The "wild and crazy" Festrunk brothers. Fred Garvin, male prostitute. Elwood Blues. Beldar Conehead. Irwin Mainway. The Bassomatic huckster. Julia Child. President Jimmy Carter. A veteran "Not Ready For Prime Time Player" and original "Saturday Night Live" cast member Dan Aykroyd created some of the more iconic characters and impressions in the show's history – helping fuel the comedy revolution of the late Seventies with blend of rebellious behavior and groundbreaking material.

Lions Gate's new The Best of Dan Aykroyd is a compilation of many of the above characters, including some truly surreal asides – "Mel's Char Palace" and "Pocket Pal" commercials, among others – that runs 90 minutes and covers a wide range of Aykroyd's material. Those who only know the above listed characters essayed by the Canadian funnyman might be pleasantly surprised while viewing this best-of collection – Aykroyd's got range and said range is on full display here; from the smarm of his Tom Snyder impersonation to the high-minded "Bad Ballet," Aykroyd consistently delivered complex, multi-layered sketches that are still just as hilarious in 2005 as they were in 1975.

Released in conjunction with The Best of Gilda Radner and The Best of John Belushi as well as the documentary retrospective, Live From New York: The First 5 Years of Saturday Night Live, this disc is a great snapshot of Aykroyd's ascension into the pantheon of American comedy, before he departed "Saturday Night Live" to create a string of great Eighties film comedies – The Blues Brothers, Trading Places or Ghostbusters, anyone?

The DVD

The Video:

The Best of Dan Aykroyd is offered in a 1.33:1 fullscreen transfer that, admittedly, doesn't look too great – largely due to the vintage nature of the clips. While the Seventies-era TV show hasn't aged too terribly, this is most likely the best these segments will ever look.

Much like the visual end of things, the audio options available here are restricted to Dolby 2.0 stereo, which is generally very clear and free of distortion. There are occasionally drop-outs or unintelligible portions but I feel that's inherent in the source material, rather than a fault of the disc.

In keeping with the other Lions Gate releases of "SNL" best-ofs, this disc features the animated menu and "SNL" theme music, as well as a fairly considerable number of extras. Aykroyd's original screen test, which runs five minutes, 42 seconds, is included, as is a photo gallery and Timothy White's late Seventies Rolling Stone article, "Messin' With The Kid." Also on board is "Dan Aykroyd: An Inside Look," a 19-minute featurette which is basically an Aykroyd-centric extension of the Live From New York: The First 5 Years of Saturday Night Live documentary which boasts interviews with Aykroyd, former cast member Laraine Newman, "SNL" mastermind Lorne Michaels, NBC executive Dick Ebersol, former cast member/writer Al Franken, former writers Anne Beatts and Alan Zweibel, "SNL" guest hosts Steve Martin and Candice Bergen, among others.

One of the original "wild and crazy guys" from the glory days of "SNL," Dan Aykroyd created some of the most memorable characters in the show's history. With this compilation, those who remember and those unfamiliar can revel in the hysterical hijinks perpetrated by one of "The Beatles of comedy." Recommended.