Rhino Home Video's "The Monkees Deluxe Limited Edition Box Set" is the King Kong of video sets. The 21-volume collection features all 58 episodes of the Emmy Award--winning, 1966-68 NBC series "The Monkees," the group's rarely seen 1969 NBC special "33 Revolutions Per Monkee" and several of their Kellogg's commercials.
Encased in a mock television set, the limited edition also contains the original pilot, a 48-page color booklet filled with photos, trivia and interviews and an official Monkees wristwatch (only in the first 2,000 sets). The price is a hefty $400!"The Monkees," produced by Bob Rafelson ("Five Easy Pieces") and Bert Schneider ("Hearts and Minds"), was American TV's answer to the Beatles. The wacky comedy series starred Davy Jones, Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork as four struggling musicians.
Despite being tagged the "Pre-Fab Four" by critics and serious musicians, the Monkees amassed a dozen Top 40 hits. Though they didn't play any instruments on their first two albums, Ry Cooder and Neil Young were among the renowned musicians who did.
Monkee archivist Andrew Sandoval has been overseeing the Monkees catalog for Rhino for the past six years and produced the CD and cassette reissues of nine Monkees albums for Rhino. The video set took 18 months to complete.
"I noticed, being a viewer of the show, at times I would see different cuts of the show and musical segments," he says. "Essentially, there are up to three different versions for each episode."
Sandoval wanted to bring the show back to its original state. "We found the original 35 mm interpositives, which is what they used to make a print off of, in the vaults. We were missing three of the episodes in that format and had to dig around to put together something usable."
A real curio is the original pilot "Here Comes the Monkees," which was later re-edited and aired as the 10th episode.
"What we have included is an audience-testing print," Sandoval says. "It's not perfect, but basically it has a different opening and end title credits and sequences."
The songs also are performed by Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart. "When the show was sold, they added in the Monkees actually singing the songs."
Restoring "33 Revolutions Per Monkee" was Sandoval's biggest challenge. "It is in really poor shape. It has been circulating among the bootleg videotape collectors' scene for years and years. We had access to the original (videotape) master; however, there were two 1-inch masters of it. We had to use both of them to piece together something useful because there were glitches in the original video masters. We did our best with it. It looks better than anything that I have ever seen on it."
Sandoval believes there has been a re-evaluation of "The Monkees" because critics have discovered the series has a timeless appeal. "They were a unique combination of individuals. They had an amazing chemistry. They were four individuals who were fantastic together and the music was great. There was no denying that."
The box set will be available in stores and also can be ordered through Rhino Mail Order by calling 1-800-432-0020.
VIDEO QUESTION
Question: A tape I received in the mail arrived with its cassette cracked. The tape is important to me and can't be replaced, but now I'm afraid to play it. Can the cassette be fixed somehow?
Answer: Don't try to fix any cracked or damaged shell. Instead, you can have the tape reels removed and put inside another shell. The procedure is not complicated but it usually requires custom screwdrivers and a knowledge of how shells are assembled. Any VCR repair shop should be able to do the job quickly. - Andy Wickstrom (Knight-Ridder)
- Do you have a question you'd like answered? Send your queries to Andy Wickstrom, The Philadelphia Inquirer, P.O. Box 8263, Philadelphia, PA 19101.
NEW VIDEOS
DOUBLE, DOUBLE, TOIL AND TROUBLE/TO GRANDMOTHER'S HOUSE WE GO - Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen, "Full House's" double dose of perpetual perkiness, star in these two feature-length videos. In "Double, Double," the twins rescue their sweet aunt from their wicked auntie (both played by Cloris Leachman). In "To Grandmother's House We Go," the girls are kidnapped by a couple who say their are Santa's helpers. Of course, the twins escape just in time for Christmas. 1994, unrated, Warner, $12.95 each.
- Max McQueen
(Cox News Service)
A BOY AND HIS DOG - Don Johnson made his mark in cult-dom in this off-beat tale set in the post-nuclear holocaust year of 2024. As the title character of Harlan Ellison's novella, Johnson is a nomadic lad who finds food and women thanks to his smarter-than-average mutt. Stuntman L.Q. Jones directed this sci-fi favorite in and around Phoenix. 1974, First Run Films (1-800-229-8575), rated R, $29.95.
- Max McQueen
(Cox News Service)
THE CLIFFHANGER SERIALS - Republic Pictures has lowered prices on many of its video sets of '40s and '50s cliffhangers. That means for $20 you can watch two hours of back-to-back, bargain-basement action of the likes of "The Adventures of Captain Marvel," "G-Men Never Forget," "Panther Girl of the Kongo," "Zombies of the Stratosphere" and 44 other previously released titles. Four new-to-video serials top this re-release package. "Dangers of the Canadian Mounted" features Jim Bannon of "Red Ryder" fame in 12 episodes of crime-fighting north of the border. "Hawk of the Wilderness" stars Herman Brix as an Anglo who turns good-guy warrior after being raised by Indians. "King of the Carnival" has Harry Lauter and Fran Bennett fighting bad guys from the center of a three-ring circus. "Man with the Steel Whip" finds Richard Simmons (not that Richard Simmons) dressed in black and cracking a whip as "El Latigo," a masked rancher who looks out for the interest of Indians. Republic, $19.98 for each double cassette.
- Max McQueen
(Cox News Service)