Thursday, October 22, 2015
Hulu Brings Back Casual; Remembering Pat Woodell of Petticoat Junction
Following its successful series debut on October 7, the Hulu Original Casual has already been picked up for a second season with a 13-episode order. Lionsgate Television's critically-acclaimed comedy series will return with creator and executive producer Zander Lehmann and executive producers Jason Reitman (Juno, Up in the Air), Helen Estabrook and Liz Tigelaar. Casual has drawn praise for stars Michaela Watkins, Tommy Dewey, Tara Lynne Barr and Nyasha Hatendi, who will all return as series regulars for the second season. Hulu will continue to roll out weekly episodes for its 10-episode straight-to-series order for season one of Casual, launching its fourth episode today. All episodes will be available to stream to subscribers in both Hulu's limited and no commercials plans.
Casual follows the story of a dysfunctional family with a bachelor brother and his newly divorced sister. Together, they coach each other through the crazy world of dating (on-line and off), while living under one roof again and raising a teenager. New episodes are available every Wednesday. In episode four streaming today, Alex (Tommy Dewey) goes back to work for the first time in weeks. Valerie (Michaela Watkins) slips up and breaks one of his cardinal rules of casual sex, while Laura (Tara Lynne Barr) begins to bond with her photography teacher after class.
The second season of Casual will join 11/22/63, an event series based upon the best-selling Stephen King novel from J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot Productions; The Path, a drama series from Jason Katims' True Jack Productions starring Aaron Paul, Michelle Monaghan and Hugh Dancy; The Mindy Project, a comedy series from Mindy Kaling; and comedy series Difficult People produced by Amy Poehler with stars Julie Klausner and Billy Eichner.
Actress and singer Pat Woodell, who was best known for her role as Bobbie Jo Bradley in the first two seasons of Petticoat Junction, has died. She died on September 29 at her home in Fallbrook, California, after a long battle with cancer. Ms. Woodell was 71.
Woodell starred as the first Bobbie Jo Bradley in seasons one and two of Petticoat Junction from 1963-1965. Her book-loving character appeared in 64 out of 74 episodes. She performed musical numbers in several episodes, including "The Ladybugs." The Ladybugs, a Beatles parody group, consisted of her TV sisters Linda Kaye, Jeannine Riley, together with Sheila James. The Ladybugs also appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964. Woodell was replaced by Lori Saunders after she left to promote her singing career. She was interviewed and provided episode introductions for the season one and two DVD releases of the series in 2008-2009.
She guest starred as Miss Thompson in one of the last episodes ("A Visit from the Teacher") of The Munsters in 1966. Some of her other television guest appearances included Cheyenne, Hawaiian Eye, The Gallant Man, GE True, 77 Sunset Strip, Bright Promise and The New Perry Mason. She retired from acting in 1973.
We remember another 1960s sitcom actress. Melody Patterson was best known for her role Wrangler Jane in F Troop. She died on August 20 at a nursing home in Hollister, Missouri, of multiple organ failure. Ms. Patterson was 66.
Patterson starred as Jane Angelica Thrift/Wrangler Jane in the ABC sitcom F Troop from 1965-1967. Her hard-riding, fast-shooting cowgirl character owned Wrangler Jane's Trading Post and ran the U.S. post office in town. She was Captain Wilton Parmenter's (Ken Berry) beautiful but tomboyish, feisty, romantically aggressive girlfriend. Patterson was only 16 years old when she first appeared on the show.
Some of her sitcom guest appearances included Wendy and Me, The Monkees and Green Acres. Her drama guest appearances included Adam-12 and three episodes of Hawaii Five-O. She was married to Hawaii Five-O star James MacArthur from 1970-1975. She is survived by her husband, Vern Miller.
We thank these talented and beautiful actresses for the entertainment they brought us in their classic 1960s sitcoms. They will be deeply missed.
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
Wednesday, July 26
The Goldbergs - "Jedi Master Adam Skywalker" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
As the school year comes to a close, Barry and Erica wonder what they’ll be voted for in the yearbook and pressure Adam – who’s on staff – to see the rough layout before it goes to print. But when they accidentally delete it, mass panic ensues and messes up Adam’s relationship with Jackie. Meanwhile, Murray is annoyed when Marvin comes to visit for money, but Beverly convinces him to help Marvin out with a plan, because he’s family.
Speechless - "T-H-- THE C-L-- CLUB" (ABC, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
JJ gets into an argument with Kenneth over their time together while Dylan decides she must “parent-trap” them both so they can get back together. Meanwhile, the family gets a chance to be members of a country club for a week. Ray sees it as a chance to live the high life while Maya jumps at the chance to spend mother-and-son time.
