Dick Tracy-15 Episodes (1937) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a great treat for Dick Tracy fans. Before television we had to go to the Saturday morning movie matinees to see our action heros.
Cartoonist Chester Gould created this action hero in the early 1930's and by the middle 30's the FBI and gangsters were in all the newspaper & radio headlines. So Gould countered with Dick Tracy G-man (in the movie serials) & Dick Tracy cop hero in the comic strip.
The "Dick Tracy" (1937) Republic Pictures 15 episode action serial launched Ralph Byrds career as the super crime solving G-man/Sherlock Holmes sleuth. The movie version was always the international view while the comic strip was the local city crime storyline.
Thanks to VCI Entertainment for a great restoration job & super loaded 2 DVD package.
This 15 episode action packed serial is over 290 mins long and is presented with great picture & sound.
Extra features include: a background Commentary by famous Dick Tracy writer Max Allan Collins who penned the comic strip for 15 years after Goulds retirement. Special photo montage & Photo Gallery. Bonus 1945 Radio Show: Dick Tracy in B-Flat - a musical rendition of Dick Tracy with the voice of Bing Crosby as Tracy, Dinah Shore as Tesh Trueheart, Bob Hope as Flathead and many more big radio stars of the 40's. This is fun stuff.
Summary: Action serials are always more about the action packed journey & how our hero escapes the bad guys at the cliff hanging ending chapters than the actual story. We need to have a thrill filled 20 minutes each week and then painfully wait until next week for the continuing saga to take us to more excitement until the finale on chapter/week 15.
Dick Tracy delivers all we expect in an action hero and this being one of the first serials gives us a taste of the world of 1937. Enjoy.

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Superman & Mole Men (1951) Review

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(More customer reviews)Sorry, but this has to be a dissenting opinion. As some of the other reviewers have noted, "Superman and the Mole Men" was later edited into a two-part episode for the George Reeves TV program, now rechristened as "The Unknown People." Sorry, folks, but in this case the "edited for TV" version is a distinct improvement and for one reason: THE MUSIC! The score used in the original movie is a pallid, third-rate job that does nothing to advance the action or to support the eerie, "film noir" feel of the camera work. But when the film was mixed down for presentation on TV, the show's producers had the genius to replace the film's soundtrack with some of the scariest, most vivid background scores then available. (As a matter of fact, this weird and wonderful music - used over and over again as background music throughout the first, black-and -white season of the 1950's "Adventures of Superman" TV show - has been helpfully collected on CD by the Varese-Sarabande label. You can order it right here, at Amazon.com!) I only wish the edited TV version was made commercially available; anyone who gets to know "Superman and the Mole Men" only through this original theatrical release will have no idea of how good it really is, or understand how the effective use of great background music can turn a third-rate movie into a very good film.

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I Love Lucy: Lucy Meets Superman & Freezer (1951) Review

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(More customer reviews)In this decade, every episode of "I Love Lucy" will be celebrating its 50th Anniversary. Every episode is still funny as funny as when they first aired. The shows are good. The shows are wholesome. They are healing and warm and will make you feel good. Buy them on VHS or DVD today.

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I Love Lucy: L.A. At Last & Fashion Show (1951) Review

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(More customer reviews)"L.A.at Last" is a prime Lucy venture. This is the famous episode in which she sees William Holden at the Brown Derby. Later that day, Ricky brings Holden along to meet Lucy(she was reponsible for getting pie all over Holden at the famed restaurant earlier that day),Lucy attempts to disguise herself via a putty nose,glasses and a scarf over her flaming red hair.Legend say that the scene where Lucy douses her nose in her coffee cup was entirely her own doing (her nose was on fire)!The scene where Ethel cuts Lucy's spaghetti with her manicure scissors is a gem. "The Fashion Show" is very funny as well with amazingly realistic "sunburn make-up" applied to the star.Sheila MacRae appears as herself as do the wives of Van Heflin,Dean Martin and Forrest Tucker.

