What 8mm films did I watch last night?

[Brian Fretwell]

Derann's "import" 400ft of Taste the Blood of Dracula" and what I thought was the first part of the Derann 3x400ft of The Road to Bali followed by part 3. When checking further I found the first part must have been from a US full feature release as it is a Cine Magnetics print. Still with a "Road" film the fact that a lot is missing doesn't spoil the jokes.

[Lincoln Thorn]

Screened EMPIRE STRIKES BACK for my family this evening.

[Jason Ewing]

I'm new to the forum and the only film I have is home movies from my childhood. If anyone has duplicate films they would like to pass along for a reasonable price, it would be great to have a few to run through my projector.

[Melvin England]

Now the festivities are in the past, time to crawl back into the Man Cave for my Saturday night entertainment and what was my final show of the year.

It consisted of......


(No South Pacific in any shape or form!!!)

Royal Wedding - 1x 75' Trailer - Fred Astaire and Jane Powell

My Blue Heaven - 1x 75' Trailer - Betty Grable

Calamity Jane - 1x 50' Trailer - Doris Day

Saturday Night Fever - 1x 100' Trailer(s) - Both the trailer and the teaser.

Muhammad Ali v Leon Spinks - 1x 400' - The boxing match that Ali actually LOST.

Rocky - 5x 600' - Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burgess Meredith.


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[Osi Osgood]

That was a wonderful story, Steve.

[Douglas Meltzer]

Knock on wood!

[Brian Fretwell]

Yesterday, after watching Casablanca on TV I just had to put on the Bugs Bunny version "Carrotblanca".

The BBC also showed "What's Up Doc" the Ryan O'Neal/Babra Streisand film which also features the song "As Time Goes By", coincidence???

[Steve Klare]

Maybe 10 years ago my Mom was visiting and I showed her some films. One of 'em was some random Castle short: I don't even remember which one anymore. Mom worked at Universal on Park Avenue in the Castle Films Division. She programmed stone-aged computer systems to send consignments of Castle Films to retailers. She quit just before I was born.

She thanked me for showing her that: 50+ years later, it was her first one! It seems the whole time Castle Films had never set up a projector and showed 'em a reel! Now, maybe it's just me, but (for example) if I owned a bakery, I'd let the people who worked the cash registers or did deliveries have a box of donuts a couple of Fridays a month: just to give 'em the big picture of what the company does! (-Make 'em proud!)

Why did it have to come to the kid she quit Castle Films to bring into the World ending up being the one to finally show her a Castle Short? (Good LORD! -was this my sole-purpose in being here at all?!......-now what?! )

The even bigger story here is I also showed her that same Derann South Pacific Promo Reel. She really enjoyed watching it and she told me something I'd never heard before: When she and my Dad were still teenagers, he took her to see South Pacific on Broadway as their first date. (-benefit of not going to college: he was nineteen years old and possessed actual money!)

Mom is gone some years now. If it wasn't for that one night there's no way I'd ever have learned that singular fact about my parents. I told my sister: she didn't know either!

Is it possible, that among the many reasons we show people films is just to get them talking?!

[Paul Adsett]

.... so it is a fairly "recent" print as far as super 8 goes. The "There Ain't Nothin' Like a Dame" would be fantastic, particularly if it was also in stereo (appreciate this copy won't be) as the stereo separation of the singing voices on the soundtrack cd is massive. I would have thought that either "Bali Hai" or " I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Out Of My Hair" would have been a more suitable second choice. But hey! I am now on the look out.......!

I also have that scope highlight print from South Pacific and I agree with Melvin that there could have been a much better choice than Honey Bun for the second segment of this great 200ft reel. Nevertheless the print quality of this whole Derann reel is excellent, with pin sharp focus and rich saturated color. I have re-recorded the whole reel in stereo and, as Melvin thought, the Dames number is absolutely stunning now, with great audio clarity and stereo separation. So now its one of my very favorite short reels.
I also have the letterboxed original trailer reel which is also excellent, and also now re-recorded in stereo. So together these two reels are a great representation of the film.

[Osi Osgood]

Sorry to hear that the balance stripe head has worn out. Sometimes, it seems like it's just easier finding a good used projector for parts, with good heads, than trying to find the heads separate! We watched our Howdy Doody episode on super 8 today. It must be a generational thing ... I get a lot more out of it. My kids got more humor out of the fact that part of his name is "Doody"!🤨

[Brian Fretwell]

Disney time yesterday with "the Small One" 200ft, "A Walt Disney Christmas" compilation reel of edited cartoons (Both FUji and fading a little but good colour on most scenes then "Mickey's Christmas Carol" Derann's release on Agfa stock with a stunning quality (Definition and colour) picture, just a pity my Eumig GL926 stereo projector's balance stripe head has worn out!

[Osi Osgood]

Just watched "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century". I don't quite get why that has become so popular with me now, but I did finally luck out on a good color copy of it. What surprised me about this copy is that the previous owner, (who must have really loved the film as well), not only rerecorded the whole 2X400ft digest, but added the scenes from the 200ft version, originally a promo reel for the film that Universal 8 released on Super 8, which amazingly has good color, which I had never seen for that release, ( the 200ft release has not fared well ), and it came on an overflowing 600ft Bonum reel with one of those "colorfresh" packets inside the plastic storage sleeve. Maybe that is why the color has held up so we'll. 😀
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[Brian Fretwell]

Last night being Christmas Eve for me it had to be the Tom and Jerry "The Night Before Christmas2" A couple of cinema happt CHristmas.New Year messages and the trailer to "White Christmas".

[Steve Klare]

Tonight: Christmas Eve 2024

-The Small One

(-and my wife's Christmas Village!)

[Melvin England]

I do believe there are a few really decent copies originating from Italy
.

UPDATE Re South Pacific

With my own quote above, I was getting confused with My Fair Lady which has been confirmed as being available on super 8 from Italy elsewhere on this forum. I don't have any solid evidence that South Pacific ever made it to super 8 from Italy or anywhere else...........but it MIGHT have been! Do you know any different ?