G - DVD

Surviving Gilligan's Island - The Incredibly True Story Of The Longest Three-Hour Tour In History

Amazon Price: List Price: $19.98 By: Artisan Amazon Marketplace: 12 new & used starting at $28.95

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 6 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

A TRIP BACK IN TIME. 5 out of 5 stars.
15 of 17 people found this review helpful.

What a wonderful, wonderful film this is! "Gilligan's Island" was my favorite television show when I was a child, and since then I have read several books on the trials and tribulations of getting it on the air. This film was new to me - it has not been shown on T.V. in England. I am so impressed with the production standards, and the actors and actresses portraying the various people involved with the original series, while not being carbon copies of them, suggest them very well. It's also great to see Dawn Wells, Russell Johnson and Bob Denver helping with the narration. As well as this excellent film, which is very moving in parts, the dvd also comes with some great extras, including home movies and a very challenging trivia quiz! I would recommend this dvd to anybody who loves "Gilligan's Island". It is, quite simply, fabulous!

Editorial Review:

While this documentary about the behind-the-scenes machinations that occurred during the production of Gilligan's Island will have its strongest appeal for fans of the TV series, even viewers with a passing interest will find some entertainment in this surprisingly deluxe DVD presentation. Based largely on the recollections of executive producer and original cast member Dawn Wells (Mary Ann), with contributions from Bob Denver (Gilligan) and Russell Johnson (the Professor), the documentary explores the many conflicts endured by the show's cast and production staff before and during the show's network run. None of the gossip is particularly damning (no fistfights or secret trysts between cast members), so viewers looking for Behind the Music-type dirt may be somewhat disappointed. But for classic TV fans and Gilligan aficionados, Surviving Gilligan's Island is a pleasant and well-produced diversion. --Paul Gaita

Rescue From Gilligan's Island

Amazon Price: List Price: By: Digiview Productions Amazon Marketplace: 13 new & used starting at $2.19

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 3.0 of 5

Gather 'round, little buddies! 4 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

Fifteen years after that three-hour tour and not much has changed on Gilligan's Island. Gilligan and the Skipper are still too dumb to realize that if they built another hut, the Skipper wouldn't have to listen to Gilligan's snoring all night. The Howells are still wealthy and clueless. The Professor is still building wacky stuff out of coconuts and Mary Ann is still cramming her hinder into those eye-wateringly tight shorts.

Of course, there is one change. The movie star is now played by Judith Baldwin instead of Tina Louise, which means that she now looks completely different to and is over ten years younger than the real Ginger. Oh well, I was always a Mary Ann man myself.

Let's begin at the beginning. For starters, anyone with ears will notice that the Digiview Productions version of this TV movie ships without the opening and closing theme song. Not that the credits are missing, they're run accompanied by a dignified silence. Presumably Digiview didn't have the rights to the distinctive Gilligan's Island music, even though they tend to release films that are public domain.

I have read about something like this concerning the status of MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 episodes. Just because a film has fallen into public domain, it doesn't follow that the whole movie is now free for all. It's possible that after the film company's rights have expired, individual copyrights then revert to the original creators. So while no one may exclusively own the entire film, pieces of it may now be owned by different individuals or companies (i.e. the rights to music, the ownership of the title, etc). This is why you will sometimes see films on MST3k with the original title and opening/closing credits lopped off and a new title and material shoved in their places.

I have no idea if that's what happened in this case, but I thought it was interesting enough to share.

In any event, Gilligan discovers an odd metal disc washed up on the beach. Using this, the Professor fixes his barometer just in time to discover a major tsunami is headed for the island. (I know barometers and tsunamis don't work that way. Don't tell me; tell the Professor.) Facing certain destruction, the castaways decide to tie all their huts together to form a large boat and let the tidal wave sweep them into the shipping lanes. For added safety, they each decide to tie themselves to poles inside the boat while the storm is raging. If anyone reading this has any bizarre bondage fantasy involving any Gilligan's Island character, then this is definitely your DVD. (Shame on you!)

