Greetings, everyone, here's the truth from me, Doug Denoff, owner of www.dickvandykeshow.com and son of Sam Denoff.

your posts have just been brought to my attention by Steve and after reading all of them, I want you to have the facts. Then maybe we can all use our power to get The William Morris Agency to undo the mess they've caused.

For those of you unfamiliar with the nonsense of Hollywood, The William Morris Agency represents Calvada Productions which of course owns the DVD Show. Calvada was formed by Carl Reiner, Dick Van Dyke, Sheldon Leonard and Danny Thomas.

The Agency also represented my dad and Bill Persky for many years.

I created the website in 1998 originally out of love for the joyous experience of growing up with the DVD show in my house. As you may know, Good Times entertainment released about 30 episodes on VHS in 1995 but this was pre-Internet and they didn't sell at all. I originally wanted to release the 1968 color CBS Special "Dick Van Dyke and the Other Woman" because 1) it's a wonderful special which never re-ran, and 2) I had a small part in it!

In 1999 I contacted WMA and they told me that a scumbag named Paul Brownstein had been given the right to try to sell the special on behalf of Calvada, but it was hard to sell because so many famous songs were used in it that the music royalties would make it unprofitable. for many months I chatted repeatedly with Paul about my idea and he kept telling me it was pointless.

I also came to know Dave Van Deusen at The Walnut Times. He's a good friend now and encouraged my ideas and projects.

In October 2000, I realized that October 3, 2001 would be the 40th anniversary of the show. I spoke with my Dad and we agreed that it made sense to release all 158 episodes on the anniversary on DVD which had never been done; hence www.dvdondvd.com !

I dicussed it with Mr. Brownstein who continually said it would be a very tough sale (now you KNOW he's an idiot). So I called WMA and arranged a meeting with the lead agent for Calvada. My Dad and I went in with a full presentation, research, and copies of many of your letters from the dvdondvd website. She agreed that the idea was wonderful. We proposed licensing the rights in exchange for a very favorable profit sharing with Calvada. They would put up zero money. I would pay for the manufacturing of the DVD's out of my own pocket. I had spoken with La-z-boy about manufacturing the ottoman for the special edition.

We began negotiating a contract. WMA suggested that we keep Brownstein on our team to handle the many administrative and royalty issues and he agreed to become a participant as a part of MY company. But he continued to downplay the entire idea - suggesting we'd only sell a few hundred complete sets.

We began researching additional material and I found bloopers and other material never before seen (although Mr. Reiner later asked that we not use bloopers because he wants the world to only see rob and laura in character - we would of course respect his wishes)

The final step was to get the blessing of Mr. Van Dyke's personal agent. Dad and I met with him, gave him the presentation.

Meanwhile, in March 2001, behind my back, Brownstein talked to Image Entertainment and got them to bid on buying the rights from Calvada. I was furious since he did not approach them on behalf of ME or what I thought was 'OUR' project. Paul claimed that Image was just an alternative for US to hire to do the actual manufacturing - not a competitor. By the way, if you visit image-entertainment's website, you'll see that they are hardly the right fit for the DVD show with all the soft-core junk they release.

Anyway, Dick's agent refused to make a decision for many months. Brownstein and I spoke several times a week and he constantly played as if he was on the team, and I constantly talked to Calvada's agent at WMA. She commisserated with me but said she could'nt get the blessing from Dick's Agent.

Then of course came 9-11 and everything went on hold for a while.

In mid-november, having already blown the 40th anniversary, my mother became very ill. Three days before she died on November 26, 2001, Brownstein came over to have lunch with me at the deli by Cedars Sinai Hospital in LA, to tell me that Dick's Agent had decided to make a deal with Image. He claimed to have nothing to do with it (LIAR!) and that he would not be financially involved, but that they had preserved my right to release the 'Ottoman Collection"

Of course I was furious but days later had to face the death of my mother (my dad's first wife).

Then we started to see press from Brownstein how HE was releasing the show on DVD. Then Mary Tyler Moore's wonderful retrospective show had amazing ratings and the world craved 'comfort TV' in the wake of 911. Now I was ready for a fight.

I called the WMA Agent in charge of Calvada and requested a meeeting. We finally met in August and I told her that both WMA and Brownstein had outright stolen the project from my father and me and that if they didn't come up with a solution, I'd take legal action. Of course this is contrary to my original intent to nurture and support the release of the show, but I was not going to stand by and see Brownstein make money off of my idea.

