Today brings the release of the first season of the ’80s sitcom Newhart on DVD, but what has happened to the other classic Bob Newhart show on disc? It’s not only fans of the big ’70s hit The Bob Newhart Show who are asking that question but also its star, Bob Newhart, whom I talked to Monday.

Bob Newhart stars with the late, great Suzanne Pleshette on “The Bob Newhart Show.”

Four seasons of The Bob Newhart Show have been released to date on DVD. But it has been a year and a half since Season 4 came out, and there are still two seasons left. Apparently, Newhart is coming out now because online retailer Amazon told Fox Home Entertainment of all the requests it had received for the ’80s show. But while he’s happy that Newhart has been released, a frustrated Bob Newhart said he doesn’t want Fox to forget about his previous show.

“I assumed Fox was going to put out all six years of The Bob Newhart Show and then put out Newhart,” he said by phone from his home in Beverly Hills, Calif.

Ironically, he added, it’s his understanding that Amazon also has urged Fox to release Seasons 5 and 6 of the older show, too.

“The fifth and sixth seasons of The Bob Newhart Show are in limbo as far as I am concerned, as far as Fox’s attitude toward them,” Bob said. “I think Fox has an obligation to put something out and not quit after the fourth year.”

He said he feels bad for fans, many of whom have contacted him through his website to ask what’s up.

“I think it hurts because people don’t want to start collecting if they’re not sure they’re going to have the whole collection,” he said, adding with a laugh: “There were eight years of Newhart. Now, how many they are going to put out, I don’t know.”

Fox, which did not respond to a request for a status report on The Bob Newhart Show on DVD, has an odd history with classic sitcoms on DVD. The Mary Tyler Moore Show was put on hold after its high-priced first season flopped, then started up again and now is back on hold. WKRP in Cincinnati, whose first season sold more than 100,000 copies last time I asked for stats from an industry tracker, infamously had much of its integral music cut due to licensing issues. And Bob reminded me that Fox put out a barebones first-season set of The Bob Newhart Show without even his knowledge. Once he found out, he insisted on recording commentary and other extras for Seasons 2-4. By the way, he has done no extras for Seasons 5 and 6, an indication of how firmly in limbo they are. He added that Fox stipulates at least a six-month window between releases, so he hopes to hear in June or July about future plans for either of his shows on DVD.

As far as what Bob is up to, he said now that the Hollywood writers’ strike is over, he’ll be returning to do his third The Librarian made-for-TV film and a few Hallmark telemovies. He also plans to do 10 to 12 stand-up comedy concert appearances this year and is on the verge of doing an unnamed film project that’s set to film in New Zealand. I asked him if he was going to play the lead role in The Hobbit, which prompted a laugh and lots of jokes about how The Lord of the Rings has spawned an entire film industry in New Zealand, including his production. “Yeah, I think they got a good price on the rental,” he said with a laugh.

Coming Sunday: Twin Cities native Julia Duffy, who played stuck-up maid Stephanie on Newhart, discusses her work on the ’80s sitcom in the A&E section of the newspaper and at www.startribune.com/tv online.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 26th, 2008 at 11:21 am and is filed under DVDs. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.