Another month has passed us by and with its end comes a collection update! Here’s what I added to the shelves in September.

DVD/Blu:

  • Box set: The Complete James Dean Collection
    You may remember from last month’s update that I inherited a VHS copy of Giant from my grandma. I learned from my mom soon after Grammy passed that she was a big fan of James Dean, and since I owned none of his films on DVD, I decided to buy this set and re-watch the films in her memory. The set includes the two-disc special editions of East of Eden, Rebel Without a Cause, and Giant.

    • East of Eden special features: Commentary, theatrical trailer, two documentaries, additional scenes, screen tests, wardrobe/costume/production tests, and footage from the New York premiere.
    • Rebel Without a Cause special features: Commentary, theatrical trailer, two documentaries, additional scenes, three Warner Bros. Presents segments, screen tests, and wardrobe tests.
    • Giant special features: Introduction by George Stevens Jr., commentary, a documentary about George Stevens, two additional documentaries about the film, New York premiere TV special, Hollywood premiere featurette, behind the scenes featurette, production notes, theatrical trailers, stills, document gallery, director filmography, and awards notes. Lots of good stuff to watch from this set! I’m looking forward to all of those special features!
  • Box set: TCM Greatest Classic Legends – Humphrey Bogart
    Includes They Drive By Night, Across the Pacific, Action in the North Atlantic, and Passage to Marseille. Managed to find this at Target for ten bucks — not too shabby a price for four films!

    • They Drive By Night special features: Documentary featurette (Divided Highway: The Story of They Drive by Night), musical short, theatrical trailer
    • Across the Pacific special features: Warner Night at the Movies 1942 – newsreel, short, cartoon, trailers, Hollywood Helps the Cause featurette and a studio blooper reel
    • Action in the North Atlantic special features: Warner Night at the Movies 1943 – newsreel, short, cartoon, trailers, Credit Where Credit is Due featurette, and a bonus radio show
    • Passage to Marseille special features: Warner Night at the Movies 1944 – newsrell, short, cartoon, trailers, The Free French featurette and a studio blooper reel
  • Cinderella (2015)
  • It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963)
    Another purchase in honor of Grammy. She introduced me to this film when I was young, and we watched it many times together. She also loved telling the story of how she was watching this film (at a second-run theater) just before my mom was born — and it made her laugh so hard she went into labor! The no-frills DVD that I picked up lacks special features, but I’m so excited to watch this film again. It’s been years since I’ve seen it, and I’m sure I’ll love it even more than I did when I was younger, now that I’m a huge fan of many of the classic stars that appear in it!
  • TV: The Mindy Project, Season 3
    Bless Hulu for saving this show! Special features include deleted scenes and a gag reel.

Books/Ephemera:

  • Book: The Astronaut Wives Club by Lily Koppel
    You may recognize this title from the recent limited TV series of the same name. I liked the show (and drooled over its costumes/set design), but didn’t love it — too many years were crammed into its short number of episodes. It would’ve worked better as a full series, with a slower portrayal of the passage of time, and more opportunity for the viewer to develop attachments to the characters. But it did spark my interest in the women who inspired the show, so I’m very excited to read this book!
  • Misc.: Cinderella (2015) limited edition lithograph
    Since I purchased Cinderella through the Disney Movie Club, I was able to get this lovely little photo as a free add-on.