Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 11th, 2010
"58 full-length episodes. 585 classic sketches. On 18 discs."
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 11th, 2010
There were a lot of changes in store for the Bunkers in the seventh season. The Jeffersons, long a source of irritation for Archie and a ton of laughs for us, moved to their own show, on up to the East Side and that big de-luxe apartment in the sky. Mike and Gloria finally move out of the house, but only as far as next door in the vacated Jefferson home. Most importantly, little baby Joey joins the family. New characters would join the show in the seventh season. It's been a rough ride for the Bunkers, to be sure. The series was first released through Fox for three seasons. Sony took over the releases for the next three seasons. Finally Shout Factory has stepped up and has taken over the release chores for this classic comedy.
It’s perhaps a sad commentary on the level of political correctness that Archie Bunker could never have graced network primetime in 2010. Archie was ignorant and an incredibly vocal bigot. Archie was an equal-opportunity bigot. He didn’t just hate certain minorities … he hated everybody who wasn’t white blue-collar protestant. Carroll O’Connor, who brilliantly portrayed Archie, was without a doubt one of the best actors to grace a network sit-com. Just watch his eyes and you’ll understand. All in the Family holds a record for spin-off series. The Jeffersons, Maude, Good Times, and Archie Bunker’s Place are just a few of the highly successful shows that owe their roots to All In The Family. Rob Reiner, Meathead, has since followed in his father Carl Reiner’s footsteps as a highly-acclaimed producer.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 7th, 2010
"Every government has its secret service branch. In America it's CIA, England MI5. A messy job? Well, that's when they call on me, or someone like me. Oh yes. My name is Drake, John Drake."
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 6th, 2010
I grew up on the Peanuts creations of Charles M. Schulz. Most of us have, in some way or another. His newspaper comic strip is one of the longest running and most successful strips of all time. The work has been translated into every language currently spoken on the planet. The images of Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, and the rest of the Peanuts gang have appeared on just about any kind of product imaginable. Our pop culture contains too many references to the strip to mention briefly. For me, it was the television specials starting in the mid 1960’s that brought the gang into my life. The classics are running annually, still after nearly 50 years. A Charlie Brown Christmas and It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown are the most mentioned and certainly beloved by generations of children and adults. I thought I never missed an airing.
He’s Your Dog, Charlie Brown: Snoopy’s driving the neighborhood crazy, and they want Charlie Brown to do something about it. That means back to The Daisy Hill Puppy Farm for everyone’s favorite flying-ace beagle, and obedience school. But along the way to the farm Charlie Brown discovers just how much he loves Snoopy, just the way that he is.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 4th, 2010
Eddie Murphy was at his best when he did Saturday Night Live and his own stand up comedy. I would even say that some of his earlier films were okay. He is far better when given the opportunity to be himself, and improvise a little. I miss the days of Delirious and Saturday Night Live. Now at most we get Dr. Dolittle and Shrek. I miss the vulgar side. So let's take a trip down memory lane, and have a few laughs.
We interrupt this review to bring you this special report. Good evening, Teh Noms reporting, we have just received word that Buckwheat has been shot. Brought to you by Texxon, Life goes on, and Texxon is there. *cough* You have to have this set of sketches in order for this to be a "Best of". It goes on and on and on... With them showing the video of Buckwheat being shot at least 10 times. It doesn't start to get funny till the 4th or 5th time of seeing the video. The funniest thing is how they repeat the lines. Heeelarious.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 3rd, 2010
Written by Diane Tillis
Paranormal State is a paranormal reality documentary television series that premiered on the A&E network in 2007. The series follows a group of students from Pennsylvania State University who formed the Paranormal Research Society (PRS) under the guidance of leader Ryan Buell. The students travel across the country investigating instances of paranormal activity at the behest of people looking for answers.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 30th, 2010
A lot of musical acts have broken up over the decades. Some of those breakups have included public feuds and plenty of hostility between the members. You would be hard-pressed to recall a breakup as public and hostile as when the Everly Brothers called it quits. If you think Glen Fry's "When hell freezes over" remark was pretty definitive, you should have been at the final Everly Brothers concert in 1973. The argument occurred on-stage in front of a live audience. Harsh words were exchanged, and a guitar got smashed. When Phil Everly walked off the stage to leave Don to finish the show alone, it would not only be the last time the brothers would appear on stage together in a decade. They would barely even speak to each other throughout most of that time. Lots of broken bands get back together for reunion tours and shows. But if you had to lay odds, the smart money would have bet against this brotherly duo ever singing together again. But, in 1983, a full ten years after the split, the smart money lost. The Everly Brothers reunited for a special concert at London's Royal Albert Hall in front of a sold-out crowd that included a ton of stars that credit the brothers as their own early inspirations. The cameras were on hand to capture this historic moment. Now you can own it on DVD.
