SitcomsOnline Digest: Spinoffs for The Big Bang Theory and The Goldbergs in the Horizon?; ABC Brings First Cancellation of the Season

Saturday, November 12, 2016

SitcomsOnline Digest: Spinoffs for The Big Bang Theory and The Goldbergs in the Horizon?; ABC Brings First Cancellation of the Season

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! This week, we're learning that two popular sitcoms may be getting spinoffs, hearing of the death of a TV star from the past, and gearing up for the first cancellation of the 2016-2017 season (it wasn't a sitcom). Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

Reboots have been all of the rage lately, but this week, we learned that a new trend that we haven't really seen in sitcoms in recent years (and one that really hasn't been successfully implemented in sitcoms since Frasier nearly 25 years ago) may be on the horizon: spinoffs. This week, it was announced that both The Big Bang Theory and The Goldbergs may both be getting spinoffs. (Hollywood Reporter)
Robert Vaughn, best known for his roles on The Man from U.N.C.L.E. and later the final season of The A-Team, died this week at age 83. (NY Times)
Saturday Night Live temporarily added Alec Baldwin to the cast this season to play Donald Trump, a pick that the producers expected to not need after Election Day. But with Trump winning the presidency, the series is now in search of a new person to play the character, and the search is already on as Baldwin says that he won't even be returning tonight to fill that role. (NY Daily News)
Also surprised by the election were the producers of South Park, who had less than 24 hours to redo an entire episode that had been planned based upon a different election result. (Deadline)
Steve Harvey's talk show will be ending, but not quite, as a new "revamped" version of the series with a different production company and taping location (but still the same Steve Harvey) will replace it in the fall. (Deadline)
It was only a matter of time, but this week, we finally saw our first cancellation of the 2016-2017 season, with ABC's Conviction quietly getting the axe on Tuesday, though the remaining episodes will reportedly continue to air. (Variety)
Things are still going smoothly for the new sitcoms of 2016, though, as ABC has given a full season to one of their new sitcoms. (SitcomsOnline)

TUESDAY (NOVEMBER 15) HOME MEDIA RELEASES

https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B01M0F9Z8P/happydaysonline5-20

The Lucy Show - The Complete Series (DVD, $63.98): CBS bundles all six seasons into one release with this set.
The Middle - The Complete Seventh Season (DVD, $34.99): The long-running ABC sitcom returns to DVD with this release from Warner Archive.
The Mindy Project - Season Four (DVD, $22.98): The Hulu series returns to DVD in this release from Universal.

FOLLOW ME

Who to Follow: Ed Weeks (Twitter), "That British one on #TheMindyProject. New episodes every Tuesday on @hulu. Instagram: @edwardweeks"

Claim to Fame: Ed Weeks was born and raised in England, and had started a career in the United Kingdom as a writer of various TV series on BBC. In 2012, though, he made a move to the United States and took on a starring role in the Fox (and now Hulu) series, The Mindy Project, where he plays the role of Jeremy Reed. That isn't all, though, because it was also announced this week that he is filling the executive producer role (along with Mindy Kaling) for a pilot for ABC about a lesbian couple with a teenage son who moves to a conservative part of Kansas.

Pick of the Tweets: "So excited to be working on this with my old mucker @hannymacoy! And of course the splendid @mindykaling (link)" (November 4, 2016)

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Thursday, March 12

Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - "A Big Birthday and Tequila Shots" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Mandy struggles to celebrate Georgie’s 21st birthday after hitting a rough patch in her career.

Ghosts - "St. Hetty’s Day 2: The Help" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
A St. Patrick’s Day staffing emergency gives Hetty the chance to step into an unlikely role at the restaurant as she regains her once-a-year ability to be seen and heard by the living. Meanwhile, Kyle returns to watch over the ghosts and finds himself caught in an amusing supernatural dynamic.

Animal Control - "Squirrels and Fat Cats" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Frank uncovers Emily and Shred's secret romance during a break-in at city supply; Victoria and Patel confront his daughter's school bully.

Going Dutch - "Tinker, Tailor, Colonel, Spy" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Rick takes a sabbatical from the CIA and returns to the base, hoping to rekindle his strained relationship with Capt. Maggie; paranoia runs high when a mole is suspected to be operating inside the base.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 9)

Thursday, March 12

Will Forte (The Four Seasons/HouseBroken/MacGruber/The Last Man on Earth/The Cleveland Show) - Catch Will on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Minnie Driver (Emily in Paris/Speechless/About a Boy) - Minnie is a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Wanda Sykes (The Upshaws/The New Adventures of Old Christine/Wanda at Large) - Wanda appears on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Robert Smigel (Let's Be Real) - Robert stops by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Kristin Chenoweth (Stumble/Trial & Error/Kristin) - Kristin is a guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Jennifer Tilly (Out of Practice) - Andy Cohen interviews Jennifer on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 10pm on Bravo.
Nathan Lane (Mid-Century Modern/Only Murders in the Building/Modern Family/Charlie Lawrence/Encore! Encore!/One of the Boys) - Nathan talks about Broadway's Death of a Salesman with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Ariana DeBose (Schmigadoon!) - Ariana joins Tamron to talk about her fashion evolution and her role in the all-star cast of the new series Scarpetta on Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
Lauren Graham (The Z-Suite/M.Y.O.B./Conrad Bloom/Townies/Good Company) - Lauren talks about Reminders of Him on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Cafe Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - NBC's Today catches up with Valerie in the 10am hour.
Phil Rosenthal (Creator of Everybody Loves Raymond) - Phil and Lily Rosenthal join Drew for a taste test of weird foods and talk about their children's book Just Try It! Someplace New! (A Phil & Lil Book) on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.