Customer Reviews

The Color Honeymooners Collection 2

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For all of you who truly love The Honeymooners, it is truly a shame that MPI holds the exclusive rights to this show. The DVD's of the Lost Episodes are without question the worst home video releases of any TV show in history, with many episodes that are not actually lost but essentially lost to us, since MPI still hasn't released them. Rumors have abounded about an eventual re-release of the Lost Episodes by MPI, which would finally give them the DVD treatment most other shows now get, with full season sets and extras truly worth watching. Now after two years since the release of the first volume of the Color Honeymooners, MPI is now releasing Color Honeymooners Vol. 2. For a MSRP of $39.99, we get a grand total of NINE episodes, which is the same number that was included on Vol. 1. For that amount of money, we should have gotten all 18 episodes from Volumes 1 and 2. It seems that we will have to pay through the nose to eventually own the complete Honeymooners, which will probably take until well after 2010.
As for the Color Honeymooners themselves, by and large they are a pale imitation of the black & white Honeymooners of the 1950's. As much as I love this show, no one could come close to replacing Audrey Meadows as Alice Kramden, especially Sheila McRae, who is truly abysmal in the role. The same can be said for Jane Kean as Trixie, who has no charm, no appeal, and like Ms. McRae, very little acting ability. As for Jackie Gleason, his portrayal of Ralph in the black & white episodes was without question a performance for the ages. In the color episodes, he is nowhere close to that level. Gleason was famous for his excessive lifestyle which unfortunately already started to take its toll on him by the time these episodes were done in the late 1960's. As for Art Carney, his performance of Ed Norton never suffered. A few years ago on the first TV Land awards, the award for Greatest Second Banana went to Don Knotts as Barney Fife. No offense to Mr. Knotts, but he is not even in the same league as Art Carney as Ed Norton, who in my opinion is the most essential character in The Honeymooners. In the color episodes, his performance is every bit as great as it was in the 1950's.
It is also truly sad that many of the color episodes were remakes of earlier and much better black & white versions. I find it hard to believe that Jackie Gleason would prefer to simply redo old episodes than have writers create all new stories for these characters. There is an episode of the Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour that features the Ricardos, the Mertzes and the Williams family from Make Room For Daddy. One can only imagine what might have been if the Kramdens and the Nortons could have met the Ricardos and the Mertzes.
Lastly, in spite of these complaints, one clear truth emerges. The sitcoms of today cannot touch classics like The Honeymooners or I Love Lucy. It is the reason why so many people prefer to watch episodes of shows they have seen many times rather than watch what passes for entertainment now.

I have watched the first DVD many, many times and still laugh at it. The Color Honeymooners are just as good as the ones made in the 1950s, and they're in lovely color complete with cheery musical numbers with professional dancers and good musical arrangements. It has been a long wait and I'm going to be the first to buy the next DVD, or next 9 episodes. Wish MPI would put them out a bit faster, though. They are light-hearted, fun and very funny, all shot on a stage in Miami Beach. Classic, true entertainment, bar none. I will keep these always and watch them over and over again, that's how good I think they are.

I already own the first two Color Honeymooners DVDs and eagerly look forward to Volume 3 and beyond. But I was very disappointed that this edition skipped over the episode entitled "Life Upon the Wicked Stage". It's a remake of one of the best Lost Honeymooners offerings, which was titled "Songs and Witty Sayings", where Ralph and Norton do a funny mind reading act. Unfortunately, while there were supposed to be 9 shows included here, MPI dropped this one. I called a rep from the company and was told that they had to delete the episode due to music rights issues. However, I noticed that this very show is aired on the cable TV at present. I would much rather have the show edited on DVD instead of not at all, and it's my hope that MPI returns to it and includes it in a future volume.

