Friday, March 02, 2007
FOX Mid-Season Pilot Review: The Winner - Premieres March 4; 'Cheers' Star Joins 'Dancing with the Stars'!
The Winner - Sundays at 8:30PM and 9:30 PM ET/PT for three weeks on FOX
Premieres March 4th at 8:30PM ET/PT
The summer of 1994 was a magical one – O.J. Simpson was on the run, Snoop Dogg was climbing the charts, Olympic hopeful Nancy Kerrigan was clubbed on the knee and 32-year-old GLEN ABBOTT (Rob Corddry) was finally on his way to becoming a man.
Back in 1994, when the series begins, Glen is still living with his parents when the only girl he’d ever kissed, ALISON McKELLAR (Erinn Hayes), returns to town with her 13-year-old son JOSH (Keir Gilchrist). The recently divorced Alison inspires Glen to become a “grown-up” and win her heart. There may be hope for late-bloomers everywhere as Glen moves through his formative years a mere 20 years later than most. But, hey, some people’s “Wonder Years” just happen a little later.
Luckily, Glen doesn’t have to go through this awkward period alone. He becomes best friends with Josh – a fellow hypochondriac and the only person he can truly relate to – and receives parental advice from his enabling mother IRENE (Linda Hart) and quasi-rage-aholic dad RON (Lenny Clarke). As narrated by present-day Glen, this story proves that an unlikely underdog can eventually transform from fear-riddled underachiever to the richest man in Buffalo.
THE WINNER comes from 20th Century Fox Television and is executive-produced by Seth MacFarlane (FAMILY GUY, AMERICAN DAD) and Ricky Blitt (FAMILY GUY, “The Ringer”).
Cast: Rob Corddry as Glen Abbott, Erinn Hayes as Alison McKellar, Lenny Clarke as Rob Abbott, Keir Gilchrist as Josh McKellar, Linda Hart as Irene Abbott
Read our review of the pilot and other episodes here.
Discuss the show after you watch it on Sunday on our message board.
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Looks like I got my wish! A former sitcom star is joining Dancing with the Stars. Following the departure of Sopranos star Vincent Pastore, the producers of Dancing has chosen none other than John Ratzenberger, of Cheers fame. John of course played the mailman Cliff on the hit sitcom. Everybody knows his name and I'm sure fans are glad that he came! Show producers had previously extended an invitation to him to participate this season, but a scheduling conflict prevented him from accepting until now. He takes on the added challenge of having less time to train than his fellow competitors before the series premieres – two weeks versus four. The series' fourth season premieres March 19 on ABC.
Read the details here.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Thursday, November 20
Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - "Heartbreak and the Refuge of the Downtrodden" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Georgie, Mandy and the family do their best to lift Connor’s spirits during a rough patch while Connor tries to figure out a plan for his life.
Ghosts - "Planes, Shanes and Automobiles" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Unsatisfied with Jay’s ability to tend to their needs while Sam is away, the ghosts bring in a better babysitter, Kyle. Meanwhile, Sam and Pete get on each other’s nerves during a book tour road trip, and things reach a breaking point when an airline strike threatens their ability to get home in time for Thanksgiving.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of November 17)
Thursday, November 20
- Kerry Washington (UnPrisoned) - Catch Kerry on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Jennifer Lawrence (The Bill Engvall Show) - Jennifer is a guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Sebastian Maniscalco (Bookie) - Sebastian talks about his comedy special It Ain't Right on Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm, 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.
- Ronny Chieng (Young Rock/Ronny Chieng: International Student) - Ronny hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
- Jeff Goldblum (Search Party) - Jeff talks about Wicked: For Good on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
- Sherri Shepherd (Mr. Iglesias/Trial & Error/Sherri/Less Than Perfect/Suddenly Susan) - Sherri stops by Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
- Kristin Chenoweth (Stumble/Trial & Error/Kristin) - Kristin appears on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
- Tracy Morgan (Crutch/The Last O.G./30 Rock/The Tracy Morgan Show) - It's a reunion with Sherri's 30 Rock husband Tracy Morgan 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
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