The American Film Institute's "100 Years...100 Movies" list originated in 1998.
For those not aware of this list, it was a heavily voted upon caucus of what was considered to be the 100 greatest American films of the 20th Century.
Like all lists, the controversies and discussions began.
In 2007 the list was revised.
23 titles were dropped. 23 alternates appeared. And 77 survived.
And what of these 77 titles that both decades agreed upon?
Well, 75 of those 77 are now available on Blu Ray in America.
I wonder what it will take to see the release of those final two on Blu?
And, BTW, what are those remaining two; you might ask?
Well, both star Katherine Hepburn and Cary Grant;
with one possessing an Oscar winning performance for Best Actor by James Stewart.
And both titles were directed by Howard Hawks and George Cukor.
Yes, I am speaking of none other than "Bringing Up Baby" (1938) and"The Philadelphia Story" (1940).
Not only did both of these titles survive the AFI revision vote, but both had risen within their ranks, as well.
Indeed, of the 77 survivors, a whopping 38 titles had actually scored lower, a decade later.
But this, of course, would not be the case when dealing with such a collection of legendary and iconoclastic talents, as found within the these very two films.
As it was, "Bringing Up Baby" jumped from #97 to #88 and "The Philadelphia Story"went from #51 to #44.
I repeat, the American popularity and stature of both these films rose even higher a decade later.
Not bad for a pair of films that are now, respectively, 79 and 77 years old.
Jarring is their absence from our BD collections.
As it is, neither film should even be the topic of a Post in this year of 2017, as their attributes to Hollywood's history needs no introduction. Both films are indelible and remain firmly within the American consciousness. Therefore, I am submitting AFI's internationally known Top 100 films lists of 1998 and 2007 as additional evidence towards the importance of seeing "Bringing Up Baby" and "The Philadelphia Story" achieving their long-overdue releases.
Well, these are my arguments to the powers that be; but always - and once again - I shall ask,
"What does it take to have these two American classics released on a Blu Ray disc"?
For those not aware of this list, it was a heavily voted upon caucus of what was considered to be the 100 greatest American films of the 20th Century.
Like all lists, the controversies and discussions began.
In 2007 the list was revised.
23 titles were dropped. 23 alternates appeared. And 77 survived.
And what of these 77 titles that both decades agreed upon?
Well, 75 of those 77 are now available on Blu Ray in America.
I wonder what it will take to see the release of those final two on Blu?
And, BTW, what are those remaining two; you might ask?
Well, both star Katherine Hepburn and Cary Grant;
with one possessing an Oscar winning performance for Best Actor by James Stewart.
And both titles were directed by Howard Hawks and George Cukor.
Yes, I am speaking of none other than "Bringing Up Baby" (1938) and"The Philadelphia Story" (1940).
Not only did both of these titles survive the AFI revision vote, but both had risen within their ranks, as well.
Indeed, of the 77 survivors, a whopping 38 titles had actually scored lower, a decade later.
But this, of course, would not be the case when dealing with such a collection of legendary and iconoclastic talents, as found within the these very two films.
As it was, "Bringing Up Baby" jumped from #97 to #88 and "The Philadelphia Story"went from #51 to #44.
I repeat, the American popularity and stature of both these films rose even higher a decade later.
Not bad for a pair of films that are now, respectively, 79 and 77 years old.
Jarring is their absence from our BD collections.
As it is, neither film should even be the topic of a Post in this year of 2017, as their attributes to Hollywood's history needs no introduction. Both films are indelible and remain firmly within the American consciousness. Therefore, I am submitting AFI's internationally known Top 100 films lists of 1998 and 2007 as additional evidence towards the importance of seeing "Bringing Up Baby" and "The Philadelphia Story" achieving their long-overdue releases.
Well, these are my arguments to the powers that be; but always - and once again - I shall ask,
"What does it take to have these two American classics released on a Blu Ray disc"?
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