Why Isn't 'Julia' On DVD?

[ClassyCo]

Considering the passing of Diahann Carroll on October 4, 2019, I just assumed that there would be talks of officially releasing her late-sixties show, Julia, a trailblazing domestic comedy placing blacks in traditionally white roles. The show went off the air back in 1971, lasting just three seasons. The series' first season had high ratings (finishing at #7 in 1969), and Carroll won the Best TV Star - Female award in 1970 for her work.

Following its cancellation, the series, while often mentioned as groundbreaking, was rarely seen in syndication. (From what I gather, it just wasn't as popular as others, although it might have had lengthy rerun gigs in some areas. My information here is fuzzy.)

I just knew that CBS, Paramount, or Shout! would have jumped on this idea. Having seen little of the show, I couldn't necessarily comment on the quality, but the novelty of it I figured would have ushered a warranted desire to have these episodes on DVD. I worry if CBS or Paramount were to release it they would do a wonderful first season set, but be disappointed in the sales, and then not give us anymore. Shout!, however, I think would dive right on in and give us the whole series right off the bat. (There weren't but three seasons, totaling 86 episodes.)

What's the hold up you reckon?

 

[Alexis]

For a while there were some full episodes on YouTube. I have to say it hasn't aged well, I could see why it doesn't repeat well. It has an innocence to it I think that just doesn't work now. It comes off as a kids show in it's preachy "here's a lesson for you" way. A lot of shows from that time are like that I guess.
I did like how the show did actually tackle race issues and stereotypes but again something like that just makes it seem like some relic now. When at the time it was I'm sure an important move.

 

[That Bowie Girl]

One of the TV stations we have plays Julia on a loop. Maybe that is why it never comes out on DVD but I agree with Alexis it doesn't stand the test of time and I never watch it. It is odd why some come out and some don't. I bought the Doris Day show on DVD and that's a very old show.

I haven't watched it so I can't comment on how it held up over the years.

 

[ClassyCo]

One of the TV stations we have plays Julia on a loop. Maybe that is why it never comes out on DVD but I agree with Alexis it doesn't stand the test of time and I never watch it. It is odd why some come out and some don't. I bought the Doris Day show on DVD and that's a very old show.

I haven't watched it so I can't comment on how it held up over the years.

I love Doris Day, and her show is so innocently charming, but it hasn't aged well, either.

 

[That Bowie Girl]

I love Doris Day, and her show is so innocently charming, but it hasn't aged well, either.

Well my Mother in Law enjoys it so it was worth the purchase.

 

[ClassyCo]

Well my Mother in Law enjoys it so it was worth the purchase.

I bought the entire series because, as I say, I'm a pretty big Doris Day fan. The show is certainly charming, and there are some good supporting actors surrounding Day throughout its run. One misgiving is the show's difficulty to find itself; it changed its setting, premise, and cast just about every season, minus the last one. Ratings, however, were surprisingly high, perhaps because of Day's ever-present glossiness and "It" factor. It is quite tame, even for its era, and it certainly isn't a testament of classic TV comedy.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

JULIA was a bit like FAMILY AFFAIR -- just too squeaky-clean and emptily message-y, in keeping with so many sitcoms of the late-'60s.

I bought the entire series because, as I say, I'm a pretty big Doris Day fan. The show is certainly charming, and there are some good supporting actors surrounding Day throughout its run. One misgiving is the show's difficulty to find itself; it changed its setting, premise, and cast just about every season, minus the last one. Ratings, however, were surprisingly high, perhaps because of Day's ever-present glossiness and "It" factor. It is quite tame, even for its era, and it certainly isn't a testament of classic TV comedy.

Yes, the farm and kids were dispensed with and, as I recall, never mentioned again. And in keeping with the trends of the time, they didn't even bother to explain that she'd moved to Frisco and the boys were back at the old homestead. They simply ceased to exists.

Let's face it, Doris Day was all it needed, cynical as that is. But even the viewers who held on after the changes wanted as least a whiff of continuity yet the only continuity they got was Doris.

Should it gets its own thread, @ClassyCo ?

 

[ClassyCo]

JULIA was a bit like FAMILY AFFAIR -- just too squeaky-clean and emptily message-y, in keeping with so many sitcoms of the late-'60s.


