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15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Ottoman Collection, November 5, 2003
These terrific DVDs are enhanced by vintage clips -- promos and commercials with the stars; a half-hour cast guest spot on "Stump the Stars"; Carl Reiner and company gleefully receiving some of their 15 Emmys. Hidden features show the cast selling cigarettes for Kent, a loyal sponsor.Stars of the time such as Joey Bishop, Lucille Ball, Sebastian Cabot, Bob Crane and Jane Wyatt pop up, making the sets delightful time capsules. Dick Van Dyke and Reiner do leisurely commentaries on a handful of key episodes, spending a lot of time on what happened to the cast and crew -- especially who is "still with us," and who is not. They swap a few great stories, and have vivid memories of making the episodes. "Stan Laurel should have sued me," Van Dyke says as he watches himself do a bit. "If only life could be so simple," Reiner sighs as one plot unfolds. Co-star Rose Marie, ex-child actor Larry Mathews and "neighbor" Ann Morgan Guilbert chat over a few other shows. In one case, Rose Marie plows ahead with a hilarious story long after the episode has ended. While the audio commentaries are new, other recollections come via footage from what must have been a terrific 1994 TV special about the show. Executive producer Sheldon Leonard and "human joke machine" Morey Amsterdam, both of whom have since passed away, have their say in these clips. Images and sound are surprisingly good. The restored video has decent contrasts over a pleasing gray scale, with minor wear surfacing here and there. The look falls comfortably between flat and silvery. The 2.0 mono ably conveys dialog, canned laughter and Earle Hagan's bouncy theme music. The first DVD set includes "Head of the Family," Reiner's flat, almost surreal 1960 pilot for the show, in which he played the lead against a different cast. No network was buying. "The reason Carl Reiner's show failed was Carl Reiner," hot-handed producer Leonard recalled in 1994. The world-famous ottoman pratfall appears on season 1's cover, in one of those almost 3-D moving photos. Trivia comes in segments called "Ottoman Trippers."
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"The Dick Van Dyke Show" Season #2 DVD Collection Is Right On Par With Season 1 .... Meaning: It's Perfect!, October 23, 2003
This 5-Disc DVD boxed set of "The Dick Van Dyke Show Season Two", courtesy of Image Entertainment, ranks right up there with the "Season 1" installment. Just a beautiful example of a great TV show being given superb DVD treatment.
We're given the same type of very nice packaging for Season 2 that exists for the first-season set. Individual "slim" style DVD cases are used to hold each of the set's five platters, with very attractive disc and cover art. Each disc is single-sided and contains six or seven Van Dyke Show episodes. There are 33 total programs included here (although the box incorrectly indicates that there are only 32).
The image shown on the "TV" on the front of the slipcase is a nifty "3D" insert card which can reveal a neat little "motion picture" (when turned just so) of Laura Petrie (Mary Tyler Moore) sliding out of the Petrie's hall closet, down a mountain of walnuts (taken from the classic Van Dyke Show dream-filled episode all about walnuts).
Each disc's cover also displays episode numbers and titles, film dates, original air dates, and a short synopsis of each program. There are Chapter Selections for each episode as well.
A 4-page printed insert also comes in this package. This mini-booklet provides some informative general information and "Did You Know?" fun facts.
An obvious amount of care and effort went into creating not only the first-rate DVD-Video transfers contained in this set, but in the packaging of the discs as well.
Each of these episodes has a running time of just over 25 minutes. So we know they are the complete shows (as originally aired in 1962 and 1963), without any scenes cut out. ~Big 'Thumbs-Up' to that~
There is also a "Play All Episodes" feature incorporated into this boxed set, for "marathon"-style viewing. This is a great feature that many DVD purchasers will no doubt appreciate.
Video Quality .... Darn near perfect as far as I can see! Considering the age of these programs, I think it's safe to say, due to the intense and lengthy digital restoration and remastering process that was undertaken here, that these episodes have never looked any better. Resolution looks A-OK to my eyes. Laura Petrie's beauty shines through brighter than ever on these crisp digital presentations.
