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
- 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 / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Sunday, March 15
Family Guy - "Play Time" (Fox, 8:00PM ET/PT)
In this three-act parody, the Griffins spoof the stage by putting up "To Kill a Mockingbird," "The Odd Couple" and "Hamlet."
Universal Basic Guys - "Markumentary" (F
Fox, 8:30PM ET/PT)
David films a UBI documentary; Mark wants to be the star.
American Dad! - "Camera Stan" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Stan thinks he has what it takes to thrive on reality TV; Klaus gets himself a Klaus.
Family Guy - "Phony Montana" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
After going on a date with a Cuban-American woman named Carmen, Brian inexplicably develops a Cuban accent.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 9)
Friday, March 13
- Kym Whitley (Act Your Age/Young & Hungry/Animal Practice/Sparks) and Dustin Ybarra (Ghosts/Us & Them) - Kym and Dustin are guests on a repeat of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
- Minnie Driver (Emily in Paris/Speechless/About a Boy) - Minnie talks about The Faithful with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
- Kristin Chenoweth (Stumble/Trial & Error/Kristin) - Kristin talks about Stumble on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
- Alexandra Breckenridge (Save Me) - NBC's Today catches up with Alexandra in the 10am hour.
- Lauren Graham (The Z-Suite/M.Y.O.B./Conrad Bloom/Townies/Good Company) - Lauren talks about Reminders of Him on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
- Melba Moore (Melba) - Melba shares stories from her new memoir on a repeat of Sherri, so check your local listings.
- Michelle Pfeiffer (Delta House) - Drew sits down with the cast of The Madison - Michelle Pfeiffer, Kurt Russell, Beau Garrett, Patrick J. Adams and Elle Chapman to talk all about their exciting new tv series, and a play a round of memory bank on >The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local iistings.
- Michael Urie (Shrinking/Krapopolis/Partners) - Michael talks about Apple TV's Shrinking on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
07/22 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
08/26 - The Huckleberry Hound Show - The Complete Original Series (Blu-ray)
09/30 - Touché Turtle and Dum Dum - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
10/07 - Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - The Complete First Season (DVD)
10/14 - Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (DVD)
10/28 - St. Denis Medical - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/04 - Happy's Place - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/11 - Rick and Morty - Season 8 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/11 - SpongeBob SquarePants - The Complete Fifteenth Season (DVD)
11/11 - Two and a Half Men - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/02 - Tom and Jerry - The Golden Era Anthology (1940-1958) (Blu-ray) (DVD)
12/16 - Lippy the Lion and Hardy Har Har - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/16 - Wally Gator - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
01/20 - The Woody Woodpecker and Friends Golden Age Collection (Blu-ray)
01/27 - The New Fred and Barney Show - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/11 - Tom and Jerry - The Complete CinemaScope Collection (Blu-ray)
03/24 - Looney Tunes Collector's Vault - Volume 2 (Blu-ray)
More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD and Blu-ray Releases / TV Shows on DVD, Blu-ray and Prime Video / DVD Reviews Archive
Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts
Sitcoms Online Main Page
Contact Us