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tbird97

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29-Oct-2008
Last activity
13-Mar-2024
Posts
72

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Post
#1469441
Topic
Noob question – vhs transfer to DVD for Ewok telemovies
Time

Darth telly said:

tbird97 said:

Just what you’ve all been waiting for, the Ewoks telemovies!
Ha ha.
I have copied my vhs recordings of the original airings in 1984 and 1985. I have a DVD of each. I’d like to upload them to Myspleen, but I’ve never done one before and having some difficulty. I’d appreciate any assistance.

Also, I have the raw files. I’m copying them to a flash drive. If someone is more skilled than I, I would be willing to provide the raw files in order for someone to insert nicer menus and chapter selections than my meager abilities allowed. I can be contacted here, and I believe my PMs are turned on.
Thanks for any assistance.
May the Force be with you.

can I have the files for battle of endor? I want to reinsert the removed scenes back into the disney plus version.

Were there scenes deleted from the Disney+ version? I’ve not yet watched it on D+.

I’m going to have to find a way to host or post these to share them. I’m kind of working on a little project to restore the missing commercials and end credits and maybe that would be the ideal time.

A much better source than my recorded from television onto vhs would be the Ewoks double feature dvd which was released in either 2004 or 2006.

Post
#1465204
Topic
<strong>The &quot;Dr. Gonzo&quot; Trilogy DVD Info and Feedback Thread</strong> (Released)
Time

For the sake of discussion:

I recently got a working laserdisc player. I had a chance to watch the Definitive Collection Star Wars laserdiscs.
I also had Star Trek: The Motion Picture The Special Longer Version on laserdisc. I tried my hand at my first laserdisc capture, to decent results I was happy with.

While researching how to do it, I came across something cool called The Domesday Project. It appears the British had a project (perhaps like the U.S. census?) where they had preserved some data and had stored it on laserdisc. The Domesday Project (to my understanding at least) takes a laserdisc and instead of using the disc player’s output and mechanics, an RF device captures the signal from the laser. I think they made a digital copy of the disc and then had a kind of virtual machine to play it. As I understood it, perhaps like an old video game emulator. They were able to get more resolution and data out of these RF captures than a straight capture from the output of the player.

Now, I realize we have far surpassed the laserdisc captures with Harmy’s Despcialzied and the 4K77 and 4K83 projects.
But, I was curious if anyone ever captured the Definitive Collection discs (or others) using this process. I know the Cowclops laserdisc captures were done on a very good player, Dr. Gonzo’s was also a good looking preservation. I’m curious if there would be any noticeable gain utilizing this method?

Mine is a working player but I’m aware there were nicer players capable of producing a picture superior to mine. It would be cool to see just how much more could be squeezed out of the Definitive Collection discs (and that Star Trek movie as well).

Just an idea which popped into my head, as I stated, for discussion purposes.

Happy New Year, all.

Post
#1461258
Topic
Project <strong>4K80</strong> (a WIP)
Time

Williarob said:

I usually listen to soundtracks while I work. Right now I’m listening to the Lord of the Rings Soundtrack.

Reel 6 is remarkably clean and complete, so it’s going much more quickly than I had anticipated, based on the other reels.

When I’ve had enough I walk away. On the days where I don’t feel like working on it at all I just don’t. Luckily it’s not my day job so I don’t have that “get it done or you’ll lose your job” pressure. There are also plenty of other things to work on, for example the 16mm SPFX doc, or 4K77 2.0, or even just other aspects of 4K80, such as sourcing the missing frames: Inserts from other prints must be color matched and cleaned and aligned, all of which takes time, but also provides a change, however small that helps keeps things moving but also breaks the monotony.

