"THE MENTALIST": Like 20 times a day we wish had the ability to deduce why in the deuce somebody we're dealing with is acting in particular way, or why something that we want to happen doesn't, or what the h is going on. Like Simon Baker does in "The Mentalist," in other words. Thank goodness there's a show on TV where a person actually has those abilities -- we won't call them powers exactly, because Baker's investigator is grounded in the real world -- and we can live vicariously through them. The series also stars Robin Tunney, who is winsome and smart and an actress we enjoy. If you'd like to see Tunney and Baker and the creator of "The Mentalist" -- that would be Bruno Heller, who wrote on the brutal and fascinating "Rome" -- then best transport yourself to Hollywood for a full evening devoted to the show, part of the ongoing PaleyFest series. Friday, April 17th, 7PM. $45-$60 general. Cinerama Dome, ArcLight Hollywood, 6360 W. Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles
ALSO ON FRIDAY, APRIL 17: The Shrine Circus pirouettes into the Shrine Auditorium; the Riverside International Film Festival opens; and Berlin rocks the HOB Anaheim ("Take My Breath Away" remains one of the great pop ballads)...
