Best of Walmart’s Dump Bin DVDs

Yes, when you haven’t got anything better to write, or you are avoiding other topics, what better than a top picks list?

Here then is what a quick rummage through the jam- packed DVD bin at the local Walmart turned up as particular bargains. By bargain I mean more viewing for your dollar, pound, kopec, whatever. Which boils down to those public domain DVD collections you see everywhere.

Public domain films are notorious for having poor picture and worse audio.  But they are usually dirt cheap, and are an inexpensive way to watch some oldies to see if you want to buy more expensive versions of the same films, or just to kill some time while watching something different. I don’t know about where you live, but here the days of old movies in the afternoons and late at night are gone, and oldie films and tv shows are now only available on specialized cable channels that often seem to run the same library over and over, and never have things on when you want to see them. Thus I recommend the bargain bins.

Sure, most of what you’ll find is mediocre, but every so often you have the joy of a sweet deal. Like our first collection: 

1. Alfred Hitchcock- The Legend Begins Walmart Amazon 

Includes:

Blackmail (UK-1929) – Anny Ondra/Charles Paton/Cyril Ritchard 
Champagne (silent-UK-1928 ) – Betty Balfour/Gordon Harker/Jean Bradin 
Easy Virtue (silent-UK-1928 ) – Isabel Jeans/Franklin Dyall/Ian Hunter 
The Farmer’s Wife (silent-UK-1928 ) – Jameson Thomas/Lillian Hall-Davis/Gordon Harker 
Jamaica Inn (UK-1939) – Charles Laughton/Maureen O’Hara/Robert Newton 
Juno and the Paycock (UK-1930) – Barry Fitzgerald/Maire O’Neill/Edward Chapman 
The Lady Vanishes (UK-1938 ) – Margaret Lockwood/Michael Redgrave/Paul Lukas/Dame May Whitty 
The Man Who Knew Too Much (UK-1934) – Leslie Banks/Edna Best/Peter Lorre 
The Manxman (silent-UK-1928 )- Carl Brisson/Malcolm Keen/Anny Ondra 
Number Seventeen (UK-1932) – Leon M. Lion/Anne Grey/John Stuart 
Rich and Strange (UK-1931) – Henry Kendall/Joan Barry/Percy Marmot 
The Ring (silent-UK-1927) – Carl Brisson/Lillian Hall-Davis/Ian Hunter 
Sabotage (UK-1936) – Sylvia Sidney/Oskar Homolka/Desmond Tester 
Secret Agent (UK-1936) – John Gielgud/Peter Lorre/Madeleine Carroll/Robert Young/Lilli Palmer 
The Skin Game (UK-1931) – C.V. France/Helen Haye/Edmund Gwenn 
The 39 Steps (UK-1935) – Robert Donat/Madeleine Carroll/Peggy Ashcroft 
Young and Innocent (UK-1937) – Nova Pilbeam/Derrick De Marney/Percy Marmot

ALSO– ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS: 
The Cheney Vase - Carolyn Jones Darren McGavin/George Macready/Ruta Lee 
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice - Diana Dors/Brandon De Wilde/Larry Kert

BONUS: 55 minutes of Hitchcock movie trailers

Hands down, the best value in the Value bins these days. Nine of these films are favorites of mine, and a number of them are not available in better prints than shown here, much to the dismay of Hitch’s fans around the world.  Black and white films made during Hitchcock’s early years in Britain, I usually prefer these films to the remakes and thematic reworkings of Hitchcock’s later years, which seem a little more bland. I also find these films more mature than movies today, for the characters in them are men and women plainly interested in men and women despite the 1930s propriety, and the hero(ine)s don’t often get out of problems by discovering they are natural born warriors and laying waste to rows of villains.   

It’s sad but true that the bonus trailers actually look better than the movies here. They are from Hitch’s later films. If you are a trailer geek, this bonus might make this collection worth buying for them alone.