At the meeting WMA basically agreed that they had mis-handled the entire situation, that they had never told Dick Van Dyke OR Carl Reiner about our proposal (but my Father had) and proposed a solution which I found acceptable, but now THAT hasn't happened either. Brownstein has cooked up this ridiculous Time-Life deal and who knows what else.

I still intend to release the Ottoman Collector's edition, but unless I can get WMA to change their tune, it's going to have to wait until these other silly things take their course. I am going to California on Wednesday and plan to do everything I can to get this thing done the right way - and as originally promised.

Dontcha just love Hollywood?

Please feel free to email me at doug@dickvandykeshow.com. I hope you will support my original goals and look forward to bringing you the product as originally intended

I voted "YES" with you, Doug! Please keep up the good work, and I (along with David, aka dix) want to say I'm sorry for questioning the lack of updates on your site. I see you've had alot going on in your life, and want to apologize and offer my full support for your vision.

I hope others here will respond likewise!

B&W "let us know how the REAL DVDonDVD collection is coming - hopefully it won't be too long before we can all enjoy the best show ever made" fan

Me too. Keep up the good work Doug and good luck.

btw- B&W my name isn't David. The message from David Van Deusen I posted had his name on the bottom. Hence the confusion. But I appreciate the props. ...my real name is dan, but don't tell anyone.

Originally posted by dix
Me too. Keep up the good work Doug and good luck.

btw- B&W my name isn't David. The message from David Van Deusen I posted had his name on the bottom. Hence the confusion. But I appreciate the props. ...my real name is dan, but don't tell anyone.

Sorry about that dix. And don't worry, I won't tell anyone your name is Dan.

B&W "one thing's for sure Dan, if you ask me to keep a secret like that, Dan, I won't ever let it out, Dan, that your name is really Dan." fan

Doug,
We've many times over the months on Sitcoms Online pondered and debated the reasons for the delay. Thank you so much for taking the time to clear up the confusion on the release of TDVDS on DVD. I can only imagine and sympathize with your frustration. Sorry also for the misplacing of the blame for the delays.
Gang, my real name is Steve, I worship the ground Laura Petrie walks on, and you can tell everybody!

Originally posted by ddenoff

We began researching additional material and I found bloopers and other material never before seen (although Mr. Reiner later asked that we not use bloopers because he wants the world to only see rob and laura in character - we would of course respect his wishes)



Aww really? :( ::sniff:: Of course I'll respect Carl's wishes too, but I would *love* nothing more than to see DVD bloopers. They're such a rare, priceless inside glimpse to the actors who portrayed these wonderful characters and to see how they interact with each other behind the scenes. It's so interesting to me to see how the actors really are, if even for a couple seconds, because no matter if they're at awards shows or doing interviews or whatnot in 'real life', they're still putting up a bit of a front and not being themselves completely; not to mention that there aren't really any interviews with the cast from that time period so you never get to really see them as people when they were actually doing the show.

Please Carl? ::looks at him with big puppy dog eyes and a quivering lip:: ;)

Yes! I'm sorry for the trouble you've been having, but I would really love to see The Dick Van Dyke Show on DVD.

Just a reminder for those that might possibly be out of the loop on what we are discussing as it concerns the upcoming release by Time/Life.

B&W "still awaiting word back from Doug as to the progress of the ottoman collection" fan

I emailed Doug a few weeks back to see how his LA meeting went. I never heard back. I'd love to see Doug's Ottoman collection come together but I think the most important thing is just making sure the episodes come out on DVD regardless of who puts them out (sorry Doug).

Originally posted by dix
I emailed Doug a few weeks back to see how his LA meeting went. I never heard back. I'd love to see Doug's Ottoman collection come together but I think the most important thing is just making sure the episodes come out on DVD regardless of who puts them out (sorry Doug).

I understand your point, Dan. My main concern is how Time/Life is gonna handle this. I've gone on record as "warning" (if I can use that term) everyone here that they had better be prepared to pay serious money if past Time/Life merchandise is any measure.

I'm also concerned that a "Best of" series will fall far short of all our dreams. I feel confident that we all want to see the whole collection put out. Not just 40 random episodes.

I haven't heard back from Doug yet as to any timetable or progress on his set. Maybe he'll come on here, see our discussion, and reply.

