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"Wkrp in Cincinnati" may not be easy to find on streaming these days, but it's still a highlight in sitcom history. The show about a failing radio station run by a groovy and eccentric team was a hit in the '70s, garnering 10 Emmy nominations and the coveted Humanitas Prize before signing off after four seasons. Unfortunately, the show's heavy emphasis on popular music has made it a rare quantity today: according to MTV, the show didn't make it to DVD until 2007 in part because it was tricky to secure the rights to all of the songs featured in its original run. It's currently only available digitally if you buy it on Apple TV, and versions of the show available today are still reportedly missing some songs, with stock music added in their place.

Still, the ultra-'70s show is worth seeking out for comedy fans and music fans alike,...

Steve Lawrence, the singer who teamed with his wife Eydie Gormé to form one of the most popular nightclub and concert duos of their generation, died of complications from Alzheimer’s disease today. He was 88.

His son, the composer and performer David Lawrence, said in a press statement, “My Dad was an inspiration to so many people. But, to me, he was just this charming, handsome, hysterically funny guy who sang a lot. Sometimes alone and sometimes with his insanely talented wife. I am so lucky to have had him as a father and so proud to be his son. My hope is that his contributions to the entertainment industry will be remembered for many years to come.”

Popularly know as Steve and Eydie, the couple achieved nationwide recognition in the mid-1950s after appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Steve Allen. They continued performing together until Gormé’s retirement...

Steve Lawrence, the charismatic Grammy- and Emmy-winning crooner who delighted audiences for decades in nightclubs, on concert stages and in film and television appearances, died Thursday. He was 88.

Lawrence, who partnered in a popular act with his wife of 55 years, the late Eydie Gormé, died of complications from Alzheimer’s disease, a publicidst announced.

With his boyish good looks, silky voice and breezy personality, Lawrence broke into show business when he won a talent competition on Arthur Godfrey’s CBS show and signed with King Records as a teenager. The singer chose to stay old school and resist the allure of rock ‘n’ roll.

“It didn’t attract me as much,” Lawrence once said. “I grew up in a time period when music was written by Irving Berlin and Cole Porter and George and Ira Gershwin and Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein and Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart and Sammy Cahn and Julie Stein.

Victor J. Kemper, the veteran cinematographer who shot more than 50 features, including Dog Day Afternoon, Eyes of Laura Mars, The Jerk and Slap Shot, has died. He was 96.

Kemper died Monday of natural causes in Sherman Oaks, his son, Steven Kemper, told The Hollywood Reporter.

Kemper earned his inaugural D.P. credit on Husbands (1970), written and directed by John Cassavetes, then shot Elia Kazan’s final feature, The Last Tycoon (1976) and Tim Burton’s first, Pee-wee’s Big Adventure (1985).

Kemper also did six films for director Arthur Hiller — The Tiger Makes Out (1967), The Hospital (1971), Author! Author! (1982), The Lonely Guy (1984), See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989) and Married to It (1991) — and three in a row for Carl Reiner: Oh God! (1977), The One and Only (1978) and The Jerk (1979).

The New Jersey native said he had to wear ice skates when he photographed the hockey scenes in George Roy Hill’s Slap Shot (1977) and...

There’s only one actor on earth who could sell a line like “There’s no deceit in the cauliflower,” and he passed away today.

It’s been said that “The Graduate” could have made Charles Grodin a star, had the actor only accepted the role that eventually went to Dustin Hoffman. Such “what ifs” are impossible to judge, but I like the way it actually worked out, with Grodin’s breakthrough (and best) performance coming five years later, as callow newlywed Lenny Cantrow, who meets his ideal mate at the most inopportune of times — on his honeymoon — in Elaine May’s “The Heartbreak Kid.”

Before either of them became film directors, May and “The Graduate” helmer Mike Nichols were a hit comedy duo, and I’m fairly certain the two saw the same qualities in Grodin, who had a goofily handsome quality in his 30s that made him ideally...

