"On the Road with Bob Hope and Bing Crosby" DVD Set

[Weston]

Hi all. Just got this set this past Christmas, and it's a nice one. Containing Road to... Singapore, Zanzibar, Morocco and Utopia. I'm a big Bing fan, so Mom picked these up. Songs are in general pretty good, getting better towards the end, with Morocco and Utopia having the best, with "Road to Morocco" sure to stay in your head for days. The humor is at times a mile a minute, and you have to really pay attention to catch the jokes – I loved the one about "Next time, I'm bringing Sinatra!" in Road to Utopia. All in all, a great set with wonderful comedies.

A few caveats: You can really see the difference in social acceptability 60 years later. In "Zanzibar" I believe they color their skin to imitate the natives – a real no-no these days. In "Morocco", Bing persuades Bob to act mentally retarded to escape a situation. Things have changed a bit, and these few moments make one sweat a little in company.

The most humorous and telling moment 60 years later...
When Bing and Bob are talking about their two girls: "They need us! Otherwise they can't get married. Wait, dames can't get married to each other could they? Man, we'd be in trouble!"

 

[Feraud]

Thanks for the heads up. This is something I would like to have.

 

[52Styleline]

I really enjoy the Road movies. I was a little shaver when Road to Bali came out and I saw it as a first run movie. I will never forget the scene where Bing begins to sing and Bob Hope looks out at the audience and says "This would be a good time to go get some pop corn folks".

Some articles I have read say the ad libs were real, some say they were scripted. I can only believe it would have been a treat to be on the set when these two old pros were yucking it up with each other.

 

[Sunny]

I've always heard that the ad libs are real. If you've heard them running away with the script on a radio show, you'll know that they're fully capable of it. :eusa_clap

My favorite at the moment is "Road to Rio" - hilarious!

Speaking of "Road to Bali," Bob made a guest appearance on the Jack Benny radio show while it was out. It's a fantastic show! They do a sketch of the picture, in which Bob plays himself, Bob Crosby (Jack's bandleader) plays Bing's part, Mary plays Dorothy Lamour, Dennis plays a cannibal chief, Don Wilson plays the road, and Jack Benny himself plays - The Octopus! (Think about it - an octopus on the radio.) Every line Bob Crosby has is this: "When the blue of the night meets the gold of the day," (singing) then *ahem* trying to whistle. Bob Hope: "I knew there was something Bing could do that he couldn't!"

 

[Hondo]

Like wise! Thanks for the heads up notice, this is on my list (as well as the Marxs bros) I enjoy the road pictures, Bob Hope: "Oh wait a minute! this picture isn't over yet folks!" trying to stop credits from rolling on screen lol
Hilarious! Indeed :eusa_clap
These two cats were pretty wild in the early days, gosh don't we miss them?
Its great to have them on film for years of enjoyment :eusa_clap