I'm not saying I would NEVER buy the Time/Life stuff, I will - if it's a last resort and not over the top price-wise. But regardless, it's not the great set we had all hoped for.

B&W "Doug, the ball is in your court" fan

Perhaps what Doug lacks in communication skills (not returning email, no website up dates etc.) he's making up with behind the scenes deal-making that will bring us the preferred DVD Show box set soon, but I'm not holding my breath.

Originally posted by dix
Perhaps what Doug lacks in communication skills (not returning email, no website up dates etc.) he's making up with behind the scenes deal-making that will bring us the preferred DVD Show box set soon, but I'm not holding my breath.

Dan, as I said before, I understand your frustration and doubt. We have all been waiting for over a year now for this set! All I can say is that I have corresponded with Doug for the last couple of days and he seems to have a solid plan put into place. I do believe he has every intention of getting this set done in the near future, with the only holdup being contractual issues that the WMA apparently has caused.

As I've said before, I'm willing to wait a bit longer and see if Doug can follow thru with his ideas. He has promised to update his site more (I'd personally like to see a monthly or at least bi-monthly update) and push hard to get this done soon.

But I do understand your doubt. Hopefully, he can get this done by, say, mid 2003 at the latest. I have no idea if this is feasible, but I kinda hope it can happen by then. I'd hate to have to wait another year or more!

B&W "patience is a virtue" fan

Right on schedule. Here's the link to the no where near complete Dick Van Dyke show Time-Life collection. As predicted it's a bit of a rip-off.

http://www.timelife.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en/-/USD/DisplayProductInformation-Start;sid=CGIYmY3VI0kp-7PBlZJYlasQYFfdiZ_vtrU=?ProductSKU=19478&Origin=DVYXX&CategoryName=99&CollectionId=DVYXX

Have all that subscribe to this thread seen the DVD Show site update regarding the DVD DVD collection? Check it out. It's very exciting. The projected price IMO is a bit steep ($800!). I'm wondering how many here will buy it at that price ....i will. but i'm an addict.

I would pay that price. I think we paid more than that for the "Hogan's Heroes" videos from Columbia House a few years ago. We paid each month as the videos arrived over a 3 year period. This is my husband's favorite show and he announced the other day that he wants to re-purchase the entire collection on DVD! I told him that Dick Van Dyke comes first! I hope Doug Denoff can come through on this one! Lolac :wave:

here's my thoughts on the pricing.

It'll take 40 discs to cover 158 episodes.

TL will sell you ONE disc for $9.99 - the rest are $24.99
OR you can buy the whole package for $100 for the first 5 discs, but who knows what the future deal will be. And I don't think Time Life is planning to release all 158 episodes. If they did, it might take years to get all of them.

BUT, assuming 40 discs at $24.95, that's $998 without any Ottoman, specials, or other goodies. The Sopranos, Sex In The City, and Band Of Brothers were all about $100 a season. even discounted at Amazon.com to $69.95 a season, 5 seasons of TDVDS would be $350 (PLUS Shipping & Handling!) without the furniture.

So we think that aiming for a price of $799 including all the goodies and the furniture is a pretty good deal. Rest assured that we're going to make it the best deal possible and I AM listening to everyone's input.

Originally posted by ddenoff
here's my thoughts on the pricing.

It'll take 40 discs to cover 158 episodes.

TL will sell you ONE disc for $9.99 - the rest are $24.99
OR you can buy the whole package for $100 for the first 5 discs, but who knows what the future deal will be. And I don't think Time Life is planning to release all 158 episodes. If they did, it might take years to get all of them.

BUT, assuming 40 discs at $24.95, that's $998 without any Ottoman, specials, or other goodies. The Sopranos, Sex In The City, and Band Of Brothers were all about $100 a season. even discounted at Amazon.com to $69.95 a season, 5 seasons of TDVDS would be $350 (PLUS Shipping & Handling!) without the furniture.

So we think that aiming for a price of $799 including all the goodies and the furniture is a pretty good deal. Rest assured that we're going to make it the best deal possible and I AM listening to everyone's input.

Doug,

I think your price is "reasonable" simply because you aren't a HUGE Studio like Fox or Universal, and it surely will cost more for an individual or individuals to do this rather than a big company. So I can understand the price. To be honest, if this were Universal or Fox putting out the set, I'd say $799 is way too high.

