SitcomsOnline.com News Blog

SitcomsOnline Digest: Paramount Looking to Merge with Warner Bros. Discovery; Samsung TV+ Adds Late Night with David Letterman

 Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! It's a very busy news week, with another possible media merger in the works, more Saturday Night Live casting news, and more. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

• Media merger talks are in full swing again, and now it seems that Paramount is looking to buy Warner Bros. Discovery. (Deadline)
• For those who have access to Samsung TV+ (either via a Samsung phone or television), there is a David Letterman channel which already had episodes of The Late Show with David Letterman, but now they've added his first talk show, Late Night with David Letterman. (Variety)
• This is a cast exit that we didn't quite see coming from Saturday Night Live: Ego Nwodim is leaving the show. (Deadline)
• It seems that it was a little less than Two and a Half Men when it came to salaries, because Jon Cryer revealed that his pay was about 1/3 of Charlie Sheen's. (Variety)
• Rainn Wilson is talking about the spinoff of The Office focused on Dwight that never happened. (Variety)
• The Emmy Awards tomorrow night will feature a tribute to The Golden Girls. (Deadline)
• ABC is developing a food truck workplace comedy, from David E. Kelley. (Deadline)
• Going Dutch has a new show runner for the upcoming season. (Deadline)
• A current season South Park episode has been pulled in light of current events, though it is still on Paramount+ (for now). (Deadline)
• Polly Holliday, known for her role of Flo on Alice, has died (which also means that every member of the original cast is no longer with us). (SitcomsOnline)

WEEKLY PLANNER (SEPTEMBER 13 - SEPTEMBER 19)

Remembering Polly Holliday of Alice and Flo; Prime Video's Overcompensating Renewed for Season 2

Actress Polly Holliday, who starred as Florence Jean "Flo" Castleberry in Alice and Flo, has died. She died from an apparent bout of pneumonia at her home in Manhattan, New York City, on September 9. Ms. Holliday was 88.

Holliday starred as Florence Jean "Flo" Castleberry in the CBS sitcom Alice from 1976 to 1980. The show stars Linda Lavin as Alice Hyatt, a widow who moves with her young son to start life over again and finds a job working at a roadside diner in Phoenix, Arizona. Flo is a sassy, man-hungry waitress at Mel's Diner. Her character's catchphrase of "kiss my grits!" remains the most memorable line associated with the series. "When donkeys fly!" was one of her other catchphrases.

She won two Golden Globe Awards for Best Supporting Actress - Series, Miniseries or Television Film in 1979 and 1980. She received three Emmy nominations for Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series in 1978, 1979 and 1980. The season 1-4 cast included Vic Tayback, Beth Howland, and Philip McKeon. Diane Ladd joined the cast in 1980 as Isabelle "Belle" Dupree, a hard-edged but kind-hearted woman. Recurring cast members included Marvin Kaplan (1977-1985), Dave Madden (1978-1985), Martha Raye (1978-1984), Duane R. Campbell (1978-1985), and Alan Haufrect (1978-1980).

Holliday left the show to star in her own spin-off series Flo, which aired on CBS for two seasons from 1980 to 1981. She reprised her role as sassy and street-smart waitress Florence Jean "Flo" Castleberry who returns to her hometown of Fort Worth, Texas—referred to as "Cowtown"—and becomes the proprietor of a rundown old roadhouse that she renames "Flo's Yellow Rose". The cast included Geoffrey Lewis, Jim B. Baker, Sudie Bond, Lucy Lee Flippin, Joyce Bulifant, Leo Burmester, Stephen Keep, George Flower, Mickey Jones, and Terry Willis (1980).

She joined the cast of the CBS sitcom Private Benjamin in the third season (1982-1983) as a temporary replacement for series regular Eileen Brennan (Cpt. Doreen Lewis), who was recovering from serious injuries after being struck by a car. She appeared as Cpt. Amanda Allan in three episodes before the series was canceled. The series was based on and set during the events of the 1980 movie of the same name.

