Laurel And Hardy - 21 Disc Box Set ! (1 Viewer)

[Anthony Neilson]

Further to my previous post, here are the individual disc contents :

VOL 1
A CHUMP AT OXFORD - B/W AND COL.
FROM SOUP TO NUTS
ANOTHER FINE MESS - B/W AND COL.

VOL 2
COUNTY HOSPITAL - B/W AND COL.
THEM THAR HILLS - B/W AND COL.
TIT FOR TAT - B/W AND COL.
PERFECT DAY - B/W AND COL.

VOL 3
WAY OUT WEST - B/W AND COL
ONE GOOD TURN - B/W AND COL
THICKER THAN WATER - B/W AND COL

VOL 4
BEAU HUNKS - B/W AND COL.
OUR WIFE - B/W AND COL.
HELPMATES - B/W AND COL
ME AND MY PAL - B/W AND COL

VOL 5
OUR RELATIONS
BRATS
TWICE TWO
All in b/w and col.

VOL 6
LAUREL AND HARDY MURDER CASE - B/W, COL AND SPANISH VERSIONS
BERTH MARKS - B/W AND COL
OLIVER THE EIGHTH - B/W AND COL.

VOL 7
BLOCKHEADS - B/W AND COL.
UNACCUSTOMED AS WE ARE - B/W AND COL.
WITH LOVE AND HISSES
SHOULD MARRIED MEN GO HOME ?

VOL 8
?
But, given the theme, this must surely contain CHICKENS COME HOME and COME CLEAN at least

VOL 9
BOHEMIAN GIRL - B/W AND COL
ON THE LOOSE
THAT'S MY WIFE
ALONG CAME AUNTIE

VOL 10
LAUGHING GRAVY - B/W EXTENDED, B/W ORIGINAL, COL. EXTENDED
COMBINED FRENCH VERSION OF LAUGHING GRAVY AND BE BIG
SLIPPING WIVES
THE FIXER-UPPERS - B/W AND COL.

VOL 11
SAPS AT SEA
more tba

VOL 12
SCRAM - B/W AND COL
NIGHT OWLS - B/W, COL AND SPANISH VERSION
THE SECOND HUNDRED YEARS
THE CALL OF THE CUCKOO
DUCK SOUP
45 MINUTES FROM HOLLYWOOD
BIG BUSINESS

VOL 13
SONS OF THE DESERT - B/W AND COL.
WE FAW DOWN
THEIR PURPLE MOMENT
ON THE WRONG TREK

VOL 14
BUSY BODIES
DIRTY WORK
THE MUSIC BOX
HOG WILD
(all b/w and col.)
DOUBLE WHOOPEE
THE FINISHING TOUCH
HATS OFF (STILLS GALLERY)

VOL 15
PACK UP YOUR TROUBLES - B/W AND COL
THEIR FIRST MISTAKE - B/W AND COL
PUTTING PANTS ON PHILIP

VOL 16
THE LIVE GHOST - B/W AND COL
TOWED IN A HOLE - B/W AND COL.
MEN O' WAR - B/W AND COL
SAILORS BEWARE
TWO TARS
ANY OLD PORT
WHY GIRLS LOVE SAILORS

VOL 17
SWISS MISS - B/W AND COL
THE CHIMP - B/W AND COL.
FLYING ELEPHANTS

VOL 18
BLOTTO - B/W, COL. AND SPANISH VERSIONS
BE BIG - B/W AND COL.
SPANISH COMBINED VERSION OF BE BIG AND LAUGHING GRAVY

VOL. 19
PARDON US - B/W AND COL
THE HOOSE-GOW - B/W AND COL.
BATTLE OF THE CENTURY

VOL. 20
GOING BYE-BYE - B/W AND COL.
MIDNIGHT PATROL - B/W AND COL.
DO DETECTIVES THINK ?
HABEAS CORPUS
THE BACON-GRABBERS
LIBERTY (WITH MUSIC AND SOUND FX)
WRONG AGAIN (WITH MUSIC AND SOUND FX)

BONUS DISC
As above

Each is available separately. All silent shorts include music scores.

 

[Anthony Neilson]

Presuming the above specs - and John's previous post - are accurate, it would seem that all the silent shorts are present and correct, including a stills gallery for the long-lost HAT'S OFF.
Not yet confirmed for any particular volume are : YOU'RE DARN TOOTIN', LEAVE 'EM LAUGHING, EARLY TO BED or WRONG AGAIN.

The sound shorts are complete, though - as yet - no individual volume is specified for : BELOW ZERO, CHICKENS COME HOME, THEY GO BOOM or COME CLEAN.

