Merry Christmas from SitcomsOnline; Remembering Jack Klugman from The Odd Couple, Quincy M.E.

Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Merry Christmas from SitcomsOnline; Remembering Jack Klugman from The Odd Couple, Quincy M.E.

Merry Christmas everyone! We hope you are enjoying the holiday whether you celebrate it or not. Thanks for taking a bit of your time out today for visiting. And also thanks for continuing to visit everyday, as we enter our eighth year of everyday posting! As a reminder, don't forget to follow us on Twitter and like SitcomsOnline on Facebook. We welcome your thoughts, opinions and discussions! So join in on the action on both of those! We are everywhere--SitcomsOnline.com, the message board, right here on the blog, Twitter, Facebook, and more! It's certainly "all sitcoms, all the time!" Merry Christmas and god bless us everyone, as Tiny Tim would say!

Jack Klugman

Onto a bit of sad news, yesterday (December 24, 2012) we lost actor Jack Klugman. He is of course best known to sitcom fans as Oscar Madison on the hit '70s sitcom The Odd Couple, based on the Neil Simon play and film of the same name. The series ran on ABC from 1970-75 and Klugman co-starred with Tony Randall, who played Felix Unger. The series was of course about two divorced men living together -- a neat freak and a slob -- Klugman played Oscar Madison, the slob sportswriter to Tony Randall's overly fussy Felix Unger. The sitcom got solid ratings and received critical acclaim. Klugman won two Emmys for this role (and was nominated three other times) and a Golden Globe, not bad for a man whose first drama teacher told him he was better suited to be a truck driver. The show ran just for five years, but has lived on for decades in syndication. Klugman's co-star Randall passed away in 2004 at age 84. In 2005, Klugman published Tony And Me: A Story of Friendship, a book about his long friendship with Randall which began in 1955 (15 years prior to Odd Couple) when they both appeared on an episode of the CBS series Appointment with Adventure. For Klugman, no cause of death was mentioned, however he battled throat cancer for many years, losing his voice as a result of a 1989 surgery. He spoke in a rasp thereafter.

The Odd Couple

After The Odd Couple ended, Klugman went on to play another iconic TV character in the NBC drama Quincy, M.E. from 1976-83. In that series, Klugman became just as iconic playing the relentless Los Angeles medical examiner with a talent for forensics. He was nominated four times for an Emmy for this show, but never won. He actually got his start in show business in 1950 and by 1954 he was on the soap opera The Greatest Gift. He had various guest appearances on series in the '50s such as in Gunsmoke, Twilight Zone and Alfred Hitchock Presents, and appeared in major movies like 12 Angry Men (1957), playing juror No. 5; Days of Wine and Roses (1962), starring opposite Jack Lemmon; and Goodbye Columbus (1969), based on the novella by Philip Roth, starring Ali MacGraw and Richard Benjamin. He won his first Emmy Award in 1964 for Outstanding Single Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in the series The Defenders.

He starred in the short-lived NBC sitcom Harris Against the World in the 1964-65 season. After Quincy, he starred with a then-unknown John Stamos in the short-lived sitcom You Again? on NBC from 1986-87. Some of his other TV appearances were on The Virginian, Naked City, The Fugitive, Ben Casey, I Dream of Jeannie, The F.B.I., Love American Style, The Love Boat, Diagnosis Murder, Brother's Keeper, The Outer Limits, Third Watch, Crossing Jordan and Presido Med. He also appeared on many game shows like Match Game, Hollywood Squares, Password Plus, and $25,000 Pyramid. In 1993, he reunited with Tony Randall for the TV-movie The Odd Couple: Together Again, but this time on CBS. He was married to Brett Somers (Match Game), who also guest starred as his ex-wife Blanche in The Odd Couple, from 1953 until her death in 2007 (though they separated in 1974, they never divorced). His survivors include their two sons, Adam Klugman and David Klugman, and two grandchildren. In 2008, he married his longtime girlfriend Peggy Crosby, the ex-wife of Bing Crosby's son, Phillip Crosby.

