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He's a supersuave special agent. He has an arsenal of custom-made high-tech gadgets. Women find him irresistible. James Bond? No, James West, from the fondly remembered genre-bending TV series The Wild, Wild West, starring Robert Conrad as a frontier 007. Posing as "the dandiest dude that ever crossed the Mississippi," West and his partner, master of disguise Artemus Gordon (Ross Martin), foil diabolical plots to, primarily, take over the world. This boxed set rounds up three vintage episodes from the series' inaugural 1965 season. In the pilot, "The Night of the Inferno," President Grant himself recruits West, "the finest underground intelligence officer we have," to stop a revolution. Guest stars include Suzanne Pleshette as the proprietor of, um, a gambling house and Victor Buono as the mysterious Wing Fat. In "The Night of the Double-Edge Knife," Cheyenne Indians are blamed for a series of attacks on railroad workers. Guest stars include Leslie Nielsen (playing it straight as an exiled Army general with a grudge), Katharine Ross, Elisha Cook Jr., and Drew's dad, John Drew Barrymore. "The Night the Wizard Shook the Earth" introduces the villain who would be West's most elusive nemesis throughout the series, the diminutive Dr. Miguelito Loveless (Michael Dunn). That's Richard Kiel, better known as Jaws on The Spy Who Loved Me, as his henchman. --Donald Liebenson ... Read more

Reviews (7)

The West takes on a new look
I remember when I first started watching these (way back when). It was unlike any western I'd ever seen or would ever see. The creativity of this series is phenomenal. The humor is subtle, the action is spectacular, and the gadgets...oh those crazy gadgets...were way ahead of their time. Spielberg probably picked up a few pointers from this one. Just wish I had a train like James and Artemus had. Travel taken to a whole new level of comfort. The movie with Will Smith doesn't even come close to the same level as the series. The movie was just a showcase for Smith. The series is a showcase for creativity at its finest. Guaranteed--you won't waste you money buying these.

WILD WILD WINNER!!
These episodes are very good! They reflect a mass of James West's tools and gadgets and the story lines are done very well! Well written. I'm a big James west fan and will tell you that among all episodes, these are very good and would go well in any Wild Wild West collection.

I know it's crazy...but it's true!
I'll never being tired to see all of wild-wild west TV episodes. Why? Because of Robert Conrad! Conrad was so amazing inthis film...I couldn't imagine the film without him...even Will Smith couldn't replace him for the big screen version. The most important part that I like most is.....when Robert Conrad is Shirtless. Waw....you can see his athletical body and hairy chest of him. Of course...because he's so handsome (when he was young)...it seems that he's the sexiest man that I've ever seen.

WILD, WILD WEST, BETTER THAN THE MOVIE
I LIKE THIS TV SERIES, BETTER THAN THE MOVIE THAT MOVIE WAS A DISASTER IN ALL FRONTS, ROBERT CONRAD IS WONDERFUL, & THE CAST IS GREAT.

An absolute MUST-SEE set of episodes!
I thought all three episodes were really great. They all possess the elements that make watching these volumes an absolute priority. The videos bring out the 007 in West and the master of disguise in Gordon. The episodes are action packed and dig deep into the rare science fiction which is amazingly and marvelously applied to the 1865 setting making "The Wild Wild West" the best western ever. That's just my opinion. Watch the episodes and see for yourselves. ... Read more

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Culled from 30 years of material, this collection of moments from The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson contains some of most inspired bits of lunacy ever recorded. Whether cajoling with Hollywood's biggest stars or normal folk with special talents, Carson was a master of finding the right joke, with timing second to none. Along with bits of his opening monologues, skits, and early standup appearances from the likes of David Letterman and Eddie Murphy, there are many highlights with perhaps the perfect Carson guest--exotic animals that stole the show. This collection was released shortly after Carson's reign ended in 1992. Although most of the tapes of his first decade are lost, there are plenty of highlights from the '70s through the '90s. Also included is Carson's touching and historic "Final Show," which finds the host simply talking to his audience and showing highlights--or just the faces--from his years on the set. Although many followed--and a few have even succeeded--Carson's Midwest charm made him the king of TV in a period when America was defined by television. --Doug Thomas ... Read more

Reviews (16)

The Man Behind the Desk
In today's era of David Letterman and Jay Leno, younger generations should remember that Johnny Carson (along with his "Tonight Show" predecessors Jack Paar and Steve Allen) defined the talk-show format which made late-night television an enduring and immensely profitable enterprise. From 1962 to 1992, Carson reigned supreme as a comedian and broadcaster. Unlike Letterman and Leno, Johnny did his homework when it came to nightly conversation. No matter who sat on the couch, he remained an astute and observant host. "The Ultimate Johnny Carson Collection" is an expanded three-DVD set of "Tonight Show" highlights selected by Johnny himself, with the welcome addition of his final two programs. The set also includes the 1982 NBC special "Johnny Goes Home" -- a nostalgic, affectionate look at Carson's return to his hometown of Norfolk, Nebraska. Loaded with extras (and some recently discovered film clips from the early 1960s), the DVD collection provides first-rate material at a reasonable price. If this set leaves you wanting more, the six-DVD "Timeless Moments" series is highly recommended -- allowing viewers to see previously unavailable Carson monologues, interviews and sketches in their entirety.

Still the King!
As one of the millions that sorely miss the wit and wisdom of Johnny Carson, I was especially pleased to receive this "best of" DVD collection. The three DVD's feature the best moments from the show - divided by decade - from the 60's through the 90's, and also include the complete second-to-last show (with Bette Midler and Robin Williams) and the final show, along with a documentary on Johnny I had never seen before. The remastering quality is great. There is a fun little short film called "Danger Johnny", and one of the most interesting things about the DVD's are the ISO CAMS, that allow you to pick the camera angles to view some of the programs. You can even view scenes from Johnny's perspective. The menu options are terrific, and the packaging very deluxe. If you are a fan of classic television, this is a great addition to your library - and I plan to send them as gifts to family members I know miss Johnny too.

Disappointed
I was disappointed with this set. It doesn't give you a sense of what made you love Johnny, really. There is minimal development of the material. A couple of gags would be OK, but gag after gag left me feeling empty. Maybe Johnny is not the right person to toast with snippets; his charm came from watching an entire show, or was built up over months, years. Likewise his skill as an interviewer is lost in the short clips. Had I known, I would have taken on a pass on this purchase. Furthermore,the production is rushed and uncreative.

There will never be another...
Watching this set of dvds left me with a sense of melancholy and loss. Like spent youth and good times/people gone by. This will not... it cannot... ever happen again. Carson was a master of the Late Nite format in a very special time in our history. It was a time when true stars walked the Earth. Real S*T*A*R*S like Dean Martin, Bob Hope, Jimmy Stewart, John Wayne, etc. would show up on the Tonight Show to trade quips with Johnny and we knew that we were in the presence of greatness... not foul-mouthed little Irish gits like Colin Farrell whose every second utterance is a four-letter swear-word, or the assorted giggling bimbos and boring, scuzzball, here-today-gone-tomorrow boy bands who frequent the Leno show. This rather pricey 3-disc extravaganza will take you back home and leave you wanting more. BEWARE though! The set is advertized as over 7 hours long and that is not the case. Here is the breakdown: BEST OF THE '60s & '70s (48 mins), BEST OF THE '70s & '80s (46 mins), BEST OF THE '80s & '90S (52 mins), JOHNNY GOES HOME (47 mins), SECOND LAST SHOW (32 mins), FINAL SHOW (35 mins). I work it out to just about 4 and a half hours on 3 discs. Mind you, the packaging, picture quality and menus are superb. Definately worth a purchase, but my advice would be to shop around for the best price.

