Monday, October 18, 2021
GAC Family Acquires Classic Sony Sitcoms; Remembering Betty Lynn from The Andy Griffith Show

As of Sept. 27, cable network Great American Country has rebranded into two networks: GAC Family and GAC Living. Classic Sony Pictures Television sitcoms have joined the lineup on GAC Family! The weekday schedule has blocks of Hazel from 6am-8am, Father Knows Best from 8am-11am, Silver Spoons from 11am-2pm, Bewitched from 2pm-5pm, I Dream of Jeannie from 5-8pm, then a movie double feature from 8pm-12am, with sitcoms returning in late night with more Bewitched from 12am-3am and more I Dream of Jeannie from 3am-6am. Weekends has less sitcoms, but still some airings! Silver Spoons airs 6-10am, Bewitched from 10am-1pm, I Dream of Jeannie from 1-2pm, then movies from 2pm-2am, before closing the night off with Bewitched from 2am-3am and I Dream of Jeannie from 3am-6am.
GAC Family announced the network's first original movies debuting this fall. The star-studded films kick off with An Autumn Romance, starring Chad Michael Murray, Jessica Lowndes, Dennis Andres, Moni Ogunsuyi and Michael Brown, premiering October 23; followed by all-new Christmas movies Much Ado About Christmas, starring Susie Abromeit and Torrance Coombs on October 30; and Christmas Time is Here, starring Dewshane Williams, Rukiya Bernard and Tom Pickett on November 13. A Kindhearted Christmas, starring Cameron Mathison and Jennie Garth premieres Saturday, November 20 at 8pm ET/PT.
Actress Betty Lynn, who was best known for her role as Thelma Lou on The Andy Griffith Show, has died. She died on October 16 in Mount Airy, North Carolina, after a brief illness. Ms. Lynn was 95.
Lynn's first sitcom starring role was as June on the first season of the ABC sitcom Where's Raymond? from 1953 to 1954. June was the wife of Jonathan (Allyn Joslyn) and mother of Ginny (Frances Karath). The series was renamed The Ray Bolger Show for the second season. The Where's Raymond? cast included Ray Bolger, Richard Erdman and Sylvia Lewis.
She played Pearl on the short-lived 1958 ABC sitcom Love That Jill. Pearl was the secretary of Jack Gibson (Robert Sterling). The cast included Anne Jeffreys, James Lydon, Polly Rose, Barbara Nichols, Nancy Hadley and Kay Elhardt.
Lynn appeared in the recurring role as Thelma Lou, Deputy Barney Fife's (Don Knotts) girlfriend, on the CBS sitcom The Andy Griffith Show. She appeared as Barney's sweetheart in 26 episodes from 1961 to 1966. She reprised the role in the 1986 NBC TV reunion movie Return to Mayberry. The Andy Griffith Show cast included Andy Griffith, Ron Howard, Francis Bavier, Elinor Donahue (1960-1961), Jim Nabors (1963-1964), George Lindsey (1965-1968), Aneta Corsaut (1964-1968), Howard McNear, Jack Dodson (1966-1968), Hal Smith (1960-1967) and Jack Burns (1965-1966).
Some of her sitcom guest appearances included The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show, The Gale Storm Show (aka Oh, Susanna), The Farmer's Daughter, The Smothers Brothers Show (aka My Brother the Angel), Family Affair (4 episodes as Miss Lee) and My Three Sons (1 episode as Lois Bradley, 6 episodes as Janet/Janice Dawson).
She appeared as Viola Slaughter on eight episodes of the ABC western Texas John Slaughter from 1959 to 1960. Some of her drama guest appearances included M Squad, Lawman, Wagon Train, Bronco, Sugarfoot, Tales of Wells Fargo, National Velvet, Mod Squad, Little House on the Prairie, Police Story, Barnaby Jones and Matlock (4 episodes as Sarah).
Lynn appeared in many films during the 1940s and 1950s. Some of her credits included Sitting Pretty (1948), June Bride (1948), Mother is a Freshman (1949), Cheaper by the Dozen (1950), Payment on Demand (1951) and Meet Me in Las Vegas (1956).
Ms. Lynn was wonderful as Thelma Lou. Thelma Lou was a sweet and kind character. It's surprising that she didn't appear in more than 26 episodes of the series. Lynn had lived in Mount Airy, the home town of Andy Griffith, since 2006. She continued to make monthly personal appearances in town at The Andy Griffith Museum, signing autographs and meeting with her fans. She will be deeply missed.
Share your memories on our The Andy Griffith Show message board. View photos in our galleries.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Saturday, July 5
Mind Your Business - "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" (Bounce TV, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Aaliyah and Mia try convincing Lucille that the owner of a new nearby lounge is up to no good; Alfonso and Kim deal with AJ's first relationship.
Mind Your Business - "The Boy Is Mine" (Bounce TV, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Alfonso tries to maintain his newfound bromance after Aaliyah breaks up with his new friend; Kim goes the extra mile to inject luxury into their lifestyle to impress the moms of a Black Excellence club.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of June 30)
Friday, July 4
- Ayo Edebiri (Big Mouth/The Bear) - Watch Ayo on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Jay Pharoah (White Famous/Champaign ILL) - Jay is a guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Frankie Grande (Henry Danger/Danger Force) - Frankie appears on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Mark Hamill (The Texas Wheelers) - Mark is a guest on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Cristin Milioti (The Resort/Made for Love/A to Z/How I Met Your Mother) - Cristin appears on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Arnold Schwarzenegger (FUBAR) - Arnold is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Rob Riggle (Rob Riggle's Ski Master Academy/Golan the Insatiable/Gary Unmarried) - Rob appears on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
- Marsai Martin (black-ish) - Marsai chats with the ladies of The View on a repeat on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
- Brooke Shields (Suddenly Susan) - Brooke guest co-hosts NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
- Mario Cantone (And Just Like That.../Sex and the City) - Mario talks about And Just Like That... on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
- Billy Bob Thornton (Hearts Afire) - Billy Bob opens up about being married six-times and is sharing all about his new show Landman on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Justine Lupe (Nobody Wants This/Cristela) - Justine is telling Drew about her viral wardrobe moment with Kathy Bates and shares behind the scenes moments of filming Succession, revealing the cast member she had a crush on, on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
New on DVD and 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)
07/08 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
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