Speculation for Warner Bros. 85th Anniversary Celebration (1 Viewer)

[Richard M S]

Excellent news about Bette Davis, I knew they would have something in the Spring, which is when the US Postage Stamp will be released.

 

[KellyVO]

What are the other 3 titles?

 

[Robert Crawford]

Her 100th birthday is this spring so this boxset should be expected from Warner's (Non-MGM) biggest female star back in the day.

 

[Corey]

Source please?

 

[Frank M]

Source: Public relations, press release distribution, investor relations, SEC filing | Business Wire

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--On April 1st Warner Home Video (WHV) marks the return of the incomparable First Lady of Warner Bros., Bette Davis, with the debut of "The Bette Davis Collection Volume 3" honoring the legendary actress on what would have been her centennial birthday. The six-disc gift set will include six fully restored titles: "In This Our Life"; "The Old Maid"; "All This, and Heaven Too"; "The Great Lie"; "Deception" and "Watch on the Rhine." "The Bette Davis Collection Volume 3" will sell for $59.92 SRP.

"In This Our Life" (1942)

Two-time Best Actress Oscar® winners and lifelong friends Bette Davis and Olivia de Havilland square off as sisters (guess who’s the bad one) in "In This Our Life," a must-see for fans of melodrama at its juiciest.

"The Old Maid" (1939)

Based on an Edith Wharton novel and Pulitzer Prize-winning play, "The Old Maid" tells the sad story of Charlotte, a woman whose circumstances force her to give up her illegitimate child and pose as the child’s “old maid” aunt, thereby facing a lifetime of maternal sacrifice.

"All This, and Heaven Too" (1940)

Bette Davis is at the height of her phenomenal screen career, with co-star Charles Boyer in their only film together. The plot is rich in mystery and grand emotion; a powerful period drama honored with three 1940 Academy Award ® nominations, including Best Picture.

"The Great Lie" (1941)

Tempestuous, ambitious concert pianist Sandra Kovac (Mary Astor) shares a bond with down-to-earth Maggie Van Allen (Bette Davis) and her little boy Pete. Sandra’s chic New York friends can’t imagine what the two women have in common.

"Deception" (1946)

The three stars (Bette Davis, Paul Henreid, Claude Rains) and director (Irving Rapper) of "Now Voyager" reunite for this glamorous, angst-ridden melodrama set to a thrilling Erich Wolfgang Korngold score.

"Watch on the Rhine" (1943)

Lillian Hellman’s 1941 stage hit (adapted by Dashiell Hammett) retains its emotional and intellectual power in this suspenseful movie awarded the New York Film Critics 1943 Best Picture prize, and lauded as ”a distinguished film, full of sense, power and beauty” by the NY Times.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Great titles and I have no complaints.





Crawdaddy

 

[CineKarine]

Exactly my thoughts too! Terrific news from Warner once more!

April is going to be quite a month between this and the musicals

 

[ryanCollins]

al jolson,sybil jason-singing kid needs to be released.
all sybils movies she was wb's only child star in the 30s.
snowfire
more vitaphone shorts
snowfire

 

[ColbyCo82]

I also think a Jolson set is required. He was, like him or not, one of Warner's biggest stars in the early days. A two-disc set with The Singing Fool, Say It With Songs, and Mammy (and maybe Wonder Bar or even Big Boy) would make me happy.

 

[Danny Burk]

And, along the lines of early sound, I'd sure like to see a set of other Vitaphone features such as DON JUAN, WHEN A MAN LOVES, etc.

Not to mention the long-awaited Harlow set, and the great silents such as THE WIND, SCARLET LETTER, BIG PARADE, more Chaney, more Garbo, and Marion Davies

 

[Eric Peterson]

Who controls "Show Boat" right now?

There was an LD boxset that included all three versions of the film, and currently only one is available on DVD and that title desperately needs a re-issue.

 

[Danny Burk]

WB has already announced that it's in the works - no real date - with all three versions. Let's hope we see it this year!

 

[Charles Ellis]

Warners apparently owns all the versions of Show Boat, including the superior 1936 film directed by James Whale for Universal. When MGM via producer Arthur Freed began making plans to do a color version, the studio bought the whole film from Universal, the same way they bought the 1935 Roberta from RKO and the 1933 Little Women and 1937's The Prisoner of Zenda from David O. Selznick - to keep the older films out of circulation as new color versions were being made. Needless to say, each of the B/W versions were better than the color remakes!

Back to Show Boat- I have heard that Warners has practically most, if not all the soundtrack (from Vitaphone discs) of the 1929 version. I think there has been talk of all three versions being released together in a DVD set in the future- can someone confirm this?

 

[ColbyCo82]

I think there should be a documentary on the production and restoration of Show Boat '29. That film has really been through a lot over the years and I think it would make an interesting story.

As for the sound discs, I am unsure if all have been found. I really hope that if there are still some missing that I recorded off TCM has annoying silence during all the scenes that were supposed to have sound.

 

[CineKarine]

Hoping we will see some of the Warner all-star films of the 40s like Thank Your Lucky Stars, Hollywood Canteen, It's a Great Feeling... That would be one magnificent tribute.

 

[L BENDER]

Still waiting for FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD--WRESTLING ERNEST HEMINGWAY---SURVIVING PICASSO----GOODBYE MR CHIPS.

 

[Corey]

I second that emotion and movies with Ann Sheridan and Ida Lupino, too and those great Warner WW2 spy thrillers would be welcomed too.

 

[Charles Ellis]

And how about legit, restored versions of This Is The Army and Life With Father?

 

[John Hodson]

From Barrie Maxwell's first column of 2006:

"More distant Warner plans include a new release of the Cinerama film How the West Was Won (late 2006 or early 2007) and a 2007 release of the three Showboat films (1951, 1936, and 1929 - previously missing Vitaphone discs have been located for the latter), in honour of the 80th anniversary of the original Broadway production."

The plans are there, but the schedule is screwy...

 

[Edward Weinman]

I guess we are really talking about a tribute to 85 years of "film" (from WB's birth) and as controlled by WB (and, of course, that control is over a great amount of film history...MGM..RKO...).