The Magic Show with Doug Henning
The late Doug Henning was a cheerful pop-culture icon of the 1970s. His  chipmunk grin and dangling hair become as ubiquitous as the Farrah Fawcett  bathing-suit poster. The Canadian magician's fame was sealed withThe Magic  Show, a Broadway musical that ran for more than four years. This 1981 filmed  version of a live Toronto stage production is not exactly the original show.  Some of Henning's magic routines were different, and songwriter Stephen Schwartz  replaced a couple of songs with new numbers (which Schwartz has claimed he  prefers to the originals, though die-hard fans of theoriginal Broadway cast recordingmay demur). Schwartz, whose work has included excursions into both New and Old  Testaments (Godspelland the animated filmThe Prince of Egypt,  respectively), is in a bouncyGodspellmode here, with the clever songs  boosting the tired dialogue. The show is essentially an old-fashioned, mild  send-up comedy/melodrama serving as an excuse for Henning's magic acts. The  supporting players handle most of the heavy lifting of song and dance, including  red-headed vixen (and future star) Anita Morris, who gets sawed in half and  turned into a lion. Henning lends his likable personality and saves his energy  for the big-time tricks. As is almost always true of magic, the filmed version  lacks the you-are-there charge of a live show, but at least this production  captures Henning's style and spirit: his high-pitched "Whoo!" and hippy-dippy  rainbow outfits are ingratiating in a smiley-face way.--Robert Horton