TCM Vault Collection

[Frankinho007]

Turner Classic Movies & Universal Studios Home Entertainment
Team Up to Offer Made-to-Order DVDs of Rare Films

Digitally Remastered Titles Never Available Before on DVD to Include Extensive Features from TCM Archives

New Titles Available Each Quarter, Including Five Memorable Horror Titles,
Three Early Cary Grant Vehicles and a Timeless Holiday Classic

TCM to Present Special Telecasts of the Films

Turner Classic Movies (TCM) and Universal Studios Home Entertainment (USHE) have entered into an extensive new partnership to offer classic movie fans rare vintage films, all digitally remastered, on DVD on a made-to-order basis. The TCM Vault Collection Presented by Universal marks USHE’s first foray into the manufactured-on-demand (MOD) arena. TCM began offering MOD featuring lost titles from the RKO library.

TCM and USHE are working to remaster a number of great titles never before available on DVD, with several never available on home video at all. The first titles made available include five chilling horror films, three early Cary Grant pictures and the unsung 1940 holiday classic Rememberthe Night, starring Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray and scripted by the great Preston Sturges. The films will be made available by request on DVD via TCM.com for the first time during the fourth quarter of 2009. TCM host Robert Osborne will provide introductions for selected titles, which will also include supplemental materials compiled by TCM and extensive material from the TCM archives. In addition, TCM will present exclusive premieres of the movies over the next six months.

“Many terrific films have been unavailable on home video for far too long, especially the holiday classic Remember the Night,” Osborne said. “It’s wonderful that today’s movie fans will be able to enjoy these rare movies. TCM and Universal have worked hard to restore them digitally and provide historical context, bonus content and behind-the-scenes information, something DVD collectors are sure to appreicate. I’m proud to be part of this great project with TCM and Universal.”

For Universal, the agreement is a great way to reach avid film fans. “Universal is very proud of its prestigious collection of Hollywood screen gems,” said Craig Kornblau, president, Universal Studios Home Entertainment. “Like us, TCM is deeply dedicated to honoring Hollywood’s golden age. This collaboration presents the perfect opportunity to share Universal’s rich cinematic legacy and celebrate vintage works with classic film fans.”

The launch of TCM/Universal DVDs will be divided into three initial releases:
Universal Cult Horror Collection (films also available as singles )
DVD Availability: Oct. 31
TCM Premiere of Murders in the Zoo: Oct. 31
Suggested Retail Price: Collection - $49.99; Individual Titles - $19.99
This collection will include five rarely seen horror gems from the Universal vault, most appearing on home video for the first time. Special features include over a hundred photos, posters and lobby cards, trivia, articles and more.
Murders in the Zoo (1933) – Censors had a heyday with this horror film about a zoologist and sportsman who uses his zoo animals to kill his wife’s lovers. Lionel Atwill plays the villain, with Kathleen Burke as his wife, a young Randolph Scott as the hero and the ever lovable Charles Ruggles providing comic relief as the zoo’s press agent. Among the men playing Burke’s doomed lovers is John Lodge, who later left acting to enter politics, becoming governor of Vermont.
Mad Doctor of Market Street (1942) – Lionel Atwill plays a mad scientist who places people into suspended animation and then revives them. When he is accused of murder following the death of one of his subjects, he flees on a ship, becomes stranded on a tropical island and soon becomes revered as a god by the natives. Una Merkel, Nat Pendleton and Claire Dodd co-star.
The Strange Case of Dr. RX (1942) – A mysterious killer bumps off acquitted murderers who have all been represented by the same laywer, played by Samuel S. Hinds. Lionel Atwill, Patric Knowles and Anne Gwynne co-star, with Shemp Howard (on hiatus from his work with The Three Stooges) providing comic relief.
The Mad Ghoul (1943) – This creepy tale follows a mad professor, played by George Zucco, who has discovered an ancient Egyptian gas that turns anyone who sniffs it into a heart-eating zombie. David Bruce plays the doctor’s assistant who gets dosed with the gas and goes on a murderous rampage. Evelyn Ankers and Robert Armstrong co-star.
House of Horrors (1946) – The legendary Rondo Hatton, whose acromegaly deformed his face and made him a frequent Hollywood villain, marked one of his last roles with this offbeat film. Martin Kosleck plays a mad artist who, after saving Hatton and making a bust of his face, uses the disfigured hulk to murder art critics. Hatton died of a heart attack the year this film was released.

