Diana TV Special - 50 Years On

[Ollie9]

It’s been 50 years since Diana’s first solo tv special first aired. It certainly proved to the world and any doubters that she could indeed do it all.
It was of course also instrumental in securing her the role of Billie Holiday in LSTB.
Throughout the show Diana looks every inch the superstar, belting out such numbers as “Don’t Rain On My Parade” with flair and panache. It also revealed she had a flair for comedy as well as being able to act.
Were there any songs other then “Reach Out And Touch” that were edited from the show?.

[reese]

According to J. Randy Taraborrelli's last book on Diana, MY MAN and a Supremes medley were also edited from the program.

I was only four years old when the program aired but I can still remember staying up with my mom and cousin to watch it. My cousin wanted to see the Jackson 5 and I wanted to see Diana. Later that year, my grandmother bought me the soundtrack album for Xmas.

[PeaceNHarmony]

I vividly recall counting down the days to this special! I plotzed at the humorous 'Ain't No...' in-the-ocean intro, kvelled at the 'Don't Rain ...' and continued to rescue myself from near heart-attack status at each and every new number. I've watched the show once or twice since then and it brings back great memories as well as being a fun re-introduction to the introduction of Can-Diana-Ross-Make-It-On-Her-Own. I hear she did!

[Ollie9]

According to J. Randy Taraborrelli's last book on Diana, MY MAN and a Supremes medley were also edited from the program.

I was only four years old when the program aired but I can still remember staying up with my mom and cousin to watch it. My cousin wanted to see the Jackson 5 and I wanted to see Diana. Later that year, my grandmother bought me the soundtrack album for Xmas.

Thanks reece. I had a suspicion about “My Man, but didn't know about a Supremes medley being cut.
I find her performance of “My Man” on the Bob Hope special pleasant enough, if a little lightweight. It would have been interesting to compare the two versions. I don’t think she had fully come to grips with the song at that early stage.
I myself was eight when the special went out. The only reason I saw it was because my elder sister insisted upon it, much to my annoyance lol.
It’s strange, the things we remember and things we don’t.

[khansperac]

^^ She sang “My man” at the farewell concert, and did a great job.

[Boogiedown]

VERY strange to have a TV special mainly as a coming out of a solo star that doesn't include her latest single that's coinciding on the charts .....which is about to tank !

I see from the ad the show aired at 10 pm, kind of late?

[reese]

I vividly recall counting down the days to this special! I plotzed at the humorous 'Ain't No...' in-the-ocean intro, kvelled at the 'Don't Rain ...' and continued to rescue myself from near heart-attack status at each and every new number. I've watched the show once or twice since then and it brings back great memories as well as being a fun re-introduction to the introduction of Can-Diana-Ross-Make-It-On-Her-Own. I hear she did!

Since the special has never been released on home video, I didn't see it again until 1990, when it was shown at the Motorcity Records convention in Detroit [along with TCB, GIT, GOIN' BACK TO INDIANA, and others].

When they played DIANA! and the in-the-ocean scene started, I thought they had put in the wrong tape! LOL. I didn't remember that sequence at all and of course, it wasn't on the soundtrack album.

[thommg]

It is a shame that all of Diana's specials [[save for Stolen Moments) have not been released to home video or even streaming. That goes for the other Motown group specials.

[reese]

VERY strange to have a TV special mainly as a coming out of a solo star that doesn't include her latest single that's coinciding on the charts .....which is about to tank !

I see from the ad the show aired at 10 pm, kind of late?

The timing does sort of suck as REACH OUT I'LL BE THERE wasn't performed on the special. But like her previous specials, TCB and GIT, DIANA! was taped months before it actually aired. I think some copies of single did have special sleeves that mentioned the tv special.

REMEMBER ME also had a picture sleeve that mentioned the special and I think it was also mentioned on the 45 label itself. I remember my mother buying me a copy not long before the show.

[Ollie9]

^^ She sang “My man” at the farewell concert, and did a great job.

I consider it much better then her performance on the Bob Hope special as she seems more emotionally connected to the song. I think her emotional attachment to “My Man increased as she matured and certainly after LSTB.
My very fave DR performance has to be the 79 HBO Special where she sings the socks off the song with tears running down her cheeks.

[nomis]

I've always wondered if Diana had been white would one of the network's offered her a weekly variety show ? Plenty of acts with alot less talent and musical achievement scored their own shows in this time period..I'm not a big fan of comedy sketches in the variety show format but what Diana would have excelled in is the creative musical directions the show could have gone in ..on the sonny and Cher show Cher took risks including all kinds of songs and I envisioned Diana doing the same..

[reese]

I've always wondered if Diana had been white would one of the network's offered her a weekly variety show ? Plenty of acts with alot less talent and musical achievement scored their own shows in this time period..I'm not a big fan of comedy sketches in the variety show format but what Diana would have excelled in is the creative musical directions the show could have gone in ..on the sonny and Cher show Cher took risks including all kinds of songs and I envisioned Diana doing the same..

I think Diana gave a quote to SOUL magazine in the 60s where she said something like "If there were three white girls who had as many hits as we do, they'd probably have their own tv show."

[nomis]

The special has excellent camera work and editing - especially on " rain on my parade" and the jackson's " love you save "..I thought the song with bill Cosby was cute and I think the version " close to you" is better than the album version..not so good is the over use of canned laughter and applause in parts..it's even more annoying in Motown 25 it's too ott