FOX ARCHIVES: Grable, Dunne, Cantor & Crain in Latest Wave

Star power shines bright in 20th Century-Fox's upcoming wave of five Cinema Archive titles due out on January 15th. They are:

• Ali Baba Goes to Town (1937) - Eddie Cantor, Tony Martin, Roland Young
• The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend (1949) - Betty Grable, Cesar Romero, Rudy Vallee, Olga San Juan, Porter Hall
• The Fan (1949) - Jeanne Crain, Madeleine Carroll, George Sanders, Richard Greene, Martita Hunt
• The Mudlark (1950) - Irene Dunne, Alec Guinness, Andrew Ray, Beatrice Campbell, Finlay Currie
• Professional Soldier (1935) - Victor McLaglen, Freddie Bartholomew, Gloria Stuart

TIMELESS: West Point & Lee Marvin's Lawbreakers

WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

The Lawbreakers - The Complete Series March 26th Timeless Media Group Retail $29.93, Our: $23.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

West Point - The Complete Series February 26th Timeless Media Group Retail $29.93, Our: $23.99

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Some rarely seen (or even heard of) offerings are also due out early next year from Timeless Media as they have announced The Lawbreakers - The Complete Series and West Point - The Complete Series.

Lawbreakers is a Lee Marvin hosted and narrated semi-documentary drama series that re-creates real-life crime cases. Known guest stars are probably minimal.

West Point, a military drama focusing on the famous military academy, has a number notable guest stars including Chuck Connors, Clint Eastwood, Barbara Eden, Steve McQueen, Martin Milner, Dick Sargent and Leonard Nimoy.

Each will be a 4-disc set and bonus features are not expected.


West Point (also known as The West Point Story) produced with the full cooperation of the United States Department of Defense and the United States Military Academy was based on actual files documenting many of the real-life dramatic occurrences at West Point in New York over the years.

The weekly programming initially was hosted by a fictional cadet (Donald May), but by the end of the first season it was abandoned. Running from 1956 to 1957 the show featured big name guest stars such as Chuck Connors, Clint Eastwood and Barbara Eden. It also showcased a young writer named Gene Roddenberry who wrote 9 episodes of West Point before going on to create the classic original Star Trek television program.

The Lawbreakers - The Complete Series (No Artwork Yet)
For decades, generations of viewers have tuned in faithfully to witness the dirty deeds, and clean resolutions, that televised crime shows routinely deliver. It's a time proven format that never fails to satisfy justice served, in well under an hour.

One of the first television crime dramas to feature semi-documentary re-creations of real life cases, Lee Marvin Presents - The Lawbreakers pioneered a format that is still wildly popular almost fifty years later. Marvin's tough-as-nails persona and his trademark no nonsense delivery shine through as he guides us through a sordid collection of criminal activity extracted from the crime dockets of some of America s biggest cities.

TIMELESS: Wagon Train - Season 6, Loretta Young & Restless Gun

WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Wagon Train - The Complete Sixth Season March 5th Timeless Media Group Retail $59.97, Our: $44.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

The Restless Gun - Complete Series April 23rd Timeless Media Group Retail $59.97, Our: $44.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

The Loretta Young Show - 100th Birthday Edition February 12th Timeless Media Group Retail $99.88, Our: $84.99

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More TV from Timeless Media as they have announced the upcoming releases of Wagon Train - The Complete Sixth Season, The Restless Gun - Complete Series and The Loretta Young Show - 100th Birthday Edition.

Wagon Train will be a 10-disc set and packaged in the usual wagon shaped tin offerred for the series. Restless Gun, starring John Payne, is an 8-disc set, while The Loretta Young Show is a massive 17-disc "best of" compilation set of the eight year series.

Note: The Loretta Young set is available for purchase, but due to the size and cost, it will not be offered for rental at this time. Details below.



Continuing in their great tradition of classic TV westerns, NBC Universal and Timeless Media Group now bring you the uncut Wagon Train The Complete Sixth Season, one of the most enduring and sought after westerns of all time. Direct from film masters stored in the Universal vaults, these 37 episodes have been re-mastered and presented on 10 dual layer DVDs in a special edition tin box, with a handsome DVD booklet complete with all the episode synopses, the guest stars and more.

Inspired by the classic western film Wagonmaster, directed by John Ford (The Searchers, Stagecoach), Wagon Train debuted on Wednesday, September 18, 1957 on the NBC Television Network. The ensemble acting, wonderful scripts and great western scenery soon made Wagon Train a fixture in American homes on Wednesday nights, as millions of Americans of all ages tuned in to NBC for great family entertainment.

Each well-crafted episode focused on a personal story of courage and perseverance of not just the main cast, but of the westward-bound emigrants as they made the perilous journey from the banks of the Missouri to California s Pacific shores. In the face of great odds, their uplifting, heart-warming, and at times heart-breaking stories tell the tale of how the west was truly won. They were hard-working people, determined and driven by the promise of rich fertile land and the freedom and prosperity that it would bring. But to get there they would have to make the hardest trip of their lives and to succeed they would need strong, knowledgeable people to led the way.

