Saturday, September 11, 2021
SitcomsOnline Digest: Fox Mulls Future of Animated Comedies; Saturday Night Live Season Premiere Date Set
Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! It's a slow pre-fall season week (with the big "beginning" of the season coming on September 20), but we've got news about the future of some animated Fox comedies, the premiere of Saturday Night Live, and more. Let's get going!
HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB
- The Simpsons and Family Guy have stuck around long enough to define Fox (one since 1989 and the other since 1999, albeit with a hiatus for the latter), but with the network no longer owning either series and effectively being the one responsible for much of the costs without much to show for it past the original airing of the episodes, how much longer can they last? (Deadline)
- A date for the season premiere of Saturday Night Live has been set, but it's still not clear which cast members will return and some long time members could be gone as the series seeks to retool in a post-Trump era. (Deadline)
- Judge Judy's return in Judy Justice has been set for November 1. (Hollywood Reporter)
- Steve from Blue's Clues made a return online this week to talk to his fans from 25 years ago. (CBS News)
- Irma Kalish, a writer and producer who was involved in several Norman Lear series among others, has died at age 96. (SitcomsOnline)
WEEKLY PLANNER (SEPTEMBER 11 - SEPTEMBER 17)
- Decades has a binge of Family Affair this weekend.
- New seasons of Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! debut next week, complete with the new host of Jeopardy! Mike Richards, who is already fired (but already had episodes taped before being fired).
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Wednesday, January 22
Shifting Gears - "Job" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Riley, desperate for work, reluctantly takes a job at Matt’s shop. Meanwhile, Gabriel and Stitch secretly stray from Matt’s vision on a high-stakes restomod project.
Abbott Elementary - "Strike" (ABC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
City buses have stopped running due to a strike, resulting in many students being absent from school. The teachers at Abbott try to find creative solutions and adapt to hybrid learning. Meanwhile, Gregory and O’Shon strike up a friendship.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of January 20)
Wednesday, January 22
- Lucy Liu (Joey/Pearl) - Watch Lucy on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC. She also chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
- Ronny Chieng (Young Rock/Ronny Chieng: International Student) - Ronny hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
- Utkarsh Ambudkar (Ghosts/White Famous), Betsy Sodaro (Ghosts/Duncanville/Disjointed/Animal Practice) and Punam Patel (Ghosts/Return of the Mac/Kevin from Work) - Utkarsh, Betsy and Punam are guests on After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
- Morris Chestnut (Out All Night) - Morris talks about Watson on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am, on CBS Mornings Plus in the 9am hour, and on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
- Andrew Rannells (Girls/The New Normal) and Nick Kroll (Big Mouth/The League/Cavemen) - Andrew, Nick and Lin-Manuel Miranda are chatting with Drew about their Broadway show All In: Comedy About Love on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings. They're also talking to Drew about parenting advice, how they were raised and how comedy brings people together.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
10/08 - Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Twelfth Season / The Complete Series
10/22 - Veep - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
11/05 - I Love Lucy - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
11/12 - The King of Queens - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (2024 Release)
11/19 - SpongeBob SquarePants - The Complete Fourteenth Season
11/26 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 4 (Blu-ray)
12/03 - Angel (1960-1961) - The Complete Series, Volume 1
12/17 - Seinfeld - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (4K UHD)
01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series
More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD and Blu-ray Releases / TV Shows on DVD, Blu-ray and Prime Video / DVD Reviews Archive
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