Billie: An elusive Blu-ray release

[Pumpkinhead]

Interesting that Blu-ray.com is now listing BILLIE in its movie section, with no release date or releasing company in sight. The MGM catalogue of UA films has been re-visited so often by a plethora of BD distributors the world over (multiple versions of JUDGMENT AT NUREMBERG, THE MIRACLE WORKER, BIRDMAN OF ALCATRAZ, etc.) that it's hard to believe this colorful little Patty Duke teen confection never made it to digital. It may have something to do with rights... Duke and Peter Lawford are listed as co-owners of the film, along with UA (and ultimately MGM). A tomboy coming-of-age pseudo musical with feminist flavoring, BILLIE features energetic dance numbers with choreography and robust on-screen performing by CHORUS LINE's Donna McKechnie. It was shot in full widescreen Panavision; DVD releases have either been pan-and-scan, or inherently defective (MGM's letterboxed edition), so a quality BD release would be nice.