Saturday, July 01, 2023
SitcomsOnline Digest: Actors Strike in the Works Too?; NBCUniversal Introducing New (Classic) Content for FAST
Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! Independence Day week is upon us, and we're still in the middle of a writers' strike that appears to be on the verge of getting even more complicated and drawn out, but nonetheless we have news for you (and actually, it's a pretty busy week of news)! Let's get going!
HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB
- Forget about a writers' strike; even if they do come to an agreement, SAG-AFTRA is now on the verge of potentially striking, and just as a show can't go on without writers, it also can't go on without actors. (CNN)
- Free ad supported television, or FAST, is quickly becoming a major player in streaming media, and now NBCUniversal is introducing some new channels on Xumo Play and Freevee, which will feature series such as Saturday Night Live, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Saved by the Bell, Major Dad, Punky Brewster, The A-Team, The Rockford Files, and more. (Variety)
- It's going to be Ryan Seacrest taking over at Wheel of Fortune. (Variety)
- The Price is Right aired the final episode "from Television City in Hollywood" on Monday, as the show prepares to move to Glendale for next season. (Deadline)
- In the tradition of reduced budgets, which seems to be affecting everything lately, ESPN has decided to let go of several prominent on-air talents (Deadline)
- Boy ghosts world? It seems that Ben Savage hasn't spoken to his Boy Meets World castmates in three years, and they're not really sure why that is. (Entertainment Weekly)
- The end has come for Geraldo Rivera at Fox News, and it is unclear what is next for him. (Daily Beast)
- Futurama is about to come back, and Hulu has released a trailer for the new season. (SitcomsOnline)
WEEKLY PLANNER (JULY 1 - JULY 8)
- Now that Decades has evolved to just comedy, H&I is taking over the annual tradition of the Twilight Zone marathon, which will start Sunday at noon and run through Tuesday.
- Syfy is taking a different approach with their Twilight Zone marathon this year, by featuring the most recent version of the series from Jordan Peele (though some of the classic Rod Serling episodes will be part of the lineup as well).
- With Catchy Comedy not airing Twilight Zone, there is a binge of Green Acres.
- The A-Team arrives on H&I beginning Wednesday.
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
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