Spring has Sprung! & Bells Are Ringing ☎️

Spring has sprung and I am in the mood for musicals, melancholy, and joy! 

I am wanting to revi sit some old favourites, and these were the ones that have been spinning in my dvd player as the grass gets greener, leaf buds are appearing and the crocus blooms are appearing. 

Bells Are Ringing
One of my favourite films, I was late to finding this one, but it has meant a lot to me these past 10 years or so and I have become a massive Judy Holiday fan since. Led to this film after going on a Dean Martin binge and taking a gamble on it when I spotted it online. It feels like a quintessential musical from that 50s/early 60s era. In the vein of the Doris Day/Rock Hudson films but also with the distict touch of Compton and Green (writers of Singing in the Rain). Infused with New York characters and a case of mistaken identity, a boozy writer (Dean), and Holiday playing what might be best described as a bit of a ditz- but an incredibly good hearted and kind one.

 She works answering phones and taking messages at Sue's Answer Phone in the basement of a townhouse in the city and has a tendency to get too involved and feel too attached to the people on the other end of the line. It has some beautiful musical numbers and Judy Holiday is more adept than most at giving these characters more layers than you might see on the page, but because of this it always feels a bit more grounded and despite the broad comedy and the breaking out into song, you also not only care about her character, but you feel like this is a person you know and maybe even a glimpse of yourself.

Like in Kiss Me Stupid with Kim Novak, Dean plays a character that might be easy to write off but brings a real sense of humanity, complexity, and good will from the viewers. In this way the leads are perfectly matched and you don't feel like either in is emotional danger to pursue this relationship. 

nd you don't feel like either in is emotional danger to pursue this relationship. 

Have you seen this film? If so, let me know what you think of it and if you have other movies you would recommend knowing it's a favourite of mine!

Part 2 coming soon!

 

The Trouble With Lucy

     So... I was kinda nervous to post this video...  Like many others I Love Lucy. The show changed the face of tv and although their were many great shows on the air at the time the technology and production plus it’s star made this show something extra special. I don’t think the things I mentioned in the video are really even the fault of the show. It’s the way we choose to talk about the show that gives me most of my concern.

      All tv, movies, even youtube videos are a biproduct of the era they are made in. Sometimes representing progressive values, sometimes traditional but should always be looked at with that in mind. Lucy isn’t exempt from that. I think some of our more modern values are easier to pick out in Lucy than some of the other tv shows of the time, the surface stuff looks pretty good. She was driven and she had a real desire to get out into the world and would often buck no refusal to be able to do so. But that being said there are also some deeply troubling things about viewing the show through those rose coloured glasses that blend and blur out the parts that maybe aren’t so good. I think that when we start talking about a show as representing something (especially something it never intended to be representing) that we have a duty to talk about the parts that aline with that as well as the things that really don’t; maybe even especially the bits that don’t. That may be the best way to find the present context as much as the historical one and to not get what the meaning and value of such an ideal really is. 

     As much as I love I Love Lucy I can’t bring myself to talk about it as a feminist show or even as an incredibly positive portrayal of women. The show is funny and Lucy is unapologetically flawed- except when she’s apologizing to Ricky for her flaws; It is nice to see that this role existed, that she was different from other woman on tv at the time, that it wasn’t actually all Harriet Nelson’s and perfect "Mothers" but it’s important for that not to be enough. And as I mentioned in the video some of the things that I would count at the core of a woman being respected and treated as an equal were missing from Lucy but surprising present in shows like Leave it Too Beaver. I would never want Lucy to have to have been June or visa versa (and God knows I’m closer to a Lucy than a June) but that doesn’t mean we should exalt one show and put down the other for the ways in which they chose to show women as they moved into a very different time. Personally I think June Cleaver deserves a bit more credit. But we also need to look at I Love Lucy with a more critical eye. It was an amazing show, that did help move women forward; but I think we need to talk about some of the problems with it as well.

I’d love to hear your thoughts here or in the comment section of my video.

