We have discussed the steady encroachment of digital downloads and studio film libraries that exist in some nebulous Interwebnet "cloud" in several other threads dedicated to new releases and BLU-Ray topics.
I wondered about the future of sales in a thread talking about COVID-19 side effects. Darned if DigitalBits.com didn't have an informative article about just that topic:
https://thedigitalbits.com/columns/my-two-cents/070720-1500
Reading this makes it seem like we will be lucky with whatever we get in the next few years. Likely, the really obscure cult moves will have a hard time obtaining the necessary funds for proper restoration. I hope they are not allowed to deteriorate beyond all hope of rescue.
I know these old movies mostly represent a tiny fragment of our cultural heritage, but they are a part. Their collective influence over the years has contributed to our combined consciousness as a society and informed, and prejudiced, the thinking and opinions we all have in ways we don't even realize.
I wonder how much those numbers are skewed. For example, if those numbers take everything into account, I'm not surprised by them. But when you look at boutique/specialty lines such as Arrow, MVD, Vinegar Syndrome and Scream Factory in particular, what their numbers are like. Us horror folk have collecting in our blood and I think they benefit greatly from that. Especially because those companies give us restorations of long out of print films that a good amount of the community has been looking for. I bet Scream Factory will sell more physical units of Curse of the Werewolf than Sony will of Jumanji: The Next Level.
Hell, we're starting to see (albeit very limited) new VHS editions being released. As a whole, I agree that physical media is on its way out, but I think the horror/sci-fi community is still in good shape.
It'll definitely be a bummer if it all goes away. I would have less of an issue with digital if you could actually own it. My experience in purchasing digital is very limited, but I hate that if I buy something off Amazon I'm limited in how I watch it/which program I'm allowed to use.
Physical media isn't going anywhere soon, in my opinion. It is still a thriving industry, and as long as companies like Criterion, Arrow Video, Kino Lorber, Indicator, Shout Factory, etc. continue to put the love, work and care into their products, they will always have a solid support base from die-hard film lovers like myself. Right now, there is nothing streaming on any service that compares to a beautifully transferred 4K with HDR. That could all change, of course, with the arrival of 5G, but we will see.
I don't think physical media will ever truly go away, it will just change. It will become more of a niche product, like vinyl.
Quote from: Majere on October 29, 2020, 03:03:45 PM
It will become more of a niche product, like vinyl.
Nice to hear from you, again! :)
There is a call to remove Donald from future copies of "Home Alone 2".
I don't happen to be a fan of the man's work, but I am not in favor of altering artistic ( that's right, I think Home Alone 2 is an artistic work) work that has earned a place in so many millions of people's hearts. Leave it the hell alone.
There will always be political and personal behavior that makes some people wince at the inclusion of persons they no longer favor.
Bill Cosby lost the approval and support of many people in his later years. His early spoken humor is still funny. His classic comedy on audio disc is timeless. Two words: Chicken Heart.
Screw movies stored in some nebulous electronic web that can always be tweaked for current values and tastes. I'm stickin' with my physical media.
Quote from: Monsters For Sale on January 12, 2021, 08:08:07 PM
Screw movies stored in some nebulous electronic web that can always be tweaked for current values and tastes. I'm stickin' with my physical media.
I agree.
The whims of political correctness change with the wind. I don't want my entertainment censored just because somebody somewhere picked it to satisfy their current desire to be offended. Off the net (and the radar), my library of entertainment stays the way it was originally created, intended, and enjoyed. They can have the
cloud. I'll keep my physical media.
Also, I don't think DVD/BDs will go away during our lifetimes. They will get more
niche, but they'll still be around. Just like back issue comics or any collectible which has thousands of fans, there will be eBay sellers, and websites, and flea market/convention dealers, and little hole-in-the-wall stores, where you can still buy discs (and tapes) of your favorite genre films. Some may get more expensive over time as they get harder to find and demand rises, but they'll still be there. We love them too much for it to be otherwise.
Quote from: Monsters For Sale on January 12, 2021, 08:08:07 PM
There is a call to remove Donald from future copies of "Home Alone 2".
There is also a call to remove Jabba the Hutt from Star Wars: A New Hope (Un-Special Edition), which I would be far more in favor of!
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=FhkSuLenqV0
Quote from: Monsters For Sale on January 12, 2021, 08:08:07 PM
There is a call to remove Donald from future copies of "Home Alone 2".
