Welcome Guest [Log In] [Register]
Welcome to In The Balcony. We hope you enjoy your visit.

You're currently viewing our forum as a guest. This means you are limited to certain areas of the board and there are some features you can't use. If you join our community, you'll be able to access member-only sections, and use many member-only features such as customizing your profile, sending personal messages, and voting in polls. Registration is simple, fast, and completely free. Plus, you'll be eligible for the monthly $1 million prize. (Not really.)

Join our community!

If you're already a member please log in to your account to access all of our features:

Username:   Password:
Add Reply
Porky Pig 101; no good.
Topic Started: Sep 22 2017, 10:55 AM (2,906 Views)
thadk
Member Avatar
Resident Curmudgeon
[ *  *  * ]
The Batman
Nov 8 2017, 08:28 AM
Did you guys read the same article I did? The one I read was full of grammatical errors and definitely needed an editorial polish for clarity.

I hope his books are edited better.

His books are essential reading, but that post was pretty rambling. It also seems to be of two minds: praising the idea of putting them all out in one place, condemning the idea of even having the opportunity to watch more than a handful.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
The Batman
Member Avatar
Charter Member
[ *  *  * ]

Thank you, Tad. I thought it was just me. I went back and reread the whole thing, and I agree, it was a rambling piece that was of two conflicting minds.

Of all his books, which is the most highly recommended?

Always be yourself! Unless you can be Batman...then always be Batman!
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
thadk
Member Avatar
Resident Curmudgeon
[ *  *  * ]
I can recommend Showmen, Sell It Hot! without hesitation.

I agree with him, though, that isolated binge watching (the modern term, since the concept's existed since home video's inception) is incredibly unfair to these cartoons, especially those by Tex Avery and Friz Freleng. The laughter with the right audience can be pretty deafening. (Of course, in a class about "comedy" in college, I was the sole person, out of at least 150, laughing at a prime Road Runner cartoon the teacher screened. The reception to a Dick Van Dyke episode wasn't much better. Maybe a lot of kids are just immune to anything actually good.)

It's wonderful having them in one place, but use responsibly.
Edited by thadk, Nov 8 2017, 08:56 AM.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
The Batman
Member Avatar
Charter Member
[ *  *  * ]

Thank you, Thad. I just took a gander for that books' synopsis, over at GoodReads, and liked what I read. As a fan of Hollywood history, this is one aspect of it that I haven't read a dedicated book for. I'll definitely be checking this one out.

Always be yourself! Unless you can be Batman...then always be Batman!
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Frank Hale
Balcony Gang, Foist Class
[ *  *  * ]
I had to find the Porky text on the Greenbriar main page, rather than through Mr. G's link, but it's not like I'm the top computer guy. I bogged down about mid-way also: rather too stream-of-consciousness and ellipsis-ical for me.

Re: the "sell it hot" book (which I have not read), Mr. McElwee participated in Nitrateville's first podcast, available here:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/nitrateville-radio/id1218406758?mt=2

I found the interview a tad uncomfortable, but he covers some of the background and you may enjoy it.

He has a southern accent you could cut with a knife.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
thadk
Member Avatar
Resident Curmudgeon
[ *  *  * ]
Michael Barrier has added several comments about the set on his site.

http://michaelbarrier.com/

While he still says it's a worthwhile purchase (I do too), it's still a "Hobson's choice" and he draws on his own experiences with incompetent people sabotaging well-meaning projects.

"What happened to me with the Smithsonian book has happened again and again, on a larger or smaller scale, on many of the projects I've been involved with. I don't know if Jerry Beck and George Feltenstein have suffered from the same lack of sympathy and respect that I've encountered—and I don't think we can expect them to tell us if they have—but certainly the shortcomings of the Porky set are suggestive. Using poor source material when better was available...patching in an obviously wrong soundtrack not just once but repeatedly...these are not accidents of the kind that could befall anyone trying to do the best possible job. They're more like expressions of indifference or even contempt.

So, we're left with a Hobson's choice: buy the deficient Porky set and endorse implicitly the shoddy work of the people who shortchanged not just Jerry and George but everyone who has paid good money for the set. Or don't buy the set and add to the likelihood that more (and better) such sets will never appear. I've bought the set, but I do hate having been boxed into that corner. Oh, and I don't expect to ever see that phantom complete Tex Avery set."

I did get a kick out of his "pathetic toadies" bit, too. Uh, yeah.
Edited by thadk, Dec 12 2017, 04:14 PM.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Frank Hale
Balcony Gang, Foist Class
[ *  *  * ]
Well, once again, and speaking as yet another pathetic toadie, I 've enjoyed what I've seen through the first two discs, while admitting all the deficiencies. So far it's the only game in town.

I gather the set has been selling well, so that's a good thing I would think.

No doubt the key to future endeavors will be if Messrs. Feltenstein and Beck can sell it to the big brass that better preservation would lead to even better sales. I'm sure they will be in there pitching.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
thadk
Member Avatar
Resident Curmudgeon
[ *  *  * ]
It's sold well enough that they're out of the run of pressed disc sets, so yeah that's good. Unfortunately, it's not good for the cartoons that deserved way better treatment, which won't get a reprieve now that the market's been tainted with this deficient set. A point that Don Benson made in a comment on Barrier's site: Warner Archive often exceeds expectations—like, shockingly so. Sets of Hanna-Barbera dreck and live-action shorts way more obscure than Porky Pig often go the extra mile. And again, I don't expect anyone to give us an answer why this was an outlier. One more positive thing is that these will obviously have some level of quality control in the future.
Edited by thadk, Dec 12 2017, 05:42 PM.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
ZetaBoards - Free Forum Hosting
Create your own social network with a free forum.
Learn More · Sign-up Now
« Previous Topic · Name that 'toon! · Next Topic »
Add Reply