2. John Wayne- 20 Movies Amazon Walmart

Includes: 

The American West Of John Ford (TV-1971-doc.) – John Ford/John Wayne/Henry Fonda/James Stewart/Andy Devine (cameo) 
Angel And The Badman (1947) – John Wayne/Gail Russell/Harry Carey 
Blue Steel (1934) – John Wayne/George ‘Gabby’ Hayes/Yakima Canutt 
The Dawn Rider (1935) – John Wayne/Marion Burns/Yakima Canutt (in support) 
The Desert Trail (1935) – John Wayne/Mary Kornman/Paul Fix 
Hell Town (”Born To The West”) (1937) – John Wayne/Marsha Hunt 
The Lawless Frontier (1934) – John Wayne/George “Gabby” Hayes 
The Lucky Texan (1934) – John Wayne/George “Gabby” Hayes 
The Man From Utah (1934) – John Wayne/George “Gabby” Hayes 
McLintock! (1963) – John Wayne/Maureen O’Hara/Stefanie Powers 
‘Neath The Arizona Skies (1934) – John Wayne/Sheila Terry/Yakima Canutt (in support) 
Paradise Canyon (1935) – John Wayne/Marion Burns/Yakima Canutt (in support) 
Rainbow Valley (1935) – John Wayne/Lucile Browne/George ‘Gabby’ Hayes 
Randy Rides Alone (1934) – John Wayne/George “Gabby” Hayes 
Riders Of Destiny (1933) – John Wayne/George “Gabby” Hayes 
Sagebrush Trail (1933) – John Wayne/Nancy Shubert/Yakima Canutt 
The Star Packer (1934) – John Wayne, George “Gabby” Hayes 
Texas Terror (1935) – John Wayne/George “Gabby” Hayes 
The Trail Beyond (1934) – John Wayne/Verna Hillie/Noah Beery/Noah Beery Jr. 
West Of The Divide (1934) – John Wayne/George “Gabby” Hayes 
Winds Of The Wasteland (1936) – John Wayne/Phyllis Cerf

Bonus: 80 minutes of trailers

Okay, there are only two really famous films in this set. The rest are pretty much three-reelers made between 1933-6 when John Wayne was learning to be John Wayne. A lot of our fathers and grandfathers grew up on these short films, shot on tiny budgets in the same locations in no time at all, and that shows. Still, these are a piece of Americana, a glimpse at the ideals of the 30s. And as the Western has been all but dead for decades, oldies are the only way to see the old standard movie form.

Once again, a large assortment of bonus trailers that almost make the set worth buying for them alone. 

 

3. Best of Bonanza: 34 episodes   Amazon

One of the things that killed the Western, besides the loss of American innocence (or perhaps fondness for innocence) in the 1960s was the fact that every TV show and its competitor was a Western for about thirty years. Doctor shows, detective shows, Westerns and comedies were the chief fare of American TV. Bonanza was one of the main Westerns, running for fourteen seasons and paving life-long tv careers for its stars and many of the guest stars. See what enthralled Americans for a decade and a half in this DVD set that includes 31 shows from 1960’s first and second seasons:

PROGRAM CONTENTS:
DISC ONE– 
The Gunmen (S.1, #19 – 1/23/60) – Ellen Corby/Dorothy Crehan/King Donovan 
The Fear Merchants (S.1, #20 – 1/30/60) – Philip Ahn/Gregg Barton/Alexander Campbell 
The Spanish Grant (S.1, #21 – 2/6/60) – Salvador Baguez/Holly Bane/Sebastian Cabot 
Blood on the Land (S.1, #22 – 2/13/60) – Ray Daly/Glenn Holtzman/Everett Sloane 
Desert Justice (S.1, #23 – 2/20/60) – Claude Akins/Tom Greenway/Ron Hayes 
The Stranger (S.1, #24 – 2/27/60) – Hal Baylor/Lloyd Nolan/Elizabeth York 
Escape to Ponderosa (S.1, #25 – 3/5/60) – Chris Alcaide/Dayton Lummis/Joe Maross 
The Avenger (S.1, #26 – 3/12/60) – Jean Allison/James Anderson/Vic Morrow