I don't happen to be a fan of the man's work, but I am not in favor of altering artistic ( that's right, I think Home Alone 2 is an artistic work) work that has earned a place in so many millions of people's hearts. Leave it the hell alone.
There will always be political and personal behavior that makes some people wince at the inclusion of persons they no longer favor.
Bill Cosby lost the approval and support of many people in his later years. His early spoken humor is still funny. His classic comedy on audio disc is timeless. Two words: Chicken Heart.
Screw movies stored in some nebulous electronic web that can always be tweaked for current values and tastes. I'm stickin' with my physical media.
I agree. I am not in favor of sending a film back to the editing room 30 years later just because a cameo appearance turned out to be a [censor my opinion to not turn this into a political debate] president.
I'm in the physical media camp. Other people can have their cloud.
And I'm opposed to bowdlerizing films in deference to current sensibilities. I want to see the original unexpurgated Fantasia and all the other cartoons the way they were originally released.
cl:)
With the popularity of Boutique movie companies among younger Cinephiles, physical media isn't going away any time soon. The younger generation of real Cinephiles and Hipsters are collecting and buying bluray and DVD. Vinegar Syndrome, 88 Films, Arrow, Severin and Synapse are the go-to Boutique companies for collectors.
These aforementioned Boutique companies are offering lots of ballyhoo, in terms of promotion of their products.
Social media, especially the usage Instagram and Facebook has Trended the popularity of Physical Media.
As, Horrorhunter wrote. The word Niche is great adjective that best describes now and the future of physical media
collectors.
Quote from: Hepcat on January 23, 2021, 11:36:48 PM
I want to see the original unexpurgated Fantasia
What did they expurgate from FANTASIA?
The Censored Centaurs - Cinema Crazed (http://cinema-crazed.com/blog/2017/07/28/the-bootleg-files-fantasia-the-censored-centaurs/)
Incidentally I've attended and enjoyed several of Reg Hartt's Sex and Violence Cartoon Festivals over the years:
(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Reg_Hartt.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)
Reg Hartt's Cineforum - Torontoist (https://torontoist.com/2016/06/reg-hartt-cineforum-closes-again-2016/)
:)
Quote from: Hepcat on January 24, 2021, 11:24:47 AM
The Censored Centaurs
Oh yeah, I forgot about that.
With Cancel Culture rearing its ugly head around every corner, it would appear that owning physical media is more important now more than ever.
Quote from: BigShadow on March 14, 2021, 08:00:43 PM
With Cancel Culture rearing its ugly head around every corner, it would appear that owning physical media is more important now more than ever.
As long as I am alive, collecting Physical media is my standard. Cannot imagine a life without VHS, laserdisc, DVD, bluray, Vvnyl records or cds in my collection.
Quote from: marsattacks666 on March 14, 2021, 10:19:00 PM
Cannot imagine a life without VHS, laserdisc, DVD, bluray, Vinyl records or cds in my collection.
You forgot Cassettes and 8-Tracks. ;D
Quote from: Mike Scott on March 15, 2021, 12:39:11 AM
You forgot Cassettes and 8-Tracks. ;D
I remember getting a mini portable reel-to-reel tape recorder. Must have been about 1964.
Last month, a storm knocked out my internet for about a week! I was so grateful to have a large supply of DVDs and Blu-rays on hand.
Quote from: Monsters For Sale on March 15, 2021, 12:45:59 AM
I remember getting a mini portable reel-to-reel tape recorder.
I had one of those, for a while. (I think it self-destructed?)
Quote from: Monsters For Sale on March 15, 2021, 12:45:59 AMI remember getting a mini portable reel-to-reel tape recorder. Must have been about 1964.
Mini portable reel-to-reel? Isn't that the definition of a cassette deck? Tape width 0.15 inches and speed 1 7/8 inches per second (compared to 8-track cartridges which had a tape width of 0.25 inches and a speed of 3 3/4 inches per second).
???
Quote from: Hepcat on March 17, 2021, 12:09:26 PM
Mini portable reel-to-reel? Isn't that the definition of a cassette deck? Tape width 0.15 inches and speed 1 7/8 inches per second (compared to 8-track cartridges which had a tape width of 0.25 inches and a speed of 3 3/4 inches per second).
???
