Archive for June 2016
The actress is…..?
Posted on: June 29, 2016
Up until the mid-1930s, movie theatres used hand tinted glass slides for advertising – akin to today’s “pre-show entertainment.” I found these on eBay.
Jean Arthur is the actress in these rare slides.
Jean Arthur was the female lead in over a dozen low-budget features produced between 1924-26 by Action Pictures productions, and released by Weiss Bros.-Artclass Pictures. The original negatives were destroyed in a fire. In 1979 I asked Ms. Arthur if she recalled appearing in them…she quickly changed the subject.
By the 1940s Louis Weiss had bought out his brothers and was operating his own company, Louis Weiss Co. He became very successful selling low and ultra-low budget feature films to television when the studios were afraid to do it for fear of repercussions from exhibitors. Weiss didn’t care because he ceased releasing feature films ten years before TV.
Louis also sold 8mm and 16mm movies for home use. “Jean Arthur and an All-Star Cast” one reel abridgements were offered by his company. [page two, top right]
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The Sprocket Vault
Posted on: June 20, 2016
Retire?
No way…I’m still finding too many interesting movies to release on DVD/Blu-ray.
Hard to believe Kit Parker Films is fast approaching its 50th year in the distribution of classic motion pictures! Back in 1971 the 16mm non-theatrical industry was thriving, but it was largely owned by corporations which were passionate about money, but dispassionate about films, and the quality of the film prints showed it. I saw a niche to be filled — renting out quality prints at affordable prices, and Kit Parker Films was born.
The 16mm library expanded throughout the years until home video made inroads into the industry — the quality of VHS was marginal at best, but the price was right. By the 90s I branched out into the 35mm theatrical arena, eventually becoming the go-to source for classics in that film format.
In the late 1990s I realized the days of projecting celluloid were going to be replaced by DVDs, so slowly phased out the “old” KPF, and in 2001 began purchasing the copyrights to vintage films. Over the next 15 years my collection grew to include hundreds of feature films, television programs, serials and shorts. Many of my acquisitions required a great degree of patience and detective work to clear rights and locate suitable film elements, but those efforts unearthed many films that had seen little or no exposure for decades.
Originally “The Sprocket Vault” was created a sales division to sell my own DVD/Blu-rays through our distributor, Music Video Distributors (MVD). Other producers have started approaching me to sell their movies…so my company is growing, and that means lots of new releases of interest for you.
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