WARNER ARCHIVE: The Swan & 3 More Kay Francis Films

Five more new titles are now up at WBShop as part of Warner's Archive Collection.

The big news of this wave is the release of The Swan (1956) as it is the last of Grace Kelly's eleven films to make it to DVD.

Three Kay Francis films are also making their debut: Also out is Lillian Gish's Talkie debut One Romantic Night (1930) co-starring Rod La Rocque, Conrad Nagel and Marie Dressler.

They are now available for rent at ClassicFlix, but may be approximately four weeks before they are available for shipment.

These new DVDs bring the total Warner Archive titles exclusively available for rent at ClassicFlix.com to 534.

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WARNER ARCHIVE: 3 More Including The Opposite Sex

Three more new titles are now up at WBShop as part of Warner's Archive Collection.

The big news of this wave is the release of The Opposite Sex (1956). While not as entertaining as the original 1939 film The Women, it boasts a stellar cast: June Allyson, Joan Collins, Dolores Gray, Ann Sheridan, Ann Miller, Leslie Nielsen, Agnes Moorehead, Joan Blondell, Bill Goodwin and Jeff Richards.

Also out is Ronald Reagan in Brass Bancroft of the Secret Service Mysteries Collection collection. The four programmers are featured across two discs.

The action-drama Hot Rod (1950) starring Jimmy Lydon is making its DVD debut.

They are now available for rent at ClassicFlix, but may be approximately four weeks before they are available for shipment.

These new DVDs bring the total Warner Archive titles exclusively available for rent at ClassicFlix.com to 529.

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TCM VAULT: Colbert and MacMurray Romance Collection

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Claudette Colbert & Fred MacMurray Romantic Comedy Collection (TCM Vault)
November 15th
Universal
The Gilded Lily (1935), The Bride Comes Home (1935), Family Honeymoon (1949)

More Universal titles, via TCM's Vault line, are on their way as the Claudette Colbert & Fred MacMurray Romantic Comedy Collection is now up for pre-order at TCM.com. It's release date is set for November 15th.

And while this set may be exclusive to TCM, nowhere else will these films be available to rent except at ClassicFlix.com. Put them in your rental queue now and they will be available for shipment in the latter half of November.

SYNOPSIS:

The Gilded Lily (1935)
In this romantic comedy, Claudette Colbert stars as a stenographer who remains oblivious to the desires of friend/newspaper reporter Fred MacMurray as she pursues a rich Englishman. When she turns down the wealthy man's marriage proposal, an overjoyed MacMurray writes an article about the event--making Colbert an instant star. But will the pair end up together?

The Bride Comes Home (1935)
Following the collapse of her father's business, penniless socialite Claudette Colbert takes a job working with gruff magazine editor Fred MacMurray and charming writer Robert Young. Before you can say "battle of the sexes," Colbert and MacMurray transform their bickering into romance--and wedding plans. But when an argument sends his would-be bride into the arms of Young, MacMurray hatches a plan to get her back.

Family Honeymoon (1949)
When a botany professor marries a widow with three children, the entire family takes a madcap honeymoon vacation to the Grand Canyon. This doesn't sit too well with the instructor's scheming ex, who plots to win back the heart of her old flame. But when she meets up with the happy groom and his new clan at their destination, the stage is set for some Arizona awkwardness.

Rocky & Bullwinkle - The Complete Series in January

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Rocky & Bullwinkle & Friends - The Complete Series
January 4th
Classic Media
Retail: $149.99, Our: $104.99
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After Season Four was released in August, there was hope that the Fifth and final season of Rocky and Bullwinkle would shortly be announced. It now has, however, for the time being it is only available in the 18-disc collection just announced by Classic Media: Rocky & Bullwinkle & Friends - The Complete Series.

The January 4th release will retail for $149.99, but is available at ClassicFlix.com for only $104.99. Stay tuned for additional details.

WARNER ARCHIVE: 12 More in Lon Chaney, Horror Wave

Twelve more DVDs with a total of 17 films are now up at WBShop as part of Warner's Archive Collection. Some still show pre-order, but will be released by October 26th.

The big news is that six previously unreleased Lon Chaney films are part of this wave:

All 17 titles can also be found HERE in the Recent Additions section.

They are now available for rent at ClassicFlix, but may be approximately four weeks before they are available for shipment.

These new DVDs bring the total Warner Archive titles exclusively available for rent at ClassicFlix.com to 526.