DISC TWO– 
San Francisco Holiday (S.1, #28 – 4/2/60) – Kathleen Crowley/Richard Deacon/Tor Johnson 
Bitter Water (S.1, #29 – 4/9/60) – Clarke Alexander/Merry Anders/Rhys Williams 
Feet of Clay (S.1, #30 – 4/16/60) – John Eldredge/Logan Field/Tom Greenway 
Dark Star (S.1, #31 – 4/23/60) – Arthur Batanides/Argentina Brunetti/Hugo Haas 
Death at Dawn (S.1, #32 – 4/30/60) – Paul Carr/Nancy Deale/Peter Leeds 
Showdown (S.2, #1 – 9/10/60) – Ben Cooper/Jack Lambert/Norman Leavitt 
The Mission (S.2, #2 – 9/17/60) – Robert Adler/Harry Carey Jr./John Dehner 
Badge Without Honor (S.2, #3 – 9/24/60) – Fred Beir/Dan Duryea/Wendell Holmes 
The Mill (S.2, #4 – 10/1/60) – Claude Akins/Dianne Foster/Harry Townes

DISC THREE– 
The Hopefuls (S.2, #5 – 10/8/60) – Patricia Donahue/Larry Gates/Paul Genge 
Denver McKee (S.2, #6 – 10/15/60) – Bob Barker/Stephen Cortleigh/Franchot Tone 
Day of Reckoning (S.2, #7 – 10/22/60) – Gail Bonney/Anthony Caruso/Ricardo Montalban 
The Abduction (S.2, #8 – 10/29/60) – Bob Hopkins/Barbara Lawrence/Robert ‘Big Buck’ Maffei 
Breed of Violence (S.2, #9 – 11/5/80) – Norman Alden/Val Avery/Hal Baylor 
The Last Viking (S.2, #10 – 11/12/60) – Neville Brand/Herbert Lytton/Ric Marlow 
The Trail Gang (S.2, #11 – 11/26/60) – Edgar Buchanan/Harry Antrim/Richard Davalos 
The Savage (S.2, #12 – 12/3/60) – Anna-Lisa/Maurice Jara/Victor Millan

DISC FOUR– 
The Last Trophy (S.1, #27 – 3/26/60) – Edward Ashley/Jimmy Carter/Hazel Court 
Silent Thunder (S.2, #13 – 12/10/60) – James Griffith/Albert Salmi/Stella Stevens 
The Ape (S.2, #14 – 12/17/60) – Leonard Nimoy/Cal Bolder/Rodolfo Hoyos Jr. 
The Blood Line (S.2, #15 – 12/31/60) – Lee Van Cleef/Thomas Brown Henry/Allan Lane 
The Courtship (S.2, #16 – 1/7/61) – Julie Adams/Paul Dubov/Lyle Talbot 
The Spitfire (S.2, #17 – 1/14/61) – Jack Elam/Claude Hall/Don C. Harvey

Bonus:

Alias Bill Hawks (WAGON TRAIN) (S.6, #34 – 5/15/63) – Jeannie Bal/Hal Baylor/Ed Nelson
The Dr. Denker Story (WAGON TRAIN) (S.5, #18 – 1/31/62) – Theodore Bikel
The Malachi Hobart Story (S.5, #17 – 1/24/62) (WAGON TRAIN) – Franchot Tone/Irene Ryan/Wally Brown

4. Adventures of Robin Hood: First Season Walmart Amazon

 If Americans have a hard time leaving Wyatt Earp alone (his life is pretty much the foundation of any Hollywood Western involving a lawman), the English have an equally hard time not producing TV series based on the legend of Robin Hood. This collection is from the 1955-1960 tv series that was also broadcast in America, and which I have vague memories of seeing in syndication as a child. Here are included 39 half hour episodes from the first season of this decidely more family oriented fare: 

