109, 930-935 Dietrich & von Sternberg in Hollywood

[NABOB OF NOWHERE]

Well now that you mention it...

[Michael Kerpan]

Why do I think ... Svengali....

[Peter McM]

does anyone know if there was anything between Dietrich and Von Sternberg or anything that contributed to them not working again ever?

Can't recall which documentary or book presents the definitive take on their relationship, but I thought it was pretty well known that von Sternberg's obsession w/ Marlene was one way, as she had very little interest in him.....or any man, but only assumed the role to further her career...and The Devil Is A Woman basically sums up their relationship.

The biography Von Sternberg, written by John Baxter, pub. 2010. Excellent book, very authoritative.

[HypnoHelioStaticStasis]

No idea where else to post this (mods, please feel free to move if you think of a better spot), but this is pretty cool:

"Shanghai Express" star Anna May Wong is getting her own commemorative quarter

[mteller]

What are the prospects for this set getting an upgrade?

[hearthesilence]

I was under the impression that original negatives for Paramount films of the ‘30s no longer exist, so the best sources are usually at least a couple of generations removed. It’s likely an upgrade would be futile: the film grain of the physical element might be sharper and better resolved, but the actual image capture (the information burned into the film) won’t look better.

[The Fanciful Norwegian]

The notes included with the set break it down like this:

• Morocco - 2K from fine-grain safety print
• Dishonored - 4K from "35mm prints" held by UCLA (apparently nitrate prints, per other sources)
• Shanghai Express - 4K from dupe negative and a composite fine-grain print
• Blonde Venus - same as Dishonored
• The Scarlet Empress - same as Dishonored
• The Devil Is a Woman - 4K from safety dupe negative

"Fine-grain print" and "dupe negative" don't tell us much without further specifying the source—ideally it would be the camera negative or a master positive, but it could just as well be a release print if that's the best available source. It's a very safe bet the Shanghai Express fine-grain wasn't struck from the camera negative, given the "composite" qualifier. I've also seen it claimed that the dupe negatives MCA made shortly after acquiring the pre-'48 Paramount library weren't done with the greatest of care, so even if those were struck directly from a master positive they wouldn't necessarily be up to the standards we tend to associate with such early-generation materials.