Here's a thought. Would the collection price be lowered if someone didn't want the Ottoman (not me personally, I like the idea, this is a hypothetical question)? How much lower would the price be without it? Just a thought.

B&W "my biggest question is still 'WHEN?'" fan

Another question/suggestion Doug:

I purchased the MTM 1st Season DVD set from Amazon when it came out, and they fit 8 episodes on each disk.

At your calculation of 40 disks, that's only 4 episodes per disk, plus a little extra for added content (like specials). Couldn't you up the content per disk so that you wouldn't have to have 40 disks total? If you worked with the thought of getting 8 episodes on a disk you could get the whole thing done using only 20 to 22 disks. That would surely help bring the price down, right?

Just some things to consider.

B&W "if it could be done in half the disks, would that bring the price down by a few hundred dollars or not?" fan

Originally posted by ddenoff
...So we think that aiming for a price of $799 including all the goodies and the furniture is a pretty good deal. Rest assured that we're going to make it the best deal possible and I AM listening to everyone's input.

Wow, that is a lot of money. I knew that it would be expensive, but I really didn't think it would be that much. I know that you aren't a big company trying to do this, but that is still a lot of money.

I'm not sure about the rest of you, but I'm a huge DVD fan, and I'm not sure I could afford that much. I make a modest income, and I don't starve or anything, but that would be a lot of money for me to spend on entertainment, even if that's all I bought for the whole year.

I could see myself paying as much as $400-500 for this collection, but I don't think I could justify spending $800. I guess I'd also be curious if I could get it without the ottoman just so I could afford to get it at all. I know some of the biggest fans on this site are young and single like me, and we are the demographic that would probably not be able to afford this at this price.

With it running only $400-500, I could ask for money for my birthday from family and friends and get maybe half of the money, and then be able to afford the rest myself. But at $800, I don't know how I'd ever do it. It makes the $100 Time Life wants not look so bad, and even though I'd only get a few episodes, I'd probably have to go with them if these are my only two options.

Christina

Well, Christina,
We all understand, I'm sure. There'll undoubtedly be many people in your shoes. I'm not exactly a Gates or a Trump, myself.
I never thought about how much the ottoman might drive up the price, but if I'm not mistaken, this collection was/is planned to be sold as a package with the ottoman. If people are allowed to opt out of the ottoman, that could make the ottoman more expensive for those who want it, I believe.
Remember, you'll still have the option of downloading the individual episodes from the Internet (no price has been given). A choice you'll not be given through T/L. If you have a DVD burner, or know someone who does, you could download one at a time, and slowly build your collection at your own pace.
I know; "decisions, decisions".

Steve

a person should be able to have some choices. This is a direct quote from his site concerning the DVD on DVD set:

"You will be able to purchase one disk, a boxed season, or the whole collection. For serious collectors, we will offer a limited edition consisting of all the disks, special material, and some personally autographed items, all encased in a "flip-top" ottoman..."

It sounds to me like the original intent was to give choices. Perhaps that has changed and the Ottoman collection will be it. I don't know, but Doug could tell us.

B&W "I sympathize with you Christina. If I buy the Ottoman collection at that price, it will come at much sacrifice" fan

After following this thread for months it just dawned on me that we're talking about a real ottoman. I was thinking a cute little dvd-size ottoman, but this will be a full size piece of furniture, fit for a ranch style 50s split level suburban home, right? I live in a teeny apartment so the ottomanless option would be a better fit for me.

I realize Doug isn't a big corporation and therefore justifies a higher price tag but I wouldn't want him to price it out of the range of the average tdvds fan. I mean I wouldn't want to see the thing bomb because he could only sell it to a couple of dozen addicts like some of us.

dix,

I have given this some thought as well, and while I have gone on record as saying I would buy the set at the price Doug has shared with us, I want to say again it would be a HUGE SACRIFICE to do so. As someone else mentioned, I'm not a Gates or Trump or Jordon, so count me out of the "Well To Do" club.

If I were Doug, I would be concerned with that price tag and my ability to sell more than a few dozen sets. I could be way off base here. Perhaps Doug, his Dad, and some others have done marketing surveys and found that this will sell. But I'd be at least a little worried.

You are also right about the ottomans. They will be a big part of the price tag, and one that could substantially drop that price, IMHO. Of course, only Doug can tell us these things for sure. But I believe that's correct.

I still think to have a good shot at this thing selling well, the price will need to be dropped. Either that, or offer these DVD's in Seasonal Sets where folks can buy them at a slower rate and it not cost as much initially.

