- Post
- #1269052
- Topic
- When was the Special Edition first shown on TV?
- Link
- https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/1269052/action/topic#1269052
- Time
Ahh my bad. 😂😂😂 But anyways yes I do recall seeing the SE’s on basic cable circa 1998 or 1999.
Ahh my bad. 😂😂😂 But anyways yes I do recall seeing the SE’s on basic cable circa 1998 or 1999.
Was it basic cable or broadcast? I saw TPM air on a local station around 2002 or 2003.
Nah a regular broadcast. I think it was either TNT or TBS.
I didn’t get the Special Editions on video until 1999 and prior to that I had seen them on TV and had even borrowed them from someone at one point so that kinda gives you an idea. No idea about Germany.
Updated the first post. According to Star Wars Year By Year the tractor beam line was first included in the July 1978 theatrical re-release.
So does this mean there was a mono mix in ‘77 without the line or the mono didn’t surface until the ‘78 reissue?? Given the mono was assembled for theatres without stereo equipment I doubt the latter but then again that’s why I’m asking.
I’m fairly sure a 4K release of the OT (or at the very least a 4K version of the first film which apparently was already completely in 2012 but we’ve yet to see what it will be used for) shouldn’t be an issue. The Prequels is another story. IIRC AOTC and ROTS were filmed and completed at 2K so yes those films would need upscaling.
I wonder if Lucasfilm will wait until May of next year before doing any new physical release of I-VI just so they can have the technicality of fully regaining all distribution rights to Empire, Jedi, and the prequels, or if it makes zero difference at this point whether or not the profits go through 20th Century Fox first since it’s all owned by Disney.
With Episode IX coming out in December, I don’t see any plans for 1-6 this year even with the merger closing.
I can’t say there was a particular moment where I began questioning his credibility since it’s been rather ongoing since childhood but the moment where I more or less stopped trusting his claims all together was when he claimed Greedo shot first in the original version despite mounting evidence to the contrary.
This is what I’ve seen in theatres in 3D that I can remember off hand. Up, Toy Story 1 & 2 Double Feature (only stayed for the first though), A Christmas Carol (Jim Carrey version), Phantom Menace in 3D, Force Awakens. I think Last Jedi I saw in 3D as well but I frankly can’t remember at the moment. Funny since it’s the most recent of the films I just mentioned.
The only one where I kinda liked the 3D was Toy Story but I suppose 3D is likely more complimentary to Pixar animation than live action anyways. The rest I could give or take. I actually saw the 3D Force Awakens with my dad and I actually remember him saying afterwards that he didn’t feel the 3D added to anything.
Don’t have a 3DTV or know anyone who does. All around I could give or take 3D. If it has it cool, if not that’s fine too. Given that 3DTVs basically aren’t being manufactured anymore I guess I’m permanently stuck with 3D.
He always said ‘Father’.
Can you make Blu-Ray versions of these?
Sorry just caught this response now. I actually have a few BD versions of these. I’ll send a link. Might be difficult to do BD covers for all these since some of these movies are only available in Legacy Sets.
No prob!
Here’s A New Hope.

Empire comes from this poster.

Hope this helps.
The two VHS copies of the theatrical cut I had didn’t include the terrorist line. So basically it was along the lines of.
Mary: You won’t get four blocks in this neighborhood dressed like that.
Michael: Please?
Mary: No and that is final.
Michael: All the guys are!
In fact I’m not sure I was even aware of the terrorist line until the 2002 DVD. As far as other differences there might be I can’t really comment because I don’t have the BD release and thus not sure what the theatrical mix on that release sounds like at least compared to my VHS and DVD releases which I do know have additional audio changes outside of the terrorist line or lack there of.
It doesn’t make much sense to withhold them out of “respect for George” considering he did allow the GOUT to be released, effectively backtracking on his earlier vow that there would be only one version. Sure not much effort was put into the GOUT, but I seem to recall him saying the only reason for that was cost, not that he still was zealously opposed to the existence of the OUT. Then when he sold Star Wars, he basically threw up his hands and said he didn’t care anymore. If Disney was so concerned with respecting George anyway, they wouldn’t have tossed out his story ideas for the sequels. I can assure you they are much more concerned with making money, and this would make money. Kathleen Kennedy’s comments did seem to be more about addressing the fact that they would not create another SE by tinkering with the films farther past George’s last changes; that doesn’t preclude releasing the OUT.
This^
As others have said I thought I may have been crazy because I remembered these scenes and others didn’t. I would love to get a copy of this version. How?
