Banana Splits DVD Update

[TheBlueHombre]

Earl Kress has updated information on the Banana Splits. It is not good news but at least WHV is wanting to release the set when the elements are correct. Here's a link to Earl's Banana Splits bit:

http://www.mynameisearlkress.com/weblog/?m=200703


On a personal note: MarktheShark, I'm sad that the Banana Splits won't be coming to DVD soon. I thought it was a good choice for WHV to release.

[MarkTheShark]

Yeah, I'm slightly bummed...

...but given what little I know about the state of the materials and given what Earl has said...I agree with this decision, at least for now. I'd much rather wait and see it done properly, than to have them just knock something off (I had these horror visions of seeing the Boomerang half-hour cut-downs released and having them call it "the complete series," with half the theme song on there, just for starters)...

Well, at least that saves me 30 or 40 bucks this year...:D

[MF TOON]

When it does get released, wouldn't it be cool if they included a resish of the '68 Decca LP as bonus? :)

[MarkTheShark]

When it does get released, wouldn't it be cool if they included a resish of the '68 Decca LP as bonus? :)

I was thinking the same thing myself, and I would LOVE that! (Doesn't one of the Flintstones season sets have one of the soundtrack albums included--a vintage one from the 60s?)

Of course, there are likely to be similar issues with the music as with the show. "Wait Til Tomorrow" is on a various artists CD, and it's sourced from a bootleg CD (surface noise, plays too fast, heavy noise reduction, echoey at the fade out). "I Enjoy Being A Boy (In Love With You)" is on another various artists CD, obviously copied from a 45. The single version of "The Tra La La Song" was on "Tube Tunes," and it sounds like it MIGHT be from a master tape. (That one also has a credit for MCA Records--the Banana Splits album was on Decca--while the others all credit Hanna-Barbera.) The original Season 1 edit of "The Tra La La Song" (without sound effects) was on "Television's Greatest Hits In Living Color" and a UK CD single. Rhino's "Toon Tunes" has the complete song, no edits (even an ever-so-slightly longer fade), but in mono.

But let's see if we can get the shows released first...

[Jon Cooke]

Instead of Pebbles & Bamm Bamm, maybe they could fill the Banana Splits slot with Huck Hound, Volume 2. ;)

[TheBlueHombre]

Instead of Pebbles & Bamm Bamm, maybe they could fill the Banana Splits slot with Huck Hound, Volume 2. ;)
I wrote Earl Kress the exact same thing, Jon. I would love to get Huck Hound, Volume 2.

Here's a question for everyone: When the Banana Splits are released on DVD, wouldn't it be great if they included the Saturday Superstar Movie, "The Banana Splits in Hocus Pocus Park?" It would make the set a complete Banana Splits set.

[beau99]

Instead of Pebbles & Bamm Bamm, maybe they could fill the Banana Splits slot with Huck Hound, Volume 2. ;)
I'd love for that to happen, but it won't due to lower than expected sales of the first set.

[MF TOON]

I don't think that's the real reason. It's likely the factoring of sales in relation to the cost of restoring these programs exceeded that of the other collections, which likely sold in a similar ballpark. I can't really imagine The Banana Splits Hour or even a Pebbles & Bam Bam set (as much as I'd like to see both, and everything from Hanna-Barbera from the '60s!) would be more recognizable and popular with consumers today than Huckleberry Hound. Not that these would fail commercially, but I imagine Huckleberry Hound would likely garner more sales, however the production costs would also greatly exceed both of these other shows in terms of restoring all of the programs and bumpers and so on. And neither are as popular as the Scooby-Doo/Flintstones/Tom & Jerry etc. franchises.

[MarkTheShark]

I wrote Earl Kress the exact same thing, Jon. I would love to get Huck Hound, Volume 2.

Here's a question for everyone: When the Banana Splits are released on DVD, wouldn't it be great if they included the Saturday Superstar Movie, "The Banana Splits in Hocus Pocus Park?" It would make the set a complete Banana Splits set.

(1) Yes, "Hocus Pocus Park" should be included. (A set of the "Superstar Movie" itself would be a difficult if not impossible proposition, since the show had segments produced by different studios, all of which are under separate ownership.)

(2) No, that would not make it complete. The Season 2 material is still MIA. (Although a few tantalizing clips from Season 2 were included in that "Saturday Morning Cartoons Greatest Hits" special as part of the Liz Phair/Material Issue music video of "The Tra La La Song." Several shots had been used as redubbed cartoon intros in the syndicated series, but there were a few brief glimpses of Super Drooper, The Great Fleegali and Goofy Gopher which I have seen NOWHERE ELSE since the original NBC run of the series.)

Question:

Is there any other show in the H-B canon where all the episodes aren't even accounted for? (I mean, beyond the interstitials from Huck, Yogi, QDM, etc.)

[MarkTheShark]

I don't think that's the real reason. It's likely the factoring of sales in relation to the cost of restoring these programs exceeded that of the other collections, which likely sold in a similar ballpark. I can't really imagine The Banana Splits Hour or even a Pebbles & Bam Bam set (as much as I'd like to see both, and everything from Hanna-Barbera from the '60s!) would be more recognizable and popular with consumers today than Huckleberry Hound. Not that these would fail commercially, but I imagine Huckleberry Hound would likely garner more sales, however the production costs would also greatly exceed both of these other shows in terms of restoring all of the programs and bumpers and so on. And neither are as popular as the Scooby-Doo/Flintstones/Tom & Jerry etc. franchises.

Also, as I understand it...it was after all those initial "tentative" announcements had been made about H-B shows under consideration for this year's "wave," when they actually rolled up their sleeves and started looking at all the elements, that it became clear that the cost would exceed the budget for this year's H-B DVD projects. (Not to mention the complications involved with researching how the shows would need to be reassembled, etc.) That's what I got out of it, anyway. In other words, here's X amount of dollars, and they'd already allocated so much to do "Wait Til Your Father Gets Home," so much for the next Scooby-Doo project, etc. Now, at least there's a better idea of what would be involved in getting the show into a releasable condition...still doesn't look good to make it a cost-effective project in terms of sales, but maybe somewhere down the line, after all the Scooby-related stuff and Flintstones sequels are out, and there's less material left to release...it might make more "bottom line" sense... At least that's my take on it.

I think the same would go for Huck, Quick Draw and Wally.

[Daws Butler Jr.]

The reason for Huck Volume 2 not being released truly is the dismal sales of Volume 1, since all the cartoons have now been remastered.

There would only be additional expense if more interstitial material was searched for. All that currently exists (except for the Hokey Wolf material) was included on Volume 1. I am convinced that there is more, but because of the Warners bureaucracy, it is too expensive to search for and transfer.

[TheBlueHombre]

The reason for Huck Volume 2 not being released truly is the dismal sales of Volume 1, since all the cartoons have now been remastered.

There would only be additional expense if more interstitial material was searched for. All that currently exists (except for the Hokey Wolf material) was included on Volume 1. I am convinced that there is more, but because of the Warners bureaucracy, it is too expensive to search for and transfer.
Daws Butler Jr: I'm curious if WHV has pinpointed from their perspective why the Huck Hound DVD set did not sell. I know from this fan's perspective, it seems that it was released at the wrong time of the year, during the holiday glut DVD season. It seems that a spring or late summer release would have been better for sales. I also felt that marketing and promotion were poor for both the Huck and Yogi sets. As a matter of fact, it seemed almost nothing was done to promote the set.

However, it would be interesting to know the perspective WHV has on why the Huck set did not sell.

[Daws Butler Jr.]

Daws Butler Jr: I'm curious if WHV has pinpointed from their perspective why the Huck Hound DVD set did not sell. I know from this fan's perspective, it seems that it was released at the wrong time of the year, during the holiday glut DVD season. It seems that a spring or late summer release would have been better for sales. I also felt that marketing and promotion were poor for both the Huck and Yogi sets. As a matter of fact, it seemed almost nothing was done to promote the set.

However, it would be interesting to know the perspective WHV has on why the Huck set did not sell.

I don't know if they even do that kind of research. If they do, I haven't been privvy to it.

My suggestion to them, and I will keep pushing for it as long as they'll listen, is to put out Volume 2 and re-release Volume 1 at the same time with new artwork and some kind of publicity campaign.

[celfan]

I'd be willing to bet that the Huck Dvd was a sales failure for no reason other than high cost. I'm a huge Hanna fan and I don't even have the Yogi DVD
because of the bucks. The Hanna DVDs really stand out at the video stores when they are surrounded by other cartoons selling for $9.99.

I hope they release the Quick Draw and Lippy/Touche/Wally dvd at the same time, because they won't sell well either. Eventually they'll just stop.

[MF TOON]

I agree, Warners "family division" animated sets are priced really high compared to most other releases. I often have trouble justifying spending the bucks so you can imagine when it'd come to "nostalgia" purchases of the later 60's series they've put out like Dastardly and Mutley or whatever... For less the price you can pick up another of Warners box sets from their classic film division and get 6 or 7 exceptional restored films with extras and beautiful packaging. It's a tough sell. Unlike most other releases, with the advent of HD and the advancement of the medium, these sets seemed to have never gotten a cost reconstruction. I will still continue to support them, but I just hope they can get Quickdraw and the Wally and Magilla sets out soon, before poor sales of these sets deem them not viable.

