Wednesday, November 27, 2019
CBS Slates I Love Lucy Christmas Special on Dec. 20; Is 2020 the Year of the Rabbit?

I Love Lucy Christmas Special, a new one-hour special featuring two back-to-back colorized episodes of the classic series, will be broadcast Friday, Dec. 20 from 8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT on the CBS Television Network. I Love Lucy Christmas Special features "The Christmas Episode" and the newly colorized "Paris at Last." The main titles and end credits are seamlessly combined into one set at the beginning and end of the hour, with no interruption between the episodes. "The Christmas Episode" finds the Ricardos and Mertzes decorating Lucy and Ricky's Christmas tree and reminiscing about how their lives have changed since the arrival of the Ricardos' son, Little Ricky (Keith Thibodeaux). Flashbacks recall the night Lucy told Ricky she was pregnant, the time Lucy showed up unexpectedly as part of a barbershop quartet and the day Ricky and the Mertzes rehearsed taking Lucy to the maternity ward. "The Christmas Episode" was first broadcast on CBS on Christmas Eve, 1956. The episode was not included in the series' long history of rebroadcasts, first on CBS Daytime and later in syndication. Long thought to be lost, the program was rediscovered by CBS in 1989.
In "Paris at Last," the Ricardos and Mertzes arrive in the French capital, where Lucy encounters a sidewalk artist who sells multiple copies of the same "original" oil painting, and a con man who offers a better exchange rate for her American dollars than the one offered in the banks. Later, her attempt to have a quiet lunch in an outdoor café finds her not only unwittingly ordering a plate of snails, but paying the check with counterfeit French francs. Next stop: the Bastille? "Paris at Last" was originally broadcast on Feb. 27, 1956, and became an immediate viewer favorite. I Love Lucy Christmas specials have aired on the Network the past six years, each combining the holiday-themed episode with a different comedy classic. Beginning in 2015, "The Christmas Episode" has been shown colorized in its entirety, with fully colorized flashback scenes that had previously been presented in black and white.
IFC's new original comedy series Year of the Rabbit follows Detective Inspector Rabbit (Berry), a hardened booze-hound who's seen it all, and his hapless, new, by-the-books partner Strauss (Freddie Fox; Cucumber, Banana). While they're investigating a local murder, the lewd but insightful adoptive daughter (Susan Wokoma; Chewing Gum, Crazyhead) of the chief of police joins them, becoming the country's first female officer. Together, the trio must fight crime while rubbing shoulders with street gangs, crooked politicians, spiritualists, music hall stars and more.
Year of the Rabbit, co-produced by IFC, is directed by BAFTA-nominated Ben Taylor (Catastrophe) and written by Emmy(R) and WGA Award winners Andy Riley and Kevin Cecil (Veep), with additional material from Matt Berry. Ben Farrell and Toby Stevens will executive produce for Objective Fiction, with Hannah Mackay producing. The six-episode first season of Year of the Rabbit premieres Wednesday, February 19, 2020 at 10:30pm ET/PT only on IFC.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Tuesday, August 26
none scheduled
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of August 25)
Tuesday, August 26
- Tiffany Haddish (The Last O.G./The Carmichael Show) - Tiffany guest hosts a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Andy Samberg (Digman!/Brooklyn Nine-Nine) - Catch Andy on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Harvey Guillén (What We Do in the Shadows/The Thundermans) - Harvey appears on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Matt Rogers (No Good Deed/I Love That for You) and Bowen Yang (Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens) - Matt and Bowen are guests on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Sandra Oh (Arli$$) - Sandra appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Nicole Byer (Grand Crew/Loosely Exactly Nicole) and Sasheer Zamata (Home Economics/Woke/Robbie) - Nicole and Sasheer are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
- Amanda Peet (Brockmire/Togetherness/Bent) and Olivia Munn (Perfect Couples) - Amanda and Olivia chat with the ladies of The View on a repeat on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
- Erika Alexander (Run the World/Living Single/The Cosby Show) - Erika talks about Invasion on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
- Austin Butler (Ruby & the Rockits/Zoey 101/Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide) - Austin talks about Caught Stealing on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
- Lea Thompson (Caroline in the City) - Lea is a guest on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Henry Winkler (Barry/Arrested Development/Out of Practice/Monty/Happy Days) - Henry appears on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Shakira Ja'nai Paye (Demascus) - Shakira is a guest on PIX11 Morning News on WPIX in New York at 9:40am.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series
03/11 - Frasier (2023) - Season Two
04/01 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season
05/13 - The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered)
06/06 - Shoresy - Season 2
06/17 - Looney Tunes - Collector's Vault - Volume 1 (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)
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