Twilight Time, a series of limited-edition DVDs and Blu-rays of Fox titles (usually just 3,000 copies), has finally gotten around to a 50s Western, Pony Soldier (1952). It has a proposed release date of February 12.
It’s kind of a quasi-Western, with Tyrone Power as a Canadian Mountie trying to get a band of Indians back on the reservation. Directed by Joseph M. Newman (Fort Massacre), the Blu-ray will feature Alex North’s terrific score on an isolated track.
Thanks to a couple of readers for the tip.
I’m very excited to see a new-to-me Tyrone Power film, but have to say I’m disappointed it’s apparently not also coming out on standard DVD. I’m very happy with the quality of regular DVDs and don’t like paying the premium Blu-ray price, plus DVDs give us many more options on where in the house we can watch a movie, which matters in a family of six, LOL. Oh well…
Thanks for the info!
Best wishes,
Laura
The Twilight Time series is a bit specialized, coming at titles from a soundtrack angle — many/most offer the score as an isolated track. I’m not a huge fan of this film, but it has a great score and the color should be incredible.
There are quite a few 50s Westerns I’d pay $30 for a Blu-ray of, but this ain’t one of them.
I was a bit hesitant to make the shift to Blu-ray, but I have to say some of them will knock your socks off — The Searchers and The Big Country, for instance. Some are such an improvement they make you completely reconsider a film. For me, that was The Horse Soldiers, which I went from liking to loving thanks to the Blu-ray.
My next move is to get some new glasses!
Hi Toby! Perhaps I need a high-def TV in order for Blu-ray to have a noticeable impact? I’m watching on a Sony Trinitron flatscreen which I love but is several years old and is a “regular” TV. I’d be interested to see THE BIG COUNTRY in Blu-ray at some point. I appreciate your feedback on that!
The Twilight Time standard DVDs have also had the isolated scores; I own two thus far. Unless I’m missing finding it on the Screen Archives site, it seems like they are shifting to Blu-ray-only for all new releases? When you add shipping to the cost, that’s a real pinch to the pocketbook for a single title. The standard DVDs were already quite pricey at around $24 with shipping.
Although I’m disappointed PONY SOLDIER is only on Blu-ray, on the plus side it’s a rare classic film era release which isn’t just a retread of a previous release. That’s one reason I’ve barely bought anything on Blu-ray since we got our player a year ago — SOUND OF MUSIC on Blu-ray was probably the 5th or 6th format owned by me, which I got strictly because it’s a favorite film with unique B-R extras, but for most movies I considered myself “done” buying when I got the title on DVD. The DVDs were such an improvement over a lifetime of scratchy TV prints and 16mm films, videotapes, etc., that I’m still amazed by them.
I may be changing my tune on Blu-ray as time goes on, especially as I read reviews by people like you…we’ll see! I’m fascinated that Blu-ray impacted you so strongly when you saw THE HORSE SOLDIERS, that’s really interesting.
Back to the subject at hand, I’m going to have to think long and hard about whether to spend the money on the PONY SOLDIER Blu-ray. I just discovered this film came out on VHS — had no idea! — and picking it up in that format might possibly be the way for me to go, given the price difference…
Thanks for letting me ramble a bit on “format talk”! And thanks again for the PONY SOLDIER info.
Best wishes,
Laura
There are some films that I’ve owned in just about every format known to man. The French Connection is a good axample — Super 8 (the Ken films thing with the car chase), 16mm (a gorgeous complete print), Beta, laserdisc, letterboxed laserdisc, DVD and now Blu-ray. And while I get tired of opening my wallet for the same movie, some films I want to see looking as good as they possibly can.
With the exception of about a dozen things, I’m completely done with VHS.
Took me a while to really make the move to Blu-ray since I got a nice Sony standard TV right before HDTV became affordable. (Sounds like you did the same, Laura.) It was hard to justify another TV (or a Blu-ray player), since I had such a nice regular TV that was so new.
Just like regular DVDs, some Blu-rays re incredible and some are no big improvement. But the really good ones are certainly worth the investment(s).
Yep, our Sony TVs are so nice (including a really large flatscreen in the ilving room) that it’s going to be quite a while until we get a different TV, unless the unexpected happens!
This format talk is making me remember the RCA video discs we had when I was a teen. Was there ever a more glitchy, skippy, unreliable format? LOL. And those discs were huge!
Thanks much for the feedback, I’m very interested to hear the thoughts on B-R from fellow collectors such as myself who have been through lots of formats.
Best wishes,
Laura
I’m another one who still refuses to re-buy (yet again) my collections all over again. I’m more than pleased with my DVDs, picture is as sharp as it can be and that’s good enough for me. Don’t see any need to try to perfect perfection that is already perfect, that is a good commercial DVD today. I’ve gone from 8mm to Super 8 (films you could buy silent but some with records that you’d play to try (good luck on this by the way) to syncronize with the movie playing. Gone from beta tapes (another superior format that lost out to VHS) reluctantly then went to VHS tapes to Laser discs and then to DVDs.
