Tales of the City

I remember watching this on PBS when it first came out, and how absolutely riveting I found it. Never had I watched something and been so wrapped up in it. The characters were brilliantly written and brilliantly portrayed by the excellent cast. This program succeeded in bringing to life a time and place where you really did "have to be there". This program takes you there. Whether you're into countercultures, history, or just plain entertainment, there is no other program that I could more wholeheartedly recommend.

Usually when I've already read a book and liked the results, a movie or TV show on the same material doesn't stand a chance. But this show brings the book's quirky charms and character interweaving along with zest and fun. I would highly recommend this to anyone who is comfortable with the issues of gayness, drugs and sexual promiscuity. Olympia Dukakis and Laura Linney are perfect, the direction and screenplay and music impeccable.

This 1993 mini-series is a delightful translation of Armistead Maupin's book. A window into a more carefree time and place - 1976 San Francisco, when love was free and life was much simpler.

The cast is appropriately attractive, especially the deliciously sleazy Beauchamp Day (Thomas Gibson, pre-"Dharma & Greg") and the charming Dr. Jon Fielden (Billy Campbell, pre-"Once and Again"). The then-unknown Laura Linney is perfect as the innocent MaryAnn Singleton, and Chloe Webb is outstanding as the spacy ad exec, Mona Ramsey. And, of course, Olympia Dukakis is marvelous as the "mother of us all", Anna Madrigal.

This is must-see television. The sequel was made in 1998, and the third book is filming now in Vancouver for a 2001 release.

Why do current versions of this original series look bad? It looks like it was sourced from VHS tapes. I know the series was shot on16mm film. This format still wouldn't produce the poor quality we see now. If the original 16mm was used as the source, the quality would be much better than what we are now being offered.

One is always concerned when a great work of written fiction is dressed up for the screen, but you can have no worries about the integrity of this production. We all paint pictures of characters when reading a book, and these images remain locked in our minds.

More often than not, when these characters appear in the flesh on the TV, we are a little disappointed. Not in this case! Maupin's wonderfully colourful feast about San Francisco in the seventies transfers vividly to the screen. The emotion and pace of the written original is dutifully kept in this production, with sterling performances all round. Dukakis exudes mystery, D'Amico portrays the endearing 'Mouse' with style, and Linney is sublime.

Expect to be experiencing all the human emotions in this delightful mini series. Perfect.