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[Peter]

Well after waiting so long for the box set I was lucky enough to be around in England when it was released (I live in a country where there would be no way to obtain it) and was unhappy to find the following mistakes/problems when I got back. First of all the errors that most people have mentioned, the 'Changing Partners' listed as bieng from 'Shall we dance'...etc. This was a little bit annoying but the big problem for me seems to have been confined to only some people (or maybe just me). During the scene where Ginger goes walkies while under hypnosis she goes to the radio station for her broadcast. The scene where she tells people not to buy the toothpaste has been ruined. It has Fred running in edited over it and then repeats the scene where he runs in again. In other words, someone has recorded that scene over the top of ginger's toothpaste part. The repeated scene is in the correct part of the film. How can this have happened and how many people have had this problem? I can't take the DVD back because I'm not in England anymore. I was actually the first person to buy it from HMV in Bromley (border of London) as it opened. They opned the box of new dvd deliveries in front of me.

[Dominic McHugh]

Yes, I had that problem too, and thought it a great disappointment. After all, if the quality of the films is not better on DVD, what inducement is there to buy them (especially when there's no audio commentary?). I noticed the mistake, which is very jarring, at once, but having already complained about the cutting of the scene in Top Hat I thought there was no point in moaning further! I wasn't sure if the Carefree example was a pure mistake or another conscious edit?

Dominic

[Peter]

Well thanks for the replies Dominic and Mark, at least I now know I'm not the only unlucky one around (hope you spotted my deliberate spelling mistake in my first message)

[Ken Barnes]

My thanks - and apologies - to Peter,Mark and Dominic.

The fault in "Carefree" was due to an error in the video stream which went through the system unnoticed because of an unreasonable work schedule that was imposed upon us by a certain person in Universal.

In all my 30-plus years as an independent producer, I have never been in a situation involving so many delays that could have so easily been avoided. In a nutshell, delivery of the films to us was so late that we were shoe-horned into doing 12 weeks work in just 4 weeks. This meant working weekends and up to 17 hours a day in order to meet the rigidly immovable delivery deadline. At the last minute, my technicians at Phoenix ( who are the most professional people I've ever worked with ) were told, at the last minute, to re-author everything all over again to conform to the sub-menus ( which are of no interest to the consumer and are not a mandatory requirement in a commercial DVD ). This meant that there was no time left to check through every single scene in every film - which is what I normally do.

I have never before encountered a more chaotic situation. I am discussing the matter with my lawyer and there is clearly a case here for legal action against a certain department. But, in fact, it is not the department that is to blame. It is one particular person whose executive posture may well determine whether or not we ever work for Universal again. So what can we do about it? Time will tell.

However, the Fred and Ginger set is getting good reviews,doing good business and bringing a lot of pleasure to many people. In the last analysis, I suppose this is what counts. But, you may rest assured that I will NEVER AGAIN agree to work under such uunreasonable conditions.

Finally, I can only apologise once again for this error and hope that it doesn't completely ruin all the many other delights which the set has to offer.

Sincerely
Ken Barnes.

[Peter]

Well although I'll have to live with the small (but important part of Ginger's routine) error, you at least bothered to reply so thanks Ken. I'll probably get it again when the full 10 disc box set is released sometime in the probably distant future (I know all about the legal rubbish behind one or two of them). Meanwhile I look forward to the next box set which will include Flying Down To Rio, The Gay Divorcee (one of my favourites) and Swing Time, three great films of Fred & Ginger's. Hope the quality will be as good as the first set(minus the couple of prblems we all know about).

[Ken Barnes]

Thanks Peter. I'm still trying to iron out differences with Universal. The integrity of the situation has been sorely tested and I do hope things can be resolved. So watch this space.

Ken

[Celia Hall]

I was interested in the complaint about the error in "Carefree" so I looked at it to see what all the fuss was about. I must admit I hadn't noticed it when I looked at it the first time and neither had anyone in my family.

Now that I've seen it,I can't say it bothers me too much. In fact, I think it's so slight that it's hardly worth bothering about.

[Tom Bray]

This is a lot of fuss about such a minor flaw. When I think of the superb boxed set of Fred and Ginger with it's gorgeous moving menus ( so easy to use ), its informative production notes (really worth reading )and Fred's daughter,Ava's intros, I can excuse a 1-second blip.

OK, maybe it shouldn't have happened but let's be thankful that Ken Barnes was able to produce the set at all - given the circumstances.

I have to say that I didn't even notice it until it was pointed out - and I suspect few other people did. Certainly not the critics who reviewed the set and gave it full marks.

To Mr. Barnes and the people at Laureate, I say keep up the good work.

Tom Bray

[Jim Patterson]

I tend to agree with Celia Hall and Tom Bray, the slight glitch in "Carefree" is such a momentary thing that it's not worth the fuss. Look on the bright side and enjoy the superb picture quality, enjoy the film and indeed the entire Fred and Ginger box set. And just hope that it won't be too long before Ken Barnes and Laureate give us volume 2.

J.P.

[D.T]

The flaw in the video master of "Carefree" is so slight, I feel I cannot wholeheartedly support the criticism when I consider all the enjoyment that this box set has brought me. Let's have an end to this bickering and look forward to hopefully to volume 2.

D. Telford

[Ken Barnes]

My thanks to Celia Hall, Mark Fisk,Jim Patterson and D. Telford for taking such an interest in this matter.

When I think of the conditions under which all of the boxed sets were finally restored and authored, it's amazing that there were not more problems. The "Carefree" blooper is, I admit, quite minor but, as Mark Fisk rightly says, "It shouldn't have happened." Neither should the box notes have contained the errors that they did. But these latter problems were nothing to do with me. It was entirely the fault of the marketing department at Universal who simply hired incompetent writers to do the work of professionals.

I hope that things will be better in the future.

Ken