Remember the Night (1940)
DVD Availability: Nov. 22
TCM Telecasts: Dec. 6 and Dec. 24
Suggested Retail Price: $19.99
This heart-warming holiday romance – penned by Preston Sturges – marked the first of four on-screen pairings of Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck and came four years before their iconic work in Double Indemnity. MacMurray plays a prosecutor who finds himself falling in love with a shoplifter (Stanwyck) during a court recess at Christmas time. The atmospheric film co-stars Beulah Bondi, Elizabeth Patterson and Sterling Holloway and was directed by Mitchell Leisen.

Remember the Night is rarely seen and received a brief home-video release on VHS. It is being now remastered and brought back to life so it can take its rightful place as a signature holiday classic. Special features on the DVD will include an introduction by Robert Osborne; still galleries, including behind-the-scenes photos; never-before-seen interview segments on the work of director Mitchell Leisen from the TCM Archives; and the original movie trailer, trivia, biographies and more.

Cary Grant Collection (films also available as singles)
DVD Availability: January 2010
Three early Cary Grant films will populate this boxed set:
The Eagle and the Hawk (1933) – This vivid World War I drama stars Frederic March as a disillusioned but fearless squadron leader and Cary Grant as his bullied gunner-observer. The gripping interpersonal drama, anti-war sentiments and outstanding aerial dogfights give this film an impact that remains vital today. Carole Lombard and Jack Oakie round out a top-notch cast. The great directorMitchell Leisen, who is billed as associate director, is believed to have directed most of this film.
The Devil and the Deep (1932) – This melodrama is headlined by Tallulah Bankhead, Gary Cooper, Cary Grant and Charles Laughton. The setting is the northern coast of Africa, where submarine commander Laughton is stationed and where his wife, Bankhead, is splitting her time between suitors Cooper and Grant. This marked Laughton’s first American film and one of his most underappreciated performances.
The Last Outpost (1935) – Cary Grant plays a British officer saved from a Kurdish tribe by fellow officer Claude Rains. But when Grant unknowingly falls in love with Rains’ wife, tragedy looms. Gertrude Michael and Kathleen Burke co-star under the dual direction of Charles Barton and Louis Gasnier.

Future Universal collections and titles for rollout on DVD and TCM include vintage films from Fred MacMurray and Claudette Colbert, Deanna Durbin, director Douglas Sirk and many more.

[Peacock]

WOW! Mad Doctor of Market Street sounds a hoot!
Anyone seen it?

[max_cherry]

"DVD on a made-to-order basis" - does this mean DVD-R?

[Finch]

REMEMBER THE NIGHT doesn't seem to be on the TCM site yet. I hope they ship abroad..

[Frankinho007]

REMEMBER THE NIGHT doesn't seem to be on the TCM site yet. I hope they ship abroad..

They do. But it's quite expensive: $ 6,50 per order + $ 6 per item. The good thing: a box set counts as 1 item.

"DVD on a made-to-order basis" - does this mean DVD-R?

Very likely.

[Jonathan S]

WOW! Mad Doctor of Market Street sounds a hoot!
Anyone seen it?

I saw it on a UK cable channel a few years ago and found it disappointingly dull with lots of the heavy-handed comedy "relief" typical of Universal's B horrors in the early 1940s. I guess even Joseph H. Lewis felt he couldn't do anything with the material - even his 1941 Monogram quickie Invisible Ghost is more interesting to me. The little gem of the Universal set is of course the pre-Code Murders in the Zoo.