Will Never Be Equaled
A wonderful look back at 30 years of late night class. It just goes to show what an awesome talent Johnny was and how far late night TV has declined. The picture and sound quality is excellent, and the extras are good, too. Johnny's 1982 special where he visits Norfolk is fun to see again as well. My only gripe is that the music montage from the last show is missing, but this probably has to do with getting all the clearances from the artists, which can be difficult. Highly recommended for all us baby-boomers who grew up with the one and only King of late night. Johnny......WE MISS YOU!!!!!!!!!!!! ... Read more

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Set 2 in The Avengers '67 includes more episodes of the long-running British television series at its creative peak of great writing, color filming (for the first time on the show), and flawless chemistry between actors Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg. This batch includes six episodes on three tapes, including the unstoppable-corpse mystery "The Living Dead"; the cheeky, killer-feline story "The Hidden Tiger"; the finishing-school drama "The Correct Way to Die"; the scary "Epic"; and the Agatha Christie-like "The Superlative Seven." --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Quirky, Stylish, and Outlandishly Classic
Opening sequence: Close-up of two champagne glasses, one standing, one on its side; camera pans back; John Steed (Patrick MacNee) enters stage left, wearing an impeccable suit and a bowler hat, with an umbrella dangling from one arm; he carries a champagne bottle; camera pans back and right; Emma Peel (Diana Rigg) enters stage right, wearing a pastel body suit and carrying a chrome-plated pistol with bone grips; she shoots the cork out of Steeds champagne bottle; he shows no surprise; he draws a small sword from the handle of his umbrella and uses it to flip a carnation from a vase over to Mrs. Peel; vibrant, upbeat music plays throughout the scene.

Does this give you an idea of the style, quirkiness, and love for the unexpected and slightly outrageous that was the trademark of this series? Steed and Peel were agents were British Intelligence, and each episode dealt with some threat to British national security and/or the keepers thereof. The writers had a penchant for outlandish and just-beyond-credible stories. No matter how outrageous, Steed and Peel were seldom taken off-guard, never flustered, and, of course, always able to somehow overcome the obstacles presented to them.

In this particular set of three tapes (six episodes), Steed and Peel (it's Mrs. Peel, but I don't think we ever see or hear mention of Mr. Peel) deal with a group of spies, living underground, using slave labor, and training an army of infiltrators in "The Living Dead"; there is a very big and very mean cat prowling, and killing intelligence agents in "The Hidden Tiger"; when foreign spies start getting killed, Steed and Peel team up with their foreign (Soviet?) counterparts to identify and stop the third party in the game, in "The Correct Way to Kill"; there is a problem with disappearing corpses and an unkillable super-spy-gone-rogue in "Never, Never Say Die"; Emma gets kidnapped and unwillingly cast in a maniacal directors very lethal movie, with Steed eventually joining in to help out, in "Epic"; Steed is invited to a strange party that is really a try-out for a genetically-enhanced superhuman killing machine, up for sale, in "The Superlative Seven", with Emma joining the party, to help save the day, near the end.

Steed and Peel, Fantastic Duo !!!
One of my favorite adolescent shows and also as an adult. Patrick Macnee as the charismatic John Steed and the beautiful Diana Rigg as Mrs. Emma Peel do a great job as this British secret agent team (Diana Riggs also played a Bond girl in Her Majesty's Secret Service released in 1969-see this movie). I believe Mrs. Peel has a doctorate so is very smart and is also a crack shot. See Mrs. Peel's self defense techniques. Steed is also an expert in several weapons. They are called into action whenever there may be a threat to England's internal security. The threats are what is one of the great surprises in this show and at times very unusual. The plots are very good and are very unique most of the time. I have seen most of the shows with Mrs. Peel and she and Steed make a gtreat pair. Their intellectual abilities are great especailly when they must solve problems. Watch this series as it will definitely be well worth the entertainment. The two shows in this video, The Correct Way to Kill and Never Never Say Die show very good plots. This series will grow on you!! Watch It. You won't regret it!

I prefer the earlier ones
I personally think the earlier ones are much better. The 65's and the 66's. Though this a great set. The attractive Mrs. Peel played by Diana Rigg and the humorous Mr. Steed played by Patrick Macnee. Together they are superb. This set has such epsiodes as The Living Dead, The Hidden Tiger, The Correct Way To Kill, Epic, and The Superlative Seven. This is a pretty good set.

Witty and humorous
"The Avengers," of course was really a comedy series with a few deaths thrown in for good measure. . . even so, the episodes are a welcome break from the vulgarity that passes as humour these days. The recent feature film is rather hopeless in comparison (similar to the ruining of the Saint in its feature presentation). Of course, Honor Blackman, not Diana Rigg, was the first actress to play Steed's partner.

Makes So Much of Today's TV Look Pallid!
This review could stand for any of the sets.

So often when one sees a show again, after years of fond memories, the actual show is a letdown, if not an absolute disappointment. So few shows, after all, hold up after thirty-odd years! And though these shows are undoubtedly "Sixties" in look and feel, it doesn't date them, but adds to their allure. And that allure is still as potent as ever. It shows what high production values, intelligent, witty, literate scripts, fine acting, and above all the superb lead pair of Patrick MacNee and Diana Rigg, and their inimitable chemistry, can accomplish. Each is like a mini-feature film. If the plots sometimes are a bit far-out and far-fetched, if some of the special effects or gadgetry wouldn't pass muster today, nevertheless these films haven't lost a whit of their enjoyability or appeal. And they defined stylishness then, and still are unsurpassed in stylishness now! The unflappable urbanity and resourcefulness of Steed, and the wry wit and smouldering yet utterly controlled sexuality (and intellect!) of Mrs Peel, are a combination that has never been bettered. And the lackluster recent filmization of the series shows how much credit has to go to the original series' two stars and production/writing team, because the series outdoes the film by a parsec. Kudos to those responsible for releasing these gems on video! Now a whole new generation can discover them! ... Read more

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According to one Avengers-appreciation Web site, three of the seven episodes contained in this three-volume boxed set--"Too Many Christmas Trees," "A Surfeit of H20," and "Dial a Deadly Number"--rank among the 10 best episodes from the series' Mrs. Emma Peel era (a fourth, "The Hour That Never Was," is ranked in the top 20), making this the perfect chaser to The Avengers '65 Set 1. "What nasty situation have you got in store for me this time?" Mrs. Peel asks in "The Man-Eater of Surrey Green," another of the vintage, black-and-white episodes from the series' breakthrough fourth season, which introduced Diana Rigg in her signature role. The answers make for diabolically clever entertainment in classic Avengers tradition: a "herbicial" plant from outer space (in "The Man-Eater"), matrimonial matchmaker assassins (in "The Murder Market"), a rainmaking vintner (in "H20"), and a brainwashing dentist (in "The Hour"). "Christmas Trees" alone is worth the price of the boxed set. In this haunting episode for all seasons, Steed is plagued by deadly nightmares that have begun to come true. Outfitted at one point as Oliver Twist, Mrs. Peel proves herself to be the woman of our dreams. Each volume is also available separately. --Donald Liebenson ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Steed Pours Champagne - Emma Sparkles
The best thing about The Avengers is that the series is so diverse, a random grab of any half dozen episodes is sure to bring up at least three you're guaranteed to enjoy. With seven available in this set, the odds increase that you'll pull up four.

For those who miss the earlier Honor Blackman crime melodramas in the series, "The Murder Market," "Two's A Crowd" and "Dial A Deadly Number" will fit their bill. "A Surfeit of H2O," "The Hour That Never Was" and "The Man-Eater of Surrey Green" provide a bit of sci-fi and action/adventure, and "Too Many Christmas Trees" - a favorite in anyone's book - is a wonderful psychological suspenser in the espionage/murder vein.

But better than all of that is simply the magnificent chemistry between stars Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg, which livens-up even the weakest episodes in the series with wit, humor and a great abundance of charm. Rarely has any show been so graced with two such appealing actors, let alone writers sparkling enough to make adept use of their native talents. There is a depth of feeling, commitment and moral fortitude, in the characters of John Steed and Emma Peel, that is rarely seen anymore, and is sorely missed.

Enter the world of The Avengers - or reacquaint yourself, if you're already a fan - and immerse yourself in excellence.

A mix of classics and weaker episodes
This collection is a real mixed bag, with classic episodes (including the sharply written, seamless thriller DIAL A DEADLY NUMBER and the enjoyably surreal TOO MANY CHRISTMAS TREES) balanced against definitely weaker episodes (THE HOUR THAT NEVER WAS, MAN-EATER OF SURRY GREEN).

