Vitagraph Comedies Collection (Kino Classics)

[MifuneFan]

Kino Classics will be releasing a new 3-disc Vitagraph Comedies Collection on Blu-ray on April 30th. It hasn't been formally announced yet, but I'll add any additional details as they come in.

Vitagraph Comedies Blu-ray

Vitagraph Comedies Blu-ray

Extras:

• Interviews with curator Rob Stone, archivists Lynanne Schweighofer and George Willeman, and film historian Rob Farr
• Audio commentaries by film historian Anthony Slide

DISC ONE

• Vitagraph Comedies, Part One (2024, 13 min.) Video introduction featuring interviews with Rob Farr, Lynanne Schweighofer, Rob Stone, and George Willeman.
• The Disintegrated Convict (1907, 6 min.) Music by Andrew Earle Simpson.
• The Boy, the Bust, and the Bath (1907, 6 min.) Featuring Florence Lawrence. Music by Qingye Wu.
• Get Me a Step-Ladder (1908, 3 min.) Music by Dana Reason.
• The New Stenographer (1911, 12 min.) Featuring Maurice Costello, Florence Lawrence. Music by Ben Model.
• The Lovesick Maidens of Cuddleton (1912, 12 min.) Featuring Earle Williams, Edith Storey, John Bunny. Music by Andrew Earle Simpson.
• A Regiment of Two (1913, 28 min.) Featuring Sidney Drew. Music by Chris Rorrer and Daniel Mandrychenko.
• Jane’s Bashful Hero (1916, 15 min.) Featuring Edith Storey. Music by Teil Buck.
• The Egyptian Mummy (1913, 15 min.) Featuring Lee Beggs, Constance Talmadge, Billy Quirk. Music by Andrew Earle Simpson.
• Sweeney’s Christmas Bird (1914, 14 min.) Featuring Hughie Mack, Flora Finch. Music by Liz Magnes.
• A Case of Eugenics (1915, 11 min.) Featuring Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Drew. Music by Esin Aydingoz.
• Auntie’s Portrait (1915, 13 min.) Featuring Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Drew. Music by Chris Lock.
• Jane Was Worth It (1915, 28 min.) Featuring Edith Storey. Music by Ben Model.
• Mr. Jack Trifles (1916, 14 min.) Featuring Frank Daniels. Music by Don Ross.
• Captain Jinks’ Baby (1917, 12 min.) Featuring Frank Daniels. Music by Ivanna Cuesta Gonzalez.
• Captain Jinks’ Cure (1917, 12 min.) Featuring Frank Daniels. Music by Annette Johnson.
• Damsels and Dandies (1919, 15 min.) Featuring Earl Montgomery and Joe Rock. Music by Ben Model.

DISC TWO

• Vitagraph Comedies, Part Two (2024, 7 min.) Video introduction featuring Rob Farr, Lynanne Schweighofer, Rob Stone, and George Willeman.The Flat Dwellers: Or, The House of Too Much Trouble (1907, 6 min.) Music by Shane Prediville.
• The Haunted Rocker (1912, 8 min.) Featuring George Ober, Clara Kimball Young. Music by Peter Valsamis.
• Kitty and the Cowboys (1911, 11 min.) Featuring John Bunny. Music by Ben Model.
• In the Clutches of a Vapor Bath (1911, 7 min.) Featuring John Bunny. Music by Andrew Earle Simpson.
• The Deceivers (1915, 13 min.) Featuring Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Drew. Music by Liz Magnes.
• His Wife Knew About It (1916, 14 min.) Featuring Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Drew. Music by Linda Chase.
• A Horseshoe for Luck (1914, 13 min.) Featuring Sidney Drew. Music by Don Ross.
• The Professional Scapegoat (1914, 14 min.) Featuring Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Drew. Music by Violin Noir.
• Beautiful Thoughts (1915, 11 min.) Featuring Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Drew. Music by Dana Reason.
• Boobley’s Baby (1915, 14 min.) Featuring Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Drew. Music by Renée T. Coulombe.
• A Safe Investment (1915, 14 min.) Featuring Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Drew. Music by Ben Model.
• A Telegraphic Tangle (1916, 13 min.) Featuring Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Drew. Music by Violin Noir.
• Bullies and Bullets (1917, 13 min.) Featuring Hughie Mack, Patsy De Forest. Music by Dana Reason.
• Captain Jinks’ Evolution (1916, 12 min.) Featuring Frank Daniels. Music by Caterina Maddalena Barbieri.
• Captain Jinks, the Cobbler (1916, 12 min.) Featuring Frank Daniels. Music by Dylan Talisien.
• A Little Ouija Work (1918, 13 min.) Featuring Edward Earle, Agnes Ayres. Music by Ben Model.
• Mr. Jack Ducks the Alimony (1916, 13 min.) Featuring Frank Daniels. Music by Violin Noir.
• Mr. Jack, the Hash Magnate (1916, 12 min.) Featuring Frank Daniels. Music by Chris Rorrer and Daniel Mandrychenko.

