u/Southern-Train7142

Remember that mysterious Playbill EPA notice from last month that everyone was trying to decode? It is officially confirmed now because Broadway Up Close just shared a video of the crew physically putting up the Downstate marquee letters outside the Booth Theatre. It is so cool to see it actually happening after all the rumors online, and I am honestly just thrilled that this speculation turned out to be 100% true!

With Family Feud hitting its 50th anniversary milestone season, I’ve been thinking about my own history with the show. It hit me today that the John O’Hurley era was actually the very first version of the show I ever watched.

Growing up, I used to catch his episodes all the time in syndication on My9 (WWOR-TV) and on Game Show Network. Before I ever knew anything about Richard Dawson or the classic 70s and 80s runs. O’Hurley was the definitive host to me. I originally recognized his voice from his voice-over and animation roles, so seeing him step onto a game show stage was really cool. He brought his specific theatrical, and elegant energy to the podium that felt totally unique compared to what Steve Harvey does now or what Richard Karn did right before him.

It made me curious about how everyone else got into the series. Did you grow up watching the classic network era from the beginning, or was your gateway into the show a later syndication run or rerun block like Combs, Karen, O’Hurley, or Harvey?

Just earlier like a couple hours ago, as I watched the reruns, there was a promo warning to the viewers that it’s going to be reimagined as Animal-ation Domination on Fox since Animal Control is joining the 8:30 PM slot between The Simpsons, and Universal Basic Guys when it returns next month on Sept 27. So what do y’all guys think about the new name?

Now that we have today's official announcement that George Salazar and Jimin Moon are joining the cast on August 25 to replace Harvey Guillén and Josh Rivera, the Studio 54 principal lineup is completely shifting. Rachel Dratch is confirmed to be staying for now, but she won't be there forever. Since her chaotic, crowd-work-heavy take on the Narrator has been such a massive highlight of this revival, how do you think they will replace her when the time comes? Do you think the creative team will stick with an SNL-style comedic actress to keep her specific vibe going, or pivot back to a more traditional casting choice?

I didn’t catch Giulia: The Poison Queen of Palermo at PAC NYC, but I’ve been following it closely because I really wanted to see Naomi Serrano. I heard she was absolutely amazing pulling double duty as the daughter and the Little Devil! The consensus seems to be that the show has massive potential but still needs significant work on the book and staging before it’s Broadway-ready. For those who actually saw it and caught Naomi's performance, what specific changes do you think are necessary to make the show work on a larger scale, and do you think a Broadway transfer is realistically in the cards?

I just finished listening to the OBC album and got so hyped for the upcoming revival. I know the original announcement targeted Fall 2026, but since August is hours away with no theater or cast announced, it obviously isn't happening this season.

I know Jennifer Hudson joined the producing team back in February and even said "this fall cannot come soon enough," but things have been completely quiet since. Do you think the delay is because of that massive global casting search for Effie, or is it due to behind-the-scenes producer shifts?

Has anyone heard any concrete updates on whether they are pushing it to 2027?

Hey everyone, I wanted to share this incredible piece of television history from the 1964 NBC daytime run of Let's Make a Deal featuring a contestant named Marty Taylor. Finding any surviving footage from this specific era is a total miracle since NBC wiped almost all of the master tapes from the daytime run. In this short highlight, Monty Hall tries to buy Marty out of her choice with cash, but she turns down the money and wins a beautiful set of wrought iron furniture instead. I am sharing this here today because early NBC clips are highly sought-after archival history, and I thought the classic game show fans and media archivists in this community would love analyzing the original 1960s set design, pricing, and pacing.

So after I’ve just listened to the OBC album, I looked on everywhere to see if it is still locked in for this Fall and even after Jennifer Hudson stepped in as the official producer. But I don’t see any new news after that announcement, so I’m wondering if this brand new reimagined production is going to be delayed to an year from now or it is still possible that they can open the show up by this Fall?

I just found this vintage 1980s Milford Plaza Hotel commercial featuring a 43 dollar package deal and quick glimpses of former Broadway show marquees, so I wanted to see if anyone recognizes the featured productions or remembers staying there. 

While Cars 2 gave us some of the absolute best animation, music, and world-building in the franchise, it is no secret that it’s a massive departure from the original film.

The international spy plot with Mater is a ton of fun, but the movie could have avoided a lot of its criticisms if it kept a bit more of the character-driven heart from the first movie.

The story would have been elevated to a whole new level if Lightning McQueen’s motivation in the World Grand Prix was focused on honoring Doc Hudson's memory. Imagine if Lightning and the Radiator Springs crew were traveling the world to cement the Fabulous Hudson Hornet's legacy, while struggling to fill the shoes Doc left behind.

Blending that emotional racing weight right alongside Mater's accidental spy adventure would have given us the best of both worlds.

Do you think a deeper focus on Doc's legacy would have made the World Grand Prix storyline hit even harder?

While Cars 2 gave us some of the absolute best animation, music, and world-building in the franchise, it is no secret that it’s a massive departure from the original film.

The international spy plot with Mater is a ton of fun, but the movie could have avoided a lot of its criticisms if it kept a bit more of the character-driven heart from the first movie.

The story would have been elevated to a whole new level if Lightning McQueen’s motivation in the World Grand Prix was focused on honoring Doc Hudson's memory. Imagine if Lightning and the Radiator Springs crew were traveling the world to cement the Fabulous Hudson Hornet's legacy, while struggling to fill the shoes Doc left behind.

Blending that emotional racing weight right alongside Mater's accidental spy adventure would have given us the best of both worlds.

Do you think a deeper focus on Doc's legacy would have made the World Grand Prix storyline hit even harder?

I completely forgot Jane Lynch voiced Aunt Dirt in The Great North. She brought that exact same chaotic, hilarious Sue Sylvester energy from Glee. Her character living in a fallout shelter for 60 years after mistaking an earthquake for a Soviet invasion was pure genius.

It is incredibly frustrating that Fox axed the show just to clear shelf space for studio-owned filler. Instead of keeping legendary talent like Jane Lynch on the air, Fox forces multi-season renewals for shows like Universal Basic Guys and Grimsburg.

Sure, Universal Basic Guys gets over 5 million viewers when riding a massive NFL football lead-in, but the network completely ignores the terrible reviews. They also completely ignore how unwatchably annoying characters like Marvin Flute in Grimsburg are. Fox only cares about owning 100% of the financial and streaming rights.

It is just another depressing example of a network prioritizing corporate real estate and profit margins over organic, creative talent.