Customer Reviews

Classic Television

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

"Classic Television" is one of the more unique classic TV compilations available on the market today. The releasing company for this 2-DVD set, the Timeless Media Group, has made a praiseworthy attempt to include a wide variety of shows that were broadcast throughout the 1950s and have grouped them together on the days of the week that they were, in many cases, originally shown. However, what I especially like about this collection is the inclusion of some shows that you either rarely or never see on DVD, including "Riverboat," "Name That Tune," "Mama," "Bold Journey," and "Suspense," among a few others. The visual quality of the episodes included in this set is variable but, on the whole, is more than acceptable given the rarity of some of the shows included. There is an onscreen host, Dale Reed, who provides some background information on each of the shows included. Reed's short intros were helpful for me, particularly for those shows where I had little or no familiarity. Here's the line-up:

Sunday
*Riverboat
*Letter To Loretta

Monday
*Studio One
*The Danny Thomas Show

Tuesday
*Texaco Star Theater
*Name That Tune

Wednesday
*This Is Your Life
*Mama
*Twenty-One

Thursday
*George Burns & Gracie Allen Show
*Topper
*You Bet Your Life

Friday
*The Jack Benny Show
*I Married Joan
*Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet

Saturday
*Bold Journey
*Suspense
*The Deputy

"Classic Television" is really an easy recommendation for those interested in television's golden age . . . the variety (and rarity of some) of the shows, the comparatively good audio/visual quality, and low price make this a no-brainer for anyone interested in revisiting or discovering television from the 1950s. This set most closely resembles "1950s TV's Greatest Shows" from the Falcon Picture Group which Amazon also carries, and which I can also recommend.

The reviews written by others are pretty accurate. This is a half-decent 2-DVD set of a sampling of some old TV shows. It is the presentation of these shows that is so annoying. The "intro" to each show, mostly by Dale Reed, is watchable ONCE but one has to agonize through them every time one watches any of these shows again ... and they are not able to be skipped except by tedious fast-forwarding thru them. Very, very annoying.

This is a wonderful, nostalgic collection, spanning various genres of '50s TV -- westerns, drama, game shows, variety, sitcoms. Well worth the price.

The episodes and the introductions to the episodes were great. However, it would have been nice if they had listed the title of the individual episode. That way, I could check to see when it aired and add it to my database of classic television. Most DVD collections list the name of that particular episode of the show.

I had much higher hopes for this Classic Television collection. I didn't expect the old shows to have perfect quality, but was surprised at how bad the quality really was. And the 'modern day' onscreen host was awful. The quality of video and audio when he was speaking was deplorable and that's new! If there isn't decent quality in that, how can anyone hope that the old shows would be decent quality? I would strongly advise against buying this and I've learned my lesson when buying classic television: make sure to check if things have been remastered because it really does matter.

I purchased this cellophane-wrapped box in a bookstore, as I was searching for TV classic DVD's. There was nothing listed on the back of the box as to what particular shows were inside, just some vague information. As the box was wrapped and I couldn't open it to look at the contents, I decided to just take a chance and get it, as I love classic tv. Well, after getting it home, and unwrapping it, I found, also cellophane wrapped inside, two disc-packages, with information on what shows were on each disc. It did not give specifics about the shows.
I opened the first and played it, but there was a gentleman giving a long narrative before each show, which I found very disconcerting and off-putting. Not even bothering to watch, I returned it to the store where I purchased it. Look around on Amazon, as there are better deals in classic TV shows to be found for the money. Thumbs down on this one.

I have this as a VHS set. I am so glad they have it on DVD so I can upgrade from VHS to this.

Wanted to let you know these older shows are great.
They are fun to watch.
Really enjoyed them.
Gave them a 4 star rating.
Sincerely, Gloria S.

Classic Television
THIS DVD IS JUST WONDERFUL WITH GREAT CLASSIC SHOWS FROM THE 50'S AND 60'S.
ONE OF THE SHOWS ON THIS DVD IS (THE JACK BENNY SHOW)& FOR ME I GET TO SEE SHOWS LIKE THAT ONE AND THE OTHER SHOWS ON THIS DVD AND THAT'S GREAT FOR ME I LOVE STUFF LIKE THIS.
I ALSO GIVE THIS ONE 5 STARS.
IT'S A DVD I THINK ANYONE WOULD LIKE OR LOVE IF YOUR INTO THINGS LIKE THIS.

The episodes were good, and a nice sampling of shows. Unfortunately, the film quality did not match the quality of the shows. This affected the rating.