ST2112 said:
Thanks so much for the quick and informative reply. I think it’s great that there are dedicated people trying to preserve these “lost” pieces of history. I think it’s shameful that creators/companies often don’t make an effort to re-release things that were put out originally. I know it’s often due to “copyrights”, “Contractual Obligations” and of course, money, but if it was out once, it ought to be released again. I especially hate it when, for instance, extras are not carried over to an updated release. So, good luck on all your efforts. Don’t even get me started on Lucas and his endless tinkering of “Star Wars”. I want exactly what I saw in 1977, and in better quality than Laserdisc…
A nice example is Star Wars - the bonus material from the SE VHS/LD was not released on the 2004 DVDs and the bonus material from both the 2004 DVDs and the prequel DVDs were not added to the 2011 BD set. So if you want to have your bonus collection as complete as possible and not break any laws you have to keep all of the Star Wars releases. Not to mention that every single home video release had a different version of the movies themselves.
Or Star Trek. I wanted to sell my TOS DVDs on eBay as soon as I bought the 2009 Bluray set but then I realized that a couple of bonus features from the DVDs were not brought over to the Blurays, and when I’ve done videos for my youtube channel some fans have informed me that in some cases the DVD version is different from the Blu-ray “original” version. In other words, the original versions are not so original 😃 Or the TNG B;u-ray sets - they could include the original versions of the episodes, in worst case they could do new high bitrate SD transfers of the tapes.
Have you ever compared what Spielberg said about “CE3K” in the Laserdisc releases for the original cut and the longer version? He’s completely dishonest about why he made the longer version, it’s sad. I can’t remember if his remarks carried over to any of the DVD or BD releases.
What was the “original” statement? I’ve seen an interview (don’t know where, maybe on my SE VHS?) where he claimed that basically the studio forced him to the the SE and he was against it.
When the original “Planet of the Apes” films and television series were originally broadcast on network television in the early 1970’s, way before the advent of home video, I would record the dialogue off the TV onto cassettes and listen to them. That was the only way to enjoy your favourite things until their next transmission.
That’s actually a good idea, fans of classic Doctor Who would agree 😃
I can also relate to your efforts in preserving things as they were originally released. Decades ago I taped the POTA TV series when they became a series of 2 hour movies and then added that missing footage to the run when they appeared in their original form on cable, though heavily edited! Remember, I did this all without the aid of any computer programs, just linking VCR’s together.
I’m very glad that I’ve saved all the material I taped over the last 33 years, as I figured it may be lost forever if someone didn’t save it. Being a huge ST fan, I tried to tape everything I could when each movie came out, often running several VCR’s at once.
I totally understand the “nothing to see her…move along…nudge, nudge, wink, wink…” aspect as well!
I forgot to add “Logan’s Run” to my faves and collection list. I wish the later formats of many films released on Laserdisc incorporated all the printed material extras that were on them. Some of the supplements were extensive. I also have three or four VHS tapes of extras from the 1st “X-Files” movie and 2 tapes from the awful “Planet of the Apes” (2001) movie. Anyone interested in those?
As I recall, the extras on the “Star Wars vs Star Trek” were NOT on the STV DVD extras disc. I haven’t seen it in years, but remember being blown away when they showed up. I even made a note of it somewhere. I’d have to see it again to be sure.
As I’ve indicated, I’ve done all of my recording over the years on the (then) popular home video formats. I am not computer savvy at all and haven’t transferred anything to a hard drive before. My question is, would it be best for you to have the original source when you’re doing your preserving? I assume it would, as the best that I can do is copy them to DVD’s at XP speed for the very best DVD quality. Does putting them directly onto a computer skip a whole generation of loss in quality? If so, we’ll have to figure out a way for you guys to get my originals.
Well the optimal thing would be to have access to the original source material, but as I wrote, I live on a different continent 😃 And Silverwook lives in a different state, so a direct VHS > DVD recording is slightly worse, but still great.
Living in the Chicago area I often find the strangest things. Just today I came across a still sealed package of Beta L-750 tapes at a thrift store! Crazy. Also, the controversy surrounding Lucas’ museum is heating up again here. It just may end up in our city after all. Another hideous piece of crap to sit right next to the abomination that has become Soldier Field, home of the Chicago Bears, right on our beautiful lakefront. Oh well…
Oh, and you’re not being greedy, I still get excited when I see/hear of things that I love that I’ve never seen before! I’ll start documenting what I have it greater detail.
I may be wrong, but I think I also have something taped off-air that featured Mark Hamill hosting a Star Wars or science fiction themed program. Any ideas on what that could have been? I have it somewhere…
I know that Mark Hamill hosted the first ever TV broadcast of Star Wars, which was followed by a short documentary narrated by him (made by scenes from “The Making of Star Wars” if I remember correctly). Could it be it?
Yes, I think I do have that Voyager program that’s from Youtube, thanks. It came on right before the premiere in 1995 and mine should be in FAR better quality. I’ll let you know.
Great.
I also still have my off air recordings of “Harsh Realm”, “Starman” and other things that have original bumpers, etc. that didn’t make it onto official releases. I was very into “Starman”, and was involved with trying to get in renewed, along with the “Spotlight Starman” group. I have many of their original newsletters, etc. I even won an autographed (Robert Hays) cookbook they produced!
Thanks again.