To be fair, Doug has said that he will take payments, which helps some. So he is willing to work with us.

B&W "my bottom line is still, and will continue to be, 'When Doug, when?'" fan

but again, buying all the discs from TL (which apparently are pretty lousy quality from the feedback i've just received), is going to be pretty expensive - over $900 if they keep the price at $24.99 per disc x 40 discs.

and we will certainly sell the discs without the furniture for those of you with limited square footage, or those lacking the 'split level ranch home' in New Rochelle.

don't worry - it is NOT my intention to price ourselves out of the market.

Anybody have any idea when these DVD's will be released? I am about to give up as it has been well over two years. If it isn't in the next two months I for one will be bying the TL DVD's!!

:confused:

Originally posted by ddenoff
here's my thoughts on the pricing.

It'll take 40 discs to cover 158 episodes.

TL will sell you ONE disc for $9.99 - the rest are $24.99
OR you can buy the whole package for $100 for the first 5 discs, but who knows what the future deal will be. And I don't think Time Life is planning to release all 158 episodes. If they did, it might take years to get all of them.

BUT, assuming 40 discs at $24.95, that's $998 without any Ottoman, specials, or other goodies. The Sopranos, Sex In The City, and Band Of Brothers were all about $100 a season. even discounted at Amazon.com to $69.95 a season, 5 seasons of TDVDS would be $350 (PLUS Shipping & Handling!) without the furniture.

So we think that aiming for a price of $799 including all the goodies and the furniture is a pretty good deal. Rest assured that we're going to make it the best deal possible and I AM listening to everyone's input.

Doug,

Please buy a calculator. $799 divided by 158 episodes is $5.06 per ep. VERY steep. WAAAY more than anyone else has charged for a TV series DVD release. Check it out: Mary Tyler Moore, Baretta, All in the Famil, X-Files, Friends(yuck!), etc. All these collections come out to between $1 and $2 per episode.

Your price is a friggin' joke. Even the Time/Life release comes out to $2.48 per episode. And the Time-Life quality of Dick Van Dyke VHS releases was top notch.

Good luck on your project. But you better cut your price in half on you'll wind up selling fewer sets than George W. Bush has IQ points.

JS

Originally posted by ddenoff
here's my thoughts on the pricing.

It'll take 40 discs to cover 158 episodes.

TL will sell you ONE disc for $9.99 - the rest are $24.99
OR you can buy the whole package for $100 for the first 5 discs, but who knows what the future deal will be. And I don't think Time Life is planning to release all 158 episodes. If they did, it might take years to get all of them.

BUT, assuming 40 discs at $24.95, that's $998 without any Ottoman, specials, or other goodies. The Sopranos, Sex In The City, and Band Of Brothers were all about $100 a season. even discounted at Amazon.com to $69.95 a season, 5 seasons of TDVDS would be $350 (PLUS Shipping & Handling!) without the furniture.

So we think that aiming for a price of $799 including all the goodies and the furniture is a pretty good deal. Rest assured that we're going to make it the best deal possible and I AM listening to everyone's input.

And one more thing, Dou. ALL of these other TV show releases have extras, lots and lots of extras. So stop playing us for chumps.

Let me clarify a few things:

1. the disc manufacturing is presently only being done by Image Entertainment under Mr. Brownstein's 'direction'. The discs that we will be assembling into the Ottoman Collection are THOSE discs, so we are at their mercy as to when they will finish. We can't release them to you until Image finishes making them. The contract that Brownstein signed with them reserves discs for me to purchase to make into the collection (it also said the TL release would come first). but given what i've seen of those discs i will NOT be using them (especially since they say 'produced by Paul Brownstein' and don't even mention me or my dad in the countless 'Thank You's"

2. Mr. B actually had the nerve to call me last week and sent me 'my free copy of the TL set". IT appears that they have NOT used the original film to make these, but rather the 1" Videotape Masters which TVLAND uses to air. That's why people have found the ends of certain end-credits cut off. If I ever regain control of this nonsense, we will abandon ALL of those tapes and do as promised, which is to digitally remaster from the original film.

3. I am meeting today with a very high-powered Entertainment Attorney to get this all resolved, since the William Morris Agency failed to return my calls this week.

And to MR. Sterren - you're a vulgar moron and I'm offended that you would be so hostile in a forum for one of the NICEST tv shows in history.