The Coming of Robin Hood (9/26/55) – Susan Richards/Norman Macowan/Willoughby Gray
The Money Lender (10/3/55) – Bruce Seton/Leo McKern/Kenneth Edwards
Dead or Alive (10/10/55) – John Rutland/Agnes Bernelle
Friar Tuck (10/17/55) – Leslie Phillips/Douglas Wilmer/Faith Bailey
Maid Marian (10/24/55) – Marie Burke/Shaun Noble/David Edwards
A Guest for the Gallows (10/31/55) – Denis Shaw/Robert Desmond/Jan Miller
The Challenge (11/7/55) – John Drake
Queen Eleanor (11/14/55) – Jill Esmond/Ballard Berkeley/Gerald Cross
Checkmate (11/21/55) – Leslie Phillips/Alastair Hunter/Victor Woolf
The Ordeal (11/28/55) – Dorothy Alison/Alfie Bass
A Husband for Marian (12/5/55) – Brian Worth/Thora Hird/A. J. Brown/Paul Connell
The Highlander (12/12/55) – Hugh McDermott/Willoughby Gray
The Youngest Outlaw (12/19/55) – Bruce Seton/Peter Asher
The Betrothal (12/26/55) – Philip Guard/Jennifer Jayne/Charles Stapley
The Alchemist (1/2/56) – Anthony Sharp/Harriette Johns/Dorothy Blythe/Joyce Blair
The Jongleur (1/9/56) – Peter Hammond/Charles Lamb
The Brothers (1/16/56) – Michael Brill/A. J. Brown
The Intruders (1/23/56) – Michael McKeag/Ian Whittaker/John Longden
The Sheriff’s Boots (1/30/56) – Joan Sims/Kenneth Edwards/Elsie Wagstaff
Errand of Mercy (2/6/56) – Hal Osmond/Paula Byrne/Arthur Skinner
The Vandals (2/13/56) – Ingeborg Wells/Miriam McCormick/Gabriel Toyne
Richard the Lion-Heart (2/20/56) – Patrick Barr/Muriel Young
Ladies of Sherwood (2/27/56) – Walter Hudd/Laurie Main/Simone Lovell
Will Scarlet (3/5/56) – Jennifer Jayne
The Deserted Castle (3/12/56) – Jill Esmond/John Stuart
The Miser (3/19/56) – Larry Naismith/Patricia Marmont/Paul Connell
Trial By Battle (3/26/56) – Hal Osmond/Nicholas Parsons/Barry Shawzin
Children of the Greenwood (4/2/56) – Jane Asher/Peter Asher
The May Queen (4/9/56) – Ian Bannen/Dulcie Bowman
The Wanderer (4/16/56) – Karel Stepanek/Paula Byrne
The Byzantine Treasure (4/23/56) – William Squire/John Stuart/Paul Connell
Secret Mission (4/30/56) – Patrick Barr/Paul Connell
The Inquisitor (5/7/56) – Lloyd Pearson/Wolf Morris/David Edwards/Timothy Brooking
Tables Turned (5/14/56) – Anne Davey/Andrew de la Motte/Nora Gordon/Helen Forrest
The Traitor (5/21/56) – Hugh Latimer/Marie Burke/Helen Forrest
The Thorkil Ghost (5/28/56) – Barbara Mullen/Ian Whittaker/Michael McKeag/Sandy Lyle
The Knight Who Came to Dinner (6/4/56) – Robin Bailey/Frank Royd
The Wager (6/11/56) – Geoffrey Keen/George Rose/Leonard Sharp/John Watson/Ann Gudrun
The Prisoner (7/9/56) – Jack Melford/Valerie Cardew/Doris Nolan

5.  150 Cartoon Classics    Walmart  Amazon

We’ve been going down in recommended viewer age as well as DVD production quality. This set is a nice grab bag for kiddies, but the decent to good range of picture quality and the embedded logo might put off a lot of buyers. On the other hand, there is a lot of Betty Boop, Popeye, and Three Stooges here, along with other less well-known names. And cartoons from this period (1930s-50s) were frequently made to be exhibited in theaters before the main feature, and thus were much less childish than what we think of as cartoons today. There are better produced collections of some of these, but here’s a good trial sampler. 

 Thanks to Amazon Reviewer Annie Van Auken, whose reviews provided the title listing for these collections and saved my aching fingers.

Now get out and hit those bargain bins!