Video Collector said:

Could someone on here maybe shed some light on the different versions I have? None, I'm looking at you :-)

This might help a little...

What's the story behind the Zion Hybrid and the WMAR "Ruthless" edit?

I don't know anything about the "Ruthless" edit (a trim-down, perhaps?) but I do know that Zion's Hybrid took different sources and combined them to get the best elements of each for an overall better picture. The results are obvious, as seen in that screen shot above. However, I'm not sure why the aspect ratio is goofed up there...

The VCD capture is a little unfair, as it clears up after the first minute and looks okay after that. That VCD version was my first (1999, I believe), and it cost me an arm and a leg. Like SKot, I'd heard about this special for years, since 1983, actually. It was only with the advent of the internet and eBay I was able to first see it.

I do find it odd that I don't know anyone who had a copy of the Holiday Special prior to 1994*...which was right about the time when the world wide web started happening. Of course, after that point copies began to spread all over the world, and eventually the better versions (like the KCCI) started to supersede the really dreadful ones, particularly when people were able to make digital copies and generational quality loss mostly ceased.

--SKot

* Obviously the original tapers had their copies before this, but they either weren't sharing or hadn't shared very widely yet. If anyone can verify having a copy of the HS before 1994, I'd love to hear the details.