Holliday had a recurring role as Lillian Patterson, Jill Taylor's (Patricia Richardson) mother, in five episodes of Home Improvement from 1993 to 1999. She starred as Captain Betty in the pilot episode of the CBS sitcom Stir Crazy in 1985. She played Lily, Rose Nylund's (Betty White) blind sister, in the episode "Blind Ambitions" of The Golden Girls in 1986.

She appeared as Prison Inmate Leader in six episodes of the CBS soap opera Search for Tomorrow in 1974. Some of her other television guest appearances included NBC Special Treat, American Playhouse, Amazing Stories (1986), The Equalizer (1988), and Homicide: Life on the Street. She starred as Momma Love, the mother of Reggie Love (JoBeth Williams), in the 1995-1996 CBS legal thriller drama The Client (also referred to as John Grisham's The Client).

Holliday starred as Mrs. Ruby Deagle in the 1984 black comedy horor film Gremlins (1984). She won the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in 1984. She starred as Gloria Chaney, Daniel Hillard's (Robin Williams) nosy neighbor, in Mrs. Doubtfire (1993). She starred as Marva Kulp Sr., the owner and director of Camp Walden, in The Parent Trap (1998). Her final credit was in the 2010 film Fair Game, in which she played Diane Plame, the mother of Valerie Plame.

Ms. Holliday was funny and memorable as Flo in Alice and Flo. Her "kiss my grits!" line was originally written as "kiss my honeydew!", but it didn't get any laughs. It became a widespread, iconic catchphrase of the era. She was the last surviving member of the original cast of Alice. We thank her for the laughs and entertainment that she brought us during her career. She will be deeply missed.

Share your memories on our Alice and Flo message boards. View photos in our Alice and Flo galleries.

Antenna TV remembers the iconic Polly Holliday with special episodes of Alice this week through Saturday. Watch Alice weekdays at 3pm ET, weeknights at 4am ET and Saturdays at 6pm ET on Antenna TV.

September 11
3pm & 4pm - S1E16: "The Accident" (OAD: January 22, 1977)
3:30pm & 4:30pm - S1E20: "The Odd Couple" (OAD: February 26, 1977)

September 12
3pm & 4pm - S2E11: "The Eyes of Texas" (OAD: January 8, 1978)
3:30pm & 4:30pm - S4E12: "Good Buddy Flo" (OAD: January 6, 1980)

September 13
6pm - S3E24: "Flo Finds Her Father" (OAD: April 1, 1979)
6:30pm - S4E18: "Flo's Farewell" (OAD: February 24, 1980)

Prime Video has ordered a second season of Benito Skinner's Overcompensating from Amazon MGM Studios, A24 and Strong Baby. Skinner will return to write, star, and executive produce.

The series is a college-set ensemble comedy about the chaotic journey of Benny (Skinner), a closeted former football player and homecoming king, as he becomes fast friends with Carmen, an outsider on a mission to fit in at all costs. Deeply funny and personal, the show explores the lengths to which we all overcompensate while finding out who we really are.

