Wall Street Journal on Mad Mad World Restore (1 Viewer)

[paul o'donnell]

Wow! That's one amazing odyssey there. I was all tingly while reading that article. Bob Harris is a hero, if he pulls this off he's a god!

Holding tiny pieces of film against a light, Mr. Berman discovered that several contained scenes he didn't remember from the movie. Thinking he was on to something, he returned to the storehouse, only to find that the other boxes were already gone.

That is very sad, how something THIS important can just so easily dissapear into the trash :frowning:

 

[MatthewA]

Well this is certainly encouraging. I can't wait to see how this turns out.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Okay, let me let more of the cat out of
the bag....
I was contacted a few short weeks ago
from Mr. Harris. He invited me to come up
to his NY office because he had something very
special he thought I would be interested in
seeing.
Mr. Harris knew all too well that I was a
huge fan of Its a Mad Mad Mad Mad World,
and was very disappointed that MGM did not opt
for a full restoration of the roadshow for DVD.
As the Wall Street article points out, Mr.
Harris has tracked down material for the film
never before seen since the original roadshow
release.
Some of the material is in audio form only.
Some of the material is print, but missing a
hair of dialogue at the seams. What is also
missing is a blueprint as to how all this should
be pieced together.
What Mr. Harris has been secretly doing is
putting together a restoration of the original
roadshow elements. Some of the material shown
on the laserdisc release probably will not be
included as it never was supposed to.
If Mr. Harris can bring the cost of the restoration
within an attractive budgetline, chances are very
good that MGM could give him the go-ahead to do
the roadshow version that studio should have done
in the first place. Fortunately, it is my
understanding that MGM is being very open-minded
to this project and they have shown genuine interest
in doing a roadshow version.
I could not talk about any of this until the
Wall Street Journal story broke. Since it's all
out there, I can tell you what I know.
In about a week or two, I am taking a trip
to see Robert Harris. With camera in hand, I
intend to take as many pictures possible of the
work that is being done. I plan to write a full
report for this forum soon after.
Though the outcome of Mr. Harris's efforts is
no assurance that MGM is going to accept the
budget proposal, at least this is the closest that
we have come to getting the roadshow version out
there for the public to see.
Let us keep our fingers crossed.

 

[paul o'donnell]

Wow, thanks for that Ron. I await that report very anxiously.
Even if MGM doesn't pick the restoration up (read: They'd BETTER!!) it's good to know that the elements DO in fact exist. I don't know, it sort of gives me hope for the preservation of film in general.
Anyway, I've got wayyyyy to many posts in this thread, so I'll shut up now

 

[Gary Rhine]

Mr. Harris has tracked down and uncovered material for the film never before seen, but definately part of the original roadshow version.

How can it be both?

 

[Eric Paddon]

A fascinating thread. I'm especially pleased to hear that part of the "police bulletins" Entr'acte has turned up since I've always wondered what that must have been like.

As to things in the LD that "weren't supposed to be there" could someone shed some more light on this for my benefit? Obviously this means that once again I have to hold on to the LD even if the best possible roadshow DVD comes out.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Eric,

My understanding is this....

When the Special Edition laserdisc was put

together, every scrap if material known for

the film at the time was included in the movie.

Not only was a small amount of it excised

footage never intended to be included in any

release, but since there was no blueprint for

the roadshow version, the scenes were improperly

placed.

 

[Tino]

If I recall correctly, in previous Mad World threads, Robert Harris called the LD version a "stop gap" version. He said it contained scenes that were in and out of sequential order and also included scenes that were never part of the original Roadshow version, outtakes perhaps.
Hopefully he will show up in this thread and expand upon his comments further.
Anyway you look at it, this is great news for Mad World fans. :b

 

[Greg_M]

It would be great if the film could be restored in time for the Cinerama Dome's Grand re-opening. May help pay a small part of the restoration costs.

 

[Robert Harris]

While I'm certainly happy to field a few queries from the Forum, Ron will be given a full tour through what constitutes a true reconstruction/restoration sometime in the near future, and I'd very much like to allow him to take the lead here, as he knows what the group will be seeking.

Re: the Dome, even if given a go-ahead with immediacy, the work would not be completed for close to a year. Further, elements of the Dome restoration would almost negate the film being run there and allowing it to appear with any quality. This is a pity, as they have a wonderful basic structure and a great sound system. The problem is in projection.

RAH

 

[Sam R. Aucoin]

Can someone please explain why the LD version is "put down" so much?

