The Wonder Years (is finally) on DVD
The Wonder Years Cast: Fred Savage, Josh Saviano, Danica McKellar, Dan Lauria, Alley Mills, Daniel Stern, Jason Hervey Due Out: October 7, 2014
WHO'S IT FOR? "The Wonder Years" is timeless. Thankfully it doesn't feel dated simply because I was a child of the '80s trying to understand life in the late '60s. "The Wonder Years" was my gateway drug to a nostalgia I didn't even know. Like many of you, I grew up with Kevin. I hoped for Winnie, I had friends like Paul (and probably was Paul more than I realized).
I can't wait to show "The Wonder Years" to my son. I'll have to wait, because he hasn't even turned two yet, but now I have six episodes to show him, and hopefully that will just be the beginning.
TV SCORE: 10/10
Courtesy of Starvista Named by TV Guide as one of the "Top 20 Shows of the '80s," the 2-Disc Set, Delivers the Emmy® Award-Winning Television Landmark to DVD for the Very First Time, Featuring Six Complete Episodes from the Breakthrough First Season and Over Two Hours of Exclusive Bonus Features Including 2014 Reunion Highlights, Interviews with Fred Savage (Kevin Arnold) and Danica McKellar (Winnie Cooper) and Much More!
This fall, StarVista Entertainment/Time Life cordially invites you to fall in love all over again with The Wonder Years, one of television's most fondly remembered and groundbreaking sitcoms. Before there was Modern Family, That '70s Show or Freaks and Geeks, there was The Wonder Years -- a nostalgia-inducing take on the traditional family sitcom -- and one of the most beloved series of the past thirty years. On October 7th, THE WONDER YEARS: SEASON ONE will be released nationally to retail - the first time the critical darling and Emmy® Award-winning fan favorite will be available on DVD since the series left the airwaves in 1993.
The 2-disc set, available for $19.95srp, includes all six unedited episodes from the unforgettable first season (1988), and features every song from the original broadcasts, with classics by Jimi Hendrix, The Byrds, Joni Mitchell, The Monkees, Steppenwolf and Smokey Robinson, plus Joe Cocker's timeless rendition of The Beatles' "With a Little Help from My Friends". The episodes, which feature closed captioning, include "Pilot," "Swingers," "My Father's Office," "Angel," "The Phone Call" and "Dance with Me," and highlights include Kevin's experiences with young love, his school's well-intentioned, though comedic, attempts at classroom sex education, and the incredible social pressures behind an innocent junior high school dance. Fans of the series will also thrill to the two hours of specially-produced bonus features, including "A Wonderful Day: Highlights from The Wonder Years Cast Reunion" (May 28, 2014, Los Angeles); the featurette "With a Little Help from My Friends: The Early Days of The Wonder Years" and brand-new, in-depth interviews with creators Neal Marlens and Carol Black, as well as series stars Fred Savage (Kevin Arnold), Danica McKellar (Winnie Cooper) and Josh Saviano (Paul Pfeiffer).
The Wonder Years debuted in 1988 following ABC's broadcast of Super Bowl XXII, and the affectionate look at growing up in the late '60s and early '70s in suburban America was unlike anything else on television. It was 1968 -- the year of Nixon and space walks and Mod Squad and Vietnam. Enter Kevin Arnold, a sixth grader at Kennedy Junior High School. Set against the suburban backdrop of Anytown, USA, Kevin sought to minimize his teenage angst while dealing with an older, noogie-happy brother Wayne (Jason Hervey), a rebellious sister, Karen (Olivia d'Abo), distant, workaholic father, Jack (Dan Lauria) and doting housewife mother, Norma (Alley Mills). Add to the mix Paul Pfeiffer (Josh Saviano), his nerdy, allergy-riddled best friend, a potential love interest in winsome girl-next-door Winnie Cooper (Danica McKellar) and narration by an older, wiser, wittier Kevin (voiced by Daniel Stern) to add perspective to the nostalgia, and you have the perfect recipe for TV greatness. And, for the next six seasons, America tuned in to follow Kevin's exploits, as he navigated adolescence in the most memorable of ways.
From 1988 to 1993, The Wonder Years was one of the most popular shows on TV, achieving a spot in the Nielsen Top 30 for four of its six seasons. And the critical accolades and awards would follow: after only a scant six episodes, the show captured an Emmy® for "Best Comedy Series;" and, at the age of 13, Fred Savage, would become the youngest actor ever nominated as "Outstanding Lead Actor for a Comedy Series." The series would also go on to win 24 awards (and be nominated for 70 more), including multiple Emmy® Awards, a Golden Globe® and, in 1989, a Peabody® Award for pushing the boundaries of the sitcom format and using new modes of storytelling. Additionally, in 1997, "My Father's Office" was ranked #29 on TV Guide's "100 Greatest Episodes of All Time" and in the 2009 list, the pilot episode was ranked #43. Suffice it to say, The Wonder Years was one of the most critically lauded sitcoms of the late 80s and early 90s.
