Rating: 
Summary: good for whetting your appetite, but ...
Review: i agree with most of horiuchi's review except i found feinstein's narration to be irritating. he's too earnest and has a rather plastic smile, and i found myself fervently wishing that they had replaced his performances (of which there are too many, esp in the second section) with real footage. the pacing is a little rushed b/c of the large amount of territory covered, and a bit confusing in the way the film jumps back and forth between composers b/c everything is presented chronologically. clips are generally great, but ultimately disappointing because usually they just show the verse and the first chorus and then sometimes they skip to the finale, i.e. less than 1/2 of the actual song. in other words, all in all it's good as an introduction to this genre, but for many of these you'll want to see the movies the clips are from.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Worth The Money
Review: I found the narraration terrible and boring. It seemed like he was lip sinking and his words did not match his mouth movement. I would have liked to see more performances and less of him. Also most of the performances seemed to be Judy Garland. I was amazed that there she was again and again, not that I don't like her but its not a Judy documentary. I was also disapointed that they ended with "Annie Get Your Gun". There was absolutely nothing about the great musicals of Rodgers and Hammerstein like where was "Oklahoma", "The Sound of Music", "My Fair Lady", "Music Man", "King and I"? These are some of the best musicals ever yet they were left off which I think is sad. Hopefully htey will have a part two where these musicals are covered.
Rating: 
Summary: Okay...
Review: I found the narraration terrible and boring. It seemed like he was lip sinking and his words did not match his mouth movement. I would have liked to see more performances and less of him. Also most of the performances seemed to be Judy Garland. I was amazed that there she was again and again, not that I don't like her but its not a Judy documentary. I was also disapointed that they ended with "Annie Get Your Gun". There was absolutely nothing about the great musicals of Rodgers and Hammerstein like where was "Oklahoma", "The Sound of Music", "My Fair Lady", "Music Man", "King and I"? These are some of the best musicals ever yet they were left off which I think is sad. Hopefully htey will have a part two where these musicals are covered.
Rating: 
Summary: The Greatest Era of Song is collected in a wonderful Program
Review: I just saw this wonderful PBS special last night on the "Great Performances" special and I must say that this is one of the best and well documented accounts of the most incredable music from the song writers and the stars who made these songs Unforgettable. This show pays tributes to Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin, Johnny Mercer, Cole Porter and countless other composers.
The Musicals of Astaire and Rogers, Rooney and Garland, Bing and Bob, Ethel Merman and many others. I really learned alot and enjoyed this DVD greatly. This show is hosted by Michael Finestein and full of the best pre-war, post-war and Big band music that movie lovers are acustomed too! If you love this era of popular song, Love Judy Garland who is featured 4 times or just enjoy musicals. This is the program to have in your collection. I can't wait to get my copy.
Rating:
Summary: Muy bueno para el que ha visto algo mas
Review: Mi primer contacto con los musicales fue con las peliculas Thats Entertainment 1 y 2 de 1974 y 1976. Desde entonces surge mi fascinación por los musicales americanos. Tengo ambas en VHS (no estan disponibles en DVD.) En 1998 agregué a mi colección Thats entertainment 3. Compré The great American SongBook y a lo largo de sus casi 3 horas vi muy pocas escenas repetidas de los resumenes aparecidos en la serie Thats entertainment. O sea que se complementa muy bien. La verdad quede muy satisfecho aunque es cierto que el señor Feinstein aparece demasiado y ese tiempo debio utilizarse para mostrarnos mas de los numeros musicales. Para una persona que va a entrar en contacto por primera vez con este tipo de presentaciones no creo que sea conveniente esta introducción. Se dejan por fuera muchas escenas memorables y muchos cantantes. Pero son pocas las opciones para escoger y el esfuerzo me parece excelente aunque pudo haber estado mejor.
Rating:
Summary: Muy bueno para el que ha visto algo mas
Review: Mi primer contacto con los musicales fue con las peliculas Thats Entertainment 1 y 2 de 1974 y 1976. Desde entonces surge mi fascinación por los musicales americanos. Tengo ambas en VHS (no estan disponibles en DVD.) En 1998 agregué a mi colección Thats entertainment 3. Compré The great American SongBook y a lo largo de sus casi 3 horas vi muy pocas escenas repetidas de los resumenes aparecidos en la serie Thats entertainment. O sea que se complementa muy bien. La verdad quede muy satisfecho aunque es cierto que el señor Feinstein aparece demasiado y ese tiempo debio utilizarse para mostrarnos mas de los numeros musicales. Para una persona que va a entrar en contacto por primera vez con este tipo de presentaciones no creo que sea conveniente esta introducción. Se dejan por fuera muchas escenas memorables y muchos cantantes. Pero son pocas las opciones para escoger y el esfuerzo me parece excelente aunque pudo haber estado mejor.
Rating:
Summary: Not Worth The Money
Review: Most of the songs are cut off and/or talked over by Mike. Fire the editor on this one . I wish I could find the cuts and paste them back. Nice try but no cigar.
Rating:
Summary: Music Nostalgia
Review: My wife and I found this tremendously entertaining, informative and absorbing.We sang along with most of the songs and found some of the moments definitely moving. The host was not intrusive and the use of movie clips to illustrate the narrative was ingenious. In a period when most movies are made for 14-year old boys, this is a treat for those of us who love movies and music. Having a Cosmopolitan while watching is definitely advised.
Rating:
Summary: One of the Best Doc's about the 40's Musicals
Review: The Great American Songbook is one of the best recent Documentaries about the songwriters and the music of America. Short Bio's of Porter, Berlin, Gershwin and a slew of others. The best parts of this program are the clips of stars Like Bing Crosby and Ethel Merman singing "Anything Goes", Ray Bolger, Fred Astaire, Sophie Tucker singing "Some Of These Days" from (Broadway Melody Of 1938) My favorite clips were of Judy Garland performing with Mickey Rooney "I Wish I Were In Love Again" from (Words And Music) "Easter Parade" with Fred Astaire and Singing "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" to little Margaret O'Brien in (Meet Me In St. Louis) special feature includes Judy's 1942 appearance in the MGM short film "We Must Have Music"
It was only disappointing that Deanna Durbin, Betty Grable and Marilyn Monroe were not featured as they sang songs from these great songwriters. also featured was Mel Torme, Dinah Shore, Ann Sothern, And the list is endless. Michael Fienstein hosts this 176 minute program. It is truly the best re-telling account of American popular song and the music EVERYONE loves.
Rating:
Summary: Too Much Michael
Review: This otherwise superb survey of American popular music is marred by far too much narration and singing from Michael Feinstein. The cabaret entertainer's talent does not stand comparison with the giants highlighted here, yet as the documentary proceeds Feinstein talks and croons more and more, his bent notes anachronistic and his smile pleasant but seemingly frozen by botox. What a shame, because the filmed material is priceless.
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