Hazel The Final Season
DVD Wholesale Quick Overview:
After enjoying the first four seasons of ‘Hazel’ starring the original ‘Baxters’ (Don Defore and Whitney Blake) alongside Shirley Booth, I was prepared to be disappointed by the revamped lineup of the sitcom’s final season. Instead, I found the change to be a refreshing one which gave the show an inherently lighter tone. Not that the previous seasons were dark or anything–but the component of George’s confrontational tone with Hazel had gradually become more of a focal point, which I think took something away from the feel-good quality for which ‘Hazel’ is most prevalently known. With the arrival of Lynn Borden and Ray Fulmer as the new ‘Baxter’ family for which Shirley Booth plays the maid, there is a less volatile feel–not to mention a slightly more believable component to the character portrayals.
No doubt about it, Defore and Blake were both fine actors. But Borden and Fulmer seemed to portray more everyday personality traits which lent themselves well to the fun, often zany, story lines. There are 29 episodes in total. Some focus on Hazel’s tendency to stir up trouble inadvertently; others zoom in on various aspects of Steve Baxter’s work as a real estate agent; and one even places the spotlight on Harold (the late Bobby Buntrock, who remained from the original cast) and his friends as they start a kids’ rock band of sorts.
There are other familiar faces from earlier seasons of “Hazel” here, too: Cathy Lewis (playing George’s sister, Deirdre) and Maudie Prickett (as Hazel’s fellow maid and friend, Rosie). Through it all, Shirley Booth maintains her remarkably believable acting style which truly makes you forget she’s acting. I read an interview with Ray Fulmer from not long after the series was canceled stating that he found the show’s writing to be very shoddy, but Booth’s abilities to be nothing short of miraculous. I do agree that some of the episodes suffer from loopholes in the plots (and on occasion, abrupt endings). But between the chemistry of the actors, the interesting guest players, Booth’s one-of-a-kind talent, and even the background music in the shows, those shortcomings are easy to overlook.
I won’t hesitate to recommend this final season of “Hazel” to anyone who relishes in the joys of a simpler time in TV during which one could feel like they were getting an inside view of a good-natured, upbeat family which seems to solve problems with humor and persistence.
-RetroRhythms
A friend got me hooked on “Hazel” in 2006 when the first season was released by Sony. He’s one of the biggest Hazel fans around and could easily pass as Hazel Burke’s nephew. He’s just like her in real life. I hadn’t seen the show since reruns last aired in 1975 on local television. I so enjoyed watching the show again after thirty-one years, that together we waited, and waited, for subsequent seasons to be released on DVD, celebrating each season’s announcement. Today we both fainted in delight over the news that Shout Factory will be releasing the fifth and final season of this classic sitcom on 1-14-14, which will complete the series on DVD.
Since rediscovering “Hazel” I have done some recruiting of my own, getting several others hooked on the show. The storylines are good, Hazel means well, Harold is a cute kid, the Baxters are decent, and I don’t have to worry about being offended by some idiot one line jokes like today’s television. I can seek comfort watching Hazel taking care of her family, while gettin
– Prickle62
DVD Wholesale Main Features:
Actors: Shirley Booth
Directors: William D. Russell
Format: Multiple Formats, Box set, Black & White, Color, Full Screen, NTSC
Language: English
Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only.)
Number of discs: 4
Rated: NR-Not Rated
Studio: Shout! Factory
DVD Release Date: January 14, 2014
Run Time: 720 minutes
ASIN: B00FM4S8IU