SitcomsOnline Digest: Marcia Wallace Tribute on The Simpsons; Flo Arrives on DVD

• We reported on the death of actress Marcia Wallace earlier this week, and now on Sunday night at 7:30 PM ET/PT, Fox will pay tribute to her by airing a classic third season episode "Bart the Lover," which garnered an Emmy Award for the actress in 1992. They will also conclude the new episode airing at 8 PM ET/PT with a tribute card to the actress from the producers. (Entertainment Weekly)
• How I Met Your Mother is set to come to an end in May on CBS, but could a How I Met Your Father be in the works? It appears that CBS is in talks with 20th Century Fox to create some sort of spinoff, but it appears that it would include a new cast if it were to happen... although they would be introduced in the current series. (TV Guide)
• Speaking of spinoffs and remakes, a journalist at Zap2it has observed that of the 250-plus projects in development for the five major networks for the 2014-2015 TV season, about 20% of them are spinoffs or remakes of series that we've seen before, including updated versions of Charmed and even Murder, She Wrote. Of course, a very small number of these projects will actually make it to air, but even so, is this the direction that TV is headed? (Zap2it)
• Bret McKenzie, best known for his work with Jermaine Clement as part of the duo Flight of the Conchords, could be joining the ranks of Matt Groening and Seth MacFarlane on the Fox Animation Domination lineup. It is far from a done deal, but Fox has given a script and presentation order for McKenzie to produce, according to TV Guide, "(an) untitled workplace comedy (that) follows the exploits of a group of employees toiling away at an almost-obsolete NASA space center in Boulder, Colorado." (TV Guide)
• The Greatest Event in Television History, a sporadically appearing (as in once every few months) series that airs on Adult Swim featuring Adam Scott from Parks and Recreation and others doing shot-for-shot recreations of classic TV series opening credits, has a third installment coming up on November 7th at midnight ET/PT. The newest installment is said to be a recreation of the opening credits of a "not-so-classic" sitcom... we think we know which one, but we'll let you decide what you think. (Entertainment Weekly)
• Actress Mary Carver, best known for her role as Cecilia Simon on the series Simon & Simon, passed away this week at the age of 89. In addition to her role on Simon & Simon, she also appeared in roles on The Donna Reed Show, The Twilight Zone, Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, Mannix, Lou Grant, and other series. (The Hollywood Reporter)
• In case you missed it, check out our Seven Questions interview with Masiela Lusha, who played Carmen on George Lopez, from earlier this week. (SitcomsOnline)

• Warner Archive has been steadily releasing seasons of the classic sitcom Alice, and this week they took things a bit further by announcing a release of spinoff series Flo. Flo - The Complete Series will begin shipping from Warner Archive.
• Halloween may have already passed by us two days ago, but Nickelodeon gave fans of Are You Afraid of the Dark? a treat in their bag this week with their release of Are You Afraid of the Dark? - Volume 1. Not too many details are known about this release, but it can be owned for under $15.
• Fans of the TNT series Dallas get a chance to say goodbye to J.R. in Warner Home Video's release of Dallas - The Complete Second Season. It'll be available to own on February 11.

• Boy Meets World - The Complete Collection ($99.98): Lionsgate has released every season of this series, but now they've got every single one compiled in one release.
• Family Ties - The Complete Series ($220.98): CBS brings all of the episodes of this classic series together in one collection, along with extra bonus material not included on the previous season release.
• Flo - The Complete Series ($29.95): Warner Archive brings fans all 29 episodes of the grit kissin' Alice spinoff on DVD.
• I Love Lucy - Colorized Christmas ($16.99): This single-disc release brings fans three classic episodes of the series (including, of course, the Christmas episode) in full color.
• Naked City - The Complete Series ($179.98): Despite never having any proper season releases of the series, RLJ Entertainment has every episode of this classic police drama on DVD on this set.
• Saved by the Bell - The Complete Collection ($49.98): Lionsgate brings together all of the episodes of the classic Saturday morning teen comedy in this set.
• Seinfeld - The Complete Series ($149.98): In case you missed out on the classic series about nothing on the now out-of-print complete series set, a re-release is now available at a slightly lower price.
• Weeds - The Complete Collection (Blu-ray) ($119.98): Lionsgate brings all of the episodes of the Showtime series that follows a woman that goes from neighborhood soccer mom to the FBI's most wanted in this release, along with some new special features.

FOLLOW ME

Memorial Day Marathons, Include Growing Pains On The N; Flo and She's the Sheriff Among the New In2TV Programming; Remembering Charles Nelson Reilly

