Hooray for Hazel! Shirley Booth stars as the irrepressible housekeeper Hazel in the endearing family TV series that ran from 1961 to 1966. A brilliant character actress, Booth wisecracks her way through Hazel's life, solving the problems of her employers, the often-befuddled Baxter family, as well as of the community (busting a shoplifting ring, finding homes for stray dogs, exposing a group of financial swindlers). All this Hazel does with her cheerful working-class enthusiasm, without getting so much as a stray wrinkle in her crisply pressed maid uniform (complete with little head thingy). When she gets into her own scrapes, she shrugs them off with Brooklynese cracks like, "Looks like I'm in the soup again!" The show is a perfect snapshot of early 1960s America, complete with frozen-in-time décor (did everyone have that same print of the little-girl ballet dancer framed in their living room?) and a lovely leisurely pace. Hazel can make an entire episode out of one single premise, as when Mr. Baxter decides that an unlisted phone number might cut down on the number of crank phone calls. And who wouldn't be nostalgic for a time when middle-class households had a working dad, a mostly-stay-at-home mom, perfectly behaved kids--and live-in housekeepers? Part of the appeal of Hazel, though, is that it's clear her life is much broader than her occupation. She knows everyone in town, from the balloon guy at the local park to the most powerful judge on the bench--all of which eventually comes in handy. And did we mention she's a cham-peen league bowler? Booth won two well-deserved Emmys for her portrayal of Hazel. The boxed set includes all 35 25-minute episodes, and you won't want to miss a one. I'm talking to youse! --A.T. Hurley
Product Description
Everyone s favorite housekeeper comes to DVD! Oscar®-Winner Shirley Booth (1952 Actress in a leading role Come Back Little Sheba) won two Emmy® Awards for her portrayal of Hazel Burke in this beloved series based on cartoons in The Saturday Evening Post. More than just a live-in maid and cook for the Baxter family Hazel is the glue that holds their household together. Successful corporate lawyer George Baxter (Emmy®-nominee Don DeFore) may run a tight ship at the office but at the end of the day when he comes home to wife Dorothy (Whitney Blake) and son Harold (Bobby Buntrock) he enters Hazel s domain. She knows what needs doing and regularly speaks up with alarming candor pre-empting George s authority with liberal doses of common sense wisdom.System Requirements:Run Time: 910 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/SERIES & SEQUELS UPC: 043396150713 Manufacturer No: 15071
