SitcomsOnline Digest: Louie (and Other Projects With Louis C.K.) Cancelled; CBS Colorizing More Dick Van Dyke Episodes; More Diff'rent Strokes DVDs

Saturday, November 11, 2017

SitcomsOnline Digest: Louie (and Other Projects With Louis C.K.) Cancelled; CBS Colorizing More Dick Van Dyke Episodes; More Diff'rent Strokes DVDs

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! This week, we're hearing about yet another popular series that is getting the boot after sexual harassment allegations against the star, some newly colorized episodes of The Dick Van Dyke Show, and more. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

We used to have a weekly theme around here of discussing which show is being mulled for a reboot here every week, but sadly, it seems that lately we're talking about which popular series is getting canceled due to sexual harassment allegations against the star. This week, it is the FX series Louie (in addition to HBO removing all content starring Louis C.K. from their streaming services and FX ending all of their collaborations with him). (Vice)
As colorizing classic TV series seems to be a holiday tradition at CBS, the network is going to air two newly colorized episodes of The Dick Van Dyke Show on December 22, and both prominently feature Mary Tyler Moore's character Laura Petrie. (Deadline)
The likelihood of it happening is sort of in doubt, but there is real talk that Disney may be purchasing the entertainment division of Fox, which if it happens, would mean that Homer Simpson, Hank Hill, and Peter Griffin would join Mickey Mouse and Winnie the Pooh as "animated Disney characters." (Digital Spy)
John Hillerman, who was best known for playing Higgins on Magnum, P.I. and also played grandfather Lloyd Hogan on The Hogan Family, died this week at age 84. (NY Times)
The reboot of Dynasty has done well enough to get a full season. (TV Guide)
Antenna TV is making holiday plans, and you'll want to be there. (SitcomsOnline)

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

It's taken a while to get there, but it seems that Shout! Factory is getting closer to the end of the series for Diff'rent Strokes, with Diff'rent Strokes - The Complete Seventh Season (the final one to air on NBC before the series moved to ABC) coming to DVD on February 27.
Also arriving from Shout! Factory on February 27 is Green Acres - The Complete Fifth Season.

TUESDAY (NOVEMBER 14) HOME MEDIA RELEASE

D.C. Follies - The Complete Series (DVD, $34.99): Shout! Factory brings this forgotten series to DVD in this release.

FOLLOW ME

Who to Follow: Fred Willard (Twitter)

Claim to Fame: Fred Willard has been appearing on TV for over five decades, appearing in countless sitcoms. The list is too long to even mention. But his first starring role came in the syndicated series Fernwood 2 Night, as well as the continuation series America 2 Night. After that, he went on to D.C. Follies, which arrives on DVD on Tuesday. He has done numerous other things since then, including Roseanne and Modern Family, but with 301 acting credits (and counting), it's hard to talk about each individual one.
Pick of the Tweets: "Thanks for all the laughs, Jerry. (pic)" (August 20, 2017)

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Monday, October 13

The Neighborhood - "Welcome to the new Normals" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
The Johnsons and Butlers face big changes and unexpected challenges as Tina discovers a new passion, Malcolm navigates work and family boundaries and Courtney takes a major step with Marty. Meanwhile, Dave’s tech experiment backfires and Gemma’s parenting plan goes awry.

DMV - "Pilot" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
East Hollywood Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) driving examiner Colette pines for her coworker Noa while enduring teasing from colleagues Gregg, Vic and Ceci. Also, new manager Barb rallies the crew to save their branch from government shutdown.

TV We Love - "I Love Lucy" (The CW, 8:00PM ET/PT)
A deep dive into "I Love Lucy," widely regarded as one of the greatest sitcoms of all time; exploring the groundbreaking partnership of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, whose comedic brilliance and bold business moves forever changed television.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of October 13)

Monday, October 13

Kat Dennings (Shifting Gears/Dollface/2 Broke Girls/Raising Dad) - Watch Kat on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Steve Martin (Only Murders in the Building), Martin Short (Only Murders in the Building/Mulaney/I'm a Big Girl Now/The Associates) and Selena Gomez (Only Murders in the Building/Wizards of Waverly Place) - Steve, Martin and Selena are guests on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Keanu Reaves (Swedish Dicks) - Keanu and Alex Winter are guests on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Jason Bateman (Arrested Development/George and Leo/Chicago Sons/Simon/The Hogan Family/It's Your Move/Silver Spoons) - Jason appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Laverne Cox (Clean Slate) - Andy Cohen intervews Laverne on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9pm on Bravo.
Patricia Arquette (High Desert) - Patricia talks about Murdaugh: Death in the Family on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Bradley Whitford (Perfect Harmony/Trophy Wife) - Bradley talks about The Diplomat on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am and on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
Colin Hanks (Life in Pieces) - Colin chats with the hosts about John Candy: I Like Me on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
Michael J. Fox (Family Ties/Spin City/The Michael J. Fox Show) - Michael discusses his new book Future Boy: Back to the Future and My Journey Through the Space-Time Continuum with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Ayo Edebiri (Big Mouth/The Bear) - Co-host Gayle King sits down with Ayo and Julia Roberts on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Tim Meadows (DMV/Schooled/No Activity/Son of Zorn/Mr. Box Office/The Bill Engvall Show) - Tim talks about DMV on CBS Mornings Plus in the 9am hour.
Brian Baumgartner (The Office) - Brian talks about the We Need A Fourth podcast on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Sherri Shepherd (Mr. Iglesias/Trial & Error/Sherri/Less Than Perfect/Suddenly Susan) - Sherri talks about The Sunshine Queens on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Jaleel White (Family Matters/Grown Ups) - Jaleel joins Sherri to talk about the new season of his hit game show Flip Side on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Vanessa Lachey (Truth Be Told/Dads) - Vanessa and Nick Lachey talk about Netflix's Love is Blind on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Cristela Alonzo (Cristela) - Cristela talks about Netflix's Stay Classy on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Cafe Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie is showing Drew how to make the perfect pumpkin spice meatballs on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.