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Elvis: The Ed Sullivan Show - The Classic Performances
R1 - America - Image Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Ethan C. Stevenson (5th August 2009). |
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The Show
 Elvis Presley has millions upon millions of fans across the globe. As an artist at the forefront of Rock and Roll, a genre defined by characters such as himself, he is bound to be revered by many simply because he was one of the ‘firsts’. I have to admit I am not one of those millions. Personally I never found Elvis Presley’s music all that interesting, his acting and films not all that entertaining and, as an artist, not particularly skilled. Sure, I do like some of his movies and songs but, to me, he isn’t particularly (artistically) relevant. This is perhaps due to the fact that the man had been dead for about a decade before I was born – certainly that does have a lot to do with it, I’d assume. I’ve found Presley the man far more interesting as a piece of Americana – of popular culture – not for his music, but for the strange parody and somewhat tragic character he eventually became, much more so than for his artistry. Admittedly then I am probably not the best person to review this collection: as there is no air of nostalgia and no real connection to the material, I am perhaps not equipped with the right frame of mind with which to approach this DVD. After all, is it not a bit telling that the first thing I think of when I think Elvis Presley is John Stamos, Uncle Jessie and "Full House" (1987-1995), rather than the real man? Musings aside, I continue on…. Between September 1956 and January 1957 Elvis made three appearances on "The Ed Sullivan Show" (1948-1971). Originally the host turned down the performer on the grounds that he was not meant for family time slots (Sullivan would later retract that, stating that he had received bad info, having made his original judgment without witnessing Presley and his music firsthand.) After Sullivan lost – badly – to his competitor Steve Allen in ratings, who had had Presley on his show, the losing host signed an unheard of $50,000 three-appearance deal with the man who would become “The King”. That $50,000 investment was in fact worth it: when Elvis appeared on the program for the first time he drew a record-breaking 60 (plus) million viewers; he would return two more times to even greater fanfare. Included on this DVD are all three of those performances/appearances. Although the DVD plays through as a singular special, the three appearances are grouped together in their own distinct bunches of songs, the first of which contains "Don’t Be Cruel", "Love Me Tender", "Ready Teddy" and "Hound Dog". This first show was hosted by Charles Laughton (filling in for a still recovering Ed Sullivan, previously injured in a car crash) he offers extremely short introductions, which were once lead-ins from the show-proper; now they are all that remains of the non-performance parts of the show. Unsurprising. This is after all, an Elvis compilation, not an Ed Sullivan one. The second grouping of songs – Presley’s second appearance on the program – contains another rendition of "Don’t Be Cruel" (dare I see it seems like "The King" forgets the words for a moment, searching his memory banks hastily for them), a second helping of "Love Me Tender", "Love Me" which seems to drive the girls into a (shrill) screaming frenzy at every slight move of the hips and slick back of hair. Rounding this off is a lively "Hound Dog", which, near the end can barely be heard over the screams of the female audience members. Episode three completes the set, shot entirely above the waist – Elvis suggestive hip gyrations proved to be too much for the ‘concerned parents’ of 1957 – features an opening medley of "Hound Dog" fused with "Love Me Tender" and "Heartbreak Hotel". There then singular performances of "Don’t Be Cruel", "Too Much", "When My Blue Moon Turns To Gold Again" and "Peace Valley". For me, this compilation is less about the music, more about the subtitles that are (to me) often far more interesting than Elvis’ music – the fact that the second show bares so much resemblance to the first obviously suggests that Sullivan had wished to do what he previously could not – host the original appearance. I find it quite humorous as well that the prudish culture of the 1950's was so upset by antics of Presley that the entire third outing is a stale, flatly directed piece that is more conscious of staying away from Elvis’ lower half than it is in providing an energetic, lively or even interesting TV program – a static, lifeless camera can do much harm to a musical performance. The bygone era of 1950's TV is a bit charming as well. There is something quite amusing in seeing that "The Ed Sullivan Show" was brought to you by “your Mercury and Lincoln dealer” and Laughton reminding viewers to cooperate with local Civil Defense authorities during Civil Defense Week is intriguing to a viewer like me who did not grow up in the fear of a Soviet Nuclear threat and believing that simply hiding under a school desk would protect me from an Atomic blast. In the end I can’t really say that this is either a bad or good disc – rather that, even though I was mostly bored with it, I can see how fans would appreciate this DVD. And, even still, I was not completely at a loss with it – as I mentioned above, I do like some of Presley’s songs (a few of which are included here).
