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Posted: |
Dec 4, 2022 - 10:27 PM
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By: |
RonBurbella
(Member)
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WARNING! - Lo-o-ong Post - I'm on a quest.
Before I make a nuisance of myself by appealing to any of the particular individuals involved, I thought that I would tap the collective brains here. Here is my issue:
I have an older very close relative who is a 78-year-old Vietnam Veteran currently recovering from a knee replacement. His absolutely all-time favorite HALLMARK HALL OF FAME Christmas movie (yeah, I know - they've got a million of 'em) is one of their earliest efforts from way back in 2006. He knows that I have a lot of soundtracks and last year he asked me if I could send him the Roger Bellon soundtrack. He even sent me the Hallmark DVD to watch to motivate me. It's a very nice, simple, and typically well-done Hallmark Christmas film, well supported by Roger Bellon's very appropriate score. Even today, 16 years later, the film remains one of Hallmark's most popular of its stable of Christmas films.
But Uh-Oh! I didn't have the soundtrack. That's because there was none.
I wrote to Roger Bellon about it. He did respond apologetically and with deep regrets that, while he might be able to eventually locate the 2006 score in storage on a hard drive, Hallmark was very negative about releasing their Telefilm scores and there was unfortunately nothing that he could do about it. He admitted that he does get requests like mine when they show the film at Christmas time every year. Oh well. I let that sit for a long while.
But then when I did get to thinking some more about it, I did some online research and looked in my own collection. I recalled that composer William Ross had made available three promotional releases of Hallmark Hall of Fame scores on his own Momentum RLP Records label. I gathered this data:
MOMENTUM RLP RECORDS
1907 Olympic Blvd. Ste #A
Santa Monica, CA 90404
https://momentumrlprecords.gumroad.com/l/befUV?layout=profile
ONE CHRISTMAS EVE (2014) - I had this one on a promotional CD, so maybe a few "Not For Sale" promos were pressed initially. It's only digital now.
https://www.hallmarkchannel.com/one-christmas-eve
https://www.discogs.com/release/17028186-William-Ross-Jerome-Leroy-One-Christmas-Eve-Original-Television-Soundtrack
IN MY DREAMS (2014) - I also had this one on a promotional "Not For Sale" CD. Now it's only digital.
https://www.hallmarkdrama.com/in-my-dreams
https://www.discogs.com/release/7064023-William-Ross-In-My-Dreams
AWAY & BACK (2015) - I do not have this one on CD - Digital release only now. Goes on My Want List. If anyone has a "Not For Sale" promo copy to trade or sell, please contact me.
https://www.hallmarkdrama.com/away-back
I did check the DVD out of the Public Library and watched it. Nice - just what I expected. I was expecting a new-and-improved version of FLY AWAY HOME, only for swans, not geese. And the DVD viewing motivated me to grit my teeth and get the digital version. I liked the score.
Then, come to think of it, our friends at Intrada also released a 2005 Hallmark Hall of Fame score by Laurence Rosenthal - THE ECHO OF THUNDER (ISE 1006). So, it wasn't IMPOSSIBLE to get Hallmark (at least in the past) to allow scores to be released. Just DIFFICULT.
So I am looking for advice as to how and whom to approach about perhaps getting this score released. Should I "hire" someone in the business who knows the ropes to do it for me? What would be the approximate cost to get the rights? Am I dreaming and should I fuhgeddaboudit? I'm tempted to pleasantly "bug" the right people in my own friendly way to see what I can develop. Just hoping for some leads here.
For those of you who may have seen my odd exploits months ago here to try to find Steve Willaert's 2005 score to the Belgian thriller DE INDRINGER (The Intruder), I eventually located THREE copies. I did this after reading a post here by someone who had been looking for it unsuccessfully for 20 years. I can be very persistent...and very persuasive!
https://www.discogs.com/release/9014693-Steve-Willaert-De-Indringer
What say y'all? Crickets? Tumbleweeds? Dust falling?
Ron Burbella
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I'd like to see Straight From The Heart which starred Andrew McCarthy and Teri Polo that was scored nicely by Mader released personally.
To Dance With A White Dog by Gerard Gouriet is also a Hallmark score that was released as a promo back in the 90's which was like a 20 minute CD but still along with The Canterville Ghost by Ernest Troost. I think those are part of the HOF series.
Gulliver's Travels by Trevor Jones got a release from RCA Victor in 1996.
Varese also released alot of Hallmark soundtracks back in the late 90's and some very nice scores like
Moby Dick by Christopher Gordon
Merlin by Trevor Jones
Animal Farm by Richard Harvey
A Christmas Carol by Stephen Warbeck
Journey To The Center of the Earth by Bruce Rowland
Arabian Nights by Richard Harvey
The 10th Kingdom by Anne Dudley
They had also planned to release Dinotopia but that got cancelled and released through Trevor Jones' label.
There are many nice Hallmark releases out there. I wonder why Varese stopped releasing these scores.
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Maybe we can try that again, this time pleading for them to not make us call them for every release and has at least an open mind and consider on a title-to-title basis.
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Let's hope the current runners are susceptible to more pestering.
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Add Foxfire by Johnny Mandel and To Dance With The White Dog by Gerald Gouriet to the list that needs released.
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At first I thought this thread was going to be about Goldsmith's three (at least) radio scores written for Hallmark Hall of Fame in early 1954, before he signed his exclusive CBS contract! I was gonna say... they're functional but nowhere on the level of the many original radio scores that would follow over the next 3-4 years at CBS. I'd buy 'em to be sure, but they're low priority IMO.
But as far as Hallmark Hall of Fame TV productions, it would seem like Intrada is the best bet to contact, since they did put out Rosenthal's very good Echo of Thunder score. Maybe they have a contact or two there, and can figure out the right avenue and how much money would be required. Are you in touch with Roger Feigelson at all, Ron?
Yavar
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oops
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Night Ride Home from 1999 with Rebecca De Mornay, Keith Carradine, Ellen Burstyn and Thora Birch has a very fine score by Bruce Broughton that I have always hoped would be released.
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