Vivendi and RHI Press Release: Laurel & Hardy: The Essential Collection - Page 15

 

I haven't looked at my version but at the very end of "Flying Deuces, Stan meets Oliver as a horse- could you be mixing this up????

 

Quote:
Originally Posted by tony bensley



*UPDATE (RE- SAPS AT SEA): Just played both versions, and I think I figured it out. On the Essentials Collection/UK Universal versions, the scene ends ever so slightly more abruptly right before Narcissus' Baa sound can be heard (It was cut off!); whereas, on the Video Treasures version, there is a just bit more fade out time. The Goat's bray sound occurs just as the scene starts to fade out. Just a difference in available source film elements would be my guess. Of course, the DVD version looks so much better than the VHS, and as I mentioned before, it IS a small thing!

CHEERS

Hi Sumner!

That's a valid question, but no, not a chance! As I mentioned in my previous post, I just watched the scene in question from both the Video Treasures VHS and The Essential Collection versions of SAPS AT SEA. Of course, anyone who has only seen the U.S. Essential Collection or the UK Universal versions wouldn't be any the wiser, LOL!

CHEERS!
Edited by tony bensley - 2/6/12 at 5:05pm

A link that I have been using, listing  the films of Laurel and Hardy,  is.  

 

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laurel_and_Hardy_films

 

The link given above is more accurate than what I got a few years ago. Under the category "Hal Roach feature films (starring roles) ", The following films should be put into the next category "Feature films (starring roles)":

 

Fra Diavolo/The Devil's Brother/Bogus Bandits (1933)  Warner

 

Babes in Toyland/March Of the Wooden Soldiers (1934)  MGM

 

Bonnie Scotland (1935)  Warner

 

Further down: Hollywood Party and Pick A Star  belong to Warmer

 

Edited by Sumnernor - 2/12/12 at 11:21am

$50,49 now at Amazon.

 

 

Cees

This is great news for Laurel & Hardy fans who have had to hold off on purchasing this great set because of expense. This certainly makes it much more affordable for many! If amazon.com had the set priced this low before Christmas, I would have ordered from them instead of amazon.ca, where i paid $91.49 plus tax, as I'm sure that even with all of the dutiy fees it still would have been less expensive. They still list it at $89.49! I don't understand why their markdown is nowhere close to being inline with amazon's dotcom counterpart.

Yesterday, I stumbled onto some information regarding RHI Entertainment on imdb.com of all places! Apparently, they were close to going bankrupt a couple of years back. Anyway, their president resigned earlier this month. It made me think back to when Cabin Fever went bankrupt before they could release all of the Our Gang DVD volumes (I have the six that they did release!). Hopefully, their current sales levels are sufficient to keep them above water!

CHEERS!

For those asking about PICK A STAR, The Warner Archive has just announced it's DVD-r release this month (February).

Does this set have slightly different packaging now? If so, I'd be interested in what it looks like.

If I'm not mistaken, the release of this film, every extant Laurel & Hardy (as opposed to Laurel OR Hardy) film will have been OFFICIALLY (as opposed to pirated or public domain discs) released to DVD in Region 1!

This is great news for Laurel & Hardy fans!!

CHEERS!

I just received this set this week. The packaging is the same. However, there are white paper sleeves for the DVDs inside the individual pages.

This sleeve is rounded and fits in very nicely. It can be removed with the DVD, or left inside the page.

Don't remember reading that these were included in other sets. Were they? I just remember reading that a few experienced frustration at the disc / page situation. This seems to have resolved it.

I quite like the book / pages packaging. I also like it in the Blu-ray sets for Alien and Star Wars.

They were not included originally.  What kind of paper is it?  

Not sure how to explain, Charles. But it is a thin, solid white sleeve. Similar to standard copy paper. It is not Tyvek. I'll try to post a picture of them later, when I get home from work.

Thanks, please do.

Here is the shot of the sleeve. The sleeves really don't need to come out of the "page". In fact, it may be better that the paper sleeve remains in the "page", but they will come out and go back in.

The paper is a bit "slick" and is nicer than the standard copy paper I described above (I was not looking at the sleeve when I wrote earlier).

The little tab on the bottom is there to "close" it, since it is curved. I've never seen this configuration before, but it works fine.

