SitcomsOnline Digest: Bill Cosby Hoping to Return to Primetime; Busy January for Mill Creek

Saturday, November 09, 2013

SitcomsOnline Digest: Bill Cosby Hoping to Return to Primetime; Busy January for Mill Creek

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! We're settling in for our second week of our new feature around here, and this week, we've got news about sitcoms in development, several new re-releases from Mill Creek, and more. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

A lot of TV stars that we loved in the '70s and '80s have been making primetime comebacks recently, and now it seems that Bill Cosby wants to give it a shot too. Recently, he has re-teamed with The Cosby Show producer Tom Werner in hopes of developing a new family comedy that will focus on older children and their relationship with their parents. It isn't even close to being a done deal, but nonetheless, it is great to see that his career is far from finished. (TV Guide)
Just when it seemed that Fox was heading into the direction of maintaining a Sunday night lineup with only one Seth MacFarlane animated comedy (as American Dad moves to TBS and The Cleveland Show was canceled), things may be changing, as they announced that they picked up 13 episodes of a new animated series from the creator, Bordertown, which is about two families living in a southwest desert town on the border of the United States and Mexico. It will premiere next season (Entertainment Weekly).
Meanwhile, on the sitcom development front at ABC, The Neighbors creator Dan Fogelman and George Lopez co-creator Robert Borden think that America is ready to see The Golden Girls again... but this time, a male version. (Deadline)
TV Guide recently interviewed Ed Asner about his upcoming appearance on The Crazy Ones, and has a little bit to say about how the guys at WJM were snubbed in the recent reunion of The Mary Tyler Moore Show cast on Hot in Cleveland. (TV Guide)
E! used to air plenty of sitcoms years ago, but it has been a while since they've done it. But now they're airing a sitcom once again, with their addition of Saved by the Bell. (SitcomsOnline)

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

We mentioned several weeks ago that Mill Creek would be re-releasing several DVDs that Sony released years ago, and it appears that a great flood of these releases will be coming on January 22. Among these are Bewitched - Season 1, Bewitched - Season 2, Bewitched - Season 1 and 2, Charlie's Angels - Season 1, Good Times - Season 1, Good Times - Season 2, Good Times - Season 1 and 2, Just Shoot Me - Season 1, Just Shoot Me - Season 2, Just Shoot Me - Season 1 and 2, Married... with Children - Season 1, Married... with Children - Season 2, and Married... with Children - Season 1 and 2! That's a huge list! The single season releases will come at a $9.98 MSRP, while the double season releases will come at $14.98. By the way, according to TVShowsOnDVD.com, the first two seasons of Married... with Children will include the original theme song, although it is likely that the remaining seasons will be as they were when originally released... but we'll let you know when those seasons come.
Those releases aren't all for Mill Creek on January 22! They've also got a release of a series from CBS and a new one from the Carsey-Werner library Wings - Season 3 and 4, The Cosby Show - Season 1, The Cosby Show - Season 2, and The Cosby Show - Season 1 and 2. The runtime of the The Cosby Show - Season 1 set suggests that these will, in fact, be the unedited episodes.
Shout! Factory announced the release of a classic sitcom that seemed to be abandoned this week with their announcement of Newhart - The Complete Second Season. Uncomfirmed rumors (from reliable sources) indicate that we'll be seeing a few more abandoned classic series from the Fox library from Shout! Factory over the next year.
Shout! also announced that L.A. Law - Season One will be released on February 25. This marks the first time that the series has been released in the United States (although a region-free version was made available in the United Kingdom a few years ago).

