TCM Spotlight: Doris Day Collection (It's a Great Feeling / Tea for Two / April in Paris / The Tunnel of Love / Starlift)

Doris Day was so talented! A stylish, charismatic comedian with a wonderful voice, she is very entertaining. The sets are also very interesting and by today's standards, the interior design top notch, notably attractive. One must also applaud her lady-like designer clothing and refreshing girl-next-door modesty. Doris' male co-stars said she made acting easy for them - all they had to do was follow her lead! My husband enjoyed them as much as I did, and asked to see them at first opportunity, until we had seen all of the DVDs in the two collections I ordered. I used to see all of these movies with my mother, and am very glad they are not lost to history!

This is the third of three box sets of films from Warner Home Video dedicated to Doris Day. The first two are Doris Day Collection 1 (Billy Rose's Jumbo / Calamity Jane / The Glass Bottom Boat / Love Me or Leave Me / Lullaby of Broadway / The Pajama Game / Please Don't Eat the Daisies / Young Man with a Horn) and The Doris Day Collection, Vol. 2 (Romance on the High Seas / My Dream Is Yours / On Moonlight Bay / I'll See You in My Dreams / By the Light of the Silvery Moon / Lucky Me) . This set contains five films, yet no extra features on Doris Day herself. She has a very interesting personal story, so I'm surprised at the lack of such details in any of her boxed sets. She basically had a double set of problems that could have ended her career in 1968 - her husband died and she was left with a mountain of debts. She rebounded with her successful TV career and is today quite active in animal rights issues. The following is taken from the press release for the set, which contains cartoons, shorts and trailers as extra features. April in Paris (1952) The State Department wants Ethel Barrymore to represent the American theater at an arts exposition in Paris. But Miss Barrymore's invitation is sent by mistake to Miss Ethel "Dynamite" Jackson, a blonde brassy chorus girl. Ray Bolger plays the stuffy bureaucrat who mismailed the Barrymore missive - and now has a stateroom full of explosives on his hands for a Paris-bound ocean voyage. Plus there's a little matter of a marriage performed on the high seas that isn't quite legal. DVD Special Features: · Vintage short So You Want To Wear The Pants · Classic cartoon Terrier Stricken · Theatrical trailer · Subtitles: English & French (Main feature. Bonus material/trailer may not be subtitled) It's a Great Feeling (1949) No one will work with actor Jack Carson (who plays himself), so he just puts his own movie together. Good buddy Dennis Morgan is hoodwinked into co-starring. And there's a talented kid in the studio commissary (Day) eager for her big break. In her third film (and third with Carson), Doris Day plays that up-and-comer in a musical spoof featuring real Hollywood and Warner Bros. back lot locales, star cameos (Gary Cooper, Joan Crawford, Edward G. Robinson, among others) and a surprise comedy finale. Starlift (1951) The charming tale of a serviceman with a crush on a movie ingenue is the backdrop for this film featuring Doris Day, Gordon MacRae, James Cagney, Gary Cooper, Ruth Roman, Gene Nelson, Virginia Mayo, Jane Wyman, Randolph Scott and more Hollywood celebrities performing for flyboys in uniform. Songs by the Gershwins and Cole Porter plus a hilarious Western production number with Gary Cooper as a Texas Ranger add to the fun. DVD Special Features: · Vintage short Musical Memories · Classic cartoon Sleepy Time Possum · Theatrical trailer · Subtitles: English & French (Main feature. bonus material/trailer may not be subtitled) Tea for Two (1950) Wealthy, stagestruck Nan Carter strikes a bet that she can say "no" to everything for 48 hours. If she wins, she gets the $25,000 to back a Broadway musical vehicle for herself. She's determined, even if it means saying "no" when the guy she loves pops the question. Nan doesn't know it yet, but her fortune has been wiped out in the Crash of '29. Costars Gordon MacRae and Gene Nelson on hand to help provide songs, dance and romance. Eve Arden, Billy DeWolfe and S.Z "Cuddles" Sakall deliver lots of laughs, and the Gershwins, Vincent Youmans, Harry Warren and other Tin Pan Alley greats supply the songs which include the title tune, Do, Do, Do, I Only Have Eyes for You, I Want to Be Happy and lots more. DVD Special Features: · Vintage short So You Want to Hold Your Husband · Classic cartoon Tee for Two · No, No Nanette Radio Show - From the 1949 "Railroad Hour" series, with Doris Day and Gordon MacRae · No, No Nanette Overture - From the surviving Vitaphone disc from lost 1930 Warner Bros. film · Theatrical trailer · Subtitles: English & French (Main feature. Bonus material/trailer may not be subtitled) The Tunnel of Love (1958) Isolde (Doris Day) and Augie (Richard Widmark) Poole are trying to adopt a baby. Dick (Gig Young), the Poole's neighbor, has advice for Augie during these challenging times: have an affair. No way, says Augie. Then he wakes up in a motel room with no memory of the night before - and finds a thank-you note from the caseworker who's handling the Poole adoption. Gene Kelly directs this musical comedy. DVD special features include: · Classic cartoon Tot Watchers · Theatrical trailer · Subtitles: English & French (Main feature. Bonus material/trailer may not be subtitled)

