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Welcome Back Kotter aired from 1975-1979 and was the
forerunner to many shows and films that attempt to address
the issues faced by inner-city kids and the teachers who
love and care for them. Gabe Kotter (Gabe Kaplan) returns
to his Brooklyn Alma Mater to teach the "troubled" kids
there. Looking at this show now, it seems almost hopelessly
optimistic and innocent compared to the sorrowful reality
of inner-city schools today. None the less, it is as endearing
and entertaining as it is nostalgic and optimistic. The
"Sweathogs" are a group of kids that are supposed to be
incorrigible underachievers at the Buchanan High School.
Mr. Kotter can relate though because he used to be one of
those guys, and he'd like them to see that they can all
be more than they have been led to believe. ***
Vinnie Barbarino (John Travolta) is the gang's wise-cracking
leader. Arnold Horshack (Ron Palillo) is best remembered
for his trademark lines like, "Ooo, ooo Mr. Kotter Mr. Kotter!"
Juan Luis Pedro Phillipo de Huevos Epstein (Robert Hegyes)
remains in my memory as the only Puerto Rican Jew I've ever
known. Freddie "BoomBoom" Washington rounds out the ethnic
diversity of the group and competes with Vinnie for highest
"cool" factor. Michael Woodman (John Sylvester White) was
the surly and rigid vice-principal who is convinced that
not only will these kids not succeed, they aren't worth
the effort of teaching. Julie Kotter (Marica Strassman),
Gabe's wife, helps to add the feminine element to a rather
male-dominated show. There were characters like Judy Borden
(Helaine Lembeck) Vernajean Williams (Vernlee Watson-Johnson_
and Rosalie "Hotsy Totsy" (Debralee Scott) who appeared
over the years, but it is Julie's commonplace womanly strength,
wisdom and downfalls that really stands out in my memory
as the woman from "Welcome Back, Kotter". This four disc
set contains all of season one. While I enjoy the fact that
this was packaged as a seasonal set, I find the four disc
spacing incredibly annoying and wasteful, especially considering
the lack of extras. There really isn't any reason to have
this all spread out and I don't enjoy the set up at all.***
Cutting edge for it's time, the show dealt with issues
like self-esteem, prejudice both racial and system prejudice
being one of the first ever to tackle the issue of people
in the education system who were Not interested in teaching
to kids they considered a waste of time and space. Sadly
this terrible attitude continues to taint our still limping
public education system, and in many cases has gotten worse.
Yet, many schools that once were war-zones have found a
measure of peace, dignity, and an abiding love of learning.
At the time this show originally aired, Boston banned it
because those making the decision mistakenly believed it
revolved around the issue of busing students which was a
highly volatile subject at the time. Interestingly enough,
they had no problem airing this lovely little show once
they realized their mistake. In 2005 the Sweathogs' famous
put down line, "Up your nose with a rubber hose!" was ranked
as 15th in TV Guide's TV's top 20 Catchphrases, which really
illustrates the gentle nature and charming naivete of this
show in a rather jaded world.***
Kaplan was perfect for this role of Kotter and managed
to convey humor, frustration, determination and admiration
for the kids he taught in just about every episode. Each
episode began with Kotter telling his wife, Julie, a joke
which often help to offset the less comical issues under
scrutiny, and eased viewers into each show. Kaplan left
the show after three seasons over creative differences with
James Komak, and Travolta left in 1977 after his role in
"Saturday Night Fever" launched his career. No one at the
time could have guessed just how successful "Vinne Barbarino"
would become. His character here was far more reminiscent
of his role in "Grease" if a tad less innocent with lines
like, "Love means never having to hear "I'm pregnant". Originally
the title of this series was to be just "Kotter" but when
composer John Sebastion had difficulty writing a theme song
to that, he wrote "Welcome Back" and the producers were
so charmed they changed the title of the show to the "Welcome
Back, Kotter" children of the '70's came to know and love.
***
Image and Sound:
1.33:1 aspect ratio, image and sound are perfectly adequate
without being remarkable.
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