Friday, November 24, 2006
Special Friday Review of The Great Book: Sitcoms of Norman Lear by Sean Campbell
The Sitcoms of Norman Lear (McFarland, $35) is exactly what it sounds like--a book about the sitcoms of one Norman Lear, the man that changed television forever. Written by Sean Campbell, the book isn't just typical fluff; instead, it is a rather complete history of the successes (and sometimes even failures, believe it or not) of the television mogul and never casts any important details aside as being insignificant.
The book follows Lear's career from just before the days the hit sitcom All in the Family premiered on CBS, and covers all of his other major successes from the 1970s, including Sanford & Son, Maude, Good Times, The Jeffersons, and One Day at a Time. Not a detail is missing about these shows. In fact, there is a chapter for each one of these shows and includes all of the details of the shows (as well as a chapter dealing with the failures of Lear, even if it is hard to believe that a genius such as Lear could have any failures!), much like an E! True Hollywood Story, including the good things and the bad things that happened on the set. The book extensively covers the background of the show (such as what was going on in the world at the time of the show and how that may have influenced the show), the lives and attitudes of those involved with the show, the important episodes of the shows, and even how these sitcoms have changed the world (and television) into the 21st century. Whether it be Norman Lear writing an episode of All in the Family where Archie dies or CBS demanding that 26 lines be removed from the first episode of One Day at a Time, none of the important details are missing. Everything is well-researched too, with literally hundreds of citations from resources such as articles (from newspapers, magazines, and journals), statistics derived from opinion polls, books, interviews, and of course one of the best primary sources of all--the episodes of the sitcoms of Norman Lear!
The level of coverage varies for each show (All in the Family and Good Times seem to have the most extensive coverage, but that makes sense, because one All in the Family was the show that started it all and Good Times is a pop-culture legend in its own right), but regardless, each and every show seems to be covered rather thoroughly and this book is a must-own for anybody that appreciates the greatest sitcoms of all-time!
-- Reviewed by skees53
To purchase the DVD, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:
Amazon.com
Related links:
Official Website of The Sitcoms of Norman Lear by Sean Campbell
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Thursday, October 9
Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - "Big Decisions" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Tensions rise when Georgie finds out the truth about Mandy’s boss, and Georgie does all he can to buy the tire store before Jim sells it.
Ghosts - "The Devil Went Down to Woodstone" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Sam and Jay host a big party for the launch of Sam and Isaac’s vampire book.
English Teacher - "Lake Trip" (FX, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Evan and Malcolm take a vacation while the other teachers administer standardized tests back at school.
English Teacher - "Accreditation" (FX, 9:30PM ET/PT)
The teachers get evaluated by outside observers in an effort to earn the school a better rating.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of October 6)
Thursday, October 9
- Kaitlin Olson (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia/The Mick) - Catch Kailtin on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Adam Pally (Mr. Throwback/Indebted/Making History/The Mindy Project/Happy Endings) - Adam appears on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Ryan Reynolds (Two Guys and a Girl) - Ryan is a guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Bridget Everett (Somebody Somewhere) and Heather Dubrow (Stark Raving Mad/Jenny/Life with Roger) - Andy Cohen interviews Bridget and Heather on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 11pm on Bravo.
- Greta Lee (HouseBroken/Russian Doll) - Greta talks about Tron: Ares on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am, on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm, and on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
- Kenzi Richardson (Vampirina: Teenage Vampire) - Kenzi talks about Vampirina: Teenage Vampire on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
- Chloe Fineman (Big Mouth/Search Party) - Chloe chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
- Jennifer Lopez (South Central) - Co-host Gayle King sits down with Jennifer on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
- Maya Rudolph (Loot/Bless the Harts/Forever/Up All Night) - Maya talks about Loot on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
- John Corbett (And Just Like That.../Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll/United States of Tara/Lucky/Sex and the City) - John and DeVon Franklin tell Sherri about their new film Soul In Fire on Sherri, so check your local listings.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series
03/11 - Frasier (2023) - Season Two
04/01 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season
05/13 - The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered)
06/06 - Shoresy - Season 2
06/17 - Looney Tunes - Collector's Vault - Volume 1 (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)
10/07 - Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - The Complete First Season
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