1950's Television . Westerns , Sitcoms , Variety , Drama , etc . (1 Viewer)

[LouA]

Just in case anyone hasn't read this elsewhere , upcoming releases on DVD from TV's first decade (or so) include :
another season of Gunsmoke (which started in the 1950's and went into the 1970's ),The Defenders , and The Eleventh Hour .

 

[Silverking]

The Line-Up / San Francisco Beat - Does anyone know what the status of this series is , rights , prints etc.?
It was one of the most successful series of the 50's running to some six series, the last of which went to an hour format. Then had a good run in syndication under the 'San Francisco Beat ' title. Also spawned an excellent and well regarded feature fim directed by Don Siegel.

We've had 'M Squad' '87th Precinct' & even some 'Dragnet' on PD but never a hint of this one.From what I have seen on the few odd copies floating around it looks to bea good police procedural series with a lot of location shots of San Francisco the 50s.

 

[LouA]

The Line-Up / San Francisco Beat - Does anyone know what the status of this series is , rights , prints etc.?
It was one of the most successful series of the 50's running to some six series, the last of which went to an hour format. Then had a good run in syndication under the 'San Francisco Beat ' title. Also spawned an excellent and well regarded feature fim directed by Don Siegel.

We've had 'M Squad' '87th Precinct' & even some 'Dragnet' on PD but never a hint of this one.From what I have seen on the few odd copies floating around it looks to bea good police procedural series with a lot of location shots of San Francisco the 50s.

The LINE_UP feature film is available on one of the Columbia Film Noir box sets . I was able to get a few episodes of the Line-up from a fellow collector. I agree with you that this was a very good show which deserves to run again on TV or be released on DVD. I recall when I was young watching this back to back with another good detective /cop show MEET MCGRAW .
Anyone reading this who knows the current status of the LIne -Up?
Timeless used to release shows like this, and they seem to be active again, particularly with their Walmart exclusives . Who knows , maybe they will give it a shot.

 

[ChrisALM]

I would like to see a release for The Roy Rogers Show. I wonder if Shout or Timeless could work something out with Paramount for restored and uncut episodes for a complete series set?

 

[LouA]

I would like to see a release for The Roy Rogers Show. I wonder if Shout or Timeless could work something out with Paramount for restored and uncut episodes for a complete series set?

Back in the 1990's paramount released a series of 2 episode VHS tapes - I think about 10 tapes . Quality was excellent . Times have changed , so you can't put out 2 episode DVDs , but the time is ripe for complete seasons or even a "complete series" box set . All of Gene Autry, the Lone Ranger and Hopalong Cassidy episodes have been released . Why not Roy who was known as the
"King Of The Cowboys "?

 

[Silverking]

I think those VHS tapes put out by Paramount were all from the last season. Alpha have released a multitude of episodes with their usual indifferent quality so they are probably all public domain. Rogers I believe sold the rights off years ago although prints of them all exist. Don't know who would be interested though, VCI released an excellent set of the complete Annie Oakley a couple of years back with prints they obtained from Gail Davis's daughter, so they would be a possibilty.

 

[ChrisALM]

I believe Roy Rogers' TV series and films are public domain. I would think Paramount would have the original prints, so that should be the best source material.

I know with the show being PD, it might be hard to find a company interested in doing something about a DVD release. Maybe Encore Westerns could help with transfer costs and make a DVD release more viable. I just wish there would be some movement on getting a decent release for The Roy Rogers Show.

 

[LouA]

I believe Roy Rogers' TV series and films are public domain. I would think Paramount would have the original prints, so that should be the best source material.

I know with the show being PD, it might be hard to find a company interested in doing something about a DVD release. Maybe Encore Westerns could help with transfer costs and make a DVD release more viable. I just wish there would be some movement on getting a decent release for The Roy Rogers Show.

It's strange how Roy Roger's , (who was probably the best known of the original "singing cowboys ") legacy is in such regrettable
shape . I believe his museum and ranch are closed , and his many of his films and his landmark TV show are in the public domain. I think he left his son in charge of his estate and property (and legacy) , and I'm not sure what happened after that. Maybe the son got poor advice or was overwhelmed . I'm not sure about any of this , just speculating .
But it's a shame that we may never see a proper release for the Roy Rogers Show .

