# The Green Slime Space Station Question



## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

*Has anyone done a production kit of the Gamma 3 space station from that awful 60's movie?*

*Here's a link to a site with a picture or two:*

http://www.monstershack.net/reviews/full/gfx/greenslime/gamma3.jpg

http://www.scifi-movies.com/images/b/batailleaudeladesetoiles1968film/image5.jpg

*Launch vehicle and gantry: *

http://www.badmovies.org/movies/greenslime/greenslime3.jpg 

Thanks for the response!
:wave:


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## skinnyonce (Dec 17, 2009)

kdaracal said:


> *Has anyone done a production kit of the Gamma 3 space station from that awful 60's movie?*
> 
> *Here's a link to a site with a picture or two:*
> 
> ...


Even though I love the movie, I'm wondering about space stations in general. I would love to see what kits are out there already, and what scale?


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## SUNGOD (Jan 20, 2006)

There's the Glencoe Nuclear powered station and the Lindberg Space Base which are similar.


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

Thanks, guys!


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

Here's a youtube video, about one minute in, you get a good shot of the space station:






So bad, you gotta love it! Actually, I remember watching this one on Friday Fright Night alone and being scared. Maybe age 6 or 7. No wonder I'm warped for life.


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## SUNGOD (Jan 20, 2006)

If you get the Nuclear station chances are it will be a reissue which is a bit of a pain because the moulds aren't in a very good state (they deteriorated over the years) and the resulting reissues have a very rough surface.


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

SUNGOD said:


> If you get the Nuclear station chances are it will be a reissue which is a bit of a pain because the moulds aren't in a very good state (they deteriorated over the years) and the resulting reissues have a very rough surface.


Thanks! 

I think I ran across a repop at the NNL West car model show in San Jose, CA. One of the vendors had a repop. I also saw a Lindberg at a vendor booth in Petaluma IPMS show. 

Should have picked one or the other up........


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## Steve H (Feb 8, 2009)

No kit of the Gamma III I'm aware of, but in Japan Midori made a kit of the spaceship sent to the incoming planetoid where the Slime came from. I've only seen the box top so I expect it's the usual "kinda sorta mostly there" kit as was the norm of the day.


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## scotpens (Sep 6, 2003)

Looks like it wouldn't be that difficult to bash together a reasonably accurate model from the Lindberg space station (the one with four spokes) and a few odds and ends.


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## Joe Brown (Nov 16, 1999)

Midori released several kits from the movie, but I've been unable to find the space station:
http://www.japansuperfantasticmodel.com/images/midori/midori_sfcatalog1.jpg

Ship that delivers hero to space station:
http://www.japansuperfantasticmodel.com/images/midori/midori_unsc3.jpg

Ship they visit asteroid in:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/2084695819/

Gamma 3 screencap:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/modern_fred/4674323921/


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

kdaracal said:


> So bad, you gotta love it! Actually, I remember watching this one on Friday Fright Night alone and being scared. Maybe age 6 or 7. No wonder I'm warped for life.


I was about 9 or 10(?) and saw it at the drive-in and thought it was the coolest thing I'd ever seen. It kind of sucks now.

Of course, at that age, Godzilla ROCKED!:freak:


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

Thanks for all the input! I can always count on my buds at HT!


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## Bobj812 (Jun 15, 2009)

I don't remember ever seeing this, but I think that theme song could be a cool song for B.O.C. to cover! After a bit of Googling, it appears that the artist who wrote the song died earlier this year:
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE61B0U120100212
I would think the station could be an easier scratch build if you based it off the Glencoe model.


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## Steve H (Feb 8, 2009)

That's right, Midori also did a kit of the 'escape boat' ship, but I didn't know they had done that ferry rocket. 

Crude as those kits tended to be, they sure were filled with imagination. I miss those days.


