SKot

It's true; the KCCI is the best broadcast version we know of, but it does have its flaws.  A new, higher quality dump of the original source tape with commercials included would be the way to go.

There is another version--the WBBM Chicago broadcast--that is also extremely good.  But it isn't edited as cleanly as the KCCI, and it's missing the commercials as well.

Let's hope we can see a DVD9 with a new capture of the KCCI soon.  That's the best hope for a SWHS broadcast preservation that we have.

--SKot

Welcome back, -1.

Wait, you've acquired a (possible) girlfriend?

Forget it, guys...negative1 will never have time to work on the project now!  Move along, nothing to see here... ;)

--SKot

Excellent cover, AvP! Simple, and to the point. I highly approve. I'm nominating this to be the official cover, and if amsnyder agrees then we can make it so.

--SKot

Chrno said:

Can someone post it to usenet or help me out with an invitation for myspleen?

Thx

 Check your PMs!

--SKot

Leonardo said:

Moth3r said:

Thanks for the screenshots.

From glancing over the images, I can say that on the plus side this source doesn't have the huge halos/shadows on vertical edges, or the wobbly horizontal field misalignment that plague my source.

It does however suffer from a severe loss of detail from being too dark and very blurry, and is also more heavily cropped along the bottom.

is it me or is there a little error with the aspect ratio, too? (look at the cap with ben, d3bo and luke)

maybe it's a silly question, but isn't there a possibility, technically speaking, that the two sources could somehow be "merged" together?

 The aspect ratio is definitely off.  But that can be corrected.

I was going to say exactly the same thing as bkev: it's both better and worse than the original widescreen version we had.  Certainly better in terms of color and image stability, but worse in terms of clarity.  It looks like what I would see if I wasn't wearing my glasses/contacts while watching the film.

It would be great if these two sources could somehow be merged.  I understand that Laserman had some kind of hardware/software technology - "Black Magic" - that could do something like that.  But apart from that, I don't know if we have any such solution.

--SKot

Any updates on this new find?  If it's an improvement over Moth3r's copy (which I thank you again for sharing with us, Moth3r!), then it's definitely worth preserving.  And if you have to ask why, you're probably on the wrong forum.

--SKot

Just wanted to let everybody know that I have finally managed to put Aaron's excellent Star Tours DVD up on MySpleen.

Don't forget that the 'Spleen has changed addresses, and is now at a .cc domain.

--SKot

SilverWook said:

I remember seeing this previewed on Sci-Fi Buzz at the time. There were glimpses of a kick ass Vader/Luke saber fight, and a life-size Millennium Falcon that comes in for a landing! Pity it never made it to the states.

Why they included Tucker of all things, but leave out THX-1138 and Howard the Duck, I'll never know! ;)

I've been on a kick lately watching all the Lucas-involved films I've not seen so far.

Turns out, I really enjoyed Tucker.  Radioland Murders, on the other hand, was just bad.  A great concept, decent acting (for a show meant to be a farce), but bad writing and poor timing and editing.

I've seen nearly everything Lucas ever touched at this point, including over half of his early student films.

--SKot

none said:

How does everyone sort/file/archive their material?

Do you break down things by file type (for instance maybe major folder divisions for DVDs, Pics, Texts, Sounds, Mixed Media) or do people primarily break down their files by associated Film or time period?

I like to sort everything chronologically wherever possible.  I'm obsessive about dates.

Generally, I have a "Star Wars" folder that contains text, pics, etc. and a separate "Movies" folder that is all genres of video material, sorted into subject folders.  Under the "Star Wars" subject video folder, I've got separate folders for things like:

- Commercials
- Fan Films
- Fan Edits and Preservations
- Trailers
- TV Specials
- TV Spoofs and Fan Spoofs

Then under those, I try to create folders by date.  For instance, under TV Specials the folder would be named in this format:

(1980) Star Wars - Music By John Williams [BBC]

(Year {month}-{day}) Title of feature [Broadcast network] 

If I knew the exact broadcast date, it would be something like (1980 05-25) followed by the title.  If I don't know the date, but I want to sort further because I know a particular item came before another one, it would be something like (1980-1), followed by (1980-2), (1980-3) and so on.

Under that will be the file(s), in whatever format they are in.  I don't keep that many DVD format items on my hard drive due to space reasons, so I try to make hard copies of all that material.