The Classic Features are all present with the exception of :
FRA DIAVOLO, BABES IN TOYLAND and BONNIE SCOTLAND, none of which are mentioned in John's post either ; we can assume these will NOT be included in the set.

THE FLYING DEUCES is mentioned, but it is as yet unknown on which volume this will feature.

Unsurprisingly, the Fox Features - GREAT GUNS, A-HAUNTING WE WILL GO, AIR RAID WARDENS, JITTERBUGS, THE DANCING MASTERS, THE BIG NOISE, NOTHING BUT TROUBLE, THE BULLFIGHTERS and ATOLL K are not included.

With the exception of THE LUCKY DOG, all the pre-teaming silent shorts in which they both appeared are present, though no volumes have yet been specified for LOVE 'EM AND WEEP or SUGAR DADDIES.

Films featuring cameo appearances do not seem to be included.

 

[Derek_McL]

Thanks Anthony I've been eagerly waiting for that : still a few questions remain but its cleared quite a few things up. I'm not convinced in particular that BABES IN TOYLAND (its pd and been released in Germany), maybe even FRA DIAVOLO and BONNIE SCOTLAND won't feature on the Dutch set. We'll just have to wait and see what's included in their 4 Double DVD of the Features. I never thought they would be in the British set.

LOVE EM AND WEEP was remade as CHICKENS COME HOME so I'd expect it on the same disc. Basically in the silent one James Finlayson is in the lead and Hardy plays the judge at the party. Hardy takes Fin's place in the remake.

Its not quite true the collection (even not including the bonus disc)doesn't contain some solo or cameo appearances. For instance ALONG CAME AUNTIE on THE BOHEMIAN GIRL disc is a Hardy solo which I think Stan Laurel wrote. The star of the film is the rather bland Glenn Tyron : I've got a DVD of this, its a popular short for those public domain collections of solo shorts. Another one on that disc ON THE LOOSE is just a guest appearance from a 1933 Thelma Todd / Zasu Pits short. Probably the most famous cameo in the short films is in Charley Chase's ON THE WRONG TREK from 1936,once again here in the body of the main collection.

I'm actually quite surprised to find these camoes in the main collection. I thought they would be on the extras disc. The Dutch aren't including them in the main body of their set but I'm pretty sure they will be on their extras disc. Interesting the different ways of doing things. A casual buyer of THE BOHEMIAN GIRL might be a bit disappointed to find Laurel and Hardy not headlining two of the bonus shorts however.

Now for the extras disc : I think I can decipher most of it ! Not sure what Prudence is though ? THUNDERING FLEAS(1926) is an Oliver Hardy solo which I think features Our Gang (hardly a ringing endorsement though I've never seen it !). FLUTTERING HEARTS(1927) I have seen and its quite good : its a Charley Chase comedy in which Hardy plays a minor role though he gets loads of laughs when he's onscreen. I'm a bit surprised to see no Stan Laurel solos or maybe they just haven't been revealed yet ?

I've never seen an alternate version of BRATS ? Not sure if a foreign language version survives. I have seen though a version with original music. When many of the Laurel and Hardy shorts from the early sound period were reissued in the late 30s later Leroy Shields/Marvin Hartley themes were grafted onto them. The version of BLOTTO available today has music which actually was added later though I think it improves the film. Same thing with BRATS although in this case the original music tracks have survived. The Kinowelt DVD includes the original music and it does sound quite different from the version commonly heard. I take it thats what they mean here by an alternate version ?

HUNTER SCHLOSS UND REIGEL is the German title of the first feature PARDON US. Two fundamentally different cuts of this film exist : a roughly 52 minute release version and a 67 minute version restoring additional shots filmed but cut. I actually quite like the longer PARDON US I think the film flows better. I believe the additional footage was found in Europe though I'm not sure. To further complicate things there is also a German trailer of the film in existence. Is this what we're getting here or like BRATS an alternate cut ? I honestly don't know though the German disc includes both versions and the trailer. I'm surprised they didn't include them all on the individual PARDON US DVD though it looks unlikely as they are fitting a few shorts on the DVD as well as the main feature. I think the Dutch are including both versions in the main body of their set.

If we are getting the 67 minute cut of PARDON US in the extras it doesn't leave a lot of space for A TRIBUTE TO THE BOYS. I hope its a substantial piece but it sounds suspiciously like the piece on the Artisan DVD which was taken from the Hal Roach documentary and only lasts about 15 minutes. Can anyone confirm if that's what it was called ?