Complete at last
At last all the Diana Rigg episodes are available on video tapes (or DVD if you have the hardware). Here you can view at your leisure exactly what tv is missing today: the exquisitely correct balance of high adventure with tongue-in-cheek plots, dialogue, and world-outlook. The assumption is that the viewers are fairly well educated and can appreciate such references as "Your handbag, Lady Bracknell" in "The Girl from Auntie" episode. This is to a large extent Wildean satire anyway, with a dash of W.S. Gilbert: assume that an absurd situation is normal and follow its logical trail to wherever it leads. On the whole, the black and white episodes are a touch more innocent than the more studio-bound amd self conscious color ones. And it is fun spotting future big stars and lesser ones, none of whom were permitted to appear more than once in the same series. And for a trivia question, what character other than "Brodney" the bumbling Soviet agent appeared in a black and white and then a color episode? Not the same actor, mind you: the same character. Now the question is, Will the Tara King episodes follow? My contact at A&E says no one is sure at this time. But thanks and thanks again for these sets.

JJDBauer@earthlink.net
Great set! Most of the b/w Avengers episodes are better than the color ones. "Murder Market" and "Too Many Christmas Trees" definitely are top of the mark! "Dial A Deadly Number" has that wonderful twist of plot. Definitely worth the purchase. ... Read more

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A toast to A&E Home Video for releasing this three-volume boxed set of vintage episodes from the fourth season of The Avengers. The Avengers debuted in Great Britain in 1961 (predating the James Bond films), but it was not until the late 1960s that it found a welcome home in the United States. Unlike other baby-boomer-era series, The Avengers was not widely syndicated nor officially released on videocassette. This may be one reason why these rarely seen episodes seem as cool as when they first aired. Another reason, of course, is Diana Rigg in her signature role as the ravishing Emma Peel, partner to Patrick Macnee's urbane, umbrella-toting spy John Steed who is every bit his equal in dispatching villains or engaging in provocative banter. What makes this collection of particular interest is that these episodes introduced Mrs. Peel. Steed and Mrs. Peel were the Mulder and Scully of their time; they investigated extraordinary goings-on in the most ordinary locales, such as a seaside town populated by sinister imposters, in "The Town of No Return" (included on volume 1), or a department store that has been rigged with a nuclear bomb, in "Death at Bargain Prices" (volume 2).The second volume also contains "The Cybernauts," which was the first Avengers episode to be broadcast in America. It is representative of the series' best with its automated assassins and a colorful madman who plots to install an electronic dictatorship. Volume 3 contains the haunting "Castle De'ath" and "The Master Minds." All are in glorious black and white and highly recommended. Each volume is also available separately. --Donald Liebenson ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Steed calls for help - Emma delivers
These first six episodes of the Diana Rigg era rank as some of the best of the series. The highlights of this set are the fan favorites "The Cybernauts" and "Death at Bargain Prices", both in volume two. Featuring Diana Rigg as the quintessential Avenger girl Emma Peel. So hold on to your hat, and get your boots on, your in for some jolly good fun. This set is a must-have!

Volume one contains the first Emma Peel episode "The Town of No Return", and the delightful "The Gravediggers". Both are highly reccomended. In "The Town of No Return", Steed and Emma are sent to Little Bazely (by the sea) to investigate odd goings on, where the question arises: Where have all the people gone? This haunting episode has a wonderful atmosphere, with plenty of avante garde imagery, such as the introduction in which an agent pops up out of the sea in a giant bag. Also features plenty of cute little touches, such as Steed's bottomless bag on the train. The highlight is Emma's introduction scene, where she and Steed have a sword fight in her apartment while discussing the mission. In "The Gravediggers", Britian's radar systems are being jammed, so Steed and Emma investigate at a hosptal for ailing railway men. This episode is classic Avengers, featuring Steed fighting aboard a miniature steam engine, while Emma has been tied to the track. Many winning moments such as the eccentric Sir Horace Winslip with his train simulator, and the hospital staff conducting a seemingly normal operation, until the surgeon calls for a blow-torch.

Volume two contains two classic episodes, the sci-fi caper "The Cybernauts", and the wonderful "Death at Bargain Prices". In "The Cybernauts", cybernetic assassins are popping off businessmes bidding for shares in a new cercuit element to replace the transistor. Probably the most memorable Avengers episode ever, "The Cybernauts" features a sharp script, great performances, and masterful direction. One might call it the definitive Avengers episode, and you wouldn't be far wrong. In "Death at Bargain Prices", a department store receipt is the only link to an agents murder, so the Avengers shop for clues, and discover an atomic plot to wipe London off the map. A truly great episode, with Brian Clemens' best script of the series, and outstanding direction from Charles Chrichton. Featuring some of the most memorable dialogue of the series, one of the best end battles of the series, and a whallop of a climax. I can't reccomend it enough!

Volume three features the creepy "Castle De'ath", and the somewhat less astounding "The Master Minds". In "Castle De'ath", Steed and Emma investigate at a Scotish castle, to discover the means by which an unknown faction are creating a fishing crisis. An episode with a haunting score, sumptously errie visuals, and some delightful Steed/Emma interplay. Also, watching Emma wander around in her nightgown is a sight not to be forgotten. "The Master Minds" is a pretty average episode, in which eggheads are being hypnotized into taking part in the most dubious of schemes. While the premise seems interesting, this episode suffers from an average script, average direction, and a dull introduction and tag scene, but it does have those lovely set pieces. Still worth it though, for some pretty snappy Steed/Emma interplay.

As I said before, this is a must-have set, for any Avenger fan. Every episode is reccomended, each being unique and quite entertaining. If your just getting into the series, and are looking to buy a set, buy this. You won't regret it!

Emma Peel Volume One
Although somewhat campy at times, The Avengers was an intellectual show, featuring puzzling mysteries, witty dialogue, bits of comedy, and an incredibly suave, cool agent in John Steed. With the introduction of Emma Peel, this great show became a phenomenon sure to remain a part of our culture for decades to come. Diana Rigg as Mrs. Peel is mesmerizing. Here we have a beautiful woman who is a brilliant scientist, a martial arts master, a great detective, and a special agent second to none. While most female television characters of the time tended to their families, Mrs. Peel busied herself in safeguarding her nation. Steed himself is no match for her in terms of intellect, but together they make an unbeatable team, with a magical chemistry that is readily apparent from the very start.

This set contains the first six Emma Peel episodes. Mrs. Peel quickly evolves from Steed's helper to Steed's equal. It took a little while to flesh out the new character, I believe; thus, these episodes seem to get progressively better as they go along. "The Town of No Return" is rather a weak story to my mind, but Mrs. Peel does show us her combat skills, which at this point seem rather contrived. "The Gravediggers" is much more interesting, witty, and satisfying. It is in fact one of my favorite episodes. Beginning with problems with the nation's defense system, the story features cemeteries, doctors of an uncommon sort, and a brilliantly funny eccentric old gentleman with an overpowering love of trains--the train ride he shares with the visiting John Steed is priceless; it ends with Mrs. Peel tied up to a railroad track and almost killed by a miniature locomotive. This is The Avengers at its best. "The Cybernauts," while good, is of great importance because it is the first episode ever shown in the USA and because it spawned two later "sequels." "Death at Bargain Prices" features some of the best dialogue between Steed and Mrs. Peel, full of the sexual tension many reviewers like to point to. Only The Avengers could take the idea of a department store in London housing a nuclear bomb and make it work for audiences. "Castle De'ath" is a dark tale of history, treachery, and dungeon torture. Although the true purpose of the bad guys did not make complete sense to me, the story is very strong , succeeding in disproving my own suspicions (as well as Mrs. Peels') as to the identify of the culprit. Finally, "The Master Minds" rounds out this set with the story of an intellectual society whose members are unwittingly prompted to commit crimes against the Crown.

Mrs. Peel really comes into her own in these last two tales. In the final episode, it is her intellect that allows Steed to penetrate the secretive society and learn its secrets (although Mrs. Peel finds herself participating--albeit without conscious knowledge--in the nefarious plans of the master mind); it is also her slyness that essentially saves Steed's life in the end. However, "Castle De'ath" speaks volumes in my mind in terms of Mrs. Peel's position in the society of the 1960s. All of the men in the episode, include John "McSteed" all wear traditional Scottish kilts. While this is nothing unusual for the locale in which the story takes place, nevertheless the fact remains that the only character who wears pants is Emma Peel. By this time, Mrs. Peel has shed any vestiges of being Steed's helper and has become his unchallengeable equal. The Avengers is intelligent, humorous, decidedly "cool" television that towers above just about everything on the air today.

