Posts with tag Roseanne
Posted May 13th 2008 10:34AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, OpEd, My Name Is Earl, Ugly Betty, TV Squad Lists, Reality-Free
Recently, the
AOL list of the 50 Best Sitcoms of all time got me thinking about
ten all time great sitcom sidekicks. Working on that list inspired me to look at the best in sitcom siblings -- ADULTS ONLY. The brother/sister relationship, brothers, sisters, family dynamics are great fodder for comedy. For my collection of the best, I've limited it to grown-up siblings only because there are some truly funny things that happen only among adults brothers and sisters that are unique and universal at the same time. After all, unlike the childhood years when kids are controlled by parents, adult siblings remain close and in each other's lives by choice -- and that has made for some wonderful situation comedy.
Niles & Frasier Crane, Frasier Two brothers, both psychiatrists, both opera buffs, both wine connoisseurs, both heterosexual despite evidence to the contrary. The Crane brothers were like two peas in a very funny pod, sparking each other in comedy, competitive and supportive at the same time. Making their brotherly friendship even funnier was the fact that their Dad, Martin, who was nothing like either one of them. What's even funnier is the fact that when
Frasier was originally spun-off from
Cheers, the writers didn't include the character of Niles. It was only after seeing an 8x10 of David Hyde Pierce, and how much he looked like Kelsey Grammer's brother, that they put him in the pilot.
Frasier would not have been nearly the hit comedy it was without the brother angle.
Continue reading Eight sets of memorable sitcom siblings
Posted May 12th 2008 9:39AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: OpEd, CSI, Reality-Free
The
CSI/Two and a Half Men writers switch was a very clever promotion for CBS. Fortunately, the writers saw the opportunity to change places as more than just a publicity stunt. They really took the scripting seriously and came up with inventive episodes for each program. If this were a competition to see which team would deliver the better show, who would take on the task of writing winning TV in a genre not their own and succeed beyond expectations, the comedy scribes take the gold. Chuck Lorre and Lee Aronsohn's
CSI was pure genius, and if it were up to me,
CSI should submit it for an Emmy.
But first there was
Two and a Half Men. In an episode called "Fish in a Drawer" (and if somebody could explain what that title means, I'd be most appreciative), the story picked up after Evelyn married Teddy. In the teleplay by
CSI regular writers Evan Dunsky and Sarah Goldfinger, Charlie and Courtney check out of the reception for a little romp in his room upstairs only to find Teddy's dead bod on the bed. Talk about spoiling the mood. Teddy wasn't only a corpse, he was a corpse with his pants pulled down around his ankles and lipstick stains on his hoo-ha. The cops were called in, a detective who was a dead ringer for Marg Helgenberger -- played by redhead Jamie Rose -- had the vaguely Bondian name of Jagov, Sloane Jagov. Naturally, Charlie had to make a move on her. He couldn't keep his eyes off her cleavage.
Continue reading The CSI/Two and a Half Men writer switcheroo -- loved it!
Posted Apr 18th 2008 10:58AM by Jay Black
Filed under: OpEd, TV 101, TV Squad Lists, Reality-Free
There's no denying it: we're currently living in a utopia. Not a day goes by that I don't thank my lucky stars that I get to live in the greatest country on earth during the greatest time to be alive. I think even the harshest critic of the current world order would agree with me when I say that there's not a single problem anywhere in the world that anyone is dealing with.
But how did we get here? What was the spark that spurred us from barely cognizant man-apes into the enlightened, elegant creatures that we are today? Look no further than that great black monolith sitting in your living room: your TV. Five VERY SPECIAL EPISODES that saved society after the jump...
Continue reading TV 101: Five VERY SPECIAL EPISODES that saved society - VIDEOS
Posted Apr 4th 2008 11:04AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: TV Squad Lists, Reality-Free
AOL Television has compiled a list of the
50 Best TV Comedies -- Ever, this week revealing numbers 50-41. Inspired by what they did, I've decided to list my favorite sitcom sidekicks, those funny foils that oftentimes make the star shine even brighter than you might have thought. Coming up with just a ten-pack hasn't been so easy. Many times, I'd look at a show and think, "No, it's more of an ensemble. There isn't one sidekick." Falling into that category were B.J. and Trapper John on
M*A*S*H. Neither were Hawkeye's sidekick, really (any more than Radar was). Same thing with
Friends -- they were all each other's sidekicks. Also, on
The Odd Couple, Oscar and Felix were equal; neither was a sidekick. Ditto
Two and a Half Men and
Laverne & Shirley. Also, because it's my list, I decided
not to include married couples -- sorry Rob and Laura, Ricky and Lucy, Archie and Edith.
