Presented in glorious technicolor, The Dean Martin Show seems to make the screen crackle with excitement. Every single episode is filled with all star performances by the man himself, Dean Martin, and excellent guests such as Frank Sinatra, Ann Margret, Tony Bennett, Glen Campbell and Jimmy Stewart. This show is a goldmine for any vintage Hollywood fan. Dean's vocals are at their best, and nothing brings a smile to one's face like his smooth and lovely singing. Besides the marvelous crooning, the slightly off-color humor is hilarious, and it is an absolute time capsule of that beautiful bygone era. The set is a kaleidoscope of mid century design-with a "cowboy flair" if you will, resulting in a very pleasing to the eye medley of 1960s decor.
The "Golddigger Dancers" provide a catchy opening, with fascinating and delightfully campy costumes to boot. Following their cute introduction, Dean sings his 1964 "Everybody Loves Somebody" acapella, and proceeds to slide down a fireman's pole. He will then tell a few humorous anecdotes, and follow with an upbeat song. The show is formulaic, but always entertaining. His guests will come on and perform their numbers, and then duet with Dean. It's really a very happy show.
The arguably most important part of the show is "The Couch Song". Mr Martin will do a running leap onto the top of his long time piano player Ken Lane's piano and sing a few one line parodies of popular songs. From there he will saunter over to "The Mystery Door" where there is often a contemporary figure waiting behind. Dean will make his way over to the couch, and sing a personal and intimate song. These performances are always very beautiful and touching. Martin had such a skill when it came to making the audience just fall in love with him.
The Dean Martin Show solidified Dean Martin as one of the greatest entertainers we have ever known. Many of these episodes can be found on the web, and we must not let time forget this jewel box of a program.