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## Krel (Jun 7, 2000)

I love "The Green Slime", it was the first sf movie I ever saw at the cinema. What's not to love? Robert Horton with his indestructible hair, crash helmet, tuck-and-roll, and not a hair is out of place! :lol: Midgets in monster suits, and every American they could lay their hands on for extras. 

I remember that one thing that struck me, even at ten or eleven years of age, is that everybody, and I do mean EVERYBODY in the movie makes the wrong decisions. They were usually the logical decisions, but under the circumstances they were the wrong decisions. Robert Horton also played his character like a real Commanding Officer. He wasn't there to make friends, or be liked, he was there to get the job done.

I'd buy the dvd if they would ever release it. I kept hoping that MGM would put it out on they're Midnight Movie line, but it never happened. Back before I had a cd player, I saw a Halloween cd of spooky songs, and one of them was the theme to the GS, wish I had bought it then.

David.


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## skinnyonce (Dec 17, 2009)

Krel said:


> I love "The Green Slime",
> 
> I'd buy the dvd if they would ever release it. I kept hoping that MGM would put it out on they're Midnight Movie line, but it never happened. Back before I had a cd player, I saw a Halloween cd of spooky songs, and one of them was the theme to the GS, wish I had bought it then.
> 
> David.


I got my copys off ebay, both dvd and vhs, pretty cheap.. you might imagine

found this also there
http://cgi.ebay.com/Green-Slime-Resin-Model-Kit-GeoMetric-Design-/170521361320?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0


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## Steve H (Feb 8, 2009)

skinnyonce said:


> I got my copys off ebay, both dvd and vhs, pretty cheap.. you might imagine
> 
> found this also there
> http://cgi.ebay.com/Green-Slime-Resin-Model-Kit-GeoMetric-Design-/170521361320?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0



Yes, but, the tapes and DVDs on eBay are bootlegs, as MGM has never released The Green Slime to R1 DVD.

I have high hopes that this, and Message From Space, might show up on MGM's new 'burn on demand' site at Amazon, but no joy yet, they're WAY behind what Warner Bros has been doing with their deep catalog. 

(seriously, the fact that City Beneath the Sea is now available as a legit licensed DVD blows my mind! Thank you Warner Bros!)

Of course, YMMV when it comes to bootlegs. Some have the odd entitlement feeling that they HAVE to have something, and others of us just sit back and wait and hope and write those letters.

Say, I wonder if Pegasus would consider some kits from The Green Slime? Gamma 3 might be too big but the ferry ship or the 'interceptor' ship would fit right in with the other kits they've released to date.


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## Joe Brown (Nov 16, 1999)

Turner Classic Movie channel seems to run it quarterly - it was on about 3 weeks ago, and it was a nice clean print that they aired, with several scenes that were trimmed from the bootleg releases. Not by much, 1 minute here, 45 seconds there - but it dramatically changes the relationship dynamic between the 3 main characters.


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## Moonman27 (Aug 26, 2008)

My favorite thing about The Green Slime,besides the slime monsters themselves,was the theme music,it made me LOL as much as the acting! I would love to see a styrene kit of an astronaut shooting his laser rifle at an attacking Green Slime monster. Maybe Pegasus should do it,since they already popped out a cool WOW Martian.


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

Not sure I'd want a DVD of it but I'd love to watch it again. I'll look for it on TCM.


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

Joe Brown said:


> Turner Classic Movie channel seems to run it quarterly - it was on about 3 weeks ago, and it was a nice clean print that they aired, with several scenes that were trimmed from the bootleg releases. Not by much, 1 minute here, 45 seconds there - but it _dramatically changes_ the relationship dynamic between the 3 main characters.


Changed for the good or for the bad?


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

Moonman27 said:


> My favorite thing about The Green Slime,besides the slime monsters themselves,was the theme music,it made me LOL as much as the acting! I would love to see a styrene kit of an astronaut shooting his laser rifle at an attacking Green Slime monster. Maybe Pegasus should do it,since they already popped out a cool WOW Martian.