I grew up watching Doris Day films from the public library and fell in love with her personality and her fabulous voice. I was thrilled to receive this collection of her classic films as a birthday gift. April in Paris and Tea for Two were two of my favorites and having them in their restored condition have made me very happy.

it was great to get this collection and see all the warner brothers stars of the time in its a great feeling ,i enjoyed it very much had heard about this movie for a long time and had not seen it, so was a treat to watch it, but if your a doris day fan as i am the other disc,s in this collection are just as enjoyable, for the cost its a very good value collection, im pleased to add it to my ever growing dvd collection.

Everyone of those movies where wonderful . I`ve enjoyed all of the Doris Day movies . I do think that touch of mink was the best. I will buy more of her movies . Thanks for having these movie to buy it been so nice to watch some good old time movies. the singing , dancing and just have a good laugh.

I bought this set mainly for TEA FOR TWO, which is my favorite Doris Day film. A standalone DVD of that title is unavailable, but this 5-disc set, purchased from an Amazon Merchant, is probably cheaper than a single DVD of TEA FOR TWO would be. So let's look at the movies: 1) IT'S A GREAT FEELING (1949): A sort of movie-within-a-movie, it features Doris Day as a small-town girl trying to make it at the (partially fictionalized) Warner Bros. studio. Some of the real-life directors (e.g., King Vidor) play themselves. The key attractions of the picture are some cameos by WB contract players, including Errol Flynn, Gary Cooper, Danny Kaye, Patricia Neal, Sydney Greenstreet, Ronald Reagan and his then-wife, Jane Wyman, and their daughter Maureen, among others. The songs are good, but the plot is thin; Day's character becomes disillusioned with Hollywood, and returns to her Wisconsin hometown to marry her childhood sweetheart. Unlike other films, where the would-be star is lured back and becomes a success anyway, Day's character stays put. Three stars. 2) TEA FOR TWO (1950): This is a gem. While only loosely based on the successful stage play, "No! No! Nanette!," this film entertains from start to finish. The songs and dances are magnificent. Gene Nelson, while not getting the recognition of Hollywood's "Big Three" - Astaire, Kelly, and O'Connor - is a superb tap dancer nonetheless; he is very tall and athletic, with lots of energy. He danced in other musicals as well, and later would become a director, including a number of Elvis films. And let me tell you: Doris Day is a tapper extraordinaire - not just a vocalist with dancing ability. Gordon MacRae - the best Billy Bigelow ( Carousel (50th Anniversary Edition) ) ever - is terrific as well. Love this film. Five stars. 3) STARLIFT (1951): I had never seen this film, and it is a very enjoyable all-star entertain-the-troops musical, filmed mostly at Travis Air Force Base. Doris and Gordon MacRae make a brief appearance early in the film, but other stars more than make up for it - Gary Cooper, Phil Harris, Frank Lovejoy, Jane Wyman (who has a surprisingly good singing voice), Virginia Mayo, James Cagney, and more. Patrice Wymore, who also performed the "Crazy Rhythm" number in TEA FOR TWO, does a terrific tap sequence as the leader of an all-girl band (many of those lady bandleaders - Ina Ray Hutton comes to mind - were hoofers as well). The only drawback to this film is that it was in B&W, but I guess budgetary limitations had something to do with that. Four stars. 4) APRIL IN PARIS (1952): Back to Technicolor again, and while Doris sings well, the plot of this film, where chorus girl Dynamite Jackson (Day) mistakenly becomes a State Department goodwill ambassador, is rather lame. Ray Bolger dances well, although his style is more comedic than serious, which is why he will always be remembered as the Scarecrow. And he doesn't have the chemistry with Doris - even in their love scenes - that Gordon MacRae had. Three stars. 5) TUNNEL OF LOVE (1958): The only non-musical (although Day sings two songs) and only non-WB film in this collection (this is an MGM release), this romantic comedy features Doris and Richard Widmark as they go through the tribulations of adopting a child. Filmed in B&W, this is not the greatest picture in the world, but has its charms. Three and a half stars. See Amazon's product description for the extra features found in this set. I would like to mention that the title character in the Joe McDoakes shorts is played by character actor George O'Hanlon, who is best known as the voice of George Jetson. Another future Hanna-Barbera cartoon star - Alan Reed, the original Fred Flintstone - is featured in the "No! No! Nanette!" radio play (a bonus feature on the TEA FOR TWO DVD). Let's see: 3 + 5 + 4 + 3 + 3.5 = 18.5. Divided by 5, that totals 3.7 stars. We'll round it up to four for this review.

