News

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia has managed to remain pretty outrageous for nearly two decades now. But the first season — with episodes like “The Gang Gets Racist” and “Charlie Wants an Abortion” — was deliberately provocative. For example, the finale, “Charlie Got Molested,” was filled with dark jokes about Charlie possibly being sexually assaulted as a child. Given how unapologetically offensive the episode is as it stands, it’s difficult to imagine how the original ending could have been even more twisted — but it was.

At the conclusion of the episode that aired, we learn that Charlie was never molested by his gym teacher and neither were any of his schoolmates. The whole thing was just a frame-up job by the incestuous McPoyles.

After Charlie receives an intervention for a sexual assault that didn’t happen, he sums things up at the bar. “The best part of it, actually, for me now,...

Quick ViewWho was Jan Schweiterman? A look at his career and rise to fameJan Schweiterman’s cause of death: What we know so farJan Schweiterman’s legacy and impact on pop culture

​Jan Schweiterman, best known for his role as Kurt Bozwell in the 1997 Nickelodeon film Good Burger, passed away on February 28, 2025, at the age of 52. The cause of his death is attributed to an aggressive form of stage 4 cancer.

Schweiterman has portrayed the role of the owner of Mondo Burger, an ambitious and unscrupulous character, and his portrayal has left a mark on the fans of the cult classic.

Jan Schweiterman in Good Burger | Credit: Paramount Pictures

Apart from this classic movie, Scheweiterman also appeared in other movies like American Intellectuals and Warlock III: The End of Innocence in 1999. His other acting credits go to popular TV series like NightMan and Felicity.

As an actor he was quite versatile,...

Actor Jan Schwieterman, whose roles memorably included playing the villain in the Nickelodeon movie Good Burger, has died. He was 52 years old.

According to an obituary shared by the family, Schwieterman died on Friday, Feb. 28, 2025, at Mercy Hospital in Washington, Missouri. The late actor's brother, Chad Schwieterman, announced his sibling's passing in a post on Facebook, including some photos of Schwieterman posing with Chad and other family members. Major news outlets have now begun reporting on the passing, which was revealed by his brother to be from cancer.

"It is with a heavy heart that I share the passing of my brother, Jan (Jp) Schwieterman," Chad's post stated. "He recently found out he had an aggressive form of stage 4 cancer and passed yesterday evening. Please keep our family in your thoughts and prayers as we navigate this difficult time. Rest in peace, brother. We love you and miss you."

Schwieterman...

Jan Schwieterman, who played the burger-making nemesis to Kenan Thompson’s character in the 1997 Nickelodeon comedy Good Burger, died February 28 at Mercy Hospital in Washington, Missouri, after a brief battle with cancer. He was 52.

His death only recently came to widespread public notice. His brother Chad Schwieterman announced the news in a Facebook post. “It is with a heavy heart that I share the passing of my brother, Jan (Jp) Schwieterman. He recently found out he had an aggressive form of stage 4 cancer and passed yesterday evening. Please keep our family in your thoughts and prayers as we navigate this difficult time.”

Jan Patrick Schwieterman, known as J.P. to his family, was born on September 30, 1972, in Bluffton, In. He moved to California after high school to become an actor and in 1994 was cast in an episode of the drama McKenna starring Chad Everett, Eric Close and Jennifer Love Hewitt.

Earl Holliman, a renowned actor who defined midcentury entertainment, died on Monday in Los Angeles at 96, according to his niece Theresa Mullins Harris. Holliman, known for his diverse appearances in television and movies, personified the typical Hollywood success tale.

Holliman rose to popularity with notable performances in science fiction and Western films. In October 1959, he made television history by playing Mike Ferris in the first episode of The Twilight Zone, titled “Where Is Everybody?”

Holliman rose to prominence in the 1960s and 1970s, appearing in hit shows such as Bonanza, The Fugitive, and Marcus Welby, M.D. His most well-known performance was as Lt. Bill Crowley in Police Woman, which peaked in the Primetime Top 15 during the 1974-75 season.