John McIntire heads the cast of Wagon Train as Wagon Master Chris Hale. Joining him are long time costars, Frank McGrath (Charlie Wooster), Terry Wilson (Bill Hawks), and Denny Miller (Duke Shannon). Season Six marks the first year without star Robert Horton in Wagon Train, leaving Denny Miller to admirably take up the role of head scout.

Each weekly episode featured some of Hollywood s brightest stars in guest roles, including Joseph Cotten (The John Augustus Story), Robert Ryan (The John Bernard Story), Barbara Stanwyck (The Caroline Castell Story), Eddie Albert (The Kurt Davos Story), Dan Duryea (The Wagon Train Mutiny), Art Linkletter (The Sam Darland Story), Dennis Hopper (The Emmett Lawton Story), Brian Keith (The Tom Tuesday Story) and many more!

This 10 DVD collector's edition of Wagon Train The Complete Sixth Season, including all 37 great episodes, is sure to please both fans of the original broadcast and newcomers who are seeing it for the first time. "WAGONS, HO!"


  Few celebrities have enjoyed the professional longevity of Hollywood actress Loretta Young, whose remarkable career stretched over seven decades - beginning as a child extra during the Silent Era of motion pictures and attaining star status as a romantic leading lady during Hollywood's Golden Age. Miss Young appeared in over 100 films during her movie career, most notably The Farmer's Daughter, for which she won an Academy Award. But in 1953, she announced her retirement from film and signed a contract with Proctor & Gamble and the National Broadcasting Corporation NBC to produce and star in her own television series.

Her first show, Letter to Loretta, went on the air that September and was an immediate hit. Later re-titled The Loretta Young Show, her weekly anthology series was the first to feature a female star as host and actress, and made Miss Young one of the best-known and beloved personalities on television.

With a mix of both melodramas and light romantic comedies, the series was designed and intended for a female audience. Young chose stories for their messages, and while many stories affirmed postwar, middle-class ideas about the home, families, and gender roles, the show also explicitly addressed social issues of the day. It stands out as a rare, primetime network drama series where a woman tells her stories.

Starting with the very first episode of the original show, Letter from Loretta, this 17 DVD box set includes the very best of The Loretta Young Show.

Authorized by the Loretta Young Estate.

BONUS FEATURES:

• A conversation with Loretta's children
• Rare family home movies and photographs
• Movie trailers, interviews with veterans of The Loretta Young Show
• A short biography that highlights Loretta's career as actress, mother and role model to millions of American women

CRITERION: Ministry of Fear, Verdoux, Colonel Blimp & Blob in March

WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

The Blob (Blu-Ray) March 12th Criterion Retail: $39.95, Our: $31.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp March 19th Criterion Retail: $29.95, Our: $23.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (Blu-Ray) March 19th Criterion Retail: $39.95, Our: $31.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Ministry of Fear March 12th Criterion Retail: $19.95, Our: $15.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Ministry of Fear (Blu-Ray) March 12th Criterion Retail: $29.95, Our: $23.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Monsieur Verdoux March 26th Criterion Retail: $29.95, Our: $23.99

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WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Monsieur Verdoux (Blu-Ray) March 26th Criterion Retail: $39.95, Our: $31.99

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Criterion has announced their March slate and it includes 3 titles making their Blu debuts (Colonel Blimp, Ministry of Fear & Monsieur Verdoux) and one (Fritz Lang's Ministry of Fear) bowing on DVD & Blu-Ray.

Bonus features abound on Blimp and Verdoux, while The Blob's appear to be 100% carry over from the standard release. Ministry of Fear has the least and it is reflected in the lower price point for each respectively.

Details below.


"Beware Of The Blob!" One of the great cult classics, The Blob melds '50s schlock sci-fi and teen delinquency pics even as it transcends these genres with strong performances and ingenious special effects. Made outside of Hollywood by a maverick film distributor, a crew experienced in religious and educational shorts, and a collection of theatrical talent from Philadelphia and New York, The Blob helped launch the careers of superstud Steve McQueen and composer Burt Bacharach. BONUS FEATURES:

• Two audio commentaries: one by producer Jack H. Harris and film historian Bruce Eder; the other by director Irvin S. Yeaworth, Jr. and actor Robert ("Tony") Fields
• Theatrical Trailer
• BLOB-abilia!: collector Wes Shank's rare trove of stills, poster, props (including the Blob itself!), and other ephemera
• PLUS :An essay by critic Kim Newman

Considered by many to be the finest British film ever made, The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, is a stirring masterpiece like no other.

Roger Livesey dynamically embodies outmoded English militarism as the indelible General Clive Candy, who barely survives four decades of tumultuous British history (1902 to 1942) only to see the world change irrevocably before his eyes. Anton Walbrook and Deborah Kerr provide unforgettable support, he as a German enemy turned lifelong friend of Candy’s and she as young women of three consecutive generations—a socially committed governess, a sweet-souled war nurse, and a modern-thinking army driver—who inspire him.

Colonel Blimp is both moving and slyly satirical, an incomparable film about war, love, aging, and obsolescence shot in gorgeous Technicolor.

