Search - The Judy Garland Collection (The Judy Garland, Robert Goulet & Phil Silvers Special / Live at the London Palladium with Liza Minnelli / The Concert Years / Judy, Frank & Dean Once in a Lifetime) on DVD

4-Disc Set Captures The Legend That Was (And Still Is) Judy!

David Von Pein | Mooresville, Indiana; USA | 05/25/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

""The Judy Garland Collection" (marketed by "Kultur Video") is a 4-Pack DVD set, with each disc featuring one program/concert starring the incomparable Judy Garland. Miss Garland can belt out a tune like no one else before or since. And she's in fine voice during these four programs featured in this boxed set.

The video quality on these discs certainly isn't going to win any prizes; but it's not TOO terribly bad either. Maybe a tad better than you'd find on a VHS tape. Obviously, no major re-mastering or restoration process was undertaken for these DVD transfers here. However, it's nevertheless still nice to be able to have these "Classic Judy" programs on Digital Disc.

Programs included in this collectible DVD set (all presented in their original Full-Frame TV ratio of 1.33:1) .................

>> "Judy Garland: The Concert Years" (Color and B&W; 1 hr., 26 min.) --- This biography-like program, hosted by Judy's daughter Lorna Luft, presents many film clips of Judy "in action" on stage. Guest-star interviews also dot this touching tribute to Judy.

>> "Judy Garland: LIVE At The London Palladium With Liza Minnelli" (B&W; 54 minutes) --- This is a great, great concert (one of my faves). It was filmed in November of 1964, with an 18-year-old Liza Minnelli (an up-and-coming star in her own right) holding her own with her famed mom on stage in London. You can really tell that mother and daughter are having a blast as they sing and dance together here. Unfortunately, picture quality for this program is not real good. But even though it lacks a sharp, detailed picture, this disc is nevertheless still a must-have for any collector of Miss Garland's concert material.

Judy and Liza's "curtain call" at the end of this fun-filled hour elicits a spine-tingling (and nearly deafening) roar of approval from the Palladium crowd that will very nearly bring a tear to your eye. This concert is pure "Magic" from start to wonderful finish.

NOTE: The actual title of this program (altered slightly for this DVD release) is: "Judy And Liza At The Palladium".

>> "Judy, Frank And Dean: Once In A Lifetime" (Color; 51 minutes) --- I was kind of surprised to see this program presented in "color". The trio of legendary singers had never performed together before this "once in a lifetime" get-together, which aired on network TV on February 25, 1962. Judy looks a bit different here (her looks would often change during her career), but she sounds fantastic.

The color on this program is a tad dull. Evidently this show was originally shot in B&W; but was "colorized" for the video release. This is a darn good program, one that captured the fancy of many viewers during its original 1962 television airing -- so much so that it was nominated for FOUR Emmy Awards.

NOTE: Some interesting "Title Trivia" concerning this "Judy, Frank, and Dean" special -- The original title of this TV special was: "The Judy Garland Show" (not to be confused with Judy's other "series" with the very same title, which came a year later). Another alternate (home video) title for this concert program is: "Judy, Frank And Dean: The Legendary Concert". And this special had still *another* name as well before airing, being called "Miss Show Business" for a time before the moniker was changed to simply "The Judy Garland Show".

>> "Judy Garland, Robert Goulet & Phil Silvers Special" (B&W; 51 minutes) --- This TV Special from early 1963, with Judy kicking up her heels on stage with Mr. Goulet and Mr. Silvers, was instrumental in launching Judy's very own CBS-TV series in the fall of '63 ("The Judy Garland Show") -- a series that was sadly way too short-lived, surviving just one season and spanning 26 memorable shows with Judy and her array of guest stars.

NOTE: This program's original title is: "Judy Garland And Her Guests, Phil Silvers And Robert Goulet".

Two of the discs have bonus programs attached. .... The famous "Gala Hollywood Movie Premiere" of Judy's 1954 film "A Star Is Born" is presented as an extra bonus on "The Concert Years" DVD. Watch as dozens of top movie stars of the era file past the TV cameras and into the "Pantages Theatre" for the debut of Judy's triumphal "comeback" motion picture on September 29, 1954. Judy herself makes an on-camera appearance near the end of this enthralling 31-minute star-laden program.

The other bonus (on the "Goulet/Silvers" disc) is a 26-minute segment from an episode of Judy's TV series, in which Ken Murray appears and shows many of his "Home Movies of the Movie Stars". Video quality for this bonus is a notch or two above what we find on the rest of these discs.

Each of these discs also contains some "text" extras -- "Biography" and "Filmography" sections spotlighting Judy Garland. (The text is the same throughout the set of DVDs. However, different pictures of Judy are used within each disc's text areas.)

I'm very pleased with the packaging for this DVD collection (although the outer slipcase is a bit flimsy -- but still adequate enough). Each single-sided disc gets its own Keep Case package, complete with a colorful "Chapter Selections" insert. I also feel the need to praise the impressive work done on the "disc art" here. The labels on these four discs literally glisten. The artwork on each disc is smooth-as-glass to the touch. Very nicely done! It looks "classy".

