E! Brings in New Joel McHale Special Following Hit Series; UP's Saturday Schedule Now Back to All Sitcoms

Monday, June 17, 2013

E! Brings in New Joel McHale Special Following Hit Series; UP's Saturday Schedule Now Back to All Sitcoms

Community star Joel McHale just got a little more busier. For more than a decade, E!'s popular comedy franchise The Soup has entertained the pop culture cynic in all of us by mocking, dissecting and highlighting the most shameful moments in television and pop culture. From cringe worthy make out sessions at the Jersey Shore to Anderson Cooper's school girl giggle to Honey Boo Boo in all her glory, The Soup has been there every step of the way. But now, The Soup team, led by host Joel McHale, will delve deeper into the Hollywood vortex to examine pop culture mysteries, celebrity rumors and the shocking questions that entertainment fans never thought to ask... and probably shouldn't have. The new spin-off special The Soup Investigates premieres Wednesday, June 19 at 10:30pm ET/PT on E! following a new episode of The Soup at 10pm ET/PT.

Among the guests joining Joel McHale to discuss these investigations is Christine Lakin of Step by Step & Lovin' Lakin (pictured above with McHale). Some of the topics covered will be: How DOES that rose get from the grower's field to The Bachelor's hand just in time for the all-important rose ceremony? What do people, like Tila Tequila, really keep in their storage lockers? And how deep does the "Beliebers" dedication to their main man run? Host Joel McHale and our investigative reporters will be working around the clock to get to the truth by probing, penetrating and thrusting themselves into any and all forbidden places, shady sources, and promising leads. Stay tuned for further updates if this special turns into a series. And the more Lakin on our screens, the better!

The Saturday afternoon drama block on UP is now going back to sitcoms after just a few weeks. As we announced a few weeks ago, Saturday afternoons had four episodes of Touched by an Angel or 7th Heaven rotating each week from 1-5pm. Now sitcom marathons will take over from 1-5pm. 227 aired this past Saturday, with Sister, Sister airing this coming Saturday (June 22), and Moesha on June 29. The regular Saturday morning sitcoms will remain intact with an hour each of Smart Guy, Sister Sister, Moesha and 227 from 9am-1pm. This is not that big of a deal for Touched by an Angel and 7th Heaven because both also air on the regular weekday schedule.

No other schedule changes will be made on UP, so that means the weekday schedule will remain intact with The Waltons leading it off from 10am-12pm, followed by 7th Heaven at noon. Judging Amy airs from 1-3pm leading into Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman at 3. At 4pm, reruns of Heartland airs into back-to-back hours of 7th Heaven from 5-7pm. Then in primetime, Touched by An Angel airs back-to-back at 7 & 8pm. From 9-11pm, it is still different programming every night, with a day of Touched by an Angel, 7th Heaven, Heartland or original series Family Addition With Leigh Anne Tuohy. In late night, sitcoms are still intact with an hour of 227 at 11, Moesha from 12-1am, more 227 from 1-2am and Family Ties hour from 2-3am to close out the night.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Wednesday, March 22

The Conners - "Of Missing Minds and Missing Fries" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
It’s Thanksgiving at the Conners and Jackie must come to terms with her mother, Beverly, becoming ill. Meanwhile, Darlene is on the job hunt which proves to be more difficult than anticipated.

The Conners - "Crumbs and Couch Surfers" (ABC, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Darlene, Ben, Becky and Beverly Rose move into the new house, where Darlene implements a new set of rules. Meanwhile, Harris welcomes a guest at Dan and Louise’s.

Abbott Elementary - "Fight" (ABC, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
During a day of touchdowns and missed plays, the Abbott Elementary faculty find themselves learning lessons in teamwork. Two of Janine’s students aren’t getting along in class, leading her to seek advice from her colleagues on how to help repair their friendship. Meanwhile, Melissa and Ava plot to bring down Mr. Johnson in fantasy football.

Not Dead Yet - "Pilot" (ABC, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Nell attempts to restart her life in a new place with a new job and a new roommate. She begins writing obituaries at the local paper and starts getting life advice from an unlikely source.

Tyler Perry's House of Payne - "Like New Money" (BET, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Curtis suspects his food truck was blown up intentionally, and he starts investigating the incident; Calvin must get to the bottom of Calvin Jr.'s mischievous deeds.

Tyler Perry's Assisted Living - "I Believe" (BET, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Philip learns about being accountable for one's actions and putting life's obstacles in perspective; Reginald must pick himself up out of his slump and find the strength to believe in love again.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 20)

Wednesday, March 22

Molly Shannon (I Love That for You/The Other Two/Divorce/Kath & Kim) - Watch Molly on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Giancarlo Esposito (Bakersfield P.D.) - Giancarlo is a guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Fred Armisen (Los Espookys/Forever/Final Space) - Fred appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Al Franken (LateLine) - Al guest hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
Jennifer Aniston (Friends/Muddling Through/Ferris Bueller/Molloy) - Jennifer chats about the highly anticipated sequel Murder Mystery 2 on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am and on LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan, so check your listings.
Mae Whitman (Up Here) - Mae catches up with the hosts to talk about her role in the upcoming Hulu series Up Here on LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan, so check your listings.
Zach Braff (Scrubs/Alex, Inc.) - Zach chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Jameela Jamil (The Good Place) - Jameela chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Jerry O'Connell (We Are Men/Do Not Disturb/Carpoolers/My Secret Identity) - Jerry will be on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Coco Jones (Good Luck Charlie) and Skai Jackson (Bunk'd/Jessie) - Coco and Skai are guests on The Jennifer Hudson Show, so check your local listings.
Max Greenfield (The Neighborhood/New Girl/Modern Men) - Max talks about his children's book on a repeat of Rachael Ray, so check your local listings.
Drew Barrymore (Santa Clarita Diet) - Drew discusses the mystery of menopause on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Melanie Lynskey (Two and a Half Men/Togetherness) - Melanie talks about Yellowjackets on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Kelly Hu (In Case of Emergency) - Kelly discusses her roles on two television series BMF on Starz and East New York on CBS on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Kyra Sedgwick (Call Your Mother) - Kyra discusses the film Space Oddity on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Keegan-Michael Key (Schmigadoon!/Reboot/Friends from College/Playing House/Gary Unmarried) - Keegan-Michael talks about The Super Mario Bros. Movie on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am. Keegan-Michael and Cecily Strong talk about Schmigadoon! in the 9am hour.
Sophia Hammons (Up Here) - Sophia talks about Hulu's Up Here on WPIX in New York at 8:50am.