Refresh For Updates Costars and fans alike remembered Charles Grodin today as one of film’s funniest actors and TV’s most compelling personalities. “So sad to hear,” tweeted Steve Martin, who appeared alongside Grodin in the 1984 comedy The Lonely Guy. “One of the funniest people I ever met…”

“A brilliant comedy actor,” tweeted Albert Brooks. “I had the wonderful experience of working with him in my first feature ‘Real Life’ and he was amazing. Rest In Peace, Chuck.”

Grodin, who appeared in such films as Midnight Run, The Heartbreak Kid, Beethoven, The Great Muppet Caper and on TV as a favored guest of Johnny Carson and David Letterman, died today of bone marrow cancer at his home in Connecticut.

“I loved Charles Grodin so much,” tweeted Kathy Griffin. “He would bust my balls and give me so much shit in a way that left me no choice but to giggle with glee.

Charles Grodin had a 60-year career in Hollywood, ranging from guesting on 1950s TV Westerns to playing opposite such big-screen and TV stars as Robert De Niro, Warren Beatty, Goldie Hawn, Dustin Hoffman, Steve Martin, Jill Clayburgh, Farrah Fawcett, Cybill Shepherd, Marlo Thomas, Martin Short, Louis C.K. and, well, Miss Piggy.

The Emmy-winning actor, who died today at 86, had more than 70 credits on his résumé — from films including The Heartbreak Kid, Heaven Can Wait and Sunburn in the 1970s through The Lonely Guy and The Woman in Red to action-buddy classic Midnight Run, legendary flop Ishtar and the canine-infused Beethoven pics. He also starred in the 1986 primetime-soap spoof miniseries Fresno, won an Emmy for co-writing 1977’s The Paul Simon Special and fronted his own short-lived talk show.

Steve Martin, Albert Brooks Pay Tribute To Charles Grodin; Marc Maron Praises “Cranky Comedic Genius”

From his straight-man magnificence to leading-man panache and talk-show-guest brilliance,...

Charles Grodin, best known for the neurotic comic wit he demonstrated in such films as “The Heartbreak Kid,” “Heaven Can Wait” and “Midnight Run” and for his role in the “Beethoven” movies, died Tuesday at his home in Connecticut. He was 86.

The New York Times reported that his son said he died of bone marrow cancer.

After getting his start in television, Grodin graduated to both leading and character roles in motion pictures, usually portraying the exasperated urban neurotic. His dry, understated sense of humor also made him a perfect talkshow guest, and later, host of his own cable show. Grodin also wrote plays and books.

The wry 1972 comedy “The Heartbreak Kid,” written by Neil Simon and directed by Elaine May, highlighted Grodin’s trademark neurotic befuddlement, and won him a Golden Globe nomination. But it was one of the few successful films in his career in which he was center stage.

Mulan and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine star Rosalind Chao chats about a few of her favorite movies with Josh & Joe.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Mulan (2020)

The Joy Luck Club (1993)

The Seven Year Itch (1955)

Mary Poppins (1964)

The Sound Of Music (1965)

My Fair Lady (1964)

Gremlins (1984)

Explorers (1985)

Funny Girl (1968)

What’s Up Doc? (1972)

The Heartbreak Kid (1972)

The Graduate (1967)

Midnight Run (1988)

Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

The Lonely Guy (1984)

Waiting For Guffman (1996)

Best In Show (2000)

Hamilton (2020)

Fast Times At Ridgemont High (1982)

Misery (1990)

Paris, Texas (1984)

Buena Vista Social Club (1999)

sex, lies and videotape (1989)

The Shining (1980)

Matewan (1987)

Thousand Pieces of Gold (1990)

Lost In Translation (2003)

Mean Streets (1973)

On The Rocks (2020)

Somewhere (2010)

Adaptation (2002)

Mandy (2018)

Possessor (2020)

Midsommar (2019)

The Wicker Man (1973)

Hereditary (2018)

The Lighthouse (2019)

Other Notable Items

The Scott Alexander podcast episodes

Tfh Guru Larry Karaszewski

Star Trek franchise

The It’s A Small World ride

Disneyland

University of the Arts

Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987-1994)

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine...