I hope you’re having a great day!

Annie x

Here's Lucy: The Complete Series Packaging Information

This information is referring to the Here's Lucy complete dvd box set released in 2014 by MPI home video.

Here's Lucy was an American sitcom which ran for 6 seasons between 1968 and 1974 starring Lucille Ball, her real life children: Lucie & Desi Jr, and Gale Gordon.  This was Lucy's second sitcom since I Love Lucy ended and followed The Lucy Show (also excellent).

I was a bit disappointed when I opened my box to find 3 of the dvd cases were cracked and/or broken. Although I suspect this was down to shipping issues it is still quite disappointing.  Lately I have had numerous items (dvds and books) arrive damaged. It appears that online companies have greatly reduced the protective packaging in recent years at the same time as the post office seems to be treating packages far rougher than previously.Annoying at best.

But anyways, each season of Here's Lucy is packaged in a standard size dvd case with the discs inside on flip holders rather than stacked and are easy to access.  On the back of each cover is basic episode information for that season.

The 6 seasons are housed in a cardboard box of very simple and lightweight design that is not going to take much (any) abuse.  The packaging could use a bit more work on this one and I think is only worth purchasing as a box set if you plan on buying all the seasons and is cheaper than buying the individuals when totaled together as this set offers nothing special beyond that.

I hope everyone is having a great day!

Annie x

For more of me find me on twitter @ThymeAnnie
Youtube channel: www.youtube.com/c/anniethyme

Leave it to Beaver Complete Box Set Packaging Information

Leave it to Beaver was an American family sitcom which aired for 6 seasons between 1957 and 1963. It starred Hugh Beaumont, Barbara Billingsly, Tony Dow, and Jerry Mathers as the Beaver.  Leave it to Beaver has been consistently popular in syndication since going off the air, and it could be argued that it was more popular in the years after it went off the air as it was never a top 30 show during it's original run but was popular and beloved enough in the 80's to see a revival with the original cast and picking up to see where their lives had taken them over 20 years later,

Here I am providing information for the complete box set released by Shout factory in 2010.

Each season is packaged in a standard width dvd case.  Discs are on the front and back cover and on flipper holders inside.  There is a separate booklet with the episode list and description inside each case.

 A slimline case holds the bonus features disc and a board game (on poster style paper).  These cases are all contained in a nice box of sturdy and good weight cardboard to hold the cases required for the series.

Overall the packaging and production are excellent (as you can depend on from Shout!) and it is a well loved set set that has seen much use since it's purchase in 2010 but does not show it.

I hope this was helpful and that you are having a great day!
Annie  x

Make sure to check out my youtube channel if you aren't already following me there!
and if you are looking for me on twitter you can find me @ThymeAnnie

My Mother the Car Packaging Information

     

     

My Mother the Car is an American Sitcom starring Jerry Van Dyke and the voice of Ann Southern that ran for 30 episodes between September 1965 and May 1966. It is sometimes referred to as the worst show ever made, but this is wildly untrue.  Overall I think the series stands up  well and if you ask me, much better than many. (It is of course showing a 'traditional' 60s family with a fantasy element etc but their was nothing that made me cringe and want to turn the show off in what would be grossly discriminatory  behaviour or what we now would consider to be bordering on rape which unfortunately isn't uncommon to see in some older shows.)  But this is all discussion for another post!

     This set which contains all 30 episodes on 5 single sided discs is housed in a box, much like a set of greetings cards might be purchased in. Inside are two regular sized dvd cases. One holds 3 discs, the other 2. None of the discs are stacked on top of each other so they are easy to access and remove without risk of damage. (The case is made of a nice solid plastic.)  A list of episodes is available on the back of the  corresponding case

     

The overall set is slightly over-sized, for me that means it doesn't fit on my regular shelves (or would need to be laid down on its side.) But it isn't something that I have found too bothersome and I only mention it because it might be something that others would like to know before purchasing. Overall this is a well produced set and was an enjoable show to watch!

I hope you are having a great day!

Annie

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