Special Friday Review of The Great Book: Sitcoms of Norman Lear by Sean Campbell

Friday, November 24, 2006

Special Friday Review of The Great Book: Sitcoms of Norman Lear by Sean Campbell

Welcome to a special "Black Friday" edition of mini-reviews. Today on Black Friday, we will give you a bargain. A review of a great book that looks at the classic sitcoms of legendary producer Norman Lear. We have given you a few news items on the blog on this book before, so I'm sure some of you are familiar with it already. 17-year-old Sean Campbell has written a truly wonderful book and now skees53 has a review for us on The Sitcoms of Norman Lear:

The 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

(5/5 stars)

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

Friday, November 22

Happy's Place - "Happy's House" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Bobbie agrees to take Isabella to Happy's house in search of a connection to their late father, leading Bobbie to worry about what they may find; Gabby hopes to strike it rich by searching through Happy's penny collection looking for a rarity.

Lopez vs Lopez - "Lopez vs Orlando" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
When Rosie's spoiled nephew Orlando visits, Mayan sets out to expose Rosie's cultural gender bias; George wants to teach Chance the value of hard work, but, instead, helps him create a toxic work environment.

Bob Hearts Abishola - "Whacking the Mole" (The CW, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
After Abishola has a romantic dream about Bob, she tries to suppress her feelings for him and pays the price.

Bob Hearts Abishola - "Ralph Lauren and Fish" (The CW, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Bob and Abishola finally go on a proper date, which is interrupted by Dottie's medical emergency.

Bob Hearts Abishola - "Tough Like a Laundromat Washing Machine" (The CW, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Bob hires Abishola to take care of Dottie in his home while she recovers; Dottie has a hard time dealing with her limitations and takes it out on Abishola.

Bob Hearts Abishola - "Useless Potheads" (The CW, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
With Abishola only helping part-time, Bob, Douglas and Christina struggle to take care of Dottie.

Wizards Beyond Waverly Place - "Wiz-Taken Identity" (Disney Channel, 8:00PM ET/PT)
When Billie struggles with a spell, Roman says he could do it if he was a wizard: to prove him wrong, Billie uses a Power Glass to transfer her powers to Roman.

Wizards Beyond Waverly Place - " Ain't Gnome Party Like a Wizard Party" (Disney Channel, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Justin embraces mortality to live with his family; his new challenge arises when Alex introduces Billie, a wizard-in-training, seeking Justin's mentorship.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of November 18)

Friday, November 22

Kerry Washington (UnPrisoned) - Watch Kerry on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Jimmy O. Yang (Interior Chinatown/Space Force/Silicon Valley) - Jimmy is a guest on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Ariana Grande (Sam & Cat/Victorious) - Ariana appears on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Andy Richter (Andy Barker, P.I./Quintuplets/Andy Richter Controls the Universe), Thomas Lennon (The Odd Couple/Sean Saves the World/Reno 911!) and Aparna Nancherla (Lopez vs Lopez/Search Party/Corporate) - Andy, Thomas and Aparna are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Keke Palmer (Scream Queens/True Jackson, VP) - Keke talks about her new book Master of Me: The Secret to Controlling Your Narrative on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Andrew Rannells (Girls/The New Normal) - Drew is joined by the hilarious Andrew to celebrate all things Thanksgiving on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Rosie Perez (Human Resources/Search Party) - Rosie tells Sherri about her new Apple TV+ psychological thriller Before on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Candace Cameron Bure (Fuller House/Full House) - Candace will be on New York Living on WPIX in New York at 10:15am.