SitcomsOnline.com News Blog

Fox has set the fall premiere dates for its new and returning series. Kicking off the new season, the 71st Primetime Emmy Awards(R) will air LIVE coast-to-coast from the Microsoft Theater at L.A. LIVE in Los Angeles on Sunday, Sept. 22 (8:00-11:00 PM ET live/5:00-8:00 PM PT live). Hit drama 9-1-1 returns for its third season on Monday, Sept. 23 at 8:00 PM ET/PT, followed by the series premiere of crime drama Prodigal Son at 9:00 PM ET/PT, starring Tom Payne, Emmy Award and Golden Globe nominee Michael Sheen, Bellamy Young and Lou Diamond Phillips. All-new Tuesdays begin Sept. 24, with the sixth and final season premiere of Empire at 9:00 PM ET/PT, following the Season Three return of The Resident at 8:00PM ET/PT. On Wednesday, Sept. 25, television's #1 new series, The Masked Singer, returns with a special two-hour season premiere from 8:00-10:00 PM ET/PM. Thursday Night Football, with NFL Hall of Famers Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long and Michael Strahan headlining the pregame show, returns Sept. 26 at 7:30 PM-CC ET live/4:30 PM-CC PT live, as the Green Bay Packers host the Philadelphia Eagles.

Animation Domination returns Sunday, Sept. 29, with the premieres of The Simpsons unprecedented 31st season at 8:00 PM ET/PT; the all-new animated comedy Bless the Harts at 8:30PM ET/PT, featuring the voices of Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Jillian Bell and Ike Barinholtz; the 10th season of Bob's Burgers at 9:00 PM ET/PT, in its new regular time period; and the 17th season of Family Guy at 9:30PM ET/PT, in its new regular time period. The series premiere of new drama Almost Family, starring Brittany Snow, Megalyn Echikunwoke, Emily Osment and Academy Award winner Timothy Hutton, will launch Wednesday, Oct. 2 at 9:00PM ET/PT in week two, following the time period premiere of The Masked Singer from 8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT.

WWE's flagship program, WWE's Smackdown Live, debuts Friday, Oct. 4 from 8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT. The weekly, two-hour live event will air 52 weeks a year, offering fans a unique combination of edge-of-your-seat action, unpredictable drama and world-class athleticism. WWE's Smackdown Live has helped launch the careers of pop-culture icons Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, John Cena, Undertaker, Triple H, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and The Bella Twins.

FX Networks announced the fall premiere dates for the hit biker drama Mayans M.C., the acclaimed Mr Inbetween, the ninth installment of the American Horror Story franchise, American Horror Story: 1984, and the 14th season of comedy It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. The premiere dates are as follows:

Mayans M.C. - Season Two Premieres Tuesday, September 3 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FX
Mr Inbetween - Season Two Debuts Thursday, September 12 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FX
American Horror Story: 1984 - Ninth Installment Premieres Wednesday, September 18 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FX
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - 14th Season Begins Wednesday, September 25 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FXX

ABC 2016-17

Fall 2016

Mondays
8:00PM Dancing with the Stars
10:00PM Conviction (NEW!)

Tuesdays
8:00PM The Middle
8:30PM American Housewive (NEW!)
9:00PM Fresh Off the Boat
9:30PM The Real O'Neals
10:00PM Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Wednesdays
8:00PM The Goldbergs
8:30PM Speechless (NEW!)
9:00PM Modern Family
9:30PM black-ish
10:00PM Designated Survivor (NEW!)

Thursdays
8:00PM Grey's Anatomy
9:00PM Notorious (NEW!)
10:00PM How to Get Away with Murder

Fridays
8:00PM Last Man Standing
8:30PM Dr. Ken
9:00PM Shark Tank
10:00PM 20/20

Saturdays
8:00PM Saturday Night College Football

Sundays
7:00PM America's Funniest Home Videos
8:00PM Once Upon a Time
9:00PM Secrets and Lies
10:00PM Quantico

Mid-Season:

Unscheduled Mid-Season 2017:
COMEDY: Downward Dog (NEW), Imaginary Mary (NEW)
DRAMA: Still Star-Crossed (NEW), Time After Time (NEW), The Catch (returning), American Crime (returning), Scandal (returning)
REALITY: The Bachelor (returning)

NOTES: ABC introduces nine new series this season, including four comedies and five dramas. When We Rise, created by Oscar®-winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black (Milk, Big Love, J. Edgar), will air as a limited series event during the year. Dirty Dancing, a three-hour filmed musical event; Ali: The Champion(wt), a special honoring boxing legend Mohammed Ali; and an all-new special from David Blaine following his critically acclaimed ratings smash David Blaine: Real or Magic were announced. The Catch, American Crime and Scandal will debut later in the season.

Discuss ABC's 2016-17 lineup and also you can view complete program information.

TV One is welcoming the summer with an epic Empire Memorial Day Marathon spanning two consecutive days, Sunday, May 29 and Monday, May 30. Viewers are invited to binge watch the deliciously devious Lyon family and their dynastic drama starting with Season 1 on Sunday, May 29 at 12 p.m. ET/Noon and Season 2 on Monday, May 30 at 7 a.m. ET. It's every episode of television's award-winning and most nominated series starring Academy Award nominee Terrence Howard and Academy Award and Emmy Award nominee Taraji P. Henson. In the words of the matriarch herself, "Don't forget to thank your Cookie on this historic occasion!" Adding to the fun of TV One's Empire Memorial Day Marathon, TVOne.TV is also launching four new online packages, including "This Ain't New," a think piece on the comparison between soaps of yesteryear and their modern interpretations or remixes; "Which Empire Character Are You?," an exclusive online quiz to determine if viewers have what it takes to be a Lyon; "Music Star Copycat," an in-depth look at which real-life musicians were the inspiration for Empire's cast of characters; and "Best Empire Looks," a week-to-week editorial capturing each character's best looks.

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! It's been a busy week of renewals, new series acquisitions by networks, and above all else, speculation about the lack of renewals of some series. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

TUESDAY (APRIL 19) HOME MEDIA RELEASES

• Silicon Valley - The Complete Second Season (DVD, $26.95; Blu-ray, $34.98): The HBO series returns to DVD in this release.
• Veep - The Complete Fourth Season (DVD, $26.95; Blu-ray, $34.95): Another hit HBO series, this one starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus, returns in this release.

Who to Follow: Ilene Graff (Facebook, Twitter)

Claim to Fame: As we often do, we are continuing sort of a theme this week with TV moms of the 80s, and this week we have Ilene Graff. She began her television career with appearances on series such as Barnaby Jones, Laverne & Shirley, and Three's Company. Her big television claim to success claim came from playing the matriarch on the series Mr. Belvedere. However, what many people don't realize is that she started as a stage actress before coming to television, and appeared in Broadway productions. She continues to make such appearances to these days, and to many of her biggest fans, her stage career is what she is best known for. She doesn't post a whole lot or very often, but we hope to hear more from her in the future.