Preserving the...cringe...Star Wars Holiday Special (Released) — Page 24

Thanks to everyone involved in getting my version up on myspleen and all the seeders.

Here is the nfo file for my Holiday Special release last year (copied and pasted, sorry the formatting is a little crappy):

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Star Wars Holiday Special - Hybrid Edition

______________________________________________________________________________
                                                                             
  .:: Release Information ::.                                                
______________________________________________________________________________
                                                                             
                                                                             
  Release Date....: 17NOV2010                                                
  Air Date........: 17NOV1978                                                
  Source..........: WBBM 2nd Gen. VHS tape with commercials taken from the   
                    WMAR version posted on Google Video                          
                                                                             
  Format..........: DVD5 NTSC                                                
  Image...........: ISO                                                      
  # of Disks......: 1                                                        
  Size............: 4.28 GB                                                  
                                                                             
  Video Format....: MPEG2 (3-Pass VBR)                                       
  Resolution......: 720x480                                                  
  Aspect Ratio....: 4:3                                                      
  Frame Rate......: 29.97fps                                                 
                                                                             
  Audio Format....: Track 1 (Original): Dolby Digital 2.0 (384Kbps CBR)      
                    Track 2 (RiffTrax): Dolby Digital 2.0 (256Kbps CBR)      
                                                                             
  Subtitles.......: None                                                     
                                                                             
  Menu............: YES/Custom                                               
                                                                             
  Genre...........: Black sheep of the Star Wars franchise                   
  Run Time........: 01:57:35                                                 
                                                                             
                                                                             
______________________________________________________________________________
                                                                             
  .:: Group News ::.                                                         
______________________________________________________________________________
                                                                             
                                                                             
  Secret-Shadow Ninja Pirates                                                
                                                                             
  Are you a pirate? Have you always wanted to be a pirate?  Do you talk like 
  a pirate?  We are currently looking for more 1337 pirate types to join our 
  super-awesome team.  So grab your eye patch and fake Scottish accent and   
  get with it!                                                               
                                                                             
______________________________________________________________________________
                                                                             
  .:: Synopsis ::.                                                           
______________________________________________________________________________
                                                                             
                                                                             
  Art Carney and a bunch of muppets waste time waiting for Chewbacca and Han 
  to show up for Life Day. Luke experiments with makeup. A stoned Leia sings.
                                                                             
______________________________________________________________________________
                                                                             
  .:: Release Notes ::.                                                      
______________________________________________________________________________
                                                                             
                                                                             
  This DVD is mainly a cleaned-up version of the original WBBM transfer,     
  taken from a 2nd-generation VHS copy. I added the commercials from the     
  WMAR version posted on Google Video in order to sync up with the RiffTrax  
  audio. This is far and away the best quality version of the Holiday        
  Special currently in circulation, IMHO.                                    
                                                                             
  VIDEO                                                                      
  The original WBBM video was already pretty damn good, but I took it one    
  step further by adding some sharpening and color correction filters. I     
  also added some fades to make the transitions to and from the commercials  
  a little smoother. The fades match up to the WMAR version for the most     
  part.  The quality of the commercials is substantially lower, but          
  unfortunately I don't know of any other source that's better.              
                                                                             
  AUDIO                                                                      
  The original audio was sharper compared to the other versions, though      
  quite noisy. I used a noise filter to get rid of most of it. The quality   
  of the commercials is substantially lower.                                 
                                                                             
  MENU and CRAWL                                                             
  The DVD menu is an original creation. Star Wars "Disco" tune originally by 
  Meco, with some added sound effects. The crawl was taken from the WMAR     
  version on Google Video, but redone by me to more closely match the films' 
  crawls.                                                                    
                                                                             
  RIFFTRAX                                                                   
  If you intend to watch this DVD with the RiffTrax commentary (which is the 
  only way to watch it IMO), please take a moment and donate a few bucks to  
  RiffTrax for their awesome work:  http://www.rifftrax.com/donate
                                                                             
______________________________________________________________________________
                                                                             
  .:: Thanks ::.                                                             
______________________________________________________________________________
                                                                             
                                                                             
  Thanks to SKot for all the expert info on the Holiday Special, Rikter for  
  the original inspiration to create my own DVD version, and of course the   
  RiffTrax crew for making this DVD watchable.  Also a big thanks to Jay,    
  Moth3r, and everyone at OriginalTrilogy.com.                               
                                                                             
______________________________________________________________________________

---

Looking back at this project, I realized that I could have done a much better job on the video. I actually used Adobe Premiere for the sharpening filters and color correction, which I now wish I hadn't done. However, at the time I was a little rushed on this project and I chose the quick and easy path, rather than going all out and using avisynth.

