I think that was on the shrink wrap on the outside, so it wouldn't be on the physical sleeve itself.

Correct. When I bought this LD on Half.com, it still had the original shrinkwrap, so I kept it like that and bought another one for playback purposes.

I don't remember that sticker on my VHS set either, but I definitely remember all the advertising - including television commercials - hyping it as "one last time" to get the original Star Wars etc.

I don't think the VHS set had it (either the THX or Faces set), but yes, there were many TV ads spouting that line at the time.

doesn't disney pull the exact same stunts but worse..

Well, they talk about movies going "back in the vault" for an unknown amount of time. The Platinum DVDs were supposed to be one release each year (right after my daughter's birthday, which is good timing), but I think they've been adding more Platinums (as well as swelling the ranks of the Golds and Silvers), especially since Eisner left.

Of course, now there's Blu-Ray, so expect to see more films coming out. I have it on good authority that Bug's Life is being redone for HD.

For instance, the scene where R2 gets zapped in the canyon was originally fairly brightly exposed, but on the THX it is dim, much darker than any telecine prior, as if it is much later in the day

It is definitely different from the same Japanese release, but I prefer it overall to the Def. Col. series.