DISC THREE

• Vitagraph Comedies, Part Three (2024, 4 min.) Video introduction featuring Rob Farr, Lynanne Schweighofer, Rob Stone, and George Willeman.Hindoos and Hazards (1918, 10 min.) Featuring Larry Semon. Music by Camila Cortina Bello.
• The Grocery Clerk (1919, 27 min.) Featuring Larry Semon. Music by José María Serralde Ruiz.
• The Head Waiter (1919, 19 min.) Featuring Larry Semon. Musi by Gonca Feride Varol.
• School Days (1920, 25 min.) Featuring Larry Semon. Music by Violin Noir.
• The Bell Hop (1921, 29 min.) Featuring Larry Semon. Music by Peter Valsamis.
• The Sawmill (1922, 26 min.) Featuring Larry Semon. Music by Karen Majewicz.

The history of screen comedy did not begin with Charlie Chaplin or Buster Keaton. Prior to their appearances on the American screen, an entire generation of comedians was already establishing (and breaking) the boundaries of this rapidly evolving genre. While working at the Vitagraph Studios, music hall artists such as John Bunny, Frank Roberts, and Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Drew retooled their brands of comedy into something uniquely cinematic, advancing the art form and setting the stage for the slapstick explosion. This three-disc collection, presented by the Library of Congress, showcases the bold innovation of these overlooked pioneers, including the ingenious trick film The Disintegrated Convict, the gender-bending irrereverence of Edith Storey, and the epic scale of Larry Semon’s The Sawmill. Vitagraph Comedies also provides precious glimpses of comedians (e.g. Flora Finch or the comedy duo Montgomery and Rock) who are virtually forgotten today, because so little of their work has survived.

[koberulz]

Just when I thought I'd finally collected all the early cinema releases I needed...

[leethompson]

Wow, where did they even find those...

[Shane Rollins]

Look up The Disintegrated Convict, it’s awesome. It makes this whole set worth it in my opinion.

[gkolb]

Originally Posted by leethompson

Wow, where did they even find those...

I think the Library of Congress logo gives away the source.

[CampArgyll]

Welp... here's another to add to the Warner Bros. section besides Madame DuBarry

[Deciazulado]

Vitagraph Comedies Blu-ray

[Eye Myth]

Target currently has this listed at $14.99 and it's included in the "Buy 1, Get 1 50% Off Sale"!

https://www.target.com/p/vitagraph-c.../-/A-91209059#

[MifuneFan]

Now up at Kino.

https://kinolorber.com/product/vitagraph-comedies

Here are the extras:

Product Extras :
Interviews with curator Rob Stone, archivists Lynanne Schweighofer and George Willeman, and film historian Rob Farr
Audio commentaries by film historian Anthony Slide

[WaverBoy]

A list of titles included would be nice…

[crackedknee]

$14.99 for preorder on Amazon? That seems like it must be a price mistake, but I'm very tempted to order it.

https://www.amazon.com/Vitagraph-Comedies-Blu-ray/dp/B0CV624F47?tag=bluray-033-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER

[jshaide]

Absolutely ordered this at 14.99. Which is around what I'd expect an eventual Kino sale price to be.

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by crackedknee

$14.99 for preorder on Amazon? That seems like it must be a price mistake, but I'm very tempted to order it.

https://www.amazon.com/Vitagraph-Comedies-Blu-ray/dp/B0CV624F47?tag=bluray-033-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER

It is a price mistake. It's a Target PM (link is a few posts up). Target mistakenly listed several Kino titles at $14.99 a couple weeks back, including Nostalghia 4K

[d3nt0n]

Grabbed it at $15. If this is a price mistake, any chance amazon will still honor it?

[mclellandj]

Originally Posted by d3nt0n

Grabbed it at $15. If this is a price mistake, any chance amazon will still honor it?

Almost certain they will. The amount of people buying this — even when it’s underpriced — is a rounding error on a rounding error on a rounding error. I doubt Amazon will even notice.

[Piggles]

Not a big silent film buff but I've liked the few things I've seen on TCM every now and then and $15 is the only price I'd be willing to bite on for the fun of it so preordered.

Originally Posted by d3nt0n

Grabbed it at $15. If this is a price mistake, any chance amazon will still honor it?

Amazon has never reneged on a purchased price in my experience.

[bigshot]

Originally Posted by d3nt0n

Grabbed it at $15. If this is a price mistake, any chance amazon will still honor it?

In the past in a situation like this, they sent me a note saying the delivery of the title was delayed and they were going to cancel it if I didn't log in and click a button saying I still wanted it. I did that and the disc shipped a week later, only a few days late.

[filmlover22]

Originally Posted by jshaide

Absolutely ordered this at 14.99. Which is around what I'd expect an eventual Kino sale price to be.

I thought this was a $40 set. Kino sale prices are rarely less then 50%. I would expect this to be $20 when it is on sale... but who knows?

[Deadend45]

Before buying I want to know what the actual content is and I do not mean the annoying 'historians'.

[koberulz]

I, too, hate facts and expertise.