The Best of the Danny Kaye Show

From 1963 to 1967, Danny Kaye's weekly variety show on CBS served as an Emmy Award-winning showcase for the versatile performer's rich range of musical comedy talents. This DVD set compiles six episodes that offer a wealth of surprises ranging from Rod Serling doing a brilliant self-parody of his Twilight Zone persona to Jack Benny making an unbilled guest spot in a Cleopatra-inspired sequence. Kaye is in his element sharing the musical spotlight with the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, Harry Belafonte (doing a “Hava Nagila” duet and waltzing together in a riff on “Shall We Dance?”), Liza Minnelli, Greek singing star Nana Mouskouri (in her U.S. television debut), and Gene Kelly. Comedy skits feature then-unknowns Jamie Farr, Harvey Korman, and Joyce Van Patten as part of Kaye's ensemble, with the star shining as a too-nervous character who is steamrolled by rambunctious strangers (including Art Carney as an overbearing repairman, and Jackie Cooper as a too-loud airplane passenger). While Kaye engages in self-indulgent shtick on more than a few occasions, he was clearly enjoying himself and that sense of fun carried over to his costars—indeed, one of the funniest moments here finds Belafonte flubbing a line and then laughing uncontrollably thanks to Kaye's clowning. Highly recommended. (P. Hall)