Blu-ray Review Hair Blu-ray Review (1 Viewer)

[koolgrap]

Thanks for the list.

 

[GMpasqua]

Originally Posted by MatthewA

Where did you find all these great newspaper ads?


It's interesting to read these threads and look back. I doubt people will be as nostalgic about today's moviegoing experience 30 years from now, unless theaters are gone completely and they're nostalgic for the idea of going to a building just to watch movies.

I cut these out of the New York Times back in the day.


From 1973 – 1982 many Broadway film theaters would have large displays, large posters, programs and tie-ins. Some theaters would have stand alone TV monitors which would continuously run the trailer. Many films were run in 70MM (many were 35MM blow-ups which looked better than regular 35 mm prints) This all came to an end with “Annie” and “Return of the Jedi” the last of the big event films in which theaters participated. From 1984 on the multiplex was the thing and most New York Road show theaters where torn down and turned into office buildings. Many still remain in other cities.


Prior to 1973 we had the Road Show era (roughly from 1955 through 1972). This was when one theater would book the film for a year or more (sometimes two years) The theater would go all out. Ticket prices would be 4 to 5 times higher than regular releases (Think $40.00 in 2011 dollars) There would be large 40x60 posters (rolled no creases) and 3 or 6 sheets hung in the lobby along with color photos from the film. A plexus-glass marquee would be made which would light up at night with the film’s logo/art. The theater would usually play the soundtrack LP in the front lobby. Inside there would be tables set up to sell souvenir programs, the soundtrack and other related tie-ins (especially if it was a children’s film) the concession counter would not sell popcorn, but high price candy bars (they didn’t want people munching or have any popcorn mess during the film)


You could go to Macy’s or other depart stores to buy tickets (they would be posters and standees on the counters) After the year was up other area theaters could rent the film and Studios would run a general release campaign at reduce ticket prices.


Road show films were big event films, epic in size, price and length. Most would be nominated for the Best Picture Oscar (12 would win during those 17 years) These were usually filmed in 70Mm and in a theater you can clearly see a difference between 70Mm and 35MM (it’s like comparing VHS with Blu-ray)


I usually cut the ads out of the paper (these were usually full page ads) On the backside of the ads are many other ads from that time period

 

[GMpasqua]

A friend of mine has a website "Cinema Sightlines"

here is the link http://cinemasightlines.com/showmanship_roadshow.php

I've supplied him with many of the photos and advertising

 

[Techman707]

Originally Posted by GMpasqua /forum/thread/312077/hair-blu-ray/30#post_3822334

 

[GMpasqua]

I remember when they torn down the Rivoli, the Criterion, Loews State and the Warner. The Rivoli owner even ruined the front of the theater so it wouldn't be considered a landmark - and that was one theater that should have been preserved. Unfortunately many of those theaters were split up into multiplexes before they were finally torn down. Radio City was the only thetaer that was able to be saved.


Los Angeles still has a good deal of their Roadshow theaters left : The Egyptian, the Mann's Chinese, the Cinerama Dome, the Warner (though it rarely is used) and the El Capitan (exclusive to Disney). The Fox Wilshire and Panatage have become live event only venues

 

[Techman707]

Originally Posted by GMpasqua

I remember when they torn down the Rivoli, the Criterion, Loews State and the Warner. The Rivoli owner even ruined the front of the theater so it wouldn't be considered a landmark - and that was one theater that should have been preserved. Unfortunately many of those theaters were split up into multiplexes before they were finally torn down. Radio City was the only thetaer that was able to be saved.


Los Angeles still has a good deal of their Roadshow theaters left : The Egyptian, the Mann's Chinese, the Cinerama Dome, the Warner (though it rarely is used) and the El Capitan (exclusive to Disney). The Fox Wilshire and Panatage have become live event only venues

Your're right about LA. They have much more respect for theatres than here in New York. In 1970 I was asked about installing equipment in a theatre on Wilshire Blvd. I believe it was called the Wiltern. I was surprised at the size and beauty of the theatre, which was sitting closed at the time. I recently learned that the Egyptian theatre was now closed and only used for special screenings, but at least it's still there. Tearing down the Rivoli was criminal. The Warner was ruined when they tripled it and if I had the choice to save Loews State or the Capitol, I would pick the Capitol. The Criterion wasn't really a "palace", although it was a good theatre for 70mm. The National never stood a chance, from the day it opened it was doomed.