MPI continues its' release of the Honeymooners sketches taken from the colour series of Jackie Gleason Shows,Dec.17/66 to April 26/67.
And how sweet they are too.These sketches were all basically remakes of shows done a few years before now in colour,and of course with the added musical accompaniment.But they didn't disappoint then and they don't now.The classic 39 Honeymooner episodes filmed in 1955/56 had been going strong in syndication since they went off the air.In some markets they would run both back to back,to great success.Furthermore Gleason himself knew that there would be the inevitable comparisons from those older shows to the newer ones and he made sure he gave the audiences both live in Miami Beach and at home his level best.And he succeeded in spades.
It all started back in late 1963 when Gleason happened to mention to a New York columnist that he sure wouldn't mind doing future shows in a sunnier and more golf oriented climate,like California(Gleason was an avid golfer).This caught the eye of the PR man for the Miami Beach tourism board one Hank Meyer who jumped right on it to invite Gleason and his entourage down to perform their shows in their fair city.After some some speedy negotiations it was all set and Jackie and his crew trained it southward into Miami Beach the following year.
Miami Beach rolled out the red carpet for the troupe who had the new Jackie Gleason auditorium set up especially for his show.Basically what the home audience saw then and now is a glorified stage show.It was taped on a Friday night live,edited for the hour format,and broadcast the next night nationwide.Jackie also got a myriad of other perks such as his home and attached office looking directly out onto a local golf course.And of course his infamous golf cart built to look like a small Rolls Royce and loaded to the nines with every kind of liquor imaginable.But what he got in perks Miami Beach gained 100 fold.Every broadcast started out with those famous words that are still remembered well today:"From the sun and fun capital of the world,Miami Beach...",as the camera quickly comes in toward the shoreline on crystal blue waters.The tourism bucks Miami and indeed all of Florida made on his show are really incalculable.
For about seven years The Jackie Gleason Show again reigned supreme in its' Saturday Night timeslot until the early seventies when about that time the head of the CBS network discovered a new term called "demographics".It didn't matter how high your ratings were(Jackies' were always high) but only if you fit that 18-34 year old age group that the TV gurus now believed they should be paying the most attention to.They felt Gleasons' show wasn't in the "loop",as it were, and cancelled it.
But that was about four years away at the time of the airing of the shows that are on these three discs.All of which have been transferred quite well with the odd few film flaws but pretty much all inherent in the product.Like the previous Vol.1 these shows have been cut down to varying degrees.These shows would have run closer to the 55 minute mark when first aired,while each of these rarely hit 50 minutes and most well under.From what I can tell they have mainly excised the opening banter where Gleason would come out and talk to the audience before going into the sketches.Whether this is what MPI is doing or the way the film now exists I can't say as MPI so far has refused any correspondance I have thrown their way regarding this very subject.If I ever find out I will certainly let you know immediately.
In conclusion this new release of the Honeymooners sketches from the colour era of The Jackie Gleason Shows are pure delights.There are only eight epsidoes in this release,one less from the previous volume and there are no special features whatever.However each and every sketch is sure to please those old enough to recall the series when it first aired or any new fans of the Great One.

"The Jackie Gleason Show" featuring "The Honeymooners" from the 1960's unfortunately gets compared to "The Classic 39" episodes that were filmed during the 1955/56 Televison Season. Silly comparsions between Shelia MacRae/Jane Kean versus Audrey Meadows/Joyce Randolph for one. First, Audrey Meadows was originally asked to reprise her role as Alice, but declined because of her marriage to Bob Six which lasted for many years until he died. Same applied to Joyce Randoph who did not want to relocate to Miami and was basically retired from acting. Both MacRae and Kean would evenually grow into their roles as Alice and Trixie as one can see from this particular volume. As much as I like Audrey Meadows, one can argue that Pert Kelton was better than Audrey Meadows as Alice. The character of Alice was extremely important to the show, but only Gleason and Carney were irreplaceable as Ralph and Ed. I'm a huge "Honeymooners" fan and I find the musical episodes from 1960's better than the original incarnations done from "The Jackie Gleason Show" in the 1950's. Just watch the "Lost Episodes" and you'll see what I mean. The musical numbers, particularly the numbers done by Gleason and Carney together demonstrated what great timing they had. Gleason and Carney sang the songs very much how Rex Harrison did in "My Fair Lady" with perfect pitch and tempo. I particuarly like the songs "Let's Consolidate", "It's Not Knowing That Can Drive You Out Of Your Mind", and "You've Got To Have An Angle". They were written by the talented songwriting team of Lyn Duddy and Jerry Bresler who for 4 years wrote the music for "The Honeymooners". Some fans complain that the songs and dances slowed the episodes down. I disagree because the songs and dances embellished the show from their 50's version. It's amazing that "The Great One", Jackie Gleason never won a Emmy for his performance as Ralph Kramden. He should of as you can see from the 60's version of "The Honeymooners." I hope MPI Video will continue to release future volumes of "The Color Honeymooners".

The Color Honeymooners was on CBS Saturday nights from 1966-1970. I'd look at the TV Guide and tell my father, "The Honeymooners are on." That was becuase Gleason did not do these hour-long skits every week. He alternated with his variety format. I grew up with this version and I remember thinking at the time that Shiela MacCrae was the one and only Alice. The earlier B & W epsiodes were not shown at the time so I had nothing to compare it to. I enjoyed the singing and dancing. Gleason, Carney were in true form and still were able to belt out in song and comedy. I never cared for Jane Kean as Trixie. She shouts her lines and says them as if she's reading a book. Macrae was OK, but she didn't have the punch that Audrey Meadows had. Seeing these episodes again after all these years makes you feel like its going home week, especially if you grew up with the Jackie Gleason Show. However, now that I've seen all 39 of the half-hour Honeymooners, I have to say those are much better.

