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It's been over 15 years since the DVD format was introduced. I was thinking the other day about my old laserdisc collection and I couldn't think of any films I had on that format that I haven't replaced with either a blu-ray or dvd.

I'm curious what classic-era movies were released on laserdisc that never made it to dvd.

Offhand, I could think of Kevin Brownlow's "Hollywood", MGM's laserdisc of "Greed", and some of the discs with commentaries or extras that never were ported, like the Criterion Bond discs. And some of the silents that only have scores available in that format.

I did some searching on laserdiscs for sale and noticed only one title, "Evergreen", the 1930s British musical, that doesn't appear to have a US dvd release but was put out on Criterion laserdisc.

Any others you can think of?

I hate to admit it, but I do miss the nice packaging of some laserdiscs, with the big jackets and booklets. I'm tempted to pick up the laser of Roan Group's "Most Dangerous Game" to get a copy of the nice pressbook reproduction that came with the title, for example.

Just today (thanks to TCM) I revisited the delightful Pre-Code feature Topaze (1933), starring John Barrymore and Myrna Loy, which I hadn't seen in decades. (The only time I'd seen before it was at a public screening in NYC, at a repertory cinema called the Biograph, which is long gone.) As far as I know, it has never been released on DVD. After it was over today I looked it up online, and could find only used VHS copies and Laserdiscs available.

As so often happens, there's a web site for that! (I don't know if it's up to date)

http://laserdiscworld.com/laserdiscs-not-on-dvd/" target="_blank" target="_blank

I just went there and it says that Garbo's A Woman of Affairs is one.

Rick

HEARTS OF THE WORLD, 1918 by D W Griffith. Was released on a nicely tinted laser disc. Let down by overly fast projection speed. There may be a crappy PD title floating around.

THE LOST SQUADRON. 1932. With Richard Dix, Mary Astor and Eric Von Stroheim. This is an excellent almost like new looking transfer on laser disc.

Also THE CROWD 1928. King Vidor's great film. Was another excellent laser disc release. Don't think it is available on a decent DVD.

THE WIND 1928 with Lillian Gish was released on laser disc also.

The Wind and The Crowd were on the same laserdisc release as a double feature.

hammerglenn wrote:The Wind and The Crowd were on the same laserdisc release as a double feature.

Yes, I forgot that. I have it boxed up with all my other laser discs in a wall cavity behind a wardrobe. Been there for years.

Also the following, just for a start. Titles that have been released on DVD by PD labels, but not by one of the studios or high-quality firms, are denoted with *. I concentrated on US laserdisc releases but tried to account for DVD releases in areas other than R1.

Atlantis (1913) [available on R2 DVD]
Judith of Bethulia (1914)*
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm (1917)*
Pollyanna (1920)*
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (1921)*
Peck's Bad Boy (1921)*
The Covered Wagon (1923)
Isn't Life Wonderful (1924)
Little Annie Rooney (1925)*
The Student Prince in Old Heidelberg (1927) [paired on LD with the '54 musical]
Bulldog Drummond (1929) / The Devil to Pay (1930) [paired together on LD]
Show Boat (1929) [on LD with the two later films]
The Taming of the Shrew (1929)*
Bad Company (1931)
La chienne (1931) [available on R2 DVD]
Friends and Lovers (1931)
Mr. Robinson Crusoe (1932)*
One Night of Love (1934)
The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934)*
In Person (1935)
The Three Musketeers (1935)
Beloved Enemy (1936)
Conquest of the Air (1936) [available on R2 DVD]
Le crime de Monsieur Lange (1936) [available on R2 DVD]
Forget Me Not (1936)
Poor Little Rich Girl (1936) [available on R2 DVD]
Silly Billies (1936)
The Story of Louis Pasteur (1936) [paired on LD with The Life of Emile Zola]
Walking on Air (1936)
History Is Made at Night (1937)
Knight Without Armour (1937)

-HA

Firstly, as Harold as done, I'd suggest specifying whether titles are completely unavailable on DVD/BD or just in the US. Evergreen, for instance, has been out on a fine DVD in the UK for years.

That comes with the caveat that although there are many R2-only DVD titles, carefully check everything coming from Spain or Italy. Though they have impressive looking packaging the vast majority of them are pirated from VHS copies, with the occasional laserdisc or TV rip thrown in. This applies to several DVDs on Harold's list. There's a list of labels to avoid altogether here:

http://www.brentonfilm.com/articles/bew ... s-and-dvds

Secondly, if you're a serious collector of films on disc, you should get a region free setup anyway.

"EVERGREEN" is a Public Domain title and should be available from a number of PD suppliers, although video quality
may be an issue. "MOST DANGEROUS GAME" has also been released on DVD in the last several years.

Never knew One Night of Love was on LD. Must have been deleted when I started my LD collection in about Christmas 1994. I would have bought that for sure if I had known. Knights Without Armour(Dietrich for Korda London Films) has been on a series of DVDs of Korda London films some years ago, probably in my market-Australia.