No. It was an open reel-to-reel. Two little separate reels. The tape player had 2 speeds.
Pre-dated cassettes.
Quote from: Hepcat on March 17, 2021, 12:09:26 PM
Mini portable reel-to-reel? Isn't that the definition of a cassette deck?
It's the definition of this.
(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/05/ec/0b/05ec0b28b4fea2badd8903ea2e05dfa2.jpg)
Quote from: BigShadow on March 14, 2021, 08:00:43 PMWith Cancel Culture rearing its ugly head around every corner, it would appear that owning physical media is more important now more than ever.
I understand that "ownership" of anything up in the cloud is a very nebulous concept as opposed to being cast in stone. This doesn't just apply to movies which can be censored by Big Brother or whoever in the name of political correctness. It also extends to music. The original version of a song that you thought you "bought" can at the whim of the streaming service be replaced by a version with less "offensive" lyrics or the newest remasturbated one (even if the reworked one is clipped and much inferior).
There is of course also the issue of what happens to one's movie or music collection if the streaming service goes belly up due to technological change. (Remember Blockbuster Video?) Then of course who's to say that the whole internet will continue to function if the developed world all goes the way of Venezuela? Everything including whatever movies, music and cryptocurrencies people keep in the form of electronic impulses will all go to hell in a handbasket then.
Had you asked me just over a year ago, I would have been confident that the "authorities" would still be able to hold things together for a few more decades and that bags of silver and/or gold coinage salted away in one's sub-basement would end up as someone else's archaeological windfall. I'm no longer so sure.
I'll just keep my vinyl, cassettes and CDs, thank you very much. The coins would be nice, but I can't shake the feeling that they're way overpriced (compared to say butter and eggs).
:-\
Quote from: Monsters For Sale on March 17, 2021, 12:43:45 PMNo. It was an open reel-to-reel. Two little separate reels. The tape player had 2 speeds.
Pre-dated cassettes.
Here's an interesting article on the timeline of various audio formats:
Timeline of Audio Formats - Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_audio_formats)
Interesting that Philips developed the compact cassette format strictly for business recording applications. It wasn't intended for music. That's why the tape was so thin (a negative) and slow (another negative). But because it was so compact, cassettes became ever more popular as a medium for music. While the wider and faster moving tape of 8-track cartridges provided superior music reproduction initially, the endless loop technology 8-tracks employed was clunky and subject to breaking down as well as bulky. When better quality tape and the Dolby noise reduction feature were develooped for cassettes in the early 1970's, they then very quickly overtook 8-tracks in the marketplace. In 1974, when I bought my cassette deck for my Dodge Charger plus another one for my home stereo, 8-tracks still dominated the market. By 1979 the tables had been turned completely and 8-track was a dying format.
The ideal would of course have been cassettes with a tape width of 0.25 inches and a speed of 3 3/4 inches per second. They might have been about 50% bigger in size than the cassettes Philips developed but they would still have been only about half the size of 8-track cartridges.
:-\
The thing I find crazy about streaming in general is that everyone assumes that every movie that has ever been made is available for streaming online. They have no idea the countless amount of films that have never been made available on home video, let alone streaming online.
Let's also consider how fickle these streaming services are with their classic film and television content. Amazon Prime still seems to be the best bet out there, but their selections change constantly. One day a film is on Prime and the next you have to pay $15 for air just to view the movie.
And I remember 8-10 years ago when Netflix first launched their streaming service. They had tons of classic films on their service. Then they decided to purge almost everything.
Streaming is convenient, but I can't help feeling the general public is selling it's soul to the devil for the sake of convenience AHEM laziness AHEM.
I'll stick with my Blus, DVDs, and VHS tapes, thank you very much.
I'm a huge fan of convenience so really like streaming, but another advantage of physical media is if they change it for the "better," the original versions are yours to keep. Here's an interesting article on the TV series Buffy the Vampire being remastered. I'm am SO glad I have the older DVDs:
https://www.themarysue.com/remastered-buffy-is-a-butt/ (https://www.themarysue.com/remastered-buffy-is-a-butt/)
And don't get me started on what Lucas did to the original Star Wars movies. Again, I'm lucky enough to have the OT on DVD with the original (albeit low res) cuts as "extras." At this point, we won't be getting them on BR until Georgie kicks the bucket. I don't wish the man dead, but...