I received my box set in the mail yesterday, and I'm so happy to finally have it (I pre-ordered it some time ago)! :) I am not a movie critic, nor do I ever watch a Doris Day movie for the purpose of analyzing it. I have always been a huge Doris Day fan, and I am just happy to have her movies/music at my fingertips whenever I want to have a little visit with her :) I am hoping that "Julie", "The Ballad of Josie", "Midnight Lace", and "Where Were You When the Lights Went Out" will be released on DVD soon. These are the only titles that I need to complete my collection! It seems that Miss Day just gets more popular as time goes by; I hope the powers-that-be recognize this and let us have ALL of her movies on DVD! Maybe we could petition someone...?!? :) I love the packaging of this box set; the picture of Miss Day on the front of the package is just BEAUTIFUL, and the DVD's are bright and colorful.

THIS THIRD DORIS DAY COLLECTION CONTAINS FIVE OF HER FINEST FILMS INCLUDING ONE TITLE -STARLIFT- THAT I HAVE BEEN HOPING DESPERATELY FOR. STARLIFT HAS BEEN LOST FOR YEARS AND HAS BARELY EVER BEEN SHOWN ON TV. I OWN A HORRIBLE BOOTLEG VHS COPY AND THIS RELEASE IS ALMOST TO GOOD TO BE TRUE. ALTHOUGH SHE ONLY APPEARS IN THE FIRST FIFTEEN MINUTES OF THE FILM PLAYING HERSELF, SHE DOES GET TO SING ONE DUET WITH GORDON MACRAE,(YOU'RE GONNA LOSE YOUR GIRL,) THAT HAS NEVER BEEN RELEASED IN ANY FORM AND 3 SOLO NUMBERS,('SWONDERFUL-YOU OUGHTA BE IN PICTURE-YOU DO SOMETHING TO ME.) THIS WILL BE THE GEM OF MY DORIS DAY COLLECTION. THE OTHER FOUR FILMS ARE GEMS AS WELL. I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY TCM DIDN'T INCLUDE JULIE & WHERE WERE YOU WHEN THE LIGHTS WENT OUT AS TCM MUST OWN BOTH OF THESE FILMS. HOPEFULLY,THEY ARE PLANNING TO RELEASE THEM IN THE FUTURE. ALSO,I WOULD LIKE UNIVERSAL TO RELEASE MIDNIGHT LACE & BALLAD OF JOSIE. THIS WAY DORIS DAY'S ENTIRE 39 FILMS WOULD BE AVAILABLE ON DVD. THEY SHOULD BE!!!!!!

Bought this DVD although it was a NTSC copy, but was pleased to find out that it worked on a normal player. I'm a big fan of Doris Day, so for me personally it was a great buy.