Yes, the farm and kids were dispensed with and, as I recall, never mentioned again. And in keeping with the trends of the time, they didn't even bother to explain that she'd moved to Frisco and the boys were back at the old homestead. They simply ceased to exists.

Let's face it, Doris Day was all it needed, cynical as that is. But even the viewers who held on after the changes wanted as least a whiff of continuity yet the only continuity they got was Doris.

Should it gets its own thread, @ClassyCo ?

It's pretty much what happened. The Doris Day Show struggled to find its identity, even though it got strong ratings for the majority of its run. Similar to Lucy's shows, the times changed, and Doris' show changed, too. There was next to no explanation, and by the fourth year, she was swinging single career woman, and there wasn't any mentioning of anything prior. If you watch the fourth season's first episode, it seems like a pilot episode for an entirely different show.

Yes, @Snarky's Ghost , I think The Doris Day Show warrants its own thread.

 

[LIZA]

I'm looking for the DVD JULIA starring Diahann Carroll as well. I'm not concerned about the show standing the test of time, or if it's squeaky clean, etc.. There are many tv shows that are filled with violence, trying to be sexy (but not), ridiculous drama, every day all day. Once in a while, I want to see a delightful show like JULIA and leave all of that garbage behind for an hour!

 

[Grant Jennings]

Julia has never been issued on DVD. I had a talking Julia doll when I was a kid, one of her legs fell off (a problem common to Mattel's talking dolls) and the Julia Colorforms. I bought the reproduction Julia doll when Mattel released it a few years ago, she's the twist 'n turn version so her legs shouldn't come off.

 

[ClassyCo]

I bought the complete series of JULIA off of a website [...] sometime last year. The quality is around 7.5/10 (some better, some worse). I've watched a few episodes of them, but they're currently packed up and I cannot get to them as easily as I'd like to.

Moderator edit: Site name removed. It's likely that "unofficial" DVDs are violating intellectual-property laws, and sites offering them should not be promoted on this site.​

 

[Chris2]

Julia is what I could classify as a “warmedy” - not particularly funny but with a likable lead and characters. There were a bunch of these in the 60s and early 70s and most of them have not aged well. And I’m sure the lead actor’s race - even in the early 70s - didn’t help in some markets when selling the show into syndication. So it didn’t get a lot of exposure, and it was a bit dated anyway, so it just faded away.

 

[ClassyCo]

Julia is what I could classify as a “warmedy” - not particularly funny but with a likable lead and characters. There were a bunch of these in the 60s and early 70s and most of them have not aged well. And I’m sure the lead actor’s race - even in the early 70s - didn’t help in some markets when selling the show into syndication. So it didn’t get a lot of exposure, and it was a bit dated anyway, so it just faded away.

Yeah, the few episodes I've seen (there were once episodes on YouTube) seem to be very dated. It's funny that the show was #7 in the Nielsen ratings its first year on the air, but it plummeted quickly.​

 

[Crimson]

I've never seen the series but reading the synopsis on Wikipedia, I was surprised that the lead character was a widow whose husband was killed (off camera) in Vietnam. I can't think of a single show of the era, pre-ALL IN THE FAMILY, that even acknowledged the war let alone having a character killed in it.

 

[darkshadows38]

i've never seen the show before to be honest

 

[Chris2]

There’s an episode of the Munsters where a non-family member sees Herman and jokes about sending him to Vietnam. That’s about it in terms of Vietnam war mentions in 60s sitcoms. There were a few sitcoms which referred to protests but didn’t mention the war explicitly. And Gomer Pyle, a service comedy, took place in a fictional peacetime.

 

[Seaviewer]

Good question. You'd think on historical grounds alone there would be interest in it.

the farm and kids were dispensed with and, as I recall, never mentioned again. And in keeping with the trends of the time, they didn't even bother to explain that she'd moved to Frisco and the boys were back at the old homestead. They simply ceased to exists.

The Doris Day Show: seasons two and three had coherent transitions- Doris gets a job in the city but still lives on the farm, then she and the boys move to the city and her father visits from the farm. But, yeah, the fourth season has major changes with no explanation.