Search - Ramar of the Jungle - Volume Ten on DVD

Louie Louie? No, Willy-Willy!

Robert Huggins | Suburban Philadelphia, PA United States | 06/15/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Volume 10 of the "Ramar of the Jungle" series is distinguished by the inclusion of the very first episode of the second year, "Call to Danger." After 13 episodes set in India, Ramar and Professor Ogden returned to Africa for the remainder of the series. "Call to Danger" also marks the first appearance of Nick Stewart, who portrays their native guide Willy-Willy for year two of the series. Stewart was an African American actor with film credits dating back to the 1930s who worked into the late 1980s. He and his wife were the founders of the Ebony Showcase Theater in Los Angeles. He also portrayed the character "Lightnin'" on "The Amos `n Andy Show." "Call to Danger" and the follow-up episode "Blind Peril" also features Marjorie Lord, better known as the second wife on "Make Room for Daddy," as well as Myron Healey, a well known character actor who appeared in scores of films and television shows throughout the 1950s and 1960s.

Volume 10 includes three episodes from the third group of 13 episodes, all directed by Sam Newfield, and one episode from the fourth group, directed by Spencer Bennet. To date, the Bennet directed episodes have been the most elusive.

The audio/visual presentation of Alpha Video's "Ramar of the Jungle" DVD releases are never going to win any awards, but Alpha has managed to find and release 40 of the show's entire run of 52 episodes to date and, in this regard, the company is to be commended for their efforts. My rating for this release is closer to *** & ½ due to the inclusion of the "Call to Danger" and "Blind Peril" episodes, a strong start to the third group of episodes.
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