Saturday, August 20, 2016
SitcomsOnline Digest: Remembering Jack Riley and Fyvush Finkel; New Family Matters DVDs
Welcome
to SitcomsOnline Digest! It has been yet another busy week with deaths of classic TV stars, news of the upcoming death of a relatively new cable network, and also a bit of good news with some new series for Antenna TV. Let's get going!
HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB
- Jack Riley, known for his roles on The Bob Newhart Show and many other sitcoms, as well as the the voice of Stu Pickles on Rugrats, died this week at age 80. (People)
- Fyvush Finkel, who spent most of his career as a Yiddish theater actor but transitioned into TV thanks to David E. Kelley casting him in roles on Picket Fences and Boston Public, died this week at age 93. (New York Times)
- The cable network Pivot will be pivoting toward going off the air sometime in the next year. (USA Today)
- Antenna TV has a lot of new (to them, anyway) sitcoms coming along the way over the next year or two. (SitcomsOnline)
- Comedy Central abruptly and somewhat unexpectedly canceled The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore this week, and it seems that it was in large part due to the inability to translate the series into clips that could go viral on YouTube. (Vox)
- John McLaughlin, the host of the PBS series The McLaughlin Group, unexpectedly missed an episode for the first time in the 34 year history of the program earlier this week, and then died earlier this week. Now, the series that pioneered the modern "noisy" political talk show will end this weekend, with a special tribute to the host. (Deadline)
- The Wonder Years - The Complete Series is coming to retailers soon, but we have a chance for you to win a copy of it. (SitcomsOnline)
HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS
- Warner Archive is moving ahead with Family Matters, bringing Family Matters - The Complete Eighth Season (the last one to air on ABC before the series moved to CBS for the ninth) to DVD on September 20.
TUESDAY (AUGUST 23) HOME MEDIA RELEASES
- Brooklyn Nine-Nine - Season Three (DVD, $39.98): The third season of the Andy Samberg sitcom on Fox arrives in this release.
- Superstore - Season One (DVD, $29.98): The first season of the NBC comedy arrives in this release.
- The Wonder Years - The Complete Series (DVD, $119.95): In case you skipped the deluxe version that came packaged in the metal locker and was only available directly from Time Life, this complete series now arrives at retailers.
FOLLOW ME
Who to Follow: Jason Hervey (Twitter), "Executive Producer/Actor/Co-Founder of Bischoff Hervey Entertainment Television (BHE TV) AKA brother from hell on the Emmy Award Winning series The Wonder Years"
Claim to Fame: We're (sort of) continuing a theme of actors who played memorable characters in 80s sitcoms, but were never part of the regular cast this week with Jason Hervey, even though Hervey did go on to an actual regular role in the late 80s on The Wonder Years. Jason Hervey's career began with a few guest roles here and there, most notably in the final season of Diff'rent Strokes, where he played Charlie in nine final season episodes. Of course, his best known role came from The Wonder Years, where he was much more than just a minor supporting character. Today, he does much more work on the production side of television, and much like his friend Scott Baio, seems to have some very strong pro-Donald Trump political opinions... just so you know before viewing his Twitter page.
Pick of the Tweets: ".@thirsty_lawyer Me and my brother (aka the REAL Wayne Arnold) at our cousin David's wedding! #JenBern #Congrats" (February 27, 2016)
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Monday, April 27
The Neighorhood - "Welcome to the Chat" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
When Tina oversteps at daycare, a well‑meaning effort to fix it takes a turn after a message is sent to the wrong chat. Meanwhile, a surprise visit from Dave’s mother, Paula (Marilu Henner), leads him and Gemma to reconsider their careers and what comes next.
DMV - "Abuela" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Colette agrees to oversee Ceci’s grandmother’s driving test to win her approval, only to discover Ceci’s request to fail her is far more personal. Meanwhile Barb spirals when Vic’s dog takes a liking to her DMV rival Beau (Randall Park), as Gregg fixates on his own aging during an anti‑aging experiment.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of April 27)
Monday, April 27
- Anthony Anderson (black-ish/Guys with Kids/All About the Andersons) - Watch Anthony on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Stanley Tucci (Central Park) - Stanley is a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Brenda Song (Running Point/Dollface/Dads/The Suite Life on Deck/The Suite Life of Zack & Cody) - Brenda appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Bryan Cranston (Malcolm in the Middle: Life's Still Unfair/Malcolm in the Middle/The Louie Show) - Bryan is a guest on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Rose Byrne (Platonic/Physical) - Rose appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC. Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Ebon Moss-Bachrach (The Bear/Girls) - Ebon stops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Kate Hudson (Running Point) and Justin Theroux (Running Point) - Andy Cohen interviews Kate and Justin on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9:15pm on Bravo.
- Stanley Tucci (Central Park) - Stanley talks about The Devil Wears Prada 2 on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
- Eve Plumb (The Brady Bunch/The Brady Brides) - Eve talks about Happiness Included: Jan Brady and Beyond on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
- Jennifer Tilly (Out of Practice) - Jennifer chats about her play The Adding Machine on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
- Larenz Tate (South Central/The Royal Family/New Attitude) - Larenz talks about Michael on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
07/22 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
08/26 - The Huckleberry Hound Show - The Complete Original Series (Blu-ray)
09/30 - Touché Turtle and Dum Dum - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
10/07 - Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - The Complete First Season (DVD)
10/14 - Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (DVD)
10/28 - St. Denis Medical - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/04 - Happy's Place - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/11 - Rick and Morty - Season 8 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/11 - SpongeBob SquarePants - The Complete Fifteenth Season (DVD)
11/11 - Two and a Half Men - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/02 - Tom and Jerry - The Golden Era Anthology (1940-1958) (Blu-ray) (DVD)
12/16 - Lippy the Lion and Hardy Har Har - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/16 - Wally Gator - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
01/20 - The Woody Woodpecker and Friends Golden Age Collection (Blu-ray)
01/27 - The New Fred and Barney Show - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/11 - Tom and Jerry - The Complete CinemaScope Collection (Blu-ray)
03/24 - Looney Tunes Collector's Vault - Volume 2 (Blu-ray)
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