Monday, February 09, 2009

Dancing with the Stars Season 8 Cast; Remembering James Whitmore; WGA Awards Winners

An all-new cast of celebrities hits the dance floor on ABC's Dancing with the Stars with the highly anticipated two-hour season premiere on Monday, March 9, 2009 from 8:00-10:02 p.m. ET/PT on ABC. Season Eight introduces us to 13 new stars, including the youngest competitor to date, an NFL legend, a computer icon, a female rapper, three music artists and a "Wildboy."
Additionally, "love is a battlefield" when, for the first time, three real life couples take the ballroom floor. Husband and wife Ty Murray and Jewel compete for bragging rights, while newly engaged professional dancers Maksim Chmerkovskiy and Karina Smirnoff go head to head. To top it off, country crooner Chuck Wicks teams with girlfriend and two-time Dancing with the Stars champ Julianne Hough. And in an exciting new twist, the bottom two couples facing elimination will "Dance Off" to determine who is dismissed in the first weeks of competition.
Among the stars this upcoming season are David Alan Grier (Life with Bonnie, In Living Color), Gilles Marini (Sex and the City movie), Denise Richards (Wild Things, Spin City), and Nancy O'Dell (Access Hollywood, Scream 2 and 3).
View the full cast and details on each star. As for pairings with professionals, we know Julianne Hough will be with Chuck Wicks as per the press release and Maksim Chmerkovskiy will be with Denise Richards as per Good Morning America. The full professional partnering will be announced on Thursday, February 12.

James Whitmore, the many-faceted character actor who delivered strong performances in movies, television and especially the theater with his popular one-man shows about Harry Truman, Will Rogers and Theodore Roosevelt, has died. The Emmy and Tony winning actor was diagnosed with lung cancer the week before Thanksgiving and died Friday afternoon (Feb. 6) at his Malibu home. Now he wasn't known really for TV sitcoms, but he did appear on quite a few. In fact, one of his ex-wives was a sitcom star. Mr. Whitmore was married to Audra Lindley of Three's Company fame in the '70s. Even after they divorced in 1979, they remained friends and appeared with each other in the big screen movies Zoo Ship in 1985 and The Relic in 1997. When they were married, they appeared in the TV movie The Canterville Ghost in 1974 and such plays as The Magnificent Yankee, On Golden Pond, The Visit, Foxfire and Love Letters, among others.
In the early '70s he starred on the sitcom Temperatures Rising. Set at the Capital General Hospital in Washington D.C., follows the adventures of the no-nonsense chief of surgery Dr. Vincent Campanelli (James Whitmore) and his all-nonsense staff. He guest starred on the sitcom A Minute With Stan Hooper in 2003. Among his other credits include series regular in dramas The Law and Mr. Jones, Mister Sterling, and My Friend Tony. In 2000 he won an Emmy for outstanding guest actor in a dramatic series for The Practice. Among his other guest appearances include CSI, Burke's Law, Riptide, The White Shadow, Gunsmoke, The Virginian, The Big Valley, Rawhide, Dr. Kildare, Route 66, Twilight Zone, Ben Casey, and more. His other big screen credits include The Shawshank Redemption, The Majestic, Give 'em Hell, Harry, and Battleground. The latter saw him earn Oscar and Golden Globe nominations.
Mr. Whitmore will certainly be missed. His legacy continues with his children and grandchildren, among them are grandson Matty Whitmore who was on Survivor: Gabon. Mr. Whitemore was 87.

Finally, we leave you today with the winners for the 61st Annual WGA Awards. Comedy wise, 30 Rock was the big winner for their writing work. While Mad Men took home the win for writing for dramas. Among the other categories, Breaking Bad won for best new series.
View the full TV portion winners.


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Sunday, September 28

Krapopolis - "Love Week" (Fox, 7:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Ty gets a second chance at romance with Tina; Hippo and Stupe let love come between them; Shlub finds a new love -- winning.

The Simpsons - "Bart's Birthday" (Fox, 7:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Bart celebrates the most shocking birthday party of his entire life -- one that might just change everyone in Springfield forever.

The Simpsons - "Thrifty Ways to Thieve Your Mother" (Fox, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Lisa discovers Marge's vintage clothes from the 90's and is welcomed into the school's elite fashion club.

Universal Basic Guys - "The Goofballs" (Fox, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Darren shows interest in playing hockey; Mark creates a team for Darren.