The scheme works, and the former castaways find themselves back among civilization. They each go their separate ways, although they come to discover that life off the island isn't as rewarding as they thought it would be. Indeed at one point, the Professor tries to tie their various misadventures in modern life to the Seven Deadly Sins, but I'm fairly certain that they don't. Of course, I wasn't expecting much from any biblical allusions in RESCUE FROM GILLIGAN'S ISLAND.

I won't give away the exact details of the ending. But given that there were several follow-on TV movies featuring the words "Gilligan's Island" in the title, you shouldn't be totally surprised by the conclusion.

Meanwhile while all that other stuff is going on, it turns out that the metal disc Gilligan found had fallen off of a Soviet spy satellite (complete with recycled Star Trek sound effects). Obviously, this means that two bungling agents must stalk Gilligan to recover their equipment. This subplot springs from nowhere and at the end, to nowhere it returns.

For better or worse, this is exactly like the TV show. All it lacks is a laugh track. Of course, it looks as though it had about the same amount of money spent on it as the original. One assumes the boat scenes were filmed in Sherwood Schwartz's bathtub.

The similarity to the TV series is probably why I liked it. You know exactly what kind of corny, stupid jokes you're going to get. Gilligan is going to do something stupid. The Skipper is going to sit on something freshly painted. The Skipper is going to smack Gilligan with his hat. I had worried that a show that worked better in small doses would be too ridiculous when stretched to 90 minutes, but surprisingly a quick pace prevents this.

There are also some good gags based on everything that the crew missed while on the island. Skipper laments skipping the era of the mini-skirt. The castaways are baffled by the identities of President Carter, President Ford and Mr. Watergate.

My guess is that this was intended at the time to bring the Gilligan's Island of the past into the present to wring out some nostalgia for times gone by. There are a lot of cracks at "modern" day practices: movies are dirtier than Ginger is expecting, the Professor's university is now more interested in money than academics. But to the viewer of today, it just looks like the filmmakers dropping 60s icons into clichés of the 70s. To the 21st century viewer, they are not back in "today", they are just in a different set of pop culture references.

The picture and sound quality on the Digiview Productions release are acceptable, if not actually good. But I'm guessing that if you're trying to impress your friends and enemies with your giant plasma screen and glorious surround sound speakers, this wouldn't be the movie you'd pop into your system anyway.

I doubt there's anyone reading this who doesn't already know if they'd like the movie or not. So, in summation, all I have to say is: "It's Gilligan's Island." Those three words will determine your enjoyment level.

Editorial Review:

Fifteen years after the SS Minow's infamous "3 hour tour" Gilligan and his fellow shipwrecked friends have found a way off the island for good.

The Guns of Will Sonnett, Disc One

Amazon Price: $7.98 List Price: $7.98 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Edi Video - Model: EDID63723D Amazon Marketplace: 20 new & used starting at $3.90

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Editorial Review:

Studio: Timeless Media Group Release Date: 07/25/2008

Take It to the Limit DVD: How to Get the Most Out of Life

Amazon Price: $26.99 List Price: $29.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Multnomah Amazon Marketplace: 15 new & used starting at $18.64

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Live life with margin... or else... 5 out of 5 stars.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.

This is the DVD that is accompanied with a study guide of the same title. You'll have to watch the video and use the guide to take notes and follow along.

In this series, Andy Stanley talks about having margins in life, and if a person lives life at the edge where culture and society pushes them, having no margin for error, when something happens, there will come grave consequences. The 6-week study consist of the following:

1. Less is More - About having margins in life
2. Downtime - About having margins with our schedule
3. Quality vs. Quantity - About margins in our finances
4. Reordering Your Finances - Practical tips on having margins in finances
5. A Time to Run - About margins in our morality
6. Finding Professional Margins - About margins in our work

With the stress and pressure of life, we need to learn and practice what God has intended for all our lives - margins!

Great video for a SS Class or Small Group! 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Our Sunday School class watched this entire series and Andy Stanley delivers a powerful straight-talk message on creating more margin in many areas of our lives.

He defines margin as the space between your current performance and your limits and goes on to apply this with our life, our schedules, our finances, our morality and our work.

