Talk show host Dick Cavett (b. 1936) is rightly remembered as having one of the very best talk shows on television. His unusual combination of Yale-educated intellectualism and Nebraska-bred midwestern ordinariness, a kind of perpetual state of halting slight embarrassment, charmed audiences. They appreciated his self-deprecating humor and, most significantly, his eclectic guests. His smart conversations spurred many guests who'd rarely (or never) turn up on The Tonight Show, "Joey Bishop" or "Mike Douglas": esteemed writers, firebrand political activists, out-of-the-mainstream rock stars, and reclusive actors like Brando and Katharine Hepburn. More than a decade ago, Shout! Factory released a superb series of boxed sets to DVD, one devoted to "Hollywood Greats" like Fred Astaire, Robert Mitchum, Orson Welles, Alfred Hitchcock, Kirk Douglas and others. "Comic Legends" featured the likes of Wo...Read the entire review
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