Song of the South

Features, Shorts, Live-Action and Direct-To-Video
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Post by Ben » July 10th, 2009, 3:40 pm

Can I ask why you're selling off, droo? Any inside word that the movie is finally coming to DVD or, say it with whispered breath, BD?

Although I have a prized broadcast DigiBeta master of SOTS from the 1990s video restoration effort, having an official commercial release is something I have always been interested in, and just as a collectible I am mighty tempted.

But you're already up to over $400, shipping would be expensive for me to the UK and, with no assistence on the customs front (which isn't actually illegal), I would be liable to pay almost as much as the final bid price again just to bring it home from the post office.

That all being the case, my Digi (which I transferred to DVD last year) isn't so bad after all..! ;)

Good luck with the auction!

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Post by Neal » July 10th, 2009, 6:53 pm

I recently saw "Twice Upon A Time" on LD and it sold for only about $10.00. I was thinking of bidding on it and making it the reason to buy a LD player. My computer wasn't working so I couldn't bid. It was such a good price! :(
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Post by Ben » July 11th, 2009, 11:28 am

TUAT is being scheduled for DVD by WB. It's on their radar and could be this year or next.

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Post by Neal » July 11th, 2009, 7:14 pm

Really? How'd you find that out? I started watching parts of it on YouTube but the grainy quality made me decide to wait to get a legit release. I know it's not a classic, or well known, but between its storied history and the interesting lumage style that Lucas & Co. 'pioneered' - I have been eagerly wanting to see it since I discovered it (but not enough to justify an $80.00 VHS).
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Post by droosan » July 12th, 2009, 1:29 am

Ben wrote: Can I ask why you're selling off, droo?
I had to move recently, after my former roommate got married .. and, between hauling all of my stuff across town and having a bit less space in the new apartment, I've finally decided to get rid of my Laserdisc collection. I'd repurchased a majority of those titles on DVD, anyway .. and I hadn't even bothered to watch many of the rest in over a decade! :shock:

Most of those Laserdiscs are effectively 'worthless' now, of course .. but the few dozen titles which don't yet have DVD equivalents are likely to hit eBay over the next few months, depending upon how well this auction goes (and it has already done better than I'd expected, considering the recent 'media panic' over the economy).

That list of titles does include Twice Upon A Time. And I do also have an extra (brand-new in original box, never used) Pioneer Elite CLD-99 Laserdisc player in storage, which I have also considered selling; however -- as it is the highest of 'high-end' Laserdisc players -- I would prefer to place it up for auction on eBay, rather than sell it 'outright' via this message board. 'Stay tuned' to eBay if you're interested, I guess. :idea:
Ben wrote:But you're already up to over $400, shipping would be expensive for me to the UK and, with no assistence on the customs front (which isn't actually illegal), I would be liable to pay almost as much as the final bid price again just to bring it home from the post office.
I apologize; but, about five years ago, I'd sold an expensive japanese die-cast toy to someone in Italy. I was asked to lie about the package contents on the customs form, in order to save the buyer from paying some sort of tax .. and I wound up having the package returned to me by the italian customs office, paying a fine to both the italian and U.S. post offices, refunding the purchase price to the bidder, and losing out on the listing fees and eBay's 'cut' of the final bid price. So, I make a point of not lying on customs forms anymore. :?
Ben wrote:That all being the case, my Digi (which I transferred to DVD last year) isn't so bad after all..! :wink:
Quite honestly, the image quality of your DigiBeta tape is likely better-looking than the transfer on the Hong Kong LD.

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Post by Ben » July 14th, 2009, 6:07 am

Thanks for the comments!

I couldn't bear parting with my LDs, despite the fact that, like you, they haven't been watched in about ten years. I ran The Rocketeer the other night again and even in CAV I couldn't believe how crummy the interlaced image looked. There's a Blu-ray waiting to happen right there, I hope!

But still I hold on to them, since they were my proper introduction to the high-end video collecting world (even though they have obviously been surpassed) and I'm a big fan of the nostalgic.

