Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Greenbriar Gets Good News From Warner Source ...

September 22, 1954: KTLA Was There To Live Broadcast The Sabrina Premiere ...

The Sabrina Blu-Ray Will Be Wide

... and Look At The Stars in Attendance
Warners announced yesterday the forthcoming Blu-Ray release of Sabrina (1954) and Funny Face, both starring Audrey Hepburn, street date set for April 8, 2014. Initial excitement was tempered by disappointment that Sabrina would be a standard ratio release, that is 1.37, as noted by members of The Home Theater Forum and elsewhere. Paramount began filming Sabrina in late September, 1953, six months after the studio adopted a wide screen policy in response to popular acceptance of expanded ratios. By the time Sabrina was released in October 1954, all of an industry had embraced wide presentation, showmen following suit by updating screens to the new format. Sabrina was shot in open matte so that it could be shown flat without crop or scanning, which is how we've had it over a last sixty years ... until now.  Greenbriar is happy to confirm that Sabrina WILL be released by Warners in its intended 1.75, just in time for the film's 60th birthday. Every other home video offering of the film has been flat, even HD streaming and Region Two Blu-Rays offered previously. Praise is due Warners for putting Sabrina right and making 2014's spring release a Blu-Ray event we can all look forward to.

Thanks to widescreen experts Bob Furmanek and Jack Theakston for details re Sabrina production and ratio.
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3 comments:

  1. John McElwee2:13 PM

    Dan Mercer has some observations concerning the "Sabrina" premiere guest list:


    Look at the stars, indeed. I mean, John Agar! Of course, the list is supposed to be in alphabetical order, otherwise he wouldn't have such prominence. But bold face type as well? Either someone was in a hurry or Agar slipped him a saw buck for the favor. This must have been just about the last time he was invited to a major studio premiere, and he needed to make as much of it as he could. And someone else must have had a rather indifferent grasp of the alphabet. All right, Lauren Bacall should follow Humphrey Bogart. They're married after all, but how did Marie Wilson get right up there with Maria English? And shouldn't Vera-Ellen be down somewhere near the end, rather than where she is? Poor Fernando Lamas and Arlene Dahl bring up the rear, the alphabet be hanged, but they'd just gotten married and probably couldn't have cared less.

    Daniel

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  2. Unknown7:42 PM

    Thanks, John!

    I should point out that while in New York doing pre-production, Wilder told Variety on August 5, 1953 that SABRINA FAIR would be composed for 2.1, the same ratio that Curtiz was planning for WHITE CHRISTMAS.

    At the time, Paramount was looking to change their 1.66:1 house ratio and these were two important productions to initiate that expanded widescreen image.

    By the time cameras rolled in New York on September 28, the ratio for SABRINA had been changed to 1.75:1.

    The recommended ratio for WHITE CHRISTMAS was 1.85:1.

    It will be great to see SABRINA as Wilder intended!

    Bob Furmanek
    www.3dfilmarchive.com

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  3. Scott MacGillivray11:35 AM

    Mr. Mercer questioned the billing. They listed Vera-Ellen alphabetically under "E," as though "Ellen" was her last name. The other stars billed out of order appear to have been sharing the microphone: I suspect Marie Wilson was introducing Marla English, Suzan Ball was appearing with RIchard Long, Lauren Bacall was together with Humphrey Bogart, and Rosemary Clooney was seen with Jose Ferrer. M-G-M must have sent Fernando Lamas and Arlene Dahl as a last-minute entry!

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