Obviously, we now have a much higher quality version of the commercials, so I'd love to go back and add those in as well. I have a new and improved version in the works (as mentioned earlier in this thread), but it's been stalled for months due to the many other projects I have currently involved myself in. I also managed to screw up the 2TB RAID10 partition all my video projects reside on, rendering the entire drive unreadable, so there's that problem as well. Here's hoping I can recover it and get back to working on some of my video projects in the near future.

Sadly,  the original WBBM source is from a transfer done on one of those VHS-to-DVD machines (not by me) and the resulting mpeg2 file was a constant moderate bit rate. I believe it was only 3.2GB in size or something along those lines. (I can't pull up the file to confirm because my drive is corrupted at the moment.) I could still output my final video at a high vbr for DVD9, though I don't know how much better it would be.  What the hell, I'll do it anyway.

Upscaling to 1080i/p might be laughable. I'll see how 720 looks and decide whether HD is even worth it.

Mahjong123 said:

Definitely enjoyed watching Glee last night with their heavy SWHS basis... with all the people they target, could be some added pressure to GL to release it... you never know! Must have been based on a KCCI copy... easy to tell when you've seen it as often as I!

The first time through I just skimmed the episode.

Then, figuring I *must* have missed something, I watched it start to finish: nope, nothing.

The only thing I didn't see was closing credits, my tivo didn't capture them. Just ended with a crane shot moving away from the foursome bell-ringing.

MattMahdi said:

Mahjong123 said:

Definitely enjoyed watching Glee last night with their heavy SWHS basis... with all the people they target, could be some added pressure to GL to release it... you never know! Must have been based on a KCCI copy... easy to tell when you've seen it as often as I!

The first time through I just skimmed the episode.

Then, figuring I *must* have missed something, I watched it start to finish: nope, nothing.

The only thing I didn't see was closing credits, my tivo didn't capture them. Just ended with a crane shot moving away from the foursome bell-ringing.

So no direct references to the SWHS?  That's disappointing.

Maybe they figured, "it's Christmas, we have Chewbacca, Star Wars Holiday Special!"

I still haven't seen it, so I dunno...

--SKot

Its funny because the show Community had a "Glee" theme for their recent Christmas episode, and in it is a nod to the SWHS. The character Abed has tracked down the long lost "Inspector Spacetime Holiday Special"(a Doctor Who type show he loves) that he wants to watch with everyone for Christmas. "So critically reviled that after it aired the creator had his Knighthood revoked". They show a clip from it later and there's a hologram that plays music just like Jefferson Starship.

Mahjong123 said:

2) At the opening of the "PBS Special" in the show, the opening credits are EXACTLY IDENTICAL as the SWHS. 

4) The Character Rory Flanagan, portrayed by Damian McGinty, played an elf named "Itchy". If this wasn't an intentional reference, I'd be very surprised.

The Itchy reference COMPLETELY slipped by me.

And you're right. In its presentation it does have the necessary feel. I guess I was expecting more, given all the hype. "Chewbacca appears! A magnificent, must-see, completely authorized and extraordinary event!" translated to "Chewbacca appears for ten seconds in a dream sequence". My expectations were too high and focused on the wrong thing.

pufnstuf said:

Anyone see The Colbert Report last night?  Colbert went on a fan-boy tirade about a report of Chewbacca attending an Alice in Wonderland party at the White House that even included references to the Holiday Special!

http://www.lewiscarroll.org/2012/01/11/stephen-colbert-on-alicegate-chewbacca-in-wonderland/

 That was awesome.  Colbert is not only a funny man, but he knows his Star Wars well.  And the Holiday Special, as it turns out.

--SKot

On YouTube it's pretty easy to find a Spanish broadcast of the Holiday Special. There's also what seems to be the KCMO broadcast with Spanish subtitles overlaid; the subtitles look pretty sharp and have to be added after the fact.

Are there other languages floating around out there? I've searched but without luck. I'm especially interested in different broadcasts of the cartoon.

MattMahdi said:

On YouTube it's pretty easy to find a Spanish broadcast of the Holiday Special. There's also what seems to be the KCMO broadcast with Spanish subtitles overlaid; the subtitles look pretty sharp and have to be added after the fact.

Are there other languages floating around out there? I've searched but without luck. I'm especially interested in different broadcasts of the cartoon.

This is what I know so far:

USA - November 17, 1978 (CBS, various local stations)

Canada - November 17, 1978 (CTV)

Mexico - December 1978 (Televisa XHGC Channel 5 (Spanish subtitles))

Argentina - December 1978 (?)

New Zealand - 1979 (?)