The most requested unreleased TV DVD in the marketplace, the release of THE WONDER YEARS had been mired in complicated music rights issues for decades. However, as its use of classic period music was an integral part of the series, StarVista Entertainment/Time painstakingly cleared over 300 songs as they were featured in the original broadcast. Included among the hundreds of memorable, era-defining recordings are Joe Cocker's iconic title song, "With A Little Help From My Friends," plus songs by Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, Simon & Garfunkel, Smokey Robinson, The Who, Aretha Franklin, Carole King and many others.
Aside from the initial retail release, the TV DVD Archivists at StarVista Entertainment /Time life have assembled THE WONDER YEARS COMPLETE SERIES, which is available to purchase now. Never before released on DVD in its entirety, the beloved series is presented as a 26-disc collector's set featuring all 115 episodes housed in a replica metal locker, along with a host of extras including 23 hours of specially-produced bonus programming -- featurettes, an incredible cast reunion 16 years in the making and never-before-seen outtakes, including all takes of Kevin and Winnie's first kiss from the pilot episode. Nostalgically packaged in a collectible metal locker, a replica of those used by Kevin and Winnie in Kennedy Junior High School, the COMPLETE SERIES arrives complete with colorful Wonder Years magnets to custom-design each locker. And, within the hand-assembled lockers, fans will find the 26 pristine DVDs, along with two notebooks, each featuring detailed episode information and production photos, as well as a replica yearbook embellished with signatures from cast members, behind-the-scenes photos and classic show memorabilia, and liner notes penned by Fred Savage, series creators Neal Marlens and Carol Black, and executive producer Bob Brush. Series fans and TV DVD aficionados interested in THE WONDER YEARS COMPLETE SERIES can purchase it exclusively online at TimeLife.com/WonderYears. For uber fans, StarVista Entertainment/Time Life will have two additional configurations: THE WONDER YEARS EXPERIENCE, priced at $299.95,whichincludes all the elements from the COMPLETE SERIES, along with a selection of limited-edition memorabilia created exclusively for this set: a Kennedy Junior High School tee shirt, tube socks, and a vintage gym bag; a Kennedy Junior High School pennant and commemorative patch, The Wonder Years collectible pins, and a newly-produced Wonder Years CD; and, THE WONDER YEARS SIGNATURE EDITION, limited to 500 sets, which includes everything from the COMPLETE SERIES and EXPERIENCE editions; and will also be hand-signed by Fred Savage, Danica McKellar and other cast members, housed in a numbered locker and accompanied by a numbered Certificate of Authenticity.
THE WONDER YEARS is the newest DVD release from StarVista Entertainment/Time Life, following in the critically acclaimed footsteps of other top-selling, award-winning boxed sets of CHINA BEACH, THE CAROL BURNETT SHOW and THE DEAN MARTIN CELEBRITY ROASTS, among many others. And much like Kevin Arnold says in the final episode, perhaps, after all these years, you'll "still look back with wonder" at one of the landmark television programs of our time.
EXTRAS: The exclusive online set ($249.95) includes: 26 DVDs nostalgically packaged in a collectible metal locker Two notebooks, each featuring detailed episode information and production photos, as well as a replica yearbook embellished with signatures from cast members, behind-the-scenes photos and classic show memorabilia, and liner notes penned by Fred Savage, series creators Neal Marlens and Carol Black, and executive producer Bob Brush More than 23 hours of exclusive, specially-created extras, including twelve brand-new featurettes: "With A Little Help From My Friends: The Early Days of The Wonder Years", "The Times They Are A-Changin': The Era", "My Generation: The Kids Grow Up", "When A Man Loves A Woman: Kevin & Winnie Forever", "Bookends: Kevin & Paul", "A Family Affair: At Home With The Arnolds", ""I Love You For Sentimental Reasons: Fan-Favorite Episodes", "Will You Love Me Tomorrow: The Wonder Years' Love Stories", "ABC: Teachers That Made A Difference", "Both Sides Now: The Music That Made The Moments", "From the Vault: Alley Mills and Bob Brush Letters", "That's a Wrap! Mark B. Perry's Farewell Set Tour Season 5" and "I Love You for Sentimental Reasons: Fan Favorite Episodes" Never-before-seen outtakes, including alternate versions of Kevin and Winnie's first kiss from the pilot episode Extensive individual interviews with all seven key cast members (Fred Savage, Danica McKellar, Josh Saviano, Dan Lauria, Alley Mills, Olivia d'Abo and Jason Hervey), as well as with notable actors featured as guest stars or in recurring roles, such as David Schwimmer, Ben Stein, Bob Picardo and Seth Green In-depth interviews with narrator Daniel Stern, Neal Marlens, Carol Black, Bob Brush and other production personnel The 2014 Los Angeles cast reunion, featuring all key cast together for the first time in 16 years The one-hour finale as it was originally aired on ABC on May 12, 1993, including a deleted scene not included in the half-hour broadcasts of the final two episodes (both the one-hour finale and half-hour versions of the final two episodes will be included in the extras).