This works with the way XP sorts by default, and allows it handle the sorting for me automatically.

--SKot

I'm getting a 404 there.

--SKot

Heilemann, thanks so much for posting that documentary (which now seems to be deleted).  That was excellent; even better than I expected it to be.  I've been watching Lucas' early films lately, so it was perfect timing to be able to see '6-18-67', which appears to be there in near entirety.

I will seed the DVD on MySpleen (in the new location) if someone could send me a copy.  PM me if so, please.

--SKot

EditDroid did an excellent laserdisc rip of all 4 Making Of specials that makes up the first 2 discs in their Special Features 4xDVD set.  They have the Japanese subtitles, of course, but I think they may be the best capture out there.

--SKot

Excellent find!

It doesn't seem to far-fetched to think that someone in the community has an actual video recording of this.  Babyhum, perhaps?  Or anyone else?

--SKot

EDIT: I found someone does have the video of it here, but it's on a defunct format where the player is apparently rarer than the actual show they recorded.  Good to find out as well here that the BBC does have this show in their archives, so there's hope that it could find release someday (if they ever get around to it).  Not always the case with the BBC, whose infamous non-forward-thinking policies in the early days caused many shows to be lost forever as they were wiped or recorded over after broadcast.

I finally completed my babyhum set with the final volume I was missing (I lost bh013 before I had a chance to burn it!), and I miss the quality and consistency of those regular releases.  Mind you, that's a formidable legacy with just those 18 volumes.  But I can't help wishing they were still coming.  There's still a number of odd documentaries and TV specials that would really be great for the babyhum treatment...

--SKot

Ripplin said:

Wow, this a blast from the past! I bet there are still things on that tape I mentioned (see my previous post, above yours) that would fit with this project. I should have a look at it again.

Hmmm... take a look at that tape sometime and see if anything's on it that's not in our list here.  Better yet, write down (in a text file) everything that's on it.  Even if it doesn't apply here, it may apply to another project!

Also, I haven't managed to pick up any commercials from 2007 onwards, but I'm sure there's been some, especially relating to The Clone Wars I would think.

--SKot

*bump*

Well, it's been another year.  I made a tiny update to the commercials list to include the 1987 Star Tours commercial, which you can view yourself on YouTube right here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zb_O7pUeNt0

If anyone has this in better quality than the YouTube version, please contact me.

I believe this was the last commercial from the "classic era" (1977-1989), prior to what I've termed the "revival era" (1990-1998) and the "prequel era" (1999-present).

Outside of that, this project definitely has so much variance in quality and format that it could only be realized as a set of files which would require you to have at least 4-5 different video players to be able to watch.  Still, it's a worthwhile thing just for the sake of having it all exist in one place.  I may find a way to get this out there yet, hopefully in a way that will allow me to upgrade the individual files as better copies surface.

--SKot

Hey, can anyone help me get in touch with Rikter? PMs are disabled, and he hasn't been around in a while. If so, please PM me.

Thanks,

--SKot

none, thanks for sending me this review copy.

I was immediately confused, confounded, and intrigued by this thing.  I sat down and watched some bits and pieces, and... wow.

I wholly agree that trying to watch it all or even large portions of it in one sitting is not to be recommended.  But grabbing chunks of it and watching is like a fascinating trainwreck you can't turn away from.

I had to shut it off as it was giving my girlfriend and I both headaches before long.  But I will get back to it here and there.

There's never been anything like this, and it really made me do some deep thinking about copyright law and the possibilities of complete copyright freedom.  Think about having a day of intense web surfing where one link leads to another, and another, and another, and you keep learning and learning more which drives you onward to follow more links for more information to learn even further.  Now imagine doing that not with just text and the occasional multimedia bit, but doing that entirely with all of history's video segments linking to other video segments (something that would be impossible under current copyright climate).  That's what watching this made me think of: totally video-based internet surfing.

The one thing I wish could be changed was the inconsistent audio levels, which could be extremely jarring at times (even beyond the general jarring inherent to the whole beast!).  If there was some way to normalize that, it would be an improvement.  That's my constructive criticism.

Excellent job, none.  You'd have to be crazy to attempt something like this, and stark raving mad to actually complete such a thing.  Now you are truly a certified lunatic.

