The Honeymooners Lost Episodes 1951-1957
DVD Wholesale Quick Overview:
This set includes the first Honeymooners skit (without Audrey Meadows, but with Art Carney as a police officer) from 5 October, 1951. As a nice added touch, the original host introduction precedes it. From this and other early skits, we witness the initial incarnations of some of television’s most famous lines of dialog. “Don’t steam me, Alice” was there from the beginning, but “’cause I’m already steamed” would only be added in later routines. “One of these days, Alice” was also not yet accompanied by “Pow! Right in the kisser”. The earliest surviving Joyce Randolph appearance (as Trixie) is in The Ring Salesman from 7 December 1951. The earliest surviving Audrey Meadows (as Alice) can be found in The New Bowling Ball from 20 September 1952. Both are also included in this impressive set. The kiss at the end was there from the start, but the true magic between actors was yet to take shape.
This collection was pieced together into an impressive 15-DVD set. And no double-sided discs, so that’s a big plus. The booklet is nice and colorful, giving you a brief bio, basic information about the skits, and features some nice images. In fact, all skits appear to be listed, whether or not the films still exist. For what no longer exists (or otherwise could not be found), a chronological placement and identification is included in the list along with the episodes found on the respective discs of this collection.
The content is as good as you would hope, tracing Honeymooners back to the very beginning and garnishing it with several special features of which many had not been seen since their original airing decades ago. Beyond the obvious, you will find 1954 radio episodes, several interviews then and now, commercials, cast appearances on other shows, additional non-Gleason skits, and even Honeymooners scripts which were never filmed. And in the case of Stand-In for Murder, in which the first airing had an aborted ending due to original TV time constraints, we get those few extras seconds not previously seen, as well as an explanation (of sorts) from Jackie Gleason about the intended ending and why it wasn’t performed. Furthermore, we have the option of seeing a complete re-working of the skit shot the following week. This is a particular treat to see two versions of that particular skit.
-ACP
If you’re a fan of Jackie Gleason or The Honeymooners, then “The Honeymooners: Lost Episodes 1951-1957” is a must have. The set contains about 50 hours of lost Honeymooners footage and Honeymooners Specials. My only disappointment is in the restoration. Perhaps I was expecting too much, but some of the audio and video is terrible (see pic). With that being said, I’m still happy with the purchase.
– DLH
DVD Wholesale Main Features:
Actors: Jackie Gleason, Art Carney
Directors: n, a
Format: Multiple Formats, Box set, Black & White, Full Screen, NTSC
Language: English
Region: Region 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Number of discs: 15
Rated: NR Not Rated
Studio: MPI Home Video
DVD Release Date: October 4, 2011
Run Time: 3000 minutes
ASIN: B005E7SEOI