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Rita Hayworth Set Rescheduled for December

--UPDATE--

Word came from Sony this morning that The Rita Hayworth set has been rescheduled for release on December 21st.

ORIGINAL ANNOUNCEMENT
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The Films of Rita Hayworth
November 2nd
Sony
Retail $59.95, Our: $44.99
Cover Girl (1944), Tonight and Every Night (1945), Gilda (1946), Salome (1953), Miss Sadie Thompson (1953)
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Long expected, Sony has announced a November 2nd release date for The Films of Rita Hayworth.

The 5-disc set will contain five films with Tonight and Every Night, Salome and Miss Sadie Thompson being new-to-DVD. Cover Girl and Gilda have been previously released, but will likely be remastered. Bonus features (below) are typical of Sony's Collector's Choice series.

Retail will be $59.95, but it's available at ClassicFlix.com for only $44.99.

SYNOPSIS:
These films highlight Hayworth's charm, grace and allure as a dancer, dramatic actress, and vamp--while charting the exceptional range of her career. It's a collection that showcases one of Hollywood's most unforgettable stars...and is certain to win her legions of new admirers as well.

Cover Girl (1944)
Rita Hayworth, Academy Award winner Gene Kelly, Phil Silvers and Eve Arden star in this lavishly produced musical about a nightclub dancer from Brooklyn who leaves her sweetheart after winning a Cover Girl contest -- only to learn that fame and fortune are no substitute for true love.

Rusty Parker is a chorus girl at a nightclub run by her sweetheart, Danny McGuire. Driven by ambition, she enters a "Cover Girl" contest. When Coudair, the magazine's publisher, discovers that she is the granddaughter of a former Broadway belle with whom he had been in love, Rusty wins the contest.

Cover Girl proved to be a turning point in the history of the Hollywood musical. For the first time, the songs were not merely strung together, but were themselves vital elements, serving to move the story forward. Cover Girl was also a major turning point in the career of Gene Kelly, as it established him as a virtuoso choreographer as well as a major dancing talent. Cover Girl also cemented Hayworth's reputation as Hollywood's most talented female dancer. Betty Grable herself admitted Hayworth danced rings around her.

Tonight and Every Night (1945)
This moving picture of life in war-time London is a tribute to those enduring the nightly bombing raids that strafed the city, and Hayworth is radiant as an American showgirl in London. Another gorgeous Technicolor musical and an unusual dramatic role for Rita, based on the real theater troupe who never missed a performance, despite increasingly dangerous circumstances. Victor Saville (Goodbye, Mr. Chips) produced and directed the film, which co-stars Lee Bowman, Janet Blair and Leslie Brooks.

Gilda (1946)
The legendary Rita Hayworth sizzles with sensuality and magnetism as she sings "Put the Blame on Mame" and delivers a dazzling performance as the enticing temptress Gilda. In the story of Gilda, Johnny Farrell (Glenn Ford) goes to work for Balin Mundson (George Macready), the proprietor of an illegal gambling casino in a South American city, and quickly rises to become Mundson's "main man." All is well until Mundson returns from a trip with his new bride Gilda -- a woman from Johnny's past. Mundson, unaware of their previous love affair, assigns Farrell the job of keeping Gilda a faithful wife. Fraught with hatred, Gilda does her best to antagonize, intimidate, and instill jealousy in Farrell -- until circumstances allow him to get even.

Salome (1953)
Rita plays the gloriously beautiful but wicked Salome with relish in this Biblical tale of the stepdaughter of Roman King Herod (Charles Laughton), whose growing lust for his charge leads her to make a very unique demand involving John The Baptist (Alan Badel). William Dieterle (The Hunchback of Notre Dame) directed this lavish production, which also stars Stewart Granger, Dame Judith Anderson and Sir Cedric Hardwicke.

Miss Sadie Thompson (1953)
The fourth screen version of the famed Somerset Maugham story details the arrival of a free-spirited woman to Samoa, where she naturally arouses the interest of the Marines based there (especially sergeant Aldo Ray), as well as the wrath of the fire-and-brimstone preacher (Jose Ferrer) who wants her sent away immediately. Curtis Bernhardt (A Stolen Life) directed the film, which was originally released in 3-D.