As a side story of Korda films: In the mid-1970s the prints of Korda films in 16mm were given to the Australian Film Institute from a former distributor in Melbourne. I saw some and took them home to screen. Anyway the then current rights holder got wind of the films and demanded the return to them for destruction but they did not get them all. Many went West so to speak to certain collectors but not me. A late friend in London(he died about March 1980 10 years after a stroke) had been at the NFT and cleaned and spliced films used for the screenings in 35mm & 16mm and often had to go by taxi(he never drove) to pick up prints. There was a Korda festival and he had to go to an upper floor of an apartment building in Mayfair to collect prints for the screening. He had the key to the flat. In what was the living room were cans of films tossed all over the place. Worse was when he taxied to the Highbury Vaults(the so-called Rank Charm School operated there briefly), used by many firms for print storage. The vaults were thrown open every day and dogs prowled around the grounds. He had to collect a 35mm print of The Wicked Lady(1945) and all cans of two prints were full of dust. Luckily today I have a very clean released DVD of that one.

I still have all my LDs boxed and only ever sold one or two discs after DVD came out from a box of duplicates sent out from a big retailer in US of LD in error. They had been in a fire in my shop in the box and were fully OK and playable, with only the outer box blacked and had been stored close to the fire. I have not played the discs in years and I am sure some will have Laser Rot as some already had but only the CAV sides had become unplayable not CLV sides. Weird. I also have the Ingrid Bergman 1930s Swedish titles with English subs. These were released on early Image? LDs but the cost at the time was high and I neglected to get those DVDs.

Isn't the LD of The Eagle (1925) an unreleased version?

Brent wrote: Secondly, if you're a serious collector of films on disc, you should get a region free setup anyway.

I have one. What bugs me is PAL speedup of films on DVD. I'm sensitive to pitch and I find it really annoying.

I've started getting Region B blu-rays to fill out some holes in my collection since those don't have the PAL format problem.

Wm. Charles Morrow wrote:Just today (thanks to TCM) I revisited the delightful Pre-Code feature Topaze (1933), starring John Barrymore and Myrna Loy, which I hadn't seen in decades. (The only time I'd seen before it was at a public screening in NYC, at a repertory cinema called the Biograph, which is long gone.) As far as I know, it has never been released on DVD. After it was over today I looked it up online, and could find only used VHS copies and Laserdiscs available.

TOPAZE was uploaded onto YT some time ago - in parts, I think. No longer there...

Luckily there's http://www.lddb.com" target="_blank" target="_blank" target="_blank with a wealth of information. I wonder for example what is on this one?



The 'Forbidden Hollywood Collection' 1&2 may also contain some movies not yet on DVD (but I didn't check all of them).

I recently came across a DVD offering of "Topaze"...

Spiny Norman wrote:I wonder for example what is on this one?

That cover has the same title as this entry on IMDB, there is at least one review with contents:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087419/" target="_blank

Rick

Well, I picked up a laserdisc player (for all of $30) at a local antique mall last weekend and ordered a few discs.

The image is much better than I remember it on discs that are well mastered.

One I picked up was the 1929 version of "Taming of the Shrew". The print is ... interesting.

It was prepared for a 1966 re-release of the movie and had seven minutes cut from the running time - various scenes were trimmed to improve the pace. In addition, the film has a newly recorded music and effects track and new titles.

What an odd hybrid. Visuals and dialogue from 1929 married with 60's era orchestral music and sound effects.

Too bad the Pickford Estate chose to release it in this form. This is one that could stand a new restoration from Vitaphone discs, if they're available, since it's one of the major early talkie releases.

The Ghost Ship 1943 by Mark Robson was on LD not vhs. It was not even known to exist until then.

coolcatdaddy wrote:Well, I picked up a laserdisc player (for all of $30) at a local antique mall last weekend and ordered a few discs.

The image is much better than I remember it on discs that are well mastered.

One I picked up was the 1929 version of "Taming of the Shrew". The print is ... interesting.

It was prepared for a 1966 re-release of the movie and had seven minutes cut from the running time - various scenes were trimmed to improve the pace. In addition, the film has a newly recorded music and effects track and new titles.

What an odd hybrid. Visuals and dialogue from 1929 married with 60's era orchestral music and sound effects.

Too bad the Pickford Estate chose to release it in this form. This is one that could stand a new restoration from Vitaphone discs, if they're available, since it's one of the major early talkie releases.

Here's an old thread on Taming of the Shrew:

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=13036" target="_blank" target="_blank

I have a laserdisc of the Val Lewton-produced Mademoiselle Fifi which wasn't included in the Lewton/RKO DVD box set, because it wasn't a horror film. Not sure if there's been a Warner Archive DVD release of this, I believe there is a R2 DVD though.

I've also got a laserdisc of Oskar Fischinger animated shorts, from early experimental work in Germany to shorts produced for U.S. studios. There is a DVD, but it doesn't include everything, and it's only available from that one website.