Great movies from a great star

J’ai beau consulter plusieurs guides ou dictionnaires cinématographiques faisant référence en la matière, qu’ils soient orchestrés par Jean Tulard, Jacques Lourcelles ou Télérama, aucun d’eux n’évoque la filmographie de Doris Day - sauf lorsqu’il s’agit du Hitchcock (L’homme qui en savait trop) ou du Michael Curtiz (La femme aux chimères) … et encore, c’est à peine s’ils mentionnent la présence de notre charmante actrice dans leurs commentaires mitigés et laconiques. Elle joua pourtant dans plus de 40 films avec la compagnie Warner Bros ou la MGM, ce qui auraient pu valoir à la star davantage de considération dans l’hexagone ! Elle fut également productrice, chanteuse, danseuse ! Sa voix douce et sensuelle couvrait différents styles musicaux : blues, jazz, ballades, Rock’n’ Roll, pop, etc … Elle enregistra plus de 600 chansons populaires, parfois au cinéma, notamment dans le Hitchcock cité plus haut avec "Que sera sera", mais aussi dans "Tea for two", le remake cinématographique du musical de Broadway "No, No, Nanette" créé en 1925, dont est tiré la chanson sifflée beaucoup plus tard par les héros de "La grande vadrouille" dans la célèbre scène du hammam. Doris fut souvent considérée comme une "crooneuse" façon Bing Crosby, Andy Williams ou Franck Sinatra. Elle chantait avec douceur, donnant l’impression de s’adresser directement au spectateur. Elle avait un contrôle incroyable de sa voix, d’où ses nombreuses prestations musicales dans les films que seuls ses admirateurs connaissent et apprécient à leur juste valeur. Ses partenaires furent aussi nombreux que célèbres : Rock Hudson, James Stewart, Richard Widmark, Kirk Douglas, Cary Grant, James Cagney, Clark Gable, Frank Sinatra, Jack Lemmon, David Niven… Tous en co-vedette de Doris. Excusez du peu. Pour revenir sur les professionnels de la profession, il faut préciser que leurs dictionnaires alignent sans complexe de nombreux films d’un intérêt discutable. A savoir, les dispensables séries des Bidasses ou des Charlots dans quelques productions de René Clair ou de Claude Zidi. Sans parler des insignifiantes et superficielles bluettes pseudo érotiques comme Bilitis ou Premiers désirs... ou encore les productions lamentables de Russ Meyer avec sa série des "Vixens", pour ceux qui s'en souviennent... En revanche, ils ignorent délibérément les films de nos élégantes Doris Day ou Lena Horne, pour ne citer qu’elles… Ces journalistes ou directeurs des programmes ont-ils seulement conscience de leur inculture ? S'ils n'ont jamais honte de rien, hé bien moi, il m'arrive d'avoir honte de vivre dans un pays qui a trop longtemps donné des leçons de bon goût au monde entier et qui aujourd’hui se complait dans l'insignifiance et la médiocrité - un pays où l'intelligentsia tire systématiquement le public vers les chemins les moins nobles de la création artistique. Ces gens sont particulièrement représentatifs de l'escroquerie qui tend à faire croire que chercher désespérément à faire découvrir autre chose que les laideurs du monde serait synonyme de "passéisme"... (Je n'invente rien, on me l'a reproché mot pour mot) ! Dans tous les cas, il s'agit là d'une véritable malhonnêteté ou d'une paresse morale et intellectuelle conduisant à la mise au pas généralisée. Le plus triste c’est qu’il y aura toujours quelqu'un pour venir me dire : "Si tu n’y trouves pas ton compte, change de crèmerie, rien ne t’oblige à acheter".... "Si tu n’aimes pas, n’en dégoûte pas les autres"... ou encore "Tu n’as pas le monopole du bon goût"... et blablabla, et blablabla… Alors inutile de vous fatiguer car je vous coupe d’emblée l’herbe sous le pied … A savoir que vous n’avez décidément rien compris à ce qui se trame chaque jour dans votre dos. On peut parler de choix à la seule condition que les radios et les chaines de télé ne marchent pas systématiquement "main dans la main", aux ordres des majors qui font la pluie et le beau temps en imposant les tendances et les aspirations supposées des consommateurs. Il est souvent utile de rappeler que la plupart d'entre eux ne s'intéressent et n’achètent que ce qu’on leur propose. C’est un peu comme dans la mode vestimentaire où il devient impossible pour une femme de dégoter un jean qui ne soit pas taille basse ! Passé 40 ou 50 ans ou pour peu qu’elles dépassent le 38/40, la pudeur les obligent à renoncer à ce tissu qu’elles ont