Opinions About Chance Of BluRays of Classic TV Shows (1 Viewer)

[MCCLOUD]

The recent discussion on this board about people waiting to get the Fugitive until it is released on Blu Ray made me think of this topic. I would like to give my opinion and ask for others opinion on this topic. When I refer to classic TV I am talking about TV Shows made in the 1950's, the 1960's , and the 1970's. Also any show made during these decades could be a classic, depending on one's opinion. For example to me Cannon and Barnaby Jones are classics. I will state that I don't think there is much chance of many classic shows to be released on BluRays due to the lack of enough units being sold. Here are some of my reasons:
1. The high cost to the studios of making them
2. The lack of a big enough market.
3. Classic TV fans are not getting younger! Think how many have died since 2007?
4.Many people who own the shows on DVDs will not double dip to get it again on Blu ray.
5. Shows with excellent DVDS quality like most of CBS. Andy Griffith, The Fugitve, Streets of San Francisco, etc the difference in improved Video quality with Blu ray is not as. Noticeable and most would say regular DVDS is good enough for them.
I think someone has posted that The ANdy Griffith Show and Lucy have not sold well on Blu ray.
I could be wrong but I just don't think a lot of 1950's,1960's, or 1970's shows will come out on Blu Ray. I don't think The Fugitive will come out on Blu Ray so I would say go ahead and get The Fugitive The Most Wanted Edition. What do other members think?

Take Care!
Robert

 

[davidHartzog]

Agree, seems pretty unlikely. There are plenty of classic shows not even on dvd yet-The Name of the Game, 77 Sunset Strip, for example. I wouldn't wait on BD for something I liked that became available on dvd.

 

[TravisR]

I think the odds are tremendously against the Blu-ray release of any TV show that isn't either sci-fi or current. And when I say current, I don't mean recent, I mean still in production and running on TV.

 

[Richard V]

I think the odds are tremendously against the Blu-ray release of any TV show that isn't either sci-fi or current. And when I say current, I don't mean recent, I mean still in production and running on TV.

I'd say The X Files has a decent chance. Wasn't there an announcement a few months ago that it was coming out on BD? Or am I dreaming that?

 

[Walter Kittel]

I would guess that genre shows would have the best chance. I would agree with Richard regarding The X-Files and I would love to see the original The Outer Limits released on Blu-Ray; but I'm not holding my breath on either series.


- Walter.

 

[classicmovieguy]

I'll always prefer having my TV shows on DVD... reserving Blu-ray for films, but that is just me.

 

[David Rain]

One of the reasons so many "classic" (or just plain old) shows will never arrive on Blu-ray is because it's not possible in some cases. Videotaped shows (as opposed to filmed) simply are not high quality enough to qualify for BD.


Instead of worrying about getting some of these nearly-impossible shows released on disc, fans need to try getting the shows picked up by the many "retro"-style TV channels. You're much more likely to have luck with that than with getting some of these shows put out on dying media formats with sometimes-sluggish sales.

 

[Sky King]

I think one problem with TV shows on Blu-ray is their initial expense, which turns off all, but the diehard fan.

Distributers of these blu-rays who look at initial sales, see that sales are weak and figure there is nio interest in the series.

They are not looking at the fact people dont want to, or can't afford to, shell out $150.00 bucks for a DVD set.

I can justify a higher cost for blu-ray, but there is no reason why they should be so much more expensive then a regular HD DVD set.

 

[Mr. Handley]

It hard to say what shows will end up being released. There are a lot of shows I never thought would see the light of day on DVD. Also, who would've thought that a show like Little House On The Prairie would get the Blu-ray treatment (and highly affordable to boot)! If they were to stop making DVDs today, I'd already have enough to watch for the rest of my life, so I'm happy.

 

[TravisR]

I'd say The X Files has a decent chance. Wasn't there an announcement a few months ago that it was coming out on BD? Or am I dreaming that?

Like I said, sci-fi shows have a chance but that's about it for most shows that aren't current.

 

[LeoA]

I wish that Image would revisit Combat!, after seeing the nice job they did with the Twilight Zone and the Dick Van Dyke Show.


Sadly, the one that would've benefited the most from the upgrade, is the one that seems all but certainly set to not happen (The transfers on the DVD's, while very watchable, were quite lackluster compared to the original DVD releases of the other two).


Does Image do anything these days with classic tv on DVD or Blu-Ray? Too bad they're not keeping busy it seems, since the job they've done in the past was top notch.

 

[Dave Lawrence]

In general, the pattern seems to be that a TV series that was made prior to the 2000s gets released on DVD first. Then, maybe, a Blu-ray version comes out later on. With only a very few exceptions, I have no interest in re-purchasing a series on Blu-ray that I've already bought on DVD. So with physical media in general starting to enter its twilight years*, I'd rather that companies concentrate their time and money on putting out complete shows or remaining seasons of shows (whether on DVD or Blu-ray or both simultaneously) that so far haven't been released at all.