BONUS FEATURES:

• Audio Commentary Featuring Director Michael Powell with Martin Scorsese
• Video introduction by Scorsese
• A Profile of “The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp,” a twenty-four-minute documentary
• Restoration demonstration, hosted by Scorsese
• Interview with editor Thelma Schoonmaker Powell, Michael Powell’s widow
• Gallery featuring rare behind-the-scenes production stills
• Gallery tracing the history of David Low’s original Colonel Blimp cartoons
• PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic Molly Haskell

Suffused with dread and paranoia, this Fritz Lang adaptation of a novel by Graham Greene is a plunge into the eerie shadows of a world turned upside down by war. En route to London after being released from a mental institution, Stephen Neale (Ray Milland) stops at a seemingly innocent village fair, after which he finds himself caught in the web of a sinister underworld with possible Nazi connections.

Lang was among the most illustrious of the European émigré filmmakers working in Hollywood during World War II, and Ministry of Fear is one of his finest American productions, an unpredictable thriller with style to spare. BONUS FEATURES:

• New interview with Fritz Lang scholar Joe McElhaney
• Trailer
• PLUS: An essay by critic Glenn Kenny

Charlie Chaplin plays shockingly against type in his most controversial film, a brilliant and bleak black comedy about money, marriage, and murder. Chaplin is a twentieth-century Bluebeard, an enigmatic family man who goes to extreme lengths to support his wife and child, attempting to bump off a series of wealthy widows (including one played by the indefatigable Martha Raye, in a hilarious performance).

This deeply philosophical and wildly entertaining film is a work of true sophistication, both for the moral questions it dares to ask and the way it deconstructs its megastar’s loveable on-screen persona. BONUS FEATURES:

• Chaplin Today: “Monsieur Verdoux,” a 2003 program on the film’s production and release, featuring filmmaker Claude Chabrol and actor Norman Lloyd
• Charlie Chaplin and the American Press, a new documentary featuring Chaplin specialist Kate Guyonvarch and author Charles Maland
• New video essay featuring an audio interview with actress Marilyn Nash
• Radio advertisements and trailers
• PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic Ignatiy Vishnevetsky and reprinted pieces by Chaplin and critic André Bazin
  

Brewster's Millions (1945) in March

WHAT: WHEN: STUDIO: PRICE:

Brewster's Millions (1945) March 5th Hen's Tooth Video Retail $19.95, Our: $17.99

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Hen's Tooth Video has announced a March 5th street date for Brewster's Millions (1945).

This Alan Dwan comedy stars Dennis O'Keefe and Helen Walker and features June Havoc, Eddie 'Rochester' Anderson, Gail Patrick, Mischa Auer, Nana Bryant, John Litel, Joe Sawyer, Neil Hamilton and Thurston Hall.

Retail will be $19.95, but It is available at ClassicFlix.com for just $17.99. Bonus features are not expected.

OLIVE: Diary of a Chambermaid, Strangers in the Night & More in February

Olive Films has announced five titles, on both standard DVD and Blu-Ray, for release on February 26th. They are:

• The Diary of a Chambermaid (1946) - Paulette Goddard, Burgess Meredith, Hurd Hatfield, Francis Lederer, Judith Anderson & Dir. by Jean Renoir
• Lady for a Night (1942) - John Wayne, Joan Blondell, Philip Merivale, Blanche Yurka, Ray Middleton
• The Red Menace (1949) - Robert Rockwell, Hannelore Axman,
• She Devil (1957) - Mari Blanchard, Jack Kelly, Albert Dekker, John Archer, Fay Baker
• Strangers in the Night (1944) - William Terry, Virginia Grey

All are making their respective DVD & Blu debuts and can be found in the recent additions section.

WARNER ARCHIVE: Early 30's & War Dramas in Last Wave of 2012

A perfectly symmetrical set of 8 releases, four early 30's flix and four war dramas, make up Warner's last Archive Collection wave of 2012.

Early 30's:

• God's Gift to Women (1931) - Frank Fay, Laura La Plante, Joan Blondell, Charles Winninger, Alan Mowbray, Louise Brooks & Dir. by Michael Curtiz
• It's Tough to Be Famous (1932) - Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Mary Brian, Harold Minjir, Emma Dunn, Walter Catlett
• Side Show (1931) - Winnie Lightner, Charles Butterworth, Evalyn Knapp, Donald Cook, Guy Kibbee
• West of Broadway (1931) - John Gilbert, El Brendel, Lois Moran, Madge Evans, Ralph Bellamy

War Dramas:

• Battle Zone (1952) - John Hodiak, Linda Christian, Stephen McNally, Martin Milner
• Hitler (1962) - Richard Basehart, Cordula Trantow, Maria Emo, Martin Kosleck, John Banner
• I Escaped from the Gestapo (1943) - Dean Jagger, John Carradine, Mary Brian, William Henry, Sidney Blackmer
• Operation Eichmann (1961) - Werner Klemperer, Ruta Lee, Donald Buka, Barbara Turner, John Banner

All will be available here at ClassicFlix on January 8th.

These new DVDs add to the total of over 1,100 Warner Archive titles exclusively available for rent at ClassicFlix.com.