For anyone who has never worked on a film or animation, frame by frame, working for hours at a time it’s probably difficult to imagine how long it all takes, and how disappointing it can be to count up your frames for the day, whether it’s a dozen or 300 or 1000, and converting that into real time, only to realize that your “wahoo!” moment of “1000 frames!” equates to just 41 seconds of a 2 hour movie. It also means that you end up spending weeks and weeks looking at the stark whiteness of Hoth, or the dunes of Tatooine, or the forests of Endor. That moment when the action shifts to another set can be so refreshing that you can keep going for another hour!

The progress wheels help me a lot. Not only do they keep you informed of my (slow) progress, but it’s psychologically helpful to me - like crossing things to do from a list. It helps me see that there is an end, and every time I can move the wheels I can see I’m getting closer to it. 1% of a reel is about 12 seconds of film or 288 frames, so if I clean less than that in a session, I can’t move the wheels. I like moving the wheels, even by only 1%, so that gives me a goal to hit every time.

THANK YOU!

I always check in about once a month or so and I get a little chill of excitement to see those wheels move.

Post
#1424281
Topic
Star Trek: The Original Series preservation (a WIP)
Time

Quick update - I’m getting some captures I’m really pleased with.
I upgraded my VCR to a nicer model.
I also just got a Panasonic DVD recorder which can be used as a pass thru time base corrector.
It all works as planned, I should be able to get even nicer captures.

The episode “The Omega Glory” has the original Paramount logo after the Desilu studios logo at the end.

Also confirmed - episode “Where No Man Has Gone Before,” Kirk is carrying a large phaser rifle. His old friend Gary Mitchell uses his ESP super powers to fling the rifle out of Kirk’s hands. On the dvd and blu-ray, you hear a large crash noise offscreen. On the vhs, there was no sound effect.

Would like to find a replacement CBS Home Video / Columbia House video of Assignment: Earth / Day of the Dove / That Which Survives. It’s the only one with 3 episodes on it. My vhs has a bad spot at the beginning.

Also still would like to get hold of the others mentioned in my previous post (above).
Cheers!

Post
#1423520
Topic
Star Trek: The Original Series preservation (a WIP)
Time

My project is underway. I have secured VHS copies of the 79 episodes of the original series.
I have obtained the CBS Home Video set which I believe was issued through Columbia House.

I have a capture card and software and am able to preserve the episodes to a digital file. Because the source is vhs, I am not making huge files. The picture quality is never going to match blu-ray or even dvd. I’m more interested in watching with the (mostly) original audio. The episodes also end with the Desilu logos.
My blu-ray player is able to play it and actually upscale. I’m still watching a vhs capture, but it’s at least watchable.

Of course, as a previous reply mentions, laserdisc would be the preferable best source. I’d love to do that some day. If I ever obtain those, I’d likely do a larger capture to preserve the audio and better picture quality.

Other items on my “wish list”:

The ORIGINAL vhs issues.

There was a set of 5 vhs tapes called Television classics collection from 1980.
1). Vol 1 The Menagerie, part 1 / The Menagerie, part 2
2). Vol 2 Amok Time / Journey to Babel
3). Vol 3 Mirror, Mirror / The Tholian Web
4). Vol 4 The Trouble with Tribbles / Let That Be Your Last Battlefield
5). Vol 5 Balance of Terror / The City on the Edge of Forever

Particularly interested in volume 5 as the tape of City on the Edge of Forever has a music substitution. This was later corrected on the DVDs and blu-ray. Not sure if that volume 5 had the original song “Goodnight, Sweetheart” or not.

6). There was also a one-off Paramount Gateway VHS issue of the episode “Space Seed” which came out at the time of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.

7). Also, it’s disputed this even exists, but I believe it does, a vhs issue of “The Cage” by Columbia House in the silver cardboard packaging, similar to the others, but with Pike and crew as artwork rather than Kirk and crew. I am certain, if it exists, it is only the black and white print.

