The Extras

Send us Fan Mail Award-winning author Jon Burlingame joins the podcast for an entertaining review of the best in TV music, as told in his new book, "MUSIC FOR PRIME TIME."   Jon recounts wonderful stories of the earliest TV series and how their theme songs and scores were developed.  Some of the classic shows we revisit are Peter Gunn, Rawhide, The Man From Uncle, The Twilight Zone, I Lo...

Send us Fan Mail George Feltenstein of the Warner Archive returns to announce PART 2 of the May  2023 Blu-ray releases.  Look for Part 1 in the archive at your favorite podcast provider, or select below: WA May Part 1 Release Announcement Warner Archive Store on Amazon Support the podcast by shopping with our Amazon Affiliate link Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purch...

Send us Fan Mail TCM Senior Director of Original Productions and Film Festival co-programmer Scott McGee joins the podcast to give us a preview of the 2023 TCM Classic Film Festival.  We review some of the special guests and highlights of the festival, including the inclusion of the WB100 category highlighting films from Warner Bros library. We also discuss the ongoing Warner Bros 100th Anniversar...

Send us Fan Mail The Warner Archive's George Feltenstein and Warner Bros archivist Jeff Briggs join the podcast to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of Warner Bros on April 4th, by reviewing many of the classic films released by the Warner Archive on DVD or Blu-ray.  We start with silent classics from 1924 and make our way through the Vitaphone Varieties, the Jazz Singer, and into the talkies. ...

Send us Fan Mail George Feltenstein of the Warner Archive announces two films in PART 1 of the May  2023 Blu-ray releases.  First up is the 1949 film noir BORDER INCIDENT, starring Ricardo Montalban and George Murphy, directed by Anthony Mann, and cinematography by John Alton.  Second is CLASH BY NIGHT, the 1952 film noir directed by Fritz Lang and starring Barbara Stanwyck, Paul Douglas, Robert R...

Send us Fan Mail We celebrate the 14th anniversary of the Warner Archive with a special REMIX episode piecing segments from two previous episodes into one coherent history of the Warner Archive.  Started on March 23, 2009, the Warner Archive has been an industry-leading boutique group within Warner Bros Home Entertainment.  George Feltenstein provides background on his work with Rhino Records and...

Send us Fan Mail George Feltenstein of the Warner Archive announces the April 2023 Blu-ray releases.    Safe in Hell is a 1931 American pre-Code thriller film directed by William A. Wellman (Public Enemy) and starring Dorothy Mackaill.  MacKaill gives a phenomenal performance as a woman of ill repute who’s wanted for the murder of a man under accidental circumstances.  It’s a horrifying and shocki...

Send us Fan Mail George Feltenstein and Jeff Briggs of Warner Bros join the podcast to discuss one of the most important films in the history of the studio.  The political thriller "Confessions of a NAZI SPY," (1939) was the first feature film from a major studio to take on the fascism of Hitler and the Nazi Party.  Based on real-life events, the film delves into a spy ring in New York t...

Send us Fan Mail George Feltenstein joins the podcast to discuss three new Warner Archive Blu-rays releasing on March 14th.  First up is the drama  FLAMINGO ROAD (1949), starring the Joan Crawford, Zachary Scott, Sydney Greenstreet. Crawford is an ex-carnival dancer who marries a local businessman to get revenge on a corrupt political boss.  The Blu-ray includes a nice batch of extras, which Georg...

Send us Fan Mail Author Alan K. Rode joins the podcast to discuss his new book BLOOD ON THE MOON, a detailed look at the making of the 1948 western.  Our discussion takes a deep dive into how this film is a  prime example of a noir western, which was a movement in westerns toward realism after World War II.  Alan provides background on star Robert Mitchum and why he was a perfect fit for this noir...

Send us Fan Mail George Feltenstein joins the podcast to discuss two new Warner Archive Blu-rays releasing on March 7th.  First up is the romantic classic CAMILLE (1936), starring the great Greta Garbo, a young Robert Taylor and directed by George Cukor. This beloved story is based on the book by Alexandre Dumas and tells the story of a young courtesan in mid-19th century Paris and the younger man...

Send us Fan Mail Actor, writer, and producer Dean Butler joins the podcast to discuss his years as Almanzo Wilder on the beloved classic TV series "Little House on the Prairie."  We discuss the phenomenal popularity of the show and how he was cast and brought onto the show in the sixth season.  Dean also discusses his relationship with star and executive producer Michael Landon and some...