pourtant toujours porté. La métaphore n’est pas outrée. Elle illustre parfaitement ce que nous subissons en permanence dans l’univers de la musique, mais aussi du cinéma, de la littérature, de la politique, de la bien-pensance, de l’architecture, de l’art contemporain ou de la culture en général. Mais là aussi, développer le sujet prendrait du temps et mes contradicteurs auraient du mal à suivre. Pourtant j’aurais tant à dire sur le sujet... Par exemple, j'aurais aussi pu citer d’autres artistes, tous genres confondus, comme : Bette Davis, Lena Horne, Leonor Fini, Allain Leprest, Reba McEntire, Boris Vallejo, Helene Fischer, Gene Tierney, Douglas Sirk, Helen Reddy, Dana Winner, etc… Aucun reportage ne leur rend hommage et aucune émission ne leur est jamais consacrée... Bien sûr, je parle d’émissions dignes de leur immense talent - pas d’une simple rubrique de dix minutes dans télé-matin, comme on a pu récemment le voir pour le phénoménal Tom Jones. Quelle turpitude, quelle injure ! Alors que beaucoup d’autres ont systématiquement droit à de multiples et interminables émissions diffusées jusqu'à l'écœurement aux heures de grande écoute - Je pense évidemment à J. Hallyday, Céline Dion, Sardou, Bruel, Renaud, Pagny, Farmer, M. Jackson, Goldman et quelques autres... Tout talent mis à part, leur omniprésence nous prive de l’immense majorité des artistes français ou étrangers auxquels on ne laisse aucun espace pour se faire mieux connaître... Idem pour ces films multi diffusés (5 à 10 fois) durant plus d’un mois et à différentes heures de la journée, afin de s'assurer que chacun d'entre nous ait bien appris le même catéchisme en même temps, alors que tant d’œuvres sombrent dans l'oubli depuis des décennies ! Mais qu’attendent t'ils donc ? Que nous soyons tous morts ? Sachez messieurs les décideurs, qu'après nous, quasiment personne ne s’intéressera aux films rares des années 40, 50, 60 ou même 70. Mais revenons à notre chère Doris Day… J’admets volontiers que les comédies dans lesquelles Doris exerçait son art n’ont jamais révolutionné le cinéma. Mais bon sang, quelle aisance, quelle fraîcheur, quelle classe ! Loin de tout cynisme, de toute obscénité, de toute propension à la violence ou à la haine, dont le cinéma actuel nous abreuve continuellement avec la complaisance malsaine de nombreux journalistes vantant des films tels que "La vie d’Adèle" - "Irréversible" - "Pulp fiction", mais aussi "Fight club" - "Danny the dog" - "American History X" ou même "Orange mécanique (1971)"... Bref, pas ou peu de fond, aucune perspective, aucun espoir - tout dans l’artifice, le cauchemar et finalement, le dégout du monde... Je me souviens d’un temps où les films qui recueillaient de la considération était essentiellement destinés à s’évader du quotidien, à développer son imaginaire, son émerveillement, sa fantaisie et parfois même, son dévouement... Sans doute vivais je sur une autre planète. Ce coffret est un véritable trésor. Il nous propose d’admirer toute la palette des talents de Doris dans ses jeunes années par un choix judicieux de 5 films, pétillants comme une bouteille de Champagne ! Elle dansera merveilleusement dans TEA FOR TWO 1950… jouera tout en finesse dans THE TUNNEL OF LOVE 1958… vous fera rire dans IT'S A GREAT FEELING 1949... vous séduira pour sa participation dans STARLIFT 1951... vous réjouira dans APRIL IN PARIS 1952… et partout, elle chantera, seule ou en duo, mais toujours avec ce naturel, cette joie affichée, si rayonnante, si lumineuse ! Alors merci infiniment Madame… vous nous avez fait aimer la vie. Mais aussi et surtout, un grand merci à ceux qui ont eu la patience de m'avoir lu jusqu'au bout. IMPORTANT : Tous les films de ce coffret bénéficient d'une VOST et Contrairement à ce qui est inscrit sur la fiche technique d'Amazon, l'ensemble est lisible sur un lecteur DVD ZONE 2.

These movies are great, well-made, upbeat, interesting, cheerful, fun, easy on the eyes and the mind to watch people acting respectable and mature! Good price, and all DVDs and case in perfect condition, and delivered quickly. Thanks!

Uk buyers note that like most Warner Home Video region 1 releases, these will play on any machine. I already had Tea for Two and April in Paris on R2 discs, but the transfers in this set are far superior. "The Tunnel of Love" is an excellent 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer.