 |
Wow! Talk about
waxing nostalgic on an old TV variety series.
The other day I grabbed my new batch of
DVDs to review and came across a set that
took me back about 30 years! As a matter
of fact, when I read off the title to my
wife, she actually said (for the first time
ever), “Who?” It wasn’t
until I mentioned a couple of the songs
this group was famous for that she ‘barely’
recognized them. I’m curious to see
if you have the reaction. The name of the
DVD set? “Tony Orlando & Dawn:
The Ultimate Collection.”
If you ask many young people today who Tony
Orlando & Dawn were, it would more than
likely elicit the same blank stare that
you’d get if you mentioned the Captain
& Tennille. The fact that I’m
as familiar with both groups as I am either
dates me or proves I’d be your best
bet for a Trivial Pursuit partner. What
is intriguing to me is that there are so
few people under the age of 30 who have
ever heard of them.
|
During the 1970’s, Tony Orlando & Dawn
were HUGE. Let me say that again. They were HUGE!
Orlando and his backup singers, Telma Hopkins
and Joyce Vincent took the country by storm with
songs like, “Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the
Ole Oak Tree”, “Sweet Gypsy Rose”,
and “Knock Three Times.” (“Aha,”
I hear you saying to yourselves… NOW you
know who I’m talking about…)
Due to their phenomenal success, Tony Orlando
& Dawn were given the opportunity to host
their own variety show, much like “The Sonny
& Cher Show.” The series allowed them
to showcase their hits as well as welcome gust
stars who joined them in various comical sketches.
Believe it or not, I used to watch this show as
a kid. Most variety shows back in the 70’s
were much, much better than those you find today
and “Tony Orlando & Dawn” was
a good as the rest.Their music was excellent as
far as 70’s style music goes, and all three
had the personality to pull of some pretty darn
funny sketches.
RS Entertainment is helping me to remember the
good old days of television with the release of
the “Tony Orlando & Dawn: The Ultimate
Collection” DVD set. As opposed to releasing
any kind of full season sets, which would have
been preferred, this set has 3 DVD filled with
what they consider to be the best of the series’
run. After working my way through the discs, I’d
say they did a pretty good job of picking out
the best material. Being that it was so long ago,
I honestly can’t remember what might have
been left out.
To be even more honest, I had actually forgotten
just how many great guests had been on the series.
These discs reminded me of the likes of Jackie
Gleason, Dom DeLuise, Milton Berle, Sid Caesar,
Freddie Prinze (Sr. not Jr.)e Carlin. Double my
shock when I saw that Alice Cooper had even made
an appearance (how in the world did I forget that??)
in one of the episodes. He did a talk show sketch
with the gang (which included Tony on Alice Cooper
makeup), then followed it up with renditions of
“Give the Kid a Break” and “I
Never Cry.”
The DVDs also include a jukebox feature that takes
you right to performances of particular songs,
which is a really nice feature. R2 also included
some nice extra features in the way of appearances.
We get to see Tony on “The Johnny Carson
Show” when it was guest hosted by Freddie
Prinz, Jr. There is another clip which also includes
Tony singing a song that was written by the late
comic. You’ll also find a clip from the
TV series Fridays, where Dawn makes an appearance
with Father Guido Sarducci (which is hysterical)
and a great bit from the “Carol Burnett
Show”, where Harvey Korman, Carol Burnett
and Vicki Lawrence to a takeoff of Tony Orlando
& Dawn. You’ll never guess who shows
up during this skit!
Over the years, Tony Orlando & Dawn went there
separate ways, each continuing to work in the
entertainment field. Orlando still performs concerts
around the world, Telma Hopkins went on to star
in several TV shows (including “Bosom Buddies”,
Gimme a Break” and the more recent “Half
& Half”), and Joyce Vincent sings with
a gospel choir called “The Inspirational
Voices of Free.”
Watching these DVDs, I was also surprised to see
how good a shape the shows were in. The video
is amazingly clean and bright and the sound quite
clear. If you ever enjoyed the variety shows of
old, I have to recommend this set. There was obviously
a lot of fun being had by the trio and their guests,
making it all the more fun to watch. And by the
way, there is also going to be a release of Tony
Orlando & Dawn’s entire 6 album collection
on CD. It’s definitely making my list of
must-haves for Christmas.
Starring: Tony Orlando, Telma Hopkins, Joyce Vincent
Extras: Tony Orlando on The Tonight Show with
guest host Freddie Prinze, Telma Hopkins and Joyce
Vincent on "Fridays" with Don Novello
as "Father Guido Sarducci & Dawn",
A hilarious TO&D parody from the Carol Burnett
Show
Specifications: Full Screen
Studio: R2 Entertainment
Release Date: 9/20/2005
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website
Website
We'll give Tony Orlando & Dawn: The Ultimate
Collection a B.
|
