Love American Style - Season 1, Vol. 1 (1969)

 Ah, memories!
Such a variety of stars (before they were stars). Brings back wonderful memories of a by-gone era. My personal favorite addition to my DVD collection. April 27, 2008

 A Memory Of The Past
Love American Style... Honestly this is a show that brings back so many memories of my childhood or at least teen years. But for those who didn't grow up in the 1960's and early 70's, this series, more than any other, is the best document of that era. The premise of the series is a simple one, short vignettes about love that some might say seemed one step above dinner theater for celebrities of that time. Yet there is an endearing quality to each story that remains timeless and entertaining even today.

However, there is still more to it for me. I remember into my college years this series in syndication being a substitute for rain delays for the San Francisco Giants. I remember many a rainy night in Philadelphia or Atlanta or New York, waiting in sunny California for the game to come on... Remember, that was a time when there was perhaps no more than maybe one game on television each week and maybe one local broadcast of one of the local teams. So every game, even a Giant game, was eagerly anticipated. (I was an Oakland A's fan...) And so when the raindrops fell on the east coast, we patiently waited out the storm with a dose of Love, American Style. I know that's hardly a raving endorsement of the series but you know, it was at these times that I really began to enjoy the comedy and creativity etched within each storyline and honestly, now 30+ years removed, I think they still work.

March 24, 2008

 Pretty bad
I really looked forward to watching "Love American Style" since I had great memories of it from when I was a kid. Unfortunately it doesn't hold up with time. The laugh track is distracting and totally over the top, and the gags are of the "set up...set up...punch line" variety. The situations are unbelievable and it's very sad to see Oscar winning actors like Red Buttons trade in their talent for a paycheck. (In Red's segment you could almost hear the director in the background saying, "OK Red. That was pretty good. But this isn't movies--it's TV. So no more subtle underacting. You could get away with a soft voice when you worked with Brando in "Sayonara", but for this show I want big facial expressions, lots of punchy dialog, and large movements of your hands and arms.")

I tried watching the show again yesterday thinking perhaps I was too hasty in my judgment. But the situations are so unbelievable that it's hard to enjoy the show. The episode I watched today centered on a gag where the boyfriend puts an engagement ring on the wrong girl and then she can't get it off her finger. Even in 1969, that gag was so old it had moss on it! The other episode I watched had as its centerpiece a husband, played by the great singer Mel Torme, who couldn't recognize his wife at a party because she was wearing sunglasses. (The husband was flirting with other girls and the wife wanted to see him in action.) I just think that viewers are much more sophisticated today and it's hard to suspend disbelief this far.

The only good thing I can say about the show is that the theme song by the Cowsills is very catchy and the background music is somewhat poignant. Otherwise, don't waste your money. March 11, 2008

 At Last!!!!!
I had contacted TV Land about airing Love American Style a couple years ago, and was told they had no plans in the works. WOW, They missed a great opportunity...I was thrilled to find out that this series was coming to DVD, I only hope that following seasons will also be released. This series has never got the credit that it deserves. To anyone who has never seen this, I highly recomend it! It is television history! February 17, 2008

 TV Should be like this again... Ya-hooo! for Love, American Style!
If there was one show from the 70's that I fondly remember it's "Love, American Style" If you see my other reviews and selections you'll know I'm mostly (totally) a game show nut ...but I do watch other shows -selectively and one of my non game show all time favorites is "Love, American Style" Hey... maybe that's because of all the game show personalities that appeared on "Love"... a look at season one and you'll find Peter Marshall, Ruta Lee and Regis Philbin. (While Regis was not yet a game show icon in 1969-he would revive the genre big time with Millionaire and will be hosting CBS "Password" revival soon.) As someone here said, it looked like they raided the giant tic-tac-toe board on Hollywood Squares. LAS is good ,fast-paced fun...light and funny and (for 1969 standards ) a bit naughty. However it's still fun to watch today -especially if you grew up with this as your Friday night staple...
A show must be very special for me to order it on DVD and I just ordered both sets of season 1... Hope to see the rest soon! BRING ON LOVE!
Love American Style - Season 1, Vol. 2 February 10, 2008

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