NOVEMBER 12 HOME MEDIA RELEASES

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00EC9UI0C/ref=nosim/happydaysonline4-20

Family Ties - The Complete Series ($220.98): CBS brings all of the episodes of this classic series together in one collection, along with extra bonus material not included on the previous season release.
My Mother the Car - The Series ($24.96): TGG brings together every episode (or so we think, we're still not entirely certain since the list in the official amazon.com description is missing an episode) of the classic series that is loved by many, despite having the reputation of being one of the worst series of all time.
MADtv - The Complete Fourth Season ($29.93): Shout! Factory continues with another season of the late-night sketch comedy series that aired on Fox that competed with Saturday Night Live for several years.
The Mod Squad - The Complete Series ($269.99) and The Mod Squad - The Complete Series (gift set) ($180): The classic series makes it to DVD as a complete series for the first time (and inexplicably, with a deluxe version that costs much less than the regular version).

FOLLOW ME

Who to Follow: Donal Logue (Twitter), "Canadian born to Irish Parents & raised on the Mexican border (Nogales & El Centro). Currently rolling with #SOA #CopperTV & #Vikings peeps."

Claim to Fame: Donal Logue was best known for his movie roles in the '90s, but his claim to fame for sitcom fans came in 2001, with the Fox (and later The WB) series Grounded for Life. Since then, he has appeared in several episodes of ER and the short-lived ABC sitcom, The Knights of Prosperity. Currently, he appears in the BBC America series, Copper.

Pick of the Tweets: "Judging by CSI: Miami, Dade County is loaded. Must have spent millions on hologram computer monitors and Hummers alone." (March 17, 2013)

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Wednesday, July 9

Shifting Gears - "Gummies" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Riley is horrified when she finds weed gummies in Carter’s pocket, prompting surprising advice from Matt. Meanwhile, Eve inadvertently lands Gabriel and Stitch in hot water after asking them to donate to a charity auction.

Shifting Gears - "Kiss" (ABC, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
When Jimmy returns with a new job and a proposition for Riley and the kids to move into his house, Riley is torn between her past and her future. Meanwhile, Matt's feud with Eve flares up once again after she damages his car.

Abbott Elementary - "Volunteers" (ABC, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Ava announces the school district is sending a group of volunteers to help out at Abbott; however, when they arrive, things don’t go as planned.

Abbott Elementary - "100th Day of School" (ABC, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
During Abbott’s 100th day of school celebrations, Barbara receives a surprise from her daughter. Melissa, Jacob and Mr. Johnson join forces to conduct a search party.

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - "The Gang F***s Up Abbott Elementary" (FXX and FX, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Months after the Gang visited, Abbott's Principal Ava walks viewers through some of the unseen footage of the Gang's volunteerism and reveals their true intentions.

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - "Frank Is in a Coma" (FXX and FX, 9:33PM ET/PT)
The five stages of grief set in for Dee as Frank lies on his deathbed; the Guys plot their new path forward by pitching their business ventures to Philadelphia's elite.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of July 7)

Wednesday, July 9

Anthony Anderson (black-ish/Guys with Kids/All About the Andersons) - Anthony guest hosts Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Salma Hayek Pinault (The Sinbad Show) - Watch Salma on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Jean Smart (Hacks/Samantha Who?/Center of the Universe/In-Laws/Style & Substance/Designing Women) - Jean is a guest on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Cole Escola (Human Resources/Search Party/Mozart in the Jungle/Difficult People) - Cole appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Richie Moriarty (Ghosts), Betsy Sodaro (Ghosts/Duncanville/Disjointed/Animal Practice) and Punam Patel (Ghosts/Return of the Mac/Kevin from Work) - Richie, Betsy and Punam are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Ronny Chieng (Young Rock/Ronny Chieng: International Student) - Ronny hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
Tika Sumpter (mixed-ish/Final Space/The Game) - Tika sits down with the Tam Fam to talk about her new children's book I Got It From My Mama a repeat of Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
Isabela Merced (100 Things to Do Before High School/Growing Up Fisher) - Isabela chats about her film Superman on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Anna Camp (Perfect Harmony/Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt/The Mindy Project) and Justin Bartha (The New Normal/Teachers) - Anna and Justin discuss their film Nuked on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Simon Helberg (The Big Bang Theory) - Simon talks about Peacock's Poker Face on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.