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Rating:  - Want To Get It For Free? Doofus?
You Can Get The Complete Serial For Free At Prelinger Archive.....Or Film Archive.Com.............Movies Section. Feature Films....Type In Dick Tracy........And Wal-La.. All 15 Chapters..Download Mpeg2 Versions Only!.....It Took Me Two Days.While I Was Doing Other Things On Comp...Burn 8 On First DVD Then 7 On Other..And There Are 2 T.V Episodes From 1950 With Ralph Byrd That You Can Put On Disc 2.....So Don't Be Dickless!.....Go Get It For Nadda, G-Men!
Rating:  - BUYER BEWARE
MY BEEF IS NOT WITH THE SERIAL OR THE TRANSFER. I AM COMPLAINING ABOUT THE FACT THAT THIS IS THE SAME 1937 SERIAL PUT OUT BY MARENGO FILMS IN 2004 BEING OFFERED AS A NEW SERIAL FROM 1950. TO TOP IT OFF, AMAZON IS OFFERING BOTH OF THEM AS "BETTER TOGETHER." THE ONLY DIFFERENCE IS THIS NEW ONE HAS SPECIAL FEATURES NOT OFFERED ON THE MARENGO VERSION. DON'T MAKE THE MISTAKE OF BUYING THEM BOTH TOGETHER; THEY ARE THE SAME SERIAL FROM 1937.
Rating:  - "King of Serials on DVD...VCI Entertainment - Dick Tracy (1937)"
VCI Entertainment and Republic Pictures present "Dick Tracy" (1937) (Dolby digitally remastered), adapted from Chester Gould's famous comic strip with 15 Chapters of vintage serial episodes loaded with action sequences...story line involves a better than average serial....can Dick Tracy survive car and boat chases, airplane death cliffhanger scenes and zeppelin crashes with fisticuffs at every turn...who is the master criminal known as the "Lame One"..can Dick Tracy's brother Gordon be rescued after being kidnapped by the Spider's henchman, as Moloch is preparing a mind altering medical procedure...will the Spider and Moloch succeed with their evil deeds...why is it Tracy never gets his clothes dirty during these episodes...will Tracy and his group of followers take on bridge wrecking, illegal brain surgery, gold and jewelry stealing and plus the villains taking off with planes and automobiles...who's behind the secret messages on a phonograph record...where does the mad doctor fit in the plot...what's in store for our hero with the trench coat and turned up collar.....could it be double thrills, chills, mystery and suspense...hitting the mark with excitement...don't miss a single spine thrilling episode..return next week to this local theater for another episode of action and adventure that will keep you thrilled until the next chapter
Under director's Alan James and Ray Taylor, producer Nat Levine and associate producer J. Laurence Wickland, Chester Gould (comic strip), original story Morgan B Cox and George Morgan, screenplay by Barry Shipman and Winston Miller, music score by Alberto Colombo...the cast include Ralph Byrd (Dick Tracy), Kay Hughes (Gwen Andrews), Smiley Burnette (Mike McGurk), Lee Van Atta (Junior), Carleton Young (Gordon Tracy-before), Richard Beach (Gordon Tracy-after), John Picorri (Moloch), Fred Hamilton (Steve Lockwood), Francis X. Bushman (Chief Clive Anderson), Edwin Stanley (Walter Odette), Buddy Roosevelt (Whitney Burke-hencman), George DeNormand (Flynn-henchman), Alice Fleming (Orphange matron-was the Duchess in the Red Ryder series), Roy Barcroft (wing air crewman), Jack Cheatham (agent Floral Truck), Jack Ingram (reporter), I. Stanford Jolley (road side henchman), George Montgomery (extra), Wally West (J. Kraft-henchman), George DeNormand (stunt double for Ralph Byrd)......special behind the scenes note that actor Ralph Byrd starred in a number of comic strip films playing detective "Dick Tracy" during the '30s, '40s & '50s off and on, did some great serial work in "Dick Tracy's G-Men" (1939), "SOS Coast Guard" (1942) and "The Vigilante" (1947), was given character roles later in his career and after an auto accident returned to a TV series for another run at his "Dick Tracy" character....now back to the feature as Repubic Pictures is always good till the last drop and this serial is no exception...there is a great deal of entertainment here for the cliffhanger fans out there...all courtesy of VCI Entertainment, who in my humble opinion is the best there is in restoring early serials and features.
