Africa Screams Blu-ray Trailer
Back in December, I posted a news item about a Kickstarter to restore the Abbott and Costello film Africa Screams and release it on Blu-ray. That Kickstarter was fully funded (and then some), and the Blu-ray is scheduled to be released on June 23rd. If you didn’t contribute to the Kickstarter, you can still order a copy, as the Blu-ray is being released through ClassicFlix.com.
Embedded above is a trailer for the upcoming release. Below is a synopsis and full list of the copious extras included on the disc, taken from the product page on ClassicFlix.com.
Synopsis
Africa Screams looks stunning in this new 4K restoration by 3-D Film Archive from original 35mm nitrate film elements!
During the 1940s, the comedy team of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were among Universal’s top moneymakers, and, by the end of the decade, were allowed to make one independent film per year. Hot off the success of Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, Bud and Lou teamed up with independent producer Edward Nassour to release Africa Screams—a hilarious jungle romp where the boys hightail it to the dark continent and encounter wild beasts, dangerous natives, and… an affectionate gorilla!
Department store clerks Buzz Johnson and Stanley Livington (Bud and Lou) are hired by treasure hunter Diana Emerson (Hillary Brooke, The Abbott and Costello Show) for an African expedition when it is believed Stanley has memorized a map that will lead her to a rare orangutan. It’s all a cover, of course, as Diana is really after a secret trove of diamonds and is counting on Stanley’s memory to guide her to the treasure.
Frequent Bud and Lou collaborator Charles Barton directs Africa Screams which features an array of supporting players: real-life big-game hunter Frank “Bring ‘em back alive” Buck, real-life circus owner/animal trainer Clyde Beatty, Shemp Howard (Three Stooges), Joe Besser (Shemp’s eventual Stooges replacement and also an A&C TV show regular), as well as heavyweight boxing brothers Buddy and Max Baer.
BONUS FEATURES:
- Audio commentary from noted author and Abbott and Costello historian Ron Palumbo
- The Rubdown sketch (restored Abbott and Costello comedy sketch from live television in 1953)
- Abbott and Costello radio show with Bela Lugosi (the complete recording session as transcribed on February 23, 1948 and the final broadcast master of May 5, 1948)
- Lou Costello filmed interview with Max Baer and Joe Louis on July 2, 1940 following Baer’s fight with Tony “Two Ton” Galento in Jersey City (this footage was taken nearly four months before the world premiere of Lou’s first feature film One Night in the Tropics)
- Restored Abbott and Costello 3-D comic book from October 1953. This photo gallery can be viewed in either discrete polarized Blu-ray 3-D for viewers with that capability or standard red/cyan anaglyphic 3-D which requires no special equipment and can be seen on any display or monitor
- One pair of replica Super-Sight 3-D glasses
- Selected outtakes/bloopers taken on set during production
- Photo gallery with original posters, lobby cards, pressbook ballyhoo and trade magazine/newspaper advertisements from both the 1949 and 1953 theatrical releases
- Photo gallery with production stills taken on the set during principal photography
- Clyde Beatty’s Animal Thrills short film released by Castle Films in November 1943
- Trailers (Two Cinecolor trailers for comparison as Africa Screams was originally reported to be shot in Cinecolor):
- 35mm nitrate Cinecolor trailer for El Paso, scanned in 4K resolution
- 35mm SuperCinecolor trailer for Bud and Lou’s first color feature Jack and the Beanstalk, scanned in 4K resolution
