Jerry Bruckheimer Television
It may be the frigid last week of January, but several major shows heat up the midseason across the decades with most of them running for multiple seasons. There were a few duds as well. 1956 and 1966 took the week off again, but 1976 gave us a spin-off sitcom that has become a classic comedy that made stars of its two leads. This week in 1986 was not a good one for either of its new series, one having the misfortune of premiering on a day of tragedy that directly impacted its future. 1996 is notable for a PBS documentary, and a TV series that was a first for its cable network. 2006 saw Disney spin-off a new animated series from an animated feature film, and 2016 saw a controversial comic book character brought to life, while a TV remake of a musical feature film was broadcast live. Scroll down to see the shows, movies and specials that premiered this week, and tell us if any of your favorites are celebrating milestone anniversaries.
1956
- No new shows premiered this week in 1956.
1966
- No new shows premiered this week in 1966.
1976
Henderson Productions
- January 27 – Laverne & Shirley (ABC, Eight seasons, 178 episodes)
- January 28 – The Dumplings (NBC, One season, 11 episodes, 1 unaired)
- January 30 – The Practice (NBC, Two seasons, 27 episodes, 4 unaired)
During its third and fourth seasons, Laverne & Shirley was the most-watched television program in the US. The show’s working title was Laverne DeFazio & Shirley Feeney. The characters were originally conceived as ‘two girls who date the fleet’, but had to be mellowed down for ‘family hour’ viewing. Cindy Williams (Shirley) initially refused to appear in the spin-off series (she and Penny Marshall guested on Happy Days), so the role was recast and a screen test was filmed with Liberty Williams (no relation to Cindy). Cindy was talked into taking the role and she re-filmed the scene with Marshall. Studio execs wanted to see both screen tests but Paramount president Michael Eisner hid the first screen test and told them it had gotten lost so they only saw the one with Cindy Williams. The series was set in Milwaukee for its first five seasons, then all of the characters relocated to Burbank after the girls lost their jobs at the brewery. Two new characters were also added, played by Ed Marinaro and Leslie Easterbrook. Williams became pregnant in 1982, and after filming two episodes for Season 8 she left the show and filed a $20 million lawsuit against Paramount after they demanded she work on her scheduled due date. The case was settled out of court and Williams was released from her contract. To explain her absence, Laverne got a new job that afforded her enough money to live alone, but the show’s title never changed. The show could have been renewed for a ninth season, but Marshall would only agree if production moved to New York City. The studio felt it would be too costly and ABC opted to not renew the show. During its run, the series received a single Emmy nomination for costumes in 1979, and six Golden Globe nominations, with two for Best Television Series – Comedy or Musical, one for Cindy Williams and three for Penny Marshall.
The Dumplings was based on a syndicated comic strip of the same name that ran in newspapers from 1975 to 1977. James Coco and Geraldine Brooks starred. It was the final role for Brooks, who died in 1977. Steve Lawrence sang the show’s theme song, ‘Two By Two, Side By Side’. The pilot episode was broadcast on October 4, 1975.
Sitcom The Practice starred Danny Thomas and David Spielberg as father and son physicians. Dena Dietrich, Shelley Fabares and Didi Conn also starred. John Byner was a regular cast member in Season 1, and Mike Evans joined in Season 2.
1986
- January 26 – The Last Precinct (NBC, One season, 8 episodes)
- January 28 – Melba (CBS, One season, 6 episodes)
The Last Precinct was a dramedy series from Stephen J. Cannell. NBC launched the series after Super Bowl XX, but it was cancelled within two months. The cast included Adam West, Rick Ducommun, Ernie Hudson, Randi Brooks, Vijay Amritraj, Keenan Wynn, Lucy Lee Flippin, Wings Hauser and James Cromwell.
Melba, a vehicle for singer/actress Melba Moore, had the unfortunate luck to premiere the same day as the Challenger disaster, with ratings so dismal CBS cancelled the show outright, burning off the remaining five episodes in August and September of 1986.
1996
Entertainment Group
- January 29 – The Battle Over Citizen Kane (PBS, documentary)
- January 31 – The Louie Show (CBS, One season, 6 episodes, 1 unaired)
- January 31 – Remember WENN (AMC, Four seasons, 57 episodes)
The Battle Over Citizen Kane chronicles the clash between Orson Welles and William Randolph Hearst over the production and release of Welles’s 1941 film Citizen Kane. While broadcast as an episode of Season 8 of PBS series American Experience, the documentary was nominated for an Oscar for Best Documentary Feature. It also served as the basis for HBO TV movie RKO 281, which won a Golden Globe for Best Miniseries or Television Film.
Louie Anderson, Bryan Cranston, Paul Feig, Laura Innes and Kimmy Robertson were among the cast members of The Louie Show.
