whotony

doubt we'll hear the hapy birthday.
i think thats owned by the estate of the person who wrote it.

cracksky

Doesn't matter who owns it. It's a matter of whether or not Paramount is willing to pay for it, along with the Judy Garland songs. Lions Gate wouldn't pay for some songs on Buffalo Bill like High Hopes even though that same song was paid for by Fox on The Simpsons. Although, I believe The Simpsons are getting some help on their music rights because everyone is such a fan of the show and wants to help out. BTW, Happy Birthday has been used on The Simpsons too.

Rypro 525

yeah, you would, hell some of the jokes from the tv show were reused for all 3 movies.

RockyMtnBri

grim_tales - yes! Without a doubt!

Duder

I personally like the show better than the movies (but I do like the movies a lot). I just think it was a little fresher, and the lower budget helped understate much of the humor.

cracksky

Reasons I like Police Squad! over the Naked Gun films:

PS cast:

Alan North -
Ed Williams -
William Duell -
Peter Lupus -

NG cast:

George Kennedy -
O.J. Simpson -
Ed Williams -

Ven

I have the show on ld and still watch it from time to time. Very very funny. Glad to see it will come out dvd at last.

grim_tales

Nielsen is a in both, presumably?

cracksky

Of course, but I was trying to emphasize the supporting cast and the fact that only Ed Williams was brought over from the series. The other performers are much better in the tv show and were all working at the time. I'd really like to know why they didn't bring any more on board. I'm sure they wanted some 'name' actors but funny is better than recognition any day of the week. Alan North, in particular, was extremely good, especially with his facial expressions. William Duell was also great as Johnny the Snitch, the man with all the answers. Maybe they figured that only worked in a 30 minute story. The same year NG came out, he had a part in Funny Farm. Neilsen is great in both but much better on PS. His reactions have more subtlty. He's more over-the-top in the films.

bigjim25

Extras:
Commentary by: Creators (select episodes)
All 6 episodes from the 1982 season
Brand-new interview with Leslie Nielsen
"Behind the freeze frames" featurettes
Gag reel
Casting test - Alan North & Ed Williams
Producers' Photo Gallery of Scenery, Sets, & Props
List of Celebrity Death Shots
Production Memo Highlights

darmok

"Behind the freeze frames" sounds like a doozie, as well as the gag reels to the already ridiculous scripts.