Dick be nimble, Dick be quick. Angelenos, keep an eye peeled for Dick Van Dyke; you never know where he’ll show up next. Earlier this year he turned up in a short run of “The Sunshine Boys” as a fundraiser for a theatre in Malibu; the other night he and Carl Reiner appeared at the American Cinematheque at Hollywood’s Egyptian Theatre to promote the newly revised edition of Vince Waldron’s "The Official Dick Van Dyke Show Book.”
The best TV sitcom of all time—which debuted 50 years ago this fall—gets it due in Waldron’s 416-page volume (in paperback from Chicago Review Press). From the writing of the pilot (which starred creator Reiner himself), to exec producer Sheldon Leonard’s shrewd idea to do the show in front of a live audience, the skirmishes between Reiner and Leonard at script meetings, Mary Tyler Moore’s insistence on wearing form-fitting slacks, and behind the scenes anecdotes on the original episodes, the book delivers beyond expectations. Van Dyke wrote the intro.
Manny Pacheco’s “Forgotten Hollywood Forgotten History” (in paperback from Book Publishers Network) is as much about American history as it is the movies. The character actors of Hollywood’s storied past (Claude Rains, John Carradine, Eddie “Rochester” Anderson) provide the springboard. Lionel Barrymore’s wheelchair-bound performances are contrasted with FDR’s hidden disabilities. Pacheco makes a case for Ward Bond as a patriot for his role in championing the ‘50s blacklist; I disagree with his argument, but that’s what makes the horse race.
“Anything Goes” (on DVD from Entertainment One) was decidedly not the theme of the blacklist era, which makes the 1954 Colgate Comedy Hour production of the Cole Porter musical a perverse pleasure to watch. Ethel Merman stars as Reno Sweeney with Frank Sinatra and Bert Lahr in support; the Merman-Lahr duet on “Friendship” is one of the highlights, and almost reason enough by itself to acquire this release. The original commercials are included.
“I’m Going Slightly Mad” (on CD from Chrome Dreams) is an entertainingly offbeat 29-track compilation of “music from the dark side of the mind.” Selections include Jimmie Lunceford’s “I’m Nuts About Screwy Music,” Billie Holiday, Betty Hutton, Annie Ross (“Twisted”), Bo Diddley (“Crackin’ Up”), Lenny Bruce, Redd Foxx, and of course Patsy Cline’s “Crazy.”
More from Jordan:
Austen’s ‘Pride,’ Treischmann’s new ‘World’ at South Coast Rep
Holcroft’s ‘Cockroach,’ Marlowe’s ‘Dr. Faustus’ in Fullerton
Charles Nelson Reilly & Britcoms on DVD, Jonathan Winters on CD
Vintage TV recall: Bing Crosby, Judy Garland, Gale Storm, June Foray
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