Saturday, November 30, 2013
SitcomsOnline Digest: NBC Thursday Night Reaching New Lows; Writers of Classic American Series Looking to China
Happy Thanksgiving weekend, and welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! It's a slow week for us this week due to the holiday, but we've got all of your regular features as usual. Let's get going!
HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB
- NBC is facing a serious dilemma with their Thursday night lineup, as the historically top-rated lineup came in at a historically low sixth place in the ratings race last week, falling behind even The CW in key demographics last week. Could it be time for a major shakeup in this lineup? (LA Times)
- Many TV writers of the 70's, 80's, and 90's still interested in working just aren't finding work on today's networks in line with their style, but as it turns out, China may be the perfect place to develop new series like the ones they wrote for in the past. Sitcom writers such as Marilyn Anderson (Murphy Brown and The Jeffersons) and Michael Elias (Head of the Class and The Bill Cosby Show) are just a few among thousands of other writers of past American hit series working with a Chinese production company to bring high quality productions to a nation that is claimed to be lacking in great stories for television. (The Hollywood Reporter)
- On Sunday's episode of Family Guy, fans were given one of the most shocking deaths to ever occur in an animated series as one of the major characters was killed off. This has caused quite an outrage from fans on the internet, even inspiring one of the largest online petitions ever revolving around the plot of a TV series. But is it all real, or a complicated publicity stunt to spike ratings? (LA Times)
- Actor Jay Leggett, who appeared as a cast member on the final season of In Living Color, died this week at the age of 50. (TV Guide)
- MeTV is adding a pair of classic Sid & Marty Krofft series to their Saturday morning lineup beginning December 29, with the addition of H.R. Pufnstuf and Land of the Lost. (SitcomsOnline)
HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS
- Just before the April premiere of the sixth season of the Showtime series, Lionsgate is set to release Nurse Jackie - Season Five on DVD and Blu-ray on February 18. As usual, the set will contain plenty of special features.
- eOne Entertainment is prepared to bring a somewhat forgotten '80s syndicated gem to DVD with their release of Monsters - The Complete Series. For those unfamiliar with the series, it was a horror anthology series from the same producer who previously brought fans the syndicated series Tales from the Darkside.
RECENT HOME MEDIA REVIEWS ON SITCOMSONLINE
FOLLOW ME- Family Guy - Volume Eleven: The three-disc set brings all 23 episodes of the 2011-2012 season of the animated Fox series to DVD, along with a few nice special features.
- MADtv - The Complete Fourth Season: Shout! Factory's latest release of the late night Fox series that ran for 15 seasons brings fans one of the greatest seasons of the series.
Who to Follow: Kunal Nayyar (Twitter),
"I play Raj on the Big Bang Theory. I love playing Ping Pong, and long walks on the beach. Thats about all I like doing, especially on the sand."
Claim to Fame: Nayyar was born in London and raised in New Delhi, but came to the United States in 1999 to pursue a degree in finance. While in college, he appeared in a few stage performances and found that was what he really loved, and by 2007, the relatively unknown actor found huge success when he was cast as Raj Koothrappali in the CBS series The Big Bang Theory.
Pick of the Tweets: "FAQ- I can talk to women without alcohol now. On the show as well." (September 26, 2013)
New on DVD/Blu-ray (April/May/June)
04/04 - Diff'rent Strokes - The Complete Fifth Season
04/11 - Father Knows Best - Season Five
04/11 - Schitt's Creek - The Complete Third Season
04/11 - Silicon Valley - The Complete Third Season (Blu-ray)
04/11 - Veep - The Complete Fifth Season
05/02 - Red, White and Blue Collar Sitcoms - Make TV Great Again
05/09 - ALF - The Complete DVD Collection
05/09 - Divorce - The Complete First Season (Blu-ray)
05/09 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Second Season
05/16 - The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air - The Complete Series
06/13 - The Andy Griffith Show - Return to Mayberry
06/13 - That's My Mama - The Complete Series
06/20 - Workaholics - The Final (Seventh) Season
06/20 - Workaholics - The Complete Series
06/27 - The Jamie Foxx Show - The Complete Third Season
More TV DVD Releases / DVD Reviews Archive / SitcomsOnline Digest
Sitcoms Airing Tonight
Saturday, July 22
Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn - "A Space Quadyssey" (Nickelodeon, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Ricky is accepted into a junior astronaut training program, but only if his siblings join him.
School of Rock - "True Colors" (Nickelodeon, 8:30PM ET/PT)
The band decides to make a music video, but when Tomika and Freddy have different ideas about the video's creative direction, it causes a rift in the group.
Tyler Perry's For Better or Worse - "He's at the Door" (OWN, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Angela decides to meet with Benny.
Tyler Perry's For Better or Worse - "A Dangerous Game" (OWN, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Angela and Marcus play a dangerous game of tit-for-tat.
Tyler Perry's For Better or Worse - "Two Can Play That Game" (OWN, 10:00PM ET/PT)
Marcus' friend, Benny, reveals a secret to Marcus.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of July 17)
Friday, July 21
- Kevin Bacon (I Love Dick) - Watch Kevin on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:34pm on NBC. He talks about Lifetime's Story of a Girl on the AOL Build Show at 1pm.
- Jada Pinkett Smith (A Different World), Queen Latifah (Living Single), Regina Hall (Grandfathered) and Tiffany Haddish (The Carmichael Show) - Jada, Queen Latifah, Regina and Tiffany chat with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT. Tiffany will also be on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT. Jada will also be on NBC's Today in the 10am hour and on New York Live on WNBC in New York at 11:30am ET.
- Kate Walsh (Bad Judge/The Drew Carey Show) - Kate discusses her new movie Girls Trip on People Now at 8:30am.
- Kaley Cuoco (The Big Bang Theory/8 Simple Rules) - Kaley appears on a repeat of Rachael Ray, so check your local listings.
- Drake Bell (Drake & Josh) - Drake is a guest on Access Hollywood Live, so check your local listings.
- Dove Cameron (Liv and Maddie) - Dove appears on Access Hollywood Live, so check your local listings.
- Jake Johnson (New Girl) - Jake is a guest on a repeat of Steve Harvey, so check your local listings.
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