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Greatest Show on Earth


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Was the  "Limbo" episode of  "Greatest Show on Earth" ever a bonus feature on one of the LucyShow DVD release seasons?  I thought it was but I looked at the contents of season 2 when it first aired and don't see it there.

"Greatest Show" had the misfortune to be scheduled on ABC opposite the highest rated new show of the year "Petticoat Junction" (#4 for the season) and "Jack Benny" (#12).   Forward thinking Desilu execs filmed in color so it had some later syndication life. 

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It's too bad that Lucy didn't get an "A" project with a good script and director that could have shown off her endearing dramatic skills, particularly during this period, her peak years as a mature performer.   The critical reaction to her "Limbo" show was along the lines of 'she needn't have bothered', more a slam against "Show" than her.  Granted this was episodic TV, but is there any question "Pops" is going to be killed?   Billy Mumy was one of the busiest child actors.  He seems to have turned out ok as an adult.  Always good to hear.  Lucy gives it her all and shines, but the type-casting dilemma faced by her: the public wanted LUCY.  She stuck her neck out with "Critic's Choice" and failed, but it wasn't her fault.  She gives a nuanced performance very far removed from her Lucy character and is the only thing that makes the movie worth watching.  

There was bad blood between Lucy and Jack Palance.  I would guess Palance was griping about the quality of the show's scripts but Madame President just needed to get them in the can and move on to the next episode.  I base this on 2 things: Lucy is quoted in some article around the time, grousing about temperamental actors "like Jack Palance and you can quote me".  20 years later, when Lucy was inducted into the TV Hall of Fame, her entrance on the stage is greeted by an enthusiastic crowd, except for Palance glued glumly to his seat. 

3 "By the ways", #1: where was "co-star" Stu Irwin?  Did I miss him?  #2:"Kate" doesn't really have much of an act, I say.   #3: This script was written by 2 brothers who also wrote scripts for "The Judy Garland Show".   That show had scripts?? (I say with the "no castan-yets??" inflection). 

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On 7/13/2018 at 5:21 PM, Luvsbway said:

Greatest Show has never turned up on anything commercially available. I never even came across it in my years of tape trading back in the 90s. I finally saw it in color at the Paley Center.

Me too, just a few years ago when they screened at the Beverly Hills camp. Looked amazing, was NOT a scratchy,  well-worn 16 MM print on the contrary, looked as if it had just been restored / digitally remastered and as if it had been filmed yesterday.  The clarity was such that you could make out where Big Red's makeup "ended" along her neck!! Amazing! Bet it had been prepped for some kind of video release that sadly never materialized.

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