The Bootleg Files: Uforia

Posted on February 3, 2023 by Phil Hall

BOOTLEG FILES 827: “Uforia” (1985 comedy starring Cindy Williams, Fred Ward and Harry Dean Stanton).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube and Vimeo in unauthorized postings.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: Only on VHS video.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: The film is hampered by music rights clearance issues.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: There doesn’t appear to be a great rush to get this out.

When Cindy Williams passed away earlier this week, news sites and social media postings recalled her brilliance on the sitcom “Laverne & Shirley” and her early film work in features including “Travels With My Aunt,” “American Graffiti” and “The Conversation.” But far less attention was given to one of Williams’ most interesting work – a small film from the early 1980s called “Uforia” (sometimes spelled “UFOria” – it is hard to say which version is correct because the film’s opening spells the title entirely in upper case letters). “Uforia” never found the audience it deserved – and, by extension, Williams never found the big screen stardom she should have enjoyed.
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The Bootleg Files: The River

Posted on January 27, 2023 by Phil Hall

BOOTLEG FILES 826: “The River” (1937 documentary produced by FDR’s Farm Security Administration).

LAST SEEN: On various Internet sites.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: In collections of public domain documentaries.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: A lapsed copyright.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: A 4K restored version would be wonderful.

In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal policies brought forth the Resettlement Administration, a federal agency designed to assist the nation’s financially struggling rural communities. By this point in the Roosevelt presidency, there were a growing number of critics who argued the New Deal programs were using taxpayer funds to finance lofty socialist endeavors.
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The Bootleg Files: The TV Cubana Version of “Hello, Dolly!”

Posted on January 13, 2023 by Phil Hall

BOOTLEG FILES 825: The TV Cubana Version of “Hello, Dolly!” (1985 Cuban television recording of the Havana theatrical staging of the Broadway musical).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: Rights clearance issues and a perceived lack of commercial viability.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Nope.

One of the most polarizing films ever made was, oddly, the 1969 musical “Hello, Dolly!” This is not a film that inspires indifference – either you embrace as a grand, old-school screen musical with Barbra Streisand giving one of her best performances or you condemn it as an over-produced mess burdened by a star who was much too young for her role. And if you should ever stumble over a Facebook forum debate on the film’s merits and deficiencies, prepare yourself for one of the most rancorous discussions on social media – trust me, I’ve been audience to several of them!
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The Bootleg Files: Paul Simon & Art Garfunkel

Posted on January 6, 2023 by Phil Hall

BOOTLEG FILES 824: “Paul Simon & Art Garfunkel” (1967 special for British television).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: Rights clearance issues and a perceived lack of commercial viability.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Not likely.

In March 1967, Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel traveled to England for a brief concert tour that included London’s Royal Albert Hall and venues in Birmingham and Manchester. While in Manchester, they taped a television special at Granada TV where they performed their songs before a small audience.
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The Bootleg Files: The Hero

Posted on December 30, 2022 by Phil Hall

BOOTLEG FILES 823: “The Hero” (1917 short starring Billy West and Oliver Hardy).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: On public domain labels.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: A blatant (if effective) rip-off of Charlie Chaplin’s act.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: There is no great call for a Billy West revival.

When Charlie Chaplin’s popularity exploded into superstardom status during the mid-1910s, the demand of his films became greater than his ability to create original new works. To fill the void, a number of comic actors began to dress up in Chaplin’s distinctive Little Tramp costume and make-up and churn out short films of a Chaplinesque nature. Most of these imitators were not that special and their work has been lost to oblivion. But one copycat created a near-perfect facsimile of Chaplin’s act, to the point that his films were occasionally marketed as being genuine Chaplin films.
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The Bootleg Files: John Denver and the Muppets – A Christmas Together

Posted on December 23, 2022 by Phil Hall

BOOTLEG FILES 822: “John Denver and The Muppets – A Christmas Together” (1979 television special).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: It was never made available on any home entertainment format.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Maybe next Christmas?

When I was kid in yesteryear, every Christmas season would bring a surplus number of television specials tied to the holiday. Some specials became annual events, such as “A Charlie Brown Christmas” or “Frosty the Snowman,” but most seemed to be one-and-done affairs that might have been lost to obscurity had it not been for the prescience of pop culture vultures to videotape those shows and save them for future viewing.
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The Bootleg Files: The Farmer Brown PSAs

Posted on December 9, 2022 by Phil Hall

BOOTLEG FILES 821: “The Farmer Brown PSAs” (a series of late-1970s public service announcements produced by the U.S. Department of Agriculture).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: Old PSAs that have been out of release for decades.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Not on their own, but maybe in an anthology collection.

During the late 1970s, there was a growing level of concern among pediatricians, nutritionists and parents’ groups regarding the diet of the average American youth – that generation was raised amid a proliferation of fast-food eateries and an endless bombardment of advertisements for low-nutrition food and beverages, and the threat to the well-being of the nation’s young people was considered to be significant.
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