Scratch another one off my DVD wish list...

One relatively obscure series that I'd been hoping (but not
really expecting) to see on DVD is HBO's very first original
series: PHILIP MARLOWE, PRIVATE EYE, starring Powers Boothe
as Chandler's famous detective. HBO debuted this series --
produced in England by London Weekend Television -- in 1983,
adapting five of Chandler's short stories. A second season,
adapting six more shorts, was produced in Canada, and aired
in 1986.

It's been 20 years since I'd seen any of the first season
episodes, except for one I'd managed to scare up on a
pre-viewed VHS tape, and I never got a chance to see any
of the second season (I'd moved in the meantime, and my new
location didn't have cable until a few years later).

Anyway, I happened to be checking out the DVD section in a
local Borders, and there it was: a 3-disc boxed set of the
entire series, released by Goldhil Media (the same folks
putting out the DVDs of LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE). I had
not heard even a whisper of anyone planning to release this,
but sure enough, now that I know it's out, I found it easily
at Amazon and DVD Planet:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...v=glance&s=dvd

http://www.dvdplanet.com/product_lis...037&format=DVD

Now, the quality isn't great. It's not as bad as what comes
out of the usual Public Domain suspects, but there's definite
room for improvement. They're overcompressed -- needlessly,
at that, as they have four eps per DVD-9 -- and the picture
looks like it was transferred from a VHS master. The later,
Canadian-produced episodes fare a little better than the
earlier, British-produced ones.

But I'm so glad just to have these -- and to finally be able
to watch the Season 2 eps -- that I'm ignoring the flaws.
I'm just one happy frikkin' camper.

-- jayembee

jayembee

does anyone remember Danny Glover as Marlowe on Showtime's "Fallen Angels"?
That was a damn good show.

Vlvetmorning98