Quote from: Doh! on March 18, 2021, 12:59:07 AM
Again, I'm lucky enough to have the OT on DVD
What's OT?
Original Trilogy.
Not to be confused with the PT or the ST...
(Prequel and Sequel)
Do you have the DVDs of the OT the has the original theatrical versions as well as the new versions?
Quote from: Mike Scott on March 17, 2021, 12:46:39 PMIt's the definition of this.
(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/05/ec/0b/05ec0b28b4fea2badd8903ea2e05dfa2.jpg)
Did that device take the full size reel-to-reel tapes that were sold to be played on full size reel-to-reel tape decks?
???
Quote from: Hepcat on March 18, 2021, 09:04:07 AM
Did that device take the full size reel-to-reel tapes that were sold to be played on full size reel-to-reel tape decks?
???
No. It's a mini recorder.
The reels are 3" or less. (I haven't held one since my high school graduation days, 1964.)
Quote from: Hepcat on March 18, 2021, 09:04:07 AM
Did that device take the full size reel-to-reel tapes that were sold to be played on full size reel-to-reel tape decks?
You can see by the photo that it wouldn't take any larger reel than the ones shown.
Quote from: Mike Scott on March 18, 2021, 01:59:29 AM
Do you have the DVDs of the OT the has the original theatrical versions as well as the new versions?
The ones I have are from 2006. Basically, it's the "Special Editions" with the original cuts as "bonus" material. The problem is, they were formatted to fit square TVs so on modern widescreen ones, there's a black margin surrounding the entire picture. They didn't bother to clean up the prints, either. Maybe some day...
Quote from: Doh! on March 18, 2021, 08:57:33 PM
The ones I have are from 2006. Basically, it's the "Special Editions" with the original cuts as "bonus" material.
Those are the ones I have. They suck, but there aren't any others!
Quote from: Mike Scott on March 18, 2021, 11:50:53 AMYou can see by the photo that it wouldn't take any larger reel than the ones shown.
Not really. There's nothing in the pic that provides a perspective for size.
:-\
Quote from: Hepcat on March 18, 2021, 10:15:00 PM
There's nothing in the pic that provides a perspective for size.
Sure there is! The 3 in. reels.
Nobody said that the reels were only 3" wide until Monsters for Sale did in post #32 which was after my question.
:(
Meanwhile, what was the width of the tapes and the running speeds? Were any pre-recorded albums available in that format in stores? This I take it was circa 1964? It doesn't show up in this timeline:
Timeline of Audio Formats - Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_audio_formats)
???
So last night I decided to stream the Night Gallery episode "The Doll" (for my money, the scariest episode! It literally gave me nightmares as a kid). I found it on NBC.com and even though I could tell there were going to be commercials, I thought I'd tough it out. Well, when the first of what appeared to six upcoming commercial breaks rolled out 3 in a row, I ditched out of it.
I just ordered the complete series on DVD for under $30 bucks! I can't stand commercials...
The Night Gallery set has some pretty good extras. A few commentaries and docs on the series and the paintings. Bonuses like those on DVDs and BluRays are the biggest reasons I still prefer physical media.
Glad to hear it! The paintings still hold up on their own as pieces of art. Pretty impressive for a TV prop.
I received my Night Gallery Complete Series DVD set today and cracked it open tonight. Color me pissed! I wanted to watch "The Doll" uninterrupted by commercial breaks, so popped in the disc and watched the entire episode. It was the third segment, but I haven't seen these in awhile so I figured I'd just watch the entire episode.
As it was playing, I was trying to recall how much of "The Doll" I had watched on NBC's website. I recall the opening battle scene which reveals the doll looking scary as... well, very scary! Then it cuts to John Williams arriving home and seeing the doll in his niece's arms, looking much more benign. Anyway, when the episode plays on DVD, Serling does his opening bit, then the scene cuts to... John Williams arriving home. They cut out the opening battle scene and the reveal of the doll! WTF?? DVD sets of TV series should be fully intact! How dare they call this the "Complete" Series...
The only explanation I can find so far (via a viewer review on IMDb) is that the DVD version was an edited one that was altered by NBC after it ran the first time. Now, I haven't watched the bonus materials yet so maybe that scene is included someplace, but this disappoints me greatly.