Modern Family - "Grab It" (ABC, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Jay’s favorite place in the world, and only refuge, may be losing some of its charm when Phil considers becoming a member. At the Dunphy house, Claire mistakes her influence on Alex’s life choices, and Hayley cares too much about what Alex thinks about hers. Meanwhile, when Cam doesn’t give Mitchell the full story on what his play is really about, it really puts Mitchell in the spotlight.
American Housewife - "Other People's Marriages" (ABC, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Katie encourages Viv (Leslie Bibb) to stand up to her boorish husband, Alan, but things backfire when Viv succeeds and decides to leave him – and move in with the Ottos.
Modern Family - "Snow Ball" (ABC, 10:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
When Manny and Luke put on the school’s lavish winter dance and end up over their heads due to a texting error, it is up to them to fix it before the end of the night. Meanwhile, Gloria, Claire, Mitchell and Cam all volunteer at the dance while Jay’s thinly veiled guise to get out of it by pretending to want to spend time with Phil backfires. During the dance, Claire and Gloria attempt to set up Marjorie (“Saturday Night Live”’s Vanessa Bayer), an overbearing mom, with the school’s principal. Finally, Mitchell is unnerved to be back in high school and is shocked to see a lot of himself in the school bully and feels he needs a little guidance.
The Goldbergs - "Crazy Calls" (ABC, 10:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
After getting their first-ever answering machines, Murray and Pop-Pop wage a message war on one another. Fed up, Erica, Barry and Pops try to stop the fighting by offering a trip to a hockey game as an olive branch. Meanwhile, Adam finally finds a lunch-time home with some lovable geeks in the computer room, but Beverly worries about his social standing and intervenes.
The Carmichael Show - "Maxine's Sister" (NBC, 9:00PM ET/PT)
When Maxine (Amber Stevens West) brings her sister (guest star Aurora Perrineau) to meet the Carmichaels, Bobby (Lil Rel Howery) reveals that they've previously met under unexpected circumstances forcing an exploration on judgment, hypocrisy and what it means to be family.
The Carmichael Show - "The Blues" (NBC, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
When Maxine (Amber Stevens West) finds Cynthia (Loretta Devine) in the kitchen crying, she uncovers an uncomfortable possibility that is hard for the whole family to face: Cynthia may be suffering from depression and in need of therapy.
Nightcap - "The Show Might Go On, Part 1" (Pop, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Jimmy's girlfriend, Christie Brinkley, urges him to quit the show; saving her voice for a speaking engagement, TV personality Bethenny Frankel makes Penny do her dirty work; actor David Hasselhoff tells embarrassing stories about his nephew, Marcus.
Younger - "The Gift of The Maggie" (TV Land, 10:00PM ET/PT)
Liza hunts for a new romance author, bringing her closer to Charles. Maggie slashes an art competitor.
Odd Mom Out - " M.F.A. in B.S." (Bravo, 10:00PM ET/PT)
Jill struggles to make the right impression at her art show; New York Times best-selling author Derek Blasberg pays a visit to Brooke and Devon at Von Weber headquarters, but things do not go as planned; Lex gets advice from a stranger.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of July 24)
Wednesday, July 26
- Sutton Foster (Younger) - Watch Sutton on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Jim Gaffigan (The Jim Gaffigan Show/My Boys/Welcome to New York) - Jim visits Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Laura Linney (The Big C) - Laura stops by The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS. She also chats on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
- Sanaa Lathan (The Cleveland Show/LateLine) - Sanaa is a guest on a repeat of Last Call with Carson Daly at 1:35am on NBC.
- Reid Scott (Veep/My Boys) - Reid appears on Last Call with Carson Daly at 1:35am on NBC.
- Steve Agee (The Sarah Silverman Program) - Steve is a guest on @midnight on Comedy Central at midnight.
- Baron Vaughn (Grace and Frankie) - Baron appears on @midnight on Comedy Central at midnight.
- Alice Wetterlund (People of Earth/Silicon Valley) - Alice is a guest on @midnight on Comedy Central at midnight.
- Charlie Hunnam (Undeclared) - Charlie appears on a repeat of Conan at 11pm on TBS.
- Kristen Schaal (The Last Man on Earth/Bob's Burgers) - Kristen is a guest on a repeat of Conan at 11pm on TBS.
- T.J. Miller (Silicon Valley/The Goodwin Games/Carpoolers) - T.J. discusses his upcoming film The Emoji Movie on People Now at 8:30am.
- Jade Pettyjohn (School of Rock) - Jade appears on Home & Family on Hallmark Channel at 10am ET/PT.
- Nico Tortorella (Younger) - Nico is a guest on Access Hollywood Live, so check your local listings.
- Kelsey Grammer (Frasier/Cheers) - Kelsey talks about The Last Tycoon on the AOL Build Show at 10:30am.
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