SitcomsOnline Digest: MacGyver Reboot Officially Picked Up; New NBC Comedies from Tina Fey and Marlon Wayans

Saturday, May 14, 2016

SitcomsOnline Digest: MacGyver Reboot Officially Picked Up; New NBC Comedies from Tina Fey and Marlon Wayans

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! This is that time of the year (specifically this week) where just about all of the news is about what has been cancelled, what has been renewed, and what new series we'll be seeing in the fall, so not surprisingly, most of our news this week relates to these issues. But we also have a few other things, including the passing of more sitcom stars and the retirement of a 60 Minutes correspondent. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

It seems like we've been hearing about it forever, but now it is official, CBS has picked up the reboot of MacGyver. (USA Today)
Even though they've cancelled much of their comedy slate aside from The Carmichael Show and Superstore (the first one hasn't been renewed yet but is expected to be, while the second has been renewed), NBC is making an attempt to make themselves a destination for great comedy once again, with pickups of new comedies from Tina Fey (Great News) and Marlon Wayans (Marlon). (Entertainment Weekly)
Since October 2000, one thing that you could count on is CBS having some version of CSI on the air, but don't count on that much longer, as the last piece of that legacy (and, if you ask many of the fans, one of the worst) has been cancelled. (Hollywood Reporter)
You could count on him being there Sunday nights on 60 Minutes for years, but Morley Safer is now preparing to retire. (The Daily Beast)
Tonita Castro isn't exactly a household name, but she essentially started her acting career in the past decade when she was in her 50s, and most recently landed roles on Go On and Dads. Unfortunately, she died this week at age 63. (Entertainment Weekly)
William Schallert of The Patty Duke Show died this week, and is also the third former SAG president to die in the past two months (after Ken Howard and Patty Duke). (New York Times)
There were more cancellations this week, including the somewhat surprising cancellation of the long-running Castle just days before the planned season finale and the cancellation of every new Fox comedy from the past season. (SitcomsOnline)

TUESDAY (MAY 17) HOME MEDIA RELEASES

The Facts of Life - The Final (Ninth) Season (DVD, $29.93): For those interested in having all of the "facts" on DVD, Shout! Factory wraps up the individual season releases with this release.

FOLLOW ME

Who to Follow: Greg Evigan (Twitter), "Actor, writer, producer, director, singer"

Claim to Fame: We've spent the past two weeks doing Mad About You stars as our Follow Me, and as we often do, we're using last week to pivot into this week with Paul Reiser's co-star from his earlier series My Two Dads: Greg Evigan. While Evigan may be known to (slightly) younger people from his role on that short-lived (but memorable) series, his bigger claim to fame came a decade earlier in another short-lived (but very memorable) series, BJ and the Bear. After My Two Dads, he had another role on yet another short-lived (but memorable) series, TekWar. He has never been on a series that has lasted more than three seasons, but despite that, the series that he has appeared on have been memorable ones. He still does some acting these days, most recently appearing in a Hallmark Channel film with his own daughter Briana Evigan, Once Upon a Holiday. He also has another acting daughter, Vanessa Evigan, with whom he is also appearing in movie roles.

Pick of the Tweets: "We're on our way to Hollywood Today Live! @OfficialHTL to talk about @onlygodcanmovie @VanessaEvigan and I (pic)" (April 22, 2016)

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Friday, September 12

Vampirina: Teenage Vampire - "First Year to Watch" (Disney Channel, 8:00PM ET/PT)
As Vee arrives at Wilson Hall, she learns that performing arts boarding school might have more challenges than she thought; Demi vows to protect Vee from Van Helsings.

Vampirina: Teenage Vampire - "First Day of School" (Disney Channel, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Vee's plans to have an amazing first day of school are threatened by a dire warning from the Vampire Council; Demi continues his search for Van Helsings.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of September 8)

Friday, September 12

Regina King (The Boondocks/Leap of Faith/227) - Watch Regina on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Michael Chiklis (Daddio) - Michael is a guest on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Drew Barrymore (Santa Clarita Diet) - Drew appears on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Kumail Nanjiani (Bless the Harts/Silicon Valley) - Kumail is a guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Domhnall Gleeson (The Paper) - Domhnall appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Emily Osment (Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage/Young Sheldon/Young & Hungry/Hannah Montana), Tien Tran (How I Met Your Father) and Vinny Thomas (Platonic) - Emily, Tien and Vinny are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Ken Jeong (Dr. Ken/Community) - Ken talks about 99 to Beat on The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Michael Urie (Shrinking/Krapopolis/Partners) - Michael talks about Broadway's Oh, Mary! and Shrinking on The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Zosia Mamet (Laid/Girls) - Zosia talks about Does This Make Me Funny? on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Emeril Lagasse (Emeril) - Sunny Anderson gets a big surprise from Drew – cooking with the legendary Emeril Lagasse on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Jennifer Aniston (Friends/Muddling Through/Ferris Bueller/Molloy) - Drew is chatting with Jennifer about the new season of The Morning Show, her kids cookbook, Cook with Clydeo, and her haircare line on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Hannah Pilkes (Leanne) - Hannah is a guest on PIX11 Morning News on WPIX in New York at 9:30am.
Charlie Sheen (Anger Management/Two and a Half Men/Spin City) - Real Time with Bill Maher features a one-on-one interview with Charlie Sheen, actor and subject of the new two-part documentary aka Charlie Sheen on Netflix, and author of the new book The Book of Sheen: A Memoir at 10pm on HBO.