Unlike many groups, the Everly Brothers were more than just a performing and writing duo. They sang together, often sharing the same microphone. Part of the act was the intimacy that the boys displayed in their concerts. It made those harmonies sound just that much tighter. So the question going into this performance was rather obvious. How would the acrimony and the years effect that style of performance? You would be very surprised to find that they didn't appear to miss a beat. This is one of those moments where it appears time stood still for those ten years and the boys managed to pick up at the moment before the famous fight. And it wasn't just a one night wonder. The brothers went forward after that night in London and continued to perform and record for over 20 more years. While they never found themselves back on top again -- the times had, of course changed -- the brothers continued to pack concert halls all over the world.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on September 30th, 2010
When I was asked to review this DVD, a smile came across my face. I loved Adam Sandler skits on Saturday Night Live. I was also a fan of some of his earlier movies like Billy Madison and Happy Gilmore (Though I can't say I am a fan of Eight Crazy Nights, but everyone has at least one film that they wonder why the person did it later on). I still quote lines from these movies. Yeah, say what you want about that... I still find it and him funny. Go grab a Snack Pack and sit down with me to review The Best of Adam Sandler!
Cough Ok so you pick up the DVD and do what most people do... Turn it around to view the back. A list of twenty sketches stares you in the face, but what is that? Opera Man is listed four times? Apparently they needed to fill the back of the case. That said, you will see quite a bit of Opera Man. It is one of the best characters he had on the show, and probably the one he played the most often. I think the best part is when he is in the middle of singing, he cracks a smile, and tries not to laugh at what he is singing about. The best comedy is the stuff that the comics performing also find funny.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 30th, 2010
In 1987 Kenny G had released three albums already, but most of the world still didn't know who he was. He was already an accomplished musician who had played as part of Barry White's orchestra. He had dreams of taking his talents a bit further than that. But it's incredibly hard to get on the pop charts with instrumental music. It doesn't happen very often. That's not to say that it's unheard of. There have been a few instrumental pieces and musicians that have found huge success riding the international pop charts. Up until now Kenny G could not be counted as one of them.
All of that changed with the release of Duotones and the single Songbird. Both captivated the mainstream audiences and began to garner serious attention for the sax player. One of the results of that new-found recognition was an introduction to the world famous Montreux Jazz Festival. You had to show something to be invited to that stage. Kenny G appeared there in both 1987 and 1988. This DVD captures both of those performances. Fans won't need much of an inducement to pick up the release. It was an historic moment for the musician and his mostly Seattle-based band. It was the introduction of Kenny G to the world stage.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 27th, 2010
The 9th and final year of Scrubs is called Scrubs 2.0 among the show's cast and crew. The 13 episodes of this season have the torch being passed to a younger group of medical students on the show. JD returns to try to teach, but the focus here is on the next generation. Unfortunately, the idea didn't really catch on, and the show has finally ended. So, it's time to say goodbye to your friends at Sacred Heart Hospital.
Scrubs is a show that resists being defined. Certainly there have been a ton of medical shows over the years. Recently shows like Grey’s Anatomy have found a way to balance a bit of drama with a light mood that often approaches comedy. MASH was the opposite. It was a comedy that often allowed quite serious moments to intrude upon the laughter. Any way you slice it, it turns out that pain and disease can be funny. Nowhere is that more true than on Scrubs. On Scrubs you are never left in an awkward position of knowing if it’s appropriate to laugh. Everything about the show is geared toward the absurd, and hopefully the funny.
