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Believe it or not, it was a holiday release first-run! It premiered in December 1952. I suspect it was because Fox couldn't hold it for a July '53 release -- CinemaScope was coming, and STARS AND STRIPES FOREVER was standard-ratio, so Fox played it off before CinemaScope was launched. Excellent...

Here's why Amazon pulled the L & H set. Paul Mular reports: Shortly after its release Amazon withdrew the Laurel & Hardy DVDs from their listing and posted an "Item Under Review" notice. This means that they have received an excessive amount of returns due to scratched & damaged discs, so they...

A note for Tony -- Critic's Choice Video accepts checks and money orders; their price is $79.96. www.ccvideo.com

Make that two 16mm prints, Randy -- my HOG WILD has original titles. The new DVD set has some wonderful surprises. PERFECT DAY is seen in its traditional 1936 reissue with the musical score, but also in its original 1929 form, without the score. The usually muddy COME CLEAN is the best print of...

Certain of the Monogram backlog was originally handled by Motion Pictures for Television in the 1950s; the rights passed through Associated Artists Productions, then to Seven Arts, then to United Artists. Other Monogram packages (Bowery Boys, Bomba, some Charlie Chan) went from Allied Artists to...

UCLA is undertaking the restoration of most of the Hal Roach library. A few features have already been completed, but it will be years before all the titles have been restored. (There are dozens and dozens of picture and sound reels that must be examined for the Laurel & Hardy subjects alone.)...

Here's a quick explanation, Ron. In the 1980s the American video rights had been held by Robert Halmi of RHI Entertainment; Halmi licensed the films to the American Movie Classics network and issued them on VHS under his "Video Treasures" label. Then RHI was absorbed by Hallmark (the...

Amazon is now accepting pre-orders at a 30% discount: http://www.amazon.com/Laurel-Hardy-The-Essential-Collection/dp/B005BYBZKY/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1311091238&sr=1-1

The first with Clements (FIGHTING TROUBLE) is okay; Clements plays "Duke Coveleskie" about the same as he plays "Stash Martin" in MILITARY ACADEMY -- streetwise, not much humor. HOT SHOTS shows him to better advantage, and by the time of HOLD THAT HYPNOTIST Clements has settled into the role...

Yes, the series is going on hiatus for four weeks (TCM is devoting February to Academy Award-recognized films). The Bowery Boys return with Huntz Hall and Stanley Clements on Saturday, March 5 (10:30 a.m. Eastern time).

TCM is indeed showing the entire run of the series, which concludes in April: April 2: LOOKING FOR DANGER April 9: UP IN SMOKE April 16: IN THE MONEY Thank you, TCM, for moving ahead with Huntz Hall and Stanley Clements.

Warner remade the printing negative for HOLD THAT HYPNOTIST in the early 1980s, and the 16mm syndication print is a slight step down from the former Allied Artists TV prints. Most of the TCM versions derive from 35mm so the quality should be fine across the board. Turner did run IN THE MONEY in...

SACH AND DUKE RETURN IN MARCH! TCM is running the first four Stanley Clements pictures: March 5: FIGHTING TROUBLE March 12: HOT SHOTS March 19: HOLD THAT HYPNOTIST March 26: SPOOK CHASERS No word yet about LOOKING FOR DANGER, which is not yet scheduled. I hope TCM runs it -- this and...

Some of the Warner prints are at least one generation removed from the Allied Artists originals. BOWERY BATTALION, for example, had to be reconstructed because not all of the 35mm reels were printable. Warner had to fill in with dupe 16mm footage, so the picture and sound quality varied sharply...

I applaud Warner Home Video’s intention of releasing the Bowery Boys features to DVD. I realize that the master materials are in variable condition, which has been a stumbling block in offering the films chronologically. (After all, 48 features multiplied by seven reels of picture and seven...