The Nature Boy

If ever, I guess. HBO seems to let a lot of their episodic programming lie dormant, never featuring it on one of their many stations, but not even DVD releases. I know it's different eras, but look at the success of the Sopranos, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Sex and the City and Mr. Show on DVD. I know they even had two different Richard "The Iceman" Kuklinski releases. I'd be there the first day for Dream On, along with:

1st and 10
Not Necessarily the News
Braingames
America Undercovers(selected of course)

Has Dream On or any other of their programming been rumored?

tdoane78

As far as I can tell there are no plans, this is based off a reply from HBO saying they don't have the rights anymore. I miss the series myself, kind of funny seeing Tupper in Kingpin tonight tho..

-Tim

LasVegasMichael

Even if they did have the rights, they would probably still hold it off. I think its just to torture us.

Look at Larry Sanders. One season released; then nothing.

Scott27

That was actually a Columbia/Tristar release, not HBO.

The Cow

I loved "1st and 10". Doubt this will ever see the light of day though (there were a few episodes put out on VHS, however).

reservoirdog

This and "Action!" are two that I would love to see.

I called Mark Raschbah (I think that's his name) at CTHE, but he hasn't gotten back to me. I'm going to keep calling, twice a week, until Action is released.

sirbrady

I forgot about those shows. 1st and 10 had Ogre from Revenge of the nerds, and a thin Delta Burke.

Anyone remember any sniglets from NNT News?

Hokeyboy

Aquadextrous: the ability to manipulate the bathtub faucet with both feet.

mythmaker18

The Hitchhiker is due for a release shortly.

As for Dream On, I read an interview with Chris Demetral (who played Jeremy) who said something to the effect that there were talks and that DVDs would be coming, but they were just in the discussion stage. Sorry, don't know where that interview is. I think I found it through Google. It's been awhile.

As for other older HBO shows, you're right, they're not out there at all. My guess as to why they're not on TV is that HBO is probably embarrassed by some of them. I mean, they would have a point: early Pay-Cable originals like The Hitchhiker featured "adult material" just for the sake of being gratuitous (as if to prove, "hey, we can show naked breasts!"). Not that I didn't appreciate it at the time (these came out when I was a teen).

I'd say Not Necessarily the News isn't on (and probably won't see DVD release) because it was a fairly topical show. Many of the '80s references would be lost on a good-sized portion of the audience.

Heck, I'd love to even see Hardcore TV come out, but even by the mid-90s, it still seemed to be boobs and swearing just for the sake of being on cable. A little bit topical, but if In Living Color can get released with all of its '90s references, surely Hardcore TV could be brought out.

Of course, HBO would probalby see this show as bad for their image, as their programming had jumped from the "cheap" stigma formerly attached to cable programming to the "acclaimed" ranking they now enjoy with their current shows.

The Nature Boy

You make good points. I do think Dream On was their first step to a "great" episodic program. But they've also shown a willingness to capitialize on Richard "The Iceman" Kuklinski. I realized they produced those documentaries for their pay outlet, but it seems a bit shadier to me to sell them as DVD's.

As for a comedy show littered with ULTRA topical references, don't forget the recent Ben Stiller release. Granted, there are some pretty major stars from that show and Ben Stiller and Janene Garafalo aren't exactly on the level of Danny Breen and Frosty Kimmelmon.

The Nature Boy

Were the Tales from the Crypt episodes ever released? That was sort of the next level of the Hitchhiker. There were a few gems in there, I love the one with M. Emmett Walsh and Mrs. Roper involving Taxidermy.

mythmaker18

There's only a single relaease out with a measly three episodes on it.

A few VHSes were released throughout the '90s, but from what I can gather, only one DVD (unless you count the two feature films).

Venom

well they still make or atleast air, Real Sex, and i forget the exact title, Shock TV. and they had the whole G-String Divas series, that was fairly recent. but then again, none of those shows as well are on dvd.

mythmaker18

Plus, they're under the "documentary" category. HBO (and Showtime) have turned around public perception of their scripted series, though. Nobody would've called The HItchhiker (HBO) or Bizarre (Showtime) good television, though I personally liked both shows (of course, as a teen, my main reason for watching Bizarre was for the gratuitous nudity).

I hope The Hitchhiker sells well. May give the cable companies incentive to dig into their archive past the last 5-6 years.

The Nature Boy

But how can the Hitchhiker possibly sell well? I think this enterprise is set up to fail. I think 1st and 10 would sell stronger. Just a thought, but I hope you're right. How much do they have to sell to make a profit anyway? No one is expecting anything more than a clean VHS transfer without extras. Right now it's just sitting in the vault making no money.

tommyp007

"Dream On" is one of my Holy Grail dvd sets. I remember it being appointment tv with my friends and I when it was on. As the only one with HBO, I would tape Dream On and Tales from the Crypt each Wednesday night and we would all gather on weekends at my house to watch them. Ah the good ol days.