[Jon Cooke]

If the remaining Huck Show cartoons are already remastered, I hope they are at least made available for Boomerang to run since a future DVD release doesn't appear likely.

[Jon Cooke]

II will still continue to support them, but I just hope they can get Quickdraw and the Wally and Magilla sets out soon, before poor sales of these sets deem them not viable.

There's already a Magilla set. Did you mean a Magilla set worth the $$$?

[Kolbar]

If the remaining Huck Show cartoons are already remastered, I hope they are at least made available for Boomerang to run since a future DVD release doesn't appear likely.Since they've started running Huck Hound on Boomerang again, the cartoons look very crisp and cleaned up, similar to the DVD release, so it looks as if they're showing the remastered copies.

On the topic of remastering, In2TV's selection of Wally Gator cartoons (http://video.aol.com/video-category/wally-gator/2814) are amazing. I think that's the best I've ever seen those. Also, the Quick Draw cartoons on Boomerang look as if they've been remastered.

[TheBlueHombre]

I don't know if they even do that kind of research. If they do, I haven't been privvy to it.

My suggestion to them, and I will keep pushing for it as long as they'll listen, is to put out Volume 2 and re-release Volume 1 at the same time with new artwork and some kind of publicity campaign.
It upsets me that WHV doesn't take the time to find out why their material sells or doesn't sell. It seems like the old addage, "People must not be interested in the character or show, so we won't release any more."

I make my living as a salesperson. When I do not get a sale, I try to find out exactly why. Was I beaten out by price? Did I not give the person the information they needed? Did my personality rub them the wrong way? Did I not listen to the person's needs correctly? Maybe our promotion or marketing idea was a good one, but it was the wrong time of the year to try it out.

I make it a point to find out what went wrong so I can do better on the next job. In the case of WHV, some good questions would be: Are people still interested in the character or show? Is there a demand for the product? If it didn't sell, how come? Was it the wrong time of year? Was it priced too high? Did we do a good job on quality and presentation? Should we change our marketing and promotion strategies? If we were to release a second set, what could we do better the next time so it could be successful?

Yes, WHV has a lot of product out there but so does Mohawk, Shaw and Beaulieu carpets. Yes, I sell floor covering for a living. The representatives from these mills always are asking me why some of their product is selling and why some of it is not selling. I have to give them the straight answer. WHV needs to ask the tough questions, particularly when there is a good demand for the product and the rest of the H-B sets are selling. Something went wrong. It's time to find out why.

If the mistakes are not corrected, then future sets like Banana Splits, Quick Draw McGraw, Pebbles & Bamm Bamm and others may succumb to the same fate.

[MF TOON]

There's already a Magilla set. Did you mean a Magilla set worth the $$$?


Woooops! :o

As you can tell, I'm slightly behind on the latest wave of releases.

That came out with the HK Phooey set, right?


I'll have to make it one of the next purchases..

[celfan]

I have to give them the straight answer. WHV needs to ask the tough questions, particularly when there is a good demand for the product and the rest of the H-B sets are selling. Something went wrong. It's time to find out why.



Which HB sets are selling well? I'd guess that only the Flintstones and Scooby Doo have the popularity necesary to sell at such high prices.

I guarantee that VERY few people are willing to pay $45 for a Magilla series. I don't know why they chose to release that one before the Quick Draw series. I'm willing to guess that there will be very low demand for
the Lippy-Touche-Wally series as well if it is priced around $40-$45.

Warner has never had a grasp of the Hanna Barbera share of the market.

[Chow Hound]

I'd be willing to bet that the Huck Dvd was a sales failure for no reason other than high cost. I'm a huge Hanna fan and I don't even have the Yogi DVD
because of the bucks. The Hanna DVDs really stand out at the video stores when they are surrounded by other cartoons selling for $9.99.I agree, and price was the reason I didn't buy Huck and Yogi until a few months ago. I kept buying DVDs that were on sale that seemed to have more value for the dollar than the HB sets, until the sales petered out and it became clear that the HB sets never really went on sale (the prices have dropped occasionally, but not as steeply as other titles). However, iff the comparatively high prices of the HB sets are due entirely to the cost of restoration and research, then I would rather pay more for a quality release and have to wait until I can work it into my budget. I'd hate to see a drop in quality to get a better price point.

[celfan]

Like I said, I'm a hardcore Hanna Barbera guy. I have a good chunk of their cartoons on vhs from the USA Cartoon Network days. I also collect Hanna Barbera animation art. Its painfully obvious Warner doesn't know the Hanna fan base. Do they really think there is a large demand for "Wait til
Your Father gets Home"? I doubt I know anyone (except cartoon freaks here)
who has even heard of it. If it sells for more than $10 they are in for a shock. If they think Huck was a sales disappointment they haven't seen anything yet.

