Release Date: April 6, 2004
In 2004, Warner Home Video released a newly restored Meet Me In St. Louis on DVD for the first time in this deluxe 2-disc set. According to their press release, it was their third film given their proprietary “UltraResolution” Process (explained in the press release below).
This two-disc set has many great features including:
Introduction by Liza Minnelli
Commentary by Garland hagiographer John Fricke with Margaret O’Brien, screenwriter Irving Brecher, songwriter Hugh Martin, and daughter of producer Arthur Freed, Barbara Freed-Saltzman
Meet Me in St. Louis: The Making of an American Classic (Narrated by Roddy McDowall)
Hollywood: The Dream Factory (Emmy-Award winning 1972 MGM-TV special, narrated by Dick Cavett– First time on home video)
Becoming Attractions: Judy Garland (1996 TCM special)
Meet Me in St. Louis (1966 TV pilot with Shelley Fabares and Celeste Holm)
Bubbles (1930 Warner Bros. short featuring Judy Garland at age 7)
Skip To My Lou (Rare 1941 musical short with Meet Me in St. Louis composers Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane)
Audio Vault “Boys and Girls Like You and Me” outtake (reconstruction using still photographs)
Lux Radio Theater Broadcast from December 2, 1946
Check out The Judy Room Spotlight on Meet Me in St. Louis to learn all about the making of the film.
Check out The Judy Garland Online Discography Meet Me in St. Louis pages.
See the detailed press release about this and the other Judy Garland DVDs released on April 6, 2004 (four new-to-DVD releases plus this 2-disc special edition).
Check out the Blu-ray editions here:
From the Warner Home Video Press release (dated January 9, 2004, the DVDs were released on April 6, 2004):
THE GLORY OF GARLAND!
Highlighted by the 60th Anniversary of
MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS
Nominated for Four Academy Awards®
Two Disc Special Edition Remastered with “UltraResolution” Process and New Dolby Digital 5.1 Soundtrack
Featuring an All-New Introduction by Liza Minnelli
And Celebrated with Scores of Bonus Materials
Other Judy Garland Titles Available For the First Time on DVD Include:
FOR ME AND MY GAL
IN THE GOOD OLD SUMMERTIME
LOVE FINDS ANDY HARDY
ZIEGFELD GIRL
Burbank, CA., January 9, 2004
Five Hollywood classics starring the incomparable Judy Garland one of the most talented and beloved stars of the 20th-century will become available on DVD for the very first time on April 6 from Warner Home Video (WHV).
In celebration of its 60th Anniversary, the fan favorite Meet Me In St. Louis, nominated for four Academy Awards®, is the main attraction in this collection of wonderful titles. This Two Disc Special Edition is the third release to undergo Warner Bros. Pictures’ proprietary “Ultra Resolution” process, giving today’s viewers the most extraordinary presentation possible for this classic musical. Meet Me In St. Louis, directed by the great Vincente Minnelli (especially known for his unique use of Technicolor), has benefited greatly with an improved fully remastered picture derived from newlyrestored film elements. In addition, the release features a new digital audio track that has been remixed to Dolby Digital 5.1 from original multichannel pre production music source elements. The DVD contains the original mono track as well. Also featured is an all new introduction by Liza Minnelli, daughter of star Judy Garland and director Vincente Minnelli.
The four other Garland classics, all digitally remastered, include For Me And My Gal with Gene Kelly, In The Good Old Summertime with Van Johnson, Love Finds Andy Hardy with Mickey Rooney, and Ziegfeld Girl with Jimmy Stewart, Lana Turner, and Hedy Lamarr. All five titles are brimming with extra features such as extensive commentaries, vintage shorts, “making of” documentaries, radio programs, original trailers, and more.
Meet Me In St. Louis Two Disc Special Edition is priced at $26.99 SRP, while the others are priced at $19.98 SRP.
The UltraResolution Process
The popular Meet Me In St. Louis is presented in Warner Bros. Pictures’ dazzling “UltraResolution,” which allows today’s viewers to see parts of the images that were not visible previously and in sharper detail than conventional Technicolor release prints. Warner Bros. introduced this process with the release of Singin’ in the Rain in the fall of 2002 followed by The Adventures of Robin Hood this past summer. According to Rob Hummel, Warner Bros. Studios Senior Vice President of Technical Operations, “‘UltraResolution’ continues to be improved each time out and Meet Me In St. Louis is just spectacular. “More than seventy years after the introduction of Technicolor, Warner Bro. Studios is employing the “UltraResolution” process that begins with scanning the original Technicolor 3-strip black and white ‘records’ at extremely high (2k) resolution. The black and white records are then combined electronically to create the color images, which are also electronically re registered, steadied, and cleaned before the final DVDs are produced.
MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS (1944)
In a role that was one of her favorites, a 22-year-old Judy Garland headlines this warm turn-of-thecentury delight presented for the first time on DVD. Set in 1903, this captivating musical is a slice of Americana about the Smith family’s experiences during the year of the St. Louis World’s Fair. Directed by Vincente Minnelli (whom Garland married soon after filming, later becoming parents to daughter Liza), Judy Garland has perhaps never been more winning as she pines for “The Boy Next Door,” comforts sevenyearold Margaret O’Brien (awarded a special Oscar® as 1944’s outstanding child actress) with “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and whisks along to the clangclangclang of “The Trolley Song.”
