Why are the DVD's EDITED?? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

MrBruce · 05-29-2004, 08:08 PM

So - I was thrilled to find a set of DVD's with the first season of the Dick van Dyke show. But, it only took a moment to discover that these are shorter, much shorter, than original aired episodes. They look to be the same length as those aired on Nickelodeon / TV Land broadcasts.

I know because I was recording off air in the late 70's before stations began trimming to add commercials. I only bought the discs thinking that the quality would be much improved. Needless to say, I'd much rather watch 24:20 of the Petrie household even if the film jumps from time to time or shows a scratch or two. 'Course, it could be worse. Some of these video releases are time shifted so the pace is all wrong!

Anyone interested in swapping videos? I still have 8 or 9 missing scenes to find that might be floating around somewhere. I'd be interested to find a message board about uncut television shows in general if there is such an animal.

algebra74 · 05-29-2004, 09:54 PM

You know, MrBruce, I have been wondering the same thing. I have no actual proof that there are missing segments and/or scenes, but it has aroused my suspetions before. Most of the episodes on the DVDs run from 25:15-25:45, but there are occasional episodes here are there that run from 24:15-24:45. I have often wondered whether or not the shows were simply short, in general, or whether or not there actually is 45 seconds to one minute of missing footage. Ironically, these shorter episodes seem to be the ones where most of the songs and dance routines were done, leading me to believe that a song or two had to be cut from the DVDs for copyright purposes.

I would appreciate any reply to this message, or any additional information.

SawgrassSteve · 05-29-2004, 10:46 PM

Or could it be that in some cases the "promos" for Joy and Kent are not always shown with the episode, as they might've been on the original broadcast?
Just a guess.

Steve

ScottD · 05-30-2004, 12:33 AM

I've never seen the original broadcasts, but I've taped many episodes of TDVDS off of Nick At Nite in the early 90s and they run about 22 minutes. I've even compared a few by playing the DVDs and the videotapes at the same time to do a scene by scene comparison, and there's so much more on the DVDs that's missing from the broadcasts on Nick At Nite. I can't say for sure if the DVDs are edited, but there's no way that the broadcast versions on Nick At Nite and TVland are longer.

ScottD · 05-30-2004, 12:34 AM

I've never seen the original broadcasts, but I've taped many episodes of TDVDS off of Nick At Nite in the early 90s and they run about 22 minutes. I've even compared a few by playing the DVDs and the videotapes at the same time to do a scene by scene comparison, and there's so much more on the DVDs that are missing from the broadcasts on Nick At Nite. I can't say for sure if the DVDs are edited, but there's no way that the broadcast versions on Nick At Nite and TVland are longer.

Charlie Chan · 05-30-2004, 10:32 PM

I don't mean to sound rude, but I have no idea where MrBruce is coming from. Everything, and I mean, everything I've read and observed about these releases indicates that these DVD releases are complete and unedited. There are length discussions about this set on various DVD forums and not one person has suggested, much less offered proof, that these are edited episodes.

The running time of each episode on DVD is about 25 minutes which corresponds to complete episodes.

Believe me, if there were edited episodes on these sets, we'd have heard about it before now.

There was a reason that these sets are award winning and considered the gold standard in TV on DVD. To start spreading rumors of edited episodes without concrete proof at this late stage is utterly ridiculous.

Lolac · 05-30-2004, 10:38 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Charlie Chan
I don't mean to sound rude, but I have no idea where MrBruce is coming from. Everything, and I mean, everything I've read and observed about these releases indicates that these DVD releases are complete and unedited. There are length discussions about this set on various DVD forums and not one person has suggested, much less offered proof, that these are edited episodes.

The running time of each episode on DVD is about 25 minutes which corresponds to complete episodes.

Believe me, if there were edited episodes on these sets, we'd have heard about it before now.

There was a reason that these sets are award winning and considered the gold standard in TV on DVD. To start spreading rumors of edited episodes without concrete proof at this late stage is utterly ridiculous.

