Friday, October 16, 2020

Fri-Yay: COVID-19 Storylines on TV, Will Viewers Watch?; Antenna TV's 70 Episode Jack Benny Marathon for 70th Anniversary

It's time for another edition of Fri-Yay! That means we will take a look back on some sitcom happenings in recent days or weeks or other fun sitcomy stuff. It's a sitcom lover's paradise! Happy Fri-Yay!

Connecting

by Vincent

This past week, NBC premiered the first new sitcom since the COVID-19 pandemic began: Connecting..., a sitcom shot remotely about a group of friends meeting through video chats during quarantine. If you haven't heard of it, you might not be some: the show attracted just a bit over 1 million viewers for its premiere, low numbers even in a world where broadcast ratings continue to drop. The show will likely finish out its 8-episode order, but there's no doubt that it didn't attract much interest. Which leads me to wonder: how much will viewers want to watch the pandemic reflected back at them?

It's a fair question given many shows are planning to incorporate COVID-19 into their storylines this year, from Connecting... to Superstore to black-ish, as well as dramas like Grey's Anatomy, The Good Doctor. And yet, I personally think people watch TV shows as a means of escape, which includes escaping from our anxiety-ridden reality. Will viewers think the same thing? That could be part of why they didn't connect with Connecting... (despite the show actually being pretty solid, as noted in our review). As more and more shows premiere and cover COVID-19, it will be interesting to see whether viewers embrace the real life stories or whether they prefer to forget.


The Jack Benny Program

Antenna TV will air 70 back-to-back episodes of The Jack Benny Program starting next Saturday, October 24 to mark the program's 70th television anniversary. The 70-episode marathon will feature the best gags, guests and glares from The Jack Benny Program. First a radio program, the show's cast regularly broke the fourth wall to interact with the audience and included running jokes such as Benny's age, forever frozen at 39. The Jack Benny Program 70th anniversary marathon starts Saturday, October 24 at 10 a.m. ET and continues through 8:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, October 25.


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Friday, March 29

none scheduled

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 25)

Friday, March 29

  • Michael Keaton (Report to Murphy/Working Stiffs/All's Fair) - Watch Michael on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Ramy Youssef (Ramy/See Dad Run) - Ramy appears on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Sarah Paulson (Leap of Faith) - Sarah is a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
  • Bowen Yang (Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens) - Bowen appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
  • Lauren Lapkus (Crashing/Clipped/Are You There, Chelsea?) - Lauren is a guest on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
  • Jim Parsons (Young Sheldon/The Big Bang Theory) - Jim talks about Mother Play on NBC's Today in the 9am hour.
  • Frank Grillo (Battery Park) - Frank talks about his new film Lights Out on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local lisitngs.
  • Eugene Levy (Schitt's Creek/Greg the Bunny/Hiller and Diller) - Eugene is telling Drew about working with his two children on Schitt's Creek, joining season four of Only Murders in the Building and traveling around the world for his new show on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.


New on DVD/Blu-ray (November-March)

Leave it to Beaver - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) Father Knows Best - The Complete Series The Odd Couple - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) Three's Company - The Official 40th Anniversary Collection Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)

11/07 - South Park - The Complete Twenty-Sixth Season (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/14 - Leave it to Beaver - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/05 - Father Knows Best - The Complete Series
12/05 - The Odd Couple - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/12 - The Dick Van Dyke Show - The Complete Series
12/12 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 2 (Blu-ray)
12/12 - That Girl - The Complete Series
12/15 - Letterkenny - Season 11
12/19 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Official Restored Complete Series
12/22 - Three's Company - The Official 40th Anniversary Collection (includes The Ropers and Three's a Crowd)
01/09 - South Park - Seasons 11-15 (Blu-ray)
01/16 - Ghosts (UK) - Season Five
02/13 - Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/27 - The Really Loud House - Season One
03/12 - Ghosts (UK) - The Complete Series
03/12 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 3 (Blu-ray)
03/12 - Rick and Morty - Season 7 (Blu-ray Steelbook) (Blu-ray) (DVD)

That Girl - The Complete Series The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Official Restored Complete Series

More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD Releases / DVD Reviews Archive / SitcomsOnline Digest


Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts

03/28 - Netflix's Good Times Animated Comedy Trailer; Too Close for Comfort and Check It Out! Complete Series on DVD
03/27 - The Upshaws Part 5 This April; Max Orders Noah Wyle Medical Drama
03/26 - Apple TV+ Orders Star-Studded Comedy; Elizabeth Banks Joins New Peacock Series
03/25 - Disney Channel Orders Wizards of Waverly Place Revival; Paramount+ Animated Comedy Ark: The Animated Series
03/24 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of March 25, 2024)
03/23 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Netflix Sets Premiere Date for Good Times Animated Reboot; NBC Renews Several Popular Series
03/22 - NBC Renews Nearly All Chicago and Law & Order Series; Goosebumps Season 2 Cast Update
03/21 - Hallmark Renews The Way Home; You Final Season Sets Cast
03/20 - Community Arrives on Peacock April 1, Movie Coming Soon; Hulu Premieres New Comedy Dinosaur April 5
03/19 - NBC Summer 2024 Schedule; Starz Drama Rounds Out All-Star Cast
03/18 - Shout! TV Celebrates 25 Years of Farscape; AMC Acquires Snowpiercer
03/17 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of March 18, 2024)
03/16 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Ty Burrell Sitcom in the Works at ABC; CBS Renews Ghosts
03/15 - Netflix Heads to the Arctic for Comedy Series; Neal Brennan's 3rd Comedy Special
03/14 - SNL Announces Second to Last 3 Episode Set of Season; Bill Maher Renewed for 2 More Seasons
03/13 - CBS Renews Ghosts and Fire Country; Apple TV+ Orders Owen Wilson Comedy
03/12 - Roseanne Couch Week on COZI TV; The CW Orders Leighton Meester Series for 2025
03/11 - Every Grey's Anatomy Episode Now on Hulu; You Season 5 Casting Update
03/10 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of March 11, 2024)
03/09 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Tim Allen Headlining ABC Comedy Pilot; NBC Developing Bewitched Inspired Sitcom
03/08 - Amazon Freevee Gets New Comedy Series; Apple TV+ Loot Returns April 3
03/07 - Jim Parsons and Mayim Bialik Reprising Their Characters from Big Bang; Monsters at Work Returns for Season 2
03/06 - CBS Orders Multi-Camera Spin-off of Young Sheldon; FETV Acquires Highway Patrol
03/05 - Fox Summer 2024 Schedule, In-Season Finales; CBS Renews Tracker for Season 2
03/04 - Laff Acquires Matthew Perry and Will Arnett Sitcoms; Lisa Whelchel Returns for MeTV Series
03/03 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of March 4, 2024)
03/02 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Pluto TV Adds More Channels Including Universal Action; CBS Renews Young and the Restless for Four More Years
03/01 - Lopez vs Lopez Season 2 Brings Out the Stars; Prime Video's Música Drops April 4
02/29 - Season 3 of Hacks Adds Star Power; Remembering Richard Lewis
02/28 - BUZZR Celebrates Women's History Month in March; 10th Anniversary of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon