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

Thursday, January 23

Shifting Gears - "Accommodations" (ABC, 9:02PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Matt joins Riley at Carter’s high school open house, where he’s unsettled to learn about the “accommodations” made for his grandson’s anxiety. Meanwhile, Riley reconnects with Caitlin, a former classmate, and sets her up with Gabriel.

Only Murders in the Building - "Sparring Partners" (ABC, 9:33PM ET/PT)
Closing in on the killer, Mabel takes her investigative talents into the ring; Oliver and Charles duke it out over a birdcage only to end up confronting their deepest paternal struggles.

Only Murders in the Building - "I Know Who Did It" (ABC, 10:12PM ET/PT)
The question of who did it remains, along with a few more questions that have been raised.

Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - "An Old Mustang" (CBS, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Georgie worries that he’s leaving Connor out of his new project with Jim. Meanwhile, Mandy and Audrey struggle to decorate CeeCee’s nursery without fighting.

Ghosts - "The Primary Source" (CBS, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
When Sam’s book publisher requires source material for her biography on Isaac, she and Jay take a field trip to find a diary he claims he hid when he was alive.

Animal Control - "Baby Kangaroos and Chickens" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Frank and Victoria compete to win Fiona's affections at the new kennels' fundraiser; Emily gets some very bad advice from Bettany on her speech; Patel and Shred find themselves facing the world's most charming squatter.

Going Dutch - "Korfball" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Everyone in town is talking about the upcoming Korfball match between the Americans and the Dutch; the colonel refuses to lose to the Dutch and Quinn brings out her high school alter ego "The Rocket" to make her dad proud.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of January 20)

Thursday, January 23

James Marsden (30 Rock) - Catch James on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Fortune Feimster (FUBAR/Kenan/Bless the Harts/Champions) - Fortune appears on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Denis Leary (Going Dutch/No Good Deed/Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll/The Job) - Denis stops by The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Morris Chestnut (Out All Night) - Morris is a guest on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Nick Kroll (Big Mouth/The League/Cavemen) - Nick appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Britt Lower (Ghosted/Man Seeking Woman/Big Lake) - Britt is a guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Thomas Lennon (The Odd Couple/Sean Saves the World/Reno 911!), Paul F. Tompkins (The Great North/BoJack Horseman/DAG) and Joe Manganiello (How I Met Your Mother) - Thomas, Paul and Joe are guests on After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Al Madrigal (Lopez vs Lopez/About a Boy/Gary Unmarried/Welcome to The Captain) - Al appears on Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
Ronny Chieng (Young Rock/Ronny Chieng: International Student) - Ronny hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
Jason Biggs (Outmatched/Mad Love/Drexell's Class) - Jason and his wife Jenny Mollen are telling Drew about their new show Dinner and a Movie that features an episode focusing on 50 First Dates on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.