During the early 1970s, “The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour” was a bright spot on the television schedule. The eponymous couple would team up with a stellar guest line-up (including Jerry Lewis, Jimmy Durante and Tony Curtis) and a rather voluminous supporting ensemble (including then-unknowns Steve Martin and Teri Garr) for comedy sketches and musical numbers.
This DVD offers 10 episodes from earlier in the series’ run. As with any long-running show, there is a hit-and-miss element, and this is evident from the earliest of the episodes when Sonny and Cher were adjusting into the personas created for the series – Sonny as the butt of jokes and Cher as the Bob Mackie-dressed fashion plate with a flair for dry comic line readings.
Younger viewers may not catch the humor in some of the show’s then-topical references, especially in a droll monologue by Carroll O’Connor as a charisma-challenged economist explaining President Nixon’s domestic policies. And it becomes very obvious over the episodes that Sonny was not Cher’s equal as a vocalist, hence an increasing focus on her solo numbers.
But for those who remember that era, this is a fun little time capsule with some good-natured star-turns and groovy early 70s music.