Steed Takes A New Partner - Emma Crosses the Atlantic
The Avengers was one of the hippest shows of its day, and manages to stand the test of time pretty well. It achieved its maximum popularity in 1965-66, when streamlined for exportation to America, which was when Diana Rigg was hired to replace the departing Honor Blackman. Prior, The Avengers was essentially a weekly live crime melodrama a la Agatha Christie, interspersed with some occasional spy hijinks. Once Rigg was brought aboard, the show's budget increased, it was transferred to film with more location shooting, the music got jazzier and the approach sexier (Emma Peel's name was contracted from "M"an-Appeal), and the stories grew to be more laced with science-fiction. It proved at least as popular in the States as it was in its parent Britain, and a legend was born.

The show was never better than in Rigg's first year, the '65-'66 season, the first six episodes of which comprise this set. "The Cybernauts" - first episode aired in the States (third, in England) - set the tone extremely well for what was to follow in episodes to come. Our hero and heroine, Steed and Mrs. Peel, foil a mad industrialist's plan to create a cybernetic police state, by deactivating his earliest experiment: a killer robot. The English debut episode - first on this set of tapes - is "The Town Of No Return," a fifth-column invasion story of typically (for this series) bizarre means. "Death At Bargain Prices" finds the British supersleuths investigating the disappearance of an atomic scientist in a lavish department store. "The Gravediggers" is about a radar-jamming outfit connected to a local cemetery (and an eccentric's life-size model train collection). "Castle De'ath" is where a foreign power utilizes a secret submarine base to disturb the local ecology, and thus its economy. "The Master Minds" are a MENSA-esque high-I.Q. club who recruit the best brains in Britain to devise top-secret sabotages and burglaries.

The Avengers is long overdue for a renaissance, and thanks to these tapes, its comeback time is here. Whether your tastes run to noir melodrama, spy stories, unusual crime, sci-fi, or even just light comedy, you'll find what you're looking for in The Avengers.

Mrs. Emma Peel could put the hurt on you.
The Avengers (John Steed and Mrs. Emma Peel) were always at the right place at the right time and Mrs. Emma Peel could put an unwanted karate chop on your noggin. This series of videos has a lot of action and caper comedy.

A Good Example of a Great Show
I thouroughly enjoyed this set of videos. I am relatively new to the Avengers, meaning that I have not [yet] seen any other episodes, but nonetheless I found this fascinating. After viewing all three videos several times, I have concluded that The Avengers is a show definitely worth anyone's time and attention. The [sexual] tension between Steed and Peel is captivating, and quite interesting, even to a newcomer. I cannot compare Mrs. Peel to Cathy Gale, or um...that other woman (see?), but as soon as I purchase several more of these videos (and believe me, I will), I will get back to you, the public. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Sergio Leone's trilogy of operatic spaghetti Westerns with Clint Eastwood made the former TV star into an international sensation as the scraggly, silent Man with No Name, a wandering rogue with a scheming mind and a sense of humor drier than the dusty, wind-scoured desert. With A Fistful of Dollars, a blatant rip-off of Kurosawa's cynical samurai hit Yojimbo, Leone transforms the Western hero into a crafty mercenary. The follow-up, For a Few Dollars More, teams Eastwood up in an uneasy alliance with Lee Van Cleef in a tale of revenge, but the masterpiece of the set is The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, an epic scramble for buried gold set against the violence of the Civil War. In this film good is a relative term as three criminals make a series of tenuous partnerships broken in double-crosses and betrayals in Leone's epic vision of the American southwest as endless deserts and clapboard towns infested with gunmen. This was a new kind of Western: cynical, violent, stylish, and austere. Eastwood's rough face and squinting eyes fill the widescreen frame in massive close-ups while Leone stages action in bold compositions on empty streets and stark landscapes. The guns ring out in cartoonish exaggeration, and the music, an eclectic, electric mix of buzzing guitar, human voice, and harmonica by Ennio Morricone, sets the whole thing in a world pitched between myth and modernity. Leone's shot-in-Spain trilogy ushered in a flood of Italian spaghetti Westerns, but none hold a candle to Leone's stylish classics. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (33)

Simply Amazing
These three movies bring a completely new spin to the American west. No longer can you think of westerns as movies with the John Wayne like hero who always does what is right. In these movies, Clint Eastwood is nearly as bad as the men he fights. The camera work of Sergio Garcia provide for some tense moments and classic shots that you can't forget. Added with the music of composer Ennio Morricone, these movies began their own genre, the "spaghetti western" and launched Clint Eastwood's career. The shots of Clint squinting into the sunlight, the cut shots combined with the loud and unusual music of Morricone create some of the most memorable moments in film. For anyone that likes Clint Eastwood or just good, intelligent, and captivating action movies this box set is for you.

Clint Eastwood: The Man With No Name - A Trilogy
Clint Eastwood is the "man with no name." Italian director Sergio Leone directed what many believe are to be the Top 3 films of all time! Beginning with "A Fistful of Dollars" (copied from the Japanese samurai film "Yo Jimbo") Clint Eastwood rides into a town with two bosses. "For A Few Dollars More" betters on the first. Includes Lee Van Cleef as supporting actor. Two Bounty Killers team up to kill a common foe: One wronged by Indio, the head bank robber. "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly" is the best of the lot, complete with a haunting musical score by Ennio Morricone. Who could forget the shrilling cry in the opening credits? "Ahh-ee-ahh-ee-iii! Wa...Wa...Wa..." The collaboration of Sergio Leone and Ennio Morricone is what makes these films work. "Spaghetti Westerns" don't waste time with the conventional "cowboys and indians." They focus more on the loners, the gunslingers, the bandits. This DVD Trilogy is the DEFINITIVE COLLECTION. Includes original theatrical trailers, bonus footage, behind the scenes, and much, much more! For more film/music greats look for Leone and Morricone collaborating on "Once Upon A Time in the West" (starring Charles Bronson, Jason Robards, and Henry Fonda), "A Fistful of Dynamite" aka "Duck You Sucker" (James Coburn, and "Once Upon A Time In America" (Robert DeNiro, James Woods). These films are the best, the peak in Western Cinemas.

Make Sure You Buy It.
These 3 films were the first 3 westerns I ever watched and boy was I impressed. I never even liked westerns before I watched the famous "Spaghetti Westerns". The acting is great, cinematography spectacular and the music is well-crafted. My only complaint is the clean-up on the pictures during the transfer to DVD but it has little impact on the overall quality and enjoyability of the movies themselves. After watching these 3 excellent and well-written films I watched Hang Em High which was also another excellent western with Eastwood. So buy these 3 films in an affordable 3-pack. Well worth your time and money.

The greatest westerns ever made - all in one box set
Sergio Leone's "Man with No Name" trilogy is classic. It made both Leone and composer Ennio Morricone famous, elevated Clint Eastwood into stardom, and invented the "spaghetti western". Now western fans can own the entire series in one DVD set.

The series begins with A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS, the classic western that introduced us to Morricone's rolling, whistling score that is now associated with the genre; Clint Eastwood's cool performance of the lone stranger who takes down two feuding small town gangs; and Leone's masterful direction. Then we move on to FOR A FEW DOLLARS MORE, in which Eastwood teams up with an old army colonel (Lee Van Cleef) to capture the bounty on an escaped prisoner. The series ends with THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY, undoubtedly the greatest western film ever made. Eastwood is flawless, Morricone's score classic, the action terrific, and Leone's direction extraodinary; you are absolutely glued to the TV screen throughout the entire 2 hours and 40 minutes. Cinema lovers everywhere and anywhere will not want to miss out on this excellent collection of the greatest western masterpieces of all-time.