Well, if I have anything to do with it, the merry go round stops here at DVDs. I can see the writing on the wall though some manufacturers (like Philips, who I recently talked to) are now no longer making new models of DVD alone players, I was told they still make them with combo VHS deck added, but not DVD players by themselves. They now plan to make Blu-ray players since as he told me they also play regular DVDs too. So one day in spite of my resolute feeling not to go Blu-ray, I can see DVD manufacturers are now starting to make Blu-ray releases only, no longer even bothering with DVDs. I can see the collusion amongst DVD makers to decide to force people to switch by no longer even making DVDs in the future. They may succeed but I’ll go kicking and screaming all the way to the useless land of Blu.
PONY SOLDIER came out in Spain (on DVD) a few years back in
a very decent transfer.
I like the film a lot and its a shame Tyrone Power never made more
Westerns;he was ideal for the genre.
The film is a rather sweet-natured Western but very entertaining.
Good showcase for Penny Edwards;its a shame she did not do more
A pictures.Script is by John C Higgins one of my favorite writers.
Only quibble is that the film has a lot of stock footage (yet again)
from BUFFALO BILL.
Laura,
Your blog never ceases to amaze me;especially as you keep digging
up these obscure Lew Landers films that I have never heard of.
Its a goldmine for viewing notes for a B Movie nut like myself!
I got CODE TWO because of what you said about the film.
Loved the film;it sure changes gear after an easy going first half.
If you have not already seen them I can really recommend two recent
Universal Vault releases:MONSTER AND THE GIRL and TEXAS RANGERS
RIDE AGAIN.
Both films star lovely Ellen Drew and both clock in at about 65 minutes each.
Also they have amazing casts. MONSTER..is a weird hybrid of Film Noir
and mad doctor Horror but is so fast moving and well made that you do
not have time to think about it too much.Oddly enough its a Paramount
picture;beating Universal at their own game!
MONSTER AND THE GIRL was my favorite and most watched DVD of 2012.
TEXAS RANGERS RIDE AGAIN is excellent;a saga of the modern West
everything a B film should be………and then some.
I also got DEATH IN SMALL DOSES directed by PONY SOLDIERs
Joseph Newman and again its a blast; remastered in widescreen.
I am more than happy to see these little epics turn up on DVD to even
bother with Blu-Ray at the moment!
By the way Laura, I DO get A picture tips from your blog too. Your recent
Coleen Gray mention/interview reminded me that I had never seen
NIGHTMARE ALLEY for some reason so that prompted me to go get a copy.
Very,very dark, and deep too with Tyrone Power in spellbinding form.
Its nice to hear that he was a good person in real life too.
Toby,although I have veered off the thread; by bringing Tyrone Power and
Joseph Newman into the mix I have more or less kept on track…….I think!
.
These tangents don’t bother me! I like seeing where things end up.
Hi John K,
It is so wonderful to have other film fans to trade info with — I love all the tips I get here at Toby’s blog on Westerns and Bs alike, and am delighted to know you’ve been enjoying the info shared at my blog. As you can probably tell I had a fantastic time last week diving into Lew Landers movies. I still have a few left including a handful of Westerns starring people like Tim Holt and George Montgomery.
So glad you enjoyed CODE TWO. I liked the first section of it best, before the plot took a turn, but hard not to enjoy the whole thing with that cast and the L.A. setting.
Also very glad to know that you recently checked out NIGHTMARE ALLEY.
Many thanks for the movie tips, I’ve made notes on my shopping list. I enjoy Ellen Drew. When on Hollywood Blvd. a couple weeks ago I was surprised to notice A) that she had a Walk of Fame star immediately next to her STARS IN MY CROWN costar, Joel McCrea, and B) her name was misspelled as Elen Drew! (I assume there’s not a second Elen Drew out there I don’t know about?) Ellen was once a waitress at C.C. Brown’s ice cream parlor on Hollywood Boulevard where (decades after she worked there!) my dad took me a number of times as I was growing up. For those who care, the stars are near the front of the Dolby (formerly Kodak) Theatre, across the street from the El Capitan Theatre.
Best wishes,
Laura
Tyrone Power did make another western, Rawhide, which I like a lot and co-stars Susan Hayward.
I’m so looking forward to Pony Soldier on Blu-ray — I never would have thought in a million years this would be out on Blu-ray before any number of classics (where is She Wore a Yellow Ribbon?) but I’m very pleased about it. Although the cover is an interesting piece of art, I still wish they could have done something showing the star, Tyrone Power.
