It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Restoration
The opinions expressed in this article are solely mine and do not necessarily represent the
opinions of Robert Harris, any particular studio, or the membership of Home Theater Forum.
A report by Ron Epstein
If one were to consider the greatest film in MGM's vast library, you might come up with titles
Released in 1963, the film became not only one of the longest comedies ever filmed (nearly 5 hours
Originally filmed with nearly 5 hours of continuous film and audio sequence (to represent real time)
In order to answer WHY this film above all others should be considered for restoration, we need to talk
For decades, the major studios had shelved their most valued possessions in makeshift vaults (many outdoors)
Then there is the horror story of one studio executive who felt that thousands of feet of the studio's
I took a piece of the film in my hand and lightly squeezed it. With minimal effort, the film crumbled
The sad situation is that this picture represents thousands of our greatest films that studios have neglected
Another sad fact to report is that restoration efforts are being held up because of simple studio politics.
Robert Harris sits behind a German piece of equipment known as a Kem. Similar to a Steenbeck and a
Here I stand (picture left) holding countless tins of 70 mm trims that are stacked throughout Mr. Harris's office.
Piecing back together one of the greatest films in UA's history is a painstaking process. Take a look at this
like Gone With The Wind and The Wizard of Oz. Unfortunately, MGM no longer owns
these titles as they have been acquired by Turner Broadcasting (Warner Brothers). A major portion
of the library owned by the "new" MGM is the original United Artists library of the 40s - 70s.
Of this library, one title clearly rises above the rest as being the greatest of them all. That
title is none other than Stanley Kramer's It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.
in its initial cut), but boasted the most impressive casts of Hollywood comedic legends ever
assembled: Sid Caeser, Milton Berle, Phil Silvers, Ethel Mermen, Jonathan Winters, Buddy Hackett,
Terry-Thomas, Dick Shawn, Mickey Rooney and Spencer Tracy. If that weren't enough, the film boasted
nearly a dozen additional cameos by Hollywood legends that included Don Knotts, Jerry Lewis, and even
The Three Stooges.
the film was trimmed to its initial running time of 195 minutes. This initial Cinerama "Roadshow" version
premiered to audiences in November, 1963.
A Mad Rush for Restoration
about the problems that plague most of Hollywood's greatest classic films today.
and beneath and surrounding the studio's stages. One studio kept their treasures in a converted bowling
alley with minimal temperature and humidity control. Some studios had no air conditioning or control
whatsoever - a running joke being that they had full temperature and humidity control - that of the
temperature and humidity outside the walls. One facility was found to have piles of rusting film cans on
the floor with a tell-tale rust stain around them. Overhead was a hole in the roof through which water
was allowed to seep.
most prized technicolor musical product was taking up far too much of the studio's storage space, and
ordered all of the original film product to be dumped in the Pacific Ocean.
This is an original reel from It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World that is now untouchable. The film
has turned acidic, sporting the strongest and most foul vinegar-like odor I have ever smelled. In fact,
Robert Harris told me a story of how his contact lenses were singed by the fumes the film produced,
causing temporary retinal damage to his eye. (Harris makes the point that these film elements survived
outside of the current MGM's vaults, which should not be taken to task for their condition).
in my hand. It was a sad sight to see a piece of film history strewn all over the parking lot. People that
walked there amongst us had no idea of the piece of film history that was rotting in front of them.
over the years, and only just over the past decade have started to take measures to save.
With most studios being divided into separate Film and Home Video divisions, there's a constant battle over which
division's budget pays for the restoration, and who gets to recoup the profits. There are studios who look
at classic films as being too costly to restore, thinking they will never recoup its restoration value upon
its DVD release. I hear it CAN be done, and costs CAN be recouped. Furthermore, some of the studios are
restoring films without knowledge of how it should be done. Compare the original CBS/FOX laserdisc
"restoration" release of My Fair Lady to its newly restored DVD counterpart, and you can see that
little regard had been given to the laserdisc's film restoration. The same sort of restoration continues
today, resulting in transfers that will never look the way they did upon their initial release.
studio politics that have created roadblocks, year after year hundreds of original film elements are lost
forever, or when they are restored, are sometimes grossly mishandled. Some studios take savvy shortcuts in their
restorations by taking an original faded negative and making an inter positive from it. Some studios will
run a transfer from just the original faded negative. There is no protective element being made here.
Meet the man behind the madness
Movieola, this mixing console houses multiple sets of reels. In this case, the top set of reels have
threaded print, while the bottom reels contain the film's polyester magnetic sound track. This Kem
allows you to properly synchronize both the film and audio track for proper playback.
(supplied by MGM) that was slugged to length where pieces are missing or have been broken or torn over the years.
It's certainly not a restored print, but rather a dirty workprint that is representative of picture and track.
What you are seeing on the right, is Stanley Kramer's original workprint which is representative of the film's
original Cinerama release.
work print reel (picture right), one of many that Robert Harris has put together, and you can see how the film
has been carefully color coded in sections. The WHITE is a slug insert where the picture has been
damaged. The GREEN represents where there is picture in 70 mm. The RED represents portion of the
film that contains audio only -- no picture. A GOLD slug (not seen here) represents additional footage
never before seen anywhere. I'll talk to you about some of this footage shortly. The magic of DVD is
that you can take these AUDIO ONLY portions and either use a "branching" feature to listen to them
at their proper placement point in the film, or, re shoot the scenes to match the dialogue.
their voices where necessary and that some missing picture material could be re-shot with some elements added
digitally. For instance, there is an audio only sequence where Sylvester Marcus (Dick Shawn) receives a call
from Mama (Ethel Merman) and then proceeds to steal his girlfriend's car. This scene can be re-shot using actor
doubles. All that is necessary for the shot is a clean '63 Dodge convertible.