FIRST, the PROPOSED (yes it's just Proposed, not finalized - we ARE listening to constructive feedback) price of $799 WILL INCLUDE:

- the OTTOMAN (go price a La-Z-Boy ottoman at your local department store - $2-600 for the furniture alone),
- The entire collection of episodes (which you WILL be able to buy for LESS than $799 without the furniture)
- special goodies which will be VERY collectible and personal.

If you're too broke, stupid or angry to want what we're offering, don't buy it. Better yet, go work for Brownstein - you're meant for each other.

have a good weekend.

Doug,

Glad to hear from you. Don't sweat bad posts! Those of us in the "know" realize that Mr. B. has really screwed up the whole works. I for one appreciate your commitment to good quality film, and like you I want the BEST we can get.

Take care,

B&W "hope things get cleared up on the legal front soon" fan

Doug, hang in there. The true blue Dick Van Dyke Show fans are waiting for your collection. Don't listen to people whose only aim in life is to criticize what they don't know about. We are with you and I'm buying! Lolac

[abuse deleted]

DD,

First off, I don't even know Mr. Brownstein. But if he's an enemy of yours, he must be a good guy.

Second -- a vulgar moron? Better be careful, Doug. The wonderful moderator of sitcomsonline takes great offense at that sort of personal attack. And just to think -- all I did was get out a calculator and point out the obvious. The obvious being that your prices are WAY OUT OF LINE from the rest of the market. So instead of calling me names, disprove what I said. Show everyone in this group how your price would not be considered price gouging in any other market scenario.

For example, if I go into a Toyota dealership in, say, Cerritos(ugh) and the salesman says: "Hey, you're gonna love your new MR-2. And the price is only $55,000" -- when I know that every other Toyota dealer in SoCal sells the MR-2 for $25,000, what am I supposed to think?

And what am I supposed to think when the salesman says, in response to my pointing out the price differential: "Hey, but your MR-2 comes with an elephant."

And what I'm supposed to think when I say: "Are you joking, Mr. Salesman? If I wanted an elephant, I'd go to the San Diego Zoo" and the salesman says: "That's not very constructive, Mr. Vulgar Moron."

Of course, there are only two things to think: the salesman is trying to rip me off. Or, the salesman is the one who's a moron. (Or both.)

So Dougie, which is it? Rip-off or incompetence?

I hope your set comes out very soon, since I'm a big fan of the show. And I would buy it immediately -- at half the price. Pointing out the true market value of what you're selling -- sofa not included -- is about as constructive as one can get right now, considering the disks don't exist as of yet.

But your thin-skinned, near-hysterical response to me pointing out the market facts in the case, suggests that something is rotten in the state of Petrieland. In fact, you're showing your hindquarters. There is no deal in the works, is there?

JS

Originally posted by Lolac
Doug, hang in there. The true blue Dick Van Dyke Show fans are waiting for your collection. Don't listen to people whose only aim in life is to criticize what they don't know about. We are with you and I'm buying! Lolac

Lolac,

Cheers. But what king of response is this? I've been a DVD fan since I was 5 years old -- which is 30 years ago. I'm looking forward to a DVD release on DVD very much -- from wherever it comes: Denoff, Carl Reiner, Time/Life or Sadaam Hussein.

So I really think it's important to keep our eyes on the prize -- getting all the DVD episodes in pristine condition. And not focus on how or who gets it to us.

One thing I'll bet on: whomever brings it out will not charge $800 for it.

Regards,
John

Doug, you obviously don't spend all that much time on internet message boards or you would know that nearly every one of them has a "troll" like JS. It's best just to ignore them.

Please keep us posted on your progress.

thanks! LOL.

we had an outstanding meeting with a great attorney today. we will reconvene monday to decide the fate of William Morris, Brownstein, et. al. i think they will be bleeding from orifices they didn't know they had.

keep y'all posted.

Originally posted by dix
Doug, you obviously don't spend all that much time on internet message boards or you would know that nearly every one of them has a "troll" like JS. It's best just to ignore them.

Please keep us posted on your progress.

In the immortal words of Bugs Bunny -- "What a maroon!"

Take a look at my other posts around this website and see if I'm a troll. But what you are, Dix, is a friggin' clown. Someone who must live life only surrounded by people who "think" the way you do. And if they don't -- well, then they are a troll, or a vulgar moron, or a terrorist.

