Warner Archive Podcast

Restored to its original theatrical length for the first time in over 75 year, The Sea Wolf (1941) features an all-star team of A-listers including Michael Curtiz, Edward G. Robinson, John Garfield and Ida Lupino to tackle the silver screen adaptation of Jack London's dark adventure novel of the sea, survival and the Nietzschean Superman. Ivan Reiner, chief writer on the gonzo Italio-American "Gamma One" quadrilogy (Wild, Wild Planet, War of the Planets, War Between the Planets and The Snow Devils) and his co-writer on The Snow Devils, the legendary Batman-scribe Bill Finger, team up with the legendary Kinji Fukasaku (Battle Royale) to direct The Green Slime (1968) - an instant mondo cine-sensation. Created by Damon Lindelof and Tom Perrotta, and based on Perrotta's novel, The Leftovers: Season 3 (2017) comes to Blu-ray and DVD. Switching gears, danger and wonder abound during the prehistoric animated adventures of a young dinosaur and his pals in Dink the Little Dinosaur (1989-90) now on DVD. Next we briefly chat about a series of Noir double features that are back in print including Act of Violence/Mystery Street (1948/1950), Crime Wave/Decoy (1954/1946), Illegal/Big Steal (1955/1949) and Where Danger Lives/Tension (1950/1949). Finally we wrap up with a chat with our special in-studio guest, Chris Yogerst the author of From the Headlines to Hollywood: The Birth and Boom of Warner Bros.

Superman: The Movie got a special make-over for his network television premiere - nearly forty-minutes was added back in, creating a two-night television event never before available on Home Video and now released in a double disc set, Superman: The Extended Cut (1978) is now on Blu-ray! The Hidden (1987), one of the greatest Crime-Horror-Science Fiction-Cop-Buddy flicks produced in the era of neon and big hair, is also now available on Blu. From the world of current TV, iZombie Season 3 (2017) ups the undead ante for its fast-paced flesh-eating third smash season also on Blu-ray. Finally we turn to recent New Line horror releases on DVD which include the housing crisis-inspired tale,Within (2016) and Wolves at the Door (2016), loosely based on the infamous Manson family murder spree. We wrap things up with a shout out to the new release of Blade Runner (1982) in the 4k UHD format.

George Feltenstein interviews an American legend, the comedian, actor, director and writer Carl Reiner whose career spans nearly seven decades. They chat about working with Steve Martin on the classic 80s comedy film, The Man with Two Brains (1983) which is new to Blu-ray.

Christopher Guest's community theater improv comedy mockmentary, Waiting For Guffman (1996), charges its way to Blu-ray featuring stellar performances from Fred Willard, Catherine O'Hara, Parker Posey, David Cross, and Eugene Levy. Also new to Blu, MGM's legendary Freed unit takes on a musical of legend with a Cinemascope adaptation of the Scottish Highlands fantasy, Brigadoon (1954) with Gene Kelly, Cyd Charise and Van Johnson. Journey back to the Big Sky wonders and New West dangers of Absaroka County with Longmire: The Complete Fifth Season (2016) with Robert Taylor on Blu-ray. Then we tackle three RKO Rarities coming to DVD for the first time including Beauty for the Asking (1939) with Lucille Ball, Full Confession (1939) with Victor McLaglen and Sorority House (1939) with Anne Shirley.

John Landis' revisionist mobster vampire flick, Innocent Blood (1992) comes to Blu-ray this week. Rod Steiger and Claire Bloom star in an intriguing adaptation of American master-storyteller Ray Bradbury's beloved anthology-cum-novel, The Illustrated Man (1969). Although we already posted an entire hour long podcast dedicated to it, Porky Pig 101 (1935-43) - a huge collection of 99 black and white Porky Pig shorts (with two in color!) comes to DVD . It's a 90s kind of world with Queen Latifah who is back on DVD with Living Single: The Complete Second Season (1994-95) along with co-stars Kim Coles, Erika Alexander and Kim Fields.

Jerry Beck and the Warner Archive Podcast educate us all about the early carrer of Porky Pig and the new 5 disc DVD set, Porky Pig 101 with 99 rare black and white Porky Pig cartoons - and two in color!

Director John Sturges' western, The Law and Jake Wade (1958) starring Richard Widmark and Robert Taylor, comes to Blu-ray guns blazing in 1080p HD. From Conan O'Brien and Greg Daniels (The Office) along with creator David Jenkins comes the sci-fi comedy, People of Earth: The Complete First Season (2016) to DVD. Then we shift tp three new DVDs from the notorious Pre-Code era including Broadway Babies (1929) and Playing Around (1930) starring Alice White as well as Big Business Girl (1931) with Loretta Young and Joan Blondell.

