The Century in Review

"Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee." Who can forget Muhammad Ali's winsome self-assessment (especially those who were on the receiving end of one of his trademark left jabs)? Ali, née Cassius Clay, is one of several famous folk from the last century briefly profiled in "Fame," one of five episodes from The Century in Review (called Images: A Century in Review on the actual program). Hosted and narrated by legendary newscaster Walter Cronkite, "Fame" flits from movie stars (Valentino, Mary Pickford) to political figures (Hitler, FDR) to TV idols (Lucille Ball) to sports luminaries (Babe Ruth, Ali) to music phenoms (the Beatles) without much rhyme or reason and with bare bones commentary. One suspects the other episodes--"Disaster," "War," "Invention" and "Freedom"--follow the same infonugget format. While not in the same league as The 20th Century (VL-3/00), The Century: America's Time (VL-5/99) or The People's Century (VL-5/99), this inexpensive series does include primary source footage arranged by larger subject areas rather than chronologically, making it a strong optional purchase. Aud: J, H, C, P. (R. Pitman)