Monday, August 25, 2008

Lifetime Adds Originals in October; Dancing with the Stars Season 7 Stars Includes Sitcom Stars McGinley and Leachman

We gave you Lifetime's fall line-up which starts Sept. 2, but now we have details on October. There are no regular schedule changes, but two original series are launching. First, the original Lifetime sitcom Rita Rocks, which we previously said was launching in December. Now it will launch October 20! Rita Rocks launches with a five-episode stunt the week of October 20 airing Monday, October 20 through Friday, October 24 at 8:30PM ET/PT following Reba. Then new episodes will air in their regularly scheduled timeslot on Tuesdays at 8:30PM ET/PT beginning Tuesday, October 28. 13 episodes have been ordered, so it will air for 8 more weeks starting Oct. 28. In Rita Rocks, Nicole Sullivan stars as Rita, an overworked wife and mother in the middle of a full blown identity crisis. Trying to maintain romance with her husband Jay (Richard Ruccolo), juggling the demands of her nine-year-old daughter Shannon (Kelly Gould), disciplining her defiant, teenage daughter Hallie (Lauren Collins) and her ever-present boyfriend Kip (Raviv Ullman), and being passed over for a promotion at work; Rita is at her wit's end. In search of "youthful" Rita, she dusts off her old guitar and forms a garage band with her nosey postal carrier Patty (Tisha Campbell-Martin) and unemployed neighbor Owen (guest-star Ian Gomez), in the hopes of putting that spark back in her life.
The first five-episodes will re-air Monday, October 27 through Friday, October 31 at 9:30AM ET/PT following The Golden Girls. The same week, the five-episode, half-hour special programming event, Lisa Williams (wt), will premiere on Monday, October 27, 2008, and will air for five consecutive weekdays on Lifetime at 11AM ET/PT following specially placed Wife Swap at 10AM ET/PT. English clairvoyant Lisa Williams returns to Lifetime in a new five-episode special programming event, Lisa Williams (wt) an updated version of her Lifetime series Lisa Williams: Life Among the Dead. The reformatted show marks Lisa's first television appearances since she began a tour of sold-out appearances throughout the country, as well as book-signings for her well-received autobiography. Lisa Williams (wt) will further explore Lisa's unique abilities as a clairvoyant-medium. Each taped episode will feature Lisa doing live one-on-one readings in a studio and in impromptu meetings with people she is drawn to out on the street. Will & Grace follows at 11:30AM.
In other original programming news, Twenty half-hour episodes have been ordered of Mom's Cooking, a unique cooking show that takes daughters inside their mom's kitchen to learn how to cook their favorite recipe from childhood, and will premiere in December 2008, Monday through Friday on Lifetime. Finally, another five-episode, half-hour special programming event, Untitled Fat Friends Project, will premiere in January 2009 will air for five consecutive weekdays on Lifetime. The series follows friends Anna Lloyd (30, Pasadena, CA), Lydia Moody (25, Los Angeles, CA), Megan Stewart (29, Anaheim, CA), Shawna McClellan (27, Anaheim, CA) and Morgan Lancaster (30, Monrovia, CA), as they attempt to loose weight together. We'll have details soon on both.
Finally, we forgot to mention last time Wife Swap will also air Tuesdays at 9PM when it launches next week. Still no details if new current episodes of Desperate Housewives will be repurposed on Lifetime in another slot other than its upcoming weekdays at 8am and 12pm slot. When the deal was announced a few years ago, it was said Lifetime would have repurposing rights as well.

