The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939) - Page 2

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

Can you rejoin under a new name? I've had more than one name here (although not due to banning). What keeps people from joining under multiple names?

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

I think my ip addess is banned and not just my username because i attempted to go on the site on another computer at my house, which doesnt automatically log me in with my username, and Sorry Guest, you are banned from using this forum! ...

[/quote]Quote Matthew H
Ah, JH! Never piss off shemps#1..
[/quote]


Ain't that the truth...

Apart from this thread and the ThreeStooges.net website, there isnt anywhere else that has people going on regularly like another Stooges fan site...

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

I think what contributes most to the lower than expected sales is the very generic title: The Three Stooges Collection. If they'd entitled it something more grandiose like The Complete Three Stooges, and had the words "chronological" and "restored" in big letters on the packaging (not in small letters at the bottom), then maybe more people would notice.

Then again, looking at Amazon, Volume One is ranked #548 in overall DVD movie sales (#19 in Comedy Series DVDs, and #49 in Comedy Television DVDs - though why is another story), and Volume Two preorder is already ranked #635 overall (#22 in Comedy Series and #52 in Comedy Televison), with the release still two months away.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

For those of you who own the first volume, are these single-sided discs? I haven't done the math (minute-wise) for the two discs. If they were double-sided, I'd pass. If not, I'm getting these pronto.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

They are single-sided discs. I too avoid the double-siders like the plague.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

Yes, volume 1 was single sided discs.So Im assuming volume 2 will be the same, but who knows, because volume 2 has more shorts.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

Only 5 more. There's easily enough room for two dual-layered discs to contain all of them.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

Ok about the Our Gang / Little Rascals, the Hal Roach ones

Status of ownership
Currently, the rights to the Our Gang/Little Rascals shorts are scattered. RHI Entertainment (successor-in-interest to Hallmark Entertainment) owns the copyrights of and holds the theatrical and home video rights to the Roach-produced Our Gang shorts. RHI acquired these after absorbing Hal Roach Studios, Roach's estate, and Cabin Fever Entertainment in the late 1990s. King World held the rights to the Little Rascals trademark and the Little Rascals television package until 2007. Today King World's rights are with CBS Television Distribution (which was formed by the merger of King World with CBS Paramount Domestic Television), which offers both original black-and-white and colorized prints for syndication.


Hence Lionsgate is the distributor of RHI properties; I know that all of the old Hallmark /Artisan stuff was that way. Lionsgate Has a home video library of more than 8000 films (many the result of output deals with other studios), and acquisitions. Hallmark put out 2 sets then the third one was done by Lionsgate.

Not to slight any of the child actors, but really a decent set in order of the roach comedies needs done, about the later MGM ones, I sort of hold them in the same frame as the Besser stooges.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

Eric (and Tony and Matthew),

Thanks. I was hoping to read that they are single-sided discs.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

Youre welcome.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

The Besser Stooge shorts are masterpieces of comedy compared to those later MGM Our Gang things. If I never see Janet or the maudlin child who grew up to be a murderer, Mickey Gubitosi, again, I'll consider myself quite fortunate.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

Robert Blake was found not guilty of murder. Then again so was O.J. Simpson.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

well little Mickey grew up and didn’t know the gun was loaded, I know not funny, while not as good as the originals, I do like Buckwheat, Froggy, and some of them were cute in there own way, but that happened to everything, as the Marx Bros show, while I love ADATR, and ANATO, the rest of there out put doesn’t compare to what they did at paramount, because they were toned down.

The Stooges on the other hand fell into the different eras, Curley, Shemp; I sort of have to separate it that way.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

Concerning the sales figures...it'd be nice if this thing was actually STOCKED IN STORES. At least here in the Indianapolis area, the ONLY place I've seen it is Fry's...I haven't seen it at Borders, Best Buy, B&N, Circuit City, FYE, or anywhere else.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

Stocked? Stores? People still buy things in physical stores?

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

I just picked up The Three Stooges Collection, Volume One: 1934-1936. I am thrilled to be able to see this collection in a few days. Now that number can be increased to 12,001.

