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| Dave's World - The First Season | 
 enlarge | Director: James Widdoes
Actors: Zane Carney, Harry Anderson, Delane Matthews, Meshach Taylor, Shadoe Stevens
Studio: Paramount
Category: DVD
List Price: $44.99
Buy New: $14.44
You Save: $30.55 (68%)
New (37) Used (9) from $14.07
Avg. Customer Rating:  5 reviews
Sales Rank: 27857
Format: Box Set, Color, Dvd-video, Full Screen, Ntsc
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Number Of Items: 3
Running Time: 546
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 7.4 x 5.3 x 0.6
MPN: PARD630584D
UPC: 097366305849
EAN: 0097366305849
ASIN: B00168OIJY
Release Date: August 12, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Factory sealed. Ships 1st class.
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Product Description
Studio: Paramount Home Video Release Date: 08/12/2008 Run time: 546 minutes Rating: Nr
Amazon.com
Taking its cue from the inauguration of Bill Clinton, Dave's World marked something of a generational shift in the traditional family sitcom. Harry Anderson (Night Court) stars as Dave Barry, the Pulitzer Prize-winning humorist who injects some Baby Boomer angst in his Bombeck-esque Miami newspaper columns that muse on family life in the suburbs. A child of the '60s, he states in the auspicious pilot episode, "Someone has to be the grown-ups. Now, it's our turn." But Barry, whose philosophy is that "life should be fun," is more prone to connecting with his inner child. Dave's World mostly treads familiar ground. Barry's wife, Beth (DeLane Matthews), would like him to be the responsible one for a change (she's a good audience for her husband's comic riffs, but she is given some good jokes as well, as when she says that naming a team the Miami Heat after the city's worst feature is like naming a team the Dallas Book Depositories). They have two sons who are more natural and less precocious than their sitcom brethren. As Barry's friends, Meshach Taylor (Designing Women) and Shadoe Stevens don't bring much to the table, but J. C. Wendel as a Barry coworker has a charming Terri Garr screwball quality. Dave's World's first season took its inspiration directly from Barry's books, Dave Beary's Greatest Hits and Dave Barry Turns 40, which is perhaps why it rings truest. The episodes deftly mix comical situations with "misty-eyed" voice-over reflections from Barry on his blunder years epiphanies. Among the familiar faces who turn up in some of the episodes include Jane Curtin as a bitter guest at the hotel where Dave and Beth hope to share a romantic getaway in "Lost Weekend." The real Dave Barry cameos in "Heat Wave" as a man buying an air conditioner. Southside Johnny fans will regret that his rendition of Billy Joel's "You May Be Right" was not cleared for use on DVD. But Barry's voice comes shining through. Though never a Top Ten series, Dave's World did last four seasons. It's a nice place to revisit. --Donald Liebenson
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| Customer Reviews:
 dave's world season one October 31, 2008
It was a great show wished it lasted longer. I am a fan of harry anderson.
Good ole' Days of TV September 6, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
My husband and I were ecstatic when we learned that Dave's World was being released on DVD. We used to watch this show and loved it. We love it even more now because we have two boys the same age as the children on the show and can appreciate the humor in a different light than we used to. The show was always a fun show to watch, but we really look forward to sitting down and watching it again. I, too, miss the Billy Joel opening song; however, it doesn't take away from the meat of the show. It's as good as ever. We look forward to Seasons 2 through 4 in the future.
Thrilled it's finally on DVD! August 23, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I was thrilled when I saw that Dave's World was coming to DVD and I purchased it as soon as I could. This show was a favorite of mine and I hope that the rest of the seasons will be coming to DVD in a timely manner as well. While the theme song is missing, as has previously been stated, it really doesn't bother me. The episodes are just as hilarious as I remembered, and I think I enjoy this show even more now than I did when it originally aired. And Kenny's wardrobe is definitely funnier now! I would definitely recommend this DVD set. The entertainment value makes it money well spent.
Actually, it's missing a little more, but still worth owning. August 20, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I started watching Dave's World about half way through the first season and taping towards the end of the summer reruns. There is more missing here than just the switched theme song. I assume the Joel song was not brought on the DVD set due to some copyright issue. Personally I don't see this as any real loss. But what I do see as loss are the missing closing scenes from at least several episodes and at least one scene in the middle portion of one episode. The closing scenes of all the episodes I taped during the prime time run, which includes the Thanksgiving, Christmas, and season finale among others, are not on the DVD. There is also a scene from the next to last episode, at the funeral of Great Aunt Lillian's,(closing scene is missing here too) where Beth's sister Julie gets choked up while trying to sing and their mom (played by Florence Henderson) gets up to help her. This is on my tape but not on the DVD. This scene in itself is no great loss and doesn't affect the story line but since I didn't tape most of season one and haven't seen the majority of these episodes in 14 or 15 years that makes me wonder what else may be missing.
But, the material that is there is still good. Harry Anderson as Dave plays a role much different than Judge Stone from Night Court. Here he is a married family man who loves rock and roll as opposed to a single 1980's man who loved Mel Torme and the 1940's. But there as similar traits as his sharp wit humor is definitely there here as it was on Night Court. All the cast is excellent, the writing was good, and most of the shows were very funny and entertaining.
Overall season one of the show itself was not as good as the show became in seasons two and three. But I would still rate the show itself as 4.5 if I could. I am a little disappointed in the lack of complete episodes but I would still encourage fans of the show to purchase this set so we can hopefully see another season or two released. As I said before, and I'll end with this, this is a good set overall and I think it's worth owning. Even had I known before of the missing material I would still have bought it and I will buy any other season (if any) that are released in the future.
 A great show... but DVD set is missing one key ingredient! August 19, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I remember when Dave's World came out on TV, in the early 1990's. I would have not been much older than Tommy, the older son in the show. Somehow, through the years, some key scenes remain in my memory, including Dave and Tommy listening to Shel's droning answering machine message ("5-5-5...."), a restaurant called "Butter, Butter, Butter", and other short, nonsensical snippets that have managed to pervade my conscious thought from time to time ("Stop - my head is in the elevator door!"). Dave Barry is a funny columnist, in a sort of absurd way, and Dave's World was an entertaining show.
The DVD set brings back memories, and the show is as witty as I remember it (maybe even more so). The sharp, snappy lines are delivered almost tongue in cheek, brazenly unapologetic, by the characters. Looking at this show after 15 years (has it been that long?!) is revealing as it is much easier to pick out the typical TV-sitcom stereotypes -- Kenny is a parody of himself, it seems, for in the 21st century when do we ever see a blond-maned, egocentric, sport-coat wearing womanizer like that anymore, and still take him seriously? -- but, it all still works. The series thesis -- "look ma, we're old all of a sudden!" -- hits me in a different way, far more personally, than it did when I was a kid, now that I myself have turned 30.
One key element is missing, however, in my eyes a crucial one. Look very carefully at the fine print on the back of the DVD box and you'll see words that say "Music has been changed". They took away the theme song! This was an utter shock as one of THE defining things about this TV series was the catchy animated opening sequence set to Billy Joel's "You May Be Right" (as performed by Southside Johnny). They must not have been able to secure distribution rights for this classic song, which is a pity, as the DVD version only includes generic guitar strumming. This renders the opening sequence totally lifeless, in this reviewer's opinion! I give this show four out of five stars, but took away one star for the omission of this key ingredient.
Still, the DVD is well presented, and I enjoyed the tour through my own childhood years as I watched the antics of this charming family unfold on my TV screen once again.
Just make sure you cue up your own Billy Joel CD to play during the opening credits.
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