SitcomsOnline Digest: SNL Looking to 40th Anniversary; New Mill Creek DVD Releases

Saturday, April 19, 2014

SitcomsOnline Digest: SNL Looking to 40th Anniversary; New Mill Creek DVD Releases

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! Today, we have news about SNL's 40th anniversary, the potential 2014-2015 pilots, and many new releases from Mill Creek. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

Saturday Night Live is about to turn 40 (well, technically that is still another year and a half from now), but NBC is already planning a three hour 40th anniversary special for February 15, 2015. With planning and a date set this early, it should be a huge deal. (Variety)
Pilot season is about to turn into pickup season in just a few short weeks, and Deadline has a run down of what each network is looking at as they try to decide which series could lead the network into the next decade... or through mid-October 2014. (Deadline)
TV Land has given a cast-contingent pilot order to a comedy about a con man pretending to be a gay pastor, which seems to be one of the most unusual pilot ideas in a while. (Deadline)
Fox's Animation Domination High-Def lineup is officially dead, although the programs airing in it aren't necessarily dead... yet. The lineup will cease to exist at the end of June, but the programming will continue to air on other platforms. (Entertainment Weekly)
Sitcom writer Doris Kanter died this week at the age of 95. Wife of the late Hal Kanter, Doris' writing credits include Chico and the Man and Night Court, and she also designed the opening credits for her husband's sitcom, Julia. (Deadline)

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

Mill Creek is showing absolutely no sign of slowing down on their Sony releases, which have seen at least a few released every month since January, and June is no exception. On June 24, the studio will release Bewitched - Seasons 3 and 4, The Larry Sanders Show - Seasons 1 and 2, and The Partridge Family - Seasons 1 and 2.
eOne Entertainment will release The Abbott & Costello Show - The Complete Second Season on May 20, but for those interested in the series it may make more sense to pick up their release of The Abbott & Costello Show - The Complete Series, which is currently a dollar cheaper.

RECENT REVIEWS ON SITCOMSONLINE.COM

http://www.sitcomsonline.com/starskyandhutchseason1millcreekdvdreview.html

Starsky & Hutch - Season 1 (Mill Creek): One of TV's favorite detective duos returns to DVD for this re-release on DVD that comes at a lower price (but without the special features of the original release).

FOLLOW ME

Who to Follow: Malcolm-Jamal Warner (Twitter), "Actor, Musician, Poet, Writer, Director. At War with my Nice Guy complex right now so until further notice, beware..."

Claim to Fame: Once again, we're going on with our Cosby Show theme again this week with Malcolm-Jamal Warner, who played Theo. Like many other cast members of the series, he found great success after the series ended and didn't just fade away. Early appearances on TV included guest roles on Matt Houston and Fame, but it wasn't long until he was cast on The Cosby Show. After that, though, he didn't stop. In fact, he was immediately cast in the lead role of the series Here and Now (which didn't last long). In 1996, he did find some success with Malcolm and Eddie, which ran for four seasons. Most recently, he has had a recurring role on the NBC series Community.

Pick of the Tweets: "Tidbit: @BillCosby has never made us eat nor have I ever seen him eat Jell-o or a pudding pop. Ever. Now hoagies are a different story!" (January 19, 2013)

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Thursday, December 12

Young Sheldon - "Teenager Soup and a Little Ball of Fib" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Sheldon fakes being sick to avoid a swim test at school. Also, Dr. Sturgis spies on Meemaw’s new boyfriend.

The Unicorn - "Anna and the Unicorn" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Wade is giddy, his daughters are amused and his friends are excited when he has his first crush since becoming single again. Also, Grace and Natalie take advantage of their dad going on dates by having friends over and it starts to get out of hand.

Mom - "Higgledy-Piggledy and a Cat Show" (CBS, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Bonnie is forced to relive painful Christmas memories when Christy recounts tales from her childhood to Bonnie’s sponsee, Patty (Kate Micucci).

Carol's Second Act - "Merry December 19th" (CBS, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Carol excitedly plans an early Christmas celebration for Jenny, but Jenny’s preoccupied with her secret first date with Daniel. Also, the doctors investigate a case of food poisoning at an office holiday party.

Superstore - "Negotiations" (NBC, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Jonah and Sandra represent the Cloud 9 employees at union contract negotiations with corporate. Worried about the union’s fate, Amy, Dina and Cheyenne distract themselves by looking for the perfect Christmas tree. Mateo, Garrett and Glenn compete to see who can sell an unsellable item.

Perfect Harmony - "Merry Jaxmas" (NBC, 9:30PM ET/PT)
When Reverend Jax is visited by his charismatic parents, Arthur helps him overcome his lifelong feelings of living in their shadow, and encourages him to embrace his way of ministering in time for their Christmas performance. Meanwhile, Ginny and Wayne decide to have a secret fling.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of December 9)

Thursday, December 12

Ryan Reynolds (Two Guys and a Girl) - Catch Ryan on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC. He also talks about 6 Underground on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
Keri Russell (Running Wilde) - Keri stops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Sam Rockwell (F Is for Family) - Sam visits The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Mary Lynn Rajskub (Rob Riggle's Ski Master Academy/How to Be a Gentleman/Veronica's Closet) - Mary Lynn is a panelist on Lights Out with David Spade at 11:30pm on Comedy Central.
John Lithgow (Trial and Error/Twenty Good Years/3rd Rock from the Sun) - John drops by Conan at 11pm on TBS.
The Cast of The Brady Bunch - The Cast of The Brady Bunch are guests on Watch What Happens: Live at 11pm on Bravo.
Kathy Bates (Disjointed) - Kathy appears on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
Candace Cameron Bure (Fuller House/Full House) - Candace stops by The Kelly Clarkson Show, so check your local listings.
Patricia Heaton (Carol's Second Act/The Middle/Back to You/Everybody Loves Raymond) - The Heaton is on – Patricia is back and Rach has a surprise in store for her on Rachael Ray, so check your local listings.
Jamie-Lynn Sigler (Guys with Kids/Entourage) - Jamie-Lynn talks about Mob Town on NBC's Today in the 9am hour, on the BUILD Series at 1pm and on New York Live on WNBC in New York at 11:30am ET.
Madison Iseman (Still the King) - Madison talks about Jumanji: The Next Level on People Now at 12pm and on the BUILD Series at 2pm.
Ana Gasteyer (People of Earth/Lady Dynamite/Suburgatory) - Ana performs on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.