Each video is around 40-45 minutes which is perfect for a class lesson or small group session.

Highly recommended!

Get Smart - Season 5

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

And loving it! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Complete "Get Smart" Season 5 Five ~ 5 DVD set including:
All 26 fifth season episodes PLUS bonus material.
Starring Don Adams and Barbara Feldon.
Each episode has been carefully remastered and restored for flawless clarity.
New, officially licensed set

You get all 26 original Season 5 episodes of the Emmy Award-winning TV series on 4 DVDs.
PLUS you get a bonus disc with over 2 hours of bonus material including interviews and commentaries, introductions to every episode by Barbara Feldon (Agent 99), never-before-seen bloopers,
rare TV footage, a special booklet, and more.


Maxwell Smart is back.

And so is Agent 99, The Chief and the rest of the fearless Get Smart gang. Here is the legendary, Emmy® Award-winning spy-spoof series inspired by the comic genius of Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, digitally restored, remastered and brought to you for the first time on DVD. Don Adams is Maxwell Smart, the would-be super-spy whose misguided adventures quickly propel him---together with the alluring Agent 99 (Barbara Feldon)---into a side-splitting succession of tight spots. You won't want to miss a single mixed-up mission, as Max and 99 take on all the forces of KAOS, from Siegfried and Bohrman, to Chucko the Ape and Simon the Likable.

Can Max survive a plague of murderous bananas? A plot to freeze the earth with a giant fan? A disguise that makes him look like...Phyllis Diller? These questions and more are all answered---hilariously---in the unforgettable fifth and final season of Get Smart. You'll enjoy all 26 episodes on 5 laugh-packed DVDs. Watch as the agents conquer KAOS in the race to deploy the AAAMM (the Anti-Anti-Anti-Missile-Missile) in "Ironhand," see Max take on The Exterminator disguised as a elderly
nanny in "Witness for the Execution," and collect the history-making final episode in the series, "I Am Curiously Yellow."

SPECIAL BONUS FEATURES include:

- Bonus Featurette: Fans, Fans, Fans.
- Audio Commentary from Bill Dana (Agent Quigley).
- Personal, on-camera introductions to all 26 episodes in the fifth season by series co-star Barbara Feldon.
- Segments from the 2003 Get Smart Reunion Seminar---held at the Museum of Television & Radio.
- Plus Feldon's touching final tribute to Don Adams...award appearances...vintage blooper reels, show promos.
- Additional Bonus Feature: A printable copy of the original CONTROL entrance exam!

EPISODE LIST:
- Pheasant Under Glass
- Ironhand
- Valerie of the Dolls
- Widow Often Annie
- The Treasure of C. Errol Madre
- Smart Fell on Alabama
- And Baby Makes Four Part I
- And Baby Makes Four Part II
- Physician Impossible
- The Apes of Rath
- Age Before Duty
- Is This Trip Necessary
- Ice Station Siegfried
- Moonlighting Becomes You
- House of Max, Part I
- House of Max, Part II
- Rebecca of Funny-Folk Farm
- The Mess of Adrian Listenger
- Witness for the Execution
- How Green Was My Valet
- And Only Two Ninety-Nine
- Smartacus
- What's It All About, Algie?
- Hello Columbus, Goodbye America
- Do I Hear a Vaults
- I Am Curiously Yellow

Editorial Review:

Season 5 of the landmark series Get Smart created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry. Starring Don Adams as Maxwell Smart and Barbara Feldon as Agent 99. Season 5 contains all 26 episodes and over 2 hours of bonus footage and features. Features include the 2005 Don Adams memorial and an ultimate Get Smart clip reel.

Good Morning World

Amazon Price: List Price: $49.98 By: S'more Entertainment Amazon Marketplace: 23 new & used starting at $7.99

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

I remember it fondly 4 out of 5 stars.
11 of 11 people found this review helpful.

I remember watching this show every week in the 60's and loving it. Very reminiscent of the Dick Van Dyke Show about a pair of disc jockeys (Joby Baker and Ronnie Schell) and their home lives with Leslie Parrish and Goldie Hawn. The wonderful Billy de Wolfe stole every episode as their prissy boss. Amazed that this 'one season wonder' will be available on DVD but I'm loving it already!

