BOOTLEG FILES 802: “A Bob Hope Comedy Special (15 of My Leading Ladies).”
LAST SEEN: On YouTube.
AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.
REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: Mostly likely due to rights clearance issues.
CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Probably not.
On September 28, 1966, Bob Hope hosted his first comedy special of the fall television season with a stellar cast – the ski-nosed funnyman recruited 15 actresses who starred opposite him during his film career.
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BOOTLEG FILES 801: “Julie & Carol at Carnegie Hall” (1962 TV special starring Julie Andrews and Carol Burnett).
LAST SEEN: On YouTube.
AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.
REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: Mostly likely due to music rights issues.
CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Probably not.
In 1962, Julie Andrews and Carol Burnett were on the cusp of superstardom. Andrews had back-to-back Broadway triumphs with “My Fair Lady” and “Camelot” while Burnett had gained fame from her standout comedy performances in the Broadway musical “Once Upon a Mattress” and on Garry Moore’s television variety show. Surprisingly, there was initial reluctance from CBS to move forward with a proposed TV special starring the two women – the network felt that Andrews was not that well known to the wider American public while simultaneously arguing that Burnett was too familiar from Moore’s weekly show.
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BOOTLEG FILES 800: “Nirvana” (re-edited version of the 1951 Laurel and Hardy feature “Atoll K”).
LAST SEEN: Available for private request screenings.
AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.
REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: A bit of a copyright issue.
CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Probably not.
Before I begin this week’s column, I want to pause and point out that this is the 800th entry in The Bootleg Files series that began in September 2003 on Film Threat before becoming part of Cinema Crazed in February 2017. My goodness, I cannot believe that there have been 800 entries in this weekly column! I need to give my deepest and sincerest thanks to Felix Vasquez Jr., publisher and editor at Cinema Crazed, for providing The Bootleg Files with a loving home, and I need to thank the readers of this long, long, long-running series for checking in with me every Friday – I’ve ton too much writing in the course of my career, but this is the achievement that has been the true labor of love. Okay, enough gushing – on with the show!
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BOOTLEG FILES 799: “The Seven Stooges” (2014 animated short inspired by the Three Stooges).
LAST SEEN: On YouTube.
AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.
REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: The film did not clear the trademarks associated with the Three Stooges characters.
CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Definitely not.
I was not planning to devote this week’s column to an animated fairy tale inspired by the Three Stooges, but YouTube posted “The Seven Stooges” in a list of recommended videos and my initial reaction was “Huh?”
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BOOTLEG FILES 798: “Boogie-Woogie Dream” (1944 musical short starring Lena Horne).
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: There are no plans for a restored version.
In September 1941, an unlikely group of creative artists converged in a New York City movie studio to shoot an independently financed musical short film. The finished production sat on a shelf for three years before it was seen, making very little impression in its day. But today, this film is considered an invaluable asset for capturing an iconic performer at the cusp of her rise to prominence while providing the only filmed record of two of the greatest jazz performers of all time.
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BOOTLEG FILES 797: “Have Badge Will Chase” (1959 8mm one-reel excerpt from “Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops”).
LAST SEEN: On YouTube.
AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.
REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: It fell through the cracks.
CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Nope.
Long before video cassette recorders invaded living rooms in the 1970s, movie lovers who wanted to replay their favorite films at home would purchase projectors and screens and create their own private cinematic viewing experience.
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BOOTLEG FILES 796: “The Three Stooges in Stupor Heroes” (2012 fan film).
LAST SEEN: On YouTube.
AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.
REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: Unauthorized production that borrows copyright protected material from the Three Stooges and DC Comics.
CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Nope.
There seems to be a surplus number of fan films based on “Star Wars,” superhero flicks, James Bond adventures and popular horror franchises. But how come there is a deficit of Three Stooges-inspired fan films?
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