Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Merry Christmas from SitcomsOnline; Remembering Jack Klugman from The Odd Couple, Quincy M.E.
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.
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
Tuesday, May 24
Young Rock - "You Gotta Get Down to Get Up" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Memphis, 1996: The WWF sends Dwayne to Memphis to develop his wrestling skills; when a booker bullies Downtown Bruno, Dwayne decides to fight back; in 2032, candidate Johnson's conflict with Dr. Julien comes to a head.
Young Rock - "Let the People Decide" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
In 2032, candidate Johnson rides the ups and downs of election day; in 1984, Rocky and Ata are at a crossroads with their futures in wrestling; in 1987, teenage Dwayne learns that the family is leaving Nashville.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of May 23)
Tuesday, May 24
- Annie Murphy (Kevin Can F**k Himself/Schitt's Creek) - Catch Annie on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Drew Barrymore (Santa Clarita Diet) - Drew is a guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Chris Parnell (Happy Together/Suburgatory/Big Lake/Miss Guided) - Chris appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Ben Schwartz (The Afterparty/Space Force/House of Lies/Parks and Recreation) - Ben will be on The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
- Mila Kunis (Family Guy/That '70s Show) - Mila is a guest on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, so check your local listings.
- Sherri Shepherd (Mr. Iglesias/Trial & Error/Sherri/Less Than Perfect/Suddenly Susan) - Sherri guest hosts The Wendy Williams Show, so check your local listings.
- Jenna Fischer (The Office/Splitting Up Together) and Angela Kinsey (The Office/The Hotwives of Orlando) - Jenna and Angela are guests on The Kelly Clarkson Show, so check your local listings.
- Molly Shannon (The Other Two/Divorce/Kath & Kim/Cracking Up) and David Arquette (In Case of Emergency/Double Rush/Parenthood) - Molly, David and Michael Vartan are part of a Never Been Kissed reunion on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Jon Hamm (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) - Jon talks about Top Gun: Maverick on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
- Michelle Buteau (Bless the Harts/Enlisted) - The Good Dish has Michelle's plum upside-down cake, so check your local listings.
- Kristin Chenoweth (Trial & Error/Kristin) - Kristin puts a creative spin on a classic recipe that will have you singing for your supper on The Good Dish, so check your local listings.
New on DVD/Blu-ray (February-May)
02/08 - Last Man Standing - The Complete Ninth Season
02/22 - Everybody Hates Chris - The Complete Series (2022 Release)
02/22 - Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. - The Complete Series (2022 Release)
03/08 - Brooklyn Nine-Nine - Season Eight
03/08 - Brooklyn Nine-Nine - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (DVD)
03/15 - Head of the Class - The Complete Fourth Season
03/15 - The Proud Family - The Complete Original Series - Anniversary Collection
03/22 - The Honeymooners Specials - The Complete Collection
03/29 - Rick and Morty - The Complete Seasons 1-5 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
03/29 - Young Rock - Season One
04/05 - Up All Night - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
04/26 - The Danny Thomas Show (aka Make Room for Daddy) - The Complete Fourth Season
04/26 - Jackie Gleason TV Treasures - 70th Anniversary Collection (including Honeymooners Rarities)
05/03 - No Activity - Season Three
05/31 - Becker - The Complete Series (2022 Release)
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