Lucille Ball in Ziegfield Follies coming to DVD

Coming April 25 from Warner Home Video is "Ziegfeld Follies of 1946," the splashy MGM musical that features Lucy in the opening number as a glamorous "lion tamer." The feature is part of Warner's "Classic Musicals from the Dream Factory Collection," and will also be available separately.

This video is a collection of five newly-remastered favorites from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Golden Era. The titles featured, which are all making their debut on DVD, include "It's Always Fair Weather," "Summer Stock," "Three Little Words," "Till the Clouds Roll By," in addition to "Ziegfeld Follies" and contain some of the most memorable numbers by the greatest stars of the genre.

The famous M-G-M slogan "More Stars Than There are in Heaven" was never truer than in this spectacular collection of the fabled studio's vintage musicals which features some of the most eye-popping numbers in the history of the film musical. In addition to Judy, Fred and Gene, the studio piles on Lena Horne, Esther Williams, Cyd Charisse, June Allyson, Frank Sinatra, Van Johnson, Kathryn Grayson, Lucille Ball, Red Skelton, William Powell, and too many to name them all!

Each feature film in this collection has been meticulously restored and remastered from its original elements by Warner Home Video and complimented with new featurettes, rare outtake musical numbers, audio only bonus outtakes and vintage cartoons. The titles will be available individually for $19.97 with the five-disc collection selling for $59.92.

Two years in the making, Ziegfeld Follies was a distinct departure from musicals that preceded it. Presented in a revue format with no storyline, Ziegfeld Follies allowed the stars to shine in a musical extravaganza without that pesky plot getting in the way.

With the “crème de la crème” of credited and uncredited Hollywood creative talent, this all-star revue is heaven to fans of movie musicals. Fred Astaire dazzles not once, not twice…but four times, including The Babbitt and the Bromide with Gene Kelly, the first time the two greatest dancers in musical history dueted. Red Skelton reprises his funny Guzzler’s Gin skit. Esther Williams swims, Lena Horne sings and Judy Garland spoofs snobbery. Add to this a Verdi opera and the legendary Fanny Brice (who rose to stardom under the Ziegfeld touch) enacting one of her inimitable comic numbers and the result is the musical form at its purest.

DVD Special Features include:

• New featurette Ziegfeld Follies: An Embarrassment of Riches
• Vintage MGM Crime Does Not Pay short The Luckiest Guy in the World
• 2 classic MGM cartoons:
• The Hick Chick
• Solid Serenade
• Audio-only bonus: outtake songs If Swing Goes, I Go Too, This Heart of Mine and We Will Meet Again in Honolulu
• Ziegfeld movies trailer gallery
• Both remixed Dolby Surround Stereo and original Mono English Audio
• Subtitles: English, French & Spanish (feature film only)