Amen. Lolac

Charlie Chan · 05-31-2004, 01:30 AM

Delete - duplicate post

MrBruce · 05-31-2004, 06:28 AM

Thanks to each of you who responded. Based on your comments, I went back to the seller. It would seem that I purchased a pirated DVD. I rented the "same" set last night from Blockbuster and it had beautiful dubs at full length. So the question at this point is how others can avoid the same type of scam?

ph1l · 07-11-2006, 04:44 AM

I've been catching up on my DVDS viewing and was up to mid season 4 and ironically (because of the thread) put in a season 3 disc by mistake. I watched "My Part-Time Wife" and noticed Richard Deacon in the credits but he wasn't in the show. Could this be a post production gaff or a case for edited episodes?

TV Knowledge Fan · 07-11-2006, 06:32 PM

..."THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW" was sponsored throughout its entire run by Procter & Gamble {Crest, Cheer, Mr. Clean, Joy, etc.}, and Lorillard Tobacco
{Kent} became the "alternate sponsor" beginning in season two (1962-'66).

Now, this may be hard to believe (especially for those who have to put up with almost six minutes of commercials and promos in a half-hour network comedy series these days), but the actual running time of each episode, minus commercials and sponsor "billboards", was about 25 and a half minutes. There were TWO sponsor "billboards" [usually after the "teaser" scene, and after the "integrated commercial" featuring Dick, Mary or both] of 10 seconds duration, three one minute commercials [two for "this week's sponsor", one for the "alternate"; sometimes, Lorillard would have a 30 second and one minute spot for Kent, with Dick and/or Mary plugging the brand in a final 30 second "integrated ad" before the "billboard", and perhaps there'd be an "Ed Sullivan" reminder immediately after the closing credits, with Ed telling you to watch for his Sunday night show, "which will be brought to you by Kent cigarettes"], and the five second "CBS eye" logo at the very end....immediately followed by a one minute "station break" before the next program on the CBS schedule.

From the network film prints of "THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW" I've personally seen, each episode has a running time of 29 minutes. Minus the commercials and "billboards".....25:30.

treky · 07-12-2006, 01:26 AM

For those who don't know what he means by "billboards", those are those little "spots" after the opening where an anouncer would say "The Dick Van Dyke show (or whatever the show was)...brought to you by...Cheer "(or Kent, or Joy, or someone) and they would show the product.

TV Knowledge Fan · 07-12-2006, 03:10 PM

...the word "billboard" is the professional term used for the sponsor I.D. during the show {i.e. "'THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW' is presented by Kent cigarettes...KENT- with the NEW 'micronite filter'...You treat your taste kindly with Kent!"- 1963}.

Oh, yes, when Procter & Gamble had a 30 second "integrated commerical" by Dick and/or Mary at the end of their shows, they would have a 30 second AND one minute spot for their products during the episode, with the "other minute" going to alternate sponsor Lorillard {Kent}. The ad time HAD to be exactly three minutes....today, with "participating sponsors" and network "promos", the ad time on a half-hour network comedy can stretch to almost SIX minutes!!!

octobereve · 07-15-2006, 05:58 PM

Heck, I remember when I was a kid, rushing like a nut to run out to the kitchen to get a snack or make a bathroom run in order to get back before the show started again. Nowadays the commercial are so long, I can go and leisurely make a snack and use the bathroom and the commercials are still running when I get back to the tv.

treky · 07-29-2006, 01:42 AM

....I know that there's at least 1 thing that's been edited from the DVD version of IT MAY LOOK LIKE A WALNUT. I remember seeing that episodeYEARS AGO on a local station in the 70s, when I first discovered the show (I watched it sometimes in the late 60s when CBS ran it during the day, but I didn't remember it much) and after the opening, the announcer said "WITH SPECIAL GUEST STAR TONIGHT...DANNY THOMAS" and they showed a picture of him from the scene where he walks in the office. That's NOT on the DVD.

now, noone tell me that scene wasn't in it, because I know it was! I have a good memory for those things.

05-29-2004, 08:08 PM	#1
MrBruce Member Forum Cub Join Date: May 29, 2004 Location: Crieve Hall TN Posts: 2	Why are the DVD's EDITED?? So - I was thrilled to find a set of DVD's with the first season of the Dick van Dyke show. But, it only took a moment to discover that these are shorter, much shorter, than original aired episodes. They look to be the same length as those aired on Nickelodeon / TV Land broadcasts. I know because I was recording off air in the late 70's before stations began trimming to add commercials. I only bought the discs thinking that the quality would be much improved. Needless to say, I'd much rather watch 24:20 of the Petrie household even if the film jumps from time to time or shows a scratch or two. 'Course, it could be worse. Some of these video releases are time shifted so the pace is all wrong! Anyone interested in swapping videos? I still have 8 or 9 missing scenes to find that might be floating around somewhere. I'd be interested to find a message board about uncut television shows in general if there is such an animal.