Hope there are a few more extras but personally I think I'm coming round to buying some of the Dutch sets. I've got every talkie short on DVD apart from MURDER CASE though I've only got about a dozen of the silents. So the Dutch 2 Double DVD set of the 30 silents looks like quite a good deal for me. I'm tempted by the features too as I don't have BOHEMIAN GIRL, SWISS MISS, BLOCKHEADS, and A CHUMP AT OXFORD. Also not FLYING DEUCES in a very good print and if they include BONNIE SCOTLAND and FRA DIAVOLO that would seal the deal.

 

[John Hodson]

www.zetaminor.com has the full UK press release, contents listing and box shots here.

---
So many films, so little time...

 

[Anthony Neilson]

Here's the info about the bonus disc specifically :

Laurel & Hardy DVD VOL. 21: Special Bonus Disc (available only in the box set)

BRATS (1930)
HINTER SCHLOSS UND RIEGEL (1931)
THUNDERING FLEAS (1926)
FLUTTERING HEARTS (1927)
PRUDENCE (1927)
LAUREL & HARDY – A TRIBUTE TO THE BOYS

This Special Bonus Disc contains two Laurel & Hardy rarities: the original 1930 version of Brats with the original music score, art-deco style opening titles plus the long-missing introductory gag card (a later, reissue version of this short appears in vol. 5), and a short reel of clips from Hinter Schloss und Riegel, the German version of Pardon Us (which appears in vol. 19), remade by Laurel & Hardy with the aide of language coaches and prompt boards.

Also included are three related films – two of them featuring Oliver Hardy - which form a ‘sampler’ of other Hal Roach comedies. In Thundering Fleas, Oliver Hardy appears alongside ‘Our Gang’ regulars as a cop whose uniform is suddenly occupied by the energetic refugees from the flea circus – and who has to improvise a semblance of decency after the disappearance of his trousers! Also present are Laurel & Hardy’s future foil James Finlayson and, beneath a large prop moustache, star comic Charley Chase. Fluttering Hearts is a Charley Chase two-reeler with a pre-Laurel & Hardy appearance of Oliver Hardy, and Prudence is a Max Davidson comedy, reportedly written by Stan Laurel (although the official story credit belongs to Hal Roach). To round off this bonus disc is a documentary tribute to Laurel & Hardy, hosted by Dom Deluise with comments from – among others – Johnny Carson, Walter Matthau, Chuck McCann, Steve Allen, Rich Little, Dick Martin, the Smothers Brothers and Henny Youngman.

So you were pretty much on the money there, Derek. The doc is an unknown quantity - sounds intriguing.

 

[Derek_McL]

The Dutch Website Blotto.nl has set out the films included in their Features set of four double DVDs and it makes interesting reading.

FEATURES - subject to change
release set for april 2004

VOL 1
1930-1933

Disc 1
Pardon Us + trailer + extra footage 1931
Pack Up Your Troubles 1932

Disc 2
Fra Diavolo 1933
Sons of the Desert 1933


VOL. 2
1934-1936

Disc 1
Babes in Toyland 1934
Bonnie Scotland 1935

Disc 2
The Bohemian Girl 1936
Our Relations 1936


VOL 3
1937-1939

Disc 1
Way Out West 1937
Swiss Miss 1938

Disc 2
Block-Heads 1938
The Flying Deuces 1939


VOL 4
1940 (1931)

Disc 1
A Chump at Oxford 1940
Saps at Sea 1940

Disc 2
Les Carottiers 1931
Los Calaveros 1931
(these are two feature length combinations of the shorts Be Big and Laughing Gravy for the foreign market).

So four features not on the British set and if this is correct the only way at present to get all the starring Roach features. The only real bonus to the British set I can see apart from the ability to pick it up in stores is the foreign language editions of shorts like Chickens Come Home, Night Owls etc. I think I might consider getting a few of those to get those cuts but the Silents and Features sets are tempting for the price and particularly if you're getting additional fun with Stan and Ollie for your money.

 

[Derek_McL]

While browsing the Dutch site I've discovered the doc "A Tribute to the Boys" actually features as an extra on a few of the Kinowelt DVDs including one I own ! Unfortunately on the German disc a voice in German almost obliterates the English commentary but it definitely looks like the one on the British bonus disc : most of the names mentioned are there making comments. Not sure if its part of a series of excerpts from a longer doc as it features on at least two of the German discs but the version on the disc I have lasts less than 15 minutes. Obviously in that time although a couple of interesting things are said its pretty superficial and simple-minded. Worst thing of all though the clips from the sound films are all horribly colourised !