[domino harvey]

Cary Grant Collection (films also available as singles)
DVD Availability: January 2010
Three early Cary Grant films will populate this boxed set:
The Eagle and the Hawk (1933) – This vivid World War I drama stars Frederic March as a disillusioned but fearless squadron leader and Cary Grant as his bullied gunner-observer. The gripping interpersonal drama, anti-war sentiments and outstanding aerial dogfights give this film an impact that remains vital today. Carole Lombard and Jack Oakie round out a top-notch cast. The great directorMitchell Leisen, who is billed as associate director, is believed to have directed most of this film.
The Devil and the Deep (1932) – This melodrama is headlined by Tallulah Bankhead, Gary Cooper, Cary Grant and Charles Laughton. The setting is the northern coast of Africa, where submarine commander Laughton is stationed and where his wife, Bankhead, is splitting her time between suitors Cooper and Grant. This marked Laughton’s first American film and one of his most underappreciated performances.
The Last Outpost (1935) – Cary Grant plays a British officer saved from a Kurdish tribe by fellow officer Claude Rains. But when Grant unknowingly falls in love with Rains’ wife, tragedy looms. Gertrude Michael and Kathleen Burke co-star under the dual direction of Charles Barton and Louis Gasnier.

These all sound better than the titles in Universal's Cary Grant set. What were they thinking releasing those and delegating these to also-ran status on fucking DVD-Rs?

[manicsounds]

And they are actually including bonus materials, sadly something Warner is not doing at all. And the price is much cheaper than Warner Archives. Still a bit too much though....

[Robert de la Cheyniest]

Future Universal collections and titles for rollout on DVD and TCM include vintage films from Fred MacMurray and Claudette Colbert, Deanna Durbin, director Douglas Sirk and many more.

I guess this is what I get for waiting for the rest of these Universal Sirks to come out in R1 instead of buying other editions.

[Jonathan S]

These all sound better than the titles in Universal's Cary Grant set. What were they thinking releasing those and delegating these to also-ran status on fucking DVD-Rs?

Ironically, Universal released The Last Outpost as a pressed, retail DVD here in the UK, where you can buy it for as little as three pounds! That's the only one of the three Grants I haven't seen - the other two (which I have off-air) are indeed fascinating pre-Codes, not least for their extraordinary casts.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Ironically, Universal released The Last Outpost as a pressed, retail DVD here in the UK, where you can buy it for as little as three pounds!

Thanks for pointing that UK release out, it's the only Cary Grant film I've never seen. And now added to my latest order!

[Perkins Cobb]

So, now Universal joins WB on the DVD-r bandwagon. Cue the fat lady....

[HarryLong]

WOW! Mad Doctor of Market Street sounds a hoot!
Anyone seen it?

I saw it on a UK cable channel a few years ago and found it disappointingly dull with lots of the heavy-handed comedy "relief" typical of Universal's B horrors in the early 1940s. I guess even Joseph H. Lewis felt he couldn't do anything with the material - even his 1941 Monogram quickie Invisible Ghost is more interesting to me. The little gem of the Universal set is of course the pre-Code Murders in the Zoo.

I'll second that. It's no MYSTERY OF DR RX ...
It may not be quite as impoverished as the Paula Dupre trilogy, but it's down there on Universal's bottom of the barrel 40s Bs.

[HerrSchreck]

I've seen The Mad Ghoul and I'll say that it's somewhere between you're standard second string Universal horror film of the 40's (like some of the Inner Sanctums, or something like House of Dracula) and some of the grade Z Universal Horrors that were on that set like the 1941 Black Cat, Horror Island & Night Monster. George Zucco rarely if ever lets you down, especially when he's in the lead. The guy can bring power and dignity to a video about cracking eggs and disposing of the shells.

[HarryLong]

MAD GHOUL may well be the most gruesome of Universal's 1940s thrillers and Zucco - easily my favorite of the second-stringer Horror Stars - is indeed in fine form. The film is also unusual in its use of a Meso-American theme ... but, oh my, the direction is fairly dreary. Where's Ford Beebe when you need him?