05-29-2004, 10:46 PM	#3
SawgrassSteve Loyal Worshipper Senior Member Join Date: Mar 04, 2002 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 1,423	Or could it be that in some cases the "promos" for Joy and Kent are not always shown with the episode, as they might've been on the original broadcast? Just a guess. Steve
	__________________ The Cult Of Laura

05-30-2004, 10:32 PM	#6
Charlie Chan Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Jan 19, 2004 Posts: 114	I don't mean to sound rude, but I have no idea where MrBruce is coming from. Everything, and I mean, everything I've read and observed about these releases indicates that these DVD releases are complete and unedited. There are length discussions about this set on various DVD forums and not one person has suggested, much less offered proof, that these are edited episodes. The running time of each episode on DVD is about 25 minutes which corresponds to complete episodes. Believe me, if there were edited episodes on these sets, we'd have heard about it before now. There was a reason that these sets are award winning and considered the gold standard in TV on DVD. To start spreading rumors of edited episodes without concrete proof at this late stage is utterly ridiculous.
	__________________ Thank You So Much

05-31-2004, 01:30 AM	#8
Charlie Chan Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Jan 19, 2004 Posts: 114	Delete - duplicate post
	Last edited by Charlie Chan; 05-31-2004 at 03:11 PM.

07-11-2006, 04:44 AM	#10
ph1l Member Senior Member Join Date: Apr 19, 2004 Posts: 1,362	I've been catching up on my DVDS viewing and was up to mid season 4 and ironically (because of the thread) put in a season 3 disc by mistake. I watched "My Part-Time Wife" and noticed Richard Deacon in the credits but he wasn't in the show. Could this be a post production gaff or a case for edited episodes?
	__________________ 60's TV forever

05-29-2004, 09:54 PM	#2
algebra74 Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Apr 14, 2004 Posts: 337	You know, MrBruce, I have been wondering the same thing. I have no actual proof that there are missing segments and/or scenes, but it has aroused my suspetions before. Most of the episodes on the DVDs run from 25:15-25:45, but there are occasional episodes here are there that run from 24:15-24:45. I have often wondered whether or not the shows were simply short, in general, or whether or not there actually is 45 seconds to one minute of missing footage. Ironically, these shorter episodes seem to be the ones where most of the songs and dance routines were done, leading me to believe that a song or two had to be cut from the DVDs for copyright purposes. I would appreciate any reply to this message, or any additional information.

05-30-2004, 12:33 AM	#4
ScottD Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Oct 22, 2003 Location: the Upper Peninsula of Michigan Posts: 71	I've never seen the original broadcasts, but I've taped many episodes of TDVDS off of Nick At Nite in the early 90s and they run about 22 minutes. I've even compared a few by playing the DVDs and the videotapes at the same time to do a scene by scene comparison, and there's so much more on the DVDs that's missing from the broadcasts on Nick At Nite. I can't say for sure if the DVDs are edited, but there's no way that the broadcast versions on Nick At Nite and TVland are longer.

05-30-2004, 12:34 AM	#5
ScottD Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Oct 22, 2003 Location: the Upper Peninsula of Michigan Posts: 71	I've never seen the original broadcasts, but I've taped many episodes of TDVDS off of Nick At Nite in the early 90s and they run about 22 minutes. I've even compared a few by playing the DVDs and the videotapes at the same time to do a scene by scene comparison, and there's so much more on the DVDs that are missing from the broadcasts on Nick At Nite. I can't say for sure if the DVDs are edited, but there's no way that the broadcast versions on Nick At Nite and TVland are longer.

05-31-2004, 06:28 AM	#9
MrBruce Member Forum Cub Join Date: May 29, 2004 Location: Crieve Hall TN Posts: 2	Thanks to each of you who responded. Based on your comments, I went back to the seller. It would seem that I purchased a pirated DVD. I rented the "same" set last night from Blockbuster and it had beautiful dubs at full length. So the question at this point is how others can avoid the same type of scam?

