Collector selling 16mm prints on Ebay

[thomas_meighan]

To answer why people pay hundreds of dollars for a film print when they can watch the same content for free, I absolutely agree with Jimmy Owen's comparison to record collecting. For many collectors, owning the *vintage artifact* is just as important as the content. Film collectors enjoy comparing the quality of prints that they own and/or having prized rarities. And for many, setting up the projector to show their collection to friends is just a lot more fun than watching the same thing on a computer.

To take an example much older than "Say When!", anyone with $18 can buy a CD containing Bert Williams' very rare 1901 Victor recordings. But when the original records themselves turn up on Ebay once in a blue moon, collectors with deep pockets are happy to pay figures in the high three digits and beyond. The same goes for Caruso's 1902 Milan records--they're all over Youtube, but when an original 78 is up for auction--especially if it's from an early stamper--watch out!

[TwoInchQuad]

I was just thinking about ol' waly not long ago-- I got into a fierce bidding war with him on eBay on more than one occasion for some GS prints... and often won, thankfully.  But he's got deep pockets, and if it wasn't for the fact that I had a couple of other guys as backup, he'd have an even larger number of prints deep in the vault.

I wondered if he was ever going to end up letting a few things go-- hope it's just to make room for more nice stuff, and not because he's fallen on hard times.

- Kevin

[TwoInchQuad]

I call "first one to post on the new Big Board!"

(Good to see that we made it back for the New Year!!)

- Kevin

[Ian Wallis]

What I find fascinating with the 16mm prints are the original sponsor tags....I always had wondered why the \"Bewitched\" theme seemed to come to an awkward stop..

That's because when the show went to daytime reruns on ABC in 1968, they created that opening using the first season music, and stripped all the sponsor tags out of it.  That's the version that's been used on syndicated reruns pretty well ever since, although there was a time in the mid-late '80s where the fifth season music was used on the Dick York color episodes instead.  In the mid-'70s you'd see other openings occasionally as well.

There were actually four different musical openings to Bewitched on its network run, plus a few other variations.  It's a shame we're prevented from seeing any of them.  Luckily some of them exist in the trade circuit.

[WarioBarker]

There are currently seven, including an episode of Dick Clark's early hosting effort The Object Is that I don't think I've seen before.

What, this (Joan Caulfield & Stubby Kaye; Nola vs. Leonard)? That one's been around collectors for a while now, and I got a copy several years ago -- it's the second-to-last episode, from March 26, 1964.