“Popeye The Sailor: The 1940s Volume 1” on Blu-ray via Warner in December
The original 1940s “Popeye The Sailor” color cartoon theatrical shorts have been scanned in 4K for high definition release via “Popeye The Sailor: The 1940s Volume 1“ coming to Blu-ray Disc on December 11th via Warner Archive. The release will include a total of 14 color theatrical shorts spanning from 1943 to 1945. The shorts set to be included are as follows:
- Her Honor The Mare
- The Marry-Go-Round
- We’re On Our Way To Rio
- The Anvil Chorus Girl
- Spinach Packin’ Popeye
- Puppet Love
- Pitchin’ Woo At The Zoo
- Moving Aweigh
- She-Sick Sailors
- Pop-Pie A La Mode
- Tops In The Big Top
- Shape Ahoy
- For Better Or Nurse
- Mess Production
Tech specs for this release include 1080p video in the 1.37:1 aspect ratio with DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio sound. The video here comes from new 4K scans of the original nitrate technicolor film negatives. Here’s a bit more info on that (quoted from the press release):
“Popeye is one of the all-time great cartoon characters, but he hadn’t gotten a fair shake in the world of home entertainment until Warner released all of his black & white shorts,” said Leonard Maltin, animation historian, and author of Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons. “What came next? The first Technicolor Popeye cartoons were also the last ones made under the aegis of the Fleischer Brothers, Max and Dave. Animation aficionados should welcome the opportunity to see these long-forgotten cartoons in such pristine condition, taken from the original 35mm negatives.”
“This is the first time anyone has gone back to the master nitrate negatives to ensure a crisper picture and vivid colors – nor have these films ever sounded so good,” said respected animation historian and author Jerry Beck. “The animators at this time, during the war years, were allowed to push the Popeye character forward, creating particularly zany plot lines and funny situations beyond the classic Popeye/Bluto rivalry for Olive Oyl. I’m particularly tickled over the cartoon where Bluto becomes a pseudo-Superman (courtesy of a licensed tie-in with DC Comics) and another where Popeye and Bluto romance Olive as marionette puppets. This was the ‘Golden Age’ of animation – and these are particularly strong cartoons that have been long in demand by animation buffs.”
This upcoming Blu-ray release can already be pre-ordered over at Warner Archive and Amazon. Below after the break you can find the official announcement regarding this upcoming release with lots of further details.