As another reply mentions, I am no expert, but I understand “The Cage” has also been tinkered with. It was cut up and used to produce the two episodes called “The Menagerie” and somehow in that process some of the audio was re-done or doesn’t match the original. Sources online indicate the voice of the Talosian Keeper was messed with and the colorized version found on dvd doesn’t match. I read someplace on blu-ray the voice has been tinkered with even further, modulating it in an attempt so that the voice matches.

If anyone has access to these items on my wish list, please reach out to me. I’d LOVE to see them and preserve them. Will treat them as bars of latinum. I’d happily pay for postage and return them undamaged.

Somewhere at my parents house was (is?) a vhs tape with the Star Trek: From One Generation to the Next special hosted by Patrick Stewart where the full color version of “The Cage” was aired for the first time. If I come across that tape, you bet I’m going to preserve it too (I have seen it available online, it would just be cool to have my local station ID and commercials).

Live long and prosper.

Post
#1418375
Topic
Star Trek: The Original Series preservation (a WIP)
Time

I did not see this in the thread and I apologize if it appears elsewhere.

I’ve not seen a preservation effort for the original Star Trek tv series.
So, Trek has been released on DVD and blu-ray. However, it’s been changed each time.
The DVD added a 5.1 soundtrack which included new sound effects like the rumble of the ship. There are also some other sound effects and music cues which were changed. A list (not created by me, but I compiled them) appears at the bottom.

The blu-ray release of the series contains a mono soundtrack, but I think few (if any) of these are original.
There is also some debate about early episodes and which had the “electric violin” music and which had the standard opening theme. It seems to have been tinkered with over the years in an effort at standardization.

There were early vhs releases which I’m told have original soundtracks or at least much closer to them. Also, the laserdiscs should be the same as the vhs releases.

Thanks.
Live long and prosper.

David

 

VHS: the first season opening theme was standardized so the electric violin theme was only heard in “Where No Man Has Gone Before.”

Gene Roddenberry’s up front “created by” credit for The Man Trap and Charlie X were moved to the end of the episodes (these may have been “first rerun” prints).

The sound mix was fiddled with here and there but for the most part, it was pretty faithfully reproduced to my knowledge (City on the Edge of Forever had very objectionable music replacement when they couldn’t secure the home video rights to “Good Night Sweetheart”). The Paramount Logo at the end of the 1968 episodes of the second season was replaced by the third season logo (exception being The Omega Glory, which retained it on the Columbia House VHS print only).

Depending on whether you got the Colombia House releases of the Paramount HV single episode tapes, some scenes were missing in a small # of episodes (Let That Be Your Last Battlefield, Requiem for Methuselah, All Our Yesterdays)

 

DVD: the sound mix was brutalized, adding the exterior engine rumble (which was phased out midway through the first season) to the entire series.

The Menagerie part 2 had some music cues replaced for whatever reason by rerecordings and cues from The Doomsday Machine (you can still hear this on the stereo track on the blu-rays).

Balance of Terror now has a photon torpedo sound effect over the shots of the “proximity blast” phasers, where they were originally silent.

The electric violin theme was restored to the opening credits of the first season, but on far too many episodes (including Balance of Terror and The Corbomite Maneuver which always had the cello theme). The end credits of the electric violin themed episodes still retain the cello version from their 80’s revisions.

 

Bluray:
The sound mix was screwed with again. The “original broadcast mono track” still is wrong, with the engine rumble prevalent and sometimes VERY LOUD in a few first season episodes, drowning out the captains log entries. The only accurate post first season episode appears to be Amok Time.
New sound effects overlay some scenes (Errand of Mercy and The Paradise Syndrome).
The new CGI opening theme is seen in one episode of the first season no matter which version you choose.

 

A Doomsday Machine cue replaces a Friday’s Child cue in The Deadly Years as Spock enters the turbolift, being told to conduct the hearing on Kirk.

Added phaser/photon sounds as the Romulans fire at the Enterprise, same episode.

Doomsday Machine and re-recorded Corbomite and Mudd’s Women music replace three opening music cues in The Menagerie, Part II. The opening teaser, (Corbomite re-recording), Act 1, (Doomsday Machine, original) and Act 2, (Mudd’s Women re-recording).

