The Bootleg Files: Knights of the Bath

Posted on June 28, 2019 by Phil Hall

BOOTLEG FILES 690: “Knights of the Bath” (1951 short film consisting of footage from the 1944 Abbott and Costello comedy “In Society”).

LAST SEEN: It is on YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: The material is copyright protected.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Unlikely.

Beginning in the 1930s, a company called Castle Films was a dominant force in the nontheatrical home entertainment market. In the decades before video technology, movie lovers would purchase either a projector and watch their favorite Hollywood films in the comfort of their homes. However, the Super 8, 8mm and 16mm formats did not easily support feature-length films, and the productions were often edited down to fit the reels being sold to the public. In many cases, certain sequences would be excised from the larger works and sold as standalone pieces, usually for one-reel or two-reel exhibition.
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Before Stonewall (1984)

Posted on June 18, 2019 by Phil Hall

This month’s 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riot and the launch of the modern gay rights movement marks a perfect time to bring back Greta Schiller and Robert Rosenberg’s groundbreaking 1984 documentary, which details the LGBT experience in the decades prior to the game-changing pushback that occurred at New York City’s Stonewall Inn in 1969.
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The Bootleg Files: Storybook Squares

Posted on June 14, 2019 by Phil Hall

BOOTLEG FILES 689: “Storybook Squares” (TV game show that aired in the 1969 and 1976-77 seasons).

LAST SEEN: Three episodes are on YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: A mostly-lost series.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Unlikely unless the lost shows are recovered.

One of the most popular game shows in U.S. television history was “Hollywood Squares,” which placed nine celebrities in an oversized tic-tac-toe set for a game that mixed trivia questions with laughs. The series ran from 1966 to 1981 and appeared in a daytime show that aired on weekdays and a syndicated nighttime version that initially aired once a week and was later made into a twice-a-week offering.
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The Bootleg Files: Minstrel Man

Posted on June 7, 2019 by Phil Hall

BOOTLEG FILES 688: “Minstrel Man” (1944 musical).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: On public domain labels.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: A lapsed copyright.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: No one is rushing to digitally restore this title.

When one thinks of the 1940s musicals, few people will automatically cite the Poverty Row mini-studio Producers Releasing Corporation (PRC). Indeed, that cheapo endeavor gained a belated cult following for its thrillers, horror flicks and Westerns, but not for musicals. However, this scrappy little operation created at least one notable musical that snagged a pair of Oscar nominations and brought together an unlikely band of talent.
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Clark Gable in World War II

Posted on June 3, 2019 by Phil Hall

In 1942, Clark Gable enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Force. Gable’s World War II experiences inspired film historian Nat Segaloff’s new book “Guarding Gable,” which is the subject of this week’s episode of “The Online Movie Show.”

The program can be heard here.

The Bootleg Files: Are You Being Served? (Australia)

Posted on May 31, 2019 by Phil Hall

BOOTLEG FILES 687: “Are You Being Served?” (1980-81 Australian version of the popular British sitcom).

LAST SEEN: A few episodes are on YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: Never made available outside of Australia.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Not in the U.S., mate!

One of the most beloved programs in the history of British television was “Are You Being Served?”, which followed the zany antics of the staff of a badly-managed London department store. The show first aired on the BBC as a pilot episode in September of 1972 and with a five-episode first season broadcast in March and April of 1973, and it was an immediate hit with British audiences.
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The Films of Paul Mazursky

Posted on May 27, 2019 by Phil Hall

Paul Mazursky was one of the most prolific and versatile filmmakers, creating such classics as “Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice,” “Harry and Tonto,” “Next Stop, Greenwich Village,” “An Unmarried Woman” and “Moscow on the Hudson.” Film scholar Nat Segaloff is our guest on this episode of “The Online Movie Show,” which highlights Mazursky’s directing career plus his little-known work as an actor in Stanley Kramer’s first feature “Fear and Desire” and his role in creating “The Monkees” television series.

The episode can be heard here.