Shirley Bassey: A Special Lady

"On Broadway" featured Carol Channing and Pearl Bailey, both red hot after their respective runs in the smash hit "Hello, Dolly!" on Broadway. The special was filmed on the stage of the Wintergarden Theater in New York and originally aired on ABC in 1969. Together the theatrical legends playfully perform some of their most popular hits, including 'A Little Girl from Little Rock,' 'Little Green Apples,' 'If My Friends Could See Me Now,' and 'Won't You Come Home, Bill Bailey.' Next, they perform an assortment of familiar showtunes including hits from "Guys and Dolls," "The Music Man," "Hello, Dolly!," and "Fiddler on the Roof." "On Broadway" is an entertaining step back in time.

America's sweetheart Doris Day offers songs and sketches with some of her famous friends in this smash hit television special from 1975. John Denver and Day sing a few entertaining duets, and funnyman Tim Conway joins in on a couple of skits. Then, Rich Little impersonates some of Day's legendary co-stars, including Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart and Jack Lemmon. Songs include selections from Love Me or Leave Me, Teacher's Pet, Calamity Jane and more.

This was the first of two one-hour musical specials which were part of CBS' 1968 multi-million-dollar contract with Doris Day's production company, a contract that Day insists to this day was negotiated by her husband and manager Martin Melcher without her knowledge. When Melcher died suddenly in April 1968, Day chose to go ahead and honour the contract, appearing in both specials as well as starring in her eponymous sitcom for five seasons, from 1968-1973.

Ruth Sherwood and her sister, Eileen, have moved to 1935 Greenwich Village. They're surrounded by colorful Village characters (including an out-of-work football player known as the Wreck, and Mr. Appopolous, a modern painter and their landlord) and embark on various New York adventures. Ruth, who's trying to make it as a writer, meets up with a sleazy newspaper writer named Chick and a kindly editor named Bob, both of whom take an interest in both her career and her.

Carol Burnett and Julie Andrews join forces for their third TV Special. Following the format of their first two specials, Julie and Carol: Together Again is an entertaining hour of comedy, song, and dance, featuring clips from their first performances together, an extended medley of 70s and 80s hit songs and even riotous a rap number!

Billed as the "full-hour musical spectacular that won Nancy Sinatra the coveted Hollywood Star of Tomorrow award," this 1967 NBC-TV special, sponsored by Royal Crown Cola, is hosted by Nancy and features Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., Lee Hazlewood and Frank Sinatra (billed as 'A Very Close Relative'). Brother Frank, Jr. makes a cameo appearance (and doesn't sing a note). Conspicuously absent from the program is Nancy's biggest hit: "These Boots Are Made For Walkin'".

In a staggering example of lacking imagination, Petula Clark's third US TV Special was given the exact same name as her first. Unbelievably, a third special also had that exact same title a few years later! Guests: Peggy Lee, Dean Martin, the Everly Brothers, David Frost. Songs: Beautiful Sounds, duet w/ Peggy Lee (I'm A Woman/Wedding Bell Blues), Games People Play (w/ The Everly Brothers), duet medley w/ Dean Martin on a horse (Hey Good Lookin'/Detour/Things/I Walk The Line/Just A Little Lovin'), medley (Come Together/Great Come And Get It Day), When Johnny Comes Marching Home (w/ Lee), Fool On The Hill.

An aspiring actress, whose sugar-coated appearance belies her ruthless drive, worms herself into the life of an aging star and schemes to replace her on the stage as the star of a new play.

Hosted by Cyril Ritchard, with performances by Florence Henderson, Barbara Harris, Stanley Holloway, John Cullum, Patricia McBride and Edward Villella. Songs include; On A Clear Day, The Heather On The Hill, Wait Till Were Sixty-Five, Wouldnt It Be Loverly?, Camelot, Why Cant A Woman Be More Like A Man?, How Could You Believe Me?, I Remember It Well, Without You, Gigi, Im Getting Married In The Morning, Hurry, Its Lovely Up Here, Melinda, On The S.S. Bernard Cohn, What Did I have That I Dont Have?, Ive Grown Accustomed To Her Face, Its Almost Like Being In Love, Bonnie Jean, Waltz At Maxims (She Is Not Thinking Of Me), I Could Have Danced All Night, On The Street Where You Live, and Come Back To Me.

Book-ending the year 1975 with two big budget TV Specials, Ann -Margret also earned her second Oscar nomination that year, for Tommy. In January, "Ann-Margret Olssen" premiered and was titled with the star's maiden name. This second special premiered late in the year and was titled with the star's married name. Her husband Roger Smith also appears in the opening sequences. Presented by the Bell System's Family Theatre, the program was filmed at the ATV Studios at BBC Elstree Centre, Borehamwood, England.

Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without some traditional Christmas favourites such as Julie’s Christmas Special. This special aired on ABC-TV on December 14, 1973 and featured special guests Peter Ustinov and Peggy Lee. Most memorably, Andrews and Lee duet on a trippy, campy medley that delightfully careens from hit to hit over the most fun 8 and a half minutes you'll ever have with your pants on. Andrews plays a TV Hostess whose wandered into a cardboard forest and stumbles across Lee as the Sugar Plum Fairy lazing on a divan and ready for some fun - complete with ultra soft-focus and a bedazzled microphone.

A CBS television special, renowned for its legendary "Yma, Ava....Yma, Uta... Yma, Oona" sequence. Annie: the Women in the Life of a Man (1970), won Anne Bancroft her only Emmy for her portrayal of 14 different woman in 14 musical and comedy sketches. Bancroft's husband Mel Brooks contributed to the script and also appears onscreen.

Musical Special featuring Shirley MacLaine in her tribute to chorus dancers, colloquially known as "gypsies." Produced by Cy Coleman and Fred Ebb, the special uses a self-referential show business plot in which the star rehearses for her television special about the life of a dancer. MacLaine performed a wide range of songs including "Lucy's Back in Town," during which Lucille Ball made a "surprise" appearance. The program won Outstanding Special: Comedy-Variety or Music at that year's Emmys as well as awards for writing (Ebb), music composition (Coleman), and choreography (Tony Charmoli).

The Beatrice Arthur Special was a prime time U.S. television special broadcast on CBS on January 19, 1980. The production centered around Bea Arthur, who was joined by guest stars Rock Hudson, Melba Moore and ventriloquist Wayland Flowers with his puppet Madame in a series of musical numbers and comedy sketches.

The Julie Andrews Show is a television special that was broadcast by NBC in November 1965. This was Andrews' first solo American TV Special, although she had previously starred in several dramatic television works (High Tor, Cinderella) and co-starred with Carol Burnett in a major special. However by November 1965 Andrews was now a major movie star with both Mary Poppins and Sound of Music still in cinemas and an Oscar already sitting on her mantelpiece. Julie's guests included Gene Kelly and The New Christy Minstrels.

The Fabulous Fifties, CBS, combines style, humor, and imagination. It was rich in touches of quality showmanship and equally rich in the memories of a decade which it revived. In recognition, the Peabody Television Award for entertainment is presented to The Fabulous Fifties, with a special word of praise for producer Leland Hayward and the top talent which appeared in this memorable entertainment special*. *The two-hour special featured comic takes and commentary about the previous decade by, among others, Rex Harrison and Julie Andrews, Mike Nichols and Elaine May, Dick Van Dyke, Shelley Berman, Betty Comden and Adolph Green, Jackie Gleason, Eric Severeid and Henry Fonda.

On January 23, 1997, Tori Amos gave a sell-out benefit concert at the Felt Forum in New York City to launch "Unlock the Silence", a year-long promotional and fund-raising campaign sponsored by cK Calvin Klein to raise awareness of the extraordinary work undertaken by RAINN, the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network, a non-profit organization who offer support and counseling to survivors of sexual assault. Tori performs compositions from her three albums, including "Silent All These Years", which appeared on her 1992 debut album "Little Earthquakes" and is the touchstone track for the "Unlock the Silence" campaign.

The most glittering, expensive, and exhausting videotaping session in television history took place Friday February 19, 1982 at New York's Radio City Music Hall. The event, for which ticket-buyers paid up to $1,000 a seat (tax-deductible as a contribution to the Actors' Fund) was billed as "The Night of 100 Stars" but, actually, around 230 stars took part. And most of the audience of 5,800 had no idea in advance that they were paying to see a TV taping, complete with long waits for set and costume changes, tape rewinding, and the like. Executive producer Alexander Cohen estimated that the 5,800 Radio City Music Hall seats sold out at prices ranging from $25 to $1,000. The show itself cost about $4 million to produce and was expected to yield around $2 million for the new addition to the Actors Fund retirement home in Englewood, N. J. ABC is reputed to have paid more than $5 million for the television rights.

Join Barry "live" on-stage at Ravinia Music Festival in Chicago...and "live" on the streets of New York City with special guest star Penny Marshall. The special was broadcast to record-breaking ratings on ABC in 1977 when more than 34 million people tuned in to see Barry's first national TV showcase. At the 1977 Emmys, Manilow and the program won Outstanding Special - Comedy-Variety or Music.

Based on the semi-hit Broadway musical of 1968 and starring original stage star Joel Grey, this TV version has been re-fashioned in significant ways. The premise here is that a small group of modern-day performers have gotten together in a rehearsal studio to celebrate George M. Cohan's life and work. Bernadette Peters also returns from the original cast, along with a cohort of movie, television and stage stars as the other cast members.