That idea would be just as likely as a ship. How fun would that be?

:thumbsup:


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

Never thought this thread would make 2 pages! HA!

Thanks again for all the history and info, People!!


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## Joe Brown (Nov 16, 1999)

Good or bad is not the way to look at it - by the end of the movie, bootleg copy story, it's fairly evident our feisty head nurse going to be hooking up with the hero. When you add the cut scenes back in, it's not very likely since she and posthumous hero were engaged and about to be joined in wedded bliss.


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## Moonman27 (Aug 26, 2008)

There is a lobby card from The Green Slime that shows a great concept for an astronaut/slime monster model. I have seen the monster in resin,but I won't pay what they wanted for it. Any new kit of this monster would have to include a clear eye/eyes piece for backlighting,and maybe clear tips of the tentacles for leds for sparks effect. I would love to see somebody do it in vinyl,so it would be hollow. A flourescent plastic rod could be used as a "laser beam" effect hitting the monster in the gut area. Just Dreamin'.


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## Krel (Jun 7, 2000)

Steve H said:


> Yes, but, the tapes and DVDs on eBay are bootlegs, as MGM has never released The Green Slime to R1 DVD.
> 
> I have high hopes that this, and Message From Space, might show up on MGM's new 'burn on demand' site at Amazon, but no joy yet, they're WAY behind what Warner Bros has been doing with their deep catalog.
> 
> (seriously, the fact that City Beneath the Sea is now available as a legit licensed DVD blows my mind! Thank you Warner Bros!)


I am not going to pay twenty dollars for a dvd-r, especially with no extras, or enhancements. I can easily live without it with no regrets. To me, it's like P. T. Barnum said: "There's a sucker born every minute"!

I truly don't mean to offend anyone here, but that is how I feel about what Warner and MGM are doing. If it is not a legitimate dvd release, I'll pass.

David.


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## Steve H (Feb 8, 2009)

Krel said:


> I am not going to pay twenty dollars for a dvd-r, especially with no extras, or enhancements. I can easily live without it with no regrets. To me, it's like P. T. Barnum said: "There's a sucker born every minute"!
> 
> I truly don't mean to offend anyone here, but that is how I feel about what Warner and MGM are doing. If it is not a legitimate dvd release, I'll pass.
> 
> David.


And Paramount, via Olive. Their release of Crack in the World is pretty amazing even sans extras.

I understand your issue, altho I must correct you, these ARE legit DVD releases, just not PRESSED DVDs, stamped and coated and so on. 

But It's the only way the studios see to get that deep catalog out to the fans who want it, there's just no infrastructure anymore to support catalog titles. Soon enough even this will be gone as the Studios crave to get to streaming and video-on-demand where you won't be allowed to own the film at all.

The Warners Archive releases in particular are getting high marks from some very fussy movie fanatics. 

But, it's choice, and I understand where you're coming from.


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

Sorry to go in another direction, but check out this: (model?, toy? no clue)

http://www.japansuperfantasticmodel.com/images/midori/midori_seaview.jpg

Give a minute and click around here:

http://www.japansuperfantasticmodel.com/index.html

BTW: Thanks for the initial links! A wealth of info!


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

Love to have and build this:

http://www.japansuperfantasticmodel.com/images/paramount/paramount_xkw.jpg


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

Something I'm pondering: 

I wonder what jelled together after WWII to kind of create the whole Japanese fanciful sci-fi culture during the 50's/60's? I understand the surface stuff a little. Godzilla, A-bomb and what-not. But ALL this other stuff. The people who played with these toys are now the aging CEO's of our modern day tech companies. It kind of boggles the mind. It has got to be a perfect set of circumstances coming together. And it gives us all the modern stuff we have today. I'd love to take a good college class on this. 

BTW: I'm pro-American all the way. My father was an Air force man. But I want to also be sensitive to our Japanese/Japanese American model building friends!


