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TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX HOME ENTERTAINMENT DEBUTS Manufacture-On-Demand DVD SERIES (1 Viewer)

Doug Bull

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Regarding "All Hands On Deck"
Lionel, my burnt fingers have become far too sore to click on the Fox Archives "buy it now" button.
Certainly "The Best Things In Life Are Free" and others have left plenty of blisters.

It saddens me so much to think that I once had access to a very colorful 35mm Deluxe Scope print (it was a joy to watch), but now I shudder to think of what Fox archives may have done with the film. (although in fairness the old print I mentioned, if it still exists, would by now be very pink)

If only Fox Archives could lift their game then maybe I could use my fingers again. ;)

Doug.
 

lionel59

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Thanks Doug. I can relate. In the '70's I saw many very pink De Luxe prints. I was always thankful for a Fox 'Scope film of the '50's- eg CARMEN JONES- which had been processed by Technicolor. They retained their color. I will have to wait for a review of ALL HANDS ON DECK. I do not wish to see it missing 50+% of its image!
 

Robin9

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lionel59 said:
In the '70's I saw many very pink De Luxe prints.
I saw them too! Pink, faded and often very grainy! One reason I love Twilight Time BRDs such as Desiree and Beloved Infidel is that they enable me to see these films as if for the first time.
 

ahollis

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Received CALL ME MISTER, SITTING PRETTY and ROYAL SCANDAL today. Will not be able to give then a chance until tomorrow so hoping for decent transfers. I will give my thoughts tomorrow.
 

lionel59

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If the Archives transfer of A ROYAL SCANDAL is lacking, there was an excellent UK release, a Preminger double feature containing this movie (begun by Ernst Lubitsch) and MARGIN FOR ERROR.
 

Doug Bull

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Lionel, unfortunately not all prints of "CARMEN JONES" have escaped the color fade.

Here is the present appearance of two faded 35mm scanned frames.
The third one I experimented with photo shop and was able to return some color.

carmen1.jpg


carmen2.jpg


carmen3.jpg
 

lionel59

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I'm sure Fox's dvd release was transferred from a new, restored print taken from the black and white 3-strip (protection) IP negatives. I am sure the upcoming BLU RAY will be taken from the same print or a new one struck in the same way. I hope they include the HOLLYWOOD BACK STORY which was not on the SD release (and should have been, it was made before the SD release came out).I happen to be seeing a screening of a 35mm print of this film (with THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN ARM) this Wednesday as part of a 3-week Otto Preminger festival at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image in Melbourne. I believe the print is coming from an archive in the UK.Another Technicolor print from an Eastman negative which retained its color for many years here was EAST OF EDEN. They used to pair this with very faded prints of REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE in the '70's and '80's.Eastman color (ie.a single-stip negative process as opposed to 3-strip Technicolor) may have saved the studios money but has necessitated much expenditure re preservation and restoration (the negatives fade as well, thus the need to kind of use the Technicolor process and manufacture 3-strip b+w protection negatives which then shrink at different rates). Fox junked their Technicolor negs and transferred their early color films to Eastman stock, losing color vibrancy and accuracy. Now these are in different degrees of decay through fading and storage issues, thus the poor masters we are being subjected to by the Fox MOD people. Ted Turner deserves credit for saving the film libraries of MGM, Warners and RKO and-in particular-restoring and preserving the Technicolor films from these studios for posterity. This is why we can see such great Blu Ray presentations of EASTER PARADE,THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD etc and also why the early films in the Warner Archive catalog look so good.
 

marcco00

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just finished watching the two latest betty grable releases.

MEET ME AFTER THE SHOW has some low contrast issues similar to (but not as bad as) the WABASH AVENUE transfer. luckily this can be fixed with me adjusting my tv settings to accomodate.

CALL ME MISTER looks better than i have ever seen it.

betty is just great fun. had an enjoyable evening with this double feature of her 1951 musicals.

i also think she did some of her BEST dancing in these two films (working with dan dailey, gwen verdon, the dunhill dance team-impressive!- busby berkley and jack cole being the choreographers
 

Jobla

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I just received two "teen" releases, SURF PARTY and THE YOUNG SWINGERS. Both "have been modified to fit my TV," but both look pretty good in terms of the visual compositions. Image quality is also pretty good. The transfer of SURF PARTY is very slightly darker than the print of it that has aired on the Fox Movie Channel.
 

