Thursday, June 01, 2006

TV Land's 'My First Time' Episode Info Released; SitcomsOnline.com Exclusive: Comparing U.S. & Canadian 'Kate & Allie', 'Gimme a Break' DVDs!

TV Land will revisit the first major career milestones of some of America's favorite TV stars with the premiere of My First Time. The six-part series, produced for TV Land by Scott Sternberg Productions, will debut on Wednesday, June 28 in its regularly scheduled timeslot of 10 p.m. ET/PT and will air through August 2. Renown actor, producer and director Henry Winkler (Happy Days, Hollywood Squares) and actress Katey Sagal (Married...with Children, 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter) are featured in the first episode.
Bolstered by original interviews with each star profiled, every 30-minute episode will trace the first "big break" of some of the biggest and brightest talents in Hollywood. Fellow cast members, producers, agents, directors and others who were part of making that first moment happen will also be interviewed for the series. Additionally, each show will contain rare footage from performances that many fans -- and maybe the stars themselves - forgot existed... and some clips that these performers would probably rather forget. My First Time also gives an intimate look at the stars' lives as they were then, their hopes for that first part and how they feel looking back at that moment in time.

The series rollout is as follows (Wednesdays at 10 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. ET/PT):
Wednesday, June 28: Henry Winkler and Katey Sagal
Wednesday, July 5: Ted Danson and John O'Hurley
Wednesday, July 12: Jim Belushi and Sarah Gilbert
Wednesday, July 19: John Schneider and Dean Cain
Wednesday, July 26: Cheryl Ladd and Glenn Campbell
Wednesday, August 2: Mr. T and Cybil Shepherd

For more details click here.

We have yet another exclusive for you. We recently obtained the Canadian DVDs for Gimme a Break! and Kate & Allie from VEI. I'm sure most of you saw the Canadian Gimme a Break! review last week. It is very similar to the U.S. one from Universal Home Video, content wise. So, it is up to you which one you want to buy. I'd buy both if I were a huge fan. Some might like the packaging better on the VEI set over the Universal set, or vice versa.
Last night we put our review up of the VEI Kate & Allie release. The Universal version only contains season one, and that has 3 of the 6 episodes edited. The VEI version has the first two seasons in a similar price. So, most fans were waiting to buy this version, rather than Universal's. I do have some disappointing news to report. It seems there are syndicated versions of episodes on this set, too. I don't think it is VEI's fault at all. Looks like distributor FremantleMedia gave them the episodes that way. In fact the same season one episodes on the Universal set that are edited, are edited on VEI's. There are a few more from season two that are edited, too. What I don't understand is how Universal would get edited episodes, because they distribute the show in the U.S., while FremantleMedia does it internationally. I'm sure many fans are bummed out, but I would still buy VEI's version of this set because it is nearly the same price and it contains two seasons, rather than just one. You can read our review of the Canadian version of the Kate & Allie DVD here.


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Wednesday, February 11

Shifting Gears - "Friend" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Matt’s reunion with a high school friend stirs up more than nostalgia when he meets their equally opinionated spouse. Meanwhile, Riley spirals when Klatch gets a negative Yelp review. Tuc Watkins, Jim Rash and Jesse Williams guest star.

Shifting Gears - "Toys" (ABC, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Riley’s new relationship feels perfect until Matt crashes in, throwing some unexpected obstacles her way. Meanwhile, Matt’s toy car project is derailed when he and Gabe are tasked with working together. Jesse Williams and Maria Bamford guest star.

Shifting Gears - "Uncle Sam" (ABC, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Matt is thrilled to show off his military-hero son Sam, but a shift in Sam’s career could finally give Riley a chance to be the golden child. Meanwhile, Andy’s singing hits all the wrong notes for Riley. Jesse Williams and Luke Macfarlane guest star.

Shifting Gears - "Surprise" (ABC, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Matt revs his love life back up only to find the road rockier than expected. Meanwhile, a chance romantic moment has Riley and Gabe questioning the nature of their relationship. Jenna Elfman, Jesse Williams, Angela Kinsey and Mookie Betts guest star.

Tyler Perry's House of Payne - "A Payne Family Portrait" (BET, 8:00PM ET/PT)
The Payne family sends Ella on a rampage. Malik must learn a valuable lesson.

Tyler Perry's Assisted Living - "The Power of Prayer" (BET, 8:30PM ET/PT)
The facility embarks on a manhunt for Judge Reginald, who is nowhere to be found; Sandra, Phillip, Vinny, Mr. Brown and Cora post flyers around the neighborhood and online.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of February 9)

Wednesday, February 11

  • Nick Kroll (Big Mouth/The League/Cavemen) - Watch Nick on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Elon Gold (Stacked/In-Laws) - Elon is a guest on a repeat of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
  • Halle Berry (Living Dolls) - Halle joins Drew for a candid conversation about her menopause experience and why she founded Respin to help other women on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
  • Wanda Sykes (The Upshaws/The New Adventures of Old Christine/Wanda at Large) - Wanda talks about her movie Undercard on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.


New on DVD and Blu-ray

Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray) Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - The Complete First Season (DVD) St. Denis Medical - Season One (Blu-ray) Happy's Place - Season One (Blu-ray) Two and a Half Men - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)

07/22 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
08/26 - The Huckleberry Hound Show - The Complete Original Series (Blu-ray)
09/30 - Touché Turtle and Dum Dum - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
10/07 - Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - The Complete First Season (DVD)
10/14 - Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (DVD)
10/28 - St. Denis Medical - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/04 - Happy's Place - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/11 - Rick and Morty - Season 8 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/11 - SpongeBob SquarePants - The Complete Fifteenth Season (DVD)
11/11 - Two and a Half Men - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/02 - Tom and Jerry - The Golden Era Anthology (1940-1958) (Blu-ray) (DVD)
12/16 - Lippy the Lion and Hardy Har Har - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/16 - Wally Gator - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
01/20 - The Woody Woodpecker and Friends Golden Age Collection (Blu-ray)
01/27 - The New Fred and Barney Show - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/11 - Tom and Jerry - The Complete CinemaScope Collection (Blu-ray)
03/24 - Looney Tunes Collector's Vault - Volume 2 (Blu-ray)

More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD and Blu-ray Releases / TV Shows on DVD, Blu-ray and Prime Video / DVD Reviews Archive


Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts

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01/21 - Prime Video's Bait Premieres March 25; Production Underway on Season 2 of Arctic-set Comedy North of North
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01/15 - The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins Gets Special Preview; ABC Midseason Changes for Monday and Tuesday Night Lineups
01/14 - NBC Orders Pilots, Including The Rockford Files; The CW to Premiere Celebrity Series
01/13 - 83rd Golden Globe Winners; Tubi's Upcoming YA Film Slate
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