What a Treat! 5 out of 5 stars.
11 of 12 people found this review helpful.

I vividly remember watching this show with my family when it originally aired. It was bright, edgy, genuinely funny and Billy DeWolf could deliver a line like no one else (with the possible exception of Paul Lynde!) When I saw it was becoming available on DVD I felt a mixture of joy at being able to see it again, and fear that it would be one of those nostalgia pieces best left in it's own era. Let me assure you, it's a treasure. The characters are well drawn and engaging, and the writing is smart. But what makes this a home run for me is the treatment. S'more entertainment has done a beautiful job on these episodes. The colors and sound are crisp and clear, and if you are someone who has been burned by DVD collections where the quality was godawful, this is one time you can buy with peace of mind. This is truly one of the best TV series on DVD. I thank the producers for taking the risk on a show few might remember and for giving it the treatment of which other shows would be jealous.

Gimme a Break (Complete first season)

Amazon Price: $13.33 List Price: $13.33 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Visual Amazon Marketplace: 3 new & used starting at $13.33

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The Burns and Allen Show: Harry Morton's Secretary/Beverly Hills Uplift Society/Dance Lessons/Gracie's

Amazon Price: List Price: $7.99 By: Delta - Model: D82465D Amazon Marketplace: 11 new & used starting at $3.49

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Good Comedy 4 out of 5 stars.
9 of 9 people found this review helpful.

I purchased this CD for my mother who has fond memories of these shows. I watched them with her and enjoyed them. I would much rather have a commercial for Carnation Milk thrown into the performance than watch 5 minutes of programming and 5 minutes of commercial as we often do today! The picture quality isn't perfect, but what you see is what people saw on their TV's back then. Technology certainly wasn't what we have today, but that what you would expect when you purchase these CD's. I was happy with the purchase and would recommend it to others.

The Burns & Allen Show 4 out of 5 stars.
7 of 7 people found this review helpful.

Who can't help but enjoy Gracie Allen's humor, nor George Burns dry wit. These were the early episodes, I prefer the later ones where they were not filmed on what was apparent as a 'real' stage setting, as in plays.

Time to bring these out of hiding! 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

The Burns and Allen Show: Harry Morton's Secretary/Beverly Hills Uplift Society/Dance Lessons/Gracie's

These were the first Burns & Allen shows that my husband and I had ever seen, and since we aren't old enough to have enjoyed them back when they first came out on TV, we had always figured they were old b&w shows with old jokes, done on an obvious stage; so they must be boring. But we couldn't believe how funny and smart these shows are! Sure, some of the jokes are old, but they pull them off the way they were meant to be done, so they're still hilarious (or maybe I should say they've become hilarious again.) Sure, it's done on a stage, but they never try to pretend to the audience that they're house is real. George Burns will step through the living room wall to talk to the audience whenever he wants to. Genius. The way they just have a short conversation about Carnation Milk (the sponsor) instead of having commercials is so funny. (Sort of like Kyle XY and their Sour Patch Kids.) Who's been hiding this show from the younger folks? Burns & Allen isn't just for the older generation anymore.

Editorial Review:

Harry Morton’s Secretary
Beverly Hills Uplift Society
Dance Lessons
Gracie’s Bank Account

B&W/116 min.

Frontline: When Kids Get Life

Amazon Price: List Price: $24.99 By: PBS Amazon Marketplace: 1 new & used starting at $24.99

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ABC News 20/20 Get Smart: What Consumers Need to Know

Amazon Price: $19.95 List Price: $19.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: ABC News

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Editorial Review:

Consumers beware: From credit card scams to police pullovers, from restaurant kitchens to misleading advertising, "20/20" reports on things all consumers should know. Reports include: What cops don't want you to know. What credit card/ATM thieves don't want you to know. What advertisers don't want you to know. What restaurants don't want you to know. What some cosmetic dentists don't want you to know.

This product is manufactured on demand using DVD-R recordable media. Amazon.com's standard return policy will apply.