Beyond television, Holliman exhibited extraordinary versatility. In 1957, he received a Supporting Actor Golden Globe for The Rainmaker and was honored with a Hollywood Walk of Fame star. His early film appearances...

Earl Holliman, an actor whose scores of credits spanning a half-century ranged from 1950s films Forbidden Planet and Giant to Police Woman and others popular ’70s and ’80s TV dramas and starred in the first episode of The Twilight Zone, died Monday in Los Angeles after a short illness. He was 96.

His niece, Theresa Mullins Harris, announced the news on social media, writing in part: “His dream at 5 years old of becoming a movie star came true, more than he ever could have imagined.”

Holliman got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame won a Supporting Actor Golden Globe for 1957’s The Rainmaker and was nominated for the short-lived early-’90s ABC sitcom Delta, starring Delta Burke. He was a series regular on the latter, playing the understanding owner of a bar where aspiring country singer Delta Bishop (Burke) worked while trying to make it.

Born on September 11, 1928, Holliman...

"It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" has had some pretty unforgettable bits over the years, but some of the best moments of the show hands down are the musical numbers. There was Dee's rapping boyfriend, Dennis and Mac's glam rock band, the animated musical number in the season 4 Christmas special, and of course, there was "The Nightman Cometh." But who could forget one of the most popular songs in "Sunny" — the patriotic anthem "Rock, Flag, and Eagle."

The song was originally an inside joke between series co-creator and star Charlie Day, who stars in the show as a character named after himself, along with actor and writer David Hornsby, who plays the recurring character Rickety Cricket.

"Hornsby and I would joke about truck commercials, and that they — at that time, I don't know if they're still doing this — it seemed like they were just pumping out the most stereotypical American things,...

Of all the great episodes of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia," one of the most ambitious and hilarious is "The Nightman Cometh," which follows the gang as they put on a rock opera created by the bar's janitor, Charlie (Charlie Day). The musical is inspired by Charlie's childhood and features a villain called the Nightman who comes into his room at night, likely based on Charlie's pedophile uncle, Jack (Andrew Friedman). In the end Charlie created the whole play as a means to convince the Waitress (Mary Elizabeth Ellis) to marry him, which confirms the rest of the gang's assumptions that the play had to have a target or a "mark." It turns out that there was almost originally an entire secondary plot to "The Nightman Cometh" that would have made the aim of the play pretty different, but that having a "mark" was still very much a part of it.

Canceled high-profile superhero properties is as much a part the history of Marvel and DC as are the billion-dollar, 20-part franchises. Daredevil is but one example in a long line of shows failing to meet expectations. Furthermore, Secret Invasion’s abysmal performance is not so strange either. For past generations of comic fans, any opportunity to see their neglected favorite Marvel or DC character on-screen was a gargantuan deal — it's hard to stress how rare and special it was. If you are under 30, you don’t remember how shocking it was to see Nick Fury on primetime network TV in 1998, or how painful it was to see the back-door pilot fail. Superheroes on television were, in many ways, harmed by billion-dollar blockbusters more than they were helped. The McU's Infinity Saga set the bar for what we expect and demand way too high for anyone on a TV budget to deliver.

Leprechaun, the long-running horror-comedy franchise, celebrates its 30th anniversary as all eight films are now available on Hulu. Mark Jones, creator of Leprechaun, shares his surprise at the franchise's success and reveals that a reboot is in the works. Jones reflects on the film's impact on the horror genre, the early career of Jennifer Aniston, and his fondness for directing Leprechaun as his first movie.

In celebration of the 30th anniversary of Leprechaun, Hulu has added all eight films to the streaming platform. Lionsgate recently revealed that an official reboot is in the works, which is no surprise given the franchise's long-standing success. The film series centers around a vengeful leprechaun and the unlucky victims who end up on the receiving end of his murderous rampage. Despite its gruesome scenes and dark premise, the subtext and snide one-liners allow the film to fall under the comedy-horror umbrella.

Mark Jones is...

This post contains spoilers for the first episode of "The Twilight Zone."