Belgium - 1979 (? (Dutch subtitles))
[also 1980?] (? (Dutch subtitles))

Sweden - May 31, 1979 (SVT TV 2 (Swedish subtitles))

Norway - [1979?] (? (Norwegian subtitles?))

France - January 1, 1980(?) (TF1(?) (dubbed in French))

Malaysia - late January/early February 1981/1982 (? (in English, no subtitles))

Australia - August 24, 1979 (Seven)
July 13, 1980 (?)
August 25, 1984 (ATV-10/TEN)
[also 80/81?, 82/83?, 87?] (?)

The French version is the coolest one, because not only is it totally dubbed into French by the same French actors who did the trilogy...but it also is the shortest edit, cutting out many of the worst comedy and variety bits.  Who would have guessed the French could recognize bad comedy?

--SKot

P.S. - I'd love to see what none could do with this list as far as digging up more info...his internets archaeology kung fu skillz are far beyond mine!

Amazing that it would air so much later in some countries, especially the repeat airings in Australia. I would have thought Lucas would have more control / clout than to allow that to happen.

I just found the French version on YouTube -- it's a weird transfer, because it looks like it's a video recording of a television broadcast, filmed at an angle. Weirder still, it's the WMAR broadcast. About 3:45 into the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f61JazO98DA

Do I have that correct? Did that version actually broadcast in France, or is this something else?

And does anyone know of a clearer source for the French broadcast?

Also, is the following an actual broadcast that was dubbed in Spanish?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQX6Xu3gKbE

Lastly, for now, I'm assuming that these subtitles are after the fact. Am I correct?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6oGpCHDyH8

The subtitles seem to be much clearer than the video, which makes me doubt them to be the broadcast you've listed. But I'd be happy to be wrong.

Thanks!

MattMahdi said:

Amazing that it would air so much later in some countries, especially the repeat airings in Australia. I would have thought Lucas would have more control / clout than to allow that to happen.

Indeed!  Well, the later airings in other countries weren't so unsurprising back then...that happened often with movies and shows that came out first in the US.  But Australia is an oddity.  No idea how they managed to repeat it so many times.

Notice that the airings did seem to cease after 1987.  Lucasfilm acquired all rights to the Holiday Special retroactively in 1989, and all airings ceased.  Maybe that's no coincidence.

I just found the French version on YouTube -- it's a weird transfer, because it looks like it's a video recording of a television broadcast, filmed at an angle. Weirder still, it's the WMAR broadcast. About 3:45 into the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f61JazO98DA

Do I have that correct? Did that version actually broadcast in France, or is this something else?

I'm stumped about that one.  It's definitely the WMAR video, but the audio is French.  Maybe someone substituted the French audio track for the better video quality of the WMAR?  Because what I've seen of the French broadcast looked terrible.

And does anyone know of a clearer source for the French broadcast?

It was sold on videotape for a while back in the 90s by some group called StarWave Video, with a semi-professional looking cover and even some photo cards with some copies.  It pops up on eBay from time to time still.  It is in SECAM, of course, which almost nobody but the French (and the Quebecois, perhaps?) can play back.

Also, is the following an actual broadcast that was dubbed in Spanish?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQX6Xu3gKbE

Yes, I believe that's the real deal.  The Mexican broadcast.  I think that guy has the whole video, not just the cartoon.  And the quality appears to be pretty good, which is amazing.  I suspect maybe there was a later Mexican broadcast from when VCRs would be a bit more common.

Lastly, for now, I'm assuming that these subtitles are after the fact. Am I correct?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6oGpCHDyH8

The subtitles seem to be much clearer than the video, which makes me doubt them to be the broadcast you've listed. But I'd be happy to be wrong.

Thanks!

That's absolutely right; they were added later...and as none said, it's Rikter's copy they used.

--SKot

French stuff from Canada is NTSC.

You can play SECAM on a PAL vcr, but it'll just show up as black and white, since the color encoding is really the only difference between the two standards.

It was used in France, French colonies, The USSR and some Middle Eastern and Eastern European countries.

straightedge said:

A rip of the french version is available on a french torrent site if anybody is still interested.

Stang. No access to torrents.

I don't suppose anyone is willing to repost it elsewhere?

The quality is not that bad, and I'm wondering if it's not just a US broadcast with the french audio added.

Weird. But fascinating.

straightedge said:

Hi,

A rip of the french version is available on a french torrent site if anybody is still interested.

The quality is not that bad, and I'm wondering if it's not just a US broadcast with the french audio added.

That's quite possible...even the StarWave version had a small piece of a US broadcast tacked on at the beginning since they probably (like on most broadcast recording copies) cut the very beginning off trying to get their VCR to start up.

* EDIT: PMs sent to straightedge and MattMahdi.

--SKot