I just ordered the set a couple of days ago so this may be a new feature on the current pressings.

Can one order these "sleeves" for original orders from vivendi entertainment?????

Well that's something, but I still don't see how it offers sufficent protection. The data surface will still be exposed to scratches.

My set didn't have the paper sleeves, but luckily I didn't have any problems sliding the discs in or out.

I think the idea behind the paper sleeves is to protect the discs from the glue residue that apparently sometimes comes off the inside of the sleeves. I did have a bit of it on a couple of my discs when I first received my set. However, it came off quite easily and I've had no playback issues for all ten dvds, and I do play them fairly often.

Frankly, I am not a big fan of paper sleeves as I have seen first hand how, if one isn't careful, they can lead to severe scratches and smudges! In any case, simply taking a bit of care in removing and reinserting the discs seems to be sufficient. The worst thing is leaving discs out of their cases when not in use, that irritates me to no end when I see that!!

CHEERS!

TCM announced today that Dick Van Dyke is going to introduce a program of Laurel and Hardy shorts at this year's Turner Classic Movies Film Festival April 12-15 in Hollywood. No info yet on the shorts they will be running.

Really wish I could attend one of those TCM Film Festivals, especially this one! This year's attendees are in for a real treat!!

CHEERS!

In what can only be described as a sick joke, some site actually has the packaging for this set among the best of the year.

http://www.homemediamagazine.com/lists/2012-home-media-awards-art-and-packaging-nominees

At least half, if not most, of those look like they will scratch the discs. Wow.
Edited by Traveling Matt - 3/15/12 at 8:55am

I did have some trouble getting the glue off several of my discs. I'm certain that is why so many were returned. I'd rather have had the paper sleeves. Either way, it's terrible packaging.

I wasn't aware that such awards were given for video packaging, though I guess it shouldn't come as a great shock, either! One thing positive about the Laurel & Hardy set is its relatively compact design. Most of the other nominated sets are both impractical and ridiculously bulky!

CHEERS!

A packaging award is ALWAYS going to be awarded to the most attractive packaging.....so I'm not sure why that is so surprising. I like the packaging quite a bit....and if they had decided to put the discs in a protective sleeve to start with, nobody would be saying anything right now. Things just got off on the wrong foot.

That said, I ordered 100 of these - http://store.soundsourcecds.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=212 and used them successfully in the L&H set as well as several other DVD and CD sets that use cardboard sleeves to hold the discs. I actually burned through the entire 100 much faster than anticipated and will probably be ordering more. They are about 1/4" too long for most of these sets which doesn't bother me at all. If you are extremely anal, I'm sure that they could be trimmed with a sharp knife and a straight edge.

What's so attractive about the L&H packaging, economical nature aside? It's the most basic and boring-looking of those sets; if it was going to look like that, disc protection should have at least been a higher priority.


I'd certainly be saying something. Sleeves still scratch the discs.

I would say just about everything. I love how it's laid out with a full description of each short right next to the appropriate disc. In my opinion, it's the ultimate blend of looks & content with function getting a downgrade due to the scratching and glue issues. I love how it fits on the shelf next to my other DVDs, yet still looks prominent. I can't stand some of those other bloated sets that are over-sized and filled with a bunch of useless trinkets. This set has none of that. To each his own, but I love the artwork on this set.
I've never seen that and I used binders for years and years with my CD collection because of the number of titles (well over 3000). I don't like cardboard sleeves, but I feel very confident in the sleeves that I mentioned above.

I don't think I'd consider that attractive, but I share your tastes. I also like sets that are very practical that way, which makes the impracticality of the discs even more stupefying. Glad you enjoy your set.


I'm glad the sleeves work for you too, but proper packaging should never allow for contact with the surface side of a disc. I also used CD binders for years and, looking back, am very happy they only housed CD-R backups.

Legend Films has announced that "The Flying Deuces" is coming soon in a Black & White/Colorized set. No date as yet though. Here is the link: http://www.legendfilms.net/

Best wishes on that one. There is still not a definitive version of that one as far as video quality is concerned. Good, yes, but here is much room for improvement on a future disc. Hopefully they have a quality print of this. But why no blu-ray?