The first episode of Rod Serling's anthology series "The Twilight Zone" aired on October 2, 1959. The episode was called "Where Is Everybody?," and it starred Earl Holliman as a man with no memories, walking down a dirt road. He arrives in a small town. No one is there. He cries out for anyone, but no one answers. He tries the public telephone, but there is no operator. He sees a woman in a car, but she turns out to be a mere mannequin. He helps himself to some diner food, which is still fresh. Machines seem to operate on their own, as when our hero goes to a movie theater and the picture starts automatically. What is happening? Is everyone hiding? Where is everybody? The solitude slowly begins to drive him into a panic.

The twist ending: the...

by Ryan Rigley

"Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." may be the latest comic book series to hit the small screen, but it's certainly not the first. Almost as old as comic books themselves, comic book TV series have become a mainstay of current popular culture. With a number of television shows based on both Marvel and DC comics, it's hard to imagine a TV series based on any other comic book publishing company.

One might think that Malibu Comics' "Night Man" didn't fit the Marvel/DC bill when his TV series debuted in the late '90s, but that was not the case! Marvel Comics acquired Malibu in 1994, and began crossing Night Man over with popular Marvel superheroes like Thor, Wolverine, and even Gambit. Surprisingly enough, Night Man even got his own TV series a year after his comic book was canceled!

Series Statistics

Network: Broadcast Syndication

Broadcast Date: 1997 - 1999

Seasons:...

Sony Pictures Animation has plans to bring the short-lived television series Manimal to the big screen. The Hollywood Reporter brings word that the studio has secured the rights to the property and is developing it as a CGI/live-action hybrid feature. The 1983 NBC series was created by Glen A. Larson and Donald R. Boyle and followed Dr. Jonathan Chase (Simon MacCorkindale), a man with the ability to transform himself into any animal in the world, using his powers to fight for justice. Although the series lasted only eight episodes, MacCorkindale reprised the character 15 years later in an episode of the Larson-created "Night Man," in turn based on the Malibu Comics series. No talent is currently attached to the big-screen Manimal , but check back for details as...

Another day, another Comic-Con schedule! Are you ready to plan out our Saturday at this years convention!? Once again there's a ton of great panels going on including Iron Man 3, Pacific Rim, Man of Steel, The Hobbit, Marvel TV, Django Unchained, The Simpsons, Family Guy, and more!

Saturday has shaped up to be a hell of a great day for those of you attending Comic-Con. I've put *** next to all of the panels that we want to attend, but like every year, I'm sure we'll be covering a lot more stuff.

We'll be wearing our GeekTyrant shirts, so if you see us walking around San Diego and the convention center, please stop and and say hi! We'd love to meet our readers. We will also be holding our annual meet-up on Wednesday night before the crazy geek storm.

Check out the schedule below and let us know what panels you'll be attending,...

The fate of Gcb, one of our favorite new shows, will be decided in the next few weeks, and right now, there's a 50/50 chance it'll survive. If it does get canceled, at least it'll instantly become a member of what we'll call the Arrested Development/Freaks & Geeks/Firefly club. Shows that were canceled before their time, and have gained cult status since they left the airwaves.

All of those programs have rabid enthusiastic followers, and in the case of Firefly and Arrested Development, that fan enthusiasm has directly led to big screen resurrections.

We're hoping Gcb gets a renewal, but while we wait, let's take a look at a few other shows throughout the years that were unfairly snuffed out, and picture ... what might have been.

Pushing Daisies

ABC (October 3, 2007 – June 13, 2009)

Featuring a stellar cast, including Lee Pace, the incomparable Kristin Chenoweth, and Anna Friel as Dead Zooey Deschanel, Pushing Daisies...

Heyo! The gang from Paddy's Pub is back as It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia kicks off Season 7 Thursday, September 15 at 10 Pm Et. As you may have noticed, one of the cast members, Rob McElhenney, who plays Mac, has "bulked up" significantly, putting on at least 50 pounds for this new season.

Rob McElhenney recently held a conference call to discuss Season 7 of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. And his very fat ass. Here's what he had to say below.

How much of the show is scripted versus you guys just riffing?