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

Wow. What a copy cat:

http://www.japansuperfantasticmodel.com/images/crown/crown_starwarrior.jpg

Another wheel station:

http://www.japansuperfantasticmodel.com/images/entex/eidai_spacewheel_01.jpg


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

Tamiya Jupiter II??

http://www.japansuperfantasticmodel.com/images/misc/tamiya_jupiter.jpg


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## Joe Brown (Nov 16, 1999)

kdaracal said:


> Something I'm pondering:
> 
> I wonder what jelled together after WWII to kind of create the whole Japanese fanciful sci-fi culture during the 50's/60's? I understand the surface stuff a little. Godzilla, A-bomb and what-not. But ALL this other stuff.



I am not going get political in trying to pose an answer there - however, Jim Dunnigan spent some time analyzing virtually *every* country on this planet to come up with his military strategy books. 

He (and his partner Austin Bay) discuss the influences that geography and cultural history and internal politics have on what happens to countries before and after they get into conflicts that have drastic impact on how they got to be who they are in today's world. Their comments on pre-WWII Japan fill in a fair bit of material that is not included in your average history textbook. If you can locate a copy of the 1995 edition of this book, it does a better job of the historical issues than the later versions.

http://www.strategypage.com/jfdbooks/default.asp


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## kdaracal (Jan 24, 2009)

Joe Brown said:


> I am not going get political in trying to pose an answer there - however, Jim Dunnigan spent some time analyzing virtually *every* country on this planet to come up with his military strategy books.
> 
> He (and his partner Austin Bay) discuss the influences that geography and cultural history and internal politics have on what happens to countries before and after they get into conflicts that have drastic impact on how they got to be who they are in today's world. Their comments on pre-WWII Japan fill in a fair bit of material that is not included in your average history textbook. If you can locate a copy of the 1995 edition of this book, it does a better job of the historical issues than the later versions.
> 
> http://www.strategypage.com/jfdbooks/default.asp


Sounds fascinating. Thanks for the resource! There must be so much going on there where the average American only can speculate. So many of us "fans" watched Johnny Sokko's robot, Ultraman and Godzilla as kids, with no clue as to the meanings of some of that stuff. :wave:


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## Krel (Jun 7, 2000)

Steve H said:


> And Paramount, via Olive. Their release of Crack in the World is pretty amazing even sans extras.
> 
> I understand your issue, altho I must correct you, these ARE legit DVD releases, just not PRESSED DVDs, stamped and coated and so on.
> 
> ...


I'll take you word for it, but Warners advertises them as dvd-r's, and I can't say for sure as I have never seen one, and never will at twenty dollars plus postage. There is a demand for these movies, Warners chose carefully the releases, they are ones people demanded. Warners just found a dodge to get people to pay top dollar for a bottom of the barrel presentation. I can't blame Warner Brothers, but I refuse to encourage them.

David.


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## Steve H (Feb 8, 2009)

Krel said:


> I'll take you word for it, but Warners advertises them as dvd-r's, and I can't say for sure as I have never seen one, and never will at twenty dollars plus postage. There is a demand for these movies, Warners chose carefully the releases, they are ones people demanded. Warners just found a dodge to get people to pay top dollar for a bottom of the barrel presentation. I can't blame Warner Brothers, but I refuse to encourage them.
> 
> David.


And titles nobody but us film crazy idiots even remembered. 

I wouldn't call it a bottom of the barrel presentation, bare bone, yes. Many of us cry bitter tears of shame that there are no extras, but have you noticed that the more major releases are getting lighter and lighter in the extras department?

I'm not trying to change your mind here David, and I see points you don't even address, such as what a huge boost to the bottom line these releases are, as they can charge full 'normal' MSRP for a title and get a much larget profit margin compared to normal retail releasing. No advertising budget, no sending of solicitations to retailer and wholesellers, it's a money machine.