Guess I'll be changing my title from Honeymooners Purist since viewing this 3-disc set. Of course, I'll take most of the '50s versions over the '60s recreations, but this set actually contains expanded remakes of '50s material which have even more punch.
The writers managed to improve the original scripts, and had the benefit of Broadway quality musical numbers - well, not exactly Lerner and Lowe, but nothing they wouldn't bend an ear to. The four performers sing sometimes in four-part harmony and add dance steps.
It seems that, just as in the '50s, they got better and better. The first few revivals in 1966 showed that perhaps their timing was off, along with the naturally expected slight drop in energy - 10 - 12 years is significant to physical actors - just as it is with professional athletes.
But these theatrical professionals got in the groove, got relaxed, and it is noteworthy that Sheila MacCrae really adapted well to the character that Audrey Meadows developed. She seemed almost a star-struck understudy in some of the MPI Volume One material - here, she does just fine.
"Without Reservations", I can say with a echo of the title, is much better than its' black and white antecedant, which had some uncharacteristic second-rate slapstick. Gleason and Carney flow as well as in the previous decade, and the laughs flow. Another remake, perhaps twice as good with the older and wiser (?) leads is "Movies Are Better Than Ever", a reworking of the 1955 "Kramden Versus Norton".
Another 1955 sketch revived for '60s color is "One Big Happy Family", title changed to "Flushing Ho" - a good script, with a predictable plotline about the families moving "uptown" and living together as long as the boys behave. Well, that was unlikely. Has some qualities of the "Classic 39", though, typically, has some tired slapstick, found in abundance throughout the live sketches, but very rare in those masterpieces filmed as a separate series: Ralph applies a fork to a problem toaster and Norton decides connect to the power source as a display of "teamwork" which was noticeably missing since the four moved in together, or at least since the *two* moved in. The current flows and Gleason does "electrocution" schtick. Not funny in 1955 *or* 1967. 2008? Should have been deleted.
I surely understand why a fan demands the kinescope editions, especially the musicals, which have quite mysteriously found a hiding place (maybe on the backseat of Ralph's bus). But these color renditions are very entertaining...even poignant considering that the characters are still stuck in neutral as wanna-be entrepreneurs; Alice still hasn't kept up with the Nortons, who have curtains on the kitchen windows.
Yes, and possibly 100% of longtime fans prefer Meadows and Randolph to MaCrae and Kean. But those fans should not turn away from collections like these.
I thought that a small booklet would have been great, especially with cast credits and histories, and with data regarding the songs.
Video and audio quality superb.
How Sweet It Still Was!!!!!

I have both the classic "39 series" as well as several of the color episode discs. At 49, I do recall the latter in 1st run on CBS Saturday nights in the 1960s. To me, I prefer the color episodes for several reasons: they were filmed and not transfered from kinescope; they are musicals & include quality music scores and dance scenes; they are in color. The addition of Jane Kean & Sheila MacCrea is fine, as they perform at least equal to Meadows and Randolph (in fact Randolph had a lot less dialogue in the '50s than Kean does here). Collection 1 gives you the exceptional European excursion, whereby the boys win an all-paid trip after winning a jingle contest. This edition is just as good as the girls cope with the boys' simple-minded attempts at fame and fortune. It is pure relational humor that is non-political, non-PC. The Kramdens & Nortons won't try to preach or persuade one in the way later "socially conscience" shows (read Norman Lear) did. Enjoy. -SL

I grew up watching these color episodes, not knowing the original B&W shows until a few years later. Once I got to know the original shows, these color shows were off of the air. So I was unaware of how many scripts were re-written & combined with other scripts from the original series. It would have been so much better to have all new stories. I guess after CBS went to the expense of moving the show to Miami Beach to keep Jackie Gleason happy, they cut costs on the script writing.

The June Taylor Dancers seem to slow down the episode for me, I can not wait for Jackie Gleason to come on stage. Fortunately DVDs can fast forward. The additional breakaways from the script to allow Jackie & Ed to try and sing a number can also be annoying. It is just padding to stretch the 30 minute script to an hour, neither one can sing, and the lyrics usually lack whit. Jackie was trying to recreate a musical stage show.

MPI has also seen fit to edit the episodes! Jackie Gleason's closing segment is either truncated or removed altogether. I guess comments about next weeks show (which was not always a Honeymooners show) were there and MPI did not want to tell you what you would not see.

After all of this complaining, I STILL RECOMMEND THE DVDS! In their imperfect form they still bring back good memories of watching these on CBS. I am glad they have finally come out on home video.

I do wish there was some explanation for the cast change. We all love Audry Meadows, Sheila is a little more stiff in her performance, but she does deliver a "New York Wife" performance better that Audry.

As a die-hard fan of the old black & white Honeymooners, I find it hard to believe that anyone who loves the old Honeymooners would even remotely like this tripe!
In my opinion, The Color Honeymooners is just an attempt to capitolize on the popularity and success of the real Honeymooners.

The treatment that us Honeymooners fans are receiving at the hands of the DVD studios is disgraceful. While the original 39 episodes of the real Honeymooners is a good product at a fair price, the release of the "lost" episodes is an overpriced disgrace (I will not purchase the lost episodes until and if such time as they are released either in proper season sets or as a complete unit and at a fair price)- and this Color Honeymooners is pure garbage at Broadway prices...not even deserving the name "Honeymooners".
Singing and dancing and "guest stars"?! Sorry...THAT is NOT the Honeymooners! They can call it The Honeymooners, and have the same characters and some of the same actors.....but this show bears no resemblence to the real Honeymooners...and if you love the real Honeymooners, it is doubtful that you'd even remotely enjoy this.