Liza with a "Z" [DVD/CD]

Liza Minnelli Director: Bob Fosse

Overview

"Recorded in the wake of the phenomenal success with the screen adaptation of Cabaret, Liza with a Z features Liza Minnelli performing over a dozen songs under the direction of Bob Fosse. This special originally aired on network television. The setlist in

Product Details

Release Date:	04/04/2006
UPC:	0758445116120
Original Release:	1972
Rating:	TV-G
Source:	Showtime Ent.
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	0:55:00
Sales rank:	32,737

Special Features

Closed Caption;Complete Liza with a "Z" soundtrack (On separate bonus cd); From Liza With a "Z", never-before-seen lost musical number "Mein Herr"; Full-length A&E television biography of Liza Minnelli; A conversation with Liza at the Toledo Film Festival premiere; Liza interviews the legendary John Kandor, composer of Chicago and Cabaret; Liza performance at the 2005 GLAAD Awards; Program commentary with Liza

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Liza Minnelli	Primary Artist
Liza Minnelli	Performer
John Kander	Composer

Technical Credits

Ronnie Wilkins	Composer
Ray Henderson	Composer
Fred Ebb	Producer
Gus Kahn	Composer
Charles Aznavour	Composer
Bob Fosse	Producer
Mike Curb	Composer
Craig Zadan	Liner Notes
J.E. French	Arranger
Joe Young	Composer
Billie Holiday	Composer
Billy Byers	Arranger
Fred Ebb	Composer
Arthur Herzog, Jr.	Composer
Mort Dixon	Composer
Mack David	Composer
Walter Donaldson	Composer
John Hurley	Composer
George Gershwin	Composer
Ira Gershwin	Composer
Joe Tex	Composer
Maurice Jarre	Composer
Sam M. Lewis	Composer
John Kander	Composer

Scene Index

Disc #1 -- Liza With a "Z"
2. Yes [1:36]
3. God Bless the Child [2:45]
4. Say Liza (Liza With a "Z") [2:55]
5. It Was a Good Time [3:25]
6. I Gotcha [5:01]
7. Son of a Preacher Man [3:50]
8. Ring Them Bells [3:42]
9. Bye Bye Blackbird [5:54]
10. You've Let Yourself Go [4:12]
11. My Mammy [4:00]
12. Medley of Tunes From 'Cabaret': Willkommen/Married/Money Money/Maybe This Time/Cabaret [3:23]
13. Bows (Liza) [10:03]

Menu

Disc #1 -- Liza With a "Z"
Play Concert
Select Songs
Bonus Features
"Mein Herr" - Exclusive Footage
A Conversation With Liza At the Toronto Film Festival
Commentary With Liza Minnelli: On/Off
Liza Visits With John Kander of Kander & Ebb
Liza Minnelli Biography From A&E
Special Liza Performance At the GLAAD Awards
Biographies & Filmographies
Liza Minnelli
Bob Fosse
John Kander
Presenting Producers Neil Meron & Craig Zadan
Restoration Producer Michael M. Arick
Showtime Entertainment Previews
The L Word Season 3 DVD
Queer As Folk Season 5 DVD
Audio
English Stereo 2.0
English Dolby Digital 5.1

Editorial Reviews

The TV special Liza with a "Z" -- a true event that predates popular reference to such broadcasts as events -- earned four Emmys and a Peabody Award back in 1972, and its soundtrack album went on to win a Grammy. Surprisingly, this Bob Fosse-directed "concert for television" went unseen for more than 30 years, while its star found herself spending more time in the tabloids than onstage. To those who know little of Ms. Minnelli beyond her public image, this incredible performance, with one showstopper after another, will be a revelation. Like the mythical Elsie she sings of in "Cabaret," Minnelli’s name these days tends to produce a snicker ("Well, that’s what comes from too much pills and liquor"). But Liza with a "Z," created by Fosse and songwriter Fred Ebb, is a crowning achievement in her tumultuous career. When it aired, the star was 26 and fresh from her Oscar-winning performance in Cabaret. By all appearances here, she is the hardest-working woman in show business, defying the performers' maxim "Never let them see you sweat." She holds nothing back physically or emotionally (as in the psychodrama nursery rhyme medley, the heartbreaking "You’ve Let Yourself Go"). The standards ("God Bless the Child," "Bye Bye Blackbird," "Mammy") and specialty numbers (the title tune) fare best. But Minnelli is never less than mesmerizing, even in such an ill-conceived camp-tastic rendition of Joe Tex’s "I Gotcha," complete with two mustachioed, cigarette-smoking dancers. Even if the costumes and musical arrangements are pure ‘70s, the climactic Cabaret medley is one for the ages. Career-wise, this was, as Liza sings, "the best time," and Liza with a "Z" is a time capsule treasure.