But manufactured DVDS are no assurance of quality. I've got the second season of The Outer Limits and they're dual sided discs, and due to manufacturing defects I can't view about half of the content. I never bothered to return it as knowing what I know about the industry the entire run is probably like that. I've been thinking of picking up the recent re-release but money has been..well. Never mind. 

When I bought the first The Time Tunnel set I couldn't access the bonus content and pilot film because it didn't interact right with the DVD player I had then. New machine came into my life and everything was fine. 

So, pressed DVDs are NOT a sure sign of quality, it's about the transfer and the bitrate and blah blah blah. Will a DVD-R last as long as a pressed DVD? Probably, with proper care. 

Here, just for fun, a title that would be of interest to many of us here. Savant is an honest tradesman who tells it like it is with his reviews.

http://www.dvdtalk.com/dvdsavant/s3105coun.html


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## Krel (Jun 7, 2000)

Steve H said:


> And titles nobody but us film crazy idiots even remembered.
> 
> I wouldn't call it a bottom of the barrel presentation, bare bone, yes. Many of us cry bitter tears of shame that there are no extras, but have you noticed that the more major releases are getting lighter and lighter in the extras department?


I have to disagree with your first point, I think that they were very careful, and picked films that had a very big draw to pull people into the program. If it had failed, then we may have seen a regular release, perhaps along the lines of MGM's Midnight Movie dvd's. Or, maybe not.

I'm sorry, I wasn't clear on what I meant about a bottom of the barrel presentation. What I meant was that they advertised most of these movies as having no enhancements. I like extras, but they are not necessary for me to buy the dvd. I bought the dvds of "Moon Zero Two", and "World Without End" (two movies I never thought that would be released on dvd) because I like the movies, they have no extras, and I may never watch the other movies on the dvds again. Both of the dvds with four movies combined didn't cost me twenty dollars, and I didn't have to pay postage, I just walked into the store.

David.


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## Steve H (Feb 8, 2009)

Krel said:


> I have to disagree with your first point, I think that they were very careful, and picked films that had a very big draw to pull people into the program. If it had failed, then we may have seen a regular release, perhaps along the lines of MGM's Midnight Movie dvd's. Or, maybe not.
> 
> I'm sorry, I wasn't clear on what I meant about a bottom of the barrel presentation. What I meant was that they advertised most of these movies as having no enhancements. I like extras, but they are not necessary for me to buy the dvd. I bought the dvds of "Moon Zero Two", and "World Without End" (two movies I never thought that would be released on dvd) because I like the movies, they have no extras, and I may never watch the other movies on the dvds again. Both of the dvds with four movies combined didn't cost me twenty dollars, and I didn't have to pay postage, I just walked into the store.
> 
> David.


I'm quite familiar with that line from Warner Bros. I grabbed The Ultimate Warrior/Battle Beneath the Earth volume as soon as I was able. I'm rather ticked at myself for not grabbing Moon Zero Two when it was out.

But see, consider this. Those were Best Buy exclusives. You could ONLY buy them at Best Buy (dunno if they've been reissued 'wide', I think they're out of print now). What if I don't have a Best Buy in my area? What if I have a problem shopping at Best Buy?

One of the reasons Warner Bros started the Archive system is BECAUSE Best Buy decided they didn't want to bother with deep catalog titles. If you pay attention to such things Best Buy has cut their DVD selection to about 30% of the stock they carried in 2005. A 70% drop in the number of SKUs (for those who know retail). The increase of Blu-Ray accounts for some of that but overall it has been determined that only core 'evergreen' and new Big Hit titles have any real performance and catalog is a drag on the profit margin.

And since Best Buy and FYE are the only companies that carry ANY catalog, and their numbers combined come nowhere NEAR what Musicland Group (Suncoast) used to buy on a monthly basis, the Hollywood studios just assume there's ZERO market for anything that isn't Cameron's Avatar or Iron Man 2.

