When are We going to see a Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea DVD Release?!!!!!

Great to hear that Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea is on the way Let's hope that Fox gives us complete/unedited, restored(this might be asking too much) episodes with at least some extras.

This is great news, although not unexpected. Gord has hinted to us for months that Fox had this in the works. The only thing I wish is that there was at least a target month given. I hate the "coming soon" part, because it leaves the door wide open for many delays.

For instance, we haven't even received a date from Universal about "Leave it to Beaver" despite it being mentioned as coming soon for over a year now.

Don't get me wrong. I'm delighted with the news, but I'll reserve some of my exhuberance for an actual release date (probably not till 2006, as many of you have postulated).

Gary "again, this is great news - I'm just a little gunshy about these 'coming soon' type announcements" O.

Great news. Personally I hope they do TIME TUNNEL first. As a short one-season series, they can get it "out of the way" pretty quickly and then proceed with the longer VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA roll-out.

I can live with two half-seasons of these series the way they split up the last two seasons of LOST IN SPACE, but

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE - master them correctly (and well!) and put in all of the footage, as originally broadcast. We've waited a long time for these, so let's get them right the first time.

Harry

Well should there be an actual delay and taking (more) time will insure a superior DVD product then that's fine with me.

This is the first truly positive news that (anxious) fans of both VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA (ABC 1964-68) and THE TIME TUNNEL (ABC 1966-67) have been given to date...and that's really all that I've been personally waiting for!

Now the battle of getting a worthwhile DVD collection begins! In many ways I'm glad that 20th Century-Fox Home Entertainment commenced with LOST IN SPACE (CBS 1965-68) first as no doubt much was learned from the experience and it has afforded VOYAGE and THE TIME TUNNEL fans the time (and opportunity) to assert their thoughts and expectations beforehand.

These are two (truly) extraordinary 1960s SF tv series with a wealth of (potential) archival material associated with both.

However as it now stands the (inferior) video transfers currently in use for tv syndication of VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA and THE TIME TUNNEL are definitely not satisfactory enough...something that just can't be over emphasized!

There is much (significant) work that still has to be done here!

Jeff T.

I can't answer definitively for either series condition on current cable runs, since I dropped cable a few years ago.

Back when Sci-Fi was running TUNNEL and VOYAGE on weekday mornings in the late '90s, I did manage to tape all of the TUNNELs and about half of the VOYAGE episodes.

The TUNNELs looked far better in terms of print quality and sound than any of the VOYAGE episodes. The TUNNEL video quality was quite acceptable, and the audio sounded pretty good. I've been slowly transferring what I've got to DVD-R with not-to-shabby results.

VOYAGE, on the other hand, looked like worn out, faded 16mm prints, with fairly awful sound to go with it. Lot's of splashy 'S' sounds and warbly music. The black and white episodes were almost unwatchable.

To be sure, both series were edited for time, some sped up, and I'd like that corrected.

Harry

Well (as hard as one may try) you will never find another individual who is as knowledgeable of both VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA (ABC 1964-68) and THE TIME TUNNEL (ABC 1966-67) but since they both aired (mere days apart) on the ABC TELEVISION NETWORK it should really come as no surprise.

I find that Irwin Allen 1960s SF tv series fans tend to specialize into their own individual select groups.

Anyway there are 2 episodes of THE TIME TUNNEL currently in tv syndication that are completely missing the cliffhanger endings "Secret Weapon" (25/11/1966) and "The Revenge of Robin Hood" (30/12/1966).

The cliffhanger endings for 3 others are abruptly abrieviated at their conclusions missing the familiar tag "Next Week...see this fantastic adventure in...The Time Tunnel!."

As originally broadcast in primetime both "Rendezvous with Yesterday" (09/09/1966) and "One Way to the Moon" (16/09/1966) in addition to the traditional cliffhanger endings also had next week previews appended to them featuring a marvellous compilition of scenes from upcoming episodes dramatically narrated by VOYAGE announcer Ray Didsbury who emotionally proclaimed "See these amazing adventures in the incredible Time Tunnel!"

Currently the source elements used for tv syndication video copy of "One Way to the Moon" are in very poor condition (a major point-of-contention with the series fans particularly those who purchased the identical subpar video transfer from Columbia House) in addition to having some edits to it and missing the preteaser identifying bumper "Next...The Time Tunnel in colour!"

