The Midnight Special
The Midnight Special
| 19 August 1972 (USA)
SEASON & EPISODES
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  • Reviews
    Titreenp SERIOUSLY. This is what the crap Hollywood still puts out?
    Micah Lloyd Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.
    Celia A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.
    Brooklynn There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.
    dsnyder1 I really looked forward to Fridays after Johnny Carson to watch The Midnight Special.There were always great music & comedy acts.The first three years were the best.There was a different host every week,with great music,comedy,& no boring chit chat.Then Burt Sugarman pulled a big boner by bringing in a permanent host,(I liked the idea of rotating hosts).Of all the people he could have gotten,it had to be one of the most obnoxious,least talented of the era,Helen Reddy.That was it for me.I rarely watched anymore after that.I could not stand that droning nasal "singing" of hers,or her far left political leanings.Evidently there were others who felt the same,Reddy was dropped after about a year,but the show never seemed as good or was as popular as before,it went off after two more seasons.
    lambiepie-2 The Midnight Special was more than routines from what turned out to be the best comics of the 20th Century..but a gateway into the pop/rock and R&B of the music of that time. The tours, the musicians/groups/bands/singers - somewhat live and to me as a child..one of the most exciting things I stayed up for.The Midnight Special was pop culture of that time and I must say what did the Midnight Special in - the onset of MTV and the weening of the MTV generation.This was it. The place to have seen all of the pop culture icons and the musicians/groups/singers/bands, etc. of the time. Late night, very much fun for me - as I was a big consumer and fan - and having something to talk about in elementary school that next week.I loved Wolfman Jack - for at that time "Happy Days" and the film "American Graffiti" were in -- and as a child I felt just like George Lucas as he was placing the songs in "America Graffiti" - the Midnight Special is my generations "American Graffiti".And then there was Ms. Helen Reddy as a host - also popular for her time and the women's movement and she had a lot of women in music to spotlight during her time. these were exciting times for music and comedians.The Midnight Special is what the "Beyonce's" and the "Jessica Simposons" and the "Britney Spears" et al. cookie cutter marketing machines should study -- and study wisely. None of them can light a match to ANY of the performances here for many were performances and not just marketing and corporate money making tools.This is NOT to put down any of the aforementioned entertainers -- but with shows such as the Midnight Special, you come to understand the difference between "entertainers" and "performers" with out the fast cuts, tricky camera work, editing and $1,000,000 worth of "bling-bling" marketing props to cover up many of these folks who really can't hold a tune. (If you can tear yourself away from the film and really...listen...)Don't get me wrong - there were the pyrotechnics for some, screens for others and oh, those outfits for many bands as you go through the years!...But way before the "greed is good" mentality took over music, film, comedians, et al.20th Century Pop Culture at its best. At least that is from the memory of this child who watched. I hope they do begin to DVD several of these shows, they are gems...and history.
    sentra14 It's not really fair just reviewing the Andy Kaufman episode just because it's the only one ever released on video. The show was much more than an Andy Kaufman episode. It showcased the best that the music world had to offer in the 1970s and it's archives house some of the best performances of all time. It's really a shame that the owner, Paul Brownstein, does nothing with the tapes but just sell "clips" to corporations that sell disco albums on TV at hundreds of bucks a clip. Too bad the real fans won't ever be able to see the show again like it was presented. The same thing has happened to Don Kirshner's Rock Concert. It's only offered as "clips". I'm glad I have my own library of original tapings of the shows to watch over and over.
    Andy Edwin Nystrom The only episode I've seen of this is the Andy Kaufman episode which aired January 23, 1981, and which is out on DVD (Sony Music). This review thus reflects that episode and not the series as a whole.There are two aspects to this special: a stage show with the usual Andy Kaufman antics (including the use of Tony Clifton) and behind the scenes material.It's hard to know how seriously to take the behind the scenes material, as Kaufman is pretty poker-faced when he's playing a prank, and as it refers to Kaufman's wrestling career which (in terms of his feud with Jerry Lawyer) has been confirmed to be an elaborate hoax. Of course that makes the material more edgy because you don't know to what extent you're getting into the mind of one of the most fascinating entertainers ever and to what extent he's pulling your leg.The stage material is pretty typical for Kaufman, which still means it's a lot of fun and offbeat.The episode is a worthwhile addition to the collection of any fan of the performer.