Tuesday, June 13, 2017

Sitcom Stars, Classic TV and Current Stars Head to Battle of the Network Stars; Remembering Elena Verdugo

Battle of the Network Stars - TV Kids

We told you about the hosts for the Battle of the Network Stars, but now we have the 100 celebs competing! In an ode to ABC's Wide World of Sports, 100 TV stars from 14 different network and cable companies will take their athleticism to a new level as they compete – to feel "the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat" – in the revival of Battle of the Network Stars, based on the '70s and '80s television pop-culture classic, premiering on Thursday, June 29 at 9:00 pm EDT on ABC. The new Battle of the Network Stars will be a nostalgic throwback to the original series, where TV celebrities blended athleticism with hilarious antics while featuring an array of fan favorites from numerous TV series like Modern Family, Pretty Little Liars, Scandal, Melrose Place, Beverly Hills, 90210, The Goldbergs, How to Get Away with Murder, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Incredible Hulk, The West Wing, Dallas, CHiPs, Law & Order and many more.

The original series from ABC Sports began in 1976 and continued for 13 years. The 10-episode summer event will pit teams of current and classic TV stars from multiple eras and different genres against one another in a variety of athletic games. Viewers can look forward to seeing a fresh take at some of the classic show's sporting events like Tug of War, Archery, Kayak Relay, Obstacle Course and Dunk Tank – all from the site of the original series, the beautiful campus of Pepperdine University in Malibu, California. For this new version, fielding of the teams will be based on the TV characters people love from over the years to the current day – cops vs. TV sitcoms, White House vs. lawyers, TV moms & dads vs. TV kids, etc. In this way, viewers will get to see everyone's favorites from over the years, even if they spanned different networks at the time.

Here are the 20 teams (100 stars) competing against each other in separate episodes with athletic contests of physical grace and stamina (* = returning to Battle of the Network Stars):

• TV Sitcoms (Bronson Pinchot, Tom Arnold, Dave Coulier, AJ Michalka, Tracey Gold)
vs.
TV Kids (Joey Lawrence, Corbin Bleu, Nolan Gould, *Lisa Whelchel, *Kim Fields)

• Primetime Soaps (Ian Ziering, Josh Henderson, Gabrielle Carteris, *Donna Mills, Mischa Barton)
vs.
ABC Stars (*Olivia d'Abo, *Shari Belafonte, Michael Fishman, Jason Hervey, Anson Williams)

• Variety (Joanna Krupa, Nick Lachey, Vanessa Lachey, Gilles Marini, Jack Osbourne)
vs.
TV Sex Symbols (Keegan Allen, Traci Bingham, Rosa Blasi, Brant Daugherty, Galen Gering)

• Cops (Erik Estrada, *Larry Wilcox, Kelly Hu, Jodi Lyn O'Keefe, *Lorenzo Lamas)
vs.
TV Sitcoms (*Todd Bridges, Leigh-Allyn Baker, Dave Foley, Willie Garson, Jenna von Oy)

• White House (Cornelius Smith Jr., Marlee Matlin, Joshua Malina, LaMonica Garrett, Mary McCormack)
vs.
Lawyers (Elisabeth Rohm, Corbin Bernsen, Matt McGorry, Romi Dias, Catherine Bell)

• TV Moms & Dads (Chad Lowe, *Greg Evigan, *Ted McGinley, Lesley Fera, Jackee Harry)
vs.
TV Kids (*Jimmie Walker, *Mackenzie Phillips, Jonathan Lipnicki, Krista Marie Yu, Jeremy Miller)

• Famous TV Families (Danny Bonaduce, Barry Williams, Beverley Mitchell, *Willie Aames, *Charlene Tilton)
vs.
Doctors (Thomas Calabro, Taye Diggs, Rachelle Lefevre, *Deidre Hall, Benjamin Hollingsworth)

• Troublemakers (Vivica A. Fox, Paul Johansson, John Barrowman, Julie Benz, Catherine Bach)
vs.
TV Lifeguards (David Chokachi, Brande Roderick, *Parker Stevenson, Nicole Eggert, Gena Lee Nolin)

• ABC Stars (*Ted Lange, Troy Gentile, *Jill Whelan, Denise Richards, Joely Fisher)
vs.
Variety (Lance Bass, Joey Fatone, Adrienne Houghton, Cameron Mathison, Kelly Osbourne)

• Cops (Marisol Nichols, Roma Maffia, *Adrian Zmed, Fred Dryer, Ryan Paevey)
vs.
Sci-Fi Fantasy (*Lou Ferrigno, Vinnie Jones, Charisma Carpenter, Kevin Sorbo, Jill Wagner)


Elena Verdugo

Actress Elena Verdugo, who was best known for her role as Consuelo Lopez in Marcus Welby, M.D., has died. She died on May 30 in Los Angeles, California. Ms. Verdugo was 92.

