SitcomsOnline Digest: Casting in Place for Punky Brewster Reboot; Happy Days Cartoon Spinoffs to Arrive on DVD

Saturday, November 02, 2019

SitcomsOnline Digest: Casting in Place for Punky Brewster Reboot; Happy Days Cartoon Spinoffs to Arrive on DVD

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! This week, we have casting news for the reboot of Punky Brewster, we're hearing news of a major acquisition by HBO Max, and we are also hearing news of some animated spinoffs of a pair of classic sitcoms coming to DVD. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

Casting has been rounded out for the Peacock reboot of Punky Brewster. (Deadline)
South Park hasn't given up on mocking China at all. (Deadline)
Speaking of South Park, HBO Max has gotten the prized streaming rights to the series, for $500 million. (Engadget)
If you remember the 90s, then you remember the game Minesweeper. Now it's being considered for a game show format. (Deadline)
Bernard Slade, who created The Partridge Family and was a key figure in many classic sitcoms from Screen Gems in the 60s and 70s, has died at age 89. (New York Times)
ABC has picked up full seasons of some of their series. (SitcomsOnline)

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

TVShowsOnDVD has reported that a pair of animated spinoffs of Happy Days and Laverne & Shirley are coming to DVD in MOD form, with The Fonz and the Happy Days Gang and Laverne & Shirley in the Army set for release on Tuesday. Neither seem to be available to order just yet.

WEEKLY PLANNER (NOVEMBER 2 - NOVEMBER 8)

Decades is celebrating Carl Reiner (who will be accepting an award from The Paley Center for Media in a few weeks) this weekend as they present some of his work on The Dick Van Dyke Show as well as other shows.
This sort of slipped past us last week, but TV One is bringing back part of TGIF as they are now airing Family Matters every Friday night at 8, before it settles into a regular daily timeslot on November 11.
ABC has The Little Mermaid Live! on Tuesday night.
It isn't exactly as Christmas-y as what Hallmark and Lifetime have going on, but Freeform has started their Kickoff to Christmas, which will lead in to the more Christmas-y 25 Days of Christmas programming.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Tuesday, May 6

Night Court - "Funniest Judge in the City" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Abby suspects the courthouse's new "fun judge" may not be as fun as he seems; Gurgs must regain control when her new courthouse welcome video, starring Roz, takes on a life of its own.

Night Court - "A Decent Proposal" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Abby finds herself in charge of two runaway teens; Dan and Julianne balk at the idea that they've become friends; a surprise appearance by a mysterious stranger turns Abby's world upside down.

Tyler Perry's House of Payne - "No Bueno" (BET, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Jazmine reminds a forgetful C.J. about his first wedding anniversary; Curtis and Ella bring over a cake called No Bueno to celebrate, only to learn there is no celebration to be had; Calvin prepares to attend Pookie's wedding solo.

Tyler Perry's Assisted Living - "One Drop" (BET, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
When Efe's foundation offers free D.N.A. tests, Karen participates and finds out a shocking discovery; Leah employs Two Hunks and a Trunk to spur Jeremy into action to complete his honey-do list.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of May 5)

Tuesday, May 6

Nick Offerman (Parks and Recreation) - Catch Nick on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Reba McEntire (Happy's Place/Malibu Country/Reba), Jenny McCarthy (Two and a Half Men/Jenny) and Jason Priestley (Call Me Fitz/Sister Kate) - E! News has interviews with Reba, Jenny and Jason at 11pm on E!.
Kelsey Grammer (Frasier/Partners/Hank/Back to You/Cheers) - It’s a DAYTIME EXCLUSIVE with Emmy®-winning TV icon Kelsey Grammer on Tamron Hall, so check your local listings. For the first time, Kelsey gets raw and honest about the effect his sister's murder had on him. He revisits it all in his powerful new book, Karen: A Brother Remembers.
Lisa Kudrow (No Good Deed/HouseBroken/Web Therapy/The Comeback/Friends/Mad About You) - Lisa is telling Drew about her first audition ever, her thirty-year wedding anniversary and whether his son has seen Friends on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings. Plus, she's dishing on her thrilling new show No Good Deed.
Carol Kane (Taxi/All Is Forgiven/Amerian Dreamer/Pearl/Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) - Carol is joining Drew and they're reminiscing on meeting at SNL in 1982 and talking about Carol's fifty-year career including projects like The Princess Bride and Taxi on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.