 

[Anthony Neilson]

The pieces of the puzzle are almost complete. Now all we need to know is what's on the Dutch bonus disc and the silent shorts disc.

Certainly, the UK bonus disc hasn't got me frothing at the mouth with excitement ; though I've a feeling the Dutch one won't be a great improvement.

BTW - what kind of prices have you found for the Dutch sets , and what site would you recommend ordering from ?
Cheapest I've seen is 64 euros (excl postage) which works out (today anyway) at approx. £43 for each set ( presuming they're all priced the same). At £129, that's exactly £40 cheaper than the lowest priced UK set.

At the moment, these would seem to be the advantages (and thereby disadvantages) of the two sets :

R2 UK
Advantages - better menu and packaging design / easy availability / special introductions to the sets / inclusion of foreign language versions / inclusion of colourised versions / menus in English / released sooner

R2 HOLLAND
Advantages - four more feature films / cheaper overall / chronological order


I''ll update this as and when. If I've missed anything, please point it out as this thread is intended for all L and H fans with a similar "which to buy?" quandary.

FWIW, I'm leaning more and more towards the Dutch set. You can't argue with four extra films for less money, can you ? I just wish the Dutch sets were a bit more attractively designed. They look a bit cheap, imo.
Which I guess they literally are.

One thing, Derek - what should we expect in terms of title cards on the Dutch set. Will they be in English ?

 

[Derek_McL]

Finally I've discovered a short review of the "Tribute to the Boys" programme at laurelandhardycentral.com.

" LAUREL AND HARDY: A TRIBUTE TO THE BOYS
Produced and Directed by Jeff Weinstock and Gene Rosow. Written by Gene Rosow. RHI Entertainment, Inc. 1991.

Originally shown on the Disney Channel, this hour long tribute has good points and bad points. Bad points include the use of garishly colorized footage at the expense of the black and white originals, lack of research (host Dom Deluise solemnly states "When Oliver Hardy died in the hospital, Stan Laurel was holding his hand"), and too many pointless quotes from celebrities. Good points include Laurel and Hardy themselves, who are shown in a wide ranging selection of good to great scenes. Johnny Carson's thoughts on the Boys onscreen friendship and Hardy's camera looks are revealing, and Walter Matthau contributes a memorable quote: "I always enjoyed Laurel and Hardy. I don't know why - maybe because I'm an idiot!" "

Doesn't sound too promising if that's a memorable quote from this ! Looks like the German discs have just excerpts from it, probably the British set will include the whole thing ? Colourisation is a real insult though.

 

[Derek_McL]

The titles will be the originals : both on the silents and the gag titles in the Talkies. Based on what I'm reading at alt.laurel-hardy it seems to be a breeze to turn off the Dutch subtitles.

Prices are interesting : the only site I've tried is www.recordshop.com.
Here is a link to their pre-order for the Features set http://www.freerecordshop.com/pages/...oductID=428331

At 99.99 euros its more expensive than the Talkie shorts set but it does contain 4 Double DVDs while the silents set will be only 2 Doubles so it will much cheaper I'd expect. Your quote seems reasonable although it will probably be a bit more overall.

I think the extras discs are interesting in their differences. Looks like the Dutch one will contain the cameos which are in the main body of the British set. If you're a real completist and want them there is a possibility it might be easier to get these in the UK. On alt.laurel-hardy someone is saying they are confused by the instructions to get the Dutch bonus disc : they are in Dutch !

Still the bonus discs seem pretty disappointing : the solos are mostly available in bargain basement DVDs. I agree Anthony about the design of the sets though I like the chronological approach of the Dutch ones for the Features and the Talkie shorts. I'm a bit disappointed they haven't followed this same model with the silents.

Basically as I've said I'm looking just to complete my collection and none of the talkie shorts are really vital to me. Murder Case is the only one I haven't got and its hardly their best. I'm not really overly interested in the foreign language cuts either to be honest unless they're substantially different. I believe Blotto and Chickens Come Home are. Apart from that my interest is in the silents and the features so I'm in a bit of a unique position.

I think if I had very little Stan and Ollie on DVD I'd probably be lazy and go with the British set. The negatives are its a lot of money to fork out in one go and the bonus disc isn't really worth it. The positives I suppose are it will be easily available and you can always buy it up individually over time.

 

[Jeff Joseph]

I don't believe "Babes in Toyland" is the public domain, at least in the U.S. It's owned by WPIX-TV, which sold/leased it to Goldwyn/MGM.

Jeff Joseph
SabuCat Productions

 

[Jonathan.e]

How do the 2 original German box sets stack up against either of these forthcoming releases?