And as was previously mentioned by Harry a number of episodes currently released in tv syndication are (wretched) time compressed versions which is totally unacceptable under any set of circumstances...particularly with a (quality) DVD release.

I could also list the flaws (currently) evident in the tv syndication video copies for VOYAGE but Harry has already done a satisfactory effort addressing some of the major problems inherent with them.

As I said there is most certainly extensive (and exacting) work to be done on both shows to insure that they are (fully) presentable for a DVD release.

Are you taking any notes here 20th Century-Fox Home Entertainment?

Jeff T.

Actually, it was spelled "...in color", but I'll forgive you.

Those bumpers were required by ABC-TV from the program suppliers to replace their generic "This is an ABC Color Presentation" device that they used prior to Fall 1966, which itself was an answer, albeit a weak one, to NBC's peacock.

If you'd like to see the CBS and ABC color bumpers, go here: http://www.roadode.com/ (Go to the TUBETOWN section and scroll through the list of rare TV stuff to find those bumpers)

Thanks for the notes about which episodes of TIME TUNNEL have problems in the current syndication runs. It's sad that "One Way To The Moon" is of poor quality. And isn't it interesting that it's the second episode? As I recall, the LOST IN SPACE DVD first season set also had problems with its second episode being suspect, quality-wise.

Harry

Thank you for the interesting weblink to those original ABC and CBS TELEVISION NETWORK in colour bumpers. I remember them very well indeed and they look fantastic! Boy! Does seeing them again really stir up (long dorment) memoirs!

Anyway "One Way to the Moon" (16/09/1966) is one of my personal favourite episodes of THE TIME TUNNEL (ABC 1966-67) and it's a sad commentary that (at least in tv syndication) this particular segment should be (currently) in such lamentable condition.

Interestingly this was the only presentation of THE TIME TUNNEL that I happened to see in colour during its original primetime network broadcast back in 1966. At the time it looked truly spectacular indeed albeit after nearly 40 years since the show's initial ABC-TV airing it certainly seems somewhat modest in the wake of today's infinitely more extravagant and technologically advanced standards in tv production. Still it holds up very well as a highly entertaining SF adventure well presented.

But extensive restoration work will definitely be necessary for both VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA (ABC 1964-68) and THE TIME TUNNEL before either is (satisfactorily) ready for a (quality) DVD release to be sure.

Jeff T.

During TIME TUNNEL's original network run, I was reduced to seeing many of them in black & white. My family had a summer cottage that only had a black & white TV, so since we invariably went there on Friday nights for the weekend, I couldn't see the TUNNEL in all its color glory. Still, the show fascinated me, and I made every effort I could to watch the show in whatever form I could.

Once the fall season turned cold, around Thanksgiving, we'd close up the summer place and stay home, where the color TV was, so the episodes from December through early March were the ones I saw in color on that first run.

Then in the spring, it was back to the black and white - made even worse by the show's earlier time slot. Getting to that cottage after a workday/schoolday Friday by 7:30 PM was not easy - and on some episodes I missed the beginning.

Much changed the following year when TIME TUNNEL went into syndication. Here in Philadelphia, it went to UHF channel 29, an independent station. The odd thing was that they split the show up into half-hour episodes airing from 7 PM to 7:30 PM. So instead of 30 hours, they ran 60 half-hours. The editing was quite crude, usually just abruptly ending at the 30-minute mark, with no re-cap the next day. But at least I was seeing them in color much of the time. The Friday episodes were hard to see for the reasons outlined above, so I often missed half-episodes during that run.

The show all but disappeared after that, with perhaps one more run on odd Sunday afternoons on that same channel 29 sometime in the mid '70s.

After that, I was denied seeing a single frame of the show until James Darren actually brought a copy of "The Day The Sky Fell In" to the radio station I work for, sometime in the early '90s. He was being interviewed about his new line of pasta sauces, and the fellow interviewing him was interested in seeing a TIME TUNNEL episode again. So he brought in the episode on VHS and several of us made dubs.

The copy he brought in was a combination of a decent print of the sections used in the edited-together movies that Fox distributed, filled in with crappy footage from a worse-off 16-mm print for those sections that had been edited out.

It was a joy meeting Mr. Darren and he was quite personable and willing to chat about TIME TUNNEL along with hawking his sauces.

After that, I managed to find out about a mail-order guy who was trading copies of rare TV shows. I managed to get about ten or so episodes from him. These were unedited syndication episodes, several generations down on VHS, so the quality wasn't too good.

