Tuesday, May 12, 2020

Remembering Jerry Stiller of Seinfeld and The King of Queens; HBO Max Announces Santa Inc.

Jerry Stiller

Actor and comedian Jerry Stiller, who was best known for his roles as Frank Costanza in Seinfeld and as Arthur Spooner in The King of Queens, has died. He died from natural causes at his home on the Upper West Side of Manhattan on May 11. Mr. Stiller was 92.

Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara

Stiller married Anne Meara in 1954. The comedy duo Stiller and Meara was successful in the 1960s and 1970s. They made numerous appearances on variety and talk shows such as The Ed Sullivan Show, The Merv Griffin Show and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. They played Barney and Grace Dickerson, Howie Dickerson's (John Calvin) parents, in four episodes of The Paul Lynde Show in 1972-1973. Some of their other sitcom guest appearances together included The Courtship of Eddie's Father, Love, American Style, Rhoda, Archie Bunker's Place and The Love Boat. They hosted HBO Sneak Previews from 1979 to 1982. They had a sitcom pilot called The Stiller & Meara Show in 1986. In 2010, they had a Yahoo! web series called Stiller & Meara.

He starred as Gus Duzik in the short-lived 1975-1976 CBS sitcom Joe and Sons. He was the best friend of Joe Vitale (Richard Casellano) and worked with him at the Hobooken Sheet and Tube Company. The series also starred Florence Stanley, Bobbi Jordan, Barry Miller and Jimmy Baio.

Stiller played Sid Wilbur, the loyal maitre d' at a posh Manhattan restaurant, in the 1988-1989 comedy-drama Tattingers. The cast included Stephen Collins, Blythe Danner, Patrice Colihan, Chay Lentin, Jessica Prunell, Mary Beth Hurt, Roderick Cook, Zach Grenier, Rob Morrow, Sue Francis Pai, Yusef Bulos, Robert Clohessy, Simon Jones, Chris Elliott and Anna Levine.

Seinfeld - Estelle Harris, Jason Alexander and Jerry Stiller

He appeared as the cantankerous Frank Costanza, the father of George Costanza (Jason Alexander) and husband of Estelle Costanza (Estelle Harris), in 26 episodes of the NBC sitcom Seinfeld from 1993 to 1998. Frank Costanza was a former cook in the Army and learned to speak Korean in while serving in the Korean War. He invented the holiday Festivus as a reaction to the cultural commercialism of Christmas. Stiller received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series in 1997 and won an American Comedy Award for Funniest Male Guest Appearance in a TV Series in 1998 for the role. The series also starred Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Michael Richards.

The King of Queens

He starred as the eccentric Arthur Spooner in the 1998-2007 CBS sitcom The King of Queens. Arthur Spooner was the widowed father of Carrie Heffernan (Leah Remini) and father-in-law of Doug Heffernan (Kevin James). He lived in the basement of their Rego Park, Queens, New York house. His fourth marriage was to Spence's (Patton Oswalt) mother Veronica Olcin (Anne Meara) in the final season. The series also starred Victor Williams, Larry Romano (1998-2001), Lisa Rieffel (1998), Gary Valentine (1999-2007) and Nicole Sullivan (2001-2005).

Some of his sitcom guest appearances included Phyllis, Private Benjamin, Alice, Amanda's, The Larry Sanders Show and Sex and the City.

He provided the voice of Uncle Max for The Lion King 1½ and Harvey for Planes: Fire and Rescue. Some of his other voice credits included Linus! The Lion Hearted, Teacher's Pet, Fish Hooks and Foodfight!.

Stiller appeared with his actor son Ben Stiller in films such as Zoolander, Heavyweights, Hot Pursuit, The Heartbreak Kid and Zoolander 2. Some of his other film credits included The Taking of Pelham One Two Three, The Ritz, Nadine, Hairspray (1988), A Fish in the Bathtub and My 5 Wives.

He was interviewed for The Interviews: An Oral History of Television on December 12, 2005.

Survivors include his son Ben, daughter Amy (an actress) and two grandchildren. Anne Meara, his wife of over 60 years, died in 2015.

Mr. Stiller was a true comedic legend. He was perfectly cast as Frank Costanza and Arthur Spooner. He made everything he appeared in funnier. We thank him for the many laughs and entertainment he brought us during his long career. He will be greatly missed.

Share your memories on our Seinfeld and The King of Queens message boards. View photos in our galleries.

DECADES TV Network will honor the life and career of late comedian and actor Jerry Stiller with two back-to-back episodes of The Dick Cavett Show featuring the icon and his wife Anne Meara. Airing Wednesday, May 13 at 9p ET, viewers can relive a 1995 interview where Stiller discusses Seinfeld and his days on The Ed Sullivan Show. Following at 9:30p ET, the DECADES network will present a 1995 interview with Anne Meara.


Sarah Silverman and Seth Rogen

HBO Max announced it has ordered the adult animated series Santa Inc. from global content leader Lionsgate featuring voice performances by leads Sarah Silverman and Seth Rogen. The 8 episode, half-hour series will be written by showrunner Alexandra Rushfield (Shrill) and will be produced by Rogen's Point Grey Pictures as part of their multiplatform partnership with Lionsgate. Santa Inc. is the story of Candy Smalls (Silverman), the highest-ranking female elf in the North Pole. When the successor to Santa Claus (Rogen) is poached by Amazon on Christmas Eve, Candy goes for her ultimate dream— to become the first woman Santa Claus in the history of Christmas.