 

[Derek_McL]

A very good question but I can't really give you a definitive answer. I don't have either of the German boxsets but I do have eight of the individual DVDs. The prints on all three sets are the same, the Dutch right enough seem to have processed (you know what I mean!) some of the talkie shorts slightly differently. There's a comparison that suggests the Kinowelts for a few films offer a smoother picture with less print flaws. Others argue though that the Dutch ones (only a few shorts mind you) offer more detail but this also shows up more age related flaws in my opinion. Basically I think you'll do pretty well with picture quality on all three.

We've went over the advantages of the British and Dutch sets : foreign language cuts for the former, four extra features for the latter. The Germans do have Babes In Toyland and I believe The Flying Deuces is getting released too both films not in the British set but the two German boxsets don't account for all their Laurel and Hardy releases. The German discs do have some good extras : solo shorts and Charley Chase films not found anywhere else. The silent shorts have great scores too, hopefully these will be repeated on the British and Dutch sets.

 

[Michael Elliott]

A dealer inside the US can get me the U.K. set for around $270. I'm not a huge expert on L&H but from what's being offered, would you say the UK set is worth the money? I'm certainly a "fan" of theirs so the money isn't an issue there. I'm just wanting to know from the bigger fans if this set seems to be worth it.

 

[Anthony Neilson]

It's so difficult to say, Michael. Again, it depends on just how much of a fan you are.
At $270 you're getting it for a price equivalent to the cheapest price here. For your money you get VIRTUALLY all of Laurel and Hardy's Hal Roach material. If you want ALL of it, you might be best getting the Dutch sets - though they do not now appear to be much cheaper, in total, than the UK sets.
However, if you're not a GREAT fan, you might find that you don't particularly need the silent shorts or maybe (god forbid) the features. The Dutch sets allow you to mix and match and save some money.

You should read back over this whole thread and see how you feel. But what price would you put on the work of Laurel and Hardy ? To a true fan, it's priceless.

 

[Michael Elliott]

Thanks Anthony. I'm going to go ahead and order the set since it could take years for Artisan to release these. I've seen most of the features on the set and love them. I haven't seen any of their silent shorts so I'm mostly looking forward to them. I bought a 2-disc compilation of silent shorts from Platinum but these were only solo shorts.

 

[Mark Oates]

Personally speaking, I think the silent shorts were among the best work the Boys did. It's the main reason I'm digging deep and buying the whole set (£149.99+p&p at Amazon.co.uk.). I remember collecting shedloads of the silent shorts on 8mm back in the 1970s, and I fully intend to revisit my youth with this set. There are a lot of classic moments among the sound shorts but for sheer laugh-out-loud routines, the silents can't be beaten.

If anything, I'd rather have seen a set half the size with just the monochrome material on it, and a "colorized" set for the fullscreen mob (ducks flying brick).

 

[Anthony Neilson]

The BBFC site confirms the running time of A TRIBUTE TO THE BOYS, on the R2 bonus disc, as 94 minutes.

So it would appear to be the full documentary, as opposed to the abridged version that Derek mentioned.

 

[Matthew H]

I'm a huge L&H fan, so I have to get one of the sets. Let me see if I get this straight:

UK Set:
All of their talkies (except Fra Diavolo, Bonnie Scotland, and Babes in Toyland)
All of their silent films
Bonus disc with "unseen" footage and that Dom DeLuise doc from the early 90s (I still have it on tape when Comedy Central re-ran it, when they ran the colorized shorts as part of "The Laurel and Hardy Show)
Colorized versions of their shorts (big plus in my book)

Dutch Set:
All of their talkies
All of their silent films
Bonus materials include a doc (?)
Cheaper overall

Well, the British one is looking the most promising IMO. Now, my big question is.. this will be my first overseas purchase (I'm buying a multi-region player just for the set).. how bad is the PAL speed-up on NTSC TVs? I hope not overly noticable.

 

[Anthony Neilson]

The menus on the UK R2 sets are very classy - much better than the Dutch set. Go here for a look :

http://www.dvdanswers.com/index.phpr...=r%3D0%26s%3D1

BTW, Matt - look at the first page of the thread for all the details but

a)there's no mention of "unseen footage" on the R2 bonus disc, unless you're referring to the foreign language versions which may have the odd unique moment

b)there's not actually much of a difference in price overall, though that depends on your exchange rates

c)currently, nothing is known about the Dutch bonus disc (which I think may be mail-order only, with all the hassle that entails)

Can't tell you about speed-up, I'm afraid.