Instead of calling names, Dicks, why don't you try and refute my pricing facts?


......................................................................................



Uhhh, we're all still waiting.

And as for DD: hooray for you. You do you little dance to impress all the fanatics on this board who, sadly, would probably pay $8,000 for this set. But the thing is, Doug, one doesn't make price or marketing decisions based on fanaticism. Keep up the way you are and you'll sell your set to the 20 people who read this board, while everyone else will take a walk.

In other words: LOWER THE PRICE.

And here are some more words: NOBODY CARES ABOUT THE DAMN OTTOMAN.

On the other hand, if you could get us Laura Petrie's body the way it was 40 years ago, that would be worth $800! Heck, even double that!! :crazy:

I rest my case.

I think JS's point is somewhat valid, though it would have more impact if he hadn't launched it with "your price is a friggin' joke." And he was ignoring Doug's statement that the set would be available without the extras.

Certainly, the rest of the back-and-forth needs ignoring on both sides.

I don't think there's any question that the $799 price is only for the wealthier and most obsessive fans. DVD is my favorite show, but that's just not something I could afford right now.

Doug has made it clear, though, that the price includes some memorabilia (which isn't standard with other sets) and an ottoman (you can find nice ones for $150 - been pricing them for my wife lately, our baby is due today - and making us wait).

I'm sure the price of the episodes alone will come in around $150-$200. That's pretty much the standard for the boxed sets, in a per-episode cost.

Remember that Doug is taking a chance here. He's the guy who has to pay to manufacture these. He's the guy who has to ensure that no copyrights are violated (no small task - I've dealt with this myself in another arena).

What's discouraging is how poorly MTM season 1 sold. I believe part of that is the fact that it wasn't available in the full 7-season set. People want more instant gratification these days. The note inside the box said we'd have to wait until March for season 2.

Dumb, dumb marketing decision. People already indicated interest, and now you're telling them it'll be years before they can have the set. Since the reruns are still available on TVLand, there's less impetus for real fans of the show to buy the set.

I'm not even tempted to get the Time-Life DVD set. If I had to put my finger on exactly why, I'd say it has a lot to do with the popularity of collecting. Would people collect stamps from dealers who said the year 1970 is available now, but you'll have to wait six months for 1971 and we might not ever make 1972 available? People would just look for another dealer - hope there's one out there. And if there isn't, they just wouldn't collect stamps. TV boxed sets are a little like that - maybe more like that than the MTM people realize. They ruined a great opportunity there.

On Doug's end, it would be nice to have more regular updates on dvdondvd.com. Even this week's note about the lawyer visit isn't on that site. I worry a little about Doug's ego, too. I'm sorry, but I don't care that he and his dad aren't thanked in the Time-Life series. His dad is still in the credits (or most of the credits if some are cut off). All of us know that there wouldn't be a DVD without Sam Denoff. The fact that Doug shared this as his reason for not using the disks is cause for worry. Is Doug doing this out of love for the show?

I hope this works out, because I've been following dvdondvd.com pretty much since the start, and I'd really like to see it succeed. If it does, it would change how the studios market and create these boxed sets. I also hope Doug has someone who can step in and handle marketing. The dvdondvd.com site is just dreadful. Out of date news, promises that make no sense given that the rights are still unsecured, whining about the Brownstein mess which is nice to know, but rather unprofessional on a site that needs to be used to market the set. The first thing I'd do is find out if any of the stars would be willing to write an introduction for the site.

Anyhow, enough rambling. Thanks for reading. And best of luck to Doug in his battles.

Joe, yours has been the most level headed response to date. I agree with you on many fronts. I will buy the Doug Denoff version of DVD on dvd, because he has alot invested in it and I think he will produce a better product. I don't think his concerns have as much to do with ego as they do with perfectionism, which in this case, is a virtue. Someone who wants every detail to be accurate, including who gets the credit, is going to put out a good product. I am looking so forward to it's release. I agree with you about the DVD website. I check there frequently and get very exasperated that it hasn't been updated. I also agree with you about the marketing of the MTM season 1 and 2 sets. I bought season 1 and LOVE it, but feel frustrated that I can't get season 2 yet. They did the same thing with the M*A*S*H sets. They are up to season 3 now, but it has taken awhile to get there. Thanks for your thoughtful reply to what has become an emotionally charged situation. Lolac :)

the issue is not that I was not credited or thanked. it's:
1. the 'logo' at the end of each episode that says "Produced By Paul Brownstein". Carl, Danny, Sheldon and Dick have that honor
2. that paul lists himself as Executive Producer. that was the role of Doug and Sam Denoff with regard to the DVDONDVD project.