Clint Eastwood at his Best
Three of the greatest westerns of all time. A+++ ... Read more

Amazon.com

Devotees of Diana Rigg's Mrs. Emma Peel will be especially thrilled by this three-volume collection of seven black-and-white episodes that closed out the fourth season of The Avengers in high and often provocative style. One Avengers Web site ranks "A Touch of Brimstone" among the 10 best episodes of the Mrs. Peel era; "What the Butler Saw" and "Honey for the Prince" rank among the top 20.

To these add "The House That Jack Built." This mind-bending tour de force finds Mrs. Peel at the mercy of a vengeful techno-obsessed mastermind who has rigged a mansion to drive her insane. Also included in this collection are "The Danger Makers," in which umbrella-toting gentleman spy John Steed (Patrick Macnee) and Mrs. Peel uncover a secret society of thrill-crazed soldiers; "A Sense of History," about a deadly clique of university students; and "How to Succeed... At Murder," in which secretarial assassins take their orders from, yes, a puppet. The mysteries are intriguing, the villains suitably mad, and the banter between Steed and Mrs. Peel charged with erotic possibilities. With the ravishing, knee-weakening sight of Emma decked out as Robin Hood in "A Sense of History," as a harem girl in "Honey for the Prince," and--be still my beating heart--as the Queen of Sin in "A Touch of Brimstone," this Avengers collection boasts very potent Emma "a-Peel." Each volume is also available for purchase separately. --Donald Liebenson ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Buy this one
If you're only going to buy one collection of `Avengers' episodes, this should be it. These shows date from the end of the black-and-white season with Diana Rigg, and feature some of the series' best writing and direction. As always, Patrick Macnee's suave potrayal of affable agent John Steed is the heart of the show. While Macnee offered smooth support to all his leading ladies, his chemistry was unmatched with the arch Rigg as slender, fearless woman-about-town Emma Peel. Many of these episodes focus on Emma, and include some her most flamboyant costumes. Most notable is `A Touch of Brimstone,' where Diana Rigg is poured, pushed-up and padded in dominatrix gear designed by the actress to maximize her figure. Peter Wyngarde and Jeremy Young make cold and cruel villains. An ingenious plot and Macnee's cool aplomb make the whole thing work. Another classic episode, `The House that Jack Built,' has a woman-in-jep plot. But when Mrs Peel is lured to a computerized house, it was one of the first times that high-technology snare was ever used. Moreover, unlike other TV females of the time, Avengers women weren't shrinking damsels. Emma relies on brains and courage to save herself. The great op-art set is a pinnacle of Sixties design. `A Sense of History' isn't as atmospheric as `Brimstone' or as tense as `House,' but it offers an offbeat plot and eccentric villain. It also puts Rigg in a very flattering Robin Hood costume, and gives her some nice banter with Macnee. `The Dangermakers,' the opening episode in this collection, is an exciting adventure, as military men find it hard to give up the thrills of war for hum-drum life at home. `What the Butler Saw,' also features the military, although there's a vast difference in tone between scenes of the hard-edged villains and a skirt-chasing RAF man. But it does give Patrick Macnee full reign to revel in a variety of roles, inclduing a gentleman's gentleman. `How to Succeed... at Murder' wastes a good cast and some nice atmospherics in a misogynistic story. Emma and other young women spend considerable time in bodystockings, while Christopher Benjamin in a hoot as a prominent perfumier. `Honey for the Prince' is the most light-hearted episode, and one of the most fully realized of the series. That's a tribute to a sterling cast of eccentric supporting characters, topped by Ron Moody as an imaginative entrepreneur. Some viewers fast-forward to the final 10 minutes, which Emma spends in flimsy harem garb. Deprived of her usual padding, Diana Rigg does her best Kate Moss impersonation trying to fill a tiny bustier, but overflows a pair of low-cut Turkish trousers. Scantily clad, Rigg still dances and fights with panache. The quality of the video transfers vary, but within acceptable limits. The audio is mono, but very good. There are virtually no extras, but these shows stand for themselves.

A Touch of The Avengers to Liven Up Your Day
I borrowed this set from a friend and couldn't get enough of it. A great collection of episodes, like the well written (and provocative) "A Touch of Brimstone" to the dead funny "What the Butler Saw" and the toying-with-your-mind "The House that Jack Built". This set provides a excellent, varied taste of the show. I recommend it to everyone, but if you really love the show, I say just buy the Emma Peel Megaset on DVD! (now that's what I want for Christmas!)

Steed Dresses Up - Emma Dresses Down
The concluding black-and-white episodes of the Diana Rigg series had a more than usual tendency to show off her figure to fullest advantage. Such is the case especially with "A Sense of History," in which she dresses in a leg-revealing Robin Hood outfit, and "A Touch of Brimstone," where she wears next to nothing as the Queen of Sin (and is attacked with a whip, to boot). "How To Succeed...At Murder" has her in a bodystocking/leotard, practicing ballet for a good portion of the story. And when she isn't dressing down, she's quite the clothes-horse, wearing a gorgeous white pants suit, for instance, in "The House That Jack Built," a memorably striking bit of surrealistic sci-fi.

Oh, yes - Patrick Macnee is here too, lest we forget that he was the only actor to have starred in every season of the show. And he gets to play dress-up in these episodes, as much as Diana Rigg dresses down.

As usual, the interplay between the two is delightfully witty and sparkling, their interaction with numerous flamboyantly unusual villains (and more common thugs) well-choreographed and exciting.

What A Delight! What An Absolute Delight!
Two memories stand out more than any other from my childhood. One, the receipt of a new G.I. Joe -- any G.I. Joe, for any reason and at any occasion (at $5.00 each, which was money in the mid-60s). The other, watching episodes of "The Avengers" with my father. It was our favorite program. And how could it not be? Original, intelligent, loads and loads of fun. All made perfect by the magic of the charming, delightfully arrogant Patrick MacNee and the stupendous, mind-bogglingly stupendous, Diana Rigg. I must confess that I've always had a penchant for buxom blonde bombshells loaded with sin -- e.g., Jayne Mansfield. But no one has ever had more apPeel (sexual and otherwise) than Miss Rigg's Mrs. Peel. I recognized this even as a mere boy.

In this day of fatuous, vulgar entertainment, it is a genuine pleasure to be able to watch Steed and Mrs. Peel battle evil-doers with their incomparable panache. There's nothing on current television that can even hope to compare -- not even the excellent "X-Files," which (not coincidentally) owes so much to "The Avengers."

The episodes in this collection are exceptionally fine. If you have a heart condition, however, you may want to give "A Touch of Brimstone," with Mrs. Peel as the "Queen of Sin," a miss -- her outfit (with her in it, of course!) is heart-stopping.

Come and relive your childhood memories -- with the even more appreciative eye of an adult!

A sense of history encapsulates libraries before computers!
A sense of history deals with some less than innocent high jinks & a hysterical professor who resorts to murder. When a brilliant economist is murdered, Steed persaudes Mrs. Peel to enroll at the university he had intended to visit. As usual Emma deals with a hostile villain (a college student) coolly tossing him over her shoulder. Sly humor abounds. Emma finally knocks out her would be assassin in the library. The title that falls on top of him "How to develop a winning personality"! The motive for murder- the villain felt slighted and unappreciated. "Who was Grindley? Only an archivist- a glorified librarian!" Note the paper, books, lack of computers. Pre-computer age library set. The usual banter & dead bodies. Why does some poor chump always offer to meet Steed "later" only to end up a corpse? Note that this plot device recurs in The Danger Makers Honey for the Prince is my favorite of all the 7 on this set. Diana Rigg's comedic talents as well as her sexuality were showcased in this one. Emma does a steamy "dance of the 6 veils" going undercover- not literally, if she can help it! to foil an assassin. The degraded status of women in the harem, Emma's outrage at this repressive situation are conveyed by Mrs. Peel's look of horror when she reads her name on the duty roster in the harem! The Butler one is pricelessly funny. Emma is instructed to engage the attention of the amorous Captain Miles. Rigg' dodging MIles atempted seduction- his living room is "rigged" with instantly closing curtains, dim light, collapsible sofa, pull out bar etc. is amusing. Steed's repeated interruptions (he is undercover as the butler), and feels that he has to "save" Emma , as well as Miles frustration at Steed's instrusions are great fun. Nevertheless the indomitable Mrs. Peel can always be counted on to be resourceful. although one elderly ex general in his 80s looks at her and observes of her "Most distracting!" This was a better mix than the last boxed set of 7 of the color episodes of Rigg and MacNee. Weaker scripts sometimes the last year( 1967). The black and white set was well worth the price. Honey for the Prince and What the Butler Saw I rank in the top ten. Note Stee'd's delight "The butler did it!" I rate both of them ahead of A touch of Brimstone. ... Read more

