SitcomsOnline Digest: NBC Looking at "Musical Funeral Home Soap" Series; Grace Under Fire DVD Date Announced

Saturday, September 12, 2015

SitcomsOnline Digest: NBC Looking at "Musical Funeral Home Soap" Series; Grace Under Fire DVD Date Announced

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! It's been a slow news week with the holiday earlier in the week and preparations for the upcoming season also under way, but we are here with some news nonetheless, including a potential "musical funeral home soap" from NBC (whatever that is). Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

While it may be an unusually new idea in a world of reboots, NBC has decided that they want to do a series described as a "musical funeral home soap," which we're guessing would be a lot like Glee with a lot of dead people. (A.V. Club)
The Odd Couple will be adding Teri Hatcher to the cast as a recurring character once it returns later in the upcoming season. (Hollywood Reporter)
The CW has been on the air for almost a decade now, but the future of the network is going to going to depend upon a lot of factors which will be addressed soon. (Deadline)
The new late night war has put Stephen Colbert up against Jimmy Fallon, but the new competition isn't really hurting Fallon much so far. (Deadline)
Martin Milner, star of Route 66 and Adam-12, died this week at the age of 83. (ABC News)
Merv Adelson, co-founder of Lorimar Television (the studio that brought series such as Eight is Enough, The Waltons, and Dallas to television, and later sitcoms like Full House and ALF), died this week at the age of 85. (New York Times)

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

It's (maybe) official, Grace Under Fire - The Complete Series arrives on DVD on October 6, though VEI has been known for unexpected delays in the past.
My Favorite Martian - The Complete Series will be arriving on DVD from MPI on October 20.
Rhino used to be a player in the TV-on-DVD business, but they have pretty much been music only for the past seven years... but now they're jumping back into it just temporarily as they release The Monkees - The Complete Series on Blu-ray in January.

SEPTEMBER 15 HOME MEDIA RELEASES

The Big Bang Theory - The Complete Eighth Season (DVD, $44.98; Blu-ray, $49.99): The hit CBS sitcom that shows no sign of stopping anytime soon keeps moving ahead on DVD (and Blu-ray) with this release.
black-ish - The Complete First Season (DVD, $29.99): The ABC sitcom arrives on DVD as an amazon.com exclusive on September 18.

FOLLOW ME

Who to Follow: Jane Lynch (Twitter), "Official #JaneLynch // #Actress #BonVivantess #GameShowHostess #CabaretSongstress"

Claim to Fame: For the most part, when people hear of the name Jane Lynch, they think of Glee... which, even though it was sort of a comedy, it is a series that we've sort of neglected around here since it wasn't actually a sitcom. That's no longer relevant, though, because Jane Lynch's next project actually is a legitimate sitcom (and, we should add, we will be featuring stars of the fall's new sitcoms as our Follow Me for the next few weeks, as we typically do), the upcoming CBS series Angel From Hell. Actually, the series will not debut until November 5, but in it, Lynch will play a guardian angel, quite a different character from her Sue Sylvester on Glee. Besides Glee, though, Lynch currently hosts Hollywood Game Night over on NBC, and has had numerous (too many to list) appearances in other past TV series, most notable a recurring role on Two and a Half Men.

Pick of the Tweets: "Belting away with @KateFlannery @projangelfood gala. 25 years of feeding people. All praise to @marwilliamson (pic)" (August 23, 2015)

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Wednesday, April 16

The Conners - "Danny Boy, the Interview, the New Hire, and the Hanging Chad" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Dan sidesteps vulnerable emotions surrounding Roseanne’s death ahead of an upcoming deposition. Meanwhile, Becky prepares for a job interview, and Harris impulsively hires a new server at the Lunch Box.

Abbott Elementary - "Please Touch Museum" (ABC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Abbott Elementary goes on a schoolwide field trip to the Please Touch Museum, which has some of the older kids skeptical.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of April 14)

Wednesday, April 16

Rashida Jones (Sunny/BlackAF/Duncanville/Angie Tribeca/Unhitched/The Office) - Watch Rashida on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Kate Hudson (Running Point) - Kate is a guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Alan Cumming (Schmigadoon!) - Alan appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Skylar Astin (Ground Floor), Jason Ritter (Another Period/The Class) and Riki Lindhome (Another Period/Enlightened) - Skylar, Jason and Riki are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Hannibal Buress (Broad City/30 Rock) - Hannibal appears on Everybody's Live with John Mulaney at 10pm on Netflix.
The cast of Abbott Elementary - E! News chats with the cast of Abbott Elementary at 11pm on E!.
Ronny Chieng (Young Rock/Ronny Chieng: International Student) - Ronny hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
Michael B. Jordan (The Assistants) - Michael talks about Sinners on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Hank Azaria (The Simpsons/Brockmire/Free Agents/Herman's Head) - NBC's Today has the Citi Concert Series: Hank Azaria & The EZ Street Band in the 9am hour.
Yvonne Orji (Insecure) - Yvonne talks about Pop the Balloon on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Soleil Moon Frye (Punky Brewster/Sabrina the Teenage Witch) - Soleil and Angel Carter Conrad, the late Aaron Carter's twin sister, whose new documentary The Carters gives an intimate look inside the Carter family with never-before-seen footage on Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
Lake Bell (Bless This Mess/How to Make it in America/Childrens Hospital) - Lake talks about All About Brains: A Book About People on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Café Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie is joining Drew for a brand-new Drew's News on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Lisa Ann Walter (Abbott Elementary/Emeril) - Lisa talks Abbott Elementary on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.