George Feltenstein interviews David Thomson about his book, "Warner Bros: The Making of an American Movie Studio" which provides a fascinating interpretation of the rise of an unpromising film studio from its shaky beginnings through its ascent to the pinnacle of Hollywood influence and popularity.

The mad men behind The Jerk and Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid, actor Steve Martin and director Carl Reiner, cook up a manic genre mash of Film Noir, Romance, Science Fiction and Horror with The Man with Two Brains (1983) and now on Blu-ray. Also new to Blu, The Originals: The Complete Fourth Season (2017) sees our favorite family of bloodsuckers back for their penultimate season. Everyone's favorite family in recovery is back with Mom: The Complete Fourth Season (2016-17) new To DVD. Then we talk about four films back in print on DVD including Miracle In The Rain (1956), Skyjacked (1972), A Warm December (1973) and the three part documentary TV series, MGM: When The Lion Roars (1992).

Arthur Penn's brilliant Night Moves (1975) comes to Blu-ray staring Gene Hackman as a private detective whose pursuit of a runaway (Melanie Griffith) takes him into a labyrinth of crime, mystery and murder. Steve Martin and Rick Moranis go over the top in the mob comedy My Blue Heaven (1990) on a heavenly Blu-ray. New TV comes out this week inclding Riverdale: The Complete First Season (2016) and Lucifer: The Complete Second Season (2016) both on delicious Blu-Ray along with The Middle: The Complete Eighth Season (2016) coming to DVD. In celebration of the legendary Katharine Hepburn's 100th birthday, we're bringing a complete package of presents back in print on DVD including Morning Glory (1933), Sylvia Scarlett (1935), Dragon Seed (1944), Without Love (1945), Undercurrent (1946), and The Corn Is Green (1979).

Director Richard Rush's Freebie and the Bean (1974) starring Alan Arkin, James Caan, is a seminal cynical cop comedy that mixes politically incorrect insouciance with slam bang action and is new to Blu-ray featuring a fantastic new 2017 1080p master. TV's Alice is back with The Complete Fifth Season (1980) on DVD featuring the continuing adventures of Mel's Diner. New Westerns coming to DVD for the first time include The Crossfire (1933) with Tom Keene, The Lion and the Horse (1952) with Steve Cochran and Cow Country (1953) with Edmund O'Brien. This week, five films starring William Powell and Myrna Loy come back in print on DVD including Manhattan Melodrama (1934), Evelyn Prentice (1934), Double Wedding (1937), I Love You Again (1940) and Love Crazy (1941).

New Blu-rays include the often overlooked animated cinema classic, Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993). We follow this up with two from John Wayne including Sea Chase (1955) with Lana Turner and Blood Alley (1955) with Lauren Bacall. We then take a Spring Break with the beach movie that started them all, Where the Boys Are (1960) with Connie Francis, Dolores Hart, Yvette Mimieux, and Paula Prentiss. This week's new TV Blu-ray is The 100: Season 4 (2017). Back in Print DVDs include Lassie Come Home (1943), The Story of Seabiscuit (1949) and All Mine to Give (1957).

Running on Empty (1988) comes to Blu-ray featuring River Phoenix who rose to stardom (and a nomination) in this poignant drama from director Sidney Lumet. Next we chat about the new DVD release of the Jamie Foxx Show Season Three (1998-99) featuring more of the acclaimed actor's earlier sitcom material showing off some of his amazing skills. We next present four DVDs finally released in their original widescreen aspect ratios including The Betsy (1978) with Sir Laurence Olivier and Robert Duvall, Sidney Lumet's Power (1986) starring Richard Gere, John Frankenheimer 's Dead Bang (1989) starring Don Johnson, and Alaska (1996) with Charlton Heston. Finally we cover two classics back on DVD which include Brother Orchid (1940) starring Edward G. Robinson and Humphrey Bogart, and They Drive by Night (1940) starring George Raft and Humphrey Bogart.

George talks with author Richard Sandomir about The Pride of the Yankees: Lou Gehrig, Gary Cooper, and the Making of a Classic. The New York Times sports columnist talks about the full story behind the pioneering, seminal movie. The film features Gary Cooper as the dying Lou Gehrig who called himself "the luckiest man on the face of the earth" even as his body was being ravaged by the disease that was soon named after him.

Welcome to Waponi Woo! First off we celebrate the Blu-ray release of Patrick Shanley's mini-masterpiece Joe Versus the Volcano (1990) starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. Then we're off to the new DVD release of the KidsWB classic Osmosis Jones spin-off series Ozzy and Drix: The Complete Series (2002-03). Finally we chat about four WB classics back on DVD including South Sea Woman (1953) with Burt Lancaster and Chuck Connors, The Helen Morgan Story (1957) with Ann Blyth and Paul Newman, Hell to Eternity (1961) with Jeffery Hunter and The Outrage (1964) with Edward G. Robinson and William Shatner.