Remember WENN

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.

For people who like to slow life down and visit the relaxing innocence of times long gone, "Remember WENN" was a wonderful means to accomplishing this. I always looked eagerly ahead to the weekly visits with my radio friends in Pittsburgh. But, like those days of yore, the visits have ceased and all I have are memories. The best memory I have is one which I relive on tape every year at this time - the episode known as "Christmas in the Airwaves". The cast is at their charming best here and the music is fantastic. Peter Noone does a wonderful rendition of "Winter Wonderland" and Betty Buckley is superb with the two original Christmas songs written by Rupert Holmes. This was a great Christmas present from AMC to the fans of this show but watching it every year makes me miss "Remember WENN" all the more.

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.

Remember WENN was an unusual show and a very good one. I became a fan of it while still in the midst of high school. By the time I graduated from university, it was not only long gone but had left a considerably more pathetic AMC in its wake. (Not to say that AMC never shows anything worthwhile anymore--it's just become a situation of "few and far between"!) If only they'd release Remember WENN on DVD or VHS--I'd be an instant buyer.

I'd recommend Remember WENN to any fan of old time radio and/or witty television, but I'm not sure where it's even available for viewing anymore.

If AMC ever decides to show reruns, I suggest you take advantage of the opportunity and watch them!

I imagine that I am of a minority within my age group (early 20s) to say that I find this show to be one of the best ever broadcast. I was truly sorry to see it taken off the air, and the television scene is all the more desolate for WENN's absence. The characters created on the show were timeless and loveable; the writing, while not always stellar, was more often than not witty and enjoyable, without having to resort to the lowest common denominator that the vast majority of today's television does. The episode in which Molly Ringwold guest-starred as blind, love-struck "Angela from Avalon" will always remain one of my favorite television moments.

I have been a huge fan of Rupert Holmes' work since "Hi Honey I'm Home!" and am happy to see that a person who shares my interests in 20th-century entertainment and culture is working to share those interests with audiences. I only wish that there were more of an audience for his great work, because it deserves to be celebrated.