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Superman - The 1948 & 1950 Theatrical Serials Collection (1948) Review

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(More customer reviews)How lucky are we to finally be able to enjoy these two classic Superman serials now available on DVD. These have long been around on bootleg VHS or home-burned dvds, with poor picture quality and sound. The home-burned dvds I got off Ebay did not have the capability to fast forward or rewind, and were not formatted chapter-per-chapter. It's possible that only the die-hard Superman fans and fanboys alike have ever seen Kirk Alyn's portrayal of Superman. Most people think that George Reeves was the first screen Superman not realizing that there were two complete chapter serials starring Alyn as the Man of Steel long before the iconic tv show of the 50s.
That being said, this is a real delight to watch! The fanboys, to this day, continue to cry over the fact that in these serials, Superman's flying sequences were animated. Okay, so it wasn't the high-tech CGI of today's production capabilities. If you're able to get past that, you can enjoy these serials for what they are; pure escapist fun! It's a comic book that's come to life! Kirk Alyn's Superman is not like George Reeves' or Christopher Reeves' or anyone else who ever donned the cape and tights. You've got to see him and judge for yourself. His portrayal of Clark Kent is a little more "mild-mannered" in keeping with the character from the comics, and that's nice to see. Tommy Bond, who played "Butch" in the "Our Gang" and "Little Rascal" shorts is awesome as Jimmy Olson. For me, the real delight was Noel Neill as Lois Lane, the FIRST screen Lois Lane! She was about 27 or 28 when first cast as Lois and she is just too darn cute! She's absolutely adorable with her big hat that she wears in nearly every scene. She's assertive and risk-taking, just like the Lois in the comics of that era, while still remaining feminine. Her Lois Lane of these serials are night and day from her Lois Lane of the tv show and once again, it's very interesting to see both and make the comparison yourself.
The first serial, has Carol Forman, as the Spider Lady. The 1950 Serial, Atom Man Vs. Superman is a better serial than the first one in my opinion. The production values and the writing are a little better and more developed than the first. The flying sequences were still animated but there were "close-ups" of Alyn flying, which were actually him standing upright with his arms extended over his head and the camera laid over on its side to give a horizontal effect. Lyle Talbot's Lex Luthor/Atom Man is great! Talbot was a veteran screen and television actor and many fans will immediately recognize him as Police Commissioner Gordon from Columbia's 1949 chapter serial, "Batman & Robin." In fact, if you're a fan of old movie serials in general, you'll recognize some of the faces of the actors who play Luthor's goons and thugs from other serials. One of the Atom Man's chief lackeys is an actor who is Dr. Daka's henchman in Columbia's 1943 chapter serial, Batman...too cool!
These serials were made on shoe-string budgets in 1948 and 1950 and weren't meant to be more than what they were. They weren't designed to be big screen blockbusters, and they were made for the kids of that time. We've become so sophisticated and demanding of "our" superhero movies, that to me, it seems to quite unfair to deride these two works because of shortcomings with special effects, writing or even the acting. Indeed, how lucky we are to finally be able to enjoy these two classic Superman serials now available at long last on dvd! ENJOY!!!

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Adventures of Superman: The Complete Second Season (1953) Review