BONUS FEATURES:

  • Baz Luhrmann on Cover Girl
  • Introducing Miss Sadie Thompson with Patricia Clarkson
  • Patricia Clarkson on Tonight and Every Night
  • Commentary with Author/Filmmaker Richard Shickel

Hills of Home - Lassie TCM Greatest Films Set in February

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TCM Greatest Classic Films: Lassie
February 1st
Warner
Retail $27.92, Our: $17.99
Lassie Come Home (1943), Son of Lassie (1945), Courage of Lassie (1946), Hills of Home (1948)
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In an unusual departure from its practice in their TCM's Greatest Classic Films line, Warner is including a new-to-DVD title, Hills of Home (1948), in its just announced TCM Greatest Classic Films: Lassie set.

The fourth entry in the Lassie film series, Hills of Home stars Edmund Gwenn, Donald Crisp, Tom Drake and Janet Leigh.

It will be a 2-disc set and will street on February 1st. All the bonus features from the previous three releases will carry over, plus two new ones:

  • Vintage Short Fala at Hyde Park
  • Classic Cartoon Puttin’ on the Dog

Retail will be $27.92, but it's available at ClassicFlix.com for only $17.99.

SYNOPSIS:

DISC 1:

Lassie Come Home (1943, 89 min.)
Is there a better god in all of Yorkshire? Every day, Lassie waits for Joe (Roddy McDowall) outside school. One day she isn't there and Joe learns terrible news: Lassie's been sold by his impoverished family.

This first Lassie screen adventure is a triumph whose appeal will endure as a long as there's a child, a dog and the special bond only they can form. Donald Crisp, Dame May Witty, Edmund Gwenn, Nigel Bruce and Elsa Lanchester form a splendid supporting cast. And 11-year-old Elizabeth Taylor (in her first MGM film) plays Priscilla, who understands Lassie more than adults do and helps her escape kennel captivity. Braving storms, hunger an peril, Lassie comes home. Better dog in all Yorkshire? How about best dog in the world? Joe Carraclough has grown into adulthood as a World War II RAF airman. And Lassie's son Laddie is so devoted to him that he secretly stows away on the plane when Joe leaves on a bombing run.

Son of Lassie (1945, 100 min.)
Joe Carraclough has grown into adulthood as a World War II RAF airman. And Lassie's son Laddie is so devoted to him that he secretly stows away on the plane when Joe leaves on a bombing run.

When the plane is shot out of the sky over enemy-occupied Norway, Joe and Laddie parachute from the burning aircraft and begin their wartime adventures in this lively sequel. Peter Lawford and June Lockhart (long-time star of TV's Lassie) are Joe and Priscilla, parts previously played by Roddy McDowall and Elizabeth Taylor. Donald Crisp and Nigel Bruce return as savvy dog trainers. And ready to win hearts and help win the war is a collie whose love matches his boundless courage.

BONUS FEATURES:

  • Vintage Short Fala
  • Lassie Movie Trailer Gallery
  • Tom and Jerry Cartoon, Flirty Birdy
  • Theatrical Trailers

DISC 2:

Courage of Lassie (1946, 93 min.)
Combat Patrol 4 is pinned down, taking heavy fire. The lone hope of getting reinforcement is to send through the lines the patrol's brave collie. "Either he gets through or we don't," one G.I. says.

Heroism and heartfelt values arrive on four feet in Courage of Lassie. Elizabeth Taylor (who was in Lassie Come Home three years earlier) stars, radiating the special love of a child for a dog. And everyone's favorite collie plays the beloved canine whose adventures range from his wilderness puppyhood to wartime service to postwar stress to a moving family reunion. The Pacific Northwest locales are eye-filling splendors and the story has stirring family appeal. What a treat to share with favorite two- and four-legged pals!

Hills of Home (1948, 97 min.)
An Scottish doctor (Edmund Gwenn) rescues Lassie from a cruel master but nearly regrets his deed when he finds the dog has a phobia of water. But hearts and minds change in this warm and winning story that co-stars Donald Crisp, Janet Leigh and Tom Drake.

BONUS FEATURES:

  • Classic Cartoon Droopy in Northwest Hounded Police
  • Classic Cartoon Tom and Jerry in Solid Serenade
  • Vintage Short Fala at Hyde Park
  • Classic Cartoon Puttin’ on the Dog
  • Theatrical Trailers

Gunsmoke - Season 4, Vol. 2 in December

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PRICE:
Gunsmoke - Season 4, Vol. 2
December 14th
Paramount
Retail: $36.99, Our: $27.99
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Paramount has announced Gunsmoke - Season 4, Vol. 2 for release on December 14th.

The 3-disc set will retail for $36.99, but is available at ClassicFlix.com for only $27.99. Bonus features are not likely.