Whe SciFi premiered on cable, I salivated over the prospect of TIME TUNNEL running on that channel - which, of course, my cable company didn't carry. It wasn't until the late '90s that the stars were properly aligned to where I had cable, they carried SciFi who actually RAN TIME TUNNEL, and had the ability to tape the episodes for myself.

As I mentioned earlier, of course, these episodes are edited, so in reality, I've never actually had an opportunity to sit down and watch all 30 episodes as they were meant to be seen.

So when I say I'm extremely happy to see even the vaguest rumors of TIME TUNNEL coming out on DVD, you can understand why.

So, whats up with VTTBOTS (and Time Tunnel) boxsets?

Theyve practiacally been confirmed for Q4 2005, (via inserts in both US and UK FOX DVDs...yet the window to announce 'em by Christmas is rapidlynearing its end...

I was thrilled and dancing a jig around the room when I read the news on VOYAGE and TIME TUNNEL. Especially VOYAGE. That's THE big series that I've been missing from my collection that I've been waiting and waiting and waiting for all this time. I promised I'd buy two copies of the set if they released the series on DVD in an earlier thread (maybe this one? It was one of them...) and I'll probably do just that. HAVE to have my VOYAGE!!

I don't look for anything to come out until the first quarter of 06. Lost in Space has been released on that
general schedule of six to eight months apart. It's been pretty obvious that they have are looking at sales figures for the previous sets before they commit to a new set. That
also probably explains the reason for the poor print quality. By the time they know what the sales figures are and work the decision on future sets through the bureaucracy, it is probably too late for them to do much
with the picture quality.

Compare that with Paramount's committment to the Brady Bunch and Andy Griffith shows. To get them out on the breakneck schedule and with the quality of the pictures shows they have been doing some work on them. They had to have made a committment before knowing what the previous set's sales were.

Good question. I'm wondering when we'll see these 2. I'm one of the TT fanatics That's one that I'd given up on ever coming out on (official) DVD. I like "Voyage" as well but TT is one of my all-time fav's. I didn't know that it was being advertised on flyers in other sets. That's great news Now, the "home stretch" waiting continues... I'd love to see TT out in time for "Santa"

VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA (ABC 1964-68), THE TIME TUNNEL (ABC 1966-67) and LAND OF THE GIANTS (ABC 1968-70) are all scheduled for DVD release throughout 2006 with (from the sound of things) THE TIME TUNNEL (reputedly) to come out first.

Like the LOST IN SPACE (CBS 1965-68) DVD sets they will all be broken up into several volume sets (ie. VOYAGE will consist of 8 volumes).

The really BIG news is that all these classic 1960s SF tv series will be completely digitally remastered in high definition in absolute pristine condition complete and intact!

There are also many planned bonus extras to be included that will positively knock everybody out!

Believe it!

Jeff T.

Jeff, where are you getting this news? If all that is true (remastering and extras) then this is beyond my wildest dreams!

Gary "nothing against Time Tunnel, but I was hoping to see Voyage first" O.

Jeff, I certainly hope you're right! This is the best of all possible news - and I can't wait.

Harry "nothing against VTTBOTS and LOTG, but I'm sure happy to see TT first" N.

Can you really be comfortable knowing that if TT comes out first that I'll have to wait THAT much longer for Voyage? Can you live with that?



Bill "Desperately waiting for Voyage" M.

A "little bird" (unofficially) announced all this who should definitely know just what's going on!

However I'm leaving it up to 20th Century-Fox Home Entertainment to make the official announcements which the company will undoubtedly do in the upcoming months.

Just to give a sampler of what to expect all the unaired pilots for VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA (ABC 1964-68), THE TIME TUNNEL (ABC 1966-67) and LAND OF THE GIANTS (ABC 1968-70) will be thrown into their respective packages.

And in the particular case of VOYAGE there are actually two other versions of the pilot episode "Eleven Days to Zero" (14/09/1964) one (a black-and-white varient) that's never been shown in tv syndication before both of which will be included along with the original ABC Television Network primetime broadcast premiere presentation (making for a total of three).

How's that sound?

Even though THE TIME TUNNEL may indeed come out first (and it's still not absolutely definite as yet) VOYAGE will certainly be released before LAND OF THE GIANTS is. That you can be certain of...barring any unforeseen difficulties that is!

But all these Irwin Allen 1960s SF tv series are (at present) planned for the year 2006.