The new cast for the seventh installment of Dancing with the Stars was announced this morning by Tom Bergeron on Good Morning America on ABC. It will be a season of surprises in what promises to be the biggest and most demanding season ever as thirteen celebrities take the ballroom floor on the hit series Dancing with the Stars, which returns with a three-night premiere event (Monday, Sept. 22 8-10pm, Tuesday, Sept. 23 9-11pm, and Wednesday, Sept. 24 8-9pm). The thirteen stars include the legendary film/TV star Cloris Leachman (the oldest star ever on the show) and sitcom veteran Ted McGinley. Other TV related stars are the youngest star ever on the show Cody Linley, TV soap legend Susan Lucci, and reality TV beauty Kim Kardashian. Full list of stars is below.
For the first time ever, all thirteen teams must prepare two routines for the first week of competition, one of which they'll perform on Monday night. The judges will score the performances on Monday while the viewers cast their votes for their favorites. Only twelve will have the chance to showcase their second dance on Tuesday. In dramatic style on Tuesday's show, one couple will be eliminated as the remaining contestants perform their second dance of the season. The judges will score the dances on Tuesday and the viewers will once again cast their votes before a second duo is dismissed Wednesday on a special night.
Dancing with the Stars then will regularly air Mondays 8-9:30pm and the Results Show Tuesdays 9-10pm after the premiere week. The thirteen stars for this season are:

* Lance Bass (singer, N Sync) with first time professional Lacey Schwimmer
* Toni Braxton (singer, "Un-Break My Heart") with professional Alec Mazo
* Brooke Burke (model/actress, Wild On!) with professional Derek Hough
* Rocco DiSpirito (chef, The Restaurant) with professional Karina Smirnoff
* Maurice Greene (athlete, sprinter) with two-time champion professional Cheryl Burke
* Kim Kardashian (model/actress, Keeping Up with the Kardashians) with reigning professional champion Mark Ballas
* Cloris Leachman (legendary actress, Phyllis on Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Facts of Life) with first time professional Corky Ballas (father of Mark Ballas)
* Cody Linley (teen actor, Hannah Montana) with two-time professional champion Julianne Hough
* Susan Lucci (soap actress, All My Children) with professional Tony Dovolani
* Misty May-Treanor (athlete, beach volleyball) with professional Maksim Chmerkovskiy
* Ted McGinley (sitcom actor, Married with Children, Happy Days, Hope & Faith) with first time professional Inna Brayer
* Jeffrey Ross (stand-up comic) with professional Edyta Sliwinska
* Warren Sapp (athlete, NFL star with Buccaneers/Raiders) with professional Kym Johnson

Maurice Greene will be on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Tuesday night on ABC late night.
Professionals Maksim Chmerkovskiy and Alec Mazo return after taking the sixth season off. As there are three new professionals (Lacey Schwimmer, Inna Brayer, and Mark Ballas' dad Corky Ballas), some ones from last season will not be on this season, Jonathan Roberts, Anna Trebunskaya, Louis van Amstel and Fabian Sanchez. Some of the professionals from previous seasons remain missing still, Ashly DelGrosso, Nick Kosovich, Jesse DeSoto, Elena Grinenko, Brian Fortuna, Andrea Hale, and Charlotte Jørgensen.
View the full press release for details on the seventh season stars of Dancing with the Stars!


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Wednesday, August 6

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - " Overage Drinking: A National Concern" (FXX and FX, 9:00PM ET/PT)
When Tammy and Trey, now in their 40s, show up to remove their teenage son from Paddy's, Dennis and Dee attempt to reconnect with their former prom dates; Frank's sudden disappearance sends Mac and Charlie on a mission to track down his whereabouts.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of August 4)

Wednesday, August 6

  • Kevin James (The Crew/Kevin Can Wait/The King of Queens) - Watch Kevin on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Seth Rogen (The Studio/Platonic/Undeclared) - Seth appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
  • Pete Davidson (Bupkis) - Pete drops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
  • Affion Crockett (First Wives Club) and Milana Vayntrub (Other Space) - Affion and Milana are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
  • Kat Sadler (Such Brave Girls) - Kat talks about Such Brave Girls on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
  • Mindy Kaling (Running Point/The Mindy Project/The Office) - Mindy talks about Running Point on a repeat of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
  • Matt Rogers (No Good Deed/I Love That for You) - Matt co-hosts NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
  • Selma Blair (Anger Management/Kath & Kim/Zoe, Duncan, Jack and Jane) and Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Café Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Selma is telling Drew about being a boy mom to a 13-year-old son, dating in her fifties and how she has spoken about her health to help others feel seen on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings. Plus, Selma is sharing one of her favorite simple breakfast dishes with Drew and Valerie Bertinelli.
  • Mikey Madison (Better Things) - Mikey is telling Drew about working on Oscar nominated film Anora, how director Sean Baker molded the role to her and some of her earliest acting influences on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings. Plus, she's making her baking debut and sharing her chocolate chip cookie recipe with Drew.
  • Luke Macfarlane (Platonic) - Luke is a guest on New York Living on WPIX at 10:15am.
  • Anna Camp (Perfect Harmony/Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt/The Mindy Project) - Anna discusses her film Nuked on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.


