Puggo - Jar Jar's Yoda said:
It's not a stupid question at all. Most 16mm prints are "reductions" from 35mm. I strongly suspect that all 16mm prints of the OT are reductions. But I don't know that for sure. That said, I think they were released by Lucasfilm, and not pirated. But I have no way of even knowing that, for certain.
So because the 16mm frame isn't exactly the same dimension at the 35mm, the tops and bottoms get cut off slightly?