Personally speaking I'm the most skeptical of a LAND OF THE GIANTS set coming out so soon but that's what is being promised at present along with the other two that have been officially announced.

All this information applies to a North American region 1 DVD release mind you which suits me just fine.

Jeff T.

Ok, Jeff. I know you are passionate, like I am, about "Voyage" and therefore I'm sure you've done some legwork and received good, solid info. I love the news about the black & white version of the pilot being on the VTTBOTS set!

Gary "I'd still rather see Voyage come out first, especially when you consider it has more seasons to get through than Time Tunnel" O.

Thanks for that info Jeff. I'm drooling at getting all three of those VOYAGE pilots. The sets are really starting to sound like they'll be better than I could have hoped. I cannot WAIT for these. It would be great if they could have a little interview or something with Hedison or any other actors from the show in one or two of the volumes. Yeah, I'm a dreamer.

Logistically speaking (in my opinion) it would be sounder if VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA (ABC 1964-68) were released first because it's the more popular of the three remaining Irwin Allen 1960s SF tv series and (frankly speaking) I don't understand the rationale about going with THE TIME TUNNEL (ABC 1966-67) instead.

For that matter I happen to think that VOYAGE is more popular than even LOST IN SPACE (CBS 1965-68)!

It may have to do with 20th Century-Fox Home Entertainment being uneasy with the fact that the first season (1964-65) of VOYAGE was produced in black-and-white. It may have to do with politics in that somebody (influencial) at Fox Home Entertainment is a fan of THE TIME TUNNEL and has lobbied for that particular show...I really don't know why the company just doesn't move ahead with VOYAGE as a (strong) start and give the entire planned 2006 release of VOYAGE, THE TIME TUNNEL and LAND OF THE GIANTS (ABC 1968-70) some (much needed) impetus.

I happen to love THE TIME TUNNEL very much but if a DVD release tanks then it could (conceivably) jeopardize the entire scheme of things. While I feel that such a DVD collection would be a moderate success I honestly don't think it would prove to be nearly the (unabashed) commercial triumph that VOYAGE would be.

The same also applies to LAND OF THE GIANTS which to my thinking is just another LOST IN SPACE incarnation...and I've had enough of these kiddie-oriented shows for the time being.

I want (red) meat this time that I can sink my teeth into and ravenously devour...not mushy pablum! I want more adult oriented fare and certainly VOYAGE and THE TIME TUNNEL are that.

Pertaining to interviews or audio commentaries these actors (many of them who are still active members of the Screen Actors Guild of America) want to be paid for their services and considering that many of these tv series DVD releases are relatively inexpensive that's (precisely) what would be the main obstacle against including such extras in a commercial release coming from a (profit minded) major company like Fox.

However (as I've already intimated) there should be enough special features thrown in (ie. video transfers taken from fully restored and digitally remastered 35mm source elements, the original pilots, etc.) to more than amply satisfy most people.

Anyway it's good to see such healthy interest in VOYAGE and it's precisely this kind of support that will encourage 20th Century-Fox Home Entertainment to (possibly) rethink its (intended) plans.

Jeff T.

ETA: Ignore this post. I misunderstood the release schedule, so my calcualtions here are moot.

Working hypothetically with dates and number of sets needed, it could almost work out to an Irwin Allen set released every four weeks throughout 2006. There would be 14 sets total of the three series, and if the release schedule held to a four week window between releases, it almost fits into the 2006 calendar. Starting with January 3rd, the first Tuesday, the final set released would fall on January 2nd, 2007.

To keep it all in 2006, it's possible they could double up, or even shorten a release date or two to a two-week window.

Consider also that if the sets retail at the normal $30 per half season, the total bill for all of the 2006 Irwin Allen sets would be a mere $420. Quite a deal when one considers the price for the Star Trek sets!

Harry
...doing a little advance calculations, online...

Question for JeffT:

In anticipation of seeing these great shows next year, I dug out the pilot for VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA that I have. It's a color version from the SciFi Channel, airing sometime in the late 90's or early 2000's.

The credits list Theo Marceuse as playing Dr. Gamma, which he seemed to do for the latter half of the episode. Early on, though, I'd swear it was Werner Klemperer I was hearing.

What's the deal on this? Was it differentg in the black & white versions?

Harry

Oh! They're definitely not going to come out that fast! For one thing there's just too much restoration work to be done.

Incidentally did I mention that these DVDs are being released in "high definition"? I not certain whether they will be standard transfers or the newer, upgraded class of technology that is (gradually) being adopted by the major distribution companies.