Happy Memorial Day from everyone here at SitcomsOnline! If you are not out in the sun enjoying the weather then head to your TV to watch tons of marathons! We will give you a breakdown on who is airing what.
First, let's start off with The N. They will air a marathon of Growing Pains after all the festivities are over for Memorial Day, so you can actually go outside if you want because the marathon will air from 12 midnight to 6am of this show. The N is one of the sister stations of Nick at Nite, so that is how the network is airing this show. The show will air Mon-Thurs at 12 & 12:30 a.m. for the rest of the week, but it is unclear if it will continue after this week. We will let you know as soon as we do.
Imagine the joy of a road trip without leaving the comfort of your own home -- no overheated cars, no flat tires and no getting ripped off at the pump. Beginning Monday, May 28 from 6:00am to 8:00pm (all times ET/PT), TV Land takes viewers on an excursion to cool and exotic places when the network presents Memorial Day Roadtrips, a fourteen-hour marathon of vacation episodes from the network's line-up, culminating with the hilarious pop culture hit movie, National Lampoon's Vacation. Join The Munsters for a frightful night of camping, the Ricardos and the Mertzes on their comedic cross-country journey to Hollywood, the Sanfords for some sun and surf in Hawaii and top off the day's adventures with The Griswolds at the famed Wally World Amusement Park.
FX will travel back to the '70s with That '70s Show's Memorial Day Marathon. Twenty episodes of the 1998-2006 sitcom begin with a 1998 outing in which the gang's finding of a keg of beer demands a party. But tapping the keg proves problematic, and there are parents in pursuit. Airs from 7am-5pm.
Hallmark Chanel will have a M*A*S*H marathon, as we stated before. And as we stated before spend the day with Martin on TV One.
BET will have an epic block for Memorial Day featuring 10 episodes of Run's House, followed by six episodes of The Wayans Bros. and six episodes of The Jamie Foxx Show. Al from 9am-8pm.
G4 will air a marathon of the original Star Trek from 9am-4pm, while Oxygen will air a marathon of the hit sitcom Roseanne from 11am-4pm.
TNT has an all-day Law & Order marathon starting at 10am through 11pm, while the spin-off Law & Order: Criminal Intent will get a marathon on USA Network from 6am-8pm.
A&E will send out the mob for an all-day The Sopranos marathon from 9:24am to 11:37pm. Spike TV will do some investigating this Memorial Day with a CSI marathon from 9am-11pm.
Other notable marathons: VH1's Flavor of Love, style's Biggest Loser marathon, Bravo's Shear Genius, History Channel's Band of Brothers, CourtTV's Beach Patrol: San Diego, Animal Planet's Planet's Funniest Animals, and MTV will also air a Run's House marathon along with some Real World. TBS and Comedy Central will go to the movies all-day.
Wow! I think I covered it all. Something for everyone will air I hope.

In2TV, the online TV channel airing tons of TV shows, has added two short lived sitcoms this month! Flo, the spin-off of the hit sitcom Alice was added earlier this month and just recently the short lived first-run syndicated sitcom She's the Sheriff was added. That sitcom starred Suzanne Somers in the title role. Flo joins Alice on In2TV, so both shows are now on the online network. 8 episodes of Flo have been added thus far. And thus far 10 episodes have been added of She's the Sheriff. There is an episode of She's the Sheriff titled "Hair" that has Suzanne Somers' Three's Company co-star Don Knotts in it, along with Jenilee Harrison, who replaced Suzanne Somers on that show...interesting right? That is the episode I'm watching first and you should, too! Click HERE to view it. Also of note, after just one episode was added to In2TV last year, The Ben Stiller Show will now have all 13 episodes online for viewers to view!
And of course new episodes of your favorite In2TV series such as Martin, Head of the Class and Veronica's Closet will have new episodes this month!

Finally, we leave you with some sad news. TV legend Charles Nelson Reilly has died. Reilly was famous for being one of the celebrity panelists on the '70s game show Match Game. He also appeared on The Tonight Show many times. Reilly died Sunday in Los Angeles of complications from pneumonia, his partner, Patrick Hughes, told the New York Times. He wore his trademark giant glasses and colorful suits with ascots on Match Game and Hollywood Squares.
The actor appeared on many sitcoms as well. He appeared on The Ghost and Mrs. Muir from 1968-70. He has guest starred on The Patty Duke Show, Car 54 Where Are You?, The Farmer's Daughter, Nanny and the Professor, Here's Lucy, Arnie, The New Dick Van Dyke Show, Love American Style, Charles in Charge, Evening Shade, New WKRP in Cincinnati, Family Matters and The Drew Carey Show. He had done a lot of TV voice work such as SpongeBob SquarePants. Mr. Reilly will be missed. He was 76.