 

[ChrisALM]

It is strange - especially when compared with Gene Autry's TV Show. I believe Encore Westerns worked with the Autry Estate to remaster his films. They ran his show for a number of years, so it seems to have paid off for everybody.

The situation with Roy's TV show is a mess - it is in the public domain and apparently all the available episodes are the syndicated versions. At this point, I wonder if complete, uncut episodes exist for the show in the CBS vault.

 

[LouA]

It is strange - especially when compared with Gene Autry's TV Show. I believe Encore Westerns worked with the Autry Estate to remaster his films. They ran his show for a number of years, so it seems to have paid off for everybody.

The situation with Roy's TV show is a mess - it is in the public domain and apparently all the available episodes are the syndicated versions. At this point, I wonder if complete, uncut episodes exist for the show in the CBS vault.

The VHS tapes released back in the 1990's seemed to be complete and in nice shape ( like most CBS properties ). Someone mentioned that mostly last season episodes were released on back then . The problem would seem to be would anyone take a chance on releasing a program that's in the public domain and available cheaply on DVD?

 

[ChrisALM]

From what you are saying it sounds like there is a good chance that decent, complete prints might exist. That certainly would be good news.
Maybe I'm wrong, but I am thinking the dvd releases for The Roy Rogers Show are from cut prints. I'm not familiar with the VHS releases.

 

[LouA]

From what you are saying it sounds like there is a good chance that decent, complete prints might exist. That certainly would be good news.
Maybe I'm wrong, but I am thinking the dvd releases for The Roy Rogers Show are from cut prints. I'm not familiar with the VHS releases.

I can't comment , because I never bought the Alpha DVDs hoping that eventually Paramount or Timeless would make a deal with Roy's
estate and release the complete series or season sets. It made sense to me at the time , because all of the western heroes of the 40's and 50's were being released on DVD. I remember that when the 2 feature films were released , I thought it was only a matter of time before the series came out . That was close to 20 years ago!!

 

[Silverking]

I have a few of the Alpha discs & they are the usual mixed bag of whatever they can get their hands on. Some are cut & in some cases the closing credits have either been left off or dubbed on from a different episode.Others appear to be complete.
Don't know if the Rogers estate still has copies. Most of the Rogers films released have been hacked up copies. Unlike Autry , Rogers took little care of his back catalogue..

I doubt at this late stage we will see a release of this show.

 

[ChrisALM]

If complete prints exist, if they are in decent shape, if a company will do whatever needs to be done to release it - a lot of "ifs". At this point in time, it would be a long shot for something to happen. Still - I would love to see a complete series release. And I wonder what CBS really has in their vault regarding the show (as well as his films).

 

[LouA]

I recently spoke to a friend of mine who has some "industry connections " and he tells me that Roy Rogers sold his interest in the show to a third party who didn't do much with it, failed to protect it from slipping into PD status and didn't take care of the assets. This was back in the 1970s . From what my friend tells me , it was a bad deal for Roy , who didn't profit much from it . If true , this is a "bad deal" also for us fans who grew up with Roy, Dale , Pat Brady , Trigger and Bullet and won't have the opportunity to see the show in the quality it deserves .

 

[ChrisALM]

I've read different accounts that sound very much like your friend's.

I wonder if CBS has original prints of Roy Rogers' TV Show. If so, we might one day see a decent release if all the hurdles can be overcome. But, if it was going to happen, you'd think it would have happened by now. If there are no original prints at CBS, then we have to hope suitable prints can be located somewhere if there ever is to be a chance for a quality release. If there are no suitable prints available anywhere, then we're out of luck even if all the other hurdles can be navigated.

In the end, it will be a real disappointment if Roy's show cannot somehow make it to dvd in a quality release.

 

[LouA]

While were on the subject of DVD releases - has anyone heard anything about Shout Factory /Timeless/ Walmart(?) releases for the second half of the year ?

 

[ChrisALM]

I think someone mentioned The Westerner was supposed to be coming, but I haven't heard anything official.

Also, I would think the third season of Death Valley Days might make it out by the end of the year, but again, I haven't heard anything official.

 

[LouA]

I think someone mentioned The Westerner was supposed to be coming, but I haven't heard anything official.

Also, I would think the third season of Death Valley Days might make it out by the end of the year, but again, I haven't heard anything official.

Either or both of those would be great !

 

[LouA]

I just found out that the first season of THE DEFENDERS is now available from Timeless. Amazon has it in stock for under $30.00.