07-11-2006, 06:32 PM	#11
TV Knowledge Fan Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 29, 2006 Location: Long Branch, N.J. Posts: 2,577	For the record..... ..."THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW" was sponsored throughout its entire run by Procter & Gamble {Crest, Cheer, Mr. Clean, Joy, etc.}, and Lorillard Tobacco {Kent} became the "alternate sponsor" beginning in season two (1962-'66). Now, this may be hard to believe (especially for those who have to put up with almost six minutes of commercials and promos in a half-hour network comedy series these days), but the actual running time of each episode, minus commercials and sponsor "billboards", was about 25 and a half minutes. There were TWO sponsor "billboards" [usually after the "teaser" scene, and after the "integrated commercial" featuring Dick, Mary or both] of 10 seconds duration, three one minute commercials [two for "this week's sponsor", one for the "alternate"; sometimes, Lorillard would have a 30 second and one minute spot for Kent, with Dick and/or Mary plugging the brand in a final 30 second "integrated ad" before the "billboard", and perhaps there'd be an "Ed Sullivan" reminder immediately after the closing credits, with Ed telling you to watch for his Sunday night show, "which will be brought to you by Kent cigarettes"], and the five second "CBS eye" logo at the very end....immediately followed by a one minute "station break" before the next program on the CBS schedule. From the network film prints of "THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW" I've personally seen, each episode has a running time of 29 minutes. Minus the commercials and "billboards".....25:30.

07-12-2006, 01:26 AM	#12
treky star trek fan Eternal Member Forum Fanatic Join Date: Feb 25, 2002 Location: Conshohocken, pennsylvania Posts: 14,490	For those who don't know what he means by "billboards", those are those little "spots" after the opening where an anouncer would say "The Dick Van Dyke show (or whatever the show was)...brought to you by...Cheer "(or Kent, or Joy, or someone) and they would show the product.
	__________________ the Clampetts are in a fancy Beverly Hills jewelry store. Granny points to a tray of rubies. Granny: "How much fer one o' them red diamonds?" clerk: "Madam, those are rubies." Granny: "OK ask her kin we buy one offa her." clerk: " The ruby I am talking about is not a lady." Granny: "Lissen, how she got them diamonds is her business. I'm just sayin' ask her kin we buy one from her."

07-12-2006, 03:10 PM	#13
TV Knowledge Fan Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 29, 2006 Location: Long Branch, N.J. Posts: 2,577	That's absolutely correct, 'treky'.... ...the word "billboard" is the professional term used for the sponsor I.D. during the show {i.e. "'THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW' is presented by Kent cigarettes...KENT- with the NEW 'micronite filter'...You treat your taste kindly with Kent!"- 1963}. Oh, yes, when Procter & Gamble had a 30 second "integrated commerical" by Dick and/or Mary at the end of their shows, they would have a 30 second AND one minute spot for their products during the episode, with the "other minute" going to alternate sponsor Lorillard {Kent}. The ad time HAD to be exactly three minutes....today, with "participating sponsors" and network "promos", the ad time on a half-hour network comedy can stretch to almost SIX minutes!!!

07-15-2006, 05:58 PM	#14
octobereve Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Jul 24, 2004 Posts: 232	Heck, I remember when I was a kid, rushing like a nut to run out to the kitchen to get a snack or make a bathroom run in order to get back before the show started again. Nowadays the commercial are so long, I can go and leisurely make a snack and use the bathroom and the commercials are still running when I get back to the tv.

07-29-2006, 01:42 AM	#15
treky star trek fan Eternal Member Forum Fanatic Join Date: Feb 25, 2002 Location: Conshohocken, pennsylvania Posts: 14,490	BACK TO THE SUBJECT.... ....I know that there's at least 1 thing that's been edited from the DVD version of IT MAY LOOK LIKE A WALNUT. I remember seeing that episodeYEARS AGO on a local station in the 70s, when I first discovered the show (I watched it sometimes in the late 60s when CBS ran it during the day, but I didn't remember it much) and after the opening, the announcer said "WITH SPECIAL GUEST STAR TONIGHT...DANNY THOMAS" and they showed a picture of him from the scene where he walks in the office. That's NOT on the DVD. now, noone tell me that scene wasn't in it, because I know it was! I have a good memory for those things.