The Jackie Gleason Show - The Color Honeymooners : Colection #2 - Which Episodes? (1 Viewer)

[DeWilson]

Any word on which episodes will be on the volume?

 

[Roy Wall]

I haven't seen any word posted on any of the usual suspect sites. My guess is that MPI will pick up where they left off with the Christmas episode, "Run, Santa, Run".

 

[David Rain]

So these are only compilations of the Honeymooners sketches ? As opposed to the full-length variety show episodes that include the other sketches, too ?

 

[DeWilson]

There are only 7 "Honeymooner" Color 1966 Skits that were part of an overall Show with other skits and guests, the other 42 Color "Honeymooners" were full hour shows.

Hopefully these 7 short skits (Mostly done in the 1968-1969 Season) will be released in a compilation with the two skits from 1961 and the 1973 skit from Jackie Gleason's special.

 

[Joe Lugoff]

The Sixties "Kramdens and Nortons Go to Europe" musical shows were remakes of shows from the 1956-57 season, weren't they?

How come the 56-57 shows have never been seen for half a century?

 

[Hank Dearborn]

I don't know for sure but if I had to take a guess, I would say it's because the color versions are virtual duplicates of the earlier ones. While the color ones exist on color 2" tape, the first "Trip to Europe" shows are on grainy kinescopes. You're talking to someone who really hates the Honeymooners musicals anyway.

 

[Joe Lugoff]

They're duplicates, except in the earlier ones, you get Audrey Meadows and Joyce Randolph --- and Gleason and Carney are ten years younger. I'd guess they're superior, performance-wise.

 

[Charles Ellis]

Include me as one who would love to see the 1956-57 shows on DVD, plus the 1966 musical version of "The Adoption" which was the last time Audrey Meadows played Alice before being replaced by Sheila MacRae (This was because Audrey was now married to an airline president and wanted to spend more time with him, and playing Alice the next season would've meant staying in Miami year-round).

 

[DeWilson]

7 were remakes of the 1950's shows,2 were all-new material.

 

[Mark Y]

So has there been any word on which shows will be in this set?

Volume one had nine shows, which turned out to be nine of the ten that were syndicated for a couple of years in the mid-to-late 1970s. (WGN ran those in Chicago.) The package consisted of the nine "Trip To Europe" shows and the "King Of The Castle" episode. They skipped the Christmas one. (I still don't think I've seen that one.)

I recall early announcements for the previous set stating that they would include "Mexican Hat Trick," an odd choice since it was a very late episode and the rest were all earlier ones presented chronologically.

I would think it would be odd to start the second set with a Christmas show (but it would be fine with me if they did it that way). More likely, they'd skip it and release it separately, or with other holiday-themed material (like MPI did with "The Beverly Hillbillies" and "Petticoat Junction"). But we'll see...all will be known soon enough.

I imagine the reason there were not more shows in the first volume may have to do with music licensing...but if that gets them out (one way or another) that's fine with me. (I think I recall Goodlife delaying the airing of one show, and then eventually editing it, because of music licensing.)

Did those few color episodes of "The Jackie Gleason Show" with shorter "Honeymooners" segments (where the Honeymooners weren't the whole show) ever air on Goodlife? I'd love to see the rest of the Gleason shows...with or without the Honeymooners. (I'm glad the 1950s "Lost Episodes" were finally released, but does anyone else want to see the entire original shows?)

 

[DeWilson]

Sadly, Goodlife didn't air the shorter Color "Honeymooners" segments. :frowning:

 

[jdee28]

I'd love to see a release of the 1950s Jackie Gleason Show where we get complete episodes, Honeymooners skit or not.

 

[Joe Lugoff]

Me, too. Ralph Kramden might have been Gleason's best character, but there were so many other characters he played, too. There were Reggie Van Gleason, the Poor Soul, Rum Dum, Charlie Bratton the Loudmouth, Joe the Bartender ... no one can tell me that only Kramden was funny!

 

[Joe Karlosi]

To me, they were all Gleason.

 

[Joe Lugoff]

So you're saying he wasn't much of an actor?

 

[Joe Karlosi]

I finally got Collection #2, but was extremely disappointed that one episode was left off the set, that being "Life Upon the Wicked Stage".
It's a reworking of one of my favorites from the Lost Episodes, called "Songs and Witty Sayings".

It's very odd because discs 1 and 3 each have three episodes on them, but disc 2 only contains two episodes (this is where "Life Upon the Wicked Stage" would have fit in). It's a gaping hole. I'm hoping this show gets placed on the next volume somehow, and I'm wondering what the problem was that it got omitted? Maybe a rights issue? It can't be a quality problem, as this one is shown on TV.

*EDITED: I just phoned MPI and spoke to a woman who confirmed that there was a problem getting some music cleared for this episode. :frowning:

 

[DeWilson]

There was also a problem with clearing "Life Upon the Wicked Stage" when it aired on GoodlifeTV/AmericanLife as I recall - they ended up airring it edited.

 

[Joe Karlosi]

Do you know exactly what was edited out? I'd rather have it on DVD edited than not at all.