CHAPTER TITLES: (Disc One)
1. The Spider Strikes
2. The Bridge of Terror
3. The Fur Pirates
4. Death Rides the Sky
5. Brother Against Brother
6. Dangerous Waters
7. The Ghost Town Mystery
8. Battle in the Clouds
9. The Stratosphere Adventure
10.The Gold Ship
SPECIAL FEATURES & SPECS: (Disc One)
1. Commentary by Max Allan Collins (in depth reporting on Chester Gould, Dick Tracy and Ralph Byrd)
2. "Dick Tracy in B Flat" (special radio broadcast from 1945 featuring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, Dinah Shore & Jimmy Durante)
3. Photo Gallery (Stills & Lobby Cards from "Dick Tracy")
BIOS: (Disc One)
1. Ralph Byrd
Birth Date: 4/22/1909 - Dayton, Ohio
Died: 8/18/1952 - Tarzana, CA
2. Smiley Burnette (aka Lester Alvin Burnette)
Birth Date: 3/18/1911 - Summer, Illinois
Died: 2/16/1967 - Encino, CA
3. Chester Gould (creator of Dick Tracy)
Birth Date:11/20/1900 - Pawnee, Oklahoma
Died: 5/11/1985 - Woodstock, Illinois
4. Kay Hughes (aka Catherine Mary Rhoads)
Birth Date: 1/16/1914 - Los Angeles, CA
Died: 4/04/1998 - Palm Springs, CA
5. Ray Taylor
Birth Date: 12/01/1880 - Perham, Minnesota
Death Date: 2/15/1952 - Hollywood, CA
CHAPTER TITLES: (Disc Two)
11. Harbor Pursuit
12. The Trail of the Spider
13. The Fire Trap
14. The Devil in White
15. Brothers United
SPECIAL FEATURES: (Disc Two)
(Same as Disc One)
If you crave action, drama and plenty of adventure then this is the place for all of the above...check out another release from VCI Entertainment and Columbia Pictures present "Captain Video: Master of the Stratosphere" (1951) (digitally remastered), 15 Chapters.finally for the first time on video the really great Columbia Serial that broke the mold...we have everything a serial fan would want...the tinted sequences by Cinecolor and unique inventions that were unlike any other serial out there in the '50s...get out there as they're going fast, this is the one you've been waiting for.
Great job by VCI Entertainment for releasing "Dick Tracy" (1937), the digital transfere with as clean and clear print they could find from the 1937 archives...looking forward to more high quality releases from the vintage serial era of the '30s, '40s & '50s...order your copy now from Amazon or VCI Entertainment, stay tuned once again for top notch action mixed with deadly adventure from the "King of Serials" VCI...just the way we like 'em!
Total Time: 290 mins on 2 DVD's ~ VCI Entertainment 8273 ~ (10/09/2001)
Rating: - Print quality should be better
This DVD of Dick Tracy 1937 has a much better print than the VHS tape set that I bought years ago but it leaves a lot to be desired. I was expecting a 5 rating when it arrived but 3 is the best I could do. The commentary is interesting about the Tracy character but I wish there had been talk about how VCI came about to obtain this print etc. and why the quality could be better, but there was nothing. He also talks about the upcoming release of the other Tracy serials but they had better be of better print quality than this or I will just stick to my VHS set.
Rating: - alright
it was ok but it could been better but having six of them for that price is more than worth it.
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