SitcomsOnline Digest: Dallas, Jennifer Falls Get the Axe; Rush Hour and Big Pilots; Season 5 DVDs of The Middle to Warner Archive

Saturday, October 04, 2014

SitcomsOnline Digest: Dallas, Jennifer Falls Get the Axe; Rush Hour and Big Pilots; Season 5 DVDs of The Middle to Warner Archive

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! This week, we've got some news about some cable original series being canceled, new pilots at the major network based upon movies from decades ago, and more. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

After three seasons (which could be considered successful by the standards of a revival series), TNT's Dallas has been canceled. (Hollywood Reporter)
Meanwhile, over at TV Land, it looks like Jennifer Falls has met the same fate as Dallas. (Entertainment Weekly)
Deadline has a nice interview with Norman Lear in advance of his upcoming memoir, Even This I Get to Experience. (Deadline)
CBS has given a pilot production commitment to an action drama series based upon the 1998 movie Rush Hour, with Bill Lawrence (Scrubs, Spin City, and Cougar Town) and Blake McCormick (Cougar Town and King of The Hill) filling the executive producer roles of the potential series. (CBS)
If a Rush Hour series seems a bit odd in 2014, this idea seems even stranger: Fox is looking at a comedy based upon the Tom Hanks movie Big. (NY Daily News)
Halloween is still a month away, but Antenna TV is already planning their 28 hour marathon of Alfred Hitchcock Presents. (SitcomsOnline)

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

ABC's The Middle has been popular on TV, but not so much on DVD, which is likely why Warner has moved the DVD releases to Warner Archive beginning with Tuesday's The Middle - The Complete Fifth Season. It's not all bad news, though, because initial quantities of the release will be on pressed DVDs (i.e. not DVD-R), which means that they will be of the same quality as DVDs purchased at general retailers.
MPI is moving ahead with The Donna Reed Show in their December 2 release of The Donna Reed Show - Season 2. This season was previously released by another studio, but contained some edited episodes; MPI promises better results this time. There is still no word on when or if we'll see the final three seasons on DVD.
It looks as if Mork & Mindy will be completed on DVD on December 9, as CBS plans to release Mork & Mindy - The Complete Series and Mork & Mindy - The Fourth Season on that date.

OCTOBER 7 HOME MEDIA RELEASES

https://www.jdoqocy.com/click-3821628-10768631?url=http://www.wbshop.com/product/code/1000532061.do

The Dick Van Dyke Show - Classic Christmas Episodes (DVD, $9.98): RLJ Entertainment puts together a single disc release containing two classic episodes of the series.
Flying Nun - The Complete First and Second Seasons (DVD, $14.98): Mill Creek is back with another re-release of this classic Sony series.
The Middle - The Complete Fifth Season (DVD, $29.95): The hit ABC series returns to DVD, but this time at Warner Archive; however, initial quantities will be on traditional DVD media as opposed to DVD-R.
The Office - The Complete Series (DVD, $199.98): Fans of the NBC series can now return to work at Dunder Mifflin with this release of the long-running sitcom.
The Wonder Years - Season One (DVD, $19.95): All six episodes of the debut season of the classic sitcom arrive on DVD, in perhaps was once the most-wanted series on DVD of all time; The Wonder Years - The Complete Series is also shipping now from StarVista, and we'll have a review of this excellent set within the next few days.

FOLLOW ME

Who to Follow: Tyler Ritter (Twitter), "Actor, husband, McCarthy, and finally catching on to the world of twitter--one bio draft at a time."

Claim to Fame: Lately, we've been spotlighting the Twitter feeds of the stars of some of the newest TV series for this fall. This week, we talk about one of the stars of a series that will debut a bit later this fall, Tyler Ritter of The McCarthys (which debuts on October 30 on CBS). Ritter has had appearances on series such as Grey's Anatomy and Modern Family, but this series marks his debut as a regular on any series. Oh, and if the name Ritter doesn't familiar, it should: he's the son of the late John Ritter and even looks like his father.

Pick of the Tweets: "So yes--this is Tyler Ritter's handle, not Mr. T's. We get mistaken for each other all the time which I'm cool with. He's probably not.." (July 20, 2014)

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Friday, November 22

Happy's Place - "Happy's House" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Bobbie agrees to take Isabella to Happy's house in search of a connection to their late father, leading Bobbie to worry about what they may find; Gabby hopes to strike it rich by searching through Happy's penny collection looking for a rarity.

Lopez vs Lopez - "Lopez vs Orlando" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
When Rosie's spoiled nephew Orlando visits, Mayan sets out to expose Rosie's cultural gender bias; George wants to teach Chance the value of hard work, but, instead, helps him create a toxic work environment.

Bob Hearts Abishola - "Whacking the Mole" (The CW, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
After Abishola has a romantic dream about Bob, she tries to suppress her feelings for him and pays the price.

Bob Hearts Abishola - "Ralph Lauren and Fish" (The CW, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Bob and Abishola finally go on a proper date, which is interrupted by Dottie's medical emergency.

Bob Hearts Abishola - "Tough Like a Laundromat Washing Machine" (The CW, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Bob hires Abishola to take care of Dottie in his home while she recovers; Dottie has a hard time dealing with her limitations and takes it out on Abishola.

Bob Hearts Abishola - "Useless Potheads" (The CW, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
With Abishola only helping part-time, Bob, Douglas and Christina struggle to take care of Dottie.

Wizards Beyond Waverly Place - "Wiz-Taken Identity" (Disney Channel, 8:00PM ET/PT)
When Billie struggles with a spell, Roman says he could do it if he was a wizard: to prove him wrong, Billie uses a Power Glass to transfer her powers to Roman.

Wizards Beyond Waverly Place - " Ain't Gnome Party Like a Wizard Party" (Disney Channel, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Justin embraces mortality to live with his family; his new challenge arises when Alex introduces Billie, a wizard-in-training, seeking Justin's mentorship.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of November 18)

Friday, November 22

Kerry Washington (UnPrisoned) - Watch Kerry on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Jimmy O. Yang (Interior Chinatown/Space Force/Silicon Valley) - Jimmy is a guest on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Ariana Grande (Sam & Cat/Victorious) - Ariana appears on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Andy Richter (Andy Barker, P.I./Quintuplets/Andy Richter Controls the Universe), Thomas Lennon (The Odd Couple/Sean Saves the World/Reno 911!) and Aparna Nancherla (Lopez vs Lopez/Search Party/Corporate) - Andy, Thomas and Aparna are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Keke Palmer (Scream Queens/True Jackson, VP) - Keke talks about her new book Master of Me: The Secret to Controlling Your Narrative on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Andrew Rannells (Girls/The New Normal) - Drew is joined by the hilarious Andrew to celebrate all things Thanksgiving on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Rosie Perez (Human Resources/Search Party) - Rosie tells Sherri about her new Apple TV+ psychological thriller Before on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Candace Cameron Bure (Fuller House/Full House) - Candace will be on New York Living on WPIX in New York at 10:15am.