3D Warner Brothers 3-D (1 Viewer)

Fifty-nine years ago today, the Paramount Theatre on Times Square made exhibition history with the opening of the world premiere engagement of “House of Wax,” the first major studio feature in 3-D. Augmented with WarnerColor and WarnerPhonic Sound, the shocker starred Vincent Price, Phyllis Kirk, and Frank Lovejoy, who that night only made guest appearances in the Paramount’s stage show. Headlining the stage portion throughout the engagement was young recording sensation Eddie Fisher, supported by Hugo Winterhalter & His Orchestra, The Beachcombers, and comedian Joey Forman. The booking was hailed as the mightiest ever at the Paramount for the Easter holiday season.

What a fabulous ad! I had seen it in black and white in various movie books, but I'd never seen the color rendition until now. Thanks, Bob!

You're welcome, Matt. It's the original 22x28 half sheet.
Bob

Beautiful.

That is indeed a GREAT poster.

I know that only the mono and surround tracks exist for House of Wax. But if they can make a 7.1 from the mono track of Jaws - http://www.hometheaterforum.com/t/319941/ushe-press-release-jaws-blu-ray-plus-restoration-details , they should be able to something similar for House of Wax.

RolandL said:

I know that only the mono and surround tracks exist for House of Wax. But if they can make a 7.1 from the mono track of Jaws - http://www.hometheaterforum.com/t/319941/ushe-press-release-jaws-blu-ray-plus-restoration-details , they should be able to something similar for House of Wax.

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Yes, but for Jaws they have genuine stereo music tracks to start with. And the Jaws remix has new replacement sound effects that sound wrong instead of the originals. I'd rather they leave House of Wax alone and do the best with what they have.

Peter Apruzzese said:

Yes, but for Jaws they have genuine stereo music tracks to start with. And the Jaws remix has new replacement sound effects that sound wrong instead of the originals. I'd rather they leave House of Wax alone and do the best with what they have.

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I would not want "new replacement sound effects". But try to make it as close to the four tracks they had for WarnerPhonic sound. They have the surround track so that would be one track. For dialog, have directional dialog - that's what they had on the original tracks. For effects, match the sound to where the effect appears on the screen. For music, does Warner have the music tracks maybe in stereo?

Do the six tracks from the mid-70s 70mm reissue of House of Wax exist or was that in mono too?

The re-issue was not six track, it was two. Mono left/right and mono surrounds.
The original WarnerPhonic was 4: stereo left, center, right and mono surround.

Searching old reviews of the 2003 DVD, there was an attempt to recreate the directional dialog.
Anyway, in Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround, the dynamics are good, and the stereo spread is reasonably wide for so old a film; there's even some rear-channel sound that makes its way to the back speakers on occasion. One advantage of two-channel sound, incidentally, is that voices will often move back and forth realistically across the sound stage with the movements of the actors, rather than always being centered as in so many new DD 5.1 releases.
http://moviemet.com/review/house-wax-dvd-review
The audio here is presented in 2.0 surround, which replicates the special Warner Sonic 3-D soundtrack used in theatrical presentations. I found this to be a decent effort, but some kind of restoration work was in order. A lot of hiss and unwanted noise can be heard in this track, which never overpowers the audio, but can become an annoyance. Aside from that, no real problems surface and this soundtrack has more life than expected. The front channels are well used to enhance the dialogue and more basic elements, while the surrounds kick in at times to add to the eerie atmosphere
http://blurayauthority.com/standard-dvd/house-of-wax/
An English language Dolby Surround track provides some separation in the dialogue.
http://www.digitallyobsessed.com/displaylegacy.php?ID=5050

Hey there. . .I'd love to get a copy of your video of the expo. I am the one who supplyed all the posters, Original Ad Art and Info boards that were at both festivals. As I was running around doing stuff all throughout I didn't shoot any video and wish I had.
Matt Spero

Who owns Comin' At Ya!
Not a great movie or even close but it was the first 3D movie I saw in a theater as a kid.

Greater than ever in Noir 3-D:

I was going through my files on House Of Wax and found this ad for the World Premere.