The Sound .... There's a very adequate Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono soundtrack employed for each episode. All dialogue is easily heard and understood. The "Live Studio Audience" laughter seems quite robust also on these mono tracks.
Extras .... Some outstanding bonus supplements are contained on these five discs. Several episodes have Audio Commentary Tracks attached to them, featuring five of the show's cast members (including Dick Van Dyke, Carl Reiner, and Rose Marie).
There's also a hefty dose of interviews and featurettes, along with Emmy Awards clips (which are a real treat to watch so many years later), photo galleries, and some original commercial spots.
One of the featurettes, which has a brand-new batch of interviews, is "The Making Of 'It May Look Like A Walnut'", in which Dick Van Dyke, Carl Reiner, and Rose Marie reflect back on the hilarious "Walnut" episode. They all, needless to say, remember that one with a great deal of fondness.
And probably my favorite bonus feature is on Disc #5, when we're treated to four members of the Van Dyke Show cast appearing on a CBS-TV game show called "Stump The Stars" (which is an alternate USA title for a program known as "Mike Stokey's Pantomime Quiz"). Dick Van Dyke, Mary Tyler Moore, Morey Amsterdam, and Rose Marie compete in this charades-style game against the game show's "regulars", which include the likes of Sebastian Cabot, Ross Martin, and others.
This "Stump The Stars" bonus is not just a clip or two from the show either....it's the entire episode (running time of 27 minutes)! Even included is a very humorous commercial for Wheat Chex cereal. This game-show bonus exhibits very good picture quality too. It's just great, great stuff. Very fun to watch. (Let me say, also, that all of the players involved in that game show are excellent at playing the game too. You can tell the Van Dyke Show cast had been practicing in anticipation of their appearance on this Pat Harrington-hosted program.)
Also keep an eye open for the "Ottoman Tripper" bonus feature (on selected discs). "Tripper" is a short trivia game, where a correct answer takes you to a shot of Rob Petrie deftly "sidestepping" his famous ottoman. Give a wrong answer, and watch Rob fall on his face. It's yet another nice little extra feature.
Rounding out the large batch of bonus items, there's a "Meet The Cast" feature (text screens only), with some brief info about the show's cast. (One text screen per cast member.)
Easter Eggs too! .... There are also several "Easter Eggs" buried amongst these discs. All of them are commercial spots (many for "Kent" cigarettes, featuring the show's cast members). The "Eggs" can be accessed via several of the disc's "Episode" Sub-Menus. With any of the chapters highlighted (it varies by episode, so you'll have to check every chapter), hit your remote's "Left Arrow" key. If there's an "Egg" there, you'll then see a "glow" around the head of the artist rendering of Dick Van Dyke. Pressing "Enter/Play" at this point will take you to the hidden commercial treats.
Menus .... The menu structure is simple and easy to navigate. There's a separate Sub-Menu for each of the episodes, where the chapter selections for that episode are displayed (with some "screen shots" from that episode shown on the left side of the screen). Upon loading up any of the DVDs, you'll hear the familiar Dick Van Dyke Show theme, followed by--thankfully--silence, for the remainder of that disc "session". There are no annoying (and lengthy) musical menu transitions. Excellent!
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What follows in just a moment is a complete Episode Guide for Season Two of "The Dick Van Dyke Show". This episode list reflects the order in which the programs are presented within this DVD collection, arranged in sequence by "Production Date" (the date of filming the show), which does not always necessarily match the "Air Date" chronology.
The original CBS-TV air dates are also listed below, along with a few program descriptions and quotes from some of the various shows......
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THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW -- SEASON #2 (1962-1963):
31. Never Name A Duck (First Aired: 9/26/1962)
32. The Two Faces Of Rob (10/3/1962) .... I love this particular episode. Rob's telephone gag aimed at Laura backfires on him, and large quantities of hilarity follow. .... "Like you said mommy, 'dolce far niente'!"
