New Muppet DVDs in the UK

[anathema]

British Board of Film Classification has just passed most of the episodes of "TMS" with a "U" rating and it seems to be UNCUT!

Here's the details :

1. 00:25:05:05 THE MUPPET SHOW - [JULIET PROWSE]
2. 00:25:02:07 THE MUPPET SHOW - [CONNIE STEVENS]
3. 00:25:17:22 THE MUPPET SHOW - [JOEL GREY]
4. 00:24:56:10 THE MUPPET SHOW - [RUTH BUZZI]
5. 00:25:02:23 THE MUPPET SHOW - [RITA MORENO]
6. 00:25:05:06 THE MUPPET SHOW - [JIM NABORS]
7. 00:25:06:08 THE MUPPET SHOW - [Lena Horne]
8. 00:25:01:05 THE MUPPET SHOW - [Peter Ustinov]
9. 00:25:05:11 THE MUPPET SHOW - [Bruce Forsyth]
10. 00:25:06:19 THE MUPPET SHOW - [Sandy Duncan]
11. 00:25:01:15 THE MUPPET SHOW - [Candice Bergen]
12. 00:25:03:23 THE MUPPET SHOW - [Avery Schreiber]
13. 00:25:00:03 THE MUPPET SHOW - [Ben Vereen]
14. 00:24:59:12 THE MUPPET SHOW - [PHYLLIS DILLER]
15. 00:24:59:15 THE MUPPET SHOW - [VINCENT PRICE]
16. 00:25:00:10 THE MUPPET SHOW - [VALERIA HARPER]
17. 00:25:08:23 THE MUPPET SHOW - [TWIGGY]
18. 00:25:03:11 THE MUPPET SHOW - [KAYE BALLARD]
19. 00:25:03:02 THE MUPPET SHOW - [MUMMENSCHANZ]
20. 00:25:02:14 THE MUPPET SHOW - [ETHEL MERMAN]

Hmmm...all shows apart from Joel Grey should run to approximately 25'30". Joel Grey should run to about 26 minutes with the two Newsflashes, or 25'30" without.

I'd say we're looking at cuts.

The US DVD has the Mummenschanz ep running to exactly 25'30", for example.


In fact...nasty thought: if you replace each show's original opening titles with the later style it would result in the above running times...

 

[Muppetsdownunder]

I wonder if the cuts will be in the Australian release due in November. It might just be a copy of the UK release.

 

[Douglas Fir]

Hmmm...all shows apart from Joel Grey should run to approximately 25'30". Joel Grey should run to about 26 minutes with the two Newsflashes, or 25'30" without.

I'd say we're looking at cuts.

The US DVD has the Mummenschanz ep running to exactly 25'30", for example.


In fact...nasty thought: if you replace each show's original opening titles with the later style it would result in the above running times...

Don't forget that the US DVDs are in NTSC (which runs at a simulated 24 frames per second) whereas we will be getting ours in PAL (which runs at 25 frames per second).

So if a show was 25 minutes 30 seconds on an NTSC release it would be approximately 24 minutes 29 seconds long on a PAL release.

 

[anathema]

Don't forget that the US DVDs are in NTSC (which runs at a simulated 24 frames per second) whereas we will be getting ours in PAL (which runs at 25 frames per second).

So if a show was 25 minutes 30 seconds on an NTSC release it would be approximately 24 minutes 29 seconds long on a PAL release.

I knew someone would say this sooner or later!

Sorry dude, but you're wrong ;-) What you're thinking of applies solely to material that was acquired at 24fps, such as film. The Muppet Show was shot on videotape at 50 fields per second (25fps). There will be no difference in running time between the original PAL tapes and the NTSC conversions done for the US.

 

[Beauregard]

So, basicly, untill it is relaeased and someone watches it we shan't have a clue if it's cut or not...

Now, if it Isn't cut, I will be deathy mad since I went out and ordered te R1 version...

And I actually prefer the design of the R2 ones...*mutter mutter*

 

[Douglas Fir]

I knew someone would say this sooner or later!

Sorry dude, but you're wrong ;-) What you're thinking of applies solely to material that was acquired at 24fps, such as film. The Muppet Show was shot on videotape at 50 fields per second (25fps). There will be no difference in running time between the original PAL tapes and the NTSC conversions done for the US.

Oh - okay!

Well hopefully someone here will buy the set when it comes out and let us all know for certain what the situation is! I kinda got screwed on the purchase of my Region 1 set so at the moment I still don't actually have a copy - so I'm going to hold-off until I know for certain which is the better set to pick up!

 

[anathema]

All the running times quoted above are approximately 20 seconds shorter than they should be. 20 seconds is the difference in running time between the Season 1 titles and the Season 2 titles. At this point, my money's on the shows being uncut but with replacement opening titles.

By definition, a PAL release will be of superior quality to an NTSC one since the show was shot in PAL. Standards-conversions are invariably worse than the original format. By the same token, the copy of 'Sex & Violence' in the US set will be better than the PAL conversion, since this show was taped in NTSC.

 

[MuppetDanny]

Hmmm...all shows apart from Joel Grey should run to approximately 25'30". Joel Grey should run to about 26 minutes with the two Newsflashes, or 25'30" without.

I'd say we're looking at cuts.

The US DVD has the Mummenschanz ep running to exactly 25'30", for example.


In fact...nasty thought: if you replace each show's original opening titles with the later style it would result in the above running times...

Tell me this is not true

 

[MuppetDanny]

At this point, my money's on the shows being uncut but with replacement opening titles.

If that's the case, maybe I should get the German release