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5.0 out of 5 stars
The final Colour Honeymooners shows-How Sweet They are!, Jan 15 2009
Volume Four of "The Colour Honeymooners" is a dan-dan-dandy of a closing for the series.
All final twelve eps are here from Set.27/69 to Feb.28/70(regardless of the misprint on the inside sleeve that says Feb28/69!).There are two things that stand out immediately with these eps.First is The Great Ones' weight loss.He had been up around 290 lbs.,now he was down to about 220 lbs.,a laudable achievement.He would drop down a further 15 or more lbs.in the unsuing years.
The second thing that hits you is the plethora of guest stars appearing on these shows.Milton Berle,Joey Heatherton,Paul Lynde,Donald O'Connor,Mike Douglas,Bing Crosby and many well known character actors.Great to see and hear these stars once again.
As always this show was filmed live on a Friday night at the Miami Beach Colliseum for airing the next night.There were no laugh tracks as all reactions were genuine.And Gleason would rarely allow re-takes or stoppages in the filming.In fact for the auditorium audience it was a non stop show.In between scenes/costume changes,others acts would take the stage to entertain them,so it was truly constant fun in the sun for them.There was however a very unexpected stoppage in the filming.During the second to last ep"We're off to see the Wizard",I noticed that while singing one of their numbers that Gleason was stumbling a little more than usual with the lyrics;he was distracted for some reason.At the end of the show we are told the reason why by Gleason himself.It seems someone had come up on stage during filming and all proceedings came to a halt.The reason for the on stage intrusion is not told but Gleason you could tell was more than a little perturbed at it.It took alot to rattle the Great One,but this obviously had.
Another thing I noticed that was unsual for Jackie was that on more than one occasion during these shows you will see him lose his composure during a scene.This is especially evident during "Happiness is a Rich Uncle".The actor that played Alices' uncle was doing a great job.In fact he was playing it so over the top that as the camera was shifting from Gleason and Norton over to the uncle you can see Jackie laughing at him,obviously enjoying the performance as much as the audience.It is a priceless moment.Further,at the end of the show Jackie himself admits doing it at least twice during the performance,hoping"the camera didn't pick it up".It did and,as I say,it is priceless to see.
I also might mention that you will see while watching these shows, the "times" creeping into the scripts more than ever.Womens Lib in "The Honeymoon is Over" and youth protests in "Operation Protest".
As always the June Taylor dancers are absolutely fantastic.Their choreography is magnificent and it is a shining example of Gleasons' penchant for hiring the best talent available.And as always with a live shoot and Gleasons' penchant for continuing shooting,you will see little faux pauxs occuring with the dancers too,like missed turns or drops;and always the floor after their opening number is strewn with bits and pieces of fallen costumes.Lyn Duddy and Jerry Bresler continued their amazing work during the making and filming of all these shows.I can't imagine having to come up with music and lyrics week in and week out and of the high caliber these two talented peoples' songs were.Incredible.ANOTHER nod to Gleasons' innate ability for picking the right people for the right job.
Johnny Olson of course was the announcer for the series,in short time to become immortalized as Bob Barkers' announcer on "The Price is Right".
The end of this series was pretty much the swan song of Jackie on television on a regular basis,except for the odd Honeymooners special,of which there is one included as an extra on this set along with an interview with Jane Kean.
Yes,1970 was a terrible year for television.Even though Jackies' show was constantly high in the ratings,"demographics" was the buzz word now.The exces were now gearing programming to the up and coming generation now entering or about to enter the work force;completely ignoring the fact that the younger gen loved the Gleason shows as much as their parents did,if not more.Whenever Honeymooners were on reruns(the Classic 39),it was proven that it was the younger audiences (18-35)that were dutifully out there loving and watching the Kramden's,more so than the older generation.So much for "demographics".
Along with Gleason,the longest running western in tv history,Gunsmoke,and another long running stalwart Red Skelton,also got canned.In a short time Mr.Sunday night Ed Sullivan would see the chopping block too.No one took it as hard as Skelton who,in not a graceful mood,threatened to burn his entire output of shows and vowed to never have them shown again...which his estate so far has continued to do.A pity.
In closing I must say I got the biggest kick out of the this the last set of the Colour Honeymooners Vol#Four,that MPI video has released.It's nostalgic of course for those of us who first watched them back in the 60s, but it is now a valuable chapter in television history that plays out before your eyes and is a very welcome sight in these times,in a television landscape that today is terribly lacking in quality.There simply have been no shows of this caliber or type on tv for decades.
You are getting all the shows minus their opening monlogues by Gleason.They are all in colour of course(still the "new" thing back then) and with various small anomalies(dirt,sound drop outs,etc) all inherent in the existing tape masters.
These shows are pure enjoyment and a must have for all Gleason fans or fans of good,simple and clean tv entertainment.Long live The Great One.
Now MPI,how about the late 50 and early to mid-60s Jackie Gleason shows?
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![The Honeymooners: Classic 39 Collection [5 Discs]](http://img.amazon.ca/images/I/51xFAHdAd9L._SL75_SS50_.jpg)
