Remember WENN

I miss this show terribly! It is still my favorite show of all time. No matter how many other shows I start watching they never beat it. I started watching it in high school at about the age 15 and joined the list online and made wonderful friends through my interest. Most of them I still talk to today.

I liked how it was not just a drama or a comedy but it was a dramedy. Being a historian and WWII buff especially this show intrigued me from the beginning. Plus we got to see some great stars of the past before they passed away. The great acting done by all the cast brought it to life and made it more real then a television show.

This show was never about dirty comedy or about who's all sleeping with who like many of the comedies on today. It is clean good fun that anyone of any age can enjoy. We never did learn that answer to the one supposedly dirty joke about the queen of hearts and the elephant or something like that.

One of the most unique comedies on TV, Remember WENN is a sentimental journey through pre-WWII Pittsburgh radio. With writing and original music from Rupert Holmes and a cast of stage veterans, the show has class, style and a heart. One-liners zing past faster than flaming arrows, but the show is always character-specific and actually gives the audience a plot. Because the show does not follow the guidelines of typical network sitcoms, it may take awhile for the viewer to adjust. The entire cast has almost too much talent for the cold medium of television (most notable: Christopher Murney and Melinda Mullins). Episodes not to miss: On the Air (premier), World of Tomorrow, Close Quarters, Who's Scott Sherwood, From the Pen of Gertrude Reece (a Casablanca send-up), If I Die Before I Sleep, and All's Quiet on the Pittsburgh Front. (finale).

I am also in the youth minority when it came to enjoying this series. As a matter of fact, I WROTE THE PLOT SUMMARY!!! It was one of those shows that I would come home to after a long night of evening classes at the local college. The costumes that the characters wore looked very authentic (They won an Emmy for this) and the cinematography was beautiful.

I would only watch off and on as the years went on since they took some of my favorite characters off, but it was still a favorite of mine. It also proved AMC could make an original program on a limited budget without looking limited. They were always able to get notable named guest stars. My favorites included Henry Rollins, Molly Ringwald, Eddie Bracken, and Betty Buckley (who appeared in the marvelous x-mas episode).

Now, American Movie Classics is a mere image of themselves. Sure rating may be higher, but that had to sacrifice quality to do that. What a shame, because on a a rainy day, I could always could on AMC to comfort me. Remember Ween did that for me as well. Sadly, those days are long gone as the network has tried to modernize itself for the times. And when this show was replaced by The Lot, things began to go downhill. A terrible flaw on AMC's part.

WENN was a series of paramount humor, nostalgia and sentiment. Melinda Mullins as Hilary Booth by herself turned in a performance worthy of an Emmy. The Christmas show with Betty Buckley was a classic and Rupert Holmes contributed excellent original music. This series reminded us that great entertainment could be generated without requiring an 'R' rating.

The creative forces behind this series could do us all a great favor if they could see to its release on DVD. It far outshines many other series so released. Our generation deserves a chance to share in the short-lived but memorable era of pre-television radio.

Excellent series, wonderfully acted. It contains some of the wittiest dialogue I have ever heard in a product made directly for television. I was thrilled when AMC created such a surprising gem, and was equally appalled when they cancelled it prematurely. Turner Classic Movies replaced AMC in my house after that fiasco.