If you'd like to see the missing scene, go here:
https://www.nbc.com/night-gallery/video/the-doll/3965940 (https://www.nbc.com/night-gallery/video/the-doll/3965940)
Quote from: Doh! on March 25, 2021, 12:04:56 AM
I received my Night Gallery Complete Series DVD set today and cracked it open tonight. Color me pissed! I wanted to watch "The Doll" uninterrupted by commercial breaks, so popped in the disc and watched the entire episode. It was the third segment, but I haven't seen these in awhile so I figured I'd just watch the entire episode.
As it was playing, I was trying to recall how much of "The Doll" I had watched on NBC's website. I recall the opening battle scene which reveals the doll looking scary as... well, very scary! Then it cuts to John Williams arriving home and seeing the doll in his niece's arms, looking much more benign. Anyway, when the episode plays on DVD, Serling does his opening bit, then the scene cuts to... John Williams arriving home. They cut out the opening battle scene and the reveal of the doll! WTF?? DVD sets of TV series should be fully intact! How dare they call this the "Complete" Series...
The only explanation I can find so far (via a viewer review on IMDb) is that the DVD version was an edited one that was altered by NBC after it ran the first time. Now, I haven't watched the bonus materials yet so maybe that scene is included someplace, but this disappoints me greatly.
If you'd like to see the missing scene, go here:
https://www.nbc.com/night-gallery/video/the-doll/3965940 (https://www.nbc.com/night-gallery/video/the-doll/3965940)
Wow, thanks for posting this. I have the DVD set too and didn't realize this episode was missing that scene. I'm sure I must have seen it first run, but that was so long ago. I hope that's the only thing missing on the DVDs.
Night Gallery has an interesting syndication history. Some of the segments were edited and others had material inserted to achieve the runtime for a 30 minute slot. And, of course, episodes of The Sixth Sense were edited down to fit the timeslot with Serling's added intros. Considering those Sixth Sense episodes are included on the NBC website linked, it's probable that these are the syndicated versions and that the war footage at the beginning of the episode was added for the syndication package. That's what the second post here indicates.
https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/monsterkidclassichorrorforum/the-night-gallery-t37764-s100.html (https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/monsterkidclassichorrorforum/the-night-gallery-t37764-s100.html)
Segeorge, thanks much for posting that link! I feel better now, knowing that the DVDs include the original cuts. I'd still like to own the added footage, though. Who knows when NBC will drop the series from their site?
On a related note, here's a nice interview with Serling on The Dick Cavett Show discussing Night Gallery:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTHETbgixzs (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTHETbgixzs)
Quote from: segeorge on March 25, 2021, 12:54:24 PM
Night Gallery has an interesting syndication history. Some of the segments were edited and others had material inserted to achieve the runtime for a 30 minute slot. And, of course, episodes of The Sixth Sense were edited down to fit the timeslot with Serling's added intros. Considering those Sixth Sense episodes are included on the NBC website linked, it's probable that these are the syndicated versions and that the war footage at the beginning of the episode was added for the syndication package. That's what the second post here indicates.
https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/monsterkidclassichorrorforum/the-night-gallery-t37764-s100.html (https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/monsterkidclassichorrorforum/the-night-gallery-t37764-s100.html)
Thanks for the info. That does seem to make sense.
I don't want to hijack this media thread, so I put some additional information about the Sixth Sense paintings in the Night Gallery thread:
http://www.universalmonsterarmy.com/forum/index.php?topic=17928.msg597565#msg597565 (http://www.universalmonsterarmy.com/forum/index.php?topic=17928.msg597565#msg597565)
Is Warner Bros. Discontinuing Physical Media?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mtno1Qcnbjw&t=28s (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mtno1Qcnbjw&t=28s)
Quote from: geezer butler on April 24, 2021, 04:28:11 PM
Is Warner Bros. Discontinuing Physical Media?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mtno1Qcnbjw&t=28s (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mtno1Qcnbjw&t=28s)
Yes and no.
They are having somebody else issue their Warner Archives movies for them. OK with me. The last few made-on-demand titles I ordered through Amazon took a l-o-n-g time to get to me. Maybe someone else will do a better job.
Funny, Warners did such a good job earlier on. They would put out "night at the movies" versions of some movies with short subjects, cartoons and radio dramas of the movies included. And the big set they did of all the restored Charlie Chan movies on DVD is really great - with commentaries and before and after restorations examples, etc.
They cared at one time.