I’ll try to get the file sent to you hopefully over the weekend.
In other news, apparently RoboCop is getting a release by Arrow.
https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.php?p=15797922&postcount=13783
I have read that Smokey and the Bandit and The Jerk had changes done to their surround mixes. The 40th Anniversary BD of Smokey fortunately includes the mono. Shout is rereleasing The Jerk on BD in a few weeks but it’s yet to be confirmed if the mono is included.
does the laserdisc sound any better than the bluray 5.1 ?
I believe the LD track is a two channel mix.
Jaws
Terminator
Halloween
Psycho
Mad MaxThere’s also been examples such as Grease and Scarface where although the original mixes were not mono they still were given 5.1 remixes later on that completely revised everything.
though fortunately for at least most of these movies the original mono/dolby mix was provided alongside the 5.1 version on their blu ray releases (Terminator being the only exception), though for Grease the original Dolby mix finally resurfaced in 5.1 form on the recent 40th anniversary release
Ah good, I hope the 40th Anniversary Grease has the original “Hopelessly Devoted” without background vocals. I have the laserdisc and VHS with the original Dolby.
The mix on the new release is from the an original six track mix. None of the changes made for the 1998 mix are present.
That’s amazing. It even has the old paramount music. Definitely gonna have to invest in it
Yep. Well worth the purchase. Some have mixed feelings on the color timing of this release but it frankly doesn’t bother me that much. My only pet peeve though some may call this an advantage is the blurred Coke posters have now been digitally replaced by Pepsi posters. It’s not bad but a bit hastily done in a few spots. If only they could just present the original film sans the blurs but I guess the blurs were permanently cut into the negative.
Jaws
Terminator
Halloween
Psycho
Mad MaxThere’s also been examples such as Grease and Scarface where although the original mixes were not mono they still were given 5.1 remixes later on that completely revised everything.
though fortunately for at least most of these movies the original mono/dolby mix was provided alongside the 5.1 version on their blu ray releases (Terminator being the only exception), though for Grease the original Dolby mix finally resurfaced in 5.1 form on the recent 40th anniversary release
Ah good, I hope the 40th Anniversary Grease has the original “Hopelessly Devoted” without background vocals. I have the laserdisc and VHS with the original Dolby.
The mix on the new release is from the an original six track mix. None of the changes made for the 1998 mix are present.
Additionally some BD releases of Halloween and Mad Max have mono tracks that are actually downmixes of the surround track. The recent UHD release of Halloween sadly is one of them.
Then there’s also the fact that a lot of times, when original mixes are provided, they’re in much lower quality (say, 192kbps AC3) compared to the modern remix (often lossless). Older laserdisc releases’ uncompressed PCM audio will often be superior, even if it’s the same mix.
This is partly why I prefer the mono for Jaws on the 2005 DVD in spite of its minor imperfections over the mono track included on the BD.
Jaws
Terminator
Halloween
Psycho
Mad MaxThere’s also been examples such as Grease and Scarface where although the original mixes were not mono they still were given 5.1 remixes later on that completely revised everything.
though fortunately for at least most of these movies the original mono/dolby mix was provided alongside the 5.1 version on their blu ray releases (Terminator being the only exception), though for Grease the original Dolby mix finally resurfaced in 5.1 form on the recent 40th anniversary release
It was based off an original six track mix which I believe was only used in a preview showing. The general release had a two channel stereo mix.
Additionally some BD releases of Halloween and Mad Max have mono tracks that are actually downmixes of the surround track. The recent UHD release of Halloween sadly is one of them.
Jaws
Terminator
Halloween
Psycho
Mad Max
There’s also been examples such as Grease and Scarface where although the original mixes were not mono they still were given 5.1 remixes later on that completely revised everything.
Speaking of which, did we ever determine what film element the unaltered GOUT crawl would’ve been scanned from?
Lucasfilm’s form response letter at the time stated that existing prints were in “bad condition” or something to that effect, but they didn’t exactly help their case by splicing in a newly transferred piece that looked just fine to me.
I’m curious if it’s a recreation after watching this video. In the GOUT the SW logo fades out sooner than it does on 4K77 and the SSE.
The star field is also less pronounced, so it could be a matter of contrast levels making it seem to fade to zero faster than it actually does.
Hmmm not sure about that. The logo does seem to disappear rather instantly on the GOUT at the 0:40 second mark.
Technically they were the best commercial versions of the OT we HAD since now even the GOUT is OOP.