Our Picks Reviews - Page 21

Hi-yo, Silver! The most famous masked cowboy of all time gets the royal treatment with this lavish re-packaging of 78 classic TV episodes from 1949 and 1950 starring Clayton Moore as the Lone Ranger and Jay Silverheels as his loyal sidekick, Tonto. Bonus materials include an 88-page commemorative booklet, foldout poster, comic book reprints, three cartoon episodes from the 1960s, an original radio broadcast and (worlds collide!) an episode of Lassie in which guest-star Moore shows off his impressive gun-twirling abilities.
—Neil Pond, American Profile

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Part travelogue, part history, part tribute, part memoir, The Old Man and the Harley chronicles a cross-country motorcycle journey that connects past and present and paints a vivid picture of a country changed in countless ways by the sacrifices of its citizens—like the author’s father—who served in World War II. It’s a riveting literary journey that rings with the joys of the open road, the thrill of discovery, the emotional bonds between a father and a son and the memories of a rapidly disappearing generation of American veterans.
—Neil Pond, American Profile

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This outstanding examination of 46 profoundly impacting “breaking news” events—from the crash of the Hindenburg to the massacre at Virginia Tech—reminds us of the essential role TV and radio have always played in keeping America informed at moments of celebration as well as catastrophe. An engrossing “you-are-there” recap of history’s highlights across the decades of the broadcast era, this revised 10th-anniversary edition is packed with some 250 photos and also includes three CDs, narrated by newsman Bill Kurtis and containing more than two hours of original broadcast audio, plus a foreword by Walter Kronkite and afterword by NBC’s Brian Williams.
—Neil Pond, American Profile

from Amazon.com

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An intrepid Brit discovers the offbeat joys of various American festivities and festivals in this humorous first-person travelogue across the United States. Party-crashing a hobo convention in Iowa, an Oklahoma prison rodeo, the 11th annual “Redneck Games” in Georgia and numerous other events, the author brings a refreshing “outsider’s” perspective to some of our most colorful—and admittedly unusual—causes for celebration.
—Neil Pond, American Profile

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The lives and legacies of ten 20th century presidents come vibrantly into focus in this acclaimed American Experience documentary series from PBS. Clocking in at more than 37 hours on 14 DVDs, the thorough examinations of Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, George H.W. Bush, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter and Richard Nixon make an excellent primer on the awesome responsibilities of America’s highest office and the history made by these men who’ve held it.
—Neil Pond, American Profile

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Movie lovers who want to go a little deeper than checking this week’s showtimes will love this little encyclopedia, which provides a photo-packed crash course on the many stars, directors and films that have made the silver screen shine for almost a century.
—Neil Pond, American Profile

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One of TV’s most influential and groundbreaking sci-fi series, The Outer Limits ran from 1963 to 1965 and spooked audiences each week with action-packed mini-dramas of dark forces, boogiemen and mysteries that stretched to “the outer limits” of the imagination. With performances by numerous recognizable guest actors of the era, including Robert Duvall, Adam “Batman” West and Star Trek stars-to-be William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy, this re-packaged collection features all 49 original episodes in all their eerie black-and-white glory.
—Neil Pond, American Profile

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With a price tag of nearly $200, clocking in at over 33 hours and sprawled across 17 DVDs, this lavish repackaging of award-winning documentaries from the BBC Natural History Unit is a hefty investment. But it’s well worth the price for its ticket to ride along across every continent, into the skies, deep underneath the oceans and on a $12 million exploration of the most diverse group of animals on the planet, the 4,000 species of mammals that have called Earth home since the dinosaurs. The remote corners of the world have rarely looked so beautiful—or its many wild inhabitants so accessible.
—Neil Pond, American Profile

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How can you tell someone is lying without looking at them? Which words make the funniest jokes? What’s the “luckiest” month? Author Wiseman spent 20 years roaming the back alleys of human behavior to draw the illuminating, thought-provoking conclusions in this wonderfully weird waltz through the quirks of everyday life. Subtitled “The Big Truths About The Small Things,” it’s fun, fascinating and full of surprises.
—Neil Pond, American Profile

from Amazon.com

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