 

[GMpasqua]

The Egyptian is the home of the American Cinematheque which screens films on a regular basis (weekly - most are older films but once in a while they'll screen a current film) mostly a revival house, but they screen the best prints possible and in 70MM. They also usualy have a guest from the film (Director, star, composer etc). The Egyptian was renovated in 1999

 

[GMpasqua]

Originally Posted by Techman707




Your're right about LA. They have much more respect for theatres than here in New York. In 1970 I was asked about installing equipment in a theatre on Wilshire Blvd. I believe it was called the Wiltern. I was surprised at the size and beauty of the theatre, which was sitting closed at the time. I recently learned that the Egyptian theatre was now closed and only used for special screenings, but at least it's still there. Tearing down the Rivoli was criminal. The Warner was ruined when they tripled it and if I had the choice to save Loews State or the Capitol, I would pick the Capitol. The Criterion wasn't really a "palace", although it was a good theatre for 70mm. The National never stood a chance, from the day it opened it was doomed.

The Criterion had a nice space and films looked great there. It was pretty plain compared to the Rivoli, and much like the Lowes 1&2 and Warner it had a modern look. Never got to the Capital it was torned down around the time I was born. The Roxy had been long gone by then.

 

[Matt Hough]

I saw My Fair Lady at the Criterion on one of our frequent trips to NYC. For me it was as exciting as seeing a live Broadway show. I was just a young teen, but that was BIG STUFF for me then.

 

[Techman707]

Originally Posted by MattH.

I saw My Fair Lady at the Criterion on one of our frequent trips to NYC. For me it was as exciting as seeing a live Broadway show. I was just a young teen, but that was BIG STUFF for me then.

[SIZE= 14px]I was at the premiere of "My Fair Lady" in 1964 at the Criterion with my parents as a guest of Jack Warner who was a childhood friend of of my father. Although I was already involved in the business at the time as a young projectionist, it was still the MOST impressive projection I had seen in my life (the most perfectly matched color reel to reel, carbon arcs that didn't show a sign of a flicker and absolutely perfect changeovers). I STILL have the original MFL presentation book from that night. An interesting note was that it was re-released in 1971, only this time, I was the projectionist at the Criterion. Just as the 8pm show was starting I received a call on the house phone telling me my wife just gave birth to a boy (luckily there was still 2 men on a shift because I became dazed). Anyway, the print was on the purple side and had a snipe spliced on to the beginning that said "Warner Bros., A Kinney Service Company", which really cheapened the look. It wouldn't surprise me if it wasn't one of the original 1964 prints since it wasn't a brand new print when it came in and the backup 35mm print wasn't even magnetic. [/SIZE]

[SIZE= 14px] [/SIZE]

[SIZE= 14px]If you saw MFL on its original run in 1964, do you remember the sound on the Ascot race scene? The sound started from somewhere way to the side or back of the theatre and moved all around the theatre, crossing the screen and continuing off screen on the other side. It sure didn't do that when I ran the re-issue. The Ziegfeld had a person on a sound console which was in the middle of the theatre when they first opened in 1969, but it didn't last too long. I never saw anything at the Criterion in 1964. When I read Robert Harris' account of the condition he found MFL in before it was restored, it really blew my mind. It must have caused Mr. Warner to turn over in his grave. The last picture he was personally involved with was "1776" before he died. My understanding was that there was a problem between him and the Warner Bros. management at the time, which is why it was released through Columbia. [/SIZE]

 

[Techman707]

Originally Posted by GMpasqua






The Criterion had a nice space and films looked great there. It was pretty plain compared to the Rivoli, and much like the Lowes 1&2 and Warner it had a modern look. Never got to the Capital it was torned down around the time I was born. The Roxy had been long gone by then.