Whew, after all that, here, in alphabetical order, are the ten I love -- within my own parameters! Feel free to comment with your choices, if your favorite isn't on my list.
Continue reading Ten super sitcom sidekicks
Posted Oct 15th 2007 6:06PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: TV on DVD
Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.
- Absolutely Fabulous - The White Box
- Charlie and Lola - Vol. 6
- The Christmas Blessing (TV movie)
- The House Without A Christmas Tree (TV movie)
- Ironside - Season 2
- MacGyver - The Complete Series
- Masters of Horror - Season 1, Vol. 2 and The Damned Thing
- Medium - Season 3
- Mythbusters - Collection 2
- Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares (UK) - Vol. 1
- Roseanne - Season 9
- Squidbillies - Vol. 1
- Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip - The Complete Series
- That 70s Show - Season 7
- Wanted: Dead or Alive - Season 3
Posted Oct 8th 2007 10:27AM by Paul Goebel
Filed under: TV Squad Lists
When one of our favorite TV shows goes off the air, it always brings sadness. However, many times, the silver lining in the cancellation is the birth of a spinoff. Sometimes it can be a great thing (Frasier) and sometimes the results can be less than ideal (The Art of Being Nick). Last month's spin-off ideas were so popular, I decided to make this a regular post. Here are some more spinoff ideas that I would love to see.
The Sherwood-Forrest Report
After the retirement of veteran newswoman Murphy Brown, Corky Sherwood-Forrest and her husband Will Forrest become the hosts of a new show on Court TV. Corky is the moderator while Will provides legal expertise along with a rotating team of guest legal scholars (Marcia Cross, Star Jones, Greta Van Susteren).
Continue reading Five more spinoffs I'd like to see
Posted Aug 6th 2007 6:31PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: TV on DVD
Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.
- 8 Simple Rules... - Season 1
- The Adventures of Jim Bowie - Complete Series
- Charlie Lola - Vol. 5
- Daniel Boone - Season 5
- Darkwing Duck - Vol. 2
- The Dresden Files - Season 1
- Full House - Season 7
- The Hills - Season 2
- Home Improvement - Season 7
- Inside The Actor's Studio - Barbra Streisand
- The Muppet Show - Season 2
- Rome - Season 2
- Roseanne - Season 8
- Saved By The Bell - Hawaiian Style and Wedding in Las Vegas movies
- The Simpsons - Season 10
- Soul Food - Season 2
- The Suite Life of Zack & Cody - Vol. 2
- Superfriends: The Legendary Super Powers Show - Complete Series
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - Season 5
- That Girl - Season 3
- The Tick - Season 2
Posted Jul 20th 2007 6:50PM by Michael Maloney
Filed under: CSI, How I Met Your Mother, NCIS, TCA Press Tour
Practically the entire CBS prime time line up was attending the all-stars outdoor party on the Wadsworth Theatre Great Lawn in Brentwood, Calif. on Thursday night.
But I only had one objective: make peace with the gang from
How I Met Your Mother (and TVSquad readers) for missing the informal panel at Wednesday's TCA presentation attended by Neil Patrick Harris (Barney) and creators/executive producers Carter Bays and Craig Thomas.
Continue reading CBS press tour party - or making peace with How I Met Your Mother - TCA report
Posted Apr 4th 2007 11:02AM by Keith McDuffee
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Other Comedy Shows, Other Sci-Fi/Supernatural Shows, OpEd, Family Guy, Veronica Mars, Supernatural, How I Met Your Mother, The Sopranos, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Star Trek: The Next Generation, TV Squad Lists
Welcome to TV Squad Lists (formerly 'The Five'), a feature where each blogger has a chance to list his or her own rundown of things in television that stand out from the rest, both good and bad.
Ah, the friendly neighborhood drinking hole. In one way or another, they're there to give you that much needed morning/evening buzz before/after work or school. In what order you visit them is up to you. We've seen our fair share of these booze and caffeine shoppes on TV throughout the years, and here's my pick for the top 18 -- why settle for just ten?
1) Cheers (
Cheers) -- Let's get right down to it and start with the obvious number one choice before we move on. I'm not going to insult you with dragging you on to the end to see what is very obviously the most famous of all TV bars. And since I'm from the area, I have no business
not making this number one.
Continue reading The 18 greatest TV drinkeries
Posted Apr 2nd 2007 6:05PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: TV on DVD
New TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.