Granted - the MGM/UA LD "New Restored Version" does NOT represent the original roadshow version. But the "cover notes" and accompanying insert make it very clear that the original roadshow version could NOT be restored (at least at that time), and that the LD version apparently contained every previously deleted scene known to exist at the time.

In addition, I have often seen several people claim that the LD version that I referred to above (and which I own) did not restore the "lost scenes" in the "correct order". If that is true, why in world would Stanley Kramer participate in such a project where his original film is partially pieced together IN AN INCORRECT ORDER??? The back cover of LD box specifically states that MGM/UA "thanks Stanley Kramer . . . for their [another person is referenced] contribution which made this special presentation possible."

I can understand Kramer agreeing to participate in recreating the movie as close to the roadshow version as possible, CONSIDERING SOME OF THE FILM ELEMENTS WERE THOUGHT TO HAVE BEEN FOREVER LOST AT THE TIME THE LD SET CAME OUT.

But I again go back to what I believe is an important question I asked above: Why would Kramer participate in restoring the "deleted scenes" IN AN ORDER DIFFERENT FROM THE ORDER IN WHICH THEY WERE ORIGINALLY SHOWN?

Thanks in advance for any responses.

Regards,

Sam

 

[Damin J Toell]

I just hope they don't put it out on Pan&Scan since it's already been released on Widescreen. Like what they are doing with CAST AWAY.

DJ

 

[Michael St. Clair]

Um, posting the WSJ article is a copyright violation, and could get the forum in a LOT more trouble than the usual discussions of bootlegs and macrovision that pop up from time to time (which really couldn't get anybody in trouble at all).
Regardless, it is very cool to see the WSJ breaking a story like this.

As the Wall Street article points out, Mr. Harris has tracked down and uncovered material for the film never before seen, but definately part of the original roadshow version.

Um, you are saying that nobody ever actually saw the roadshow version?

 

[paul o'donnell]

I assume it means since the original release but we know you were joking.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Michael,

A definite brain fart.

It should have read that it has not been seen

since the original roadshow release.

I will make the necessary corrections cause

you guys love ribbing the heck out of me on

my typos.

That's okay.

 

[David Lambert]

Good to hear from you, RAH, and I'm glad to know that you're monitoring this thread!
In a way, the Roadshow version is Ron's baby, and so I'll wait to hear what he has to say before I myself ask any questions. I'm sure Ron will demonstrate his usual thoroughness!
I'm excited. I did indeed hold off on the $9.99 version MGM put out. "Good things come to those who wait" indeed!!

 

[george kaplan]

Robert,

I look forward to your restoration of this on par with Rear Window and Vertigo.

While I understand (I guess) that the LD has some scenes not in the original roadshow version, I would hope that they would be available either as a supplement or a seamless branching version. I obviously don't know what the unintended scenes are, but I personally don't find anything overlong in the ld. I trust your judgment on these scenes, but I'd hate to have to hold on to the LD just to see one missing scene, especially if it was something like Buddy Hackett saying "So it's every man, including the old bag, for himself".

 

[Gareth Flynn]

You know, I'd buy the eventual DVD just for an in-depth documentary on the whole restoration saga. I really hope you get some lucky breaks on the missing footage, Mr Harris!

 

[Peter Apruzzese]

I'm excited. I did indeed hold off on the $9.99 version MGM put out. "Good things come to those who wait" indeed!!

You should absolutely purchase the current version. MGM's decision to finance the restoration will come from the perceived market for the film. They feel that any sale of the current version will ALSO be a sale for the new version. The more people who buy it now will help convince them to pony up the cash that RAH needs to do this project.

 

[Brian Kidd]

Let me go on record as saying that what I am about to write should in no way be taken as a personal affront or insult to Ron. I respect his opinions and admire him for the work he has done with the Forum.

That being said, Ron, weren't you the one who, just a few short weeks ago, proclaimed that you would not buy the new 1776 dvd when it is released because it didn't contain everything that was on the LD, even though the director of said film insists that some things that were included on the LD were never meant to be there? What is the difference in this case? Mr. Harris is going to have to do some mighty detective work to figure out where the Roadshow scenes should be placed in his version as Stanley Kramer is sadly no longer with us. In the case of 1776, the director is alive and well and is reassembling the film as he sees proper. Isn't that preferable, in the end?

Again, I mean no disrespect to Ron; I'm just interested in his opinion on the subject. Also, I applaud Mr. Harris in his efforts. He does more for film preservation and restoration than almost anyone else in the business.