Send us Fan Mail Hong Kong Cinema expert Jeff Briggs joins the podcast to discuss recent Blu-ray and 4K releases. We start with discussing the surprising Oscar nominations for Michelle Yeoh and the cast of "Everything, Everywhere, All at Once." Then we briefly review Jeff's personal experiences with Hong Kong Cinema and the release history on Laserdisc, DVD, and Blu-ray in the US. T...

Send us Fan Mail Matthew Field, the world's leading authority on the cult classic 1969 film THE ITALIAN JOB, joins the podcast for a behind-the-scenes look into the making of the film.  We start with a review of the cult status the film has achieved as one of the most popular films in the UK.  Matthew then takes us into the development of the film with writer Troy Kennedy Martin, producer Mic...

Send us Fan Mail In part 2 of our Warner Archive January release highlights, George Feltenstein reviews three films scheduled for Blu-ray release on January 24th.  We start off with the 1954 road comedy "The Long, Long Trailer" starring Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz and directed by Vincente Minelli. Next, we review "Goodbye, Mr. Chips" (1939), starring Robert Donat who won a best...

Send us Fan Mail Host Tim Millard takes a look back at 2022 and the terrific line-up of guests on the podcast.  He also provides an update on some of the most popular episodes and thanks the international fans.  Then he provides reviews of the 4K releases of films "Heat" (1995), "Saturday Night Fever" (1977), "Top Gun: Maverick" (2022), and the Korean Zombie horror fi...

Send us Fan Mail George Feltenstein of Warner Bros answers questions from fans of the Warner Archive and Warner Bros catalog.  Topics discussed include how long it takes for a planned restoration or remaster and Blu-ray release, whether there is any truth to the rumor of a potentially longer version of Batman Forever and Clint Eastwood films releasing on 4K,  more musicals, silent movies, and Clar...

Send us Fan Mail George Feltenstein takes a "look back" at some of the challenges and highlights of 2022 for the Warner Archive in this "Year in Review."  Then we discuss the first two Blu-ray releases of January 2023.  We start off with the 1928 MGM classic silent film "Our Dancing Daughters" starring Joan Crawford in a star-making role.  The music and dancing in thi...

Send us Fan Mail Extras producers Emily Summers and Jason Hillhouse join the podcast for a fun-filled discussion about some of their favorite Christmas movies of the 80s, 90s, and 2000s. The traditional favorites appear, but a few surprises make the list, like  "Strange Brew" (1983) and "Gremlins" (1984). We also review the recent 4K releases of "A Christmas Story" (1...

Send us Fan Mail Documentary filmmaker Daniel Griffith joins the podcast to discuss his extras on the IMPRINT Blu-ray release of "Directing Roland Joffe (1984-92)."  These four films were released in less than a decade and represent an amazingly creative output in a short amount of time.  The films are "The Killing Fields" (1984), "The Mission" (1986), "Fat Man a...

Send us Fan Mail Warner Bros George Feltenstein and horror and monster film historian Tom Weaver take us through the December 2022 Warner Archive Blu-ray releases.  We start with the 1958 sci-fi horror film "Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman" starring Allison Hayes, Yvette Vickers, and William Hudson.  Tom provides background on the film and the unfortunate tragic end to stars Hayes and Vickers...

Send us Fan Mail Actor Jim Beaver joins the podcast to commemorate the two-year anniversary of the finale of the hit TV series Supernatural.  We also discuss his work on the HBO series "Deadwood" and the current Prime Video series "The Boys" from creator Eric Kripke (also creator of Supernatural).  And we finish up our discussion with Jim's work with GUILLERMO DEL TORO on...

Send us Fan Mail Extras producers and friends of the podcast Alan Griswold and Constantine Nasr discuss their extras on some recent 4K releases. We start off the episode with filmmaker Constantine Nasr as he discusses his all-new documentary "To Kill a Mockingbird: All Points of View," which is a part of the "To Kill a Mockingbird" (1962) 60th Anniversary Limited Edition 4K rel...

Send us Fan Mail Warner Bros George Feltenstein and author Alan K. Rode lead us in a nostalgic discussion of the legacy of "Casablanca." Our discussion begins with a personal look at the impact this film has had on each of our guests over the years.  Then Alan K. Rode, author of "Michael Curtiz: A Life in Film" takes us on a review of the origins of the film, including the purc...

Send us Fan Mail 20 years after their initial release, former Warner Bros Entertainment Senior Vice President of Creative Content Paul Hemstreet takes us through the initial development and production of the home entertainment extras for the first two Harry Potter films. When Warner Bros acquired the film rights to the Harry Potter franchise it marked the historic rise of one of the most profitabl...