WORTH NOTING ON TV

SATURDAY Just for Laughs (Showtime cable, 10-11:30 p.m., E.T.): It started in 1982 as a one-day, French-speaking, regional event. This year, the Montreal International Comedy Festival boasts some 250 acts around the world - from stars like Canada's impressionist Andre-Philippe Gagnon to raw talent - in a multilingual, 10-day collective happening that drew a reported 450,000 in 1989. Hosted by Bob Newhart and covered live, the show hops around the city ``Olympics-style.''

MONDAY Rising Son (TNT cable, 8-10 p.m.): Brian Dennehy as a blue-collar father is shattered when his son (Matt Damon) says he's dropping out of pre-med studies. The made-for-TNT drama strives to approaches truth vs. illusion - social and personal - in the post-World War II style of Arthur Miller. American Masters (PBS, 9-10 p.m.): Hosted by singer Bobby Short, ``You're the Top'' tells the Cole Porter story with interviews, old photos - and best of all - lots clips from movie renderings of his irresistible tunes, like ``Night and Day'' and so many others, including the title song.

TUESDAY P.O.V. (PBS, 10-11:30 p.m.): National TV premi`ere of the bitterly evocative ``Salesman,'' about four door-to-door Bible salesmen on the road in a quest for the American dream. The classic 1969 documentary by Albert and his brother the late David Mayles helped establish the use use of hand-held cameras to capture real-life events.

Please check local listings for all programs, especially on PBS.