SitcomsOnline Digest: Remembering Jack Riley and Fyvush Finkel; New Family Matters DVDs

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

Wednesday, February 25

Scrubs - "My Return" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
John “J.D.” Dorian unexpectedly finds himself back at Sacred Heart, reuniting him with new and old faces.

Scrubs - "My 2nd First Day" (ABC, 8:32PM ET/PT)
J.D. navigates a new normal, while Elliot and Turk clash over the budget.

Scrubs - "My Return" (ABC, 9:58PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
John “J.D.” Dorian unexpectedly finds himself back at Sacred Heart, reuniting him with new and old faces.

Scrubs - "My 2nd First Day" (ABC, 10:31PM ET/PT)
J.D. navigates a new normal, while Elliot and Turk clash over the budget.

Tyler Perry's House of Payne - "Don't Grow Weary" (BET, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Calvin is pulled from each direction as he struggles to balance work and family. Ella must face a puzzling conclusion.

Tyler Perry's Assisted Living - "Mighty in Battle" (BET, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Vinny has the entire assisted living facility reeking of his special batch of baked goods.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of February 23)

Wednesday, February 25

Jason Bateman (Arrested Development/The Hogan Family/It's Your Move/Silver Spoons) - Watch Jason on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Jackson White (Mrs. Fletcher) - Jackson is a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Bradley Whitford (Perfect Harmony/Trophy Wife) - Bradley appears on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Ahmed Ahmed (Sullivan & Son) and Rondell Sheridan (Raven's Home/Cory in the House/That's So Raven/Cousin Skeeter/Minor Adjustments) - Ahmed and Rondell are guests on Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
Piper Curda (I Didn't Do It) and Bobby Moynihan (Mr. Mayor/Me, Myself & I) - Piper and Bobby talk about Hoppers on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am and on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
Ted McGinley (Shrinking/Hope & Faith/Married with Children/Happy Days) - Ted talks about Shrinking on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
Michael Urie (Shrinking/Krapopolis/Partners) - Michael talks about Shrinking on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Wanda Sykes (The Upshaws/The New Adventures of Old Christine/Wanda at Large) - Wanda tells Sherri about her new film Undercard on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Michael Douglas (The Kominsky Method) - The Drew Barrymore Show has a little extra with father-son duo Michael and Cameron Douglas, so check your local listings.
Halle Berry (Living Dolls) - The Drew Barrymore Show A Little Bit Extra with Drew, Halle Berry and Kristina Zias who are celebrating aging helping a viewer over 50 achieve a glow up look, so check your local listings.
Melissa Peterman (Happy's Place/Young Sheldon/Baby Daddy/Working Class/Reba) - Melissa talksa about Happy's Place on 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 her film Operation Taco Gary on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.