VCI: Dick Tracy Returns, and More Dick Tracy in June



**VCI** has announced a June 24th release date for two Dick Tracy titles: Dick Tracy Returns (1938) and Dick Tracy - RKO Classic Collection. The 2-disc Dick Tracy Returns is the second of the four Tracy serials to make it to DVD. The first, Dick Tracy (1937), was released by VCI in 2001 while the latter two, Dick Tracy's G-Men (1939) and Dick Tracy vs. Crime Inc. (1941), have yet to be released.

The RKO Classic Collection brings all four Tracy feature films to DVD on 2 Discs. And although they've been released before, most notably by Roan in 1999, they're sure to look better than any release out there. Details below.





Dick Tracy Returns (1938) - Retail: $29.99, Our: $17.99
Pa Stark (Charles Middleton, Ming the Merciless of Flash Gordon fame) and his five criminal sons are holding America in a grip of terror. It is up to Dick Tracy and his G-Men to bring the ruthless Starks to justice in a thrill-packed chapter play. Fast-paced, non-stop action is the hallmark of Witney and English, who from 1937 to 1941 directed for Republic Pictures some serials that are generally regarded as the finest ever to come out of Hollywood. Dick Tracy Returns belongs to that select group of super serials, and it is pure gold for thrill lovers.

BONUS FEATURES:
  • Intro by Max Allan Collins
  • Trailers
  • Adlets


Dick Tracy - RKO Classic Collection - Retail: $14.99, Our: $10.99
Four Dick Tracy Features on two DVDs!

'The comic-strip crimefighter Dick Tracy, created by Chester Gould, was part of the Saturday matinee serials, starring Ralph Byrd. In 1945, RKO revived the Tracy series, and Morgan Conway was chosen to portray Tracy in a pair of feature films: Dick Tracy and Dick Tracy vs. Cueball. RKO's earliest publicity photos posed Conway in profile, hoping to imitate Gould's square-jawed caricatures. Although Conway’s’ screen Tracy didn't resemble the print Tracy in the flesh, Conway's dramatic interpretation was faithful; he gave the role a humble, businesslike quality while keeping with police procedure. Morgan Conway is considered by many to be the best on screen Dick Tracy. Although Conway's Tracy was praised by critics as the closest to Gould's original concept, the public seemed to prefer Byrd, who returned in the role for the final two RKO features. To them, Ralph Byrd was Dick Tracy. RKO accepted this and hired Byrd to finish the series. Dick Tracy's Dilemma and Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome. Boris Karloff spices up the final RKO feature as the fearsome bad guy known as Gruesome. All four movies had many of the visual features associated with film noir: dramatic, shadowy photographic compositions, with many exterior scenes filmed at night. In addition, RKO stocked the films with familiar faces, creating a true rogues' gallery of characters. Max Allan Collins -- who took over the writing of the TRACY strip from Chester Gould, and went on to create Road to Perdition -- provides informative on-screen introductions to each film, exclusive to this VCI release.

BONUS FEATURES:

  • Chapter 1 of Dick Tracy Returns and Dick Tracy's G-Men
  • Photo Gallery - RKO Lobby Cards
  • Intros by Max Allan Collins
  • Trailers
  • Adlets


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