Sidaris, Andy

The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries - Season One

The Hardy Boys Mysteries and The Nancy Drew Mysteries began in 1977 as separate series alternating in the same time slot on ABC. Early the following year, the casts combined, and in the fall of 1978 the Nancy Drew thread was dropped and The Hardy Boys Mysteries continued on alone. This Season One boxed set captures the twin-series idea at its most ambitious, with adolescent brothers Frank and Joe Hardy, created by author Franklin W. Dixon, sleuthing for clues one week and Carolyn Keene's Nancy Drew investigating crimes the next.

Actually, as fans of the books know, Dixon and Keene were both pen names used by Edward Stratemeyer when he created those characters in 1927. Just as the young detectives have been updated in print every so often to accommodate successive generations of readers, so too did the TV show present Joe (Shaun Cassidy, brother of David Cassidy of The Partridge Family), Frank (Parker Stevenson), and Nancy (Pamela Sue Martin) as thoroughly 1970s kids. The boys are outfitted with motorcycles, Joe enjoys a retro-pop singing career, and Nancy has a certain freedom of movement only the hippest of dads in a permissive age would allow. Hardy Boys finds the always-amicable siblings following in the footsteps of their father, Fenton (Edmund Gilbert), a private detective, as they untangle capers that take them from haunted houses to Hawaii. The Hardy episodes make for brisk, family viewing, much better than the bubblegum reputation that built up, undeservedly, around the series. Slightly less interesting are the Nancy Drew programs (despite a more entertaining supporting cast), but only because the heroine is less focused and distractingly man-crazy, and the storylines are less exotic. An emphasis on the supernatural and science-fiction themes lends a Scooby-Doo vibe to several programs in both series, though the best stories are the ones with straightforward, meat-and-potatoes detective work. Among the directors on either series are Jack Arnold (The Creature from the Black Lagoon), Winrich Kolbe (Star Trek: The Next Generation), and actors Vince Edwards and Stuart Margolin. --Tom Keogh

The Hardy Boys Mysteries and The Nancy Drew Mysteries Trivia
• Jamie Lee Curtis and Robert Englund, who played the biker couple Mary and Gar in an episode of this series, started acting in horror films during this era.

Follow the clues to mystery, adventure and thrills as Season One of the The Hardy Boys Nancy Drew Mysteries comes to DVD for the first time ever! Teen sensations Shaun Cassidy, Parker Stevenson and Pamela Sue Martin star as brave super-sleuths in 14 spooky episodes loaded with spellbinding action and smash-hit pop songs, including Shaun Cassidy's #1 hit "Da Doo Ron Ron." Inspired by the hugely popular books and with an amazing lineup of guest stars, including Jamie Lee Curtis, Mark Harmon, Bob Crane, Rick Nelson and more, it's no surprise that The Hardy Boys Nancy Drew Mysteries is an open-and-shut case for fun!

Kojak - Season One

On the timeline of successful TV cop dramas, Kojak offered bold authenticity and paved the way for NYPD Blue. As immortalized by Telly Savalas, veteran detective Theo Kojak was introduced in the 1973 TV movie The Marcus-Nelson Murders (not included in this 3-disc set), a ratings hit that encouraged CBS and writer-producer Abby Mann to create a trend-setting series (based on a book by Selwyn Raab) that premiered on October 24 of that year. The Greek, bald-headed, snappily attired Kojak brought no-nonsense bravado to homicide cases in South Manhattan--a setting that lent a gritty, urban edge to intelligent plots that won the respect of real cops with an emphasis on diligent police work instead of overblown action and phony glamour. While working cases with his captain Frank McNeil (Dan Frazer) and closest colleagues Crocker (Kevin Dobson) and Stavros (played by Savalas's brother George, credited as "Demosthenes" for the first two seasons), Kojak had a knack for bending the rules (but never breaking them) if he knew it would solve a crime.

Kojak came at a perfect time for Savalas and cop dramas in general. The actor's career was slumping in the early '70s (he'd just appeared in the Italian horror film Lisa and the Devil), and he quickly put his personal stamp on the role with street-wise sarcasm and trademark lollipops (a perfect prop that Savalas adopted to quit smoking). Consistently well-written, the series was realistically rooted in a broad spectrum of New York City crime. These qualities attracted plenty of fresh and established talent, and these 22 well-preserved episodes include guest appearances by Harvey Keitel, James Woods, Richard Jordan, Hector Elizondo, John Ritter (in one of his first TV roles), Paul Michael Glaser, Dabney Coleman, Tina Louise, and a host of familiar TV veterans. For this debut season, Savalas won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, and Kojak ran for five well-rated seasons, followed by several TV-movie revivals in 1985, 1989, and 1990. The enduring popularity of Kojak was further proven when the show was revived yet again in March of 2005, with Ving Rhames in the title role. --Jeff Shannon

Emmy and Golden Globe winner Telly Savalas is back as Lieutenant Theo Kojak, television's greatest detective, in the unforgettable homicide series Kojak. He's got style, street smarts and a penchant for lollipops, and he's hitting the gritty streets of New York City in pursuit of some of television's toughest criminals. Relive all his smart, edgy adventures in the mystery series that People Magazine raves is "a TV classic: slick, well-plotted and entertaining." And now, it's an open-and-shut case with all 22 Season One episodes available on DVD for the first time ever!

Hard Ticket to Hawaii

Do or Die

Picasso Trigger

Malibu Express

Guns

Savage Beach

The Andy Sidaris Collection, Vol. 1 (Savage Beach / Enemy Gold / Hard Ticket to Hawaii / Guns / Malibu Express / Picasso Trigger)

Finally, the films of Andy Sidaris have been collected in this, the first of two definitive DVD box sets. Every Digitally Remastered Director's Cut film is presented in its original, unedited glory packed full of bullets, bombs, and babes! Just the way they were meant to be seen. Includes: Hard Ticket To Hawaii, Picasso Trigger, Savage Beach, Guns, Malibu Express, Enemy Gold. Each Film Hosted by Andy Sidaris and Julie Strain, Audio Commentaries by Andy and Arlene Sidaris, "Andy Sidaris Film School" Featurette series, Julie Strain Photo Shoot, Suzi Simpson, Cynthia Brimhall, and Devin Devasquez Featurettes, Dozens of Interviews with the Filmmakers and Stars, Still Galleries, Trailers, Collectable Booklets, Limited Edition Comic Book, and much more!

Kojak [Region 2]