By Jeremy Kinser

All-American Girl

Years before she became the go-to celeb speaker for equal rights events and before she became every gay guy's dream gal pal, caustic comic Margaret Cho starred in the groundbreaking television series All-American Girl, the first network series to focus on an Asian-American family. Inspired by her own life and comedy, Cho starred as Americanized Margaret Kim, forever engaged in a culture clash with her more traditional Korean relatives, one of whom was played by out actor B.D. Wong. Despite guest appearances by Jack Black, Oprah Winfrey, and Quentin Tarantino -- in an episode that spoofs Pulp Fiction -- the show wasn't especially funny and was cancelled after one season (all 19 episodes are available on this four-disc set). The show's main significance is the fodder it provided for the star's stand-up act. Bonus features: New interviews and audio commentaries by Cho, who recalls the standing ovation the cast received from the mostly Asian-American audience at the first taping. She also candidly discusses the weight she lost because the network felt she was too fat to play herself and admits to being starved and "out of it" during the filming of a family dinner scene.

The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Complete Third Season

Another all-American girl, Mary Richards, associate producer of Minneapolis' WJM evening news, was the focus of Mary Tyler Moore's classic eponymous sitcom. One of the few long-running series that actually grew in quality over the years, MTM ran for seven seasons and featured one of the most talented ensembles (Ed Asner, Valerie Harper, Ted Knight, and Cloris Leachman) and some of the best writing in television history. Season Three features several of the series' better episodes: "Put On A Happy Face," in which the usually spunky Mary experiences Murphy's Law; "The Good-Time News," can almost be viewed as a precursor to the 1976 film Network, as Mary tries to make the six o'clock news more upbeat to boost sagging ratings; and Georgia Engel joined the cast as Ted Baxter's sweet, much-put-upon girlfriend Georgette in "Rhoda Morgenstern: Minneapolis to New York." Of particular note is "My Brother's Keeper," which must have been daring at the time: Phyllis (the glorious Leachman) tries to play matchmaker to her brother and Mary, only to learn unexpectedly that he's gay. Phyllis is just happy he's not interested in her nemesis Rhoda. All 24 episodes from The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Complete Third Season are available on a four-disc set. Bonus features: None, but with a series this tight, why quibble?

The Ultimate Lesbian Short Film Festival

Ten new short films made by, for, and about lesbians are compiled in The Ultimate Lesbian Short Film Festival. While the films are of varying quality, as they tend to be on compilations like this, all are accessible and worth a look. Two standouts are Barbara Green and Michelle Boyaner's documentary Tina Paulina: Living on Hope Street, about a homeless Latina lesbian with a remarkably upbeat attitude who lives on the streets of downtown L.A., and Michelle Ehlan's Half Laughing, a touching look at a butch lesbian who returns home for a family funeral only to be confronted by her mother's homophobia.