It's very very frustrating to me, let me tell you.


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## Richard Baker (Aug 8, 2006)

Steve H said:


> And titles nobody but us film crazy idiots even remembered.
> 
> I wouldn't call it a bottom of the barrel presentation, bare bone, yes. Many of us cry bitter tears of shame that there are no extras, but have you noticed that the more major releases are getting lighter and lighter in the extras department?


 I think it ia a way to help push BluRay sales. One od the big draws of DVD's when they first came out were the extras- even silly ones like _'Animated Menus!_' this would make you desire a DVD over a VHS copy of a movie. IIRC they also released a DVD version several days before the VHS was released too.


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## Steve H (Feb 8, 2009)

Richard Baker said:


> I think it ia a way to help push BluRay sales. One od the big draws of DVD's when they first came out were the extras- even silly ones like _'Animated Menus!_' this would make you desire a DVD over a VHS copy of a movie. IIRC they also released a DVD version several days before the VHS was released too.


Oh, oh Richard, don't make me go into my long, boring deconstruction on the history of home video, the birth of rental and how DVD pushed the studios to do things they didn't want to do in terms of restoring and preserving movies. Yes, it's one of my 'things' 

But super short form simple. 

yes, the animated menu listing as a feature was a huge joke. Somebody thought it was a good idea and boom, everyone was doing it. Then they discovered that it cost money to develop tricky menus and they wouldn't always play nice on some machines. Bah. 

DVD releases before VHS were due to rental window agreements between the Studios and the major rental chains. There used to be a window of about a year between the release of a movie to the rental stores and its 'price down' re-release to 'sell thru' retailers. This shortened to 6 months, then about 3 months, then DVD came along and that wasn't part of the contracts, so in many cases the DVD release of a film was day-and-date with the rental exclusive release to VHS. That was one of the factors that speeded the acceptance of DVD in the marketplace as rental shops rushed to put DVDs in their stores as they were generally cheaper AT RETAIL then what they were paying for the rental VHS (generally $30 Vs. $85-$110)

But here's the core thing you have to understand. During the heyday, call it 1990-2005, Hollywood developed this bi-polar relationship with home video. they LOVE the money, there's been any number of movies that tanked at the Box Office that actually ended up big hits on home vid. (But they never made a profit, oh nooo, no movie ever has  ) But they HATE HATE HATE the loss of control and OMG you can watch that movie ANY TIME YOU WANT and they don't get an extra PENNY for it! Yes, there are people out there that lose sleep over that. This is why they want physical media to go away, because in the all digital world they feel that once again they will have the 'just and proper' control over your ability to watch a film and charge you for it over and over and over. 

Keep in mind that your fancy new Blu-Ray player needs to be connected to the internet to properly download the endless updates needed to play discs (because the standards are still not fixed into place and so every encoding house keeps changing their programs, and what played last year won't play this year. Disney and MGM have been the worst at that), and it has the ability to log and track every single movie you play and tell someone what you watched, when you watched it. Just keep that in mind. 

Naturally, this sucks in my opinion, and I don't think it's ever going to work the way they expect it to. 

That's why, even with the limitations, I'll take the Warner Archive DVD-R program and others like it. It's a kind of spit in the face to the Studios if you will. Now if I only had money and a credit card...


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## Krel (Jun 7, 2000)

Steve H said:


> I'm quite familiar with that line from Warner Bros. I grabbed The Ultimate Warrior/Battle Beneath the Earth volume as soon as I was able. I'm rather ticked at myself for not grabbing Moon Zero Two when it was out.
> 
> But see, consider this. Those were Best Buy exclusives. You could ONLY buy them at Best Buy (dunno if they've been reissued 'wide', I think they're out of print now). What if I don't have a Best Buy in my area? What if I have a problem shopping at Best Buy?
> 
> And since Best Buy and FYE are the only companies that carry ANY catalog, and their numbers combined come nowhere NEAR what Musicland Group (Suncoast) used to buy on a monthly basis, the Hollywood studios just assume there's ZERO market for anything that isn't Cameron's Avatar or Iron Man 2.


