Tag Archives: Carroll O’Connor

DVDs, TV

Sonny and Cher share 10 memorable and magical episodes from their TV show. Yep, they still got it babe

Yes, the beat goes on.
And on.
And on.
Sonny and Cher share great memories, great music and great guest stars when they take the spotlight on I Got You Babe: The Best of Sonny & Cher (Time Life). The five-disc set is packed with never-before-released episodes of their ’70s variety TV show. And the added bonus–an interview with Cher recalling those sunny days—is most welcome!
When Salvatore “Sonny” Bono and Cherilyn “Cher” Sarkisian came together it was undeniably magical. America first knew them as the duo behind the classic hit “I Got You Babe,” and their popularity exploded with the ’70s smash variety show The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour. The perfect match on stage and off, millions of fans tuned in each week to watch the sparks fly and see what Bob Mackie rags Cher was (or wasn’t!) wearing and the show quickly became essential viewing.
The TV gig was a gift from heaven . . . or at least CBS entertainment chief Fred Silverman, who “discovered” them performing in nightclubs and decided they had great potential for a weekly variety series. The  Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour premiered on August 1, 1971 as a summer replacement, but quickly reached the top 20, becoming a Wednesday night draw for the CBS and cementing Sonny and Cher as one of Hollywood’s most beloved couples.
The DVD set contains 10 hilarious, never-before-released episodes beginning, bringing  by bringing TV viewers back to the beginning with the pilot episode,. Oh! The classic sketches are still just naughty enough for nighttime! And tune in for an incredible line-up of guest stars including Dick Clark, Jerry Lewis, Jim Nabors, Joe Namath, The Righteous Brothers, Dinah Shore, Carroll O’Connor, Art Carney, Chuck Berry and The Supremes.

I Got You Babe: The Best of Sonny & Cher also features exclusive extras including:
Sonny & Cher’s pilot, an appearance on The Barbara McNair Show (Original Air Date: February 15, 1970)
Jerry Blavat’s 1970 interview of the duo on Jerry’s Place featuring an impromptu performance of “I Got You Babe”
Interviews with Frankie Avalon, producers Allan Blye and Chris Bearde and Cher herself!

DVDs, TV

“Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In: The Complete Fifth Series” still works, all these years later

We still laugh, in and out.

Political correctness met its match with Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In, NBC’s groundbreaking variety series that became a cultural touchstone and part of the fabric of ’60s-’70s America.Every Monday night at 8 p.m. from 1968-1973, straight man Dan Rowan and wisecracking co-host Dick Martin led a supremely talented comic ensemble through a gut-busting assault of one-liners, skits, bits and non sequiturs that left viewers in hysterics and disbelief.

Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In: The Complete Fifth Series (Time Life) from features all 24 episodes.  And what fun! After years of shameless name dropping, Dick finally gets his wish when bombshell Raquel Welch kicks off the new season with her first and only appearance on the show. Former Hogan’s Heroes POWs Richard Dawson and Larry Hovis escaped CBS to join the cast. And, along with alumni Judy Carne, Arte Johnson, Henry Gibson, Jo Anne Worley and Teresa Graves, they help to celebrate Laugh-In‘s landmark 100th episode (it aired on September 1, 1971).

Other guest stars:  Steve Allen, Johnny Carson, Johnny Cash, Carol Channing, Charo, Petula Clark, Bing Crosby, Tony Curtis, Henry Gibson, Gene Hackman, Rita Hayworth, Hugh Hefner, Bob Hope, Arte Johnson, Paul Lynde, Liza Minnelli, Agnes Moorehead, Joe Namath, Carroll O’Connor, Vincent Price, Carl Reiner, Debbie Reynolds, Sugar Ray Robinson, Bill Russell, Vin Scully, Doc Severinsen, Jacqueline Susann, Tiny Tim, John Wayne and Henny Youngman.