TCM will be showing shorts from the American Film Archives on the next three Sunday nights starting at 10:00 p.m.
The big news is that on Nov. 14 they are showing Gus Visser and his Singing Duck (1924), the best movie ever made. You can have your Citizen Kane and Intolerance and Sunrise—but give me a guy squeezing a duck’s ass to the tune of “Ma! He’s Makin’ Eyes At Me!”
Bliss.
Is it better than the dogs in the college outfits. I love those.
Sadly, I no longer get TCM.
Damn. Now I’m gonna have to set a reminder so I can watch this.
I can barely type, I’m laughing so hard.
Robin
Wait’ll you actually see it. I have never made it through the whole short w/o falling off the sofa in helpless hysterics.
(I had to preview very carefully to make sure I hadn’t typed “Gus Visser and his Singing Dick”)
Of course, you could just buy the DVD and own it while also contributing to the NFPF’s efforts.
That comes on Cinemax, late at night. Surprisingly, it’s still a comedy.
. . . I’ll be hard-pressed to afford a blank cassette to tape it onto . . .
A reminder for the three or four of you who get TCM and are interested in such things, tonight at 10:00 the shorts from the American Film Archives begins with:
Gretchen, the Greenhorn (1916)
The Hazards of Helen (1915)
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1910)
Admiral Cigarettes (1897)
Flash Cleaner- Cleans the Hands and Homes of Millions (1920)
Buy an Electric Refrigerator (1927)
Stenographer’s Friend (1910)
The Invaders (1912)
The Breath of a Nation (1919)
De-Light: Making an Electric Light Bulb (1920)
Greeting by George Bernard Shaw (1928)
The Suburbanite (1904)
Skyscraper Symphony (1928)
The Country Doctor (1909)
Dickson Experimental Sound Film (1895)
Annie Oakley (1894)
Sioux Buffalo Dance (1894)
Bucking Broncho (1894)
We will have to wait another week for the bliss that is (are?) Gus Visser and his Singing Duck.
Ah, but do the lyrics echo?
Could anybody possibly record this for me? I would pay you back with a fresh new blank videotape. I don’t want all the shorts, just “Gus Visser and His Singing Duck.” It really does sound like the greatest thing ever, and we don’t get TCM down here.
Problem is, the shorts run “from 10:00 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.,” and you pretty much have to record the whole thing, as some of them are 35 seconds long and others 35 minutes. There’s no telling when any individual short will appear.
My guess (based on what they did last time) is that these shorts will be aired in chronological order.
That being the case, however, is another story…
Anyone else watch last night? I made it till 11:00, then let the VCR take care of the rest. The 1910 Wizard of Oz was bizarre—can’t believe little Dorothy was played by Bebe Daniels!
Loved the “We All Smoke” Admiral Cigarettes ad, and the Stenographer’s Friend infomercial.
I watched till slightly after 9:00 (12:00 Eastern Standard Time).
The Wizard of Oz film was obviously a stage musical- cut down to 13 minutes- without sound.
I enjoyed the ads too.
Any comments on the oldest surviving sound film?
Except, not. The sound no longer exists and was re-created for this broadcast.
That’s strange, as I recall reading on the “Vitaphone Project” website that they discovered the cylinder that corresponded to the film. Are you sure?
In addition, this site also says that they recovered the original cylinder.
Are Eve and I the only people who saw this?
I taped it but haven’t had a chance to watch any of it. I’m not the huge silent film fan in my circle anyway so my enjoyment may well wind up being vicarious through my friend who will adore everything.
I am looking forward to the duck.
Well, color me impressed! They should have mentioned that in the intro, rather than saying original music was written for all the shorts.