courtesy of Kathleen Arnini, Brattleboro, VT
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Friday, January 23, 2009
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
THUNDERCATS the movie press information!
NO "MERRY" FOR THIS CHRISTMAS ICON
Arthur Rankin, Jr., creator of such holiday TV classics as RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER, FROSTY THE SNOWMAN, THE YEAR WITHOUT A SANTA CLAUS, THUNDERCATS and THE HOBBIT is dealing with a BURGERMEISTER MEISTERBURGER in the form of WARNER BROS. It seems that WARNER BROS. had underpaid RANKIN/BASS in various ways, including 19 years of impermissible $200,000 annual deductions from the pool of revenues from which Rankin's profit participation is paid.
"It was an accounting mistake on WARNER BROS., part, a mistake that the company's accountants readily admit, right down to the penny," said Rankin. "However, WARNER BROS. is now claiming I caught their error too late. So instead of doing the right thing and fairly compensating RANKIN/BASS for helping generate years of viewer enjoyment, not to mention an awful lot of revenue,WARNER BROS.is hiding behind the statute of limitations."
The dispute dates back to the 1980's, when WARNER BROS. acquired from RANKIN/BASS, the rights to several of the RANKIN/BASS Christmas classics and other animated properties, including the enormously popular 1980's animated television series THUNDERCATS and SILVERHAWKS. The recent WARNER BROS. home video DVD box set releases of THUNDERCATS sold over a million DVDs and they are getting ready to release SILVERHAWKS. Mr. Rankin even graciously appeared on Set #2 of THUNDERCATS in a documentary and did the same for the WARNER BROS. Deluxe DVD release of THE YEAR WITHOUT A SANTA CLAUS (Which is also available in a new box set).
"This is obviously not the right thing to do to a creator of such wonderful programming and the rest of his staff," says Rick Goldschmidt RANKIN/BASS Historian/Biographer. "As in all RANKIN/BASS specials, writer Romeo Muller would reform the villains. This villain needs to be reformed."
"As far as I am concerned," continues Rankin, "There is no question as to what is right and what is wrong. If you take something by mistake, you put it back. You don't get to keep it. We put those kinds of ethics into our shows for children. Maybe the folks at WARNER BROS. should watch a few of them."
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When the feature film gets released...you can bet this will be part of the press/promotion!
WAIT, I KNOW THIS! with Eric Chilton
I am doing a radio show Saturday January 31st at 6pm Central time. It is a show called WAIT, I KNOW THIS! with Eric Chilton. Check his blog http://www.waitiknowthis.blogspot.com/ Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Monday, January 19, 2009
Sunday, January 18, 2009
THE MAD, MAD, MAD COMEDIANS DVD (1970)
This was the HIGHEST RATED RANKIN/BASS TV Special and one of the RAREST! It aired before the ACADEMY AWARDS of 1970 and the cast was a who's who of living classic comedians...GROUCHO MARX, HENNY YOUNGMAN, GEORGE BURNS, FLIP WILSON, GEORGE E. JESSEL and many more! BRUCE STARK designed the cel animated special! We have it on DVD shipped from the master tape for $20 PAYPAL Rickgoldsc@aol.com
How about that snow?
We finally saw some sun today! The temp rose to 20 degrees in Chicago...a regular HEAT WAVE! It is snowing again right now?
GRAN TORINO
We saw GRAN TORINO over the weekend and all I can say is that the film was AMAZING! Not at all what you think it may be from the commercials! I thought DIRTY HARRY would always be my favorite CLINT film BUT....