An added ‘sting’ from the Rigel Fortress music is laid onto the soundtrack as Pike first appears in the illusion. This wasn’t present on the original broadcast of The Menagerie.

The condensed Max’s Factor music as Vina is restored to beauty, has been re-edited to create a smoother transition, for the DVDs and beyond, of The Menagerie, Part II.

After the Memory Alpha technician dies, a freeze-frame replaces the original shot where it was evident the actress was still breathing in the Lights of Zetar.

The closing credits have two differing sets of background pictures for the Lights of Zetar.

Added sound effect as the satellites enter orbit in Operation: Annihilate.

Door effect added to obelisk lightening hitting Kirk

Friday’s Child dialogue improvement

Mirror, Mirror added sound to mirror transition

There were some changes made to the sound mix for these as well. The sound effect of the phaser rifle hitting the ground after Mitchell flings it from Kirk’s grasp in WNMHGB is all but inaudible.

The finale music in “The Man Trap” as the Salt Vampire dies is much lower than it used to be.

The Blu-ray (and newer DVD) versions of Tribbles (accidentally) has one of Spock’s lines muted. “He’ll do it.”

Post
#1379362
Topic
Info Wanted: Attack of the Clones vhs preservation - has anyone done this?
Time

Attack of the Clones VHS (U.S. release) had an exclusive featurette called “Star Wars Connections” with R2-D2 and C-3PO.

I checked “the usual source” but there doesn’t appear to be a preservation of that VHS tape or that featurette. By the time that VHS came out, I already had a dvd player and Attack of the Clones was the first Star Wars movie I did not get on VHS and got it first on DVD.

Has anyone done a preservation of this vhs tape or, more specifically, at least that featurette?

Post
#1375243
Topic
The Phantom Menace - Theatrical version scanned in 4K (a WIP)
Time

ZigZig said:

So, in agreement with my wife (obviously), I decided to have fun with this money, in order to turn this ordeal into something positive! But it becomes clear that the Phantom Menace is an expensive adventure 😃

In more ways than one, my friend!
Stay well.

Did anyone else want to see raging Anakin in episode III return to settle the score with Kitster and Wald?
“Make fun of my podracer now!” wipes them out like he did the sandpeople, and the younglings…

Post
#1332908
Topic
A New Hope audio corrected?
Time

As the 4K discs have now been released (at least in the United States where I live), and the movies available on Disney+, I had a thought I have not seen addressed yet.

For the dvd release (2004) of A New Hope, I believe the rear channel audio was reversed. Has the audio been corrected for the 4K and Disney+ releases? I have Disney+, but have not yet watched A New Hope, other than to see Greedo exclaim, “Macklunkie!”

May the Force be with you.

Post
#1318164
Topic
Info Wanted: Which version of the Original Trilogy preservations to watch?
Time

ChainsawAsh said:

The sound options are pretty much the same on 4K77/83, except that they use newer versions of hairy_hen’s 5.1 mixes, and 4K83 has the optical stereo mix recorded from the print itself included, too.

So it does. Thank you for the correction.
Mine are from the blu-ray .iso which plays much smoother on my system than the .mkv file. I couldn’t recall which audio options were available on them.

Post
#1317901
Topic
Info Wanted: Which version of the Original Trilogy preservations to watch?
Time

I am pretty much in agreement with many of the posts above.
My preferred version is 4K77, Empire Strikes Back Despecialized and 4K83.
The one thing I would add, I LOVE the way the sound options are done on the Despecialized editions.
I love that you can choose from the mono, 35mm stereo mix (the most familiar one) and then Hairy_Hen has created an approximation of the 70mm six track mixes.

I love having the options, but Hairy_Hen’s six track approximations are awesome. They were bigger and boomier and it was like seeing the movies again with a new exciting element. If you have the sound equipment to take advantage of them, they are worth watching just to experience those tracks.