But what all that has done is dig a bigger hole for them.

sorry for not making more frequent posts on the site. I will do so beginning this weekend.

and BTW, you're right, the Ottoman set is for crazed, obsessed fans. But even then we're not going to rip them off.

Not everyone fits that category so our intention was and IS always to give you choices. Read our site. it's always said you can buy the collection, with or without the ottoman, one season, or an individual disc. ALWAYS. 'have it your way' doesn't just apply to cheeseburgers.

Just read in the LA Times yesterday that Band Of Brothers, af $119.95 (not cheap considering TL is charging $24.95 per disc) for 6 discs (10 episode, 2 hours each) sold over $70 million in retail sales. For war, death and blood.

The Simpsons has sold over $100 million. for (very funny, bright) animation.

so what do you think The Dick Van Dyke Show will do?

Dad and I met with lawyers last week. Dad wanted to speak to Carl first and Carl has agreed to call William Morris. one way or the other this will be resolved in short timeframe.

Good news for you and I. not so good for Brownstein and WMA.

have a good weekend all.

Thanks for the update, Doug. As always, you know you have the support of a number of us here!

I didn't realize all the "liberties" that Mr. B had taken. What gall!!!

B&W "thanks again for reminding folks about what your site has said from the beginning - different ways to get the set" fan

I can see where the credits issue would be upsetting. Definitely good evidence to use if you ever wind up in court over this. And something to avoid from a marketing perspective.

(thanks, Lolac, I hope you're right - I did have a similar experience once, and did ask the producer to correct an overzealous contractor)

I don't have any experience with video sales, and what you're doing is, I think, ground-breaking. As with any new project, marketing is the key. You'll need to stress what makes this special, since it's going to come at a price range that's uncomfortable for impulse buyers.

Thanks for responding and promising to keep your site fresh. Please let us know if you'd like any help with the site (I'm handy with html) or anything related to the project. We're behind you and would like to see this succeed.

i posted some news, links to the TVLAND Awards site, and the Theme Song lyrics.

i promise to be more dilligent about weekly updates!

doug

happy st. pat's day!

Doug, I'm happy to hear that things seem to be falling your way as far as the legal issues are concerned. The TV Land Awards Show really got my juices flowing to have The Dick Van Dyke Show on DVD. Thanks for the updates and please keep us posted on the progress. It makes the waiting a little easier! ;)
Lolac

How much longer do we have to wait for Dick Van Dyke on DVD?:crazy:

How much longer do we have to wait for Dick Van Dyke on DVD?

Skinny1, that is literally the question of the 21st century. How much longer do we have to wait? Lolac :mad:

Originally posted by skinny1
How much longer do we have to wait for Dick Van Dyke on DVD?:crazy:

I guess I can say that I do know when they are aiming for...but unfortunately I gave my word not to tell anyone. I have talked to Doug (on the phone) and let me just say that they will be well worth the wait. They are putting together some awesome stuff to include. I'm having a hard time waiting also, but they are coming...

Christina

Well, I haven't had the priviledge of talking with Doug (lucky you, Christina ;) ), but I'll bet on the following:

1) Doug has a basic target date set (if not a day or week, at least a month). :idea:


2) It isn't likely that this thing will sneak up on us, where all of a sudden Doug will post on his site and say, "the disks will be available tomorrow." I'd say he would know a firm date at least 4 or 5 months in advance (and I could be completely wrong on this too - it's just an educated guess). :typing:


3) I'd wager that we will need to be patient and wait until at least the fall before we think we will see anything. I doubt anything will come to us before say, September of this year (please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, Doug). :happyface

4) I do believe we will have something in our hands by or before Christmas. present:

5) If we don't have something by this Christmas, well... :faint:

6) If I'm wrong on anything I've writtne, then... :smash:


B&W "using plenty of smilies for this post" fan

B&W Fan,
I don't know how good you are at guessing, but that's the cutest post I've ever seen!

Steve

September? Christmas? sigh. I guess I've waited this long, I can wait til then. Christina, you have brightened my hope that it will be worth the wait. So wait on! :sleep2: Lolac