True Grit (Blu-Ray) in December

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PRICE:
True Grit (Blu-Ray)
December 14th
Paramount
Retail: $24.99, Our: $17.99
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Paramount has announced a December 14th release date for the Blu-Ray debut of True Grit.

Expected to be a single disc, it will carry over all the bonus features from the standard collector's edition:

  • Commentary by Jeb Rosebrook, Bob Boze Bell and J. Stuart Rosebrook
  • True Writing
  • Working with the Duke
  • Aspen Gold: Locations of True Grit
  • The Law and the Lawless
  • Theatrical trailer

It will retail for $24.99, but is available at ClassicFlix.com for only $17.99.

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea - Season 4, Vol. 2 in December

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Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea - Season 4, Vol. 2
December 21st
Fox
Retail: $39.98, Our: $29.99
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After 18 months, Fox is finally putting something new on DVD: Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea - Season 4, Vol. 2.

Blu-Ray and re-releases aside, this 3-disc set marks their first classic release since Man Hunt in May of 2009. Bonus features include a still gallery in this last set from the series.

It will street on December 21st and retail for $39.98, but is available at ClassicFlix.com for only $29.99.

WB ARCHIVE: 5 More Including The Crowd Roars, Babe Ruth Story

This week's Archive wave are sports films as Warner has added five sports related titles over at WBShop.

First up is The Crowd Roars (1938) starring Robert Taylor and Maureen O'Sullivan, along with a host of others. Also out is The Babe Ruth Story (1948) starring William Bendix as the Bambino.

The other three are:

  • College Coach (1933) - Dick Powell, Ann Dvorak, Pat O'Brien, Lyle Talbot
  • The Fireball (1950) - Mickey Rooney, Pat O'Brien
  • Huddle (1932) - Ramon Novarro, Madge Evans, Una Merkel

These new DVDs bring the total Warner Archive titles exclusively available for rent at ClassicFlix.com to 514.

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KINO: The Black Pirate (Blu-Ray) in December

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WHEN:
STUDIO:
PRICE:
The Black Pirate (Blu-Ray) - Deluxe Edition
December 14th
Kino
Retail: $34.99, Our: $27.99
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More Blu-Ray from Kino as they have announced The Black Pirate (Blu-Ray) - Deluxe Edition for release on December 14th.

Expected to be a single disc, it will carry over Rudy Behlmer's Commentary and 19 minutes of outtakes from the standard edition, plus add four new additional features:

  • Lee Erwin organ score
  • B&W "Talkie" Adaptation
  • 30 Minutes of previously unreleased outtakes
  • Photo gallery

It will retail for $34.99, but is available at ClassicFlix.com for only $27.99.

SYNOPSIS:
In the first grand-scale epic shot entirely in Technicolor, the sole survivor of a ship pillaged by buccaneers poses as the mysterious Black Pirate and infiltrates the nest of bandits. Michel (silver screen legend Douglas Fairbanks) mounts an elaborate ploy to recover the brigands' treasure, reclaim the ship and rescue the divine Princess (Billie Dove) held captive there.

This beautiful edition available exclusively on Blu-ray has been remastered in High Definition from the 35mm restoration negative. Contains the original 1926 score.

KINO: The Black Pirate (Blu-Ray) in December

WHAT:
WHEN:
STUDIO:
PRICE:
The Black Pirate (Blu-Ray) - Deluxe Edition
December 14th
Kino
Retail: $34.99, Our: $27.99
Buy Now
Add to QueueAdd to Queue Top Priority

More Blu-Ray from Kino as they have announced The Black Pirate (Blu-Ray) - Deluxe Edition for release on December 14th.

Expected to be a single disc, it will carry over Rudy Behlmer's Commentary and 19 minutes of outtakes from the standard edition, plus add four new additional features:

  • Lee Erwin organ score
  • B&W "Talkie" Adaptation
  • 30 Minutes of previously unreleased outtakes
  • Photo gallery

It will retail for $34.99, but is available at ClassicFlix.com for only $27.99.

SYNOPSIS:
In the first grand-scale epic shot entirely in Technicolor, the sole survivor of a ship pillaged by buccaneers poses as the mysterious Black Pirate and infiltrates the nest of bandits. Michel (silver screen legend Douglas Fairbanks) mounts an elaborate ploy to recover the brigands' treasure, reclaim the ship and rescue the divine Princess (Billie Dove) held captive there.

This beautiful edition available exclusively on Blu-ray has been remastered in High Definition from the 35mm restoration negative. Contains the original 1926 score.