Rob McElhenney: Well, we usually try to do at least one or two takes completely scripted. So, we very carefully and arduously over probably the longest span of the production cycle spend writing, and I'd say we get at least one or two, maybe three, takes of it exactly as scripted. And then from that point forward we'll ad...

Take Seinfeld, remove any sense of decency or a filter for content and you end up with It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. The gang has put mittens on kittens, battled the Night Man, lit Sweet Dee on fire, solved the North Korea crisis, and pissed off just about anybody who isn't in their quintet of miscreants. There's really no telling what the lowest point in their television career is, but at least it's always funny and makes us glad we're not nearly the horribly depraved human beings they are. Rob McElhenney, Glenn Howerton, Charlie Day, Kaitlin Olson, and Danny Devito have made being insensitive assholes with no regard for the well-being of others funny and cool again, and for that, we salute them with a giveaway.

The sixth season of It's Always Sunny hit stores on DVD and Blu-ray on September 13th, and since we're pretty big fans ourselves, we...

When my mother asked me why I was buying up all the comics I could, I made an attempt to satisfy her underlying problem. “I’m not wasting my money, Mom, these comics are worth money!” She bought that. Years later, she asked me when I was going to sell them and enjoy the tidy profit. Wouldn’t you know it? All those copies of Night Man and Mantra weren’t worth the paper they were printed on. And my Walgreens copy of Cyberforce: Bloodstryke? Nary a nickel would be given to me by any one aside from maybe Marc Silvestri. Had I been smart enough, I would have picked up the holo-foil variant cover, and nabbed me a dime.

You see kiddos, when I got into comics, the ‘Variant’ cover ruled the land. In the go-go-nineties, when people suddenly thought comic books were highly coveted collectables, the publishers followed...

Image via Wikipedia

Welcome back, friends. After the hate-spew I delivered in the first few weeks, and the near love-in I had over the last two… I asked myself what was the obvious next step.

Self?

Yes, Marc?

What’s the obvious next step?

Hell if I know. I still hate Flashpoint. And about half of the DC reboot. And the X-Men. And walnuts.

Well, that’s no help.

Sorry. Why don’t you talk about Malibu?

Seems simple enough. Let me set the scene. It was 6th grade. 1993. I’d just met this crazy kid named Matt who drew better than me, and loved comics. I was insanely jealous of his talent, and unlike my other friends at the time, he wasn’t a brilliant mathematician well on his way to being our eventual class valedictorian. He invited me to a sleepover birthday party, which pretty much meant by the next week,...

"So this is real?" Summer Glau asked the hooded, caped man standing in her office at one point during last night's premiere of The Cape. That was the same question running through my mind for pretty much the entire two hours.

Filling the television voids left by Heroes and, I'm guessing, Night Man, NBC's newest action show is absolutely ridiculous. It's like someone combined the production values of the Knight Rider reboot with...  More >>...

So, you want to be a superhero? Not a problem. Oh... you're not a billionaire orphan with years to dedicate to the martial arts? Don't fret! I'm sure you can play in a lake of toxic ooze, or get bit by a genetically unstable super-wombat, right? Well... even if you don't have powers, don't feel bad. Cause there are some folks out there in comic-book-land that would have been better off as bartenders or stock-boys than crime-fighters or super-heroes. Don't believe me? Well kind citizen, scope this list of lameoids out, and see sometimes it's no so bad being normal after all*.

Night Man – Johnny Domino was just your run-of-the-mill jazz musician with those totally hip round sunglasses (Superboy anyone?) and that always fashionable accessory... the dangely cross earring in one ear! Too cool for school you say? Well, without warning, an alien bolt of lightening hit a cable car,...

The fourth season of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia wraps up with a musical episode. Danny DeVito's character, Frank, plays the troll who lets the Night Man into the boy's hole.

Danny DeVito is Frank in Philadelphia

"You know, you've got to pay the troll toll if you want to get into this boy's hole," DeVito explained. "That's the thing. Soul, soul. He's laughing over there. I said boy's soul. You want to pay the toll and then get into the boy's hole."...