IN THE PIPELINE:

I’m sitting in the makeup chair at KOCE-TV here in Huntington Beach, getting ready to appear on Real Orange, hosted by Ed Arnold and Ann Pulice.

There’s a swirl of excitement and activity in the room, but it’s certainly not being generated by me. Rather, the buzz is all about the dazzling woman who has just entered the room, song and dance legend Mitzi Gaynor, whose high-wattage verve and personality is lighting up the space with electricity that only the true stars can generate. Mitzi is here in Huntington Beach to appear on Real Orange as well, and then also to take part in some KOCE pledge drive segments with Maria Hall-Brown, where they will promote Mitzi’s new DVD documentary, “Mitzi Gaynor: Razzle Dazzle! The Special Years.”

Mitzi looks great, and as she takes the chair next to me (“Make me look beautiful, darling,” she coos to the makeup woman), we get to chat a bit about her colorful career, from “South Pacific” to performing alongside the Beatles on Ed Sullivan to her legendary song and dance TV specials, which are at the heart of her new DVD.

Earlier in the day I watched a preview copy of the show, and it was crystal clear why the name of the program is “Razzle Dazzle.”

Gaynor’s TV variety specials in the 1960s and ’70s were the stuff of big-ratings legend, fueled by high-energy dance numbers, mega-star guest shots and of course, the shimmery, seductive brilliance of dress designer Bob Mackie.

Some background: Mitzi, born in 1931 in Chicago, made her motion picture debut costarring with her childhood idols Betty Grable and Dan Dailey in “My Blue Heaven.” The studio, quick to capitalize on her vivacious talent, cast her in a succession of audience-pleasing comedies and musicals including “Golden Girl,” “Bloodhounds of Broadway,” “We’re Not Married” and “The I Don’t Care Girl.”

Eventually, Mitzi would also appear with Marilyn Monroe, Ethel Merman, Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby and many others, singing, acting and dancing her way through productions including “There’s No business Like Show Business,” “Les Girls” and “Anything Goes.” But it was her performance in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “South Pacific” that firmly put her on the map forever.

Early in her career, Mitzi met the man who would not only become the guiding force of her professional life but also the great love of her personal life, Jack Bean. Their more-than-50-year marriage and career partnership resulted in much of Mitzi’s success. Sadly, Jack passed away in 2006, at the age of 84.

While Jack’s touch guided Mitzi’s career in many ways, perhaps his most successful move was helping her land the role of “Nellie” in 1958’s “South Pacific,” which opened to critical acclaim and international box-office success. The soundtrack, featuring Mitzi’s performances of “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair” and “A Wonderful Guy” among others has never gone out of print and remains to this day a perennial seller. For her performance, Mitzi was nominated for a prestigious Golden Globe Award as Best Actress in a Musical.

Getting back to the new DVD, as iconic as her performances in “South Pacific” were, watching the clips from Gaynor’s energetic TV specials are a revelation. This brand of glossy, big-budget variety spectacle has gone out of vogue today, but it’s easy to wonder if it still couldn’t find a new audience today. Watching Mitzi perform with Bob Hope, Michael Landon and a galaxy of other stars, listening to the skilled arrangements of Gershwin and Cole Porter classics, this is sheer, pure entertainment served up in gigantic, Technicolor scoops.

But in the end, the shows work because of Mitzi. Provocative in her sexy Bob Mackie gowns (“I made the Catholic church nuts” she laments, but with a twinkle in her eye), she is beguiling through each frame — a sultry song and dance pin-up virtuoso for the ages.

Back in our makeup chairs, Mitzi tells me how just the night before, she was honored at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (where her new DVD was screened) — and how the attention made her cry a bit. Then she tells me how in 1963, she performed a nine-minute song and dance number in between Beatles performances on the “Ed Sullivan Show” (“Great kids,” she says of them). We chat some more, then go tape our respective segments on the show.

Before I leave the studio though, Mitzi reemerges for her pledge drive taping. Now dressed in black sequins, she’s the epitome of showbiz glamour. She waltzes across the studio to find her mark with Maria Hall-Brown, and everyone in the room is transfixed. There’s just something about old Hollywood.

“Mitzi Gaynor: Razzle Dazzle! The Special Years” will appear on KOCE at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, 9 p.m. Nov. 27 and 4:30 p.m. Nov. 28.

Some other notes: The Vegan Vixens, profiled in this column recently, are playing the House of Blues in Anaheim at 8 p.m. Monday. Arrive by 7:30 to get a good seat.

Thanks to the Rotary Club of Huntington Beach for having me speak at their luncheon last week. It was an honor to be invited (and to receive their commemorative coin). The Rotary Club does great work in the community for those in need, especially during the holidays.

Finally, I have this new book out called Vanishing Orange County, which takes a look at places here in Orange County that either no longer exist (or that are on the verge of disappearing). Arcadia Publishing has generously donated a couple of copies for giveaway (along with a companion postcard set), so if you’d like to be eligible to win one, e-mail me your name and it will be put in the pot for a drawing.

CHRIS EPTING is the author of 15 books, including “Vanishing Orange County,” released this week. Write him at chris@chrisepting.com.