Buyer beware. Time Life should be ashamed of themselves regarding the sneaky marketing of these otherwise fine shows.
I bought their 3 Dean Martin Show DVD sets containing the one disc, the two discs and the 6 discs packages. The first two packages were replicated in the 6 disc package. Their Time Life advertizing never specified this replication on the dvd sets or on Amazon. They did the same nonsense to the Carol Burnett Shows of replicating discs. A single disc set is replicated on a 6 disc set, costing me another .
Since I opened the packages, Barnes and Noble, my retailer, would not take them back. I was told to deal with Time Life directly. Now what do I do as I am stuck with extra expensive discs?
I will not buy from these “entrepreneurs” again. Again, they have probably reproduced their one disc Roast set by including it in the 6 disc Roast set. They have polluted an otherwise fine brand name.

I spent many years at NBC where The Dean Martin Show was taped, and became accustomed to his variety show format. I don’t think I ever missed a taping day during the nine years it was in production.

The mood of the country had been changing since the Vietnam War. Shows like “M*A*S*H*” and “All In The Family” and movies like “Silkwood” and “War Games” were edgy, jabbing at the establishment and pushing the boundaries of the perception that “everything is okay.” It was a time for change, and the genius of bantering without becoming political worked well in having known celebrities ridiculing and poking unkindly comments at each other.

It was in the ninth and final year that “roasting” a celebrity was incorporated as a part of Dean’s show (much like the Friar’s Club Roasts in New York City). Dean would be the host (roastmaster) with a celebrity guest (roastee) seated at the head of the table. In turn, a dozen or more celebrity guests would get up one at a time and chide or insult the roastee of the week.

After the success of that ninth year trial, the producers took the roasts to Las Vegas where they could get the audiences and excitement they wanted. The stars came out in droves! I mean even the biggest stars… serious actors, comedians, astronauts, sports greats, politicians and singers who could poke fun at others as well as take the ribbing themselves.

When the Celebrity Roast specials ended in 1984, everyone moved on. I have to admit… I did too. Over the many years of creating and presiding over the “Dean Martin Fan Center,” my focus had been on Dean’s early career and of course his TV Variety series. Now, all these years later. I have revisited these Celebrity Roasts because of Time-Life. Do you know what? I cannot believe how enjoyable these shows are to watch! Your kids can put a face to the people they have only heard of – like Neil Armstrong, Ronald Reagan or Jimmy Stewart, etc… the list is huge – and these discs are a good reminder of how important these celebrities were to society.

With all the changes in the world that have occurred over time, these original roasts stand out like a beacon of light — a goldmine of entertainment! Some of the jokes and ethnic references were acceptable before we became “politically correct.” It’s a shame we can’t laugh at each other today like we once could (and without bad words!). Maybe that’s why these are more fun to watch today than when they first aired. I wish I could describe to you my new found appreciation for the roasts after all these years!

A huge compliment has to also be given the folks who came up with the “extra bonus material” included on these discs. Besides fascinating interviews with so many of the stars and people in Dean’s life, they have also included some well produced featurettes – they are so entertaining.

I try to be very honest in my reviews. Even though I knew Dean, I don’t want to see a badly produced product and will say so when I see something… but this release from Time-Life succeeds – and how! I welcome you to e-mail me and tell me your thoughts, either through Amazon or by going to The Dean Martin Fan Center website.

Oh… FYI: I am not getting any compensation for this – but if you are only thinking about buying the smaller 6-disc set, maybe consider buying the huge (25 disc) box set collection that Time-Life has with a special collector’s book. It’s more expensive, but you’ll have all the roasts and the booklet to boot!

I bought the seven-disc set, and MAN! is it good! There are people on the programs that have been dead for years…
one is introduced as “The o-n-l-y living five-star general, Omar Bradley…”
Last time I saw General-of-the-Army Bradley was at a formation at Panzer Kaserne, in Germany… it was 1981. He was
in a wheelchair, must’ve been 90+, and died later THAT year, also in that formatiom was General G.S.Patton, Jr. …
MY! I a-m gettin’ OLD. eh?
Well, anyway, the collection is great! Buy it.