33. Bank Book 6565696 (10/17/1962) .... "A 378-dollar sports shirt?"
34. The Attempted Marriage (10/10/1962)
35. Hustling The Hustler (10/24/1962) .... We get our only look at Buddy Sorrell's brother ("Blackie") in this show. (And our lone gander at the pool table in the Petrie's basement.)
36. What's In A Middle Name? (11/7/1962) .... Another first-rate flashback entry, with Ritchie discovering why the heck he's been saddled with the middle name of "Rosebud". .... "E-D-W-A-R-D!" .... "If it's a boy, 'Ulysses David'; if it's a girl, 'Ulyssia Davida'!"
37. My Husband Is Not A Drunk (10/31/1962) .... Charles Aidman (who also plays an insurance salesman named "Ed Rubin" in another Van Dyke episode) plays hypnotist "Glen Jameson" in this Halloween 1962 installment. This episode is a funny one, but it also ranks as one of most "unbelievable" in many aspects. Find out what I mean by perusing my review on the following Amazon.com webpage:
www.amazon.com/gp/product/customer-reviews/B000AYNG0C
38. Like A Sister (11/14/1962) .... Vic Damone guest stars as a love interest for the forever-single and "always-looking" Sally Rogers. Vic's one musical number here is a really good one.
39. The Night The Roof Fell In (11/21/1962) .... Another flashback show, featuring different versions of a rare fight between Rob and Laura. This is definitely a five-star episode, with many funny and re-watchable bits within it. .... "Why don't you fix yourself up?!"
40. The Secret Life Of Buddy And Sally (11/28/1962)
41. A Bird In The Head Hurts (12/5/1962) .... This is the "Ritchie Gets Attacked By A Giant Woodpecker" episode. Ritchie gets a big laugh when he enters the house wearing a pith helmet and sunglasses (in an effort to ward off that pesky bird). Laura's "bent pot" is another highlight here. :)
42. Gesundheit, Darling (12/12/1962) .... Another extremely funny show from the desk of creator Carl Reiner. Rob can't stop sneezing, and Laura thinks SHE is the cause. Keep the rewind button handy when Rob comes home after a sneeze-free day at the office, only to immediately start sneezing after one kiss to Laura's cheek. ~Huge LOL Moment!~
43. A Man's Teeth Are Not His Own (12/19/1962) .... Rob busts a tooth and his dentist (Jerry Helper) is out of town. It's quite a dilemma for poor Rob. And a funny one to boot. One of the top highlights here is when Mel gives Rob some ice water when Rob is in severe pain from his broken tooth. Rob's reaction is worth at least one replay.
44. Somebody Has To Play Cleopatra (12/26/1962)
45. The Cat Burglar (1/2/1963) .... Rob gets to play Sherlock Holmes (sort of) after a burglar breaks into the Petrie homestead and steals their dining-room table. .... "Every year she {Millie} gets more and more nervous." --> "That's because you keep...
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13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Info on the extras, August 6, 2003
Extras are planned for this release though not currently listed above. In addition to being uncut for the first time since their original broadcast (up to three whole minutes per episode being restored), the extras include: * Interview Segments with Carl Reiner, Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore
* "Mary Tyler Moore Remembers 'Bank Book 6565696'"
* Joy Commercials
* "The Cast Remembers Jerry Paris"
* "Rose Marie and Morey Amsterdam Remember Buddy and Sally"
* 1963-1964 Emmy Awards Footage featuring David Jansen, the cast of The Beverly Hillbillies, Fred MacMurray and more!
* "The Making of 'It May Look like a Walnut!'"
* "Stump the Stars" Program Excerpt with the Dick Van Dyke Cast
* Carl Reiner and Dick Van Dyke Commentaries for 2 Episodes
* Rose Marie, Ann Gilbert and Larry Matthews Commentaries
* Still Galleries and Cast Bios
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