Bill Cosby Returns with Comedy Central Special; Sam & Cat Gets 20 More Episodes on Nick

Monday, July 15, 2013

Bill Cosby Returns with Comedy Central Special; Sam & Cat Gets 20 More Episodes on Nick

The Cos is back! Bill Cosby's first television concert special in 30 years, Far From Finished, will air on Comedy Central on Sunday, November 24, 2013. Robert Townsend directed the show, which will be compiled from material that Cosby performed at the Cerritos Performing Arts Center earlier this summer in California. Of course, Bill Cosby Himself aired three decades ago and is considered one of the landmark comedy specials of all time. The Cosby Show was in part an evolution of the "Himself" routines. Commenting on his return to the form, Cosby said, "Because . . . funny is funny."

One of America's most beloved comedians of all time, Cosby has captivated generations of fans with his comedy routines, iconic albums and best-selling books such as "Fatherhood." His comedy transcends ages, genders and cultures. Cosby went around television's racial obstacles with "I Spy," becoming the first African American to costar on a weekly, dramatic television series while winning three consecutive Emmys(R). Cosby created and produced the Emmy Award(R)-winning cartoon series Fat Albert and The Cosby Kids, which began airing in the 1970s and was made into a film in 2004. The show, based on Cosby's childhood in Philadelphia, was designed to educate and entertain. Perhaps Cosby's greatest contribution to American entertainment and culture is The Cosby Show, about a close-knit, upper middle income Black family. Cosby has received the Kennedy Center Honors, the Presidential Medal of Freedom (America's highest civilian honor), the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor and the Marian Anderson Award.

Sam & Cat

Nickelodeon has ordered 20 additional episodes of its top-rated comedy Sam & Cat, raising its first season episode order to a whopping 40 episodes. Sam & Cat is currently the network's number-one live-action series, averaging 3.7 million total viewers since launch. The series airs regularly Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. (ET/PT) on Nickelodeon. The brand-new episodes of Sam & Cat will continue to roll out this year and debut on Nick channels internationally beginning October. Special upcoming guest stars include iconic comedy duo Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams (Laverne & Shirley), in their first appearance in a scripted series in over 30 years, and Sophia Grace and Rosie of The Ellen DeGeneres Show who reprise their roles as troublemakers Gwen and Ruby. Sam & Cat drew over 4.2 million viewers with its series premiere making it the network's biggest live-action debut in three years. Additionally, since its June 8 launch, Sam & Cat is the number-one live-action series on the Nick App, and the most visited page on Nick.com. The premiere episode of the series hit the number-one spot on the iTunes TV episode chart, and all episodes since consistently rank among the top episodes on iTunes.

Starring Jennette McCurdy (iCarly's Sam Puckett) and Ariana Grande (Victorious' Cat Valentine), Sam & Cat follows the duo as they become best friends and unlikely roommates who start a babysitting service. The series is created by award-winning executive producer Dan Schneider (fellow Nickeodeon networks series: iCarly, Victorious, Drake & Josh, Zoey 101).

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Tuesday, January 18

Abbott Elementary - "New Tech" (ABC, 9:00PM ET/PT)
When a new computer program is introduced at Abbott, Janine is excited to finally help Barbara out with something. However, Barbara is reluctant to accept change and finds herself in a tricky situation when she decides to lie about her students’ results rather than admit defeat. Elsewhere, Melissa surprises Jacob when she offers up a friend to assist with his lesson on unions, but she ends up teaching Jacob an important lesson herself.

black-ish - "Bow-Mo" (ABC, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Dre calls into a radio show and gets humiliated in front of Diane and tries to redeem himself. Meanwhile, Bow tries to bond with a group of young female doctors and learns a hard truth.

American Auto - "Millbank, Iowa" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
The group travels to Iowa for the opening of a new factory.

Grand Crew - "Wine & Hip Hop" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Sherm tags along as Nicky sells a house to a famous rapper; Noah and his date get into a fender bender; Anthony deals with dating while vegan.

Tyler Perry's House of Payne - "Payneful Suffering" (BET, 8:00PM ET/PT)
As the family prepares for Janine's return, everyone and everything goes awry.

Tyler Perry's Assisted Living - "Forgive and Forget" (BET, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Reginald seeks forgiveness from his estranged son.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of January 17)

Tuesday, January 18

Rob Lowe (The Grinder/Parks and Recreation) - Catch Rob on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Francia Raisa (How I Met Your Father/growni-ish) - Francia is a guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Ricky Gervais (After Life/The Office) - Ricky appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC. He also talks about After Life on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Hilary Duff (How I Met Your Father/Younger/Lizzie McGuire) - Hilary will be on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC. She also talks about How I Met Your Father on LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan, so check your listings.
Adam DeVine (Workaholics/Modern Family) - Adam is a guest on The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Café Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie talks about her new book Enough Already on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am and in the 10am hour and on The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Ana Gasteyer (American Auto/People of Earth/Suburgatory) - Ana appears on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
Steve Harvey (The Steve Harvey Show) - Steve is a guest on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, so check your local listings.
Kym Whitley (Young & Hungry/Animal Practice/Sparks) and Finesse Mitchell (Outmatched/A.N.T. Farm) - Kym and Finesse guest host The Wendy Williams Show, so check your local listings.
Alyssa Milano (Who's the Boss?/Romantically Challenged) - Alyssa talks about Netflix's Brazen on The Kelly Clarkson Show, so check your local listings.
Rose McIver (Ghosts/Woke) - Rose is a guest on The Kelly Clarkson Show, so check your local listings.
Jason Biggs (Outmatched/Mad Love/Drexell's Class) - Jason and his wife Jenny Mollen are guests on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg (Two and a Half Men/Jenny) - Jenny chats about The Masked Singer on a repeat of Rachael Ray, so check your local listings.
Tony Shalhoub (We Are Men/Stark Raving Mad/Wings) - Tony talks about The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.