Verdugo starred as Millie Bronson in the 1952-1956 CBS sitcom Meet Millie. The series, which began on radio, was about a wisecracking Manhattan secretary from Brooklyn. It also starred Florence Halop, Earl Ross, Ross Ford, Marvin Kaplan, Roland Winters, Isabel Randolph and Virginia Vincent.

The New Phil Silvers Show

She appeared in the recurring role of Audrey, the widowed sister of Harry Grafton (Phil Silvers), in 8 episodes of the CBS sitcom The New Phil Silvers Show in 1964. Harry Grafton was a plant foreman at the Osborne Corporation. The series also starred Stafford Repp, Sandy Descher, Herbie Faye, Ronnie Dapo and Buddy Lester.

Verdugo starred as Lynn Hall in the short-lived 1964-1965 CBS sitcom Many Happy Returns. Lynn Hall was a complaint department employee at the fictitious Krockmeyer's Department Store in Los Angeles. The series starred John McGiver, Richard Collier, Eliinor Donahue, Jesslyn Fax, Mark Goddard, Mickey Manners and Andrea Sacino.

She starred as Alice Henderson in the 1965-1966 NBC sitcom Mona McCluskey. The series was about Mona (Juliet Prowse) trying to balance her acting career with her marriage to Mike (Denny Scott Miller), who preferred that they live on his smaller Air Force salary. The series also starred Herb Rudley, Bartlett Robinson and Robert Strauss.

Some of her sitcom guest appearances included The Gale Storm Show: Oh! Susanna, The Bob Cummings Show, Petticoat Junction and Love, American Style.

Marcus Welby, M.D.

Verdugo was best known for her role as Consuelo Lopez in the 1969-1976 ABC medical drama Marcus Welby, M.D.. Consuelo Lopez was Dr. Marcus Welby's (Robert Young) and Dr. Steven Kiley's (James Brolin) dedicated and loving nurse and office manager. Vergudo received two Emmy nominations for "Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in Drama" in 1971 and 1972 and a Golden Globe nomination for "Best Supporting Actress - Television" in 1973. Verdugo reunited with Young in the 1984 TV movie The Return of Marcus Welby, M.D..

She earlier starred as Gerry in the short-lived 1963 western Redigo. Gerry was the manager of the Gran Quivera Hotel in Mesa, New Mexico. The series starred Richard Egan, Roger Davis, Rudy Solari and Mina Martinez.

Ms. Verdugo was a talented actress who helped elevate the image of the Latinas on television with her role in Marcus Welby, M.D.. Her career in radio, television, and film spanned six decades. She will be deeply missed.

Share your memories on our message board. View photos in our galleries.


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Wednesday, January 22

Shifting Gears - "Job" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Riley, desperate for work, reluctantly takes a job at Matt’s shop. Meanwhile, Gabriel and Stitch secretly stray from Matt’s vision on a high-stakes restomod project.

Abbott Elementary - "Strike" (ABC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
City buses have stopped running due to a strike, resulting in many students being absent from school. The teachers at Abbott try to find creative solutions and adapt to hybrid learning. Meanwhile, Gregory and O’Shon strike up a friendship.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of January 20)

Wednesday, January 22

  • Lucy Liu (Joey/Pearl) - Watch Lucy on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC. She also chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
  • Ronny Chieng (Young Rock/Ronny Chieng: International Student) - Ronny hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
  • Utkarsh Ambudkar (Ghosts/White Famous), Betsy Sodaro (Ghosts/Duncanville/Disjointed/Animal Practice) and Punam Patel (Ghosts/Return of the Mac/Kevin from Work) - Utkarsh, Betsy and Punam are guests on After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
  • Morris Chestnut (Out All Night) - Morris talks about Watson on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am, on CBS Mornings Plus in the 9am hour, and on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
  • Andrew Rannells (Girls/The New Normal) and Nick Kroll (Big Mouth/The League/Cavemen) - Andrew, Nick and Lin-Manuel Miranda are chatting with Drew about their Broadway show All In: Comedy About Love on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings. They're also talking to Drew about parenting advice, how they were raised and how comedy brings people together.


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02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series

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