I'm sure you have a few other titles I would be interested in (Twice Upon A Time I'm lucky to have, I heard about the DVD, Neal, on one of the HTF chats) but I'm mainly holding off now for HD editions on most. If you have the proper Academy version of Lady & The Tramp, however, I'd be tempted there...

Shame about your customs experience. And a shame that the guy you sold to did not honor his purchase agreement. I had a similar thing with the mega-Laurel & hardy set that came out in the UK some years ago. Someone on another message board was desperate to get a copy, when it started selling at half price, and I obliged to buy one for him, pack it up and send it out. That's when he went quiet and I never heard from him again. I spoke to the moderators of the board as he was well known there and they said he was having personal problems but refused to say or help any further than that. By sheer luck, the package rebounded to me, presumably because he was continually not there to recieve it, so even though I lost the money on posting it out, at least I was able to take the unopened set back to the store and get a refund - not that it amounted to much more than I had spent on postage and packing.

Lessons learned indeed, and though there's no problem listing the contents of the package it's just the cost that's the issue - anything over $25 in the UK is open to scrutiny, which is why on Amazon orders it's brilliant to be able to claim things as a "gift", which 90% of the time gets even $70 box sets through, though the best is Screen Archives, who routinely and very helpfully list the cost as $10 on all orders. After all, who's to say what anything is actually worth? You might sell your SOTS LD for well over $500, but is it actually worth more than $10? ;)

Yep, I'll stick with my Digi, which is about as good as standard def gets (it's a clone of the video paintbox master made for television airings from the 1990s onwards, so as good if not better than a DVD would have looked ten years ago but without compression), but I was tempted more for the opportunity of owning a legit commercial copy.

Ahh, that LD link took me back...used to love the chunky Pioneer LD remotes! :)

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Post by Neal » July 16th, 2009, 12:55 am

http://events.hometheaterforum.com/chat/warnertv06.txt

The only HTF Chat Transcript I can find with mention of TUAT was that one, but it said nothing of a DVD.
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Post by Ben » July 16th, 2009, 7:54 am

There's been word since then. Not sure where, but it's out there. TUAT is on the WB radar...that's all I can say.

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Post by Neal » July 16th, 2009, 11:15 am

Alright, I'll take your word for it.
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Post by droosan » November 16th, 2009, 1:49 pm

Since the winning bidder ultimately forfeited his claim to the disc due to 'financial hardship' back in July, I've re-listed my Song of the South 'Hong Kong' Laserdisc on eBay. Just in time for Christmas! :wink:

I have also listed my Pioneer Elite CLD-92 Laserdisc Player, a top-tier player which is in 'like-new' condition; stored for over 12 years in my personal 'Raiders'-style warehouse. :lol:

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Post by estefan » November 16th, 2009, 5:21 pm

I was thinking about Song of the South today and I was actually wondering if maybe The Princess and the Frog could affect its home video release. Do you think its success will make Disney more comfortable in releasing it or will it make them more nervous in releasing Song of the South?

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Post by droosan » November 17th, 2009, 4:33 am

I suppose it's possible that -- if The Princess and the Frog hits it 'big' enough -- the 'trial balloon' of a Song of the South home video release might be floated again.

However, there hasn't been any public 'buzz' about SotS (that I'm aware of) since Iger dismissed its possibility shortly after the Disney/Pixar merger.

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Post by James » November 17th, 2009, 8:22 am

On Disney 23's Twitter feed this month they actually mentioned the day SotS debuted.

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Post by Rodney » November 18th, 2009, 12:10 am

I doubt it will affect how Disney feels about SotS. I just don't see the connection. The movie is in the vault for several reasons, none of which are addressed by Princess and the Frog.

If it does leave the vault, it's because they've gotten over their issues, but I don't think it'll be because of this new movie.

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Post by MrsTashlin » November 18th, 2009, 8:34 pm

I just dont see why they are still sitting on it. I mean I know why, but this is 2009. but I guess. I would love to see Pepper Ann hit dvd as well...but i am sure they will sit atop her too.

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