MZT wasn't out long because the dinosaur movie with it was the European release with the naughty scenes in it.  They were suppose to do a new run with the censored version, but I don't know if they ever did. 

I never understood the whole exclusives thing, when you consider that not all areas have certain stores, no FYE's in my area. For me Best Buy really went to seed when Circuit City closed down. Their dvd section is a mess now as they have lumped everything together. I don't even bother looking there anymore, Deep Discount is usually cheaper anyway, so what if I have to wait a week to get it.

Steve H., thanks for the info on Blu-Ray players, I hadn't heard that before, and will avoid them like the plague until they get the situation fixed. 

But your statement: " I'll take the Warner Archive DVD-R program and others like it. It's a kind of spit in the face to the Studios if you will. Now if I only had money and a credit card... ". You do realize that Warner Brothers is one of, if not currently the largest studio out there don't you?

Plus to me the Warner Archive program is a big spit in the face.

A BIG NOTATION! This is my belief, and my feeling on what Warners is doing. I am not trying to put anyone down, insult, or berate them for buying the Warner Archive movies. At least not intentionally, if I have then please accept my apologies. If you can justify to yourself, and you enjoy it then I can not fault you, nor can I, or will I criticize you for it. I can't fault Warner Brothers either, I just refuse to encourage them. Some people obviously see it as a deal, I see it as a rip-off. It is a person prejudice of mine that I don't expect anyone else to join in on.

I wish that you would though, then we would get these on a conventional dvd release. But I don't have the power of life-and-death over the population so that is not going to happen. Yet! :devil:

David.


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## Steve H (Feb 8, 2009)

Oh, yes, I know Warner is one of the big players. It's really quite funny, while the Studio Heads gnash their teeth about the home video issue, there's a tight little corps within that is INSANELY pro-home video. I mean fanatic about it. Constantly digging thru the vaults, searching old memos and lists and sheets for 'trims' and outtakes and un-used shots, begging money from here and there within the corporate structure to remaster a film...

As to exclusives, they're done because it's a sure sale for the studio. Warner Bros went to Best Buy with those two-movie discs (yes, akin to the MGM Midnight Movies releases, which some of THOSE were Best Buy Canada releases before they went 'wide' here, Panic in Year Zero/Last Man on Earth being one example) and said something to the effect of "If you buy 5000 units non-returnable we'll give you a per-unit price of $5, and you can promote it as an exclusive which will drive traffic to your stores" which, it should be obvious, would be a hella good profit margin and have the bonus of filling shelf space without having to think about pulling returns which is labor intensive. 

But now, Best Buy doesn't care about that anymore. They got rid of their main 'software' rival (Suncoast/Musicland Group), they got rid of their main 'hardware' rival (Circuit City), they got rid of their main computer rival (Comp USA) and they've conceded that Walmart will always beat them on pricing for the BIG MAJOR releases, as least for that all-important first two weeks. They just don't see the need to try anymore. If you have to shop a brick store, where else CAN you go now?

it's very very frustrating, believe me.


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## Richard Baker (Aug 8, 2006)

I always though the logical model for Blockbuster to evolve to would have been a 'Burn while you wait'. They generally only rent the outer ring of the store of new releases, 80% of the rest is dead inventory not paying rent. The local ones here have been reducing the core of the store and replacing it with other stuff- movie posters, gifts, older DVDs marked way down...

Remember the DVD that self destructed after five or so days. You had to break an air tight seal and then had so long to watch it before the dVD became unplayable...

I hate streaming- I tried Netflix for a while but I prefer to watch some movies with the suntitles turned on- can't ehar what they are saying and it helps to readt also (althoguh sometimes things don't match well). Commentary tracks are also great- both of these are not available in the streamed version (yet)


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