Krapopolis - "Krapocracy Now!" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Tyrannis holds the world's first democratic elections; Deliria finds a new way to antagonize the gods.

Bob's Burgers - "Grand Pre-Pre-Pre-Opening" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Bob and Linda are on the verge of a big decision; the kids embark on a new musical project.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of September 22)

Friday, September 26

  • Glen Powell (Chad Powers/Scream Queens) - Watch Glen on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Eva Longoria (Only Murders in the Building/Telenovela) - Eva appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
  • Caroline Rhea (Sydney to the Max/Sabrina, the Teenage Witch/Pride & Joy) and Finesse Mitchell (Outmatched/A.N.T. Farm) - Caroline and Finesse are guests on a repeat of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at at 12:37am on CBS.
  • Glen Powell (Chad Powers/Scream Queens) - Glen talks about Chad Powers on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
  • Michael Chiklis (Daddio) - Michael talks about his film The Senior on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
  • Lacey Chabert (Still the King/Baby Daddy/Family Guy) - Lacey talks about Hallmark's Celebrations with Lacey Chabert on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
  • Tyler Lepley (Harlem) - Tyler is a guest on New York Living on WPIX in New York at 10:05am.


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

09/27 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Scrubs Cast Comes Together for First Table Read for Reboot; Monopoly Game Show Moving Ahead
09/26 - Netflix Adds to Cast for Running Point Season 2; Stiller & Meara Apple TV+ Documentary
09/25 - Adam Pally HBO Comedy Special; Jimmy Kimmel Live! Returns with Huge Ratings
09/24 - Weigel's Newest Diginet WEST Launches Monday, September 29; New Baywatch Coming to Fox in 2026-27
09/23 - DMV Trailer for CBS; Mo Amer Returns to Netflix
09/22 - SNL Season 51 Guests for First Episodes; Prime Video's Bat-Fam Series
09/21 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of September 22, 2025)
09/20 - SitcomsOnline Digest: The Paper to Get Linear Run on NBC; Saturday Night Live Announces New Hosts
09/19 - NBC Schedules The Paper and Stumble in November; Remembering Patricia (Pat) Crowley of Please Don't Eat the Daisies
09/18 - UPtv Acquires The Mary Tyler Moore Show; Camp Rock 3 Coming Soon to Disney
09/17 - FETV Acquires The Munsters Effective September 29; Apple TV+ The Morning Show Renewed for Season 5
09/16 - Disney's SuperKitties Adds to Voice Cast; Netflix Renews The Hunting Wives for Season 2
09/15 - 77th Primetime Emmy Award Winners; Letterman TV Adds Late Night with David Letterman
09/14 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of September 15, 2025)
09/13 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Paramount Looking to Merge with Warner Bros. Discovery; Samsung TV+ Adds Late Night with David Letterman
09/12 - Emmy Awards to Create Special Moments; Ricky Gervais Netflix Animated Comedy Alley Cats Coming in 2026
09/11 - Remembering Polly Holliday of Alice and Flo; Prime Video's Overcompensating Renewed for Season 2
09/10 - Netflix Renews Leanne for Season 2; Hazbin Hotel Returns October 29
09/09 - HBO Comedy The Chair Company; Trailer for Disney's Vampirina: Teenage Vampire
09/08 - The Paper Renewed for Season 2, NYC Event on Tuesday; Final Season of Bel-Air
09/07 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of September 8, 2025)
09/06 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Shifting Gears Picked Up for Three Additional Episodes; The Paper Renewed for Season Two
09/05 - Crutch Premieres November 3 on Paramount+; Trailer for Season 2 of Wizards Beyond Waverly Place
09/04 - Freeform's 31 Nights of Halloween 2025 Schedule; Dancing with the Stars Season 34 Cast
09/03 - Live Staged Reading of Three's Company Episode; Freeform Acquires According to Jim for October
09/02 - Hulu's Chad Powers Trailer; BET's The Hospital Premieres September 10
09/01 - TV Marathons on Labor Day 2025 Include Archie Bunker's Place and George Lopez
08/31 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of September 1, 2025)
08/30 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Saturday Night Live Cast Changes Loom; NBC Renews Password for Third Season
08/29 - HBO's Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television; Adult Swim Slates Two Series for October
08/28 - NBC's Password Renewed for Season 3 for 2026; Pluto TV Streaming CBS Shows Ahead of Fall Season
08/27 - Hulu's Deli Boys Renewed for Season 2 with Fred Armisen; HBO's I Love LA Premieres November 2