Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Celebrates 60th Anniversary of “House of Wax” with Newly Restored and Remastered 3D Blu-Ray Version
(June 3, 2013 – Burbank , CA) – On October 1, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment will celebrate the 60th anniversary of “House of Wax” with a stunning new restored and remastered High-definition 3D Blu-ray. In 1953, the film was the first color 3D feature released by a major studio. The huge hit also marked Vincent Price’s first major starring horror role and changed the course of his career. Thanks to advanced technology and the expert work of Warner Bros. Motion Picture Imaging (MPI), audiences will now be able to enjoy the classic mystery shocker as it was originally seen in theatres. The Blu-ray ($39.99 SRP) will include a new featurette, “House of Wax: Unlike Anything You’ve Seen Before” and “Mystery of The Wax Museum,” the original 1933 film on which “House of Wax” is based. A 2D version of “House of Wax” will also be included.
Originally designed to lure audiences away from their TV sets, 3D utilized a “left-eye/right-eye” dual projection process and polarized glasses, the basis for what is seen today. MPI’s work on “House of Wax” includes a 4K scan, and a full restoration of the two “eyes,” as well as perfect 3D image alignment.
“House of Wax” was a major box-office success when it was released in 1953. If adjusted to today’s gross, it would have brought in more than $401 million, placing it among the top 100 highest grossing films ever. It no doubt paved the way for a 3D boom over the next several years during which 50 3D features and some two dozen shorts and cartoons were released.
The film was directed by André de Toth, an unlikely choice to direct a 3D film as he was blind in one eye and unable to properly see the effects he created. Besides Price, “House of Wax” additionally features Frank Lovejoy, Phyllis Kirk, Carolyn Jones, Paul Picerni and a young actor named Charles Buchinsky, who would later become known to audiences worldwide as Charles Bronson. Screenplay is by Crane Wilbur. Brian Foy produced.
The Warner library has the largest number of classic 3D titles (15) of any studio, and now that the technology has been perfected, the studio looks forward to re-introducing them to home audiences. The long-awaited, much requested release of “House of Wax” is the second classic 3D film the studio has released on Blu-ray, following last year’s release of “Dial M for Murder.”
Synopsis:
Professor Henry Jarrod is the owner and figure sculptor in a wax museum whose specialty is historic figures. When he and his business partner, Matthew Burke, quarrel over the choice of exhibits displayed, Burke suggests it would be more profitable to burn down the museum in order to obtain the insurance money. As they fight, the museum burns and Jarrod is left for dead. It’s not until much later at a new museum that the fate of Jarrod and the mystery of how the lifelike waxed figures are created becomes gruesomely evident.
Special Features:
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment (WBHE) brings together Warner Bros. Entertainment's home video, digital distribution, interactive entertainment, technical operations and anti-piracy businesses in order to maximize current and next-generation distribution scenarios. An industry leader since its inception, WBHE oversees the global distribution of content through packaged goods (Blu-ray Disc and DVD) and digital media in the form of electronic sell-through and video-on-demand via cable, satellite, online and mobile channels, and is a significant developer and publisher for console and online video game titles worldwide. WBHE distributes its product through third party retail partners and licensees, as well as directly to consumers through WBShop.com. About Warner Home Video:
With operations in 90 international territories, Warner Home Video, a division of Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Inc., commands the largest home entertainment distribution infrastructure in the global video marketplace. Warner Home Video's film library is the largest of any studio, offering top quality new and vintage titles from the repertoires of Warner Bros. Pictures, Turner Entertainment, Castle Rock Entertainment, HBO Video and New Line Cinema.###
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• Expert Commentary
• "“House of Wax: Unlike Anything You've Seen Before!” All new!
• “Round-the-Clock Premiere: Coast Hails ‘House of Wax’”
• "Mystery of the Wax Museum" [1933 WB Feature]
• Theatrical Trailer
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment (WBHE) brings together Warner Bros. Entertainment's home video, digital distribution, interactive entertainment, technical operations and anti-piracy businesses in order to maximize current and next-generation distribution scenarios. An industry leader since its inception, WBHE oversees the global distribution of content through packaged goods (Blu-ray Disc and DVD) and digital media in the form of electronic sell-through and video-on-demand via cable, satellite, online and mobile channels, and is a significant developer and publisher for console and online video game titles worldwide. WBHE distributes its product through third party retail partners and licensees, as well as directly to consumers through WBShop.com. About Warner Home Video:
With operations in 90 international territories, Warner Home Video, a division of Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Inc., commands the largest home entertainment distribution infrastructure in the global video marketplace. Warner Home Video's film library is the largest of any studio, offering top quality new and vintage titles from the repertoires of Warner Bros. Pictures, Turner Entertainment, Castle Rock Entertainment, HBO Video and New Line Cinema.