SitcomsOnline Digest: Mid-Season Debut Dates Set; New Family Matters and Growing Pains DVDs Ahead From Warner Archive

Saturday, December 26, 2015

SitcomsOnline Digest: Mid-Season Debut Dates Set; New Family Matters and Growing Pains DVDs Ahead From Warner Archive

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! Christmas has come and gone, which means that next week it'll be a whole new year. But before this year is done, we've got a list of when all of your favorite series will return next year, news of some new Warner Archive releases of some classic sitcoms... and Sarah Palin playing Tina Fey in 30 Rock parody? Seriously? You betcha! Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

In recent years, mid-season has become almost as big of a deal (if not a bigger deal, since it tends to give series an opportunity to thrive with less competition) as the beginning of the fall season. Deadline has all of the dates you need to know for when your favorite series returns, along with debut dates for new series. (Deadline)
Tina Fey has been playing the role of Sarah Palin off and on for the past seven years, but now, Sarah Palin has decided to play Tina Fey as Lynn Melon in 31 Rock (as well as John McCain playing a character similar to Alec Baldwin's Jack Donaghy), a spoof of 30 Rock. (Rolling Stone)
As it turns out, there will a well-known (and current) pop star voice behind the theme song for the upcoming series Fuller House: Carly Rae Jepsen. (Billboard)
We suggest avoiding clicking on the article if you want to avoid a spoiler, but The Big Bang Theory is still managing to set records when it comes to ratings. (CinemaBlend)
... but how much longer can The Big Bang Theory continue to set records? While the series is a hit and there are no signs of audiences going away, showrunner Steve Molaro says there is only so much more that they can do with the series, and suggested that it is possible next year's tenth season could be the last unless they can come up with new ideas to naturally move the story along (to be clear, we wouldn't start writing the obituary yet). (Vulture)
In a very pleasant Easter (sorry, Christmas) weekend surprise for Steve Harvey, it seems that flubbing the announcement of the winner of the Miss Universe Pageant has given the pageant attention that it has perhaps never seen, and also made the organizers want to keep him around for a few years. (New York Daily News)
As a reminder, Syfy will be going big with their annual Twilight Zone marathon that starts on Tuesday evening, airing the entire series (including episodes that haven't aired on TV in decades) in HD. (SitcomsOnline)

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

TVShowsOnDVD.com had an exclusive this week, announcing that Family Matters will be moving forward on DVD after a bit of a break, but it will now be coming from Warner Archive. According to their information, Family Matters - The Complete Fifth Season will arrive on February 16.
It looks like Warner Archive will also be wrapping up Growing Pains on January 12, with the release of Growing Pains - The Complete Seventh Season (i.e. the Leonardo DiCaprio season).

TUESDAY (DECEMBER 29) HOME MEDIA RELEASES

Shameless - The Complete Fifth Season (DVD, $39.98; Blu-ray, $44.96): One of the most dysfunctional families in all of television history returns with this release on DVD and Blu-ray.

FOLLOW ME

Who to Follow: Eva Longoria (Twitter), "Actress, Producer, Director, Activist, Philanthropist, Daughter, Sister, Aunt, Friend, HUMAN!"

Claim to Fame: Eva Longoria got her start in beauty pageants, but it didn't take long for it to be seen that she had the potential to be an actress. Her first TV role was as a flight attendant in a final season episode of Beverly Hills, 90210, and she quickly became a soap star on The Young and the Restless. From there, she went on to star in the short-lived 2003-2004 Dragnet. Her biggest claim to fame came in 2004, though, when she was cast as Gabrielle Solis in Desperate Housewives. She then went on to serve as executive producer in Devious Maids. Now, with all of this "soap opera" experience behind her, she is ready to move on to a new role in a sitcom... a sitcom that is all about being a telenovela star who can't speak a word of Spanish, NBC's upcoming series (which already had a preview debut), Telenovela.

Pick of the Tweets: "Merry Christmas everyone! Santa is here!!! (pic)" (December 25, 2015)

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Tuesday, April 1

St. Denis Medical - "Anything to Push Zaluva" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Ron's teasing makes Joyce question whether her friendship with a pharmaceutical rep is genuine; Alex has trouble letting Serena take on a new task; Matt finds a mentor in Bruce.

Night Court - "Hot to Trot" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Abby's friendship with her ex-boyfriend's mother leads to romantic complications; when Julianne's wealthy aunt passes away, the gang vies for a piece of her inheritance.

Tyler Perry's House of Payne - "Love At First Swipe" (BET, 9:00PM ET/PT)
C.J. and Janine receive marital advice from an unlikely source; Peanut seeks help with his newfound online lover.

Tyler Perry's Assisted Living - "Failure 2 Launch" (BET, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Assisted Living is the new situation comedy by Tyler Perry about three generations who must make a new start in the rural backwoods of Georgia.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 31)

Tuesday, April 1

Adam Scott (Ghosted/Veep/Parks and Recreation/Party Down) - Catch Adam on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Kevin Bacon (I Love Dick) - Kevin is a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Amanda Peet (Brockmire/Togetherness/Bent) - Amanda appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Paul Rudd (The Shrink Next Door/Living with Yourself/Wild Oats) - Paul stops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Ike Barinholtz (The Studio/The Afterparty/Bless the Harts/The Mindy Project/Eastbound & Down) - Ike appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC. He will also be on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9:30pm on Bravo.
Vinny Thomas (Platonic), Paul F. Tompkins (The Great North/BoJack Horseman/DAG) and Aparna Nancherla (The Great North/Lopez vs Lopez/Corporate) - Vinny, Paul and Aparna are guests on After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Chase Sui Wonders (The Studio/Bupkis) and Kathryn Hahn (The Studio/Tiny Beautiful Things/Central Park/Happyish/Transparent/Free Agents) - Chase and Kathryn are guests on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9:30pm on Bravo.
Will Ferrell (The Office) and Jennifer Coolidge (2 Broke Girls/Joey) - E! News has interviews with Will and Jennifer at 11pm on E!.
Román Zaragoza (Ghosts) - Román talks about Ghosts on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Jenny Slate (The Great North/Big Mouth/Married/Bob's Burgers) - Jenny talks about Dying for Sex on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Michael Angarano (Laid/I'm Dying Up Here/Will & Grace) and Michael Cera (Life & Beth/Arrested Development/I Was a Sixth Grade Alien) - Michael and Michael talk about Sacramento with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Olivia Munn (Perfect Couples) - Olivia guest co-hosts NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Hannah Einbinder (Hacks) - Hannah talks about Hacks on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Tasha Smith (Survival of the Thickest/Tyler Perry's For Better or Worse/The Tom Show/Boston Common) and Tone Bell (Survival of the Thickest/Fam/Disjointed/Truth Be Told/Bad Judge/Whitney) - Tasha and Tone talk about the new season of Netflix’s Survival of the Thickest on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Kathryn Hahn (The Studio/Tiny Beautiful Things/Central Park/Happyish/Transparent/Free Agents) - Kathryn is dishing on her new comedy series The Studio on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Wilmer Valderrama (That '70s Show) - Wilmer and Freddy Rodriguez chat about their podcast Dos Amigos on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Brenda Song (Running Point/Dollface/Dads/The Suite Life on Deck/The Suite Life of Zack & Cody) - Brenda talks about Netflix's Running Point on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Paul Walter Hauser (The Afterparty) - Paul is a guest on PIX11 Morning News on WPIX in New York at 9:40am.