Sorry, I didn't realize you were that young.-LOL You would have really loved the Roxy. IMHO it was the KING of them all. It was about the same size as Radio City, but 50x more beautiful. That's what I meant by nothing being sacred in NYC. They were even able to put on ice skating shows on their stage at the Roxy. If you're in NYC and want to get an "small" idea of what the Roxy was like, go the the Beacon Theatre, which was recently restored. While they aren't running movies, at least it wasn't torn down. The Capitol, while not as ornate as the Roxy, had its own features and beauty. But....I can't go on or else I'm going to get sick thinking about all this.

 

[GMpasqua]

Originally Posted by Techman707






[SIZE= 14px]I was at the premiere of "My Fair Lady" in 1964 at the Criterion with my parents as a guest of Jack Warner who was a childhood friend of of my father. Although I was already involved in the business at the time as a young projectionist, it was still the MOST impressive projection I had seen in my life (the most perfectly matched color reel to reel, carbon arcs that didn't show a sign of a flicker and absolutely perfect changeovers). I STILL have the original MFL presentation book from that night. An interesting note was that it was re-released in 1971, only this time, I was the projectionist at the Criterion. Just as the 8pm show was starting I received a call on the house phone telling me my wife just gave birth to a boy (luckily there was still 2 men on a shift because I became dazed). Anyway, the print was on the purple side and had a snipe spliced on to the beginning that said "Warner Bros., A Kinney Service Company", which really cheapened the look. It wouldn't surprise me if it wasn't one of the original 1964 prints since it wasn't a brand new print when it came in and the backup 35mm print wasn't even magnetic. [/SIZE]

[SIZE= 14px] [/SIZE]

[SIZE= 14px]If you saw MFL on its original run in 1964, do you remember the sound on the Ascot race scene? The sound started from somewhere way to the side or back of the theatre and moved all around the theatre, crossing the screen and continuing off screen on the other side. It sure didn't do that when I ran the re-issue. The Ziegfeld had a person on a sound console which was in the middle of the theatre when they first opened in 1969, but it didn't last too long. I never saw anything at the Criterion in 1964. When I read Robert Harris' account of the condition he found MFL in before it was restored, it really blew my mind. It must have caused Mr. Warner to turn over in his grave. The last picture he was personally involved with was "1776" before he died. My understanding was that there was a problem between him and the Warner Bros. management at the time, which is why it was released through Columbia. [/SIZE]

What did you think of Mr Harris's restoration? How did it compared to 1964?

I saw the 70MM restoration a few times at the Ziegfeld and it looked great (a few blotchy spots here and there) I also saw it at the Motion Picture Academy in Los Angeles where it looked even better and sounded even better.


At other venues (the Egyptain) it didn't look as good as the Motion Picture Academy. This film cries out for a blu-ray release where it can do the cinematography justice


Yes, I have seen it many times in a theater, but I love this film

 

[Matt Hough]

All these memories of My Fair Lady and the various theaters where it played premiere engagements makes me SO nostalgic. I, of course, still have my souvenir book. Weeks before I saw the movie, I won the soundtrack LP in a trivia contest held by a local newspaper, so I was familair with the "sound" of the film before I saw it.

 

[Techman707]

Originally Posted by GMpasqua




What did you think of Mr Harris's restoration? How did it compared to 1964?

I saw the 70MM restoration a few times at the Ziegfeld and it looked great (a few blotchy spots here and there) I also saw it at the Motion Picture Academy in Los Angeles where it looked even better and sounded even better.


At other venues (the Egyptain) it didn't look as good as the Motion Picture Academy. This film cries out for a blu-ray release where it can do the cinematography justice


Yes, I have seen it many times in a theater, but I love this film

Because I never saw the restoration in 70mm on a big screen, I'm not in a position to compare them. However, since the original 1964 MFL looked and was spectacular, in both color and sharpness, IMHO it would be virtually impossible to look any better than it originally looked in 1964. I can say that I was a little disappointed with the 1971 re-release of MFL that ran at the Criterion since that print was already beginning to appear a little purple, although the mag sound tracks still sounded great (without Dolby bass enhancement and losing the LC & RC channels).