Reviews (620)

The Ultimate
2001 is the ultimate cinematic experience. This movie has it all for fans of film. When i say this, I don't mean your casual film goer who thinks "2 fast 2 furious" is an instant classic, I mean those who appreciate film for what it is. For those pop culture movie goers, this film will bore them within five minutes. But, those who appreciate the art of film, will drool over the sheer awe that this movie has.
The story is a little more than simple. It starts in prehistoric africa where Moonwatcher the man-ape and his clan. A mysterious monolith appears and teaches them the use of crude, but usful tools in order to eat. It suddenly jumps (via on of the best jumps cuts ever) inot space in the year 2001 where a monolith has been discovered buried in the moons surface. When it is dug up it sends an ear peircing ringing through all of space, a sort of call letting the worlds know it is time. We then jump to the Jupiter mission in which the main story starts. This is where Hal 9000 makes his first appierence with Dave and Frank. We all should know what happens next.
This movie, released in 1968 but filmed before, was a technological phenomenon. Not even star wars can hold up to the power of 2001. The scene in which Dave enters the monolith could be one of the best in cinema. It is a filmed acid trip pretty much. Except it gave us a look at what other constalations might look like (remember we weren't even on the moon yet).
This is Kubricks best film, and by far and away one of the top five films ever made.

Still a masterpiece
Regardless of how "bored" some (probably adolescent) viewers may become (forced to maintain their attention span over vast minutes of time on something other than sex, car chases and dripping blood), this is obviously a great movie. At least for the rest of us. Rated in the top 250 (#66) at IMDb, and the subject of innumerable articles and reviews, Stanley Kubrick's much studied and admired visual, artistic and thematic masterpiece, based on the novel by Arthur C. Clarke, is still--remarkably, after all these years--a mesmerizing motion picture experience even on a television screen.

This is no mean accomplishment when you realize that Kubrick made his film before humans actually walked on the moon in 1969, and furthermore, when you consider how much more we now know about space travel and how much more advanced special effects have become. What I think contemporary movie makers might learn from Kubrick's work is (1) special effects without rhyme or reason may titillate first time viewers and the very young, but quickly grow meaningless; and (2) even in a movie that relies heavily upon special effects and ideas--which 2001: A Space Odyssey certainly does--it helps a whole lot to have a story to tell.

The story begins in the prehistory and ends in the future. It begins with a pre-human consciousness and ends in mystery. (Note that the last sequence in the movie is labeled in part as being "beyond the infinite"--whatever that metaphysical notion may mean.) Along the way we have a creditable hero (Astronaut Dave Bowman played by Keir Dullea, whom I also recall from David and Lisa, 1962) and a very cold and merciless villain (HAL 9000, the computer as megalomaniac--apparently his makers never heard of Issac Asimov's rules for robots!).

Today we know more about pre-humans and more about computers, artificial intelligence and space exploration, and with such knowledge today's movie makers would avoid some of Kubrick's mistakes. For example, the space craft was far too roomy (ask the astronauts!). Real space ships must be as small as possible to save fuel and they are incredibly cramped. Also, the year 2001 has come and passed, and we are nowhere near the practical capability of providing artificial gravity in space. And of course computers (or robots) don't have emotions unless such emotions are built or programmed into them.

Yet the visual sense of space and the terrible isolation of being alone in the vast vacuum has never been conveyed so well. Using music synchronized with visual effects laden with meaning for our earth-bound minds and bodies, Kubrick managed to depict the Pythagorean "music of the spheres" in a most splendiferous and awe-inspiring way.

However, the opening sequence with the hairy apes is probably what Kubrick would most like to redo if he had the opportunity. In the first place, the terrain, which is semi-arid, is all wrong. No hairy, long-armed, bent-legged creature would occupy such a landscape. The "foraging" they were supposed to be doing was ludicrous since there was obviously next to nothing to forage. The tapirs (forest-dwelling animals native to South America and Southeast Asia, by the way, and not to the savannas of Africa, which should have been the terrain depicted) were almost comedically fat for the ecosystem. And the apes themselves, looking and acting a lot like chimpanzees (no doubt the model that Kubrick used), are in conflict with the fossil record as we know it. Our primordial ancestors, the australopithecines, were upright walking apes and probably not exceedingly hairy since they needed to sweat as they walked and ran over the savannas and grasslands of East Africa.

As for using bones as weapons, yes, there can be little doubt that that is what our ancestors learned to do, followed by using hard wood and stones and then shaped stones. And the idea that a bone tool is a proto-type for all the tools to come is also correct, most saliently in the form of the space ship and HAL.

An interpretation of the ending would necessarily include the idea of time as being something other than we think it is. We see Dave as an astronaut in his thirties, and then as a middle-aged man dining in something like a very expensive Parisian apartment, and then on his death bed, and finally as a soon-to-be-born fetus returning to earth. I think it was wise of Kubrick not to attempt to explain what he clearly points to as unexplainable, as "beyond the infinite."

Perhaps the most haunting image of all, at least for me, is the red and yellow "eye" of the HAL 9000 computer as it coldly viewed the two astronauts talking. Therein was expressed, long before it became fashionable, the coming inexorable conflict between us and our machines, between our culture and our biological nature, between natural and artificial intelligence. Never in the history of cinema has that tension been so concisely conveyed as in that scene and in this movie.

See this for Stanley Kubrick, one of the greatest film makers of all time.

the movie that set the standard in sci fi
in 68,this movie was the best sci fi film ever.in it there is this force referred to as the monolith.it shows up at different points in time.finaly,a space crew goes to check it out.it is too intellectual for children.stanley kubrik directs so you know-since hes the greatest directer ever and all-that this movie is a classic!it is better than the sequel.thinkers will like it.in 68 there wasnt a computer paranoia like today.in this film,kubrik explores what would happen if the computer decided to just take the hell over.an idea not toyed with for years to come.he was a visionary.the music in it is very good too.for you wrestling fans,ric flairs theme song begins it.an abselute must for sci fi fans.

One of the greatest sci-fi movies ever made.
This was a brilliant movie. It never ceased to make interesting theories concerning life other than ours, whether or not we should be in space, and how exploration of the ether will affect our lives.

The film opens up with pre-historic man. They are shaggy, ape-like creatures who fight in loud blasts of sound, calls, etc. But at one point, they discover an immense slab of rock that is so finely crafted, they conclude it was made by "something." And with that, they discover they can use left-over bones as weapons, furthering their standing on the planet.

That is the not only the opening for the film itself, but also for its mood and thesis. It makes the case that knowledge of greater beings will propel us into greatness ourselves, using advanced artifacts as motivation and example. But the movie will eventually take a darker turn you'll have to explore for yourselves. If I went into any of the symbolism, I would be writing an essay, not a review, and could potentially ruin your experience.

As a film, it is not traditional by any means. I've heard of people walking out at the premier muttering furiously about how there was no story, or that they had no idea what Kubrick was trying to say and that his obsession with imagery and perfection led to the demise of what could have been a masterpiece. But to those who stayed and to those who see it now, it is apparent Kubrick meant to be challenging and intelligent: this is not for the light-hearted or the impatient. For instance, many of the sequences are realistically slow, such as an early docking sequence. But the images are so engrossing, I doubt you'll turn away.

And to top off Kubrick's obvious genius, there is an unforgettable soundtrack of famous classical music that complements the imagery so well, Kubrick left it in over an underscore that was being prepared. It often conveys the mood very well, expressing wonderment, curiosity and fright with incredible power. If you can't take the movie, if you can't take its themes and its slow-moving plot, if you can't take the sparse dialog (this is essentially a silent movie), at least sit back, close your eyes and watch the film through the tones and moods the music evokes: it matches Kubrick's imagination with every moment from the opening shot of an orb to the end shot of a star-child floating among the nebular and the giant.

