Finding Lucy - The Definitive Look Into the Life of America's First Lady of Television (Lucille Ball) (2000) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a very comprehensive story of Lucy's life and very enjoyable. I bought the VHS because I saw some of this on PBS and wanted to see the whole thing. I wish it was on DVD.

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Once Upon a Mattress (2005) Review

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(More customer reviews)My first question is Why? Why bother going to such expense and effort to bring this old chestnut to the screen (TV, that is)? It was never a GREAT musical to begin with. But on the other hand, I'm glad they did, because, as a former musical director, I have conducted and played this show several times. The last time was over 30 years ago, so it was wonderful to see and hear it again after all this time.
There have been complaints that the songs aren't memorable. (One reviewed didn't like them so he/she fast-forwarded through them. That's a wonderful way to get to know a song!) The songs are indeed memorable, and quite tuneful. Mary Rodgers, Richard's daughter, did a wonderful job...better, in fact, than her father was doing about that time. And the lyrics are very clever. "Sensitivity" in 5/4 time is a tour-de-force of writing and performing. I was sorry they cut "Very Soft Shoes," the jester's song. And "An Opening for a Princess." I missed that, too.
The casting was either good or inspired...mostly. Matthew Morrison and Zooey Deschanel as the young lovers are rather wimpy, to the point of who care if they get married or split or what. But just about everyone else was magnificent. The jester (Michael Boatman) was too good to have had "Very Soft Shoes" taken from him. Tom Smothers, a real treat, was wonderful to watch. His pantomime and facial expressions were delightful. Denis O'Hare grew on me. Not being a TV freak, I wasn't familiar with him. Tracey Ullman was fine, if a little long in the tooth for the part. (Then again, one of the productions of the show I did starred Imogene Coca in the part, and she was in her 60s then!) As for Carol Burnett, she was fantastic, totally over the top! She graduated from the princess to the queen perfectly. (Imogene should have had such luck!) Unfortunately, a song was added for her, which did nothing to distinguish itself other than quote Winnifred's "Happily Ever After," a theatrical no-no. (Fred's song was a soliloquy. How or why would the queen sing the same thing?)
The production values were very high. Bob Mackie's costumes for Carol were breathtaking...and hysterical!
In all, though the show is dated, it's part of musical history and let's wish that more classics would get this treatment. (How about SHE LOVES ME for a start, guys?)

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ONCE UPON A MATTRESS - DVD Movie

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The Carol Burnett Show - Let's Bump Up the Lights (2004) Review

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(More customer reviews)Carol Burnett was clearly in her element during the Q&A part of her series, and this DVD shows many of the funniest highlights the show has to offer. It's also great to see that Carol, Vicki Lawrence, Tim Conway, and Harvey Korman still have it now, even 30 years later. Their quick wit, comic timing, and gift for ad-libbing shine through! Highly recommended!

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THE CAROL BURNETT SHOW - LET'S BUMP UP THE LIGHTS! reunites Carol Burnett with her illustrious cast to relive personal favorites and expose never-before-seen clips from the legendary studio audience Q&A sessions.This hilarious television special kept more than 13 million viewers in stitches.

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The Carol Burnett Show - Show Stoppers (2001) Review

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(More customer reviews)Let me start first by admitting my bias: I'm a HUGE Carol Burnett fan. I grew up watching the show, and loved it because it was so funny, and it made my folks laugh, too.
However, this DVD is simply a lot of promise and no delivery. Imagine someone tells you about this great wine. You are shown the bottle, it's poured in the glass, you're allowed to smell its bouquet, and then... it's taken away. That's just how you'll feel watching this DVD. First off, the DVD is only 40 minutes long - the original hour special, minus all the commercials. There are hours of material that could have been put into a proper DVD, so why wasn't it? The material that is here is very funny, but 10-15 second clips just only go so far with true fans of this very funny show. The show was so great, with such a great cast - why no one bothered to dig in and add some content to the DVD version of the TV special is way beyond me.
Save your money, and send a letter to the companies that hold the rights to the Carol Burnett Show, and ask them to produce a proper DVD special!

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