I am not sure how the stereo track on the blu-ray versions of 4K77 and 4K83 compare to the ones on Despecialized. Not sure what the sources are.
But, the Despecialized gets points in it’s favor at least for those tracks. The good news is, you now have options available to see the movies.
May the Force be with you.

Post
#1312440
Topic
Info Wanted: Which trailers accompanied the actual Star Wars movies?
Time

Yes, I took notes at Rise of Skywalker last night.
At an AMC IMAX in Indiana my trailers were as follows:

Sprite
AMC Stubs
The Call of the Wild (Harrison Ford)
IMAX at AMC
James Bond - No Time to Die
Doolittle
Bad Boys for Life
Top Gun Maverick
IMAX films to the fullest
3D gear up
Onward (Pixar)
the following in 3D
Black Widow
Mulan
AMC Prime Pre show Coca Cola
IMAX Countdown

Post
#1309107
Topic
Help: looking for... Lego Star Wars The Resistance Rises DVD
Time

I do have that R2-D2 Beneath the Dome mockumentary dvd. I just didn’t include it as it is obviously farce. And yes, I omitted the Holiday Special. But it’s out there to be found, just not an official release.

Thanks for the info about Duel of the Skywalkers! I’ll check my dvd when I get home.

Are we allowed to give out links or plugs on this site?
I apologize if no. On Youtube, look up “From the Star Wars Home Video Library.” There are so many videos by Nathan P. Butler, he gives in detail reviews of them all. Primarily U.S. releases, though he has branched out to a few other countries as well.

Post
#1309083
Topic
Help: looking for... Lego Star Wars The Resistance Rises DVD
Time

There are physical releases of many Star Wars Lego episodes, but not all of them.
The Yoda Chronicles, Episodes 1 and 2 were released to dvd. The New Yoda Chronicles dvd I believe featured 4 episodes which would have been #4, 5, 6 and 7. There was no release of episode 3 of the Yoda Chronicles.
I also believe that the episode “Duel of the Skywalkers” has not been on any physical media (please correct me if I am wrong), but is available on iTunes.

As for the Resistance Rises episodes you speak of, I don’t think they’ve had a physical media release. Same for the Lego All-Stars shorts on Disney+.

There was a dvd released with season 1 of Forces of Destiny, but it was almost a stealth release, done as a bonus disc with some holiday edition packages of the movies last year. No physical release for season 2 of Forces of Destiny.

There are also some web shorts, Galaxy of Adventures and Roll Out which don’t have physical releases. Both of those are animated short series.

I don’t know where those Blips animated shorts on Disney+ came from. I never knew or heard of them until I saw them on there. No physical media release of those I am aware of.

I own all the physical dvd and blu-ray releases. I recently got season 1 of the Resistance animated series. Seasons 1 and 2 are both on Disney+ (and in high def). With the advent of the new streaming service, I am curious what the future of home video releases will be. I don’t know if the missing Lego episodes mentioned above, and season 2 of Resistance will ever see the light of day.

I saw just the other day at my local bookstore they had the dvd with the two Ewoks television movies. It was $20 and I already own a copy.
Disney+ lacks both the ewoks tv movies (The Ewok Adventure (aka The Caravan of Courage) and The Battle for Endor), and it also lacks the old animated Droids and Ewoks cartoon series.

May the Force be with you all.

Post
#1308681
Topic
Star Wars Holiday Special - WHIO 1st Gen VHS Preservation (Released)
Time

JonathanArthur19 said:

Anyone have a download link?

Typically are on Myspleen.
It is my understanding invites to that site are closed.
Perhaps someone can help you out.

Also, sometime after this first generation vhs recording was unearthed, someone actually discovered the tv station master tape! If the best version is the one you are looking for (in terms of picture and sound quality) then you’ll want to look for the Editdroid version which is the tv station master tape or the Zion hybrid which I believe has had some additional tweaking to it.

