As confirmed by representatives from Turner, TCM HD is now up and available for distribution.
Update:
Initial carriage, at a minimum, will be on Cablevision, with Comcast and TWC signed up. Expect to find TCM HD on your multichannel provider as they expand their HD offerings.
A big tip of the AVS hat to member Tybee, for first posting the breaking news.
I am SERIOUSLY ready for some classics, like, oh I don't know, the Ten Commandments, on TCM-HD!!!!
I think the powers that be are missing a big opportunity with all of the VistaVision films- certainly with all of the good ones- by restoring and playing up their release in HD. They are for all practical purposes 70mm films. I guess the original camera negatives may not be up to snuff.
Yes, yes, The Ten Commandments by all means. I believe they did a restoration and brief release of it to theaters in the wake of the Lawrence of Arabia restoration in the early nineties, but I think there was some quibbling about the OAR or something. Also, the stereo tracks to it are missing, except for a reel or two (I believe you can hear it for yourself on the DVD- in the middle of the film the surrounds open up for a brief period).
I watched a little of Roman Holiday Saturday night, and it looked a little smooth. Let's hope TCM's presentation of these old films doesn't open up a can of worms concerning grain reduction and other bad behavior.
Also, if TCM HD really takes off, it could really put the kebosh on the industry releasing Hi-Def disc versions of the old catalogue.
In ten years of viewing TCM, the only non-OAR films that immediately come to mind are Nevada Smith and Storm Over the Nile. There are doubtlessly a few others, and if you want to get anal there might be some that end up 1:85 when they should be 1:1.78, that sort of thing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Shaded Dogfood /forum/post/16602238
In ten years of viewing TCM, the only non-OAR films that immediately come to mind are Nevada Smith and Storm Over the Nile. There are doubtlessly a few others, and if you want to get anal there might be some that end up 1:85 when they should be 1:1.78, that sort of thing.
Yes, there are a few that aren't OAR, but in those cases I'd bet there was a real good reason, like not having access to a good print for the transfer.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Shaded Dogfood /forum/post/16600558
I am SERIOUSLY ready for some classics, like, oh I don't know, the Ten Commandments, on TCM-HD!!!!
I think the powers that be are missing a big opportunity with all of the VistaVision films- certainly with all of the good ones- by restoring and playing up their release in HD. They are for all practical purposes 70mm films. I guess the original camera negatives may not be up to snuff.
They haven't missed the opportunity yet, but it's going slowly. Off the top of my head, I can think of one Vistavision film on Blu-ray so far. As a test case, it proves your point that the amount of detail is incredible. One would hope it also proves the point that there is a market for such efforts.
Quote:
Also, if TCM HD really takes off, it could really put the kebosh on the industry releasing Hi-Def disc versions of the old catalogue.
I think just the opposite has happened with DVD. TCM has generated interest in older catalog titles, and that has spawned a slew of releases on DVD that otherwise might not have happened.
Blu-ray will similarly benefit. There will be multiple outlets for restored HD versions of films, and broadcasts will just spur people to spend money to buy the Blu-ray version so that they have a higher quality, personal copy of a movie that might get shown once a year on TCM HD.
Or, at least, that's how I'll be approaching it -- just like how I own quite a few DVDs of movies that are in semi-regular rotation on TCM, right now.
It has happened numerous times that I've seen on some of their cult offerings, where presumably they couldn't get a better print from the distributor at the time of airing.
Films like Wings of Desire (although they had procured a widescreen print the next time it showed) and The Green Slime.
I think just the opposite has happened with DVD. TCM has generated interest in older catalog titles, and that has spawned a slew of releases on DVD that otherwise might not have happened.
Blu-ray will similarly benefit. There will be multiple outlets for restored HD versions of films, and broadcasts will just spur people to spend money to buy the Blu-ray version so that they have a higher quality, personal copy of a movie that might get shown once a year on TCM HD.
Wonder if they would start sliding in more newer movies like "SP Ryan" the other night....didnt AMC shift to more newer movies in between the older movies too.
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Originally Posted by nathan_h /forum/post/16602864
I think just the opposite has happened with DVD. TCM has generated interest in older catalog titles, and that has spawned a slew of releases on DVD that otherwise might not have happened.
I would also agree, but mention that the DVD didn't also compete against the HD-DVR at inception. If people can save an un-cut, commerical free, OAR HD version of a film as part of a tv package that they're already spending a small fortune on, they may be less-inclined to purchase it on BD.
The Searchers? Bet there's another, but I can't think of it offhand. Wikipedia has a list of VistaVision movies.
The Green Slime.
Ah yes. A great terrible movie. Back in the day I managed to score a vinyl disc with several radio spots for the film, with an even-worse-than-the-film rock song with "Green Slime" as the chorus. Always good for a chuckle from the gang when under the influence.
And I do recall another big guilty pleasure film from Japan that was also letterboxed, The H Man: the Yakusa meets The Blob. I think a properly restored version of this might be quite popular.
broadcasts will just spur people to spend money to buy the Blu-ray version so that they have a higher quality, personal copy of a movie
I'd like to think so, but I dunno. Forbidden Planet reputedly only sold in the mid-hundreds in its HD DVD incarnation, and it has not yet been released on Blu-ray. These old films may be just too specialized a market for the powers that be to be interested in.
Not a sick joke. People watching uplinks to C band distribution on Satelliteguys.us confirmed that it was being uplinked (and in the clear for a few days) last month. It's out there. I wrote to DISH about it, and for the first time they didn't say "It doesn't exist" but they still didn't say whether they would carry it.
I was being a bit sarcastic, guys. I guess you didn't pick up on that. I know that this has been confirmed by some people from Turner. I'm just a little confused as to why they're not letting anyone know about. If you're one of the 99.999999999999999% of the population that do not visit AVS Forums, you have no idea this channel even exists. You would think that they'd want subscribers to call their TV providers and ask them to add this channel. How are people going to ask for a channel they don't know exists? Come on Turner, get on the ball already.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bruin95 /forum/post/16624675
I was being a bit sarcastic, guys. I guess you didn't pick up on that. I know that this has been confirmed by some people from Turner. I'm just a little confused as to why they're not letting anyone know about. If you're one of the 99.999999999999999% of the population that do not visit AVS Forums, you have no idea this channel even exists. You would think that they'd want subscribers to call their TV providers and ask them to add this channel. How are people going to ask for a channel they don't know exists? Come on Turner, get on the ball already.
99.999999999999999% of 306,637,958 (the current estimated US population -- I'm assuming you meant US population -- according to the US Census) is 306,637,958. Your numbers are a little off.
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Originally Posted by jpr281 /forum/post/16624718
99.999999999999999% of 306,637,958 (the current estimated US population -- I'm assuming you meant US population -- according to the US Census) is 306,637,958. Your numbers are a little off.
OMG! Does everyone around here take everything so seriously. You are totally missing the point. I was merely stating that basically 99.9 etc. % of the population of this country DO NOT come to this site and read posts. I was exaggerating to make a point that if AVS Forums is the ONLY place to learn that TCM now had an HD version of the channel, NO ONE would know about it, since Turner doesn't seem to care about making an official announcement that the channel does exist. Geesh, I'm sorry I started the whole thing.
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