--SKot

http://www.starwarsarchives.com/

...is down.  Hey Neo, are you still with us?  The forums there still seem to be working.

That site is a landmark and should never be offline, says me...

--SKot

Incredible BTW footage there... I wonder if there is similar footage for the other PSAs?

I know my friend Mike Streeter (who is not on these boards) was trying to bid on the 16mm copy of the PSA, but I was going to point him to you anyway, Puggo, so I am glad you got it.  Hopefully you two didn't wind up in a bidding war.  I'll let him know it fell into the right hands!

--SKot

MattMahdi said:

I'm sure we're all familiar with the Ralph McQuarrie painting of Chewbacca's house with Lumpy balancing on the rail.  In a way, because McQuarrie did it, it's something that truly gives the Special a legitimacy it might otherwise not have.  That, and much of the conceptual art that SKot has at his site.  The program was taken seriously by some talented people who did excellent work.  [Too bad the rest of the production didn't rise to the same level.]

When and where did that painting see print?

I _assume_ that it was created specifically for the Special because we can see Lumpy.

So does anyone know whence it came?  And, equally important, whether it's possible to find a larger, higher-resolution image than what's generally available?

The matte painting they actually ended up using (2 of them actually - one for day, one for night at the end) was very similar to the Ralph McQuarrie painting, but was repainted by another unknown artist.  I'm not sure exactly when McQuarrie painted the original piece, but I believe it was well before production began on the Holiday Special, and served as an inspiration for the show.  I'm guessing it was earlier in 1978, when ideas were being thrown around for the Special.  As to when it saw print, I'm not sure about that one either.  It was hard to find anywhere, that's for sure, let alone in any kind of quality.  Sadly, Kashyyyk was not included in the 1995 Illustrated Star Wars Universe book, so it wasn't there.  I do know that more recently a giant version of it was included in The Art of Ralph McQuarrie book, along with a few other amazing HS pieces, some of which have never been seen elsewhere.  My original source for a decent-resolution image of it?  I purchased a couple of Star Wars ScreenThemes screen savers that included a lot of McQuarrie art in 1024x768.

Oddly enough, there's some Joe Johnston Wookiee family artwork that I figured was pre-production art for the HS... but it's dated 3/8/79!  Why it would be AFTER the show aired is a mystery to me.  By that time, everybody knew it was a failure, so what was LFL up to?  Were they talking about a TV series?  Or thinking of featuring Wookiees in the next film?  I'm hoping someday I can ask Joe Johnston that question.

--SKot

Hey, Rowman!

Check your PMs.

--SKot

wwdarth said:

Just came across these.  I used to have BOTH of these on VHS back in the summer of '83, but have since lost the tape.  Actually it was borrowed and never returned(!). 

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

On a related topic, I'm currently working on a restoration project of STAR WARS TV SPOTS (tv trailers).  By using audio I recorded myself (age 8, with a tape recorder against the tv), plus audio I've found throughout the years in these forums, I've recreated a handful of STAR WARS.  I do have PREMIERE PRO 2.0 so the editing is impressive, however the only PAN AND SCAN copy of SW is a laserdisc rip I did several years back.  Quality is not great...but then again the project is intended on simply getting a "sense" of how they looked/felt back in the day...essentially having something to look at while listening to classic audio.  The only added/manipulated audio is patched work for some beginnings/endings that were clipped. 

Hi Wade...

Sluggo and I have done a lot of research on the trailers, but our info is still incomplete.  You may want to check out this thread:

http://originaltrilogy.com/forum/topic.cfm/lt-The-Star-Wars-Trailers-Project-gt/topic/5649/

Here's the info I have for TV trailers for ROTJ (updated with the YouTube stuff included), and their sources:

TV spots
1. Teaser "It Began" (1983) [:30]
It began with the story of a boy, a girl, and a universe.  It became an epic battle between the forces of good and evil.  Now, return to a galaxy far, far away.  The saga lives on.  Return Of The Jedi, rated PG.  Now playing at a theatre in your galaxy.
- YouTube user PindarMoloch, .flv file

1a. Teaser "It Began" (1983) [:15]
It began with the story of a boy, a girl, and a universe.  Now, the saga lives on.  Return Of The Jedi.
- Bonus Material DVD (widescreen)