New on DVD and Blu-ray

The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series Frasier (2023) - Season Two Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered) Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (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)

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

08/05 - Disney+ Musical Comedy Electric Bloom Premieres; NBC Renews American Ninja Warrior for Season 18
08/04 - Remembering Loni Anderson of WKRP in Cincinnati; And Just Like That... to End After 3 Seasons
08/03 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of August 4, 2025)
08/02 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Family Guy Specials Coming to Hulu; Jimmy Kimmel Rooting for Emmy for Stephen Colbert
08/01 - Long Story Short Gets Season 2 Ahead of Premiere; Netflix's Wayward Premieres September 25
07/31 - Solar Opposites Final Season on Hulu; Snoopy Presents: A Summer Musical
07/30 - FETV Acquires The Jeffersons, Uncut; BET+ Comedy Churchy Returns August 21, BET Greenlights Sketch Comedy Series
07/29 - NBC Fall 2025 Premiere Dates; Fox Fall 2025 Premiere Dates
07/28 - Events Planned for The Golden Girls 40th Anniversary; Family Guy Holiday Specials Return to Hulu
07/27 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of July 28, 2025)
07/26 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Paramount/Skydance Merger Approved; CBS Orders New Comedy From Producers of Ghosts
07/25 - TV One Honors Malcolm-Jamal Warner; Comedy Central Season 3 of Mike Judge's Beavis and Butt-Head; Remembering Kenneth Washington of Hogan's Heroes
07/24 - Only Murders in the Building Season 5 Premieres September 9; Apple TV+ Stick Renewed for Season 2
07/23 - Apple TV+ Ted Lasso Season 4 Details; NBC Orders Stumble to Series
07/22 - Remembering Malcolm-Jamal Warner of The Cosby Show and Malcolm & Eddie; Futurama Season 13 Drops September 15
07/21 - Hallmark Channel Acquires Gilmore Girls; Freida Pinto to Star in Netflix Series
07/20 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of July 21, 2025)
07/19 - SitcomsOnline Digest: CBS Cancels The Late Show; Gilmore Girls Headed to Hallmark
07/18 - ABC Fall 2025 Premiere Dates; The Late Show with Stephen Colbert to End in May 2026
07/17 - Netflix's Geek Girl Season 2 Starts Production; The CW Picks Up Sullivan's Crossing for Season 4
07/16 - Antenna TV's Still Dreaming of Jeannie 60th Anniversary Marathon; 77th Primetime Emmy Nominations
07/15 - Shark Tank Season 17 Guest Sharks; Tubi YA Comedy Film with Paris Berelc
07/14 - CBS Fall 2025 Premiere Dates; HBO and Larry David Team Up Again
07/13 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of July 14, 2025)
07/12 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Scrubs Reboot Headed to ABC; New King of the Hill Trailer Released
07/11 - The Office Spinoff The Paper Premieres September 4; Upload Season 4 Returns August 25
07/10 - The Big Bang Theory's Stuart Spinoff Ordered by HBO Max; Long Story Short Premieres August 22 on Netflix
07/09 - New Girl Summer on Hulu; Vir Das Gets Brand New Netflix Special
07/08 - Tubi Comedy Series Demascus Premieres in August; LEGO Masters Jr. Lines Up Celebs for 4-Week Event
07/07 - Digman! Season Premiere Moved to July 23; Hulu's Reasonable Doubt Returns September 18
07/06 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of July 7, 2025)
07/05 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Comedy Central Delays South Park and Digman! Season Premieres; Jackée to Appear in Guest Role in Netflix Series