Re Blu-ray — you need a TV at least 40″ and with 1080p resolution to show off what Blu-ray can offer. It’s a definite improvement over standard DVD if you have the right equipment. And now they’re talking about Ultra-HD but currently the hardware is so expensive you have to be an oil or software zillionaire to afford it, so I’m not worrying about yet another format right now.
I also have no interest in 3-D television.
Laura,
Many thanks for sharing that Ellen Drew story with us.
Other Ellen Drew films I like a lot are MAN IN THE SADDLE and
THE SWORDSMAN.
Paula, I love RAWHIDE great interplay between Tyrone Power and
Hugh Marlowe as the bad guy.
Funnily enough the original version of the film SHOW THEM NO MERCY
has just turned up as a Fox MOD.The unexpected violent climax is still
shocking even today.
The Warner Archive have just released RETURN OF THE GUNFIGHTER,
a Sixties Robert Taylor Western directed by NIGHT PASSAGEs James
Neilson. It was a TV movie but released to cinemas in the UK.
At the time I thought that it stood up very well on the big screen.
I see that the dreaded Sidonis are at it again;they have A DAY OF
FURY listed for May. This is a film a lot of followers of this blog will want,
I do hope that it turns up on Llamentol in Spain as well!
Paula,with the rate these Jock Mahoney Universals are turning up in
Europe it can only be a matter of time before we get SLIM CARTER.
Now for something completely different:
Does anyone know who holds the rights to those Albert Zugsmith
late Fifties films (mostly directed by Charles Haas) that I think were
released by MGM?
None of these films have turned up on the Warner Archive;furthermore
Olive Films have Jack Arnolds HIGH SCHOOL CONFIDENTIAL as
a future release.
I am thinking about titles like PLATINUM HIGH SCHOOL,GIRLS TOWN,
THE BIG OPERATOR and THE BEAT GENERATION.
Most of them were shot in Black & white scope and all had amazing casts.
THE BIG OPERATOR and THE BEAT GENERATION have enormous
cult appeal as both have Mamie Van Doren and Vampira in the cast.
Could anyone with a Warner Archive/Facebook link please find out?
Zugsmith is a really interesting producer;his output ranged from classics
like WRITTEN ON THE WIND,INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN and TOUCH
OF EVIL to Universal Westerns we all love like RAW EDGE and RED
SUNDOWN to;later on,downright sleaze!
I know I am stepping outside the 1950s box here but want to comment that I really like two, more recently made westerns; RIDERS OF THE PURPLE SAGE with Ed Harris and Amy Madigan, and THE VIRGINIAN with Bill Pullman and Diane Lane. Finally, after watching for what seems like too long a time I see they finally both came out on DVD in November and I ordered them right away this week. Just an FYI for those who might be interested.
In case anyone might be interested the March Sony MODs are “out there”
but not listed on Sonys website. (they have yet to announce their February
releases on their site)
They have gone for some really obscure things this time.
There is THE CALIFORNIA TRAIL a 1933 Buck Jones entry.
DEATH HEADS NORTH is from 1939 a Mountie movie starring a British
actor I have never heard of:Edgar Edwards.
There is also one for Laura if she is out there;cos she is on a real; Lew
Landers kick at the moment THE BIG GUSHER from 1951 starring Preston
Foster and Wayne Morris.
There are also “stand” alone releases for people who do not want to buy
the Noir sets they were released in; namely Phil Karlsons teriffic FIVE
AGAINST THE HOUSE and Siegels THE LINEUP.
Footnote: many thanks Toby and Laura for your lovely Birthday tributes
to Randy and Dan!.
I’m out here, John K!
THE BIG GUSHER sounds great — I love Preston Foster! So glad you enjoyed the b’day tributes. Toby inspired me!
Best wishes,
Laura
Hi Laura,
I too really admire Preston Foster and am looking forward to THE BIG GUSHER.
I watched a really good Preston Foster the other night THE ROUND UP
from Paramount 1941.Directed by Lesley Selander. Film was more of a
romance than Western;it was slow moving but really interesting.
Preston Foster was excellent as the doomed good guy turned bad.
Film mainly concerned a romantic triangle between Foster,Richard Dix
and the very interesting Patrica Morison.What really struck me about the
film was just how contemporary the Morison character was,both in looks and
attitude.The film was set in a West where some characters wore collar and
ties and listened to phonographs;yet the Indians were still on the warpath.
A most interesting curio and I hope one day Universdal Vault will give it
a DVD release.I DO wish Universal Vault had some sort of website so that
we could get some idea of whats coming up;their releases just suddenly
appear on Amazon.
THE ROUNDUP sounds very interesting. Patricia Morison interests me because as a child I saw her on stage as the Baroness in THE SOUND OF MUSIC. She was mentioned in an L.A. Times article nearly a year ago:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/home_blog/2012/02/park-la-brea-reviews.html
She’s now 98.
