And don't forget to put the raisin commercials in as special features, they were almost as good as the series! I have been looking for this to show to my kids. It is a great cultural lesson on the popular culture that we don't usually indulge in.Basically it is a spoof on the very popular genre of TV mini-series (Dallas, Rich Man, Poor Man, Dynasty), that were like late night versions of the soap opera that still haunt daytime TV. Every detail that could be funny is used to entertain us. I specifically remember all the middle level government people in the series had names that end in "ian" -- meaning they are descended from the Armenian refugees that flooded Fresno during the early 20th century -- including the black police chief! I really want to see this again, and I especially want to show it to the generation that is too young to have seen it the first time.

It's a mini-series, they had several hours to fill, so, no, it doesn't play like a movie. Fresno does drag a bit in the second half. Doesn't matter. Relax, enjoy, and look for the details: Anthony Heald, as noted elsewhere, is hilarious; breakfast at the Kensingtons' involves Terri Garr and Carol Burnett dressing for a Presidential Inaugural Ball and tossing Bloody Marys in quick succession, with Terri Garr's gown, at one point, nearly releasing BOTH bazongas onto the tablecloth, worth the price of admission on its own; there was clearly someone in on the script who's spent a LOT of time in the Central Valley, f'rinstance Jerry Van Dyke as a country bar owner named Tucker Agajanian, or the marvelous fly-in shot at the opening. And, yeah, from time to time they DO show a print of this at various artistic functions in Fresno.Now, I understand and comply with the guidelines posted for IMDb that says Thou Shalt Not Discuss Availability. But there's an easy way to find out for sure. Just Google the name of the show, with the URL of the IMDb entry. Oh, yeah--remember to enclose it all in quotes, so you don't use up a lot of resources unnecessarily searching the entire Net.Like this:"Fresno www.imdb.com/title/tt0090435/"

How I would love to see it again, and yet it is never seen. I asked a well-known movie producer/director who had cas Charles Grodin in one of his films, and even had had never seen it. Carol Burnett, Charles Grodin, Jeffrey Jones (Mr. Acme of the Acme Toxic Waste Company) were outstanding. My favorite line: The matriarch, Carol Burnett, to her poor, overworked peon Juan, who has asked her for a raise (she continually cut his wages) so he could feed and clothe his family: "Juan, I have seen what your family eats and wears, and it couldn't cost THAT much." Second favorite line: When Terri Garr (who walks around all day in a teddy) "accidentally" bumps into Torch at the bunkhouse: "What are you doing here," she asks. "Just came back to change my shirt," says Torch, who carries a perfectly pressed shirt around all day but never puts it on.

This soap spoof is really the best I've ever seen. For a distracted viewer, it would have appeared as a genuine soap with idiotic plots to catch your attention. The cast, especially Carol Burnett and Dabney Coleman, were really "into" their roles. Torch is the epitome of the "pool boy" type of character you always find in the Dallas/Dynasty kind of series. I wish I could get my hands (and eyes'n'ears) on a copy of this "mini" as it is referred to.