Monday, November 18, 2019

Viacom's Comedy Central Renews The Office & Parks and Recreation; E! Gets New Jason Kennedy Series

The Office

Viacom announced continued stays in Scranton, Pennsylvania and Pawnee, Indiana. Under the new pact with NBCUniversal, Comedy Central extended its exclusive cable deal for legendary comedy The Office through 2021. After that, the series will continue to air through 2025 in a non-exclusive window on Viacom Media Networks. Additionally, Viacom renewed its cable deal for equally iconic sitcom Parks and Recreation. All 125 episodes will be able to air on Comedy Central, the #1 brand in comedy, through 2024. For Viacom, the deal was closed by Barbara Zaneri, EVP, Viacom Program Acquisitions Group (VPAG) for an undisclosed sum, along with a World's Best Boss mug and a new statue of Li'l Sebastian for the NBCUniversal lot. Previously this year VPAG acquired the exclusive cable rights to Seinfeld, for Comedy Central, TV Land and Paramount Network.

The Office is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from March 24, 2005 to May 16, 2013, lasting nine seasons and 201 episodes. It is an adaptation of the original BBC series of the same name and was adapted for American television by Greg Daniels, a veteran writer for Saturday Night Live. It was produced by Universal Television in association with Daniels' Deedle-Dee Productions and Reveille Productions. The series depicts the everyday lives of office employees in the Scranton, Pennsylvania branch of the fictional Dunder Mifflin Paper Company. To simulate the look of an actual documentary, it was filmed in a single-camera setup, without a studio audience or a laugh track. The Office starred Steve Carell, Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski, Jenna Fischer, B.J. Novak, Melora Hardin, Ed Helms, Mindy Kaling, Craig Robinson, Ellie Kemper, Kate Flannery, Angela Martin, Phyllis Smith, Leslie David Baker, Oscar Nunez, Brian Baumgartner, Creed Bratton, Paul Lieberstein, Rashida Jones, Amy Ryan and others.

Parks and Recreation

Parks and Recreation is an American political satire television sitcom that aired on NBC from April 9, 2009 to February 24, 2015, lasting for seven seasons and 125 episodes. The series was created by Greg Daniels and Michael Schur and produced by Universal Television in association with Deedle-Dee Productions and Fremulon. It presents a documentary-style look into the everyday lives and antics of public officials, who work in the local Parks and Recreation office and pursue various projects to make their fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana, a better place. To simulate the look of an actual documentary, it was filmed in a single-camera setup without a studio audience or a laugh track. The series starred Amy Poehler, Rashida Jones, Aziz Ansari, Nick Offerman, Aubrey Plaza, Chris Pratt, Adam Scott, Rob Lowe, Retta, Jim O'Heir, Paul Schneider, Billy Eichner, amongst others.


Jason Kennedy

E! announced that E! News' Jason Kennedy will host the new series In the Room, where he will take viewers inside celebrity homes for in-depth interviews and conversation around their latest projects, products, passions and more. The series will air several primetime specials before its full launch in early 2020. The first special airs on Wednesday, December 4 at 8pm ET/PT and features Kennedy in a rare sit down with four-time Super Bowl MVP Tom Brady. In this all-new interview, the New England Patriots quarterback opens up about his family and wife, environmentalist and supermodel, Gisele Bündchen, how his on-field success has brought on a different level of scrutiny, and why he'd rather not be called the "G.O.A.T. (Greatest of All Time)", despite being the winningest QB in NFL history.


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Sunday, September 14

The Great North - "Into the Russell-Verse" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Moon is annoyed when his sleepover plans include a surprise guest: Russell's younger cousin.

The Great North - "It's a Beef-Derful Life" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Beef risks his life to bring back roadkill moose meat for the town; Aunt Dirt and Jerry prepare to face the apocalypse.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of September 8)

Sunday, September 14

  • Patti LaBelle (Out All Night) - Catch Patti on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 10pm on Bravo.


New on DVD and Blu-ray

The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series Frasier (2023) - Season Two Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered) Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (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)

More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD and Blu-ray Releases / TV Shows on DVD, Blu-ray and Prime Video / DVD Reviews Archive


Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts

09/14 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of September 15, 2025)
09/13 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Paramount Looking to Merge with Warner Bros. Discovery; Samsung TV+ Adds Late Night with David Letterman
09/12 - Emmy Awards to Create Special Moments; Ricky Gervais Netflix Animated Comedy Alley Cats Coming in 2026
09/11 - Remembering Polly Holliday of Alice and Flo; Prime Video's Overcompensating Renewed for Season 2
09/10 - Netflix Renews Leanne for Season 2; Hazbin Hotel Returns October 29
09/09 - HBO Comedy The Chair Company; Trailer for Disney's Vampirina: Teenage Vampire
09/08 - The Paper Renewed for Season 2, NYC Event on Tuesday; Final Season of Bel-Air
09/07 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of September 8, 2025)
09/06 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Shifting Gears Picked Up for Three Additional Episodes; The Paper Renewed for Season Two
09/05 - Crutch Premieres November 3 on Paramount+; Trailer for Season 2 of Wizards Beyond Waverly Place
09/04 - Freeform's 31 Nights of Halloween 2025 Schedule; Dancing with the Stars Season 34 Cast
09/03 - Live Staged Reading of Three's Company Episode; Freeform Acquires According to Jim for October
09/02 - Hulu's Chad Powers Trailer; BET's The Hospital Premieres September 10
09/01 - TV Marathons on Labor Day 2025 Include Archie Bunker's Place and George Lopez
08/31 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of September 1, 2025)
08/30 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Saturday Night Live Cast Changes Loom; NBC Renews Password for Third Season
08/29 - HBO's Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television; Adult Swim Slates Two Series for October
08/28 - NBC's Password Renewed for Season 3 for 2026; Pluto TV Streaming CBS Shows Ahead of Fall Season
08/27 - Hulu's Deli Boys Renewed for Season 2 with Fred Armisen; HBO's I Love LA Premieres November 2
08/26 - English Teacher Returns on FX for Season 2; Jesse Williams Prime Video Series Trailer
08/25 - Doc Season 2 Trailer for Fox; Remembering David Ketchum and Jerry Adler
08/24 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of August 25, 2025)
08/23 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Home Improvement Cast Members to Reunite on Shifting Gears; The Paper to Have Binge Drop
08/22 - Hulu's Futurama Season 13 Trailer; A Man on the Inside Returns November 20 on Netflix
08/21 - George Lopez Coming to COZI TV; The Morning Show Season 4 Trailer
08/20 - Welcome Back, Kotter 50th Anniversary Marathon on Rewind TV; Apple TV+ Palm Royale Season 2 Premieres November 12
08/19 - Antenna TV's Archie Bunker's Place Labor Day Marathon; Larry the Cable Guy Prime Video Special
08/18 - Nobody Wants This Season 2 Premieres October 23; HGTV and Retta Continue Partnership
08/17 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of August 18, 2025)
08/16 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Paramount Plans Retool of Cable Networks; King of the Hill Revival Scores Big Ratings
08/15 - Catchy Comedy Acquires Hot in Cleveland; Netflix's Animated Comedy Strip Law Premieres in 2026
08/14 - Dan Levy's Netflix Comedy Series Cast; Betty la Fea: La Historia Continúa Season 2 Premieres Friday