 This pop-cultural phenomenon has been performed on stage for more than 50 million patrons in 26 countries for almost 18 years, churning more than $2 billion in ticket sales. Now that Cats has finally made it to the small screen, attention must be paid not just by fans of this critic-proof show, but also by those entertainment mavens who have somehow avoided Cats until now. The video version has been restaged but, alas, not really reconceived for its new medium. The video cast, assembled from London, Amsterdam, and New York productions, is competent. Ken Page as Old Deuteronomy, Jacob Brent as Mr. Mistoffelees, and Elaine Paige--the original London Grizabella, the Glamour Cat well past her prime--are a great deal more than that. Paige has toned down her theatrical belting of her big number, "Memory," and allowed the faded ruin of her character's soul to prevail in close-up. For all the "covers" of her signature song, Paige's version remains definitive. The video is, by definition, more intimate, not always a good thing: costumes are even more Halloweeny in garish close-up, the cats less cuddly without that all-important interaction, the stage's appropriately midnight lighting transmuted to a Las Vegas neon. And the chorus of cats in production numbers is even clunkier and more amorphous in two- and three-shots. The one complete newcomer to the cast is the 90-year-old icon among English actors John Mills, a delight as Gus the Theatrical Cat. Sir John and his character show the youngsters how it's done in close-up, largely behind the eyes, abetted by a heart-tugging delivery of his one song. Yet virtually all of the songs are lip-synched, further robbing the video Cats of its onstage seeming spontaneity. It's clearer than ever that Lloyd Webber's music is mostly twaddle, with the important exception of "Memory," which instantly and rightly became one of the genuine theater standards not dependent on context, in the vein of Stephen Sondheim's "Send in the Clowns." On the plus side, most of the Cats characters and lyrics, from T.S. Eliot's 14-poem Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, are far better defined and understood from the video version. --Robert Windeler
Customer Review: CATS
Having learned T.S. Elliot's poem and performed it in high school, I absolutely love Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical interpretation and production of it.Of course the actors in this production are legendary.
Publ.Date : Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:14:11 GMT
 Cat Stevens tends to be lumped in with the early-'70s singer-songwriter school led by James Taylor and Carole King, but he actually fits in rather neatly with such wistful English contemporaries as Nick Drake, Syd Barrett, and Donovan. Tea for the Tillerman's "Wild World," "Into White," and "Longer Boats" indicate that he may have been a more gifted tunesmith than the lot of them. As with the best of the Brit folk-rockers, Stevens mixed melancholy with whimsy. Yes, he was prone to airy platitudes, but when he harnessed his eccentricities, as he did throughout this 1970 masterwork, you had something truly distinctive. A natural cult artist, à la Tim Buckley and Leonard Cohen, Stevens connected with record-buyers to the tune of 25 million units sold before he changed his name to Yusuf Islam, established an Islamic school, and raised a ruckus by supporting Ayatollah Khomeini's death decree against author Salman Rushdie. This remastered 2000 version of the 1970 recording, which was overseen by the artist, is a vast improvement over the earlier CD reissue. --Steve Stolder
Customer Review: RFID ruins album art
The music is Cat Stevens. It's as always great. The RFID tag that is stuck to the album art will ruin it when removed. Bad Move whomever had the idea of putting RFID tags on album artwork.
Publ.Date : Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:14:11 GMT
 A psychologically intriguing Western that has much in common with the genre's Hollywood renaissance in the 1950s, The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing stars Burt Reynolds as Jay Grobart, an outlaw who kidnaps the aristocratic Catherine Crocker (Sarah Miles) after she witnesses his gang pull a train robbery. Forced to travel with the desperadoes, Mrs. Crocker is repeatedly subjected to threats of sexual violence by two of the men (Jack Warden, Bo Hopkins), but is protected by the otherwise seemingly dispassionate Grobart. Meanwhile, the hostage's insufferable husband (George Hamilton) hires a bounty hunter (Lee J. Cobb) to track Grobart down, which proves relatively easy since the fugitive, who becomes the lonely Mrs. Crocker's lover, is headed into dangerous Indian territory for reasons that are as heartbreaking as they are illuminating. A harsh film that asks viewers to care about a hero who did something unforgivable but who finds love unexpectedly, The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing is full of surprises. --Tom Keogh
Customer Review: Nothing But A Glorified Harlequin Romance
This old snoozer popped up on the expensive TV movie channels because of budgets or the writers strikebecause they're starting to show old cheap movies that don't cost them much. I nearly fell asleep when the thing first came out. It hasn't gotten better with age! Every cliche' imaginable or stolen showed up in this thing. Sarah Miles looked like a bustless knock-off of Elvira, Mistress of the Dark and Burt I think was trying to appear Indian with the inch thick brown pancake makeup. And how many times was Catherine (Sarah's character) nearly raped? Gah!!! Over and over and over. Just get it done and let's get ON with this turkey! The train holdup at the beginning was OK and the thing was downhill...wwwaaaayyyy downhill from there. I found it interesting....and my sister and I did a little Mystery Theatre 3000 while we were watching this, to aleviate the boredom and stay AWAKE....that George Hamilton's character was extremely "foppy", but that's what he was good at and he later played a fop in "Zorro The Gay Blade." We were able to insert some screamingly funny dialogue. Now Jay Silverheels. I think he was of advanced age when he made this movie, but I don't know why they had to put "old" makeup on him that pretty much belonged in "The Mummy." The Indian boy who was supposed to be Burt's couldn't act his way out of a paper bag and there was absolutely no chemistry between the two. This movie was a big deal back then, but wouldn't even be a candidate for Hallmark Movie of the Week nowdays. There was scandal. I think Sarah Miles was found leaving the room of a producer or someone on the set in the desert and that person was found dead the next morning. They said it was suicide, but others said more sinister things. I believe he saw how bad this movie was turning out and offed himself!
Publ.Date : Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:14:11 GMT
 6" L, 1.75 wide deShedding edge FURminator deShedding Tool for Cats reduces shedding up to 90 percent by removing the loose, dead undercoat without damaging the topcoat. Brings out the cats natural oils, promoting healthier skin and a shiny topcoat.
Customer Review: FURminator
Works great to remove deeply buried loose hair. With 5 cats, there is now less furr balls flying around and less hair balls being vomited.
Publ.Date : Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:14:11 GMT
Customer Review: Furminator does the job
After using a smaller version that belonged to a friend, I decided I had to have my own. Bottom line, it works! I have used several devices to handle my dog's 3 inch long hair that constantly falls on my dark carpet. I used a standard brush, deshedder comb, a looped rake brush, and a device my husband formed out of something in his workshop. All of these made my pet wince with pain. However, I found none of this with the furminator. My dog stood over 10 minutes without moving and the undercoat came right off. It does take several sessions but I have seen a dramatic decrease in the amount of shedding. I highly recommend it. Amazon made it easy to shop around for the best price. No problem with shipping.
Publ.Date : Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:14:11 GMT
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