Bruce Jay Friedman, an author, playwright and Oscar-nominated screenplay writer for Tom Hanks’s 1984 film Splash, died today in New York City. He was 90 and no cause of death was given by his son, Kipp Friedman.

In addition to screenplays, Friedman was known for his novels Stern and About Harry Towns, and the plays Scuba Duba and Streambath.

Friedman’s work was known for its wry humor and modern angst on such subjects as the transition to suburban life and the sex and drug adventures of a screenplay writer who had mixed feelings about his freedom to explore.

He authored more than a dozen books, including a comic take on bachelorhood that became the Steve Martin comedy The Lonely Guy.

Friedman also spent some time in front of the camera, appearing in Nora Ephron’s You’ve Got Mail and Woody Allen’s Husbands and Wives.

A literary lion of New York,...

Writer Bruce Jay Friedman, who received an Oscar nomination for the 1984 comedy “Splash,” died Wednesday at his home in Brooklyn. He was 90.

His death was confirmed by his son Josh, who told the New York Times that the cause had not been determined.

Friedman, a native of the Bronx, emerged in the 1960s as a novelist specializing in dark comedy centered on self-involved protagonists with “Stern” and “A Mother’s Kisses,” followed by the plays “Scuba Duba” and “Steambath.” His short story, “A Change of Plan,” was adapted by Neil Simon into the 1972 movie “The Heartbreak Kid,” starring Charles Grodin, Cybill Shepherd, Eddie Arnold and Jeannie Berlin, with Elaine May directing.

Friedman found box office success with his 1980 Richard Pryor-Gene Wilder prison comedy “Stir Crazy,” directed by Sidney Poitier. He wrote the first draft of “Splash,” the 1984 romantic comedy about a love affair between Tom Hanks’ character and...

The producer and production manager associated with Chinatown and Groundhog Day, died on Wednesday from heart complications.

Born on December 17,1923, C.O. ‘Doc’ Erickson was living in Las Vegas when he died from heart complications, according to The Gersh Agency.

Erickson began his career at Paramount Pictures, serving as production manager on five Alfred Hitchcock films during the mid-to-late 1950s, including Rear Window, To Catch A Thief, The Trouble With Harry, The Man Who Knew Too Much and Vertigo.

The producer left Paramount in the early 1960s to become John Huston’s associate producer on The Misfits, Freud, and 1967s Reflections In A Golden Eye.

He went on to serve as production manager on Joseph L Mankiewicz’s There Was A Crooked Man and also spent three years supervising film production for Brut Productions.

He would later become associated with Robert Evans on Chinatown, Players, Urban Cowboy, and Popeye.

Other producer-production credits include 55 Days At Peking, [link...

You can tell Bob Odenkirk is the perfect loser in Girlfriend's Day because he plays a professional greeting card writer. The irony of such a job for such a character has been seen before in The Lonely Guy, Missing Pieces, Mr. Deeds, (500) Days of Summer and, with a bit of variation, Her. In this new movie, a Netflix original, the main premise is that he used to be the best at it and now must reign again through a contest related to the titular new holiday. Odenkirk seems perfect for the role, as it's almost like he's playing his TV character Saul Goodman from Breaking Bad and now Better Call Saul as a writer instead of a lawyer. He co-wrote the script with his old Mr. Show collaborator Eric Hoffman...