Post
#1294692
Topic
Help: looking for... the 2 Ewok Movies and the Holiday Special in HD or Blu-Ray
Time

Rikter said:

In all honesty since it was a limited release, so we would have to know how many screens it showed on and I would estimate 3-5 so there may have only been that many copies of each film. I have a suspicion that for the DVD’s they may have used the Lucasfilm archives 35mm’s for the DVD transfers.

So I wonder if the VHS and laserdiscs are sourced from the broadcast tapes? Damn I can’t really remember them that well so I’ll have to watch them in the next few days. I’ll transfer the MPG’s to my TiVo and find the differences based on the interwebs information as I do not have the official DVD’s.

I have the official DVD release of these two movies and the picture was pretty good. I do not know what the source was, but it was fitting for DVD standard definition.

As mentioned above, I also have copies of these two movies which my dad recorded directly on VHS tape on the nights they aired and since ripped to dvd format. They are mostly uncut. They have the original title card and many, but not all, of the commercials intact. Both movies are complete, but missing the end credits, which ran after the last commercials. The quality of my recordings is obviously lesser because they were recorded onto VHS tape (on the 6 hour setting as I recall) before being ripped). I don’t know how to upload to “the organ,” but I’d happily make them available for anyone who’d want to upload them to share.

If you are interested in watching the best quality though, the official dvd release is the way to go and it sounds as if yours is probably also going to be superior to my recordings.

Post
#1290025
Topic
Help: looking for... 'Batman' - 1943 Full Version?
Time

It’s been some time since I pulled these gems out and watched them. I seem to recall the 2005 version had a missing part. It was like a chapter preview for the upcoming chapter, so it wasn’t like you were missing part of the story (maybe at the end of chapter 2, it was a preview for chapter 3?).

I can’t speak to the new release, but the 2005 version of the 1943 serial was unedited, which is probably pretty amazing in today’s age. It was World War II propaganda and contained some language and references which would be considered flat out racist by today’s PC standards. You just have to keep in mind the time it was released and it’s purpose. Lots of wartime stuff portrays the enemy in an unflattering light.

Post
#1288559
Topic
The Audio Preservation Thread
Time

I’ve browsed the thread with great interest.
Does anyone have a laserdisc rip of the soundtrack from Highlander?
I recently got the 30th anniversary blu-ray. Some of the sound effects have been muted down:

There seem to be a few changes which are documented in various forums.
I’m curious about a couple things.

  1. Is this 30th anniversary set mixed as it was originally presented? (I suspect not)
  2. I know this film has different cuts, not sure which are available on laserdisc.

I read, a few pages back, a request for Star Trek the original series. Put me down as interested in that if they ever turn up!

I really wish studios would give us original mixes along with the latest they’ve presented for their blu-rays.

Post
#1285787
Topic
Can't be Bothered: justifying Rey's power vs Luke's
Time

I haven’t read all the replies here yet, but I read The Last Jedi novel.
The novel seemed to indicate that Rey was tapped into the Cosmic Force while Luke uses the Living Force.
I think (according to the novelization anyway), that we are dealing with a different aspect of The Force and thus, different abilities and strengths(?!?).

I’m not saying I agree, I’m just saying, for the moment, that’s the closest to an explanation I’ve seen.

Post
#1274018
Topic
<strong>4K77</strong> - Released
Time

I pop back in from time to time.
I noticed on the usual source, there was a color corrected version 1.4 (by Sanjury) of 4K77 (saw one for 4K83 as well).
Before I’d burn a physical copy rather than mkv, are these considered “final” versions or is anyone still tweaking them?

I may get the blu-ray .iso anyway as the 4K83 mkv file started to stutter quite a bit near the end of the movie.
Amazing, just amazing to see the work that’s been done on these and it makes the kid in me very happy to see them in their original form! Thanks all who contributed and shared.