Saturday, February 06, 2016

SitcomsOnline Digest: Sketch Comedy Returning to Fox Saturday Nights; Pair of MacGyver Reboots in the Works; New Shout! Factory May Releases

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! This week, we have news of Fox getting back into the Saturday night sketch comedy series for the first time since 2009, a pair of MacGyver reboots, several new releases from Shout! Factory that aren't just re-releases in any manner, and much more. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB
  • Fox is bringing sketch comedy back to Saturday nights next month with Party Over Here, which comes from The Lonely Island (best known for their Saturday Night Live fame). However, the series will only air for a half hour at 11:00 PM, to avoid going head-to-head with Saturday Night Live (which has a lot to do with the fact that The Lonely Island, which included Andy Samberg, owe their career to Saturday Night Live and wouldn't feel right becoming the competition). (Hollywood Reporter)
  • MacGyver is set to get two reboots, one in the form of a potential new series on CBS and the other in the form of a theatrical release. (/FILM)
  • Netflix is going big on what is perhaps their biggest series, Orange is the New Black, by sentencing it to three more seasons, not including the fourth season that begins in July. (CNNMoney)
  • Joe Alaskey, known for playing many cartoon voices (including Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck in recent years), died this week. (CNN)
  • ASPiRE has added the sitcom Room 222 to their lineup. (SitcomsOnline)

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS
  • Shout! Factory made a very surprising announcement this week, by announcing that they will be releasing Cop Rock on DVD. Cop Rock - The Complete Series is due to arrive on May 17.
  • That wasn't the only surprise announcement this week. The other surprise announcement from Shout! Factory this week was the spinoff of The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Lou Grant. Lou Grant - The Complete First Season will arrive on May 3.
  • Finally, Shout! has announced one other release that is much less of a surprise (but it is a continuation of a series that hasn't seen a release in a while), with Newhart - The Complete Fifth Season on May 10.

TUESDAY (FEBRUARY 9) HOME MEDIA RELEASES


FOLLOW ME

Who to Follow: Janet Hubert (Facebook), "BLACKTRESS, inside my mind are the many characters that I created. Life is too short, open your door and let the breeze blow through. Parody can be fun!"
Claim to Fame: Janet Hubert, or as she refers to herself on social media, Blacktress Janet Hubert, first appeared on TV in 1988 on an episode of 21 Jump Street, and made other small appearances here and there before landing her first major role as Vivian Banks on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Unfortunately, that was not a very long-lived role, as she ended up leaving that role following a contract dispute, and another actress replaced her.  Since then, she has had several guest starring and recurring roles on various series. In recent weeks, though, her social media page has garnered more attention as her disputes with Will Smith have resurfaced in relation to the racial diversity controversy regarding the upcoming Oscars, which you can read more about in this article from People. She is not, in any way, afraid to run away from controversy. In any event, for those who want to interact with her on social media, she does sometimes personally respond... but if you are disrespectful to her, she will respond accordingly. These days, she seems to be preparing to appear in a pilot for some sitcom, Ward of the State, which we can't seem to find anything else about online, so we don't know what the status of this is or really anything about it for that matter... but she has a preview of it on her Facebook page, and we would love to see it become a reality.
Pick of the Facebook Posts: "On this very day the Fresh Prince aired, and my life changed, I met so many wonderful people who have shown me such love. But FAME ain't always what you really want. So here's to the next 25 years of peace and good health for me. No funny characters, (well maybe a few funny faces). As always I will never do press again unless it is live and cannot be altered. Hope you enjoy this as much as I did making it for you and for me. (video)" (September 10, 2015)


Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Friday, June 9

none scheduled

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of June 5)

Friday, June 9

  • Marc Maron (GLOW/Maron) - Watch Marc on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Martin Short (Mulaney/The Martin Short Show) - Martin is a guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
  • Demi Lovato (Sonny with a Chance) - Demi is a musical guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
  • Sandra Bullock (Working Girl) - Sandra appears on a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
  • Zach Braff (Scrubs/Alex, Inc.) - Zach is a guest on a repeat of The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
  • Morris Chestnut (Out All Night) - Morris guest co-hosts a repeat of The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
  • Jay Ellis (Insecure/The Game) - Jay discusses the motivation behind their new true-crime podcast Freeway Phantom on Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
  • Tig Notaro (One Mississippi) - Tig is telling Drew about working with Reese Witherspoon on their new film and the latest season of The Morning Show on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
  • Alfonso Ribeiro (In the House/The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air/Silver Spoons) - Alfonso will be on a repeat of The Jennifer Hudson Show, so check your local listings.
  • Daniel Wu (American Born Chinese) - Daniel talks about his role on the Disney+ series American Born Chinese on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your listings.
  • Eric McCormack (Will & Grace) and Jason Alexander (Listen Up!/Bob Patterson/Seinfeld/Everything's Relative/ E/R) - Eric and Jason talk about The Cottage on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
  • Reba McEntire (Reba/Malibu Country) - Reba will be on NBC's Today in the 9am hour.
  • Geena Davis (The Geena Davis Show/Sara/Buffalo Bill) - NBC's Today catches up with Geena in the 9am hour.


