Fantastic 1970 Raquel Welch TV special

Originally aired in 1970, this filmed television special captures Raquel Welch at the peak of her stardom. The bulk of the forty-nine minutes are staged song-and-dance numbers shot on location in Paris, Mexico and a ski resort, featuring Welch solo, with dancers, and with guest stars Tom Jones and Bob Hope. John Wayne also appears for a short sketch on a Western back lot set. Welch is radiant throughout, whether wearing high-end fashions or a space-age bikini and boots.

Welch sings hits of the day, including “California Dreaming,” “Everybody’s Talkin’,” “Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head,” “Here Comes the Sun,” “Good Morning Starshine,” “Aquarius/Let the Sun Shine In,” “The Sounds of Silence,” and a rock ‘n’ roll medley with Tom Jones that includes “Rip it Up,” “Slippin’ and Slidin’,” “Lucille,” “Tutti Frutti,” and “Jenny Jenny.” Tom Jones adds a solo version of “I Who Have Nothing.” Welch and Hope sing and dramatize “Rocky Raccoon,” with the former pulling off a credible imitation of Mae West and the latter hamming it up.

This was a high-budget special with excellent location footage, generous helpings of helicopter shots, extravagant costuming for Welch and the dancers, and A-list guest stars. The choice of middle-of-the-road material and tried-and-tested mainstream guest stars show Welch aiming square at the heart of middle America. Welch’s beauty often obscured her talents as a singer, dancer and comedienne, and then-contemporary clips of a British press conference show her to be witty and bright, to boot. This is a superb time capsule of  late ‘60s hippie culture finding a cleaned-up and watered-down place in the mainstream. [©2009 hyperbolium dot com]