TVSquad

When I first read the headline about Arianna Huffington getting into the TV comedy business, I had visions of her as Maude or something equally as bizarre.

Fortunately, it was just my skewed sense of humor at work, because Arianna Huffington, the political talking head and co-creator of The Huffington Post, is not starring in a sitcom. ABC has bought Huffington's idea for a multicamera sitcom. And just to make sure it's funny, they've hired executive producer Greg Malins (Friends, How I Met Your Mother) to develop the project.

20th Century Fox TV is producing the show for ABC and, yes, it is about politics. See, there are these three freshman members of the House of Representatives, two men and a woman (but no pizza place). They share an apartment in the D.C. area. "One is swept up in the movement of change... one has been in politics for a long time, and one is a master of the media and sound bites," said Malins.

This isn't some random thought I suddenly had this morning, it's actually in response to AOL Television's list of the 40 best TV shows of the 1970s. The Odd Couple, one of the great, laugh-out-loud comedies of all-time, comes in at number 21, while The Brady Bunch comes in at number 15. Sometimes shows can't be judged the same (for example, comedy vs. drama or drama vs. animated), but come on, The Brady Bunch so far ahead of The Odd Couple?

I don't think I'm giving anything away by revealing that shows like The Mary Tyler Moore Show, M*A*S*H, and All in the Family are at the top, but there are a few entries that you and your friends can argue about.

Do you think when Neil Simon created the character of Felix Unger in The Odd Couple he knew that he was spawning a generation or two (maybe more) of Felix Unger wannabes? Today, over 40 years since Felix became part of our movie/TV collective conscience, there are lots of people and characters that bring to mind Tony Randall's alter ego.

It's Tony's Felix that I think is etched in our minds. He made Felix all he could be, and week in and week out -- opposite Jack Klugman's Oscar Madison -- he typified the ultimate neat freak, persnickety, hypochondriacally, impossible-to-live-with, supercilious know-it-all that made us cackle with laughter.

So, as I was watching TV -- an occupational requirement -- recently, it occurred to me that there are quite a few Felix Ungers on screen right now. Most are fictional, like Two and a Half Men's Alan Harper and, most obviously, Adrian Monk. But there are a couple of Felixes in real life on TV, too, like MSNBC's Keith Olbermann and ESPN's Mike Greenberg.

By my count, there are seven "Felix Ungers" currently on TV.

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

I know we all have our favorite shows that we buy on DVD, but I can't understand how anyone - anyone - would want to buy Gene Simmons' Family Jewels on DVD. Do buyers of these sets actually pop them into the DVD player and watch them over and over?

The Burke's Law sets continue with those annoying "Season/Volume" packages, but the last season of the Odd Couple season 5 set contains all of the episodes and completes the series.

• Bones - Season 3
• Burke's Law - Season 1, Vol. 2
• Charmed - Complete Series
• Daniel Boone - Season 6
• Death Note - Box Set 1
• Doctor Who - Season 4 and The Infinite Quest
  
• The Dog Whisperer - Celebrity Edition
• Fairly Oddparents - Season 6, Vol. 1
• Gene Simmons' Family Jewels - Season 3
• Hannah Montana - Season 1
• Hawaii Five-O - Season 5
• McHale's Navy - Season 4
• Monty Python's Flying Circus - Collector's Edition Megaset
• Mystery Science Theater 3000 - 20th Anniversary (Regular set)
• The Odd Couple - Season 5
• SpongeBob SquarePants - Season 5, Vol. 2
• Star Trek - Season 3 Remastered

Don't get him wrong; Jon Cryer is thrilled to be nominated for an Emmy again. This is his third nomination as Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series as Alan Harper, the sad sack, divorced brother of Charlie Sheen on Two and a Half Men. In 2006 and 2007, he lost to Jeremy Piven, Ari Gold on Entourage, and Jon Cryer is ticked off: "Laugh all you want, [he] is my nemesis. He's a force of nature."

If it's not Piven -- again! -- Jon has another nemesis lined up: "I think this time Neil Patrick Harris (Barney on How I Met Your Mother) will win."

Cryer is good natured about his chances and not seriously miffed. He's planning to bring his new wife, entertainment reporter Lisa Joyner. "When we heard the news, she was thrilled for a moment, then filled with dread as she started to worry about what she'll wear. But she'll be there with me -- or I'll be very lonely."