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(More customer reviews)"The Adventures of Superman - The Complete Second Season" is an essential for fans of the original series, it's star, the unforgettable George Reeves, and anyone who would enjoy seeing a series 'at the top of it's game', when it was a genuine national phenomena!
The back story is truly amazing; the first season, filmed in 1951, had taken two full years to finally reach the entire country (television, at that time, was still in it's infancy, and just beginning to spread throughout the nation, as the FCC issued licenses for new stations, from coast to coast). "The Adventures of Superman", syndicated and sponsored by Kellogg's, was a fresh, exciting series that many of the new stations picked up to help promote themselves, and sell televisions...and the series began an astonishing climb to a level of popularity that no one involved had ever anticipated.
Certainly, none of the cast was prepared for what happened; in the two-year hiatus, Phyllis Coates, the 'Lois Lane' of the first season, assuming the series was finished, took on other acting assignments, and was no longer available when the call went out for the second season to be filmed (her role was filled by the 'Lois Lane' of the 40s movie serials, Noel Neill, 33, who saw the role toned down considerably from the aggressive, feisty newspaperwoman of the first season). Jack Larson, 20, who had felt misgivings about the role of Jimmy Olsen from the beginning (only agreeing to the part when his agent joked that "nobody will ever see it, anyway") discovered himself typecast in the role, and his privacy lost...a situation even more acute for the series' star, George Reeves, now 39. During the series' hiatus, he had gotten a juicy supporting role in the blockbuster, "From Here to Eternity", only to see the role edited down to an unbilled cameo, as the producers feared a film featuring 'Superman' would lose it's impact as a 'serious' film. Reeves would only appear in three feature films during the series' entire run, and one film, afterward, all in supporting roles...with no film work at all, the last three years of his life...which provided 'motive' that his 1959 death was suicide (despite evidence of foul play).
Knowing what the future held for Reeves makes the second season of AOS a bittersweet experience, as he is so wonderful in the role! Still youthfully handsome, he projects even more confidence and ease than he had in the first season, and was far more 'kid friendly', as his fight scenes were toned down (as was all the violence, as Kellogg's responded to parents' concerns). With the national Superman 'craze' in full swing, he took special pains to remind children that "only Superman can fly", and his portrayal of the Man of Steel reflected his increasing sense of responsibility of being a good role model to a generation of children who adored him.
If the series lacked it's earlier grittiness, the second season offered spectacular compensations, especially in "Panic In the Sky", the most famous and popular episode of the entire series. As a huge asteroid plunges toward Earth, Superman launches himself into space, in a last-ditch effort to save the planet. Slamming into the gigantic rock head-on, all he can accomplish is to change it's course, temporarily...while being knocked into a state of amnesia by the encounter! With Earth's destruction imminent, can Superman regain his memory in time...AND find a way to stop it? Despite some primitive FX, the episode is STILL riveting, after a half-century!
This is DEFINITELY a 'Must-Have' collection!


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Studio: Warner Home VideoRelease Date: 01/17/2006Run time: 683 minutes

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Adventures of Superman: The Complete First Season (1952) Review

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(More customer reviews)What a treat, both for Superman fans and people who just enjoy classic t.v. shows of the fifties. It's pretty much universally acknowledged that season one of THE ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN is far and away the best of the series. George Reeves was a no-nonsense hero, and quite believable in the role. The series had plenty of action and the first-season scripts were usually solid.
And I'm pleasantly surprised to see the rare theatrical feature, SUPERMAN AND THE MOLE MEN included here. Although it's essentially Superman on a b-movie budget, there's plenty to like about this forgotten piece of Superman history.
A common practice in the early days of television was to get a show's actors to endorse the advertisers' products. Perhaps the rarest and most unusual treat for fans of classic t.v. are the orignial Kellog's cereal commercials, featuring cast members from the show. Clark Kent sells Frosted Flakes!
There's an informative documentary, with comments from Superman experts and a VERY old Jack Larson, who played Jimmy Olsen on the show. With all these extras and a first-rate presentation of the episodes, this is a classic t.v. lover's dream come true. Highly recommended.

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The legendary Man of Steel assumes the secret identity of Clark Kent, mild-mannered reporter for the Metropolis Daily Planet. And with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men, he battles for truth and justice as Superman. The first ever Superman TV series! Originally aired in the 1950's, it features George Reeves as Superman and enjoyed tremendous success during its broadcast. The TV series premise was established a year before its broadcast via the theatrical release of "Superman and The Mole Men" in 1951.

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Superman - The Lost Episodes (1998) Review

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(More customer reviews)If you've already purchased the "Complete Superman Cartoons", there is no need for you to purchase this particular DVD. If you've already purchased "Complete...", you already have all of the "lost" items that are on this DVD.

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Studio: Wellspring Media (Flb & Whe). Rated:ÊNA. Runtime: 1 Hour 40 Minutes Color Sound: stereo. Features: Interactive menus; Production notes; Scene access; Complete history, synopsis and credits for each cartoon; Three sound choices: Dolby Digital, Dolby Pro Logic, stereo. Time: 1 Hour 40 Minutes Superman: The Lost Episodes: "Japoteurs". "Showdown". "Eleventh Hour". "Destruction, Inc.". "The Mummy Strikes". "Jungle Drums". "The Underground World". "Secret Agent". Bonus: Mighty Mouse in "Wolf! Wolf!"

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