Saturday, June 14, 2014

SitcomsOnline Digest: A Look at What Wealthy People Watch; Three's Company Complete Series DVDs

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! This week, we have stories about ratings in certain demographics, a look at what Norman Lear is up to these days, and more. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB
  • We report ratings on the blog every Sunday, but Deadline has looked a bit deeper into ratings in demographics to find the most popular series among wealthy individuals and college graduates, which shows that there is a key demographic in which The Mindy Project is actually the most popular series on broadcast television. (Deadline)  
  • Norman Lear has been eager to return to TV production (at age 92!) with a retirement home series called Guess Who's Dead, but he can't seem to get anybody interested in it. (Deadline)
  • It looks as if miniseries (or "event series" as they like to call them these days) are becoming a big part of broadcast television again lately, and now NBC has one in development that focuses on the Beatles. (Deadline)
  • The president and CEO of Hub Network is stepping down at the end of the year, but the real news and speculation is about the future of the network, which hasn't quite been the hit that it was hoped that it would become, and if a re-branding may come as she leaves. (Deadline)
  • I Wanna Marry Harry and Riot, as it turns out, have been a ratings disaster for Fox, and that's great news for fans of comedy reruns, as they regain the Tuesday night lineup effective immediately. (SitcomsOnline)

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS
  • Anchor Bay used to be a powerhouse in the TV-on-DVD realm, being one of the first studios to release series licensed from other studios. They've been very quiet for the past seven years though, and almost everything that they had released as far as TV series went out of print, except for Three's Company. Now, they're releasing that series again as a complete series set in Three's Company - The Complete Series. No release date has been given yet, and it appears that there will not be any new material that was not previously included on the season releases.
  • The complete series release of The Wonder Years is still not available to order yet, but TVShowsOnDVD.com has a look at the very nice packaging for the set, which will come in a limited edition metal locker.
  • The Big Bang Theory - The Complete Seventh Season will arrive on both DVD and DVD/Blu-ray combo on September 16. As usual, it will include several special features. It isn't available to preorder on amazon.com right now, though, due to a dispute between Warner Bros. and amazon.com.

JUNE 17 HOME MEDIA RELEASES
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00IYRLUT6/ref=nosim/happydaysonline5-20
  • My Little Margie - Volume 3 (DVD, $24.97): The classic Gale Storm sitcom that has been nearly forgotten returns for more episodes on DVD.

FOLLOW ME

Who to Follow: Lara Jill Miller (Twitter), "Aren't you that girl from GIMME A BREAK? And Digimon, Clifford'sPuppyDays, JuniperLee, WowWowWubbzy, SciGirls, CuriousGeorge, Hugglemonsters & DocMcStuffins!"
Claim to Fame:  Lara Jill Miller began here career on Broadway, and made her TV debut in 1981 on Gimme a Break!, which could have been yet another disaster on the NBC lineup... but instead, the series turned out to be one of the many in the early 80s that helped turn the network around. That would have been the only notable appearance she had ever made in TV when the series ended in 1987, at which time she went to college and eventually law school, to become an attorney... until 1999, that is, when she returned to children's TV, making a huge splash. These days, she is known for doing cartoon voices, on series such as Henry Hugglemonster, Doc McStuffins, Digimon, and several others. She hasn't completely shied away from the camera, though, as she has appeared in All That, The Amanda Show, Zoey 101, iCarly, and one (very rare) appearance in a show that was not written for kids, ABC's General Hospital.
Pick of the Tweets: "Get ready for Flashback Friday: #GimmeABreak #NellCarter #WhitneyHouston pic.twitter.com/Xs4GkrcQgH" (July 2, 2013)


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Thursday, December 25

Ghosts - "A Very Arondekar Christmas Part 1" / "A Very Arondekar Christmas Part 2" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
A leaky water heater mishap threatens to ruin holiday plans as Sam and Jay prepare to host Jay’s hard-to-please dad, Mahesh (Bernard White), difficult-to-impress mom, Champa (Sakina Jaffrey), and sister Bela (Punam Patel).

Ghosts - "It's a Wonderful Christmas Carol: Part One" (CBS, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Sam’s big Christmas Eve TV interview with Walter Storm (Larry Wilmore) takes an unexpected turn. Meanwhile, Trevor and Patience bond over their mutual disinterest in celebrating Christmas.