The Archive of American Television conducted an extensive two-and-a-half hour interview with Klugman in 2004 that you can watch. Mr. Klugman will be deeply missed by fans of The Odd Couple and Quincy, M.E. for sure and all of his other work. We will keep you up to date of any on-air tributes for him. The Odd Couple is coming back to MeTV Network starting December 31, weeknights at 10pm, as we previously reported. So a best bet marathon for that series will be from them. In New York City, local independent station WLNY-TV (10/55) already had planned a marathon of The Odd Couple on New Year's Eve beginning at 12 midnight lasting through New Year's Day at 9pm. Now that marathon gets bittersweet with the passing of Klugman. We'll keep you up to date of any on-air tributes (hopefully someone will air Quincy which was last on Hallmark in 2003-04), so stay with us! Mr. Klugman was 90.

Share your memories on our The Odd Couple message board. View photos in our The Odd Couple and Quincy, M.E. photo galleries.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Monday, April 13

The Neighorhood - "Welcome to the Breaking Point" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
After a frightening encounter, Dave takes a hard look at his health, prompting Calvin to help him find a healthier way to let off steam. Meanwhile, Tina has a hard time letting go of old memories, and Marty and Malcolm argue over a valuable find from their past.

DMV - "Fresh Ink" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
When the SoHo DMV lands a glossy magazine feature, Barb struggles with feeling overlooked, stirring up old insecurities she thought she’d left behind. Meanwhile, Gregg and Vic go head‑to‑head in a competitive quest to earn their first positive review after a rough streak online.

The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins - "Mischief and Memories" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
The Dinkins family bands together for their annual push to get Reggie into the hall of fame, but Jerry Basmati stands in their way.

The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins - "A Real Cinderello Story" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Monica tries to sign an exciting new prospect; Jerry Basmati unexpectedly takes revenge on Reggie.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of April 13)

Monday, April 13

Henry Winkler (Barry/Arrested Development/Out of Practice/Monty/Happy Days) - Watch Henry on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Tracy Morgan (The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins/Crutch/The Last O.G./30 Rock/The Tracy Morgan Show) - Tracy is a guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Maya Rudolph (Loot/Bless the Harts/Forever/Up All Night) - Maya appears on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Nick Offerman (Margo's Got Money Troubles/Parks and Recreation) - Nick stops by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Rachel Dratch (Grimsburg/Imaginary Mary/30 Rock) - Rachel makes a special appears once on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS. Andy Cohen interviews Rachel on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 11pm on Bravo.
Kristin Chenoweth (Stumble/Trial & Error/Kristin) - Kristin is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Rachel Dratch (Grimsburg/Imaginary Mary/30 Rock) - Andy Cohen interviews Rachel on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9pm on Bravo.
Elle Fanning (Margo's Got Money Troubles) and Michelle Pfeiffer (Margo's Got Money Troubles/Delta House) - Elle and Michelle talk about Margo's Got Money Troubles on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Jennie Garth (Mystery Girls/What I Like About You) - Jennie talks about I Choose Me: Chasing Joy, Finding Purpose & Embracing Reinvention on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am, on Live with Kelly and Mark (check your local listings), on NBC's Today in the 10am hour, and on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
Sarah Chalke (Scrubs/Roseanne/Mad Love/How to Live with Your Parents (For the Rest of Your Life)) - Sarah talks about Scrubs on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Anthony Norman (Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat) - Anthony talks about Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am and in the 9am hour and on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
Bob Odenkirk (The Larry Sanders Show) - All Access sits down with Bob to discuss his life, career and new film Normal on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
Daniel Radcliffe (The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins/Miracle Workers) - Daniel tells Sherri about his new sitcom, The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins, and his hit Broadway play, Every Brilliant Thing, on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Jake and Jazz Smollett (On Our Own) - Jake and Jazz talk about their lifestyle series, Living By Design, on CLEO TV on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Dan Levy (Big Mistakes/Schitt's Creek) and Laurie Metcalf (Big Mistakes/The Conners/Roseanne/The McCarthys/The Norm Show) - Dan and Laurie talk to Drew about their upcoming comedy crime show Big Mistakes on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings. Drew is joined by the entire cast of Big Mistakes: Dan Levy, Laurie Metcalf, Jack Innanen and Taylor Ortega.
John Stamos (Palm Royale/UnPrisoned/Fuller House/Grandfathered/Jake in Progress/Full House/You, Again?) and Jodie Sweetin (Fuller House/Hollywood Darlings/Full House) - - John and Jodie are guests on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.