- The Brady Bunch - Complete Series
- Entourage - Season 3, Vol. 1
- Law and Order - Season 5
- The Lost Room - Complete Mini-Series
- Mind of Mencia - Season 2 (Uncensored)
- The Pink Panther Show - Vol. 5: The Ant & The Aardvark
- Roseanne - Season 7
- She-Ra - Season 1, Vol. 2
- Tom Goes To The Mayor - Complete Series
- Twin Peaks - Season 2
Posted Dec 5th 2006 7:39AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: TV on DVD
24 - Season 5 - Animaniacs - Vol. 2
- Dukes of Hazzard - Season 7
- Dungeons & Dragons - Complete Series
- Mission: Impossible - Season 1
- Pinky and the Brain - Vol. 2
- Roseanne - Season 6
- Saturday Night Live - Season 1
- Survivor: Vanuatu - Complete Season
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - Vol. 6
- What's New Scooby-Doo? - Vol. 10
Posted Sep 12th 2006 2:29PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: TV on DVD
Avatar: The Last Airbender -Book 1 - The Batman - Season 2
- Black. White - Complete Series
- Diagnosis: Murder - Season 1
- Grey's Anatomy - Season 2
- Las Vegas - Season 3
- Moonlighting - Season 4
- The Office - Season 2
- Roseanne - Season 5
- Smallville - Season 5
- SpongeBob SquarePants - Season 4, Volume 1
- Stella - Season 1
- The Swan - Seasons 1 and 2
- Teen Titans - Season 2
- Wildboyz - Seasons 3 and 4
Posted Sep 6th 2006 2:57PM by Anna Johns
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, CBS, Talent
Sara Gilbert, who will forever be remembered as Darlene Conner, the glum, sarcastic daughter on
Roseanne, is joining the cast of CBS'
The Class. Sadly, she will not be a permanent fixture in the new sitcom. She'll have a three-episode arc as someone from the past who presumably returns to cause strife for one of the male characters. Not sure when her episodes will air, but
The Class debuts on September 18th. The ensemble comedy is about the reunion of a group of twenty-somethings who spent a pivotal third grade year together.
Sara has recently had multi-episode stints on
ER and
24 and she had a role in the failed WB comedy,
Twins.
Posted Sep 6th 2006 9:34AM by Brett Love
Filed under: OpEd, The Five
The preview for this weeks
Blade teased a kiss between Krista (Jill Wagner) and Chase (Jessica Gower). In celebration of that possibility, I thought now would be a good time to touch on other girl-girl kisses in our television history. Sometimes they are to make a statement. Sometimes they are a ploy to grab ratings. And every once in a while, it's just a natural part of the story. Here are the five that come to mind first for me.
Roseanne (Roseanne Barr) and Sharon (Mariel Hemingway) - RoseanneThis was an important moment in television. At the time, there was no L-Word, and two girls kissing was still a very controversial thing. Roseanne has her faults, to be sure, but standing up to the network to get this episode on the air is something to be proud of.
Ally (Calista Flockhart) and Ling (Lucy Liu) - Ally McBealThis one strikes me as somewhat the opposite of the
Roseanne kiss. There was much less statement, and much more ratings grabbing sensationalism in this lip-lock. In that regard, it worked very well. Of course, the gang over at Ally McBeal had plenty of practice. Along with Ling, Ally also kissed Georgia (Courtney Thorne-Smith) and Elaine (Jane Krokowski). But if I have to pick one, it's Ling every time. And yes, I was an
Ally McBeal fan.
Continue reading The Five: Girls kissing girls
Posted Jun 27th 2006 11:21AM by Keith McDuffee
Filed under: TV on DVD, Video
Every Tuesday here on TV Squad , we will highlight the week's TV-on-DVD releases. Some noteworthy releases today, June 27, 2006:
Acapulco H.E.A.T. - The Complete 1st Season- Alice - TV Favorites
- Civilisation (mini-series) - The Complete Series
- Columbo - The Complete 5th Season
- Commander-in-Chief -Season 1, Volume 1
- Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman - Movies
- Family Affair - Season 1
- Fear Factor - The 1st Season
- Galaxy High School - Volume 1
- The Jackie Gleason Show - The Color Honeymooners: Collection 1
- Masters of Horror - Deer Woman (John Landis); Deer Woman / Sick Girl; Sick Girl (Lucky Mckee)
- Monk - Season 4
- Project Runway - Complete 2nd Season
- Roseanne - The Complete 4th Season
- Slings and Arrows - Season 1
- Step by Step - Television Favorites
- Strangers with Candy - The Complete Series
- Tracey Takes On... - The Complete 2nd Season
- Your Show of Shows - Best of Sid Caesar
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