Ghosts - "It's a Wonderful Christmas Carol: Part Two" (CBS, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Sam gets a glimpse of what her life would be like if she could never see the ghosts.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of December 22)

Thursday, December 25

  • Kate Hudson (Running Point) - Watch Kate on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
  • John Stamos (Palm Royale/UnPrisoned/Fuller House/Grandfathered/Jake in Progress/Full House/You, Again?) - John appears on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
  • Chris Kattan (The Middle) - Chris is a guest on a repeat of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
  • Jason Bateman (Arrested Development/The Hogan Family/It's Your Move/Silver Spoons) - Jason talks Zootopia 2 with Chris Connelly on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
  • George Clooney (Roseanne/The Facts of Life/ E/R (1984-1985) - George talks Jay Kelly with Michael Strahan on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
  • Michael J. Fox (Family Ties/Spin City/The Michael J. Fox Show) - Michael opens up about his career with George Stephanopoulos on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
  • Ariana Grande (Sam & Cat/Victorious) - Ariana talks about Wicked on NBC's Today in the 9am hour.


New on DVD and Blu-ray

Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray) Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - The Complete First Season (DVD) St. Denis Medical - Season One (Blu-ray) Happy's Place - Season One (Blu-ray) Two and a Half Men - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)

01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series (DVD)
03/11 - Frasier (2023) - Season Two (DVD)
04/01 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season (DVD)
05/13 - The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered)
06/06 - Shoresy - Season 2 (DVD)
06/17 - Looney Tunes - Collector's Vault - Volume 1 (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)
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)

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

12/24 - 2025 Christmas Eve and Christmas Day TV Marathons
12/23 - Antenna TV January 2026 Schedule; Rewind TV January 2026 Schedule
12/22 - The Ms. Pat Show Returns January 7; According to Jim Christmas Day Marathon on Laff
12/21 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of December 22, 2025)
12/20 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Historical 19th Century Comedy in the Works at CBS; Bowen Yang Leaving Saturday Night Live After Tonight
12/19 - The Muppet Show 50th Anniversary Event in February on ABC & Disney+; Adult Swim Renews Haha, You Clowns for 2 More Seasons
12/18 - The Oscars Moving to YouTube in 2029; Celebs for Hollywood Squares Season 2
12/17 - MeTV Remembers Rob Reiner with Tribute Marathon; MGM+ to Make New The Magnificent Seven Series
12/16 - The Rob Reiner Story: A Hollywood Tragedy – ABC News Special; Everybody Loves Raymond: 30th Anniversary Reunion Part 2 on CBS
12/15 - Remembering the Legendary Rob Reiner of All in the Family; Trailer for Netflix's His & Hers
12/14 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of December 15, 2025)
12/13 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Warner/Netflix Merger Gets Complicated; Steve Carell Comedy Rooster Coming to HBO Max in March
12/12 - Survival of the Thickest Final Season Guest Stars; Ted Season 2 Returns in March
12/11 - The Upshaws Final Season Premieres January 15; Mike Epps Gets 5th Netflix Special
12/10 - HBO's Rooster Premieres in March; Fox's Updated Winter 2026 Schedule
12/09 - 83rd Golden Globe Nominations; Paradise Returns on Hulu in February
12/08 - First Look at Bert Kreischer Netflix Comedy Free Bert; School Spirits Season 3
12/07 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of December 8, 2025)
12/06 - SitcomsOnline Digest: First Look at Malcolm in the Middle: Life's Still Unfair; Netflix to Acquire Warner Bros. Discovery
12/05 - FETV Acquires The Carol Burnett Show Uncut; Hey A.J.! Coming to Disney Jr.
12/04 - COZI TV Acquires The Jeff Foxworthy Show; Hulu Renews Chad Powers for Season 2
12/03 - MeTV January 2026 Schedule; Netflix's My Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman Season 6 Guests
12/02 - MeTV Acquires Charlie's Angels, Fantasy Island, Hart to Hart & Hawaii Five-O; Apple TV's The First Snow of Fraggle Rock Trailer
12/01 - MeTV to Announce Four New Shows; Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Draws 25 Million Viewers on NBC
11/30 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of December 1, 2025)
11/29 - SitcomsOnline Digest: First Look at Scrubs Reboot; Mad Men Coming to HBO Max
11/28 - Everybody Loves Raymond: 30th Anniversary Reunion Encores Tonight (11/28); Hulu's Smash Hit Renewed for Quick 4th Season
11/27 - 2025 Thanksgiving TV Marathons
11/26 - ABC's Scrubs First Teaser During Dancing with the Stars Finale; Eva Green Joins Wednesday Season 3
11/25 - COZI TV Acquires Malcolm & Eddie and The Steve Harvey Show; 53rd International Emmy® Awards Winners
11/24 - Antenna TV's All-You-Can Eat Wings for Thanksgiving Marathon; Rewind TV's Serving Up the Seavers with a Thanksgiving Day Growing Pains Marathon