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The Streets of San Francisco - Season One, Vol. 1
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List Price: $38.99
Our Price: $28.99
Your Save: $ 10.00 ( 26% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Paramount
Starring: Karl Malden
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Binding: DVD
Brand: Paramount
EAN: 0097361227542
Format: Box set
Label: Paramount
Manufacturer: Paramount
Number Of Items: 4
Publisher: Paramount
Region Code: 1
Release Date: 2007-04-10
Running Time: 60
Studio: Paramount
Theatrical Release Date: 1972-09-16
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Editorial Reviews:
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Twenty year veteran Detective Lt. Mike Stone is partnered with young, college educated Inspector Steve Keller who has a lot to learn about being a police detective on the Streets of San Francisco.
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: "The Streets of San Francisco" #1-1
Comment: This is the first half-season's worth of ABC's classic '70's police series, "The Streets of San Francisco." For the uninitiated, "Streets" was a police drama that starred famed actor Karl Malden as Lt. Mike Stone, a 23-year veteran detective of the San Francisco Police Department. Michael Douglas (who currently does the opening V/O for "NBC Nightly News") costarred as his young partner, Inspector Steve Keller. Together, they patrolled the City by the Bay, with Stone acting as a mentor, a father figure if you will, to the rookie Keller. This first half-season's worth (I say that because this series was cut into volumes for DVD release) spanned from Sep. 1972 to the first week of 1973, and included the following outings:
Pilot (a.k.a. "The Streets of San Francisco") (9-16-72)
"The Thirty-Year Pin" (9-23-72)
"The First Day of Forever" (9-30-72)
"45 Minutes from Home" (10-7-72)
"Whose Little Boy Are You?" (10-14-72)
"Tower Beyond Tragedy" (10-28-72)
"Hall of Mirrors" (11-4-72)
"Timelock" (11-11-72)
"In The Midst of Strangers" (11-25-72)
"The Takers" (12-2-72)
"The Year of the Locusts" (12-9-72)
"The Bullet" (12-16-72)
"Bitter Wine" (12-23-72)
"A Trout in the Milk" (1-6-73)
All of the abovementioned outings (including the pilot) are contained on four single-sided discs in two slipcases. The discs are packaged against a backdrop of the Golden Gate Bridge at night. The first and third discs have images of Karl Malden; the second and last discs have images of Michael Douglas. The discs have the names of the outings on the left at the top. The fronts of the slipcases have images from the series on top, the release title near the top, and the disc numbers at the bottom, all against another backdrop of the Golden Gate Bridge. The episode listings are on the back of each slipcase. The box says that the first 16 outings of #1 are included; I didn't count 16. I counted only the pilot and 13 regular outings, for a total of 14. Perhaps Paramount thought that the pilot could be split into two separate outings for syndication-- who knows?
This first release has two bonuses, both on Disc 1. The first is a "pilot presentation" that details what the series is about, and introduces the characters. Clips from the pilot are used in this 9-min. feature. The other is a short interview conducted by famed entertainment writer Army Archerd with Malden and Douglas; the setting is that of Stone's office.
A lot of people here have been disappointed in the fact that this series was cut in volumes for DVD release. They bemoan the fact that you're paying full-season prices for only half-season releases, therein paying the price of two normal full-season releases to get a full season's worth of a volume series. This is seen by some people, I believe, as a profit-maximizing measure for Paramount. The volume format (as used for this series and several others), once you finish all of the outings in a specific volume, leaves you wanting more. I know I am-- this first release of "Streets" had some pretty darn good entertainment for a `70's series.
In short, despite the fact that "Streets" was cut in volumes for DVD release, this first release gets my personal purchase recommendation because of the sheer entertainment value.
Customer Rating:
Summary: A real classic
Comment: After watching the whole first season and half of the second, I now realize why I don't care for the new shows. The acting is so-so,the writing worse, they all depend on flashy effects and editing,too many closeups of actors faces ect. This show made you feel you were going along with them as they solved the cases. Great, just great television, which I'm afraid will never be again.
Customer Rating:
Summary: We like it in the UK too!
Comment: Excellent to see this out at last on DVD, even if I do have to buy an import. It hasn't been on TV over here for years. My all time favourite cop show. Having been to SF, it's nice to see some of the landmarks again.
Customer Rating:
Summary: What would you do without this show? What WOULD you do?
Comment: I'll let others describe the episodes. Presumably, you are here because you already know something about this maverick 1970's cop TV drama, and my rating reflects you are that type of person. If your idea of good TV is I Survived A Japanese Game Show, this may not be for you. In addition to Hawaii Five-0, another good series of this era now on DVD is The Rookies.
What I noticed immediately was the sound and video transfer to DVD was excellent. It's almost creepy to see SOSF in such high fidelity. The episodes make a lot more sense now that I've grown up and understand a bit more about inner city, 1970's culture! And to me, they seem to hold up very well. The writing is very good. Some language and clothing styles are a bit dated (well heck, that's part of the fun), but the stories move along, particularly without commercials butting in every 10 minutes. There are also several moments of humor in many episodes.
I've visit San Fran a few times in the last two years, and it's wonderful to see some of the shots of neighborhoods. If you enjoy this nostalgia or even live there or have lived there, I think you'll get some bonus enjoyment from the series. And seeing those big Chryslers and Matadors fly two feet off the ground while driving down hills with 30 degree inclines...it's a thing of beauty.
Customer Rating:
Summary: One of the Best Cop Shows of All Time
Comment: "The Streets of San Francisco" was one of the best cop shows of the 1970s and its wonderful that it is finally available on DVD. The formula was similar to other cops shows, but seemed to have more realistic story lines. This release marks the first time the Pilot has been seen in many years. When the episodes re-air on TV, the pilot is usually not shown since it was 98 minutes long, so it was a definite treat to see how the show started and what made the show so interesting.
I think the reason that Karl Malden's Mike Stone and Michael Douglas' Steve Keller worked so well is because their characters were completely different - Stone was raised on the streets of San Francisco and Keller was a college educated cop, but yet they had one thing in common, the pursuit of justice. I think it also helped that Karl Malden knew Michael's father, legendary actor Kirk Douglas, since before Michael was born. The chemistry between the two actors was undeniable and you could tell they both had fun shooting together, which was made even more evident after Douglas left the series at the beginning of the shows final season and was replaced by actor Richard Hatch.
The colors and audio have been enhanced on this DVD and makes the show look even better than it originally aired back in the early 1970s on ABC. This show was well renowned for its ability to get major guest stars and even have stars who later became famous in their own right, years after appearing.
Also included are two special features. One features Douglas and Malden being interviewed on the set of the show by legendary interviewer Army Archerd before the show began airing in September 1972. The other is a 9 minute Pilot Presentation which summarizes what the show is about. Both are thoroughly entertaining and wonderful to see all these years later. All in all this DVD set is a wonderful trip back in time to the good ol days of partner crime drama.
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