2. Release "Climactic Chapter" (for May 25, 1983 - now playing) [:30]
Return Of The Jedi.  From the desert fortress of Jabba the Hutt. "Jedi!" To the Death Star of the Galactic Empire. To the forest city of the Ewoks. (Ewok noises) This is the climactic chapter in the Star Wars saga.  Remember the Force.  Rejoice in the triumph.  Return Of The Jedi, rated PG.  Now playing at a theatre in your galaxy.
- Bonus Material DVD (widescreen)
- Hyperspace, QuickTime file (fullscreen)

3. Release "Return" (for May 25, 1983) [:30]
Return Of The Jedi.  Return of the climactic clash between the forces of good and evil.  Return to a galaxy far, far away.  Discover the power of the Force.  The saga lives on.  Return Of The Jedi, rated PG.  Now playing at a theatre in your galaxy.
- EditDroid Special Features DVD (fullscreen)

3a. Release "Return" (for May 25, 1983) [:15]
Return to a galaxy far, far away.  Return Of The Jedi.  The next chapter in the continuing Star Wars saga.  Return Of The Jedi.
- Bonus Material DVD (widescreen)

4. Release "The Saga Lives On" (for May 25, 1983 - now playing) [:30]
The saga lives on.  The quest continues.  A destiny revealed.  "You must face Darth Vader again." A legend fulfilled.  Return Of The Jedi, rated PG. Now playing at a theatre in your galaxy.
- EditDroid Special Features DVD
- YouTube user PindarMoloch, .flv file

There is another trailer on the YouTube link that was used in the Siskel & Ebert review.  I have just confirmed that it was an edited version of one of the theatre trailers ("1983 Trailer 3" on the EditDroid Special Features DVD), and not actually a TV spot.  But I'm sure there are more TV spots we don't know about.

Good luck with your project.

--SKot

MattMahdi said:

I just came across this at theForce.net:

SW Holiday Special Commentary

Posted By Joshua on December 21, 2000

Moviebabble has a Fan Commentary to download and play as you watch the 1978 Holiday Special. If you do not know their site it has downloadable commentary from fans much like the official running commentary that comes with DVD.

This week they took a look at the Star Wars Holiday Special, and as bad as the movie is, the commentary is interesting and funny coming from a first time viewer watching the show. Check it out if you want a holiday chuckle.

http://theforce.net/latestnews/story/sw_holiday_special_commentary_74198.asp

Unfortunately, the Moviebabble site has apparently been claim-jumped.  Doubly unfortunate is that the article is from eight years ago.

Has anyone heard, or better yet archived, this commentary?

I think I did hear this, and if it's the one I remember, it was pretty lame and not really worth saving.  The RiffTrax one is really the best bet for commentary so far.

--SKot

MattMahdi said:

It makes so much more sense now....and I finally understand why the thumbnail is pink!

Thanks very much for posting it.

I completely understand why you would only want the original to go near a photocopier once.  Something that rare should be protected.  Thank you for copying it so that the rest of us could enjoy.

I'm curious what the content of the last two pages is.  After commercial break seven we seem to just have the Wookiee family gazing at each other, holding hands, and bowing their heads in what appears to be a prayer.  Then we pull away from the matte painting of the house and the credits begin.

(Unless those credits are exactly what are missing?)

Not much at all is left, really.  Just this:

163.

49. INT. LIVING ROOM - CLOSING

(WE SEE LIGHT SHIMMERING AROUND THE TRANSPORTER, THEN THE LIGHT FADES, AND THE FAMILY IS BACK HOME)

(THE FOUR GLOWING GLOBES ARE ON THE MANTEL)

(MALLA GOES TO THE KITCHEN, AS THE OTHERS SIT AT THE TABLE.  MALLA BRINGS A LARGE TRAY LADEN WITH FOOD, AND THEN TAKES HER PLACE OPPOSITE CHEWIE)

(LUMPY REACHES FOR SOME FOOD, AND ITCHY GENTLY PUSHES HIS HAND AWAY)

(ALL FOUR JOIN HANDS AROUND THE TABLE, AND BOW THEIR HEADS)

(DIP TO BLACK)

164.

CLOSING CREDITS
(:50)

(TO COME)

That's it.

--SKot