New on DVD/Blu-ray (January-June)

Cheers - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) Gimme a Break! - The Complete Series (VEI) Kate & Allie - The Complete Series (VEI) Mayberry R.F.D. - The Complete Series Night Court (1984-1992) - The Complete Series

01/03 - Andy Richter Controls the Universe - The Complete Series (2023 Release)
01/27 - Master of None - Season Three / The Complete Series
02/21 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Nine / The Complete Season Ten
02/28 - Growing Pains - The Complete Series
03/28 - Rick and Morty - Season 8 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
04/04 - South Park - The Complete Twenty-Fifth Season (Blu-ray) (DVD)
04/18 - Blondie - The Complete 1957 Television Series (Blu-ray)
04/25 - Cheers - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
05/23 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Eleven / The Complete Season Twelve
05/23 - Go On - The Complete Series
05/23 - Kate & Allie - The Complete Series (Universal)
05/29 - Gimme a Break! - The Complete Series (VEI)
05/29 - Kate & Allie - The Complete Series (VEI)
05/30 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 1 (Blu-ray)
06/13 - Mayberry R.F.D. - The Complete Series
06/13 - Night Court (1984-1992) - The Complete Series
More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD Releases / DVD Reviews Archive / SitcomsOnline Digest


Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts

06/09 - Apple TV+ Comedy The Afterparty Returns July 12; Abbott Elementary Season 2 Dominated Across All Platforms
06/08 - The CW Summer 2023 Premiere Dates; Peacock's Bupkis Gets NBC Airing
06/07 - Hallmark's Christmas in July Programming; The Lincoln Lawyer Season 2 Launches July 6
06/06 - New Superman Animated Series Coming to Adult Swim; TV Stars Come Together in Netflix Film
06/05 - Shout! TV's ALF Reunion; Hulu's This Fool Season Two Premieres July 28
06/04 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of June 5, 2023)
06/03 - SitcomsOnline Digest: ABC Declares Rating Victories for 22-23 Season; Australian Version of The Office in the Works
06/02 - HBO Renews Somebody Somewhere for a Third Season; Remembering Marlene Clark of Sanford and Son and Other Sitcom Stars We Recently Lost
06/01 - MeTV's Marry Me Block on June 4; TBS Sets Miracle Workers: End Times Premiere Date for July 10
05/31 - Amazon Freevee's Jury Duty Gets Special Release; Stars on Mars Fan Experience
05/30 - 75th Emmy Awards Nominations on July 12; Final Season of HBO's How to with John Wilson
05/29 - Memorial Day 2023 TV Sitcom Marathons
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05/27 - SitcomsOnline Digest: CBS Wins 2022-2023 Ratings Game; Netflix Ends Sharing of Passwords
05/26 - Prime Video Renews Priyanka Chopra Series; Sex and the City 25th Anniversary Event in NYC
05/25 - Brady Bunch House on the Market; The Family Stallone Gets 2nd Season
05/24 - Antenna TV's Father Knows Best Father's Day Fest Marathon; Netflix Gets Glamorous This June
05/23 - CBS Summer 2023 Reality Schedule; Apple TV+ Announces Peanuts Programming
05/22 - More Details on Zoey 102; New Lifetime Movie Series Coming July 8
05/21 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of May 22, 2023)
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05/19 - Futurama Triumphantly Returns July 24; Final Season of Physical Drops August 2; Primo Premieres May 19 on Amazon Freevee
05/18 - The CW Upfront 2023-24: Fall 2023 Schedule; Netflix Upfront 2023
05/17 - Warner Bros. Discovery Upfront 2023; Sarah Silverman HBO Special Premieres May 27
05/16 - ABC Upfront 2023-24: Fall 2023 Schedule; FX's Summer 2023 Slate
05/15 - FOX Announces 2023-24 Programming Slate; iCarly Season 3 Premieres June 1
05/14 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of May 15, 2023)
05/13 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Night Court Season Finale Brings Back a Familiar Face; Comedy Central Renews Digman! for Second Season
05/12 - NBC Upfront 2023-24: Fall 2023 Schedule; Hulu Orders Deli Boys from Onyx Collective
05/11 - CBS Upfront 2023-24: Fall 2023 Schedule; The CW Summer Lineup Has Comedies
05/10 - Minx Returns in July on STARZ; Never Have I Ever Final Episodes Premieres June 8, Trailer Drops
05/09 - The CW Acquires Son of a Critch; FX's The Bear Returns June 22