* I don't believe physical media is dying off right away - at least not nearly as quickly as some of the more vocal in the pro-streaming crowd might prefer - but I do think studios are preparing to concentrate more of their efforts on streaming over the physical. So I'm far less enthused about a possible double-dip upgrade from DVD to Blu-ray now that the clock is ticking when there is still so much that hasn't even seen an initial release. (I realize others may think differently; that's just my preference.)

 

[AndyMcKinney]

I think the odds are tremendously against the Blu-ray release of any TV show that isn't either sci-fi or current. And when I say current, I don't mean recent, I mean still in production and running on TV.

And even with current shows, many of them never make it to blu-ray, and the ones that do often have the blu-ray version cancelled part of the way through the run, although DVD seasons continue (Damages, Hawaii Five-O, Modern Family for example). Outside of 'genre' shows (sci-fi mostly), TV on BR is, apparently, not a very good seller in general even when it is attempted.


So, I'd heartily recommend buying (and enjoying) now and not waiting for something that is increasingly unlikely to happen.

 

[Ron1973]

I was just suggesting to one of my Brit friends this morning that I'd love to see The Phil Silvers Show on blu-ray from Medium Rare, the company that handled the DVD release in England. Mick Clews and Steve Everitt have both told me that the picture quality on that release is much more superior than the Shout! release. I'm probably dreaming but it would be nice.

 

[bmasters9]

Instead of worrying about getting some of these nearly-impossible shows released on disc, fans need to try getting the shows picked up by the many "retro"-style TV channels.

Ordinarily, I'd be in agreement, but then, with commercials as pervasive as they are, there might be more commercials, less show (outside of Encore Westerns, which seems to treat Gunsmoke and Cheyenne with respect).

 

[benbess]

CBS has already gone to the big expense of making high definition masters of The Fugitive, The High Chaparral, Bonanza, etc., etc. And yet at this point, as far as I know, no one anywhere is watching these programs in HD. CBS even has a new streaming service that costs c. $6 a month, but as far as I can tell none of these shows are up there:


http://www.cbs.com/shows/


I find this puzzling. Why did CBS make these HD masters if no one ever gets to watch them?

 

[benbess]

I think I agree with everything Robert wrote in his first post. And yet, unrealistically perhaps, I wonder if there's still room for more classic TV on blu-ray.


CBS releasing I Love Lucy on blu with an msrp of $120 a season, however, seems to me close to crazy.


Little House on the Prairie, which has been released by Lionsgate, has an msrp of $25 a season, which is obviously much more likely to get the casual buyer.


Both of those price points might be considered extreme.


One fantasy I've had is something in between. For instance, what if a company like Twilight Time had a limited edition pressing of 1000 copies a complete series like The High Chaparral or The Fugitive for $199 for the whole show, which would be $40-$50 a season. Since the remastering and restoration work has already been done, maybe such a thing would be possible and would work....?


One of the challenges with releasing classic shows on blu-ray and DVD has apparently been that sales after the first season tend to drop off quite a lot. Selling the complete series from the get-go would help with that.

 

[bmasters9]

CBS releasing I Love Lucy on blu with an msrp of $120 a season, however, seems to me close to crazy.

That's quite honestly pretty close to crazy to me too; it could be, however, that Lucy has name recognition, as does Lucille Ball (one for being a classic comedy, the other a classic comedienne), so that could explain it.

 

[Regulus]

I only have two complete series on Blu-Ray. The Original Star Trek and The Dick Van Dyke Show. I got both because someone offered them CHEAPER than the DVD version. As for the other series I own on DVD I am happy with them just the way they are. If it ain't broke DON'T FIX IT!

 

[Bill Waits]

I think the biggest problem with the lack of Blu-Ray TV is that the studios think that they can charge an Uber-premium price for the Blu-Ray set over the DVD set, which is ridiculous. I don't remember specifics numbers, but I fully remember when the complete series of Lost was being released, the price point of the Blu-Ray vs DVD was too much to even consider. Absolutely ridiculous. Even when dealing with DVD, they master/remaster in HD (or above), so the absolute greatest expense is done (see recent Peanuts collection that was just announced...remastered in 4K HD, but only released on DVD....WFT?). Aside from a little possible Blu-Ray specific content, the menus, etc... will be basically the same, hence the cost difference will be negligible (if any), and yet to justify that with a 40% or more price hike over DVD is what choked people's reaction to getting TV on Blu-Ray. Because the market was already much more mature than the early days of TV on DVD, every TV on Blu's would not have necessarily flown out the door in super large numbers, but if managed/priced prudently, the long term success would have been much more guaranteed and we would have today a much more vibrant market rather than the crap situation that we have now (for most shows, only a couple of seasons released on Blu only to stop because of lack of sales).