I just realized that I put the above information in this thread, instead of a "Volume I" thread. Sorry about that.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

There was so much classic comedy that deteriorated as the years went by. I wonder why that is ... Laurel and Hardy, The Marx Brothers, Abbott and Costello, Jerry Lewis, The Stooges, Our Gang, Lucille Ball, Bob Hope, etc. etc. etc. ... their late work is very, very, very inferior to their earlier work.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

I'm not sure why. I'm tempted to say it's because the majority of the great ideas were used up early on, although that may not be the case with every comedy team. But I do agree with you, esp. with regard to the early and late work of those individuals or teams I know somewhat well (e.g., Our Gang and The Three Stooges). (I don't know the work of Abbott and Costello, Laurel and Hardy, and The Marx Brothers all that well.) And IMO, it would be quite tough to top what Lucille Ball did on her first show. Bob Hope had great writers early on--did they stay with him for the majority of his career? I have no idea. I liked Jerry Lewis' comedic talents only when he was with Dean Martin.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

taboos, and what you can get away with, do you think mel brooks could make blazing saddles today, no way; just like all the fuss over mammy two shoes, tone down the mad cap, tone down the violence, till all you are left with today is jim carey or ben stiller smugly mugging for the camera, IMO i dont find stiller funny at all. but i laugh my rear off at shemps antics, not that i dont like subtel comedy. but it has to be more than just trying to look funny.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

I've always thought it was because alot of comedians are 'victims' of their own success. The public loves a certain thing that they do and they can't go too far away from that so they put a variation on that thing or they just recycle it and that can't help but feel a little tired after a while. Or maybe it's as simple as they just have their biggest creative burst when they first start out.

Of course, there's exceptions to that theory but I think it holds some water.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

I enjoy The Three Stooges but never considered myself a
devoted fan. I did but the first volume of these shorts.

With this second volume, are we looking at some of their
best work? Are these shorts the best of the Stooges years
or are there better ones to come.

Finally, how many volumes like this do you anticipate will
be released?

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

The first one is hard to say as i consider many of there 40s shorts to be fantastic but the 30s are definitely some of there best work.

If Sony releases 3 years at a time of shorts than the schedule should look something like this.

1940-1942 = 23 shorts
1943-1945 = 21 shorts
1946-1948 = 25 shorts
1949-1951 = 24 shorts
1952-1954 = 22 shorts
1955-1957 = 25 shorts
1958-1959 = 8 shorts

So after this collection, we should get another 7 more volumes...

Actually after re-counting the number of shorts above with the 43 shorts that will be available after volume 2 comes out, there are 191 shorts so i have over counted by one on one of the years above. I think Sony might make it that in the middle somewhere 2 years worth of shorts will be released, as there were more shorts, and then revert back to 3 years worth...

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

Ron, I'd say that most people would almost unanimously say that the 1930s and 1940s shorts with Curly are the best of the Stooges' films. For me perosnally, I get more of a kick out of the 50s films with Shemp and Joe Besser, but this is probably because they're not as overplayed for me.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

Curley/Shemp change over period is the funnest run, of the series

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

Why in the world would Sony stop with Volume 2 and claim poor sales?

They released over 25 different single disc editions (that everyone hates), before these new 2-disc sets (that everyone LOVES).

Certainly these are selling at least as good, if not better, than the 25 + other releases.

If Sony happens to claim "poor sales", then I think they might not be being truthful, or they wouldn't have released 25 + other sets over, and over, and over, and over again.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

Oh absolutely. The thing is though, since all of these are digitally remastered, a lot of time and effort is being spent going back to original negatives to attempt to clean these up as best as possible.. so it's taking more money on Sony's end than with the old piece of crap compilation discs (which I am sad to say I did purchase all of them) which had some transfers look worse than old VHS releases. It's still no excuse, given that they ARE making some money on this... but still. It's pretty annoying.

Ron, even as a casual fan you owe it to yourself to check out Volume Two. The later 30s is when Curly found his groove, and these have some of the most memorable shorts and some of the funniest out of all 190. You won't be disappointed.

I anxiously await the Shemp era.. if we ever get there. If this set sells, Volume Three will be waiting for us around Halloween again.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

I think volume 3 will contain a lot of their best work that would have some of the best "mass appeal". All of them are in top form during that period.

Unfortunately, if 12000 is true for volume one, then there's no way they'd go through the end. I think we'd have to see how volume 2 sells before predicting how much further they'll go.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

But Sony needs to clean up and make HD masters in order to keep the Stooges on TV. No channel going HD will want a crummy transfer. The job must be done either way.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

I'll be buying a copy of Vol. 2 (1937-1939) as soon as it is available. I will spring for the entire library (which looks like it might end up being eight or nine volumes). It's great reading all of the reviews for Vol. 1 on other sites. So many good things are being said about it.

Re: The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 2 (1937 - 1939)

That is a very good point, and may be the financial impetus behind the project. But then, do these still get played on broadcast TV? (I only watch DVDs so wouldn't know.)