)

Back to the older actor thing… James Woods also has a new series, “Shark,” which premieres Thursday Sept. 21, on CBS after CSI. (They’ve moved “Without a Trace” to Saturdays). It’s another law show, and he’s a cranky guy who has a bit of an epiphany and ends up working for the good guys.

If “Shark” wasn’t up against ABC’s killer new Thursdays with “Ugly Betty” (My favorite show of the season.), “Grey’s Anatomy” and the new series “Six Degrees,” I’d probably watch. Again, even though I’m not really into the law shows.

I had a chance to talk with both Garber and Woods, they told me the same thing. The men have no trouble finding work in films, but they both said the roles in prime time are better and more fully developed than what they see in film scripts.

“I haven’t had a character this complicated and rich, in years,” Woods says. “I jumped at the chance to do it. This guy has it all.”

Garber hadn’t planned to move into another drama series so quickly, “but when I read the script, I couldn’t turn it down. It was that good.”

There are two veteran actors I adore, John Lithgow and Jeffery Tambor, who are starring in “Twenty Good Years,” premiering Wednesday, Oct. 4, on NBC. The show isn’t awful, but it is trying too hard. Lithgow dons a Speedo in the pilot episode. I’ve seen more of him now than I’ve ever wanted. And again, this one is launching against “Lost,” so I’m afraid it will be dead in the water.

Oh, and Robbie Coltrane (You probably know him as Hagrid in the “Harry Potter” films) is coming back as “Cracker” in October on the BBC. I’ll tell you about that embarrassing crush later. It’s those Scottish accents. They get me every time.

These aren’t the only veteran actors getting a run in prime time this season, but they are some of my favorites. So watch out, you might just develop an old-guy crush of your own. Speaking of which, if you have some favorite older actors or actresses on TV, or ones you’d like to see come back, tell me about it.

And very quickly, the Emmys are Sunday on NBC. Conan O’Brien is host and says, “You’re going to have fun, I promise.” This is one of those years when I don’t have any one in particular I’m rooting for, but I am impressed with the presenter list. It’s a very eclectic group including Virginia Madsen, Craig Ferguson (Another crush. So funny.), Candice Bergen, Bob Newhart (Um, another crush. Old and funny.), Patrick Dempsey, Martin Sheen, Tina Fey, James Gandolfini, Dennis Haysbert, Jason Lee, Wentworth Miller and too many more to list.

Me, I’m not covering the ceremony live, where they stick you in a hot room or tent with 200 other reporters, most of whom ask idiotic questions that make you want to bury your head under the table.

I’ll be sitting on my couch, in my P.J.’s, possibly with a tiara (they look great on everyone), eating whatever the lovely deliveryman brings me.  And of course I’ll be making fun of the acceptance speeches, fashion and whoever trips on stage. I mean, isn’t that why we all watch to see the train crashes that all the good awards shows provide?

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