Quark Coming To DVD

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is releasing the late 70's sci-fi comedy TV series Quark on DVD October 14th. Read the full story here.

Happy Birthday

Today's my birthday, happy birthday to me! And to celebrate here's a clip courtesy of Handini7 --


Today is also actor and author Wil Wheaton's birthday. Check out his Halloween and other photos on Flickr.

To find out what Wil's been up to, take a look at his blog -- WWdN: In Exile.

Monster View-Masters

I won this on eBay last week. It's a Wolf Man View-Master set from 1978. It's still shrinkwrapped with an unpunched card. Now, here's the dilema. Should I open it? I have the Frankenstein and Dracula View-Master sets and they are open. I've never seen the Wolf Man reels. What should I do?

Cheap DVD's At Big Lots II: More Craptastic Flicks

The wife and I hit three more Big Lots and bought 14 more DVD's. We'll probably never watch half of them, but at least we have them :) --

My Picks --

The Fog: Special Edition (1979)
The Amityville Horror (1979)
Amityville II: The Possession (1982)
Robocop 3 (1993)
The Phantom Of The Opera (1989)
Needful Things (1993)
Jack The Giant Killer (1962)
The Magic Sword (1962)
A Bucket Of Blood (1959)
Frogs (1972)
The Deep (1977)

My Wife's Picks --

Mixed Nuts (1994)
Hideaway (1995)
National Lampoon Presents Dorm Daze: Unrated (2003)

I also bought a CD called The Story Of Frankenstein, Dracula And The Wolfman for $1.50. I haven't listened to it yet, but I wonder if this is a re-release of the old Power Records A Story Of Dracula, The Wolfman And Frankenstein (as seen on Mostly Ghostly Music Sharing Blaaahhhggg! and Scar Stuff).

Cheap DVD's At Big Lots

If you love DVD's, check out your nearest Big Lots. They have hundreds of them for $3.00 each. And not your cheap, low-quality dollar store DVD's, either. Classics from the 1930's right up until the last few years. I heard about this from a post at The Manchester Morgue. Click the link to see a partial list of what might be available at your local store.

My wife and I went to two different Big Lots and bought a total 18 DVD's. There were a few more we wanted, but we put them back. Maybe after next payday we'll hit a couple more stores and see what else we can find. This is what we got --

My Picks --

Bubba Ho-Tep: Collector's Edition (2003)
"X" The Man With The X-Ray Eyes (1963)
The Dunwich Horror (1970)
Killer Klowns From Outer Space (1988)
Invasion Of The Body Snatchers (1978)
Rollerball (1975)
The Ghoul (1933)
Swamp Thing (1982)
Konga (1961)
Bright Lights, Big City (1988)
Roadie (1980)
Johnny Be Good (1988)

My Wife's Picks --

Howling II: Your Sister Is A Werewolf (1986)
Sex And The Teenage Mind (2003)
Fuzz (1972)
The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course: Special Edition (2002)
Another You (1991)
Piñata: Survival Island (2002)

Lost Footage Of "Metropolis" Found

I first read about this on the Azathoth's Abode On The Plateau Of Leng blog. There's still hope that they will find a lost copy of London After Midnight or other long lost classics. Here's the story from AOL News --

By NICHOLAS KUSNETZ,Associated Press
Posted: 2008-07-04 19:24:01
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) - Lost scenes from the sci-fi classic "Metropolis," recently discovered in the archives of a Buenos Aires museum, were shown to journalists for the first time in decades on Thursday.

A long-lost original cut of the 1927 silent film sat for 80 years in a private collection and then in the Museum of Cinema in Buenos Aires, where it was discovered in April with scratched images that hadn't been seen before.

Museum director Paula Felix-Didier said theirs is the only copy of German director Fritz Lang's complete film.

"This is the version Fritz Lang intended," said Martin Koerber, a curator at the Deutsche Kinemathek film museum in Berlin, Germany.

"Metropolis," written by Lang and his actress wife Thea von Harbou, depicts a 21st century world divided between a class of underworld workers and the "thinkers" above who control them.

Soon after its initial release at the height of Germany's Weimar Republic, distributors cut Lang's three-and-a-half-hour masterpiece into the shorter version since viewed by millions worldwide.

But a private collector carried an original version to Argentina in 1928, where it has stayed, Felix-Didier said.

In the 1980s, Argentine film fanatic Fernando Pena heard about a man who had propped up a broken projector for "hours" to screen "Metropolis" in the 1960s. But the version of the film he knew was only one-and-a-half hours long. For years, he begged Buenos Aires' museum to check their archives for the man's longer version.

This year, museum researchers finally agreed and in April uncovered the reels in the museum's archive.

In June, Felix-Didier flew with a DVD to the Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau Foundation in Wiesbaden, Germany, which owns the rights to "Metropolis." Researchers there confirmed that the scenes were original.

News of the find excited film enthusiasts worldwide.

"This is a movie that millions and millions of people have seen since its release and yet, in many ways, we've never seen the true film," said Mike Mashon, head of the Moving Image section of the U.S. Library of Congress in Washington.

"Metropolis" was reissued in the U.S. in 2002 by Kino International Corp., which owns the rights to distribute the film domestically, Kino's general manager Gary Palmucci said.

Kino may rerelease the new, complete version of the film.

Meanwhile, Buenos Aires' Museum of Cinema is holding its treasure tight.

"The film hasn't left the museum and it won't leave until the city government and the Murnau Foundation decide what to do," Felix-Didier said.

More news links --

Die Zeit
Slashdot
Reuters
Variety

America The Beautiful

Time for some patriotic music.

First up is Tennessee Ernie Ford's album America The Beautiful (originally released in 1970). A special thanks to the original uploader of this album.

Track Listing

1. America, The Beautiful
2. Battle Hymn Of The Republic
3. America
4. This Is My Country
5. God Bless America
6. This Land Is Your Land
7. Our Land, O Lord
8. America, I Love You
9. The Pledge Of Allegiance
10. The Star-Spangled Banner

Click the link below to download --

--> America The Beautiful <--

Next is Henry Van Dyke's 1909 poem America For Me read by Vincent Price. I thought this would fit perfectly with my recent Monster Bash posts. This track was originally uploaded last year by Lee at the wonderful Music You (Possibly) Won't Hear Anyplace Else. Be sure to check out his blog for more great Independence Day music.

Click the link below to download --

--> America For Me <--

And last, my Independene Day Mix from last year is still available. Here's the track listing --

1. Opening Dialogue - Johnny Cash
2. America The Beautiful - Hayley Mills
3. Armed Forces Medley - The U.S. Army Band & Chorus
4. Dixie - Arthur Fiedler & The Boston Pops
5. God Bless The USA - Dolly Parton
6. National Anthem - LeAnn Rimes
7. Over There - James Cagney & Frances Langford
8. The Pledge Of Allegiance - Children Of America
9. The Presidents - Animaniacs
10. This Land Is Your Land - Cisco Houston
11. Yankee Doodle Dixie - Chet Atkins
12. America - The Muppets
13. America, The Dream Goes On - John Williams & The Boston Pops, voc. James Ingram
14. Battle Hymn Of The Republic - SheDaisy
15. God Bless America - Kate Smith
16. Liberty Tree - Disney Vocal Chorus
17. Old Glory - Heritage Choir & Orch.
18. Star-Spangled Banner - KISS
19. The Preamble - Schoolhouse Rock
20. There's A Star-Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere - Elton Britt
21. Yankee Doodle Boy - James Cagney
22. You're A Grand Old Flag - Disney

Click here to go to the original post and download link.

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!