Remember WENN was the first original scripted series for AMC. The series was to have a fifth season, but was cancelled abruptly when new management took over AMC. Notable guest stars include Jason Alexander, Eddie Bracken, Betty Buckley, Greg Germann, Malcolm Gets, Julie Hagerty, Harry Hamlin, Patti LuPone, Peter Noone, Rue MCClanahan, Roddy McDowall, Donna Murphy, John Ratzenberger, Molly Ringwald, Howard Rollins, Mickey Rooney, J.K. Simmons and Irene Worth.
2006
- January 27 – The Emperor’s New School (Disney Channel, Two seasons, 52 episodes)
The Emperor’s New School (the announced title deliberately misspelled Skool) is the second sequel to the feature film, The Emperor’s New Groove. Most of the film’s cast reprised their roles for the series, with J.P. Manoux replacing David Spade as Kuzco, and Fred Tatasciore voicing Pacha until original actor John Goodman returned for Season 2. Eartha Kitt was enthusiastic to reprise the voice of Yzma, because children knew her name and would ask her to speak one of her lines, stating ‘It means that I’m still alive and still wanted!’ Kitt won both of the Daytime Emmy Awards for which she was nominated for Outstanding Performance in an Animated Program. The show’s guest voices included Miley and Noah Cyrus, Joey Lawrence, Gabriel Iglesias and Dylan and Cole Sprouse. Due to the traditional animation style that attempted to preserve the style of the feature film, each episode took about nine months to produce, with 16 or 17 in development at the same time.
2016
Paramount Television
- January 25 – Lucifer (FOX/Netflix, Six seasons, 93 episodes)
- January 25 – Recovery Road (Freeform, One season, 10 episodes)
- January 25 – Stevie J & Joseline: Go Hollywood (VH1, One season, 8 episodes)
- January 26 – Outsiders (WGN America, Two seasons, 26 episodes)
- January 28 – You, Me and the Apocalypse (NBC, One season, 10 episodes)
- January 28 – Jo Frost: Nanny On Tour (Up TV, One season, 10 episodes)
- January 31 – Grease: Live (FOX, TV special)
Lucifer was based on the DC Comic character of the same name which appeared in The Sandman comics. Production took place in Vancouver, but moved to Los Angeles beginning with the third season. FOX cancelled the series after three seasons, and Netflix picked it up a month later for a fourth season following a fan campaign to save the show. Netflix originally renewed the series for a fifth and final season of 16 episodes, but later renewed the series again for a sixth season of 10 episodes. Lina Esco was originally cast as Maze, but was later recast with Lesley-Ann Brandt. In Season 5, Tom Ellis played both Lucifer and his twin brother Michael. The series received one Primetime Emmy Award nomination in 2021 for Outstanding Choreography (Scripted). Lucifer makes a cameo appearance in the ‘Arrowverse’ crossover event ‘Crisis on Infinite Earths’ in a scene which takes place five years before the events of the Lucifer series, retconning the world of the series as Earth-666, confirming that Lucifer is aware of the multiverse and has a shared history with John Constantine involving Maze (Mazikeen).
Recovery Road is based on the 2011 young adult novel of the same name by Blake Nelson. Stevie J & Joseline: Go Hollywood is the second spin-off of Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta.
Outsiders was the third original series produced for WGN America. David Morse, Ryan Hurst, Kyle Gallner and Phyllis Somerville were among the cast. The show’s originally announced title was Titans. The series was filmed in the Pittsburgh area, with mountaintop exteriors filmed in Henry Kaufmann Family Park in Monroeville, Pennsylvania.
You, Me and the Apocalypse is a British series that premiered on Sky 1 on September 30, 2015, and was picked up for broadcast in the US by NBC. The cast included Mathew Baynton, Joel Fry, Rob Lowe, Jenna Fischer, Megan Mullally and Diana Rigg. Nick Offerman had a guest starring role.
Instead of a live production of the original Broadway musical, Grease: Live is a remake of the feature film but also incorporates songs from the stage production. The special also included songs that were not in either the original show or movie. Unlike other live musical productions, a studio audience was included into the staging. Vanessa Hudgens received praise for her performance as Rizzo, and the special was dedicated to the memory of her father, who died the day before the broadcast. It earned ten Emmy nominations, winning five including Outstanding Special Class Program. Joe Jonas’s band DNCE cameoed as Johnny Casino and The Gamblers in the Rydell High dance scene. The production used two Warner Bros. soundstages, half of the backlot and 44 cameras. Coca-Cola was a major sponsor and period appropriate product placement appeared throughout the special. The weather was a factor in the outdoor scenes with a 100% chance of rain predicted for the day of broadcast. An hour before the show went live, high winds prevented an outdoor structure from being used, but while the cast was rehearsing a restaged number, the wind and rain passed and they were able to return to the originally planned staging. The weather conditions were referenced in the program, with El Niño mentioned as a ‘special guest’ by emcee Mario Lopez, the cast performing the opening ‘Grease (Is the Word)’ number with umbrellas, and Principal McGee (Ana Gasteyer) quipping, ‘Let’s just hope it doesn’t rain,’ during a discussion about a live broadcast from Rydell High.