Video
Presented in full frame 1.33:1, and it's Dull. Lifeless. Incredibly lacking in detail, looking rather soft, undefined and generally low in quality. Plainly "Elvis: The Ed Sullivan Show - The Classic Performances" doesn’t look so hot on DVD. Black and white, contrast is never all that satisfying, with middling levels on the grayscale – both extremes never optimal. Little restoration effort has been made with the picture displaying, quite often, evidence of damage (be it dirt, scratches or other debris). However, looking at some of the supplemental material, things, it would seem, could be far worse. It should be said, however, that this is likely the best that any of these performances will ever look. Age has damaged the source beyond repair and, even if that were not the case, and the material could (and would) have months and millions poured into a full blown rejuvenation, the resolution of the tube cameras used to capture the images was of far less quality than modern equipment – likely lower clarity than even that afforded by the DVD format.
Audio
Two options: an English Dolby Digital 5.1 surround remix (448 kbps) and the original monaural track, encoded in English Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono (224 kbps). Neither is all that impressive and there is no clear winner. The 5.1 mix wanders into the rears and left and right speakers, attempting to create an enveloping presence but fails to do so convincingly. The surround mix sounds, as you would expect, entirely processed and fake. The mono is, in my opinion, a better option as at least it tries to recreate the original broadcast experience. Thin, hollow and damaged somewhat by age (warble, hissing and crackle not entirely eliminated) both of the mixes are far from perfect. There are no alternate language tracks or subtitles.
Extras
In hopes to add value to the DVD package, rightfully so with the main features runtime merely 47 minutes, Image Entertainment has included a number of featurettes and additional show clips to entice Elvis fans. "Why Ed Didn’t Host Elvis’ First Appearance" is a featurette, running 2 minutes 53 seconds, containing a short profile on Ed Sullivan, briefly covering his career in print, early guests on his television and radio programs and how a car accident caused Sullivan to miss hosting the show on which Elvis’ first performed. 5 "Ed and Elvis Promos and Intros" offers a collection of promotional clips, including: - "Two Months Before Elvis’ First Appearance" (July 15, 1956) runs for 40 seconds. - "Patti Page Introduces Next Week’s Headliners" (September 2, 1956) runs 1 minute 11 seconds. - "Ed Sullivan Returns One Week After Elvis’ First Appearance" (September 16, 1956) runs for 1 minute 18 seconds. - "One Week Before Elvis’ Second Appearance" (October 21, 1956) runs for 1 minute 4 seconds. - "Ed Introduces Elvis’ First Motion Picture, ‘Love Me Tender’" (November 18, 1956) runs for 3 minutes 25 seconds. 5 "Special Elvis Moments" contains additional clips concerning Elvis Presley, including: - "Ed Talks About Elvis In The Army" (April 27, 1958) runs for 52 seconds, in black and white. - "John Byner Comedy Routine" (June 21, 1964) runs for 2 minutes 11 seconds, in black and white. - "Elvis And The Colonel Send A Telegram To The Beatles" (February 9, 1964) runs for 1 minute 17 seconds, in black and white. - "Jack Carter Comedy Routine" (November 26, 1965) runs for 1 minute 1 second, in color. - "Elvis and Colonel Parker Congratulate Ed Sullivan" (November 18, 1966) runs for 1 minute 10 seconds, in color. A second featurette entitled "Caught on Celluloid: The First Moving Pictures of Elvis", running 2 minute 48 seconds, discusses old 8mm footage of Elvis’ first ever performance to be caught on film. The clip is included in its entirety (without audio due the cameras lack of a microphone), which a narrator – along with Elvis’ friend and associate, Jerry Schilling offers light commentary over. A 6 minute 18 second featurette "Jerry Schilling’s Home Movies" has the close friend to Elvis discussing old 8mm footage he shot throughout the star’s career, including rare glimpses into his home life. 5 "Remembering Ed and Elvis" are another collection of clips, this time a compilation of interviews remembering Ed Sullivan, Elvis Presley or both. Comments are offered by: - Sam Philips which runs for 3 minutes 23 seconds. - Gordon Stoker which runs for 3 minutes 28 seconds. - Marlo Lewis which runs for 3 minutes 10 seconds. - Wink Martindale which runs for 3 minutes 35 seconds. - which runs for 3 minute 10 seconds.
Overall
"Elvis: The Ed Sullivan Show - The Classic Performances" is an interesting DVD compilation from Image Entertainment that will likely please fans, who now have the opportunity to own this trio of legendary TV appearances for the first time together. However, being as old as the material is, A/V quality, while likely as good as it will ever be, is still far from ideal. And, unfortunately, the extras, while I will gladly take them, supplements are after all always welcomed but fall flat, with most of the featurettes and clips rather redundant and superficial.
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