Meet Me In St. Louis DVD extra content features include:
Disc One:
New Introduction by Liza Minnelli
New Commentary by Garland biographer John Fricke with Margaret O’Brien, screenwriter Irving Brecher, songwriter Hugh Martin, and daughter of producer Arthur Freed, Barbara Freed Saltzman
Music only track (without vocals)
Vincente Minnelli trailer gallery with trailers from eight of his most treasured films including Meet Me In St. Louis, Father of the Bride, An American in Paris, The Bad and the Beautiful, Brigadoon, Designing Woman, Gigi, and The Courtship of Eddie’s Father
Disc Two:
Meet Me in St. Louis: The Making of an American Classic (Narrated by Roddy McDowall) (included on 1994 Laserdisc set and VHS)
Hollywood: The Dream Factory (EmmyAward winning 1972 MGM TV special, narrated by Dick Cavett First time on home video)
Becoming Attractions: Judy Garland (1996 TCM special)
Meet Me in St. Louis (1966 TV pilot with Shelley Fabares and Celeste Holm)
Bubbles (1930 Warner Bros. short featuring Judy Garland at age 7)
Skip To My Lou (Rare 1941 musical short with Meet Me In St. Louis composers Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane)
Audio Vault: “Boys and Girls Like You and Me” outtake (reconstruction using still photographs)
Lux Radio Theater Broadcast from December 2, 1946
Stills Gallery
Directed by the legendary Busby Berkeley, For Me And My Gal features a trunkful of tunes in this story about a Vaudeville couple determined to play The Palace in New York. Gene Kelly made his film debut and teamed with Judy Garland for the first time in this romantic tale that bucks tough times and World War I on the way to show biz success. The two stars make their way through a hit parade of nostalgic gems including the title track “For Me and My Gal,” “Smiles,” “After You’ve Gone,” “Ballin’ the Jack” and more than a dozen more.
For Me And My Gal DVD extra content features include:
New Commentary by Garland biographer John Fricke
La Fiesta de Santa Barbara (1935 MGM short featuring “The GarlandSisters”)
Every Sunday (1936 MGM short featuring Judy Garland and Deanna Durbin)
“For Me and My Gal” Deleted Finale (with stills montage)
Audio Vault:
“Three Cheers for the Yanks” outtake
“Lady Esther Screen Guild Theater Radio Show” from March 22, 1943
“Leo Is on the Air” Radio Promo
Theatrical Trailer
August 29, 2006: For Me And My Gal was released as part of the 5-DVD set “Leading Ladies Of The Studio Era”, re-packaged in the sturdier, and much preferred, “Amaray case” (clamshell) packaging.
This DVD was included in the seven-disc boxed set “The Judy Garland Signature Collection.”
Love Finds Andy Hardy is the fourth film in the series and finds Andy (Mickey Rooney) frantically trying to juggle two girlfriends (Ann Rutherford and Lana Turner) at the same time. It’s the new kid nextdoor (Judy Garland in the first of three fondly remembered Andy Hardy appearances) who helps Andy out of his jam and sings such delightful songs as “In Between,” “It Never Rains But What It Pours” and “Meet the Beat of My Heart.”
Love Finds Andy Hardy DVD extra content features include:
New Introduction by Garland biographer John Fricke and Ann Rutherford
“Leo Is on the Air” radio promo
“Andy Hardy” trailer gallery with trailers from this and two other films in the series including a “Hardy Family Christmas” promotional trailer and Life Begins for Andy Hardy
This DVD was included in the seven-disc boxed set “The Judy Garland Signature Collection.”
IN THE GOOD OLD SUMMERTIME (1949)
Starring Judy Garland and Van Johnson, this musical remake of The Shop Around the Corner, set in a Chicago music store, finds a salesgirl (Garland) corresponding through a dating service with a man (Johnson) who turns out to be the manager she detests.
In The Good Old Summertime DVD extra content features include:
New Introduction by Garland biographer John Fricke
Chicago Shorts:
Chicago the Beautiful (1948 MGM short)
Night Life in Chicago (1948 MGM short)
Theatrical trailers for this film, plus The Shop Around the Corner on which the film is based and You’ve Got Mail (the 1998 version with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan)
This DVD was included in the seven-disc boxed set “The Judy Garland Signature Collection.”
James Stewart and Judy Garland head an allstar cast including Hedy Lamarr, Lana Turner, Tony Martin, and Jackie Cooper in this 1941 musical drama about the professional and romantic problems of three Ziegfeld chorus girls.
Ziegfeld Girl DVD extra content features include:
New Introduction by Garland biographer John Fricke
A New Romance of Celluloid: We Must Have Music (1942 MGM short)
Melodies Old and New (1942 Our Gang short)
Audio Vault:
“Too Beautiful to Last” Outtake (audio only)
“We Must Have Music” Deleted Finale (audio only)
Theatrical Trailers of several Ziegfeld films including The Great Ziegfeld, Ziegfeld Girl, and Ziegfeld Follies
This DVD was included in the seven-disc boxed set “The Judy Garland Signature Collection.”
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With operations in 82 international territories Warner Home Video, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, commands the largest distribution infrastructure in the global video marketplace. Warner Home Video’s film library is the largest of any studio, offering top-quality new and vintage titles from the repertoires of Warner Bros. Pictures, Turner Entertainment, Castle Rock Entertainment, HBO Home Video, and New Line Home Entertainment.
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