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Friday, November 14

Happy's Place - "I've Got a Secret" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
After Bobbie and Emmett's big moment, Bobbie is still unsure how Emmett truly feels about her, prompting Bobbie to do the unthinkable and give Emmett a birthday gift; Gabby tries to convince Isabella to give her the family discount on Happy's house.

Stumble - "Media Day" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Courteney decides to use media day as a way to recruit new cheerleaders and to push her team to get right back on that mat; DiMarcus proves that not all Buttons are meant to be pushed.

Vampirina: Teenage Vampire - "First Full Vampire" (Disney Channel, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Lucien plots as Sophie, Elijah and Demi reflect on their situation; Britney tries to meet Millie Eyelash; Vee learns a new way to channel her power.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of November 10)

Friday, November 14

  • George Clooney (Roseanne/The Facts of Life/ E/R (1984-1985) - Watch George on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Glen Powell (Chad Powers/Scream Queens) - Glen appears on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC. He also talks about The Running Man on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
  • Billy Gardell (Bob Hearts Abishola/Mike & Molly/Yes, Dear) - Billy is a guest on a repeat of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
  • Alicia Silverstone (American Woman) - Alicia chats about A Merry Little Ex-Mas with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
  • Keanu Reaves (Swedish Dicks) - Keanu and Alex Winter talk about Broadway's Waiting for Godot on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
  • Leslie Bibb (Palm Royale/God's Favorite Idiot/American Housewife/The Odd Couple/About a Boy) - Leslie co-hosts NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
  • Jay Ellis (Running Point/Insecure/The Game) - Jay tells Sherri about starring in All Her Fault on Peacock on Sherri, so check your local listings.
  • Margaret Cho (All-American Girl) - Margaret is a guest on New York Living on WPIX in New York at 10:05am.


New on DVD and Blu-ray

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) Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - The Complete First Season

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)
10/07 - Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - The Complete First Season

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

11/14 - Disney's Hulu's Family Guy's Hallmark Channel's Lifetime's Familiar Holiday Movie; Mad Men Coming to HBO Max in 4K
11/13 - Antenna TV Re-Acquires One Day at a Time and Sanford and Son; Season 2 of the Wild Series It's Florida, Man
11/12 - Fox Midseason 2026 Schedule; Hulu's Tell Me Lies Season 3 Premiere Date
11/11 - Cast Announced for Netflix's A Different World Sequel; Hulu's Sebastian Maniscalco Special Trailer
11/10 - ABC's New Game Show The Greatest Average American; Prime Video Christmas Movie
11/09 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of November 10, 2025)
11/08 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Fox and Sony Developing Reimagined Bewitched; Samsung TV Plus Launching AFV Channel
11/07 - TBS and TNT Holiday Schedule; Hulu's Back 'Four' More Reasonable Doubt; Remembering Diane Ladd of Alice
11/06 - Freeform's 25 Days of Christmas 2025 Schedule; Single Drunk Female Star Gets Hulu Film
11/05 - ABC 2025 Holiday Specials; Netflix Renews Nobody Wants This for Season 3
11/04 - Fox's Best Medicine Premieres January 2026; Final Season of Bel-Air Trailer
11/03 - Apple TV Holiday Schedule; Another Week and Dancing with the Stars Rises Again
11/02 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of November 3, 2025)
11/01 - SitcomsOnline Digest: King of the Hill Renewed for Two More Seasons on Hulu; MTV Cancels Ridiculousness
10/31 - Hulu Renews King of the Hill for Seasons 16 and 17; FX Renews Adults for Season 2; Remembering June Lockhart
10/30 - ABC's The Golden Girls 40th Anniversary Special on November 11; NBC 2025 Holiday Specials
10/29 - ABC Midseason 2026 Schedule; Hulu Renews Only Murders in the Building for Season 6, Now in London
10/28 - Hulu Debuts Trailer for Original Holiday Film; Sidelined Returns for Sequel on Tubi
10/27 - Netflix Grabs Victorious Spinoff Hollywood Arts; Dancing with the Stars Up for 5th Straight Week
10/26 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of October 27, 2025)
10/25 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Frankie Muniz Shares Photo Outside Studio for Malcolm in the Middle Reboot; Warner Bros. Discovery Still Looking for New Owner
10/24 - USA Network Renews The Rainmaker; Reba Hosting Christmas in Rockefeller Center
10/23 - The CW Holiday Specials Schedule; Apple TV Fraggle Rock Special
10/22 - Apple TV's Shrinking Returns in January 2026; Season 2 of Idris Elba Series Also Returns in January 2026
10/21 - FETV Acquires Here Come the Brides; Netflix's Mo Amer Special Trailer
10/20 - SNL November Guests Lineup; It's a Wonderful Lifetime 2025 Schedule
10/19 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of October 20, 2025)
10/18 - SitcomsOnline Digest: First Look at NBC Comedy Stumble; Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage Showrunner Talks When the Inevitable May Happen
10/17 - Apple TV's Palm Royale Returns November 12; Pop Culture Jeopardy! Moving to Netflix
10/16 - Kathleen Madigan Prime Video Special; His & Hers Premiere Date for Netflix
10/15 - ABC Wednesday Comedies Premiere Strong; Sebastian Maniscalco's Hulu Comedy Special Date
10/14 - Tubi's Breaking Bear Premieres March 2026; NBC's Stumble Trailer