Search - Hidden Hollywood - Treasures from the 20th Century Fox Vaults on DVD

Don't pass this up!

Richard A Schauer | Kent,, WA USA | 11/23/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Anyone who enjoys old films should be tickled pink to find these bits trimmed from the final cut of 1930-1940 films are still in existence. 20th Century Fox, as most studios, threw gold into the garbage. But these survived somehow. Shirley Temple - that little bundle of talent - does a number with the great Jimmy Durante. It was cut because the studio decided Shirley doing a Durante impersonation did not fit her image. There is a lot of good stuff on this disc, cut for time because it is easy to cut a musical number or, as in Shirleys case, it does not fit the stars image. I thoroughly enjoyed this chance to see these scenes. I have to mention the Bert Lahr number: you have to see it to believe it. There is far too little of Bert Lahr on film and this is a chance to see him as a young Broadway style performer even if you can't figure out just what it is he is doing.If you like old movies or musicals this disc is for you."

...even more fun than the first Hidden Hollywood....

Richard A Schauer | 04/05/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"...some real gems...a thirteen minute sequence with W.C.Fields
and Margaret Dumont (she remains totally unflappable in the face
of Mr Field's shenanigans!)....Sonja Heine...who won medals in
THREE winter Olympics, starting when she was probably twelve..
and may well be the single most influential female skater of
the 20th century (the ice fairies in 'Fantasia' skate exactly
like Sonja!)--has some delightful unused sequences here..and
of course, our old friends Betty Grable and Alice Faye..and
Carmen Miranda, complete with an extension cord...this dvd packs
quite a bit of 'lost' entertainment into 90 minutes. If you
are a 'movie nut' you will love this...if you are not...go rent
Terminator II, please."

Pieces of the jigsaw

Douglas M | 02/22/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Darryl Zanuck, head of production at Fox, was famous for his editing skills. This DVD contains outtakes from many famous Fox films, trimmed sometimes for censorship or even political reasons or maybe simply to reduce the running time.

If you know the films, you can mentally piece the outtakes into the originals. Some of the numbers are pretty awful such as Bert Lahr's incomprehensible song. Others are memorable like Jimmy Durante's number with Shirley Temple and Alice Faye's "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows". It is also amusing to see the performers grimace and pout as the camera starts to roll. The DVD is a gold mine to the film buff and since the material has been taken from original negatives and restored, it is in great condition.

The DVD is partly documentary as narrated by Joan Collins. Whatever you might think of Collins as a performer, she has a beautiful English accent with perfect diction. Her delivery is music to the ears and the script is informative but succinct."

...Some treasures are more valuable than others....

Douglas M | 03/10/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"..but these treasures are quite delightful. AMC broadcast them
a few years back, and I am glad they are available on dvd. It is
fun (well, it is for dyed in the wool movie freaks such as myself)..to see things that feature favorite performers that
have not ever seen a movie screen. This has Alice Faye, Shirley
Temple, Betty Grable...and OTHERS...doing alternate takes,
sometimes completely cut numbers...a variety of things...all
give one a fresh view of how movies were made and a look at
some material that just never got used. These are very entertaining. One or two, of course, are good examples of why
they were never seen. But, in many cases, restoration has been
done and some interesting performances brought to light. I have
my copy...but dear friends at Fox...there is a seven minute
ballet missing from Betty Grable's "The Farmer Takes a Wife"...
perhaps you could show us that on the NEXT installment???"