Quick-Buck artists ruin a classic.
The video detail and special effects are great. The aspect ratio is good, but the sound track has been trashed. No bass, garbled treble and a dolby 5.1 remastering that sounds as if it was recorded off a small radio in another room. The producers of this remake should be ashamed. The original sound track would blow you away. I was very dissapointed to say the least. What a waste! I wish I could talk to their sound people. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Winky Dink cartoons, popular in the 1950s, are now interactive. This set features a "magic screen": a piece of heavy clear vinyl that clings to 27-inch television screens--it can be cut to fit smaller screens, but those with larger sets won't get full screen coverage. Also included are special crayons, soft cleaning cloth, and the first volume of Winky Dink and You all enclosed in a plastic carrying case. Viewers simply trace an onscreen object and watch as it becomes a vital tool in defeating the dastardly Harem Scarem. Don't tell the kids, but viewer drawings don't actually determine the course of the action--they simply fill in blank portions of the animation. While artwork wipes easily away from conventional television screens, the advisability of encouraging children to write on televisions and other household furnishing is debatable. This compilation contains nine episodes featuring Winky Dink, his dog Woofer, and the villainous Harem Scarem. Whether Harem Scarem is corrupting the King, disturbing the music of the spheres, or stealing precious gems, the collaborative efforts of Winky Dink, Woofer, and young viewers ensures that good will prevail. (Ages 3 and older) --Tami Horiuchi ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Get fun for the young and young at heart!
I was a huge WINKY DINK AND YOU fan as a kid and was so excited to see that this simple, but simply wonderful interactive set was back for today's generation of kids! All you do is put a piece of plastic (provided in the kit) on the TV screen and following the cartoon character's instructions, you draw something, like a line, that becomes a bridge that magically becomes integrated into the cartoon! The crayons and magic wipe (also in the kit) enables kids do two interactive pieces easily in each cartoon, and there are 18 cartoons in each volume. It's perfect for kids ages four and up. Even a video-obsessed 14 year-old-friend of my daughter thought it was real "cool." The lunch box-type kit is easy to transport, making it great for anyone, including babysitters going to their jobs, to carry it! Anyone who remembers Winky Dink (and his catchy theme song) will be ecstatic that he's returned. Anyone who doesn't know Winky Dink and Woofer and Harum Scarum should! This is great!

Winky Dink Revisited
I was a fan of this show 1st time around (50+ years ago) and was happy to see this release on DVD. I bought it for my wife whose parents were too cheap to shell out the 50 cents for her at the time. She had to have the Winky experience...the bliss of drawing on the TV screen! The 60's version completely escaped me because teenagers didn't do Winky, so these episodes were completely new to me. What was missing was Jack Barry's (50's) cornball antics. I must say, I was disappointed that the second Bonus Episode was faulty: it played the soundtrack of Episode One over the out-of-sync Episode Two. Also Ed Wykhoff's commentary feature was non-functional on my DVD. Otherwise, it was a thrill!...

Who knew crayons on the TV screen could be so much fun?
The concept is simple: Two cartoon characters have adventures on TV, and you have to help them by drawing on the screen. This kit includes the plastic overlay to protect your screen, a cleaning cloth, 6 crayons, and a video with 9 adventures. Other videos are available.

Who would have guessed that such a simple concept would be so much fun? Our 4 year old loves it. We're looking forward to inviting over friends so she can play again with them.

A must-see for all ages
We bought this video with memories of Winky Dink from growing up in the fifties. Our four children, ages 5 through 14, are wild about it, and that's quite an accomplishment for all of them to enjoy the same thing. It's very easy to use and fun for all. For anyone who wants to go back in time to the early days of television and share this nostalgia with each other and with new generations, this video is a MUST!!! We are going to buy several copies to give as gifts and even to save for our grandchildren!!!!

New Winky Dink Lover
Though I am not of the winky dink gernrations (they were aired in the 50's and later in the 70's, I am only 16) my parents were, and stubmbled across this rare gem. Since reciving the kit, I have used it for babysitting, and have found not only do the kids love it and beg for more, but they keep on wanting me to come back, and each time watch Winky Dink again and again! Thank you Winky Dink!!! ... Read more

Reviews (62)

The quintessential Texas epic loaded with stars!
This 202-minute slow-paced drama exemplifies the lives of three generations of cattlemen on a grandiose west Texas cattle ranch at the onset of the oil boom. Being a native Texan with relatives living close to the area near Marfa, Tx where GIANT was filmed, I LOVE this movie for the sheer drama and myth of our state. (and yes, there ARE some exaggerations) But it's also a well-crafted movie with exemplary performances by Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor, James Dean, and a very young Dennis Hopper! Viewers seeking a fast-action adrenaline-pumping film probably will be bored by GIANT, but viewers who enjoy classical performances, historical sagas, (and old movies) will cherish this movie. It's sort of like a western "GWTW"! They don't make 'em like this anymore!

A gigantic screen presence
What about this movie isn't big? Big stars (Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson); big state (Texas); big ranch (2 million acres of prime cattle land), and big length; at 202 minutes, this film runs about 45 minutes too long. The story is the familiar one about grandiosity run amok; the moral, which has been done to death, is that the simple life is the one best worth living. We've seen it all before. So why see this movie? In two words: James Dean. In his last film before his tragic death on the Freeway at the age of 24, Dean showed that he was what his legion of fans always claimed: a true genius. Try to imagine anyone else in the role of Jett Rink , and the character remains a cipher - lifeless, dull, nothing. It took Dean to bring it to life and make it his own. In this movie, James Dean and Jett Rink become indistinguishable from each other. And perhaps only an actor as brilliant as Dean could turn Rink from a character we love in the first half of the film, to a character we hate at the end. His drunken tirade near the movie's end is a tour de force. Dean's magnificent performance doesn't take away from the very creditable acting by Rock Hudson as the millionaire rancher Bick Benedict, Elizabeth Taylor as his wife Leslie, the young Sal Mineo, and especially Mercedes McCambridge as Bick's bitter, sexually frustrated sister with an unrequited passion for Jett Rink; but next to Dean's knockout performance, they pale into mere adequacy. Forget everything else; this is Dean's movie.

This is Texas?
I recently decided to view this film. Let's see - a reference to Neiman-Marcus - some wide open spaces, some cattle and oil wells. O.K. - but this film does not really tell about Texas and Texans. Thankfully, Chill Wills (from Seagoville, TX) was in it. He was the most Texan thing about this film. I wish I had something more positive to say - but I don't.

Giant Is Not A Widescreen Film
The product information here should be carefully read, as it reveals that this edition of Giant has been transferred in a 1:1.66 letterbox transfer. This is a travesty. Giant was filmed and released in the classic 1:1.33 "Academy" aspect ratio, which also happens to be the aspect ratio for NTSC analog television. George Stevens disliked widescreen processes, although he was forced to use them by studios on later films.
The time has come to put a stop to these unnecessary, phoney "restored" versions of classics. It's just a marketing ploy to squeeze more money out of old warhorses. Going back to the good old days of the laserdisc, I never much cared about the extras that were first introduced by Criterion and later imitated by the major studios. I've always responded to a high quality video transfer taken from the best film elements available. Getting the aspect ratio wrong and mutilating the images of Steven's classic film makes everything else irrelevant.
Thank goodness I still have my laserdiscs. Failing that, grab a copy on VHS.

FANTASTIC!
The DVD is superb -- I do not know what all the complaints about sound, etc. are all about! My goodness, this film is almost 50 years old -- and I think it is in wonderful shape!

I purchased this video because I have become a big James Dean film, but the acting of Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, Carol Baker, and Dennis Hopper were splendid.

To think that Hudson was a mere 29, Taylor 23, and Dean 23 and could play characters who age 30 years with such reality is a true testament to their genius! Of course, the makeup artists must also receive recognition.

The most disturbing portion of the film to me is when Hudson confronts "Sarge" the restaurant owner in a fist fight and when "Sarge" lands into the juke box, "The Yellow Rose of Texas" begins to play. However, this epic film is full of irony and subtle twists and nuances -- to really grasp the entire message this film needs to be viewed more than one time.

