Los Angeles, CA (Top40 Charts/ It's Alive! Media & Management) More of the vast archive of Ernie Kovacs' (www.erniekovacs.com) iconic brand of comedy and classic television will once again be available to consumers both physically and digitally for the first time since it originally aired in the 1950's. One of television's early comedy pioneers gets his second box set due to overwhelming demand.
Produced and distributed by Shout! Factory in association with Ediad Productions, Inc.,The Ernie
Kovacs Collection Volume 2, a 3-DVD box set is set to debut in stores across North
America on October 23, 2012, just in time for the holiday season. Pent-up demand from fans, rave reviews of the first collection, and better than expected sales of the first collection have made this new volume a reality. This DVD box set is now available to preorder at Amazon.com, ShoutFactoryStore.com, erniekovacs.com and other online retailers.
Kovacs, whose offbeat humor graced the airwaves for just a decade in the 1950s and 60s, served healthy portions of the offbeat to his audiences, who had never seen anything quite like this cigar-wielding charmer. Wickedly funny but not offensive, Kovacs' unique humor and flair for improvisation would ripple across generations, influencing TV funnymen from Johnny Carson, Monty Python and
David Letterman to Jim Henson, Pee Wee Herman and Saturday Night Live.
The first 6-Disc DVD collection, curated by noted film/television historian Ben Model, was designed to appeal to
Kovacs fans already familiar with his work, and was priced at $69.97. This second 3-Disc DVD collection, priced at $29.93, is designed to introduce a broader audience to the comedic icon. Kovacs, who died in a 1962 car accident, left behind an unparalleled body of work that survives thanks to the indefatigable efforts of his wife and co-star, the late Edie Adams (www.edieadams.com). With more than 150 half hours of early television in the archive, Kovacs' legacy and archive is perhaps the largest collection of privately owned early television in existence.
Fans who pre-order The Ernie
Kovacs Collection direct from ShoutFactoryStore.com will receive as a gift with purchase, an exclusive bonus DVD containing seven episodes of Kovacs' game show Take A Good Look, all unseen since their original broadcast. Panelists/guests include Edie Adams, Carl Reiner, Cesar Romero, Hans Conreid, Rogers Hornsby and
Bobby Fischer. Pre-order here https://www.shoutfactorystore.com/prod.aspx?pfid=5257940!
Since the release of the first box set in 2011, a
Kovacs revival is in full swing. In April of 2012, Shout! Factory released a single set DVD The ABC Specials, and a long lost, previously unreleased comedy album, Percy Dovetonsils….Thpeaks was released on vinyl, CD and digital formats on June 19 of this year. Additionally, a series of special live events focusing on his work were produced at the Paley Center for Television in New York, the American Cinematheque in Los Angeles, the Museum of the Moving Image in New York and the Long Beach (CA) Museum of Art. Additional events are planned in the near future in Washington, DC and Los Angeles.
The Ernie
Kovacs Collection Volume 2 includes a comprehensive booklet filled with rare photos and informative program notes from
Kovacs and Edie Adams archivist Ben Model. Priced to own at (SRP) $29.93, The Ernie
Kovacs Collection Volume 2 from Shout! Factory offers fans another goldmine of comedy genius from one of television's original genius.
The Ernie
Kovacs Collection Volume 2 Features:
8 More Episodes From Kovacs'
National Morning Show
18 Bonus Sketches Featuring Many Of His Most Beloved Characters
3 Complete Episodes Of His Oddball Game Show Take A Good Look
"A Pony For Chris" - His Rare TV Pilot For Medicine Man Costarring Buster Keaton
The Lively Arts Featuring The Only Existing Filmed Solo Interview With Ernie Kovacs
2011 American Cinematheque Panel, featuring Harry Shearer, Jeff Garlin, Bob Odenkirk, Merrill Markoe,
George Schlatter, Jolene
Brand and Ben Model.
DISC 1
THE NBC MORNING SHOW
December 12, 1955, to July 27, 1956 - 10:30-11:00 a.m. (NBC)
EPISODES
The Ernie
Kovacs Show January 6, 1956
The Ernie
Kovacs Show January 23, 1956
The Ernie
Kovacs Show January 30, 1956
The Ernie
Kovacs Show March 16, 1956
Bonus Sketches:
Interview: Algernon Gerard, Archaeologist
Howard, The World's Strongest Ant: A Hot Date
Strangely Believe It: Writers To Blame
The Kapusta Kid In Outer Space Meets
Olivia Scilloscope
Charlie Clod In Brazil
Ernie's Opening Monologue
Miklos Molnar's Glue
Percy Dovetonsils: "Ode To Electricity"
Interview: The World At Your Doorstep
DISC 2
THE NBC MORNING SHOW
EPISODES
The Ernie
Kovacs Show April 12, 1956
The Ernie
Kovacs Show April 17, 1956
The Ernie
Kovacs Show May 17, 1956
The Ernie
Kovacs Show June 27, 1956
Bonus Sketches
Irving Wong: Tin Pan Alley Songwriter
Percy Dovetonsils: "Ode To A Housefly"
Rock Mississippi In The Umbrella Salesman Of Ranchipur
Howard, The World's Strongest Ant: Howard's Campground
Skodney Silsky, Hollywood Reporter
Ernie's Opening Monologue
Surprise Audience Member
Audio Lost
Matzoh Hepplewhite
DISC 3
RARITIES
Take A Good Look April 21, 1960
Panelists: Ben Alexander, Tony Randall, Edie Adams
Guests: Scott Crossfield, Clarence Nash
Take A Good Look April 28, 1960
Panelists: Ben Alexander, Cesar Romero, Edie Adams
Guests: Mack Sennett,
Daniel Inoyue, Asta The Dog
Take A Good Look March 2, 1961
Panelists: Hans Conreid, Cesar Romero, Edie Adams
Guests: Carl Reiner, Bob Rosberg
Interview With Ernie
Kovacs on The Lively Arts
October 31, 1961 - Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)
"A Pony For Chris" - Unaired Pilot for Series Medicine Man
Costarring Buster Keaton
Unaired - Filmed January 1961, Produced by Screen Gems
Ernie
Kovacs Panel Discussion
August 27, 2011, at the American Cinematheque in Hollywood, CA
Home Movies: Golf With Ernie and Edie
Wake Me When It's Over Trailer
Five Golden Hours Trailer