Thanks for the ROUNDUP tip!
Best wishes,
Laura
Laura,
Thank you very much for that link.
THE ROUNDUP is well worth tracking down.
Caught up with another Patricia Morison film PERSONS IN HIDING
Paramount 1939. This film pre-dates both GUN CRAZY and BONNIE &
CLYDE and Morison is electrifying.This woman should have become a much
bigger star.Now I have got to track down the HAVE GUN WILL TRAVEL
episode that she appeared in with Vincent Price!
Laura,great piece on MAN IN THE DARK;have never seen this one
and am hoping for a Sony MOD at some point.
By the way Laura,a Lew Landers film to avoid is DAVY CROCKETT
INDIAN SCOUT it hurts to say this because I really like George Montgomery
and Ellen Drew.Film was just an excuse to use tons of stock footage from
KIT CARSON.Another Landers Western CALIFORNIA CONQUEST is OK
but ends far to abruptly;lovely scenery however.
I watched THE ROUND UP again last night and it made me think how
great Selanders Forties A Westerns were.Its a shame in the Fifties that
he chose to churn out films for the likes of Allied-Artists and Bel-Air;which
is not to say that some of them were very good.
I have to admit that I had never heard of Patricia Morison until a pal
sent a copy of THE ROUND UP my way;saying that I just had to see the
film.She is just the sort of strong female Selander liked;barking out orders
to minions (“saddle my horse!”) or striking a would be rapist across the face
with her riding crop.Its a shame she never worked with Selander again,
as good as Cathy Downs was in SHORT GRASS and PANHANDLE I
feel Morison would have been even better.As the Forties went on the
roles did not get better Hollywoods loss was Broadways gain in fact.
She certainly deserved better than Jon Hall Robin Hood flicks;RKO
Tarzan stuff and Lon Chaney thrillers.
As THE ROUND UP had the same producer,photographer and co-star
(Preston Foster) as RAMROD it makes me think how great Morison
would have been in the Veronica Lake role.
Speaking of Preston Foster there is a great piece on TOMAHAWK
over at Colins blog;one of his best yet IMHO.
As I have hi-jacked this thread,and do not know if anyone is still reading
it I will carry on regardless.
I would post stuff on Lauras blog but a friend of mine who is far more
computer literate than me cannot get on,so it what hope do I have?
Anyway my friend and I both agree that for under-the-radar “lost treasures”
there is nowhere in Cyberspace like it.
My pal by the way has forgotten more about Noir than I will ever know and it
was he who turned me on to Patricia Morison.
What I liked was Lauras Victor Mature birthday tribute.
Oddly enough Patricia Morisons role as Matures wife was cut completely
from KISS OF DEATH because of censorship problems.What a shame
Patricia and Coleen Gray in the same movie.
Mature was the “king of Cinemascope” in the Fifties;I do not know of
any other actor that appeared in more widescreen films.
I would like to draw Lauras attention to the Warwick Films that he made,
six in total.They were an English based company run by Albert Broccoli
and Irving Allen.(not to be confused with Irwin Allen,the disaster film king)
Four of the Mature Warwicks have been released as Sony MODs:
SAFARI,ZARAK,PICKUP ALLEY (UK title INTERPOL) and THE LONG
HAUL. That leaves THE BANDIT OF ZHOBE and TANK FORCE (UK
title NO TIME TO DIE) yet to be released
I would like to draw Lauras attention to THE LONG HAUL a film trashed
by the critics at the time but stands up very well now.Mature is cast in
the unlikely role of a Liverpool based truck driver.Its an odd combo of
Noir,trucker thriller and kitchen sink drama.I have always felt that Diana
Dors is somewhat overrated by us Brits but she shines in this film.
Film is also a showcase for Gene Anderson a fine actress that we lost
far too soon.Well worth checking out.
The Warwick films all employed A-List Hollywood talent (Robert Mitchum
.Richard Widmark,Ray Milland Robert Taylor and so on.
Alan Ladd started the ball rolling and one of the terms in his contract
was that his friend Richard Maibaum was taken on board.
This worked out well for Broccoli as Maibaum,apart from writing several
Warwicks went on to write many Bond films.
In fact the Bonds meant a parting of the ways for Broccoli and Allen.
Brocolli was keen to make Dr No but Allen jumped ship.
Later when Allen saw that his ex-partner had struck cinematic gold,went
on to make the Matt Helm films with Dino!
I do not know how much longer Toby is going to put up with my nonsense,
he must be a very tolerant guy! Now Laura,you know what sort of mayhem
I would create if I figured out how to get onto your blog;be thankful for
small mercies!
.
Just been over to visit regular contributor David Rayners Flickr site
(brinkswayboy) and he has uploaded a wonderful gallery of Dell comic
covers from many Western movies and classic TV shows as well as more
great lobby cards………….Brilliant stuff!