The irony of the Mexican children singing The National Anthem during the funeral of Angel (played by a very young Sal Mineo) touched me. Little Angel was a person who died for the United States and yet was the focus of bigotry from his impoverished birth until his death.

Or course, in my opinion, there was and never will be another James Dean -- it is heartbreaking to watch this dramatic genius in the final film performance before his untimely demise. Like Buddy Holly, I will always wonder where Dean's career would have gone.

Carol Baker is fantastic in her first film role and the very young Dennis Hopper's performance is equally memorable.

This film speaks to the injustices of racial bigotry that unfortunately will always exist except in a utopian world.

The additions to this DVD make it a must-buy!

Please don't hesitate to purchase -- this DVD is worth every penny -- and then some!

Oh, the editorial review refers to Elizabeth Taylor as a Southern Belle and this is incorrect. Leslie Benedict is from Maryland and even makes the comment to Hudson and his crownies that she was from the "Center of Politics" when Hudson tries to push her aside so the men can talk "Business and Politics". ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Vitameatavegamin, Grape Stomping, Harpo Marx and more!,
Volume 1 of the "Best of 'I Love Lucy'" starts off with the classic "Lucy Does a TV Commercial" (Episode #30, May 5, 1952), Ricky is set to host a TV variety show and Lucy wants to do a live commercial for (all together now) Vitameatavegamin. Although she fails to win Ricky's support after staging a mock show inside their television set, Lucy arranges to get the gig anyhow. She starts off great, but the problem is that Vitameatavegamin contains 23% alcohol and with each rehearsal Lucy gets progressively drunker and funnier. Lucille Ball considered this the best bit, and one of the hardest, she ever did. Next we have the wonderful grape vat scene from "Lucy's Italian Movie" (Episode #150, April 16, 1956). The Ricardos are in Europe when an Italian movie producer tells Lucy that he wants her in his new film, "Grapola Pungente." Finding out the title translates as "bitter grapes," Lucy takes this literally and heads for the nearest vineyard where she has a memorable encounter with Teresa Tirelli stomping grapes in a vat. So right off the start, you have TWO of the THREE funniest Lucy routines (and the Candy Factory sketch from "Job Switching" is on Volume 2).

The other three episodes might not all be classics, but they are still very, very funny. "Lucy Does the Tango" (Episode #173, March 11, 1957), finds the Ricardos and Mertzes investing in 200 laying hens. All you need to do is hear the situation and you know that Lucy is going to end up with end up with egg on her face. Okay, egg on everything. In "The Freezer" (Episode #29, April 28, 1952), Lucy and Ethel buy a new walk-in freezer. But when they grossly overestimate its capacity, they are suddenly in the meat business. Of course, as soon as you see that walk-in freezer you know Lucy is going to get locked in it. Finally, we have Lucy's legendary encounter with "Harpo Marx" (Episode #125, May 9, 1955), which showcases Lucille Ball's physical comedy in a great scene with the beloved silent Marx Brother. The mirror sequence between the two was apparently a pain to shoot (and reshoot), but worth the effort just to see the two famous "redheads" go at it. ... Read more

Amazon.com essential video

Michael Palin, haggard and exhausted under a scraggly beard and wild hair, crawls out of the ocean (or the forest or a side of a mountain) and croaks the now-infamous "It's...." Suddenly, the "Liberty Bell" march pounds over the cut-out animation of Terry Gilliam. It's another episode of Monty Python's Flying Circus. No comedy has inspired such a fanatical following before or since, and the 45 episodes turned out by the group in their all-too-brief three and a half seasons have become classics. This set presents the final seven episodes of their inaugural season, a time of trial and error for the group as they perfected the elusive free-association structure that would define the wacky comedy. Connecting such all-time classics as the Lumberjack Song, the Dead Parrot sketch, and the epic Science Fiction sketch (featuring the tennis mad Blancmanges from outer space) are the ubiquitous letters to the BBC, Terry Gilliam's whimsical and ridiculous animated inserts, and John Cleese announcing, "And now for something completely different" with all the authority of a BBC announcer who suddenly finds his news desk hijacked by mobsters. The Pythons hit their first-season stride in the middle episodes, in which brilliant sketches and strange and wonderful linking gags come together with an absurd logic, but if the final episodes of the series flag compared to their comic peak, their brand of comic madness infects every episode with moments of pure lunatic magic. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (14)

"Oh, you're no fun anymore!"
You might have noticed my first extensive and overly detailed review for DVD set 1 (episodes 1-6) where I listed all of the individual sketches you will get on that set. Well, if you haven't, then go bloody well check it out then, you twit! (nothing personal) Anyway, this is a review just like the previous one - overlong and tediously informative. Again, I won't waste time on reviews of the material - You know it's extremely silly!

DVD SET 2(episodes 7-13)

Disc 1(or 3) consists of: Camel spotting/You're no fun anymore/The Audit/Science Fiction Sketch/Man turns into Scotsman/Police Station/Blancmanges playing tennis/Army protection racket/Art critic-the place of the nude/Buying a bed/Hermits/DEAD PARROT/The Flasher/HELL'S GRANNIES/Llamas/A man with a tape recorder up his nose/Kilimanjaro expedition/A man with a tape recorder up his brother's nose/Homicidal barber/LUMBERJACK SONG/Gumby crooner/The refreshment room at Bletchley/Hunting film/The Visitors

Disc 2 (or 4) is sillified with: Walk-on part in sketch/Bank robber in Lingerie shop/It's a tree/Vocational guidance counselor/Ron Obvious/Tunneling from Godalming to Java/Pet Conversions/ Gorilla librarian/Letters to "Daily Mirror"/Strangers in the night/Lavatorial humour/Interruptions/Agatha Christie/Undertakers film/Jimmy Buzzard interview/Interesting people/Eighteenth Century social legislation/Battle of Trafalgar/Battle of Pearl Harbour/Falling from building/"Spectrum" - talking about things/Visitors from coventry/Mr. Hitler/Silly voices at the police station/Upperclass twit of the year/Ken Shabby/How far can a minister fall?/Restaurant abuse/Advertisements/Albatross/Come back to my place?/Me Doctor/Historical Impersonations/Quiz programme on "Wishes"/"Probe Around" on crime/Mr. Atilla the Hun/Psychiatry/Operating Theatre

These are the sketches accessible through the menus on the DVDs themselves, so if you notice a sketch not listed...well, then your a complete geek.

This set also contains extras like: Meet the chaps, Pythonisms, Gillianimations, Lumberjack and Albatross Live!, Trivial Quest, and Talent show!

Python is great, this set isn't so much ...
While Monty Python's Flying Circus is defiently one of the funniest comedy troupes to come out of the 20th Century, and this set is well worth buying, I would warn those of you who aren't die-hard fans that, of the four DVD sets out right now, this one is probably the least funny. The Pythoners were apparently rushed as they wrapped up their first season of shows (some of these episodes were recorded only a week before airing!), and the humor in these DVDs, particularly the last three episodes, on DVD 4--are far from prime Python.

Still, there's "Upperclass Twit of the Year" and "Albatross" and enough others to make it worthwhile!

It's still funny after all these years.
"I'm a lumberjack, and I'm okay." Who doesn't remember Michael Palin uttering this line in the famous butcher barber/lumberjack skit? How about Upper Class Twit of the Year? And, the Dead Parrot? All of these skits and more can be found on this 2 cd set. If you like the obscurity that is Python, then this is the set to purchase.

The one segment I did not like was aliens turning into Scotsmen. That went on far too long.

This DVD gets Twit of the Year award
Great DVD. And VHS. Starters...get this. Its really good. It's worth your while.

Monty Python gets 2 thumbs up!
Monty Python are very funny. I highly reccommend this set. If you're not sure, just purchase the first set to try it out, and see if you like it. I promise that you'll be laughing so hard you'll rush out to get the other sets as well. I purchased the full set and I dont regret any of it.

I wouldnt recommend this for young children. I'd say early teens and up would enjoy this the most. Some of the british slang can be too difficult for the really young ones to follow.

Monty Python is a combination of sketch comedy and stereotypical british humor. One way or another, you're bound to laugh. THe episodes are short so you can watch just a piece at a time at your convenience, but there's enough on each tape to last a full evening.

I give it two thumbs up. ... Read more