‘A Touch of Class’ on Blu-ray

Category: Blu-ray's and DVD's

Today George Segal co-stars as the grandfather in the hit sitcom The Goldbergs. He has a long list of credits including the 1973 romantic comedy A Touch of Class.

Segal stars as Steve Blackburn, an American living and working in London. He has a wife, two children, and a dog, and claims he “lives around the corner” from where Disraeli lived.

Steve meets Vickie Allessio (Glenda Jackson), an accomplished fashion designer with an ex-husband, two kids, a dog, a cat, and a bird. Their accidental meeting turns into several and suddenly Steve asks Vickie for tea, then lunch, then, well, let’s just say his intentions are not above board. Vickie sees what is on his mind and decides it might not be a bad idea for the two of them to hook up. But she insists he takes her for a weekend away from the London rain. So off they go for a week to Spain, where Steve’s wife believes he is going on business.

The interactions with Steve and the Iberia ticket agent (Eve Karpf) are adorable.

On the way to Spain Steve bumps into his old friend Walter (Paul Sorvino) who is on his way to meet his wife and family. This is where things get tricky. How can Steve and Vickie spend the week in a vacation resort area near his old friend and not get caught?

Their escapades in Spain are only half of the show. When they return to London they decide to get an apartment, aka flat, in SOHO so they can rendezvous and continue their clandestine affair. But Steve and Vickie are falling in love. This presents a problem for both of them, but especially for Steve who has a happy home life. Why would someone with such a happy home life go out looking for an affair in the first place? As Vickie would say, it’s because he’s a man and has sex on his mind all the time.

Anyway, this romantic comedy is filled with plenty of great moments and some laugh-out-loud scenes. The soundtrack is wonderful and when the film is over there is no doubt viewers will be humming the theme song for hours.

This is a fun film with Segal when he was at the top of his game. He continued to star in films and television, and had a hit sitcom from 1997-2003 (Just Shoot Me).  Jackson, too, has had a long career in the industry.

A Touch of Class is rated PG. There are no bonus features on this Blu-ray except the trailer. The movie can be ordered from the Warner Archive site or wherever DVDs and Blu-rays are sold.

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for over 25 years. She also writes about products and travel. She has been published in national and international newspapers and magazines as well as Internet websites. She has written her own book, Beyond the Red Carpet The World of Entertainment Journalists, from Sourced Media Books, is the entertainment correspondent for Good Day Orange County, and has her own TV show, Beyond the Red Carpet, on Village Television in Orange County. Follow her on Twitter.