[HerrSchreck]

Still my favorite of the lesser known second stringer Universal Horrors was one I just saw for the first time this year-- The Brute Man. They sold the film to Monogram or PRC (because Rondo Hatton died at the close of production, some say from his exertions on the set, and Universal was embarassed at that in combination of their exploitation of his Acromegaly), but it was a Uni all the way.

Blew my flinkin' mind, that film. There are moments in it which accidentally border on the sublime.

[HypnoHelioStaticStasis]

Schreck, you ever seen the Mystery Science Theater 3000 riff on The Brute Man? Your love of the film may make it a slog, but I think its one of their funniest episodes. And for what its worth, I've seen and enjoyed the film on its own.

"creeper, Creeper, CREEPER! You give me the CREEPS!"

[HarryLong]

Still my favorite of the lesser known second stringer Universal Horrors was one I just saw for the first time this year-- The Brute Man. They sold the film to Monogram or PRC (because Rondo Hatton died at the close of production, some say from his exertions on the set, and Universal was embarassed at that in combination of their exploitation of his Acromegaly), but it was a Uni all the way.
Blew my flinkin' mind, that film. There are moments in it which accidentally border on the sublime.

There are people who look at me as if I've taken leave of my tiny mind when I tell them I prefer BRUTE MAN to HOUSE OF HORRORS ... Martin Koslek notwithstanding.

[AfterTheRain]

So, now Universal joins WB on the DVD-r bandwagon. Cue the fat lady....

Alright, it's about time I have my say on this matter.

First of all: WB's releases in the Archives have next to no special features on their discs, but getting the films released themselves on this format is much better than not getting them at all.

Second, and most important: The new deal with Universal and TCM gives the WB program a good run for its money. What it has going for it is that the vaults will be opened and a wealth of special features will more than likely be found on the upcoming releases. Only downside though, is that it still is costly (though a little less than the WB Archives) to order on the Web.

In closing, if you've got a problem with the program, go complain to the studios (whining about it here will only lead you nowhere).

Thank you. Now back to the previous discussion.

[domino harvey]

Well, after that response, I know where you can go-- and it isn't the studios

[Napier]

So, now Universal joins WB on the DVD-r bandwagon. Cue the fat lady....

In closing, if you've got a problem with the program, go complain to the studios (whining about it here will only lead you nowhere).

I for one, won't be buying any of their DVD-r swill. And yes, I told them that.

[Feego]

Future Universal collections and titles for rollout on DVD and TCM include vintage films from ... director Douglas Sirk

Please tell me Criterion gets hold of The Tarnished Angels, A Time to Love and a Time to Die, and There's Always Tomorrow before they're relegated to DVD-R hell.

[tojoed]

Please tell me Criterion gets hold of The Tarnished Angels, A Time to Love and a Time to Die, and There's Always Tomorrow before they're relegated to DVD-R hell.

These films will never be in DVD-R hell. They're all available in region 2, and two of them are, or will be, MoC.

[myrnaloyisdope]

The Eagle and The Hawk is among my favorite pre-codes, and I'm glad it's seeing the light of day, but am still miffed at the DVD-R (assuming that's how this all goes).

As for the potential Sirks, well they are all out in solid to great editions in Europe, so if you haven't gone region free yet, that's your reason right there.

I'm hoping they give the missing Von Sternbergs a proper release though.

[Gregory]

A couple of people here have noted that these are less expensive than Warner Archive. Am I missing something? Looks to me like the SRPs for both are $19.99 each with a price break on multi-title sets.

I wonder to what extent either company is even aware of how many people are inclined to hold off on buying these because the price is too high, especially considering the quality control issues. Even outside this forum, what I'm seeing is a general rejection. But they were counting on low-sales figures anyway (the main reason to do on-demand) so I wouldn't be surprised if they're simply not concerned.