[Scott Skelton]

Universal Studios recently announced an August DVD release for the first season of “Night Gallery.” Despite concerns from the DVD-preparation staff within the studio, who showed decision-makers a night-and-day comparison between an old print and a newly restored print, the marketing department decided to move ahead with the transfer to DVD using the old prints. Some episodes in the old mastering have music cue omissions and other errors that are now to be transferred permanently, for posterity, to silver disc, with substandard picture quality. With the new wave of high definition DVDs on the horizon, what does this executive decision say about this studio?
The icing on this rancid cake: no extras are being considered, even though they exist and could be easily added. No trailers, TV spots, commentary, interviews, paintings gallery, isolated scores, essays, nothing. The studio won’t even throw the fans a bone--another example among many of the careless attitude this studio has for the cultural legacy it stewards and for the customers who support it.
If you want to gear up to activist mode, there’s a petition to sign directed at Universal to reconsider their plan for an unremastered, no-frills release of “Night Gallery," but it can't be posted here. Rules, you know. So check out the NG site, www dot nightgallery dot net.

[Joe_Pinney]

Apparently they think profit can be had by NOT giving the public what they want. Hmm. Sounds like crack-addicted chimpanzees could be Universal executives.

[Rick P]

are these people NUTS? Weren't the 'restored' prints were used on the recent broadcasts on Starz Mystery channel? You mean they're NOT using those???

freaking morons..

[Scott Skelton]

Sorry to be unclear. They are using the same masters as the ones you saw on Starz. This mastering is fifteen years old, however, and it can't reveal the detail under scrutiny that a new remastering would (technology has advanced, and a large-screen TV will reveal the grain), and, more importantly, there are mastering mistakes imbedded in them: crackling soundtracks, missing music cues, and the like.

[Paul_Scott]

Damn.

with the flurry of TV titles that Universal has announced recently, i knew there had to be a "...but" somewhere.

the non-inclusion of extras, while they would have been nice, is not a deal killer for me.
to be honest, even the old transfers might not be either, but it sure would be disappointing.

this is the same thing that happened with Lost In Space, iirc.

being a big fan of this series, and highly doubting i would be seeing it this soon if ever, given Uni's track record, the one thing i DON'T want to see is Universal invest the time into remastering these only to see the sales be underwhelming- ala Mary Tyler Moore and have them then seriously drag their heels on EVER releasing any of the subsequent seasons.
that would suck worse, to me, than getting old masters.

on the other hand, if the first season sells well and surprises them, then i think we, the petioners, would be in a far better position to make requests.

just the feeling i get.

[Scott Skelton]

Paul, I understand your position. This is something of a gamble, I realize. Universal, when they get wind of this campaign, could decide to quash the release altogether. I doubt it, however. It's already in the pipeline, and the past has shown they will change their approach if the impetus (in the form of fan interest) is there (check out the studio response to fans for the "Somewhere in Time" release). But they've allowed a corporate consultant to sway them to undervalue the fervency of the fan base on Night Gallery. This fan base is pretty rabid. I've traded communiques with them over the past 10 years, and I'm certain they won't stand for this sort of shoddy treatment. This is Rod Serling's last series involvement; it is historically important, putting aside that it delivered an impressive percentage of great dramatic small-screen moments. Universal is still pretty green when it comes to their TV properties. They are not savvy yet on the market, since they only started to plan regular releases this year. I'm just trying to prevent them from committing a horrible mistake that will ultimately short-change them, the viewing public, and the legacy of Rod Serling.

[Kevin M]

Son of a bitch......I have been asking for these to be released to DVD for so long and now.....Universal, you are rapidly approaching Microsoft levels of corporate ignorance as far as knowing how to treat your patrons.

Has there been a change of guard at Universal's DVD department in the last three years? They used to be one of the best studios in the DVD arena.

[Scott Skelton]

I have been informed by someone privy to Universal's inner workings that, because of the NBC buyout last year--which just got finalized Monday--all the executives are frozen with fear. NBC is going to make all of them, regardless of seniority, audition for their jobs. And since all of them have been ignoring Universal's huge television library while every other studio in town has been taking advantage of theirs, they are likely going to be handed their respective golden parachutes and replaced by someone with a little more foresight. But we can't wait to see if NBC's execs are any brighter than Universal's. Night Gallery and Columbo are in the pipeline right now. If we want to see them done right, with proper attention to mastering and at least a passing nod to special features, we have to make sure their deals are fixed now, immediately, within the next month or two. Only then will Universal see that, if they release them in a properly respectful fashion, these old series will sell very well. In this case we're dealing with a collector's market, which is quite different from the more casual market they are used to from their feature releases.

[David Lambert]

Quote:

I have been informed by someone privy to Universal's inner workings that, because of the NBC buyout last year--which just got finalized Monday--all the executives are frozen with fear. NBC is going to make all of them, regardless of seniority, audition for their jobs.

This rumor has been floating around the DVD websites for quite some time. While I know it's true that for a while (a short time in retrospect) they were instructed not to release certain types of things, esp. catalog titles whether they be film or TV based, that was lifted and I never, ever heard that people's jobs were in jeopardy.


The other day, when the merger actually took place, this story appeared at Video Store Magazine's website:

Quote:

Source: Little Impact Felt in Home Video After NBC/VUE Merger
Author: ERIK GRUENWEDEL
Posted: May 12, 2004

Consummation of the merger between Vivendi Universal’s entertainment division, VUE, and NBC, a unit of General Electric, is not expected to result in layoffs within related home entertainment divisions, according to a source familiar with the deal.

Media reports have suggested that up to 300 personnel would lose their jobs when the two companies combine similar units.

The new media company, called NBC Universal, which would have had $13 billion in revenue in 2003, has estimated assets of about $43 billion, with GE owning 80 percent, and 20 percent owned by VUE shareholders.

“There are always ongoing shifts of areas,” said the source regarding executive and divisional handling of various home entertainment properties.

“They are swapping, which is not really a restructuring,” said the source. “You are ending up with the same number of people.”

A Universal Studio Home Entertainment spokesperson referred calls to corporate spokespeople in New York, who were not available for comment at press time.

At the time of the announced merger, another source familiar with the deal cautioned that any changes in home video distribution wouldn’t happen for a while due to licensing agreements already in place...