Doug Bull

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More misery coming my way?

I just ordered 5 more. :wacko:
"Call Me Mister", "Meet Me After The Show", "Wake Up And Live", "Irish Eyes Are Smiling" and "The I Don't Care Girl".

Expectations=?????


Below is an original 35mm frame scanned from the trailer.
 

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marcco00

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you are welcome Doug, the grable musicals will not disappoint!!

i have THE I DON'T CARE GIRL on my wish list, i have never seen it!

the dance numbers by jack cole are said to be spectacular
 

Richard--W

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GeorgeOBrien-1930s_zpse029d73b.jpg



I hope Fox will seriously consider bringing a dozen Zane Grey adaptations starring George O'Brien to its MOD program. These were A-list westerns for the time, with literate and adult stories, and Fox spent substantial money on them between 1930 and 1934. O'Brien was already a member of John Ford's stock company when he became a western star. These early talkies had an impact on the western genre, and on John Ford in particular. Although Ford did not direct them, the more you watch them the more you perceive their influence on Ford's own westerns. THE LAST OF THE DUANES and its sequel LONE STAR RANGER were energetic outdoor adventures, artfully shot. The sound was tinny, but they were superior productions in every way. RIDERS OF THE PURPLE SAGE (1931) is the masterpiece in the bunch, with location photography in the red-rock country of Sedona, Arizona that is no less majestic than Monument Valley. The sequel THE RAINBOW TRAIL (1932) is equally noteworthy. RIDERS OF THE PURPLE SAGE gives STAGECOACH (1939) a run for its money as the best western of the 1930s. In fact, I'm beginning to think of STAGECOACH as a kind of synthesis of O'Brien's early westerns at Fox. I'll bet you Ford knew each film by heart, shot for shot.

1934 Thunder Mountain
1933 The Last Trail
1933 Life in the Raw
1933 Smoke Lightning
1932 Robbers' Roost
1932 The Golden West
1932 Mystery Ranch
1932 The Gay Caballero
1932 The Rainbow Trail
1931 Riders of the Purple Sage
1931 A Holy Terror
1931 Fair Warning
1930 The Last of the Duanes
1930 Rough Romance
1930 The Lone Star Ranger

No evaluation of the western and the progression of the genre is complete without a reconsideration of George O'Briens early talkie westerns at Fox.

The proof is in the pudding:

FairWarning-1930-smaller.jpg

LoneStarRanger-1930-smaller.jpg

RidersOfThePurpleSage-1930_zps25ba492c.jpg

RainbowTrail-1931.jpg

GoldenWest-1932-smaller.jpg

RobbersRoost-1932-smaller.jpg

SmokeLightning-1933-smaller.jpg

LastTrail-1933-smaller_zpsf69e1e40.jpg

ThunderMountain-1935.jpg


and

FrontierMarshal-1934-A.jpg
 

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moviepas

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What needs to be answered is if all these do exist at Fox or archives about the place. Failing that those artist created posters are superb. I knew an old lady who was looking for some of those titles on video a few years ago because her father had brought her up on Zane Grey books when she was growing up in New Zealand. She was also looking for a couple of documentaries Zane made out her way to do with fishing.
 

bujaki

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I saw many of these titles in 16mm prints belonging to a private collector who left them to an archive, I forget which.
Richard--W's passion for these films is well founded. They, and George O'Brien's career, need to be re-assessed.
 

SeanAx

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Richard - those are gorgeous posters. Thanks for sharing and whetting my appetite for these films. Here's hoping Fox takes note.
 

Richard--W

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Sinister Cinema sells RIDERS OF THE PURPLE SAGE (Fox, 1931) on a DVD-R, transferred from an old, heavily used and murky 16mm dupe. It's certainly no threat to an official release but it's worth buying because there's no other source out there, that I know of. Some of the other titles are available in the same or lesser quality from the usual private collector sources online. One really has to work at finding copies of these films. The posters I have only as electronic scans.

As an aside, all of Fox's Zane Grey adaptations starring George O'Brien were remakes of earlier versions starring Tom Mix, Gary Cooper, and other actors. They, and the concurrent adaptations being made at Paramount, were the first talkie versions. I'm finding out that a number of the silent versions survive as well. The 1925 version of RIDERS OF THE PURPLE SAGE starring Mix is different but an equally impressive film.
 

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