-------------

Diminutive in physical stature (at a mere 4-feet, 11.5-inches), but certainly not short on talent by any sane person's yardstick, Judy Garland wowed audiences with her incredible voice (and underrated acting ability) for more than forty years. Taken from us at much, much too early an age (47) when she passed away in England on June 22, 1969, her legacy remains as strong as ever. And DVD compilations like this nice one will only aid in keeping our memories of her strong and vivid for many generations to come."

Judy's Best TV performances are presented Here!!!

Kimberly S. Loeffler | Binghamton, New York USA | 12/15/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Judy Garland was at the hight of her fame and power in the 1960's and this incredable DVD collection proves Just that. DVD 1) features the rarely seen color 1962 special that launched her TV series "Judy, Frank and Dean: Once In A Lifetime" Yes Garland, Sinatra and Dino on the same stage together and all sound superb singing duets and solos of thier biggest Hits. If you love Judy's rendition of (The Man That Got Away) then this acclaimed show is a must see because It has Judy's best vocal performance of this song and Dean sings (You Must Have Been A Beautiful Baby) and then Judy joins them for (You're Nobody Till Somebody Loves You) a brilliant show to see!DVD 2) is The Judy Garland special with Robert Goulet and Phil Silvers. The picture quality is lacking in this release compaired to the VHS release of this show but Garland, Goulet and Sr. Bliko are in fine voice and get along smashingly together as they sing and comic eachother. The songs are dazzeling. Judy's best Live performance of "Get Happy" is in this 1963 show. Definately a Must see.DVD 3) is Judy and her edlest daughter Liza In concert at the London Palladuim. Though they had both worked together prior to this taped concert it is concidered the best Mother-daughter Performance. Judy and Liza are competing with eachother in a loving way and is a rare look to see Liza at the begining of her career.
DVD 4) is Judy Garland The Concert Years (1985) hosted by Judy's delightful daughter Lorna Luft a star in her own right. She and friends and co-workers of Judy's share memories and personal stories with rare out-takes from "A Star Is Born" and Judy in her very first film in 1929 before her feature film debut in 1935. Judy's "Battle Hymn Of The Republic" will make you cry literally and this remarkable look at Her live Years shows footage of Judy singing for JFK in 1962 at the White house.
Plus it also talks about Judy's 1963 Tv series where Yes Lorna performed on at the start of her brilliant career.
This is the documentary worth owning and enjoying for years to come. it also includes home movies and footage of Judy and Lorna at the Palace in 1967. A Must!!! The picture quality is out of this world."

First-Rate Entertainment -- Third-Rate Video Transfer

Dean Glass | San Diego, CA United States | 07/21/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"All four of these DVDs are first-rate entertainment. The Judy Garland Collection is made up of three television specials and a documentary/retrospective hosted by daugther Lorna Luft. Luft, who is best-known for her performances in "Grease 2" and "Where The Boys Are '84" and as author of the book "Me And My Shadows", appeared on her mother's television series in 1963. Since the interview sequences of Joey Luft (Judy Garland's mostly-forgotten son) are brief and Liza, who has evidently completed her transformation into her own mother (scary, isn't it?), is busy with her bizarre come-back, it is Lorna who gets to display her talent, which she does with ease and professionalism (although she does look a bit frostbitten by the chilly weather). She makes the most of this opportunity to remind the public that she is Judy Garland's daughter, too. Little-seen film clips as well as some of Garland's showstoppers from her self-titled television show round out the clips. Another disc has a television special where Judy was accompanied onstage by daughter Liza Minnelli. Liza proves she's a chip off her mother's yellow brick block, and surprises her mother more than a few times with her talent. One humorous moment has Judy mouthing something--a question--to someone off camera. Evidently she was told to move Liza's microphone closer to her mouth. A third disc has a TV special costarring Robert Goulet and Phil Silvers. Who knew Phil Silvers could sing? There is some great singing in this show, and some of the jokes are hilarious. The last disc is Garland's television performance with Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra. Judy more than holds her own with these two powerhouse crooners, outsinging the two of them with one vocal chord tied behind her back. The Lorna DVD has a very good quality image, the interviews being new and the old footage being mostly in top-notch condition. The other two shows (with Liza and Phil Silvers and Robert Goulet) are in pretty wretched shape. It's not the transfer to DVD, but rather the poor quality of the source material. The sound is okay, but just okay. What a shame these couldn't have received the same high quality restoration as the "Judy Garland Show" DVDs, but at least they are available and real fans of Judy shouldn't mind too much. It's the entertainment value on these four DVDs that make it worth the box-set price; the degraded video and sound aren't distracting enough to lessen the power of these incomparable performances. Judy Garland's legendary talent bumps what would have been a 1-star video treatment up to 5 stars."

The best!

Edward C. Panusko | Oakbrook IL | 01/22/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Historical perfomances are difficult to duplicate. I have the DVD version of this set and it is incredible. So the quality of the DVDs aren't the best, the quality of the performances are. I highly recommend this set to anyone who enjoys great performances, and the video and audio are not that bad."