Ben Hur

[Ged Jones]

As many of you are aware I worked at Derann for nearly 36 years and now run a Facebook group called Derann Vaults. I like to verify much of the information before posting and intend to work on a Ben Hur post I'm well aware of Ken Films 400' and 3x400' but I'm unable to recall if they issued feature as they did with 2001 etcetera. We had a scope version and I seem to remember that this was from the negs we acquired from Kempski in Germany. Any body out there with further info?

[Jean-Christophe De Block]

There was a 8x400ft of ben-Hur, in flat.

[Melvin England]

I have a full length version on 3x 1200' spools which is in cinemascope and stereo sound which I assume is the 8x 400' equivalent scope version of Jean- Christophe's copy.

[Ged Jones]

I think I was lead to believe that the Flat version was Ken Films and was slightly edited... perhaps this will help me get that info.

[Osi Osgood]

I don't know if it was edited, but it was flat. Through the Animex Cineavision company, BH was issued both in a 1X400ft and a 3X400. The 1X400ft had tended to have very good color to this day, as a general rule, but the 3X400ft has sadly tended to be quite faded. I have the Kempski/Derann feature!

[Chip Gelmini]

The Charlton Heston version is a remake of the 1925 silent film My copies are scope and stereo with Heston the other of which is flat. Both are full length

[Brian Fretwell]

Pity no-one offered a full frame 'scope version "not cropped top and bottom or sides) but using as much of the original squeezed 65mm negative 2.76:1 ratio image. ".66:1 was more like it than the cineavision 2.35:1.

[Barry Attwood]

Ged,

Ken Films flat version was slightly edited, I'm really not sure why, but they also edited "The Dirty Dozen" as well, I think it was to get a conformity of time on a 400' spool, seems odd now, but there must have been some buisness logic behind it!

[John Armer]

I have the Ken feature which is now on four 800ft spools. From memory, the prologue - Jesus being born in Bethlehem - is the part that is edited out. There may be other cuts but I don't know the full film well enough to notice the bits that are missing!

[Mike Newell]

Agree with John. I think the prologue is cut as is the Overture music. Still a long movie. I started with the 3x400 then built up a 2 hour movie with odd reels bought from Derann before buying full feature. To be honest I preferred my edited feature version.

[Osi Osgood]

Brian, I am pretty sure that Cineavision 1X400 and the 3X400ft are at least close to the original aspect ratio, as, the black letterboxing, is on the left and right of the frame, and not on the top and bottom, giving the image a complete square image, exactly as found on a 35mm anamorphic frame. However, as I sadly stated earlier, that 3X400ft Cineavision scope digest, has been quiet the susceptible to bad fade.

[Brian Fretwell]

Yes, the correct 35mm print ratio, but not the original 70mm Ultra Panavision one (as revived in "The Hateful Eight)- that's what I meant.

[Osi Osgood]

Oh, OK. My misunderstanding.

[Ged Jones]

Would you believe I never saw the 3x400' scope.

[Osi Osgood]

Well He's, you can one up on eBay, almost at once every couple of months, and all with varying degrees of fade!