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"Arthur Hiller, an Academy Award-nominated director whose long career began in live television and flourished in the movies in the 1970s with crowd-pleasers like the phenomenally successful Love Story, died on Wednesday in Los Angeles," writes Dave Kehr for the New York Times. As Patrick Hipes notes at Deadline, Love Story would lead "to a streak of big movies for Hiller that spanned especially comedy including The Hospital, penned by Paddy Chayefsky (who also wrote The Americanization of Emily); Silver Streak with Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor; The In-Laws with Peter Falk and Alan Arkin; The Lonely Guy with Steve Martin; and Outrageous Fortune starring Shelley Long and Bette Midler. He also helmed the film adaptations of Neil Simon’s The Out of Towners and Plaza Suite." We're collecting remembrances. » - David Hudson...

"Arthur Hiller, an Academy Award-nominated director whose long career began in live television and flourished in the movies in the 1970s with crowd-pleasers like the phenomenally successful Love Story, died on Wednesday in Los Angeles," writes Dave Kehr for the New York Times. As Patrick Hipes notes at Deadline, Love Story would lead "to a streak of big movies for Hiller that spanned especially comedy including The Hospital, penned by Paddy Chayefsky (who also wrote The Americanization of Emily); Silver Streak with Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor; The In-Laws with Peter Falk and Alan Arkin; The Lonely Guy with Steve Martin; and Outrageous Fortune starring Shelley Long and Bette Midler. He also helmed the film adaptations of Neil Simon’s The Out of Towners and Plaza Suite." We're collecting remembrances. » - David Hudson...

Arthur Hiller, the director of Love Story, The Out-of-Towners, The In-Laws, The Hospital, among others, died Wednesday of natural causes, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced. Hiller, who served as the Academy president between 1993 and 1997, was 92.

Hiller is best known for directing 1970's Love Story, the Oscar-nominated drama starring Ali MacGraw and Ryan O'Neal. Filmed on a shoestring budget of $2 million, the film went on to gross over $106 million, or $659 million in today's adjusted box office. As The Hollywood Reporter notes, the success of Love Story, considered one of cinema's greatest tearjerkers,...

Our weekly series in which writers revisit for the first time in ages their youthful passions and reconsider how well they hold up with the passage of time. The late 1970’s were a glorious time to be first discovering movies. For a boy in his adolescence, there were of course the complete life-altering revelations of seeing “Jaws,” “Star Wars,” “Close Encounters” and eventually “Raiders” on opening day, surrounded by hundreds of other kids struck absolutely dumb at the spectacle before them. It was impossible to be young in those days and not become obsessed with the movies. But best of all were the comedies. It was an era when the genre was of re-inventing itself; moving out of the code restrictions that had hemmed comedy in since the dawn of Hollywood, the movies suddenly found itself let loose with acres of previously untouchable terrain to roam, and very few rules to guide them.

In news that some of you are sure to proclaim as Smurftastic, Sony has announced that a live-action/animated “Smurfs” is heading to silver screens next year. The movie will hit theaters in 2D and 3D formats on December 17, 2010. A Variety report reveals that the studio has turned to Raja Gosnell to handle the directing duties.

For those who are too young to remember, “The Smurfs” was a hit animated TV series that ran throughout the 1980s. The titular Smurfs are a race of pint-sized, blue-skinned, white hat-wearing creatures who use the word “smurf” as a verb, adverb, adjective and anything else. It is a multipurpose term, sort of like Hebrew’s “shalom” or “Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey”’s “station.”

Gosnell has been working in Hollywood for a long time, though most of his work has been as an editor. He worked on such classics at the 1984 Steve Martin comedy “The Lonely Guy,...

Dear Mr. Martin:

I have been aware of your work for 30 years. Even as a kid, with "King Tut" on the radio and the arrow through the head gag, I knew you were different than other comedians of the time. Somehow, I genuinely connected with your style even though the arrow through the head was definitely not aimed at me. It is ironic that in 2009, a new generation of children can laugh at your work, since your comedy has become about the lowest common denominator in almost every case.

There was not another Steve Martin when The Jerk established you as a movie star, nor was there another Steve Martin in 1987 when Roxanne showed how graceful your comedy could be. There is not another Steve Martin now, the star of The Pink Panther 2 - a has-been who's perfectly content to embark on the film version of the faded rock...