Fri-Yay: Latest Edition of Live in Front Is Another Delightful Revisiting of Sitcoms Past; TBS Renews American Dad! Through Season 19

Friday, December 17, 2021

Fri-Yay: Latest Edition of Live in Front Is Another Delightful Revisiting of Sitcoms Past; TBS Renews American Dad! Through Season 19

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!

Live in Front of a Studio Audience - The Facts of Life & Diff'rent Strokes

by Vincent

Last week, ABC aired its most recent Live in Front of a Studio Audience edition, which celebrated The Facts of Life and Diff'rent Strokes. As is the case with Live in Front, the show reenacted episodes of these classic sitcoms with modern comedy actors. It continues to surprise me the huge names these shows are able to get, with Jennifer Aniston and Jon Stewart among others participating in the The Facts of Life episode and Kevin Hart in the Diff'rent Strokes episode. The Live in Front reenactments also stay really true to the original episodes, and offer a really fun look back at these classic sitcoms.

Overall, Live in Front is a must watch for any classic sitcom fan. However, it also makes me miss the fun of skilled multi-camera on television. It really is something special to see these huge actors recreating classic sitcom moments they grew up with just like we did. With network TV becoming less and less of a reliable delivery method of high quality scripted entertainment, these live celebrations are a nice reminder of when it was at the heights of its powers.

American Dad!

Cable's #3 comedy American Dad! has been renewed by TBS for seasons 18 and 19. Co-creator Matt Weitzman and executive producer Brian Boyle have inked new deals to continue showrunning and executive producing the additional seasons, from 20th Television Animation. The 17th season of American Dad! premieres on Monday, January 24, on TBS at 10:00 p.m. ET/9:00 p.m. CT.

American Dad! centers on super patriotic CIA agent Stan Smith (voiced by Seth MacFarlane) and the misadventures of his unconventional family in Langley Falls, VA. Stan applies the same drastic measures used in his job at the CIA to his home life, where Stan's blissfully unaware wife, Francine (Wendy Schaal), has an unfaltering loyalty that makes her blind to his unabashed arrogance. His left-wing activist daughter Hayley (Rachael MacFarlane), however, doesn't let him off so easily – and knows just how to push her father's buttons. Hayley's brother is the geeky-yet-confident Steve (Scott Grimes), a kid who spends his time playing video games and obsessing about the opposite sex. The Smith cabinet is rounded out by two rather unconventional members: Roger (MacFarlane), a sassy, sarcastic and routinely inappropriate space alien, and Klaus (Dee Bradley Baker), an attention-starved goldfish with the brain of a German Olympic skier.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Thursday, January 27

Young Sheldon - "A Lot of Band-Aids and the Cooper Surrender" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Sheldon makes friends with his dorm neighbors. Also, George Sr. learns his job is in jeopardy.

United States of Al - "Hunt / Shikar" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Riley, upset that Freddy taught Hazel how to ride a bike while he was deployed, attempts to teach her something new to make up for it. Also, Ariana invites Al to a fundraiser involving spin bikes, where he becomes competitive with Ariana’s handsome cycling instructor, and Art introduces Lois to his favorite secret pastime.

B Positive - "Dagobah, a Room and a Chimney Sweep" (CBS, 9:00PM ET/PT)
A therapist and newly divorced dad is looking for a kidney donor when he runs into a rough-around-the-edges woman from his past who offers her own kidney.

B Positive - "A Boss, a Bear Claw and a Defibrillator" (CBS, 9:30PM ET/PT)
A therapist and newly divorced dad is looking for a kidney donor when he runs into a rough-around-the-edges woman from his past who offers her own kidney.

Call Me Kat - "Call Me Forty" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Oscar attempts multiple surprises to celebrate Kat's 40th birthday, including meeting his mother; Max tries to figure out why he continually strikes out with women.

Pivoting - "Hell on Wheels" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Sarah dips her toes into the dating pool and enlists Amy and Jodie's help in vetting a woman whom she ran across on a dating app; Amy's maternal instincts are tested when she learns Luke isn't fitting in with other kids.

grown-ish - "It Was Good Until It Wasn't" (Freeform, 10:00PM ET/PT)
The gang copes with the fallout of the explosive events that took place at the luau; Aaron deals with the accountability of his actions at the party; Zoey turns to Pops and Ruby for advice; Ana and Vivek keep a secret under wraps.

Single Drunk Female - "I'm Sorry, But…" (Freeform, 10:30PM ET/PT)
Sam tries to win over Brit by making an amends at her birthday party. Unfortunately, Sam wasn't invited, and neglects Felicia. Meanwhile, when Sam's probation officer stops by, Carol struggles to explain Sam's "situation" to her friends.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of January 24)

Thursday, January 27

Kevin James (The Crew/Kevin Can Wait/The King of Queens) - Catch Kevin on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Ilana Glazer (The Afterparty/Broad City) - Ilana appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Oliver Hudson (Splitting Up Together/Rules of Engagement/My Guide to Becoming a Rock Star) - Oliver and his sister Kate are guests on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Kenan Thompson (Kenan/Kenan & Kel) - Kean will be on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
David Cross (Arrested Development/Running Wilde/Oliver Beene) - David appears on The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Cynthia Nixon (And Just Like That.../Sex and the City) - Cynthia is a guest on Watch What Happens: Live at 10:30pm on Bravo.
Tom Selleck (The Closer) - Tom talks about Blue Bloods on LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan, so check your listings.
Sherri Shepherd (Mr. Iglesias/Trial & Error/Sherri/Less Than Perfect) - Sherri guest hosts The Wendy Williams Show.
Yvette Nicole Brown (The Mayor/The Odd Couple/Community) - Yvette appears on The Real, so check your local listings.
Julie Bowen (Modern Family) - Julie is a guest on The Kelly Clarkson Show, so check your local listings.
Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Café Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie is talking all about her new memoir and cooking up her mom’s upside-down cake on Rachael Ray, so check your local listings.
Ana Gasteyer (American Auto/People of Earth/Subutagory) - Ana talks about American Auto on Access Daily, so check your local listings.
Stanley Tucci (Central Park) - Stanley talks about AMC's La Fortuna on NBC's Today in the 9am hour.
Halle Berry (Living Dolls) - Halle talks about Moonfall on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Trevor Jackson (grown-ish) - Trevor talks about grown-ish on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.