Like I said, I'm just hoping Quick Draw gets released. I'd hate to see that
project cancelled because to much money was sunk into Wait til your Father Gets Home of all shows.:eek:

[MarkTheShark]

Woooops! :o

As you can tell, I'm slightly behind on the latest wave of releases.

That came out with the HK Phooey set, right?


I'll have to make it one of the next purchases..

Here's another thing...did it really make any sense to market Magilla and Hong Kong Phooey together? Huck and Yogi made sense. I picked up both together the day they were released...well actually, they day they were available, that's all I'm gonna say on that one. They complemented each other perfectly...well, almost perfectly (it's the beginning and the end, but no middle). They are essentially two parts of the same show. Like Magilla and Peter Potamus. Magilla and Potamus together would have made sense. (Especially the switching of characters between the two shows.) I wonder if we'll ever see Potamus on DVD.

Getting this back on topic for a second...

Since it's "back to the drawing board" on The Banana Splits Adventure Hour...

...how about in the mean time, a single-disc release of "The Banana Splits In Hocus Pocus Park?" That seems to be in good shape as far as I can tell, no restoration needed...and it stands on its own (it might have made a good DVD extra, but it really doesn't go with Season 1, since it was produced two years after the show ended. If anything, it would make sense to go with Season 2, but let's not open that can of worms).

Maybe it could be part of a set with some of the other one-shot things that have been discussed like the "Alice" and "Jack And The Beanstalk" specials...or what would make even more sense, some other H-B contributions to the "ABC Saturday Superstar Movie." (That's where it originally aired.)

Speaking of which...since they're talking about "Josie And The Pussycats" ... wasn't there an episode or two of "The New Scooby-Doo Movies" with them, which was/were left off that set? ***See below*** I wonder if they could be cleared for this set...

*** Just in the last two weeks, I have completely caught up with all the Hanna-Barbera DVD sets that have been released at Sam's Club. I got a really good deal on both the Scooby Doo Seasons 1-2 and the Scooby Doo Movies...which I hadn't even thought about buying up to then...not for $60.... (If it had been The Splits, though, I would have grabbed that on Day One!)

[MF TOON]

However, iff the comparatively high prices of the HB sets are due entirely to the cost of restoration and research, then I would rather pay more for a quality release and have to wait until I can work it into my budget. I'd hate to see a drop in quality to get a better price point.

Yes, I agree with this completely!


(Just want to emphasize this, in case any executive types are spying on us here)

[TheBlueHombre]

Who was everybody's favorite Banana Split?

My favorite was Bingo. I loved his hat and cool glasses. I also liked anything that Daws Butler supplied the voice for.

When I was in middle school, for magazine subscriptions fund raiser, I earned three of the four Banana Splits plastic figures: Fleegle, Bingo and Drooper. I never did get Snorky.

[MarkTheShark]

Who was everybody's favorite Banana Split?

My favorite was Bingo. I loved his hat and cool glasses. I also liked anything that Daws Butler supplied the voice for.

When I was in middle school, for magazine subscriptions fund raiser, I earned three of the four Banana Splits plastic figures: Fleegle, Bingo and Drooper. I never did get Snorky.

I always identified with Fleegle, myself.

Although as an adult, I'm actually more like Bingo, in the sense of being clumsy and disorganized. And I have elements of Snorky, the silent one who's kind of half out of it, off in the corner. (I love those song clips of "Toy Piano Melody" -- where Snorky's playing the piano and the other three are acting out a Keystone Kops scene, complete with silent comedy clips -- and "I'm Gonna Find A Cave," where Snorky freaks when the other three intermittently change to three Fleegles, three Bingos and three Droopers. The Pink Floyd psychedelic light show effects kind of seal that one too.) The musical side of me is influenced by Drooper...who's kind of a cross between Ray Manzarek, John Lennon and Michael Nesmith.

So I guess at times, I've identified with all of them. Fleegle's still "the man," though.

[Daws Butler Jr.]

However, iff the comparatively high prices of the HB sets are due entirely to the cost of restoration and research, then I would rather pay more for a quality release and have to wait until I can work it into my budget. I'd hate to see a drop in quality to get a better price point.

This is the case. The cost of remastering on these films is setting the price point as high as it is. If they can't make any money on it, why release it at all? They're not doing it just to make the fans happy. They're a business and to stay in business they must make money. The budgets on the bonus material have shrunk and shrunk in an effort to even get these on the shelves. I don't like it. I'm a fan myself. I want these releases to have everything on them. But I have to be realistic, too.

So, you (collectively "you", not Chow Hound, who actually said the reverse) can complain that they are too expensive, but Warners, no matter how benevolent they want to be, are not going to sell them at a loss. If the high price has caused the low sales, then that is the end of the line. They will just stop releasing library material.