A couple of years ago I was given an HD copy to watch, but not knowing its origin I can only assume it was of the restoration. Overall, it looked beautiful. My only real complaint viewing the HD copy was with the titles. Running it on my RS35 projector and blown up on a 9 1/2 foot wide screen, the titles weaved back and forth laterally, like a projector with bad guide rollers (it was bad enough that friends that know nothing, asked "why is it doing that"). It looked worse than it really was because the background picture itself appeared rock steady....too steady. The background shots of the opening flowers were so steady they looked like still shots or freeze frames (they seem to have lost their original "real" or "lifelike" look) with the titles weaving on top of them. It's as though the titles were on separate (but weaving and worn out) elements being optically superimposed over the background (which was obviously done originally). If this happened in the process of restoring the picture, which I believe must be the case since an original print doesn't display this problem, I wonder if it couldn't have been or in fact has already been corrected on the 70mm print you saw or at some other point in time? Otherwise, I don't recall noticing any "blotchy spots here and there" that you said you saw on the 70mm showing. Although I had a 16mm print for nearly 40 years and looked very good, I no longer run any film where I've been able to replace a film with a Blue-ray disc, which at this point has been nearly all the films in my collection. With all the junk Blue-rays that are released every month, for the life of me I can't understand why they haven't released the Blue-ray of MFL yet. What are they waiting for? (they're probably waiting for me to die)


All I can say is that the way "My Fair Lady" (which IMHO I consider to be one of the best pictures ever produced) has been cared for since its premiere, it makes me wonder if the people responsible for the storage and protection of films like MFL can begin to comprehend what could have been lost from their negligence? The condition of many great films is an American tragedy to say the least. It's just by luck that today's technology, that so many people take for granted, happened to coincide with this impending disaster and fortunately, allowed pictures like My Fair Lady and other classics made in the 50's, 60's and 70's to be saved. They could have just as easily been (and some will still be) lost forever!

 

[Techman707]

Originally Posted by MattH. /forum/thread/312077/hair-blu-ray/30#post_3822544

 

[GMpasqua]

How was Sally Ann Howes on stage?

 

[GMpasqua]

I believe these are from the 1971 engagement:

 

[GMpasqua]

This thread got side lined. here's a little something for "Hair" fans.






The photo is from the cut number "Air" (welcome carbon monoxide..) it came right after Treat Williams invites John Savage to the "party" after seeing Bevelry D'Angelo's photo in the newpaper. They head over the bridge and traffic stops they get out and walk as Annie Golden sings "air"


It's on the soundtrack Lp/CD.

 

[Sam Favate]

Originally Posted by GMpasqua

This thread got side lined. here's a little something for "Hair" fans.






The photo is from the cut number "Air" (welcome carbon monoxide..) it came right after Treat Williams invites John Savage to the "party" after seeing Bevelry D'Angelo's photo in the newpaper. They head over the bridge and traffic stops they get out and walk as Annie Golden sings "air"


It's on the soundtrack Lp/CD.

Was this filmed? Why isn't it on the DVD as a deleted scene? I remember the song on the soundtrack.

 

[Matt Hough]

Originally Posted by Techman707

I was only 8 years old when I saw the original producttion at the Hellinger with Sally Ann Howes and Edward Mulhare (Andrews and Harrison and Holloway had left the Broadway production and were doing it in London). I have only vague memories of the stars, but I remember that revolving stage that was so fascinating, and I remember "Get Me to the Church on Time" absolutely stopping the show cold and people standing and cheering in the middle of a performance which confused me somewhat (I'd never seen a showstopper before).


Yes, I saw the original movie at the Criterion in NYC and saw it a couple of times at the Capri Theater in Charlotte (where I live) during its many months there.