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

• Army Wives - Season 1
• Bleach - Season 1 (Uncut)
• The Boondocks - Season 2
• Broken Trail - Complete Miniseries
• Comedy Central Home Grown
• Da Vinci's Inquest - Season 3
• The Dukes of Hazzard - Movie Collection
• Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Heroes - Season 1
• The Fugitive - Season 2, Vol. 1
• Hawaii Five-0 - Season 4
• Home Improvement - Season 8
• The Incredible Hulk - When Monsters Meet
• Into Alaska - Collection 1
• John Adams - Complete Miniseries
• McLeod's Daughters - Season 6
• My Boys - Season 1
• The Odd Couple - Season 4
• 7th Heaven - Season 6
• Soap - Complete Series
• TekWar - TekWar
• What's Happening - Complete Series

(Originally aired Dec. 1, 1972)

Since CBS will debut a new, updated version of the classic game show Password this Sunday at 8, I thought it would be a good idea to talk about one of the great episodes of The Odd Couple, appropriately titled "Password." (it's also Jack Klugman's favorite). It's the one where Oscar is asked to go on the game show and he gets to choose his partner. Will he choose Felix, a nut for the show, or his girlfriend, who isn't too, um, bright? The answer after the jump...

A roundup of TV people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.

• Warren Cowan: He was a veteran publicist who had an incredible list of clients over the years, including Lucille Ball, Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, Tony Curtis, Steve McQueen, Natalie Wood, and Joan Crawford. He was the father of journalist Claudia Cowan and stepfather to Melissa and Sara Gilbert. He died of cancer in Los Angeles at age 87.

This is a very odd story, and not because it involves one-half of TV's most enjoyable sitcoms ever, The Odd Couple, but it's not about that show. It's about his other successful series. Jack Klugman has filed suit against NBC Universal over profits from Quincy, M.E. The oddity is that the show hasn't been in production for 25 years and this hasn't come up till now!

• At 8, NBC has a new 1 vs. 100, followed by new episodes of Friday Night Lights and Las Vegas.
• PBS has a new NOW at 8, then new episodes of Washington Week and Bill Moyers Journal.
• The CW has a new Smackdown! at 8.
• There's a new Flash Gordon on Sci-Fi at 8.
• G4 has a new X-Play at 8.
• At 9, USA has a new Monk, followed by a new Psych.
• Lifetime has a new How To Look Good Naked at 9.
• Hallmark has the new movie Daniel's Daughter at 9.
• At 9:30, HBO has a new In Treatment.
• At 10, ABC has a new 20/20.
• E! has a new episode of The Soup at 10.
• Lifetime has two new episodes of Top This Party at 10.
• Sci-Fi has a new Stargate Atlantis at 10.
• Also at 10: Comedy Central has two new episodes of Comedy Central Presents, with Eugene Mirman and Jordan Rubin.
• At 11, HBO has a new Real Time with Bill Maher.
• At 12:05am, HBO Family has the reunion movie The Odd Couple: Together Again.

Check your local TV listings for more.

Veteran Match Game panelist Brett Somers has died at age the age of 83.

I was going to say that Somers "was" married to Jack Klugman, but an interesting fact: even though they separated in 1974, while The Odd Couple was on the air, they never divorced! Somers played Klugman's ex-wife on the show.

Besides her many game show appearances, Somers also guest starred on The Love Boat, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Love, American Style, Barney Miller, Battlestar Galactica (the original), The F.B.I., The Defenders, Ben Casey, Naked City, and many other shows.

Somers died of cancer in Westport, CT on Saturday. Her co-star Charles Nelson Reilly died earlier this year.

Update: GSN is having a marathon this Saturday from 9am to 4pm, featuring Somers' Match Game appearances and a Password where she guested with Jack Klugman.

The first thing I noticed about this DVD is that on the back it says in fine print that the music has been altered for the release, and I got a little apprehensive after the whole WKRP In Cincinnati fiasco. But looking over the episodes I can't find any music replaced or any weird edits to the music that would then make a scene oddly edited. So I would buy this and not even worry about anything missing.

But there are a few things missing extras-wise, but we'll get to that in a minute. Overall, how is the second season set of The Odd Couple? Click on the link below for a look.

A roundup of TV people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.

• Roy Gerber: Gerber was not only a veteran talent manager and agent who worked with several celebs, including The Beatles, The Rat Pack, Vic Damone, Shirley Jones, Sid Caesar, Arsenio Hall, and Tom Jones, he was also the model for the Oscar Madison character in The Odd Couple. He was the roommate of Neil Simon's brother Danny in the 1960s after he separated from his wife. He died of a brain tumor in Beverly Hills at age 82.

In the life of a television show there are always changes. It could be the departure or addition of a cast member, a new set or shooting location, or just the aging of characters. But, those are subtle changes that many viewers just shrug off as the natural progression of a program.

Then there are those changes that are so drastic that they take viewers by surprise, making them wonder if this is the same show they watched the previous season. When these changes take place between the freshman and sophomore seasons of a show this really takes a toll on the fan base. Throughout the history of television there have been a number of shows that have seen such changes between the end of season one and the beginning of season two. After the jump you'll read about nine such examples.

"Mess O' Potomac": Good news... John Bolton is out. Bad news... he's making money with moustache rides. Even more bad news... Donald Rumsfeld has wormed his way back in the news. An old memo has surfaced and it's not fun and it's full of quotation marks. Senior Foreign Policy Analyst John Oliver elaborated on the use of quotes and air-quotes. The sun analogy was beautiful, haha.