The scheduling will (probably) be something like this:

Spring 2006

THE TIME TUNNEL (ABC 1966-67) The Classic Series, Volume One box set.

Summer 2006

VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA (ABC 1964-68) First Season, Volume One box set.

Fall 2006

LAND OF THE GIANTS (ABC 1968-70) First Season, Volume One box set.

and then on to 2007.

At best we'll only see three sets released in a single year until THE TIME TUNNEL is completed then (most likely) only two a year...if everything works out alright that is!

On the topic of interviews there was an abundance of extra celebrity material originally taped for THE FANTASY WORLDS OF IRWIN tv special (1995) that will (most) probably be utilized in these DVD sets so it's really unnecessary to call all these people back and pretty much have them say the same thing over again.

In response to the inquiry about the casting of Dr. Gamma in the VOYAGE pilot episode "Eleven Days to Zero" (14/09/1964) both Theodore Marcuse and Wernerer Klemperer are clearly seen and heard in the colour pilot version.

While I haven't viewed it in some time now I believe that only Theodore Marcuse is present in the black-and-white version that was (ultimately) broadcast on the ABC Television Network.

This may well be just why there are so many differing variations of the pilot episode in that for some reason Theodore Marcuse had to drop out (perhaps due to sudden ill health) then replaced by Werner Klemperer (who actually completed the pilot) and was later recalled to do his scenes (that were done by Klemperer) for the intended primetime network broadcast version.

This is (admittedly) all speculation on my part based on just what is in evidence in these pilots and the fact that it is Marcuse who is credited as being Dr. Gamma and not Klemperer.

Jeff T.

That's the type of schedule I figured we'd be looking at for these Irwin Allen series, thus my lament that "Time Tunnel" was probably coming ahead of "Voyage". It means I'll have to wait that much longer to see the best of the Irwin Allen shows.

Trust me, that first season of VTTBOTS was by far the most realistic and best written of all the shows in the IA stable. In fact I'll always maintain that "Sub Sunk Here" is the best episode, not only of Voyage, but of all the series.

Gary "hoping beyond hope that Fox changes their mind and releases VTTBOTS first" O.

My mistake then in interpreting the "all of them coming out in 2006" statement. I thought that all episodes were coming out in the year 2006!

Better they should take their time and do it right than rushing it to print. But naturally, many of us are anxious, so the wait will become even more intolerable knowing that they're right around the corner.

Harry

I thought you said 'remastered in high definition'. Which implies an SD release from new HD masters.

It's been so long since I've last made a message post that I almost forgot how to login!

Anyway VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA (ABC 1964-68) fans take heart!

According to THE BOSTON GLOBE online Top 50 SF Shows of All Time list our own beloved VOYAGE actually beat out the indomitable LOST IN SPACE (CBS 1965-68) on this lineup (which doesn't even include either THE TIME TUNNEL or LAND OF THE GIANTS) by ranking an impressive 30 over SPACE's 33.

I always knew that VOYAGE was the most popular of Irwin Allen's 1960s SF tv series and to hold back its DVD release any further just doesn't make any kind of sense.

Are you listening 20th Century-Fox Home Entertainment?

The Top 50 SF TV Shows of All Time (Click Here).

Note: If you wish to access this online list twice (in succession) it will probably be necessary to (completely) clear out all your cookies files first.

Jeff T.

Am I the only one who fears that Time Tunnel won't be remastered (as Lost in Space wasn't) and that they'll take the same tapes that are airing on Encore with the missing In Colors and missing teasers?

According to an "informed" source who should well know what's going on VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA (ABC 1964-68), THE TIME TUNNEL (ABC 1966-67) and LAND OF THE GIANTS (ABC 1968-70) will all be fully restored and digitally remastered in high definition so there should be no unwarrented concerns on this.

However whether the original "in colour" pre-teaser bumpers will be included remains to be seen. It will all really depend upon whether they are actually present in the existing 35mm print negatives that are used.

You will recall that all of this extra sort of material (including the next week previews) were featured separately from the actual episodes themselves in the LOST IN SPACE- SEASON THREE, VOLUMES ONE and TWO sets.

The current news that's circulating is that all three IRWIN ALLEN 1960s SF tv series are scheduled for release in mid-2006...which if proves to be true will certainly (somewhat) set back those who intend to buy all three!

Better start saving those (extra) dollars just in case!

Jeff T.