Thursday, March 24, 2016
George Lopez Marathon to Air on TV Land on April 23; Remembering Director James Sheldon and Ken Howard from The White Shadow
TV Land will air a George Lopez marathon for the first time on Saturday, April 23 from 4-11pm ET/PT. No word yet if the series will air in a regular timeslot. It currently airs on Nick at Nite in the late night/early morning hours. We will have complete marathon details when they become available.
The new TV Land comedy Lopez will premiere next Wednesday, March 30 at 10pm ET/PT. It's the real George Lopez we rarely get to see as he struggles to find his place among the worlds of race, class and fame. In the series premiere "Slave for a Day," George gets auctioned off at his daughter's elite private school fundraiser attended by his enemies. He doesn't want to embarrass himself or his daughter, or get bought by Snoop Dogg.
As we mentioned yesterday, George Lopez is hosting the TV Land Icon Awards on Sunday, April 17 at 9pm ET/PT. Stay with us for continued updates on all things George Lopez. Sheeow!
Director James Sheldon, who directed episodes of over 100 series, has died. He died from complications of cancer on March 12 at his home in Manhattan, New York. Mr. Sheldon was 95.
Sheldon's early sitcom directing credits included ten episodes of Mr. Peepers in 1952. He directed a full season of The Bing Crosby show in 1964-1965. In 1967, he directed eight episodes of My Three Sons. Other credits included seven episodes of That Girl, eight episodes of Room 222, eight episodes of Love, American Style and six episodes of Sanford and Son.
Some of his other sitcom directing credits included The Donna Reed Show, Angel, Margie, The Patty Duke Show, My Mother the Car, O.K. Crackerby!, Family Affair, Petticoat Junction, Julia, To Rome with Love, My World and Welcome to It, Bridget Loves Bernie, Alice, M*A*S*H, The Love Boat and Sledge Hammer!.
He was mostly known for his work directing dramas. He directed 44 episodes of The Millionaire from 1957-1960. He worked on 6 episodes of The Twilight Zone in 1961-1962, including the classic "It's a Good Life." Other series he directed multiple episodes of included Zane Grey Theater, Perry Mason, Death Valley Days, Naked City, Route 66, The Fugitive, Walt Disney's World of Color, Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law, Petrocelli, McMillan & Wife, The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo, The Dukes of Hazzard and Lottery!.
Survivors include his sons Tony and James, Jr., and three grandsons.
The Archive of American Television conducted an extensive interview with him on April 6, 2005.
His "It's a Good Life" episode of The Twilight Zone, which starred Bill Mumy and Cloris Leachman, is considered by some fans to be one of the best of the series. We thank him for the entertainment he brought us over the years. He will be deeply missed.
Actor Ken Howard, who was best known for his role as Ken Reeves in The White Shadow, has died. He died of a heart attack on March 23 in Los Angeles, California. Mr. Howard was 71.
Howard starred in the short-lived 1973 ABC sitcom Adam's Rib. The romantic comedy was based on the Spencer Tracy-Katherine Hepburn 1949 film of the same title. The series starred Blythe Danner, Dena Dietrich, Ron Rifkin, Edward Winter and Norman Bartold.
He later starred as Jack Long in the short-lived 1983 ABC sitcom It's Not Easy. The series starred Jayne Meadows, Rachael Jacobs, Evan Cohen, Carlene Watkins, Bert Convy and Billy Jacoby.
He had a recurring role as Hank Hooper, Jack Donaghy's (Alec Baldwin) boss from Kabletown, in nine episodes of 30 Rock from 2011 to 2013. Some of his other sitcom credits included The Golden Girls, Arli$$, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Office, George Lopez and The McCarthys.
Howard's best known role was as basketball coach and former Chicago Bulls player Ken Reeves in The White Shadow. The 1978-1981 CBS drama starred Ed Bernard, Joan Pringle, Thomas Carter, Kevin Hooks, Eric Kilpatrick, Nathan Cook, Timothy Van Patten, Ken Michelman, Ira Angustain and Byron Stewart.
He earlier starred in the crime drama The Manhunter, which aired on CBS in 1974-1975. He had a recurring role as Garrett Boydston in Dynasty and the spin-off series The Colbys. He appeared in five episodes of Melrose Place as George Andrews. Howard starred as Max Cavanaugh, Dr. Jordan Cavanaugh's (Jill Hennessy) father, in Crossing Jordan. In 2007, he appeared as the villain Joe Samuels in Cane.
His numerous television drama guest appearances included Bonanza, Medical Center, Hotel, Murder, She Wrote, Diagnosis Murder, The West Wing, The Practice, Family Law, Ghost Whisperer, Huff, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Brothers & Sisters, Eli Stone, Boston Legal, Cold Case, The Closer and Blue Bloods. He won an Emmy for his work in the 2009 HBO film Grey Gardens.
Survivors include his wife of 25 years, stuntwoman Linda Fetters Howard, and three stepchildren.
Mr. Howard was excellent in the classic and underrated The White Shadow. He always gave a solid performance in all of his television and film appearances. He will be greatly missed.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Saturday, July 12
Mind Your Business - "Love Child" (Bounce TV, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Alfonso and Aaliyah's world is flipped upside down when their mother's secret love child comes into town, while Mia tries to figure out who is sending her gifts every hour on the hour.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of July 7)
Friday, July 11
- Aparna Nancherla (The Great North/Fairview/Corporate) and Whitney Cummings (Whitney) - Aparna and Whitney are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
- Malachi Barton (Stuck in the Middle) and Meg Donnelly (American Housewife) - Malachi and Meg discuss Zombies 4: Dawn of the Vampires and perform on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am. They will also be on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
- Jean Smart (Hacks/Samantha Who?/Center of the Universe/In-Laws/Style & Substance/Designing Women) - Jean chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
- Patton Oswalt (A.P. Bio/The Goldbergs/The King of Queens) - Patton talks about Black Coffee and Ice Water on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
- Margaret Cho (All-American Girl) and Joel Kim Booster (Loot/Shrill) - CBS News contributor Lisa Ling talks with Margaret and Joel on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
- Krysten Ritter (Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23) - Tamron Hall (repeat) has a DAYTIME EXCLUSIVE sitdown with actress/director/author Krysten Ritter who recently released her new thriller/mystery novel Retreat, so check your local listings.
- Maggie Q (Pivoting) - Maggie Q talks about Prime's Ballard on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
- Tisha Campbell (Act Your Age/Uncoupled/Outmatched/Dr. Ken/Rita Rocks/My Wife and Kids/Martin) and Wendy Raquel Robinson (Poppa's House/The Game/Here We Go Again/The Steve Harvey Show/Minor Adjustments) - Tisha and Wendy chat about their film Operation: Aunties on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings. They will also be on PIX11 Morning News on WPIX in New York at 9:30am.
- David Zayas (The Bear/Saint George) - David appears on PIX11 Morning News on WPIX in New York at 9:40am.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series
03/11 - Frasier (2023) - Season Two
04/01 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season
05/13 - The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered)
06/06 - Shoresy - Season 2
06/17 - Looney Tunes - Collector's Vault - Volume 1 (Blu-ray)
07/22 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD and Blu-ray Releases / TV Shows on DVD, Blu-ray and Prime Video / DVD Reviews Archive
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