American Dreams

The show takes me back to my own senior year, 1963. It is very accurate even to the clothing styles and amazingly, the name of a long since closed amusement park called "Willow Grove Park" was mentioned once. I won't dwell on this, but I was one of the kids back in 1962 on American Bandstand myself. I have a highly treasured snapshot I took one day on the set of Dick Clark interviewing Sandra Dee. The show isn't all carefree of course, but then life has never been without problems. Despite this, it depicts an era of a certain innocence we no longer enjoy.

American Dreams is one of the best television shows that is on, it has some great writing and an awesome cast. The show follows one family through the times that changed our nation. Set in Philadelphia, the Pryor family is living the dream that many Americans wanted a perfect family or at least an image of one. The actors have all grown into their characters. This show does not use sex and violence to attract it's audience, it is a great show, a must see! It also has a great soundtrack and some cool guest appearances by some of today's up and comers. It also using some older footage from the real American Bandstand, the way they do that is amazing.I give this show 3.8 stars and an A!

I am a fan of character development, great acting and history. This lovely show has all three. My favorite character is Jack because he represents the people who think they have life figured out. But, life keeps changing; he is classy enough to change with it. And Meg is so much like him and he does not realize it.

The American Bandstand angle is a pleasant way to remind us of a simplier time in the music world. The show faces hard issues like racism, police brutality, Viet Nam, polio, politics, homosexuality, the riot, life changes and pregnancy outside of marriage realistically. These issues are a part of life and I appreciate the "non over-the-top" way they have been handled.

You can even watch this with your family and not cringe because of cursing and explicit sexual encounters. This is a fine way to spend one hour on Sunday evenings.

I have to disagree strongly with one parsimonious reviewer who stated there was no reason to watch this show. There are at least two good reasons...

First, if you were a teenager in the early 1960s, like I was, and looked forward to watching American Bandstand, this weekly TV series is a marvelous, nostalgic reminder of those times. Whether your memories were good or bad, this is the closest we will ever get to "being there" one more time. The film clips from the original Bandstand show add to the realism.

Second, if you are too young to remember the 1960s, and are curious, the styles of dress, the dialog, the boy-girl infatuations, the racial tension, the religious conflicts over birth control, the "transistor radios" that everyone carried around, the round-screen black and white TVs, all those are very authentic in this TV series.

"American Dreams" - overall a very fine show, one we've dreamed about for years!

American Dreams is without a doubt the best and most complete show of this century. It was incredibly real. You couldn't help but get sucked into the lives of the Pryor family and feel their happiness and pain along with them. The writing was excellent, and the acting was superb. It was an excellent show. The events that took place were all things that people were really faced with in the 1960's. But unfortunately today people are just not capable of appreciating a quality program. People are more interested in watching people in swimsuits eating insects or marrying millionaires. What Paris Hilton's dog is wearing has become more important than morals and family values. These things could all be very easily acessed in American Dreams.

However, due to the lack of moral character in this country, and the lack of moral responsibility at NBC, this show has left us too soon. Had American Dreams been on 10-15 years ago along with the likes of "The Wonder Years" or "The Cosby Show", I believe it would have made it at least ten seasons. NBC is obviously more interested in "reality" apparently than quality programming. So this year instead of snuggling up on the couch with your family and watching American Dreams, you can watch Martha Stewart (a convicted felon by the way) hire and fire people. That will be great for your family.