Tag Archives: Fred Gwynne

post

The Bootleg Files: A Salute to Stan Laurel

Posted on by

BOOTLEG FILES 925: “A Salute to Stan Laurel” (1965 TV special with an all-star cast).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: Not cleared for home entertainment release.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Doesn’t seem likely at the moment.

You may be wondering why there is a photo of Fred Gwynne’s Herman Munster on top of an article about “A Salute to Stan Laurel.” After all, “The Munsters” share no common ground with Stan Laurel, either as a solo performer or in his teamwork with Oliver Hardy. However, the inclusion of Herman Munster – playing a violin, no less – in a celebration of Stan Laurel is typical of the incoherent nature of this bizarre production, which arguably deserves to be considered on any list of the worst television specials of all time.
Continue reading →

post

The Bootleg Files: Dames at Sea

Posted on by

BOOTLEG FILES 849: “Dames at Sea” (1971 made-for-television musical starring Ann-Margret, Ann Miller and Anne Meara).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: There could be a rights issue preventing its release.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Not likely.

In 1966, the tiny Caffe Cino in New York City’s Greenwich Village offered “Dames at Sea, or Golddiggers Afloat,” a good-natured send-up of the 1930s Warner Bros. musicals. With music by Jim Wise and lyrics and a book by George Haimsohn and Robin Miller, this 50-minute mini-production presented an unknown 18-year-old Bernadette Peters as Ruby, a send-up of the kid-in-the-chorus-who-becomes-a-star role that Ruby Keeler played in the yesteryear extravaganzas.
Continue reading →

post

The Bootleg Files: Arsenic and Old Lace

Posted on by

BOOTLEG FILES 598: “Arsenic and Old Lace” (1969 television production starring Bob Crane, Helen Hayes and Lillian Gish).

LAST SEEN: It is on YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: The reason may be a little complicated.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Not likely.

Remaking a beloved classic film is always a tricky endeavor – the new offering is inevitably judged against its predecessor, and it is rare for the second effort to be found superior to the work that came first.

Continue reading →