lbbrooks
My Granny and I never missed watching "The Big Valley" during its prime-time run on ABC during the 1960s. She was a major Barbara Stanwyck fan from back in the day when Miss Stanwyck was the Queen of Hollywood. I of course had no way of knowing this and I simply loved the bravado, sass and spunk with which Miss Stanwyck instilled her character Victoria Barkley. Loren Greene's Ben Cartwright is a well-meaning dud in comparison. I liked her sons better than the Cartwright boys too, especially Nick! Watching it now, I can spot a lot of inconsistencies, such as the Orlon carpeting on the staircase of the Barkley manse and the overabundance of that God awful pool cue chalk blue eye shadow so popular in the 1960s. I mean it's like Victoria and Audra had an account with an Avon lady on the prairie. Still, Miss Stanwyck is a treat and I still love to watch her in reruns. Since my Granny hipped me to her at such a young age, I made sure to catch her act from her Hollywood heyday. I think "Double Indemnity" is my favorite. My Granny's other favorites from back in the day were Bette Davis and Irene Dunne. Too bad those two ladies couldn't have had guest appearances on "The Big Valley". That would have been a hoot, maybe an episode where Bette gets to menace Joan Crawford or one where Miss Dunne out sasses Miss Stanwyck.
grizzledgeezer
I'm about to turn "The Big Valley" into "The Big Landfill". In fairness... The pressure to churn out a new episode of a TV show every 7 to 10 days makes it difficult to produce consistently good work. But not impossible."The Big Valley" is a poor program that deserves the trashing I'm about to administer, but it's no worse than hundreds of others. The cruelest thing I can say about "TBV" isn't that it's bad (though it is), but that it's typical of too much TV programming. Outstanding programs like "Wiseguy", "Frasier", "Futurama", and "Xena, Warrior Princess" are the too-rare exceptions. *"The Big Valley" is an obvious ripoff of NBC's successful "Bonanza". It differs in ways designed to appeal to a wider demographic -- a female movie star who can actually act, and be a role model for young women; three sons (an intellectual, a leather-clad rowdy, and a nice guy), two of whom are hunks; ** and an airhead daughter for young hetero males. "Bonanza" had a Chinese cook; "Valley" had a shuffling Negro servant, the plausibility of which apparently deflected criticism."The Big Valley" is, most of the time, trashy melodrama. The "acting" is usually loud and "in your face". Characterizations are anything but subtle. Long-worn-out plots rise from the dead (brides-to-be are murdered, a blow to the head conveniently induces amnesia). And when the writers can't think of anything else, Bad People show up to harass the Barkleys for 45 minutes, then are offed in the last five.The result is that the viewer (this one, anyway) is far more likely to laugh his/her a** off at the concocted tragedies and disasters that befall the Barkleys, et al. I refuse to apologize for laughing uncontrollably when Ma Barkley hurtles over a cliff in a stagecoach without seat belts or airbags and survives, or a wagon full of nitro (and the people driving it) blows up in a cheap faux explosion that couldn't have used more than two air cannons.There were plans to turn "The Big Valley" into a feature film. It's ripe for an "Airplane!"-style trashing. I'm getting ideas...ADDENDUM: This review was written after watching a bit more than the first season. I stand by my blunt criticism. However, the series improved in following seasons, with occasional solid episodes. But it is, overall, not much different from "Bonanza" -- and that's no compliment.* The rise of cable TV created a demand for programming to fill the hours. Producers had little choice but to hire talented writers and directors whose work was "too good" for broadcast television.** None of the Bonanza boys were particularly desirable matrimonial fodder. Little Joe appealed only to women who wanted a boy to mother. Adam was surly. And Hoss was... well, he had a nice personality.
powers_lily
i'm really a 10 year old girl and i absolutely love that show!I'v always wanted to look like Audra.my mom and watch the big valley all the time on encore westerns.we love watching it.we always try to think that Audra and heath really are not related so they can be together.we have the first season on DVD,and we are probably gonna get the rest of it on DVD too.i'm always searching for episodes where there are a lot of Audra/heath moments.my mom and i just watched the Caesar's wife episode.it was pretty good.and i just saw some recent pictures of Linda Evans and Lee Majors,and i felt depressed,but i always think of them in the 60's.Well thats all i have to write,now i think i'm gonna go watch an episode on DVD.bye!
WilliamJDeal
My husband recently gave me the 1st season on DVD for my 50th birthday present. What a surprise and a treasure! I grew up on a small farm in Pennsylvania and The Big Valley came into my life around my 9th birthday. It never left me! I always loved horses but loving the show opened up a wholesome, healthy world of pretend and play. Our big old barn was transformed (in my mind) into the gorgeous Barkley home, and I usually played Nick on Coco. When I look back to how much time I spent playing with my horses, and bringing my friends and siblings into my Barkley world, I'm so thankful. I remember creating new story lines and acting them out. I often recruited other kids to be the rest of the Barkleys, and also Fred the Sheriff, Silas, and other neighbors. Those who wouldn't ride were usually Audra and Victoria. When some kids went on to become interested in not-so-safe ventures, I began writing screenplays and stories, some of which I used as reports for English Comp. class in High School. I have so many good memories of this wonderful show. I believe my own kids watch it out of kindness to me, but I know the underlying moral issues of the stories may take root in their minds too and someday they will appreciate it too. How thankful I am to everyone responsible for bringing this wonderful piece of my personal history to life, and a special thanks to Victoria, Jarod, Nick, Heath, and Audra. And thank you to so many folks, just like me, who take the time to write such positive messages about such wonderful entertainment, and to share your memories too.