SitcomsOnline Digest: Every Simpsons Ever Marathon Brings FXX Big Numbers; Another Wonder Years DVD Music Update; New CBS DVD Complete Series Sets

Saturday, August 23, 2014

SitcomsOnline Digest: Every Simpsons Ever Marathon Brings FXX Big Numbers; Another Wonder Years DVD Music Update; New CBS DVD Complete Series Sets

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! This week, we have yet another Wonder Years music update, news of some CBS DVD complete series releases, and more. Let's get started!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

The first day of the Every Simpsons Ever marathon has turned into FXX's biggest day ever for ratings. (Hollywood Reporter)
Lifetime has put out another clip for their upcoming Unauthorized Saved by the Bell Story, this one featuring the first five minutes of the movie. (Deadline)
Saturday nights on NBC are going to be a little bit different now that Don Pardo, the voice of Saturday Night Live for all but one season (and also a voice heard on NBC since before the days that TV was even a thing to most American households) died this week at the age of 96. (New York Times)
Alan Landsburg, known for his production of made-for-TV movies such as Bill, The Ryan White Story, as well as the TV series In Search Of... and That's Incredible! and also the namesake for Alan Landsburg Productions (which produced Kate & Allie and Gimme a Break!, although Landsburg himself was not involved in those productions), died this week at the age of 82. (Washington Post)
While NBC did renew the summer import series Welcome to Sweden, the other import series, Working the Engels, was not so lucky. (Hollywood Reporter)
Fall is rapidly approaching, and as usual, MeTV and Antenna TV have some lineup changes in store. (SitcomsOnline schedule updates for MeTV, SitcomsOnline schedule updates for Antenna TV)

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

Last week, we told you about The Wonder Years - The Complete Series, and the list of original music that will be included in the set. We also gave you an unofficial list of what music may be missing, but as it turns out, StarVista has also provided an official list of missing music, and what those songs have been replaced with. You can see that list here.
The Real McCoys has been a disaster when it has come to DVD releases, with one studio releasing the first four seasons (before going bankrupt), followed by another studio that promised even better results and even planned a complete series release, but only got so far as to re-release TWO of the first four seasons that had already been released. Now, SFM is taking matters into their own hands by releasing each season as a MOD release on amazon.com.
Warner Home Video has been talking about releasing the series Spenser: For Hire on DVD for years, but never took action. But now, it seems that Warner Archive is taking action, and will be releasing the first season at some point in the near future.
CBS has two complete series sets on the way for November 11 with Family Ties - The Complete Series and Taxi - The Complete Series. While Family Ties has already been released as a complete series set, this version will come at a much lower price (but without the extra bonus features included in the previous release).

AUGUST 26 HOME MEDIA RELEASES

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00JHH1VDC/ref=nosim/happydaysonline5-20

Welcome Back, Kotter - The Complete Series (DVD, $129.98): The Sweathogs, along with Mr. Kotter, Mrs. Kotter, and Mr. Woodface... err Woodman... all come together with every episode of the series on DVD from Shout! Factory, along with the special features that were presented on Warner Home Video's release of the first season.

FOLLOW ME

Who to Follow: Every.Simpsons.Ever (Twitter), "Marathon HAPPENING NOW on FXX. Coming to FXNow This Fall."

Claim to Fame: Our Follow Me is not a person once again, and this time, you'll only have a few days to follow this one. Every.Simpsons.Ever is a special Twitter feed that has been set up by FXX to provide somewhat of a running commentary for The Simpsons while they continue airing their Every Simpsons Ever marathon, which began on Thursday morning and will continue through the end of the day on Labor Day. While it isn't something as deep as commentaries (which you can find on the DVDs), it is a fun way to follow highlights as the marathon moves along on FXX. Every now and then, you'll find some fun trivia retweets from the people behind the scenes on the show. And they're also encouraging fans to participate in the Twitter fun, using the hashtags #simpsonsmarathon and #EverySimpsonsEver

Pick of the Tweets: "NOSTALGIA MAKE MY HEAD ESPLODE Wonder Years AND Simpsons?! #EverySimpsonsEver #simpsonsmarathon" (August 23, 2014)

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Friday, July 3

The Dick Van Dyke Show - Now in Living Color! - (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
CBS will honor the memory of legendary actor, producer, director, writer, comedian and Emmy Award winner Carl Reiner with THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW – NOW IN LIVING COLOR! A SPECIAL TRIBUTE TO CARL REINER, featuring two colorized back-to-back classic episodes of the beloved 1960s series, Friday, July 3 (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. As series creator and co-star, Carl Reiner personally supervised the original colorization of the episodes.

The special features “Coast to Coast Big Mouth,” which ranked #8 on TV Guide’s list of the “100 Greatest TV Episodes of All-Time,” and “October Eve,” which Mr. Reiner considered to be one of the series’ funniest episodes. Both were written by Bill Persky and Sam Denoff.

In “Coast to Coast Big Mouth,” Laura Petrie blurts out a top secret on a national television quiz show, revealing that comedian Alan Brady wears a toupee. The episode, which was the show’s fifth and final season premiere, was originally broadcast on Sept. 15, 1965. “Coast to Coast Big Mouth” won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series in 1966.

In “October Eve,” a painting of Laura returns to haunt her when, despite her having posed fully clothed, the artist (played by Carl Reiner) takes the liberty of “undraping” her. The episode was first presented on April 8, 1964, during season three.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of June 29)

Friday, July 3

Kevin Hart (The Big House/Undeclared) - Watch Kevin on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 12:35am on ABC.
Tina Fey (30 Rock) - Tina appears on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Laura Dern (Enlightened) - Laura is a guest on a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Mark Duplass (Togetherness/The Mindy Project/The League) - Mark appears on a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Melissa McCarthy (Mike & Molly/Samantha Who?) - Melissa guest hosts a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Brett Gelman (Camping/Fleabag/Love/Married/Go On) - Brett appears on a repeat of A Little Late with Lilly Singh at 1:35am on NBC.
Tika Sumpter (mixed-ish/The Game) - Tika talks about the season finale of mixed-ish and her latest project helping new moms on a repeat of Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
Peter Gallagher (Grace and Frankie/The Secret Lives of Men) - Peter talks about Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist and Grace and Frankie on a repeat of Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.