Are you talking about the old TCM promo about how many movies they had in their "library"?

I think it was some odd number like 5,280.

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Doh.

Actually, I just remembered. That the number of feet in a mile and also the elevation of Denver.

Message was edited by: FredCDobbs

From what I remember it was over 10,000 films in the TCM library...

I have no idea where the rather smallish 3500 figure came from? I believe it was actually over 10, 000 movies!

Jeffrey,

Using the Wayback Machine, I found an archived copy of the old website where they were proclaiming they had over 5,000 titles in their library. Of course, this was before Ted merged his company with Time-Warner.

Over 10, 000 movies in it's library, that they could actually show! Many of them exclusive to TCM.

Putting the number back to 5,000, that was still the era of video tape and broadcast masters. Betacam SP was the workhorse format for broadcast. VHS and laser disc were both home video formats with VHS being the more popular. Realizing the potential for making money in the home video market, many studios spent the time and money to transfer their films to video tape and make broadcast masters.

However, with the digital revolution, that all changed. Video tape masters are no longer used and many networks including TCM have digital servers which require that what they show be in a digital format.

It will take some time for the studios, especially Warners Brothers (with the old Turner film library as well as their own post-1949 film library) to digitize their holdings. This limits the number of films available to TCM for rental, especially the more obscure titles that haven't been digitized yet.

We are all aware that some studios don't hold their film libraries in the same regard that we film buffs do and that also makes it hard for TCM to rent more titles.

But they have made significant strides with Paramount, Fox, Sony (the old Columbia library) as well as Disney so maybe things are looking up for that Universal deal. Now if they could just get Paramount to understand the value of their silent film collection, I'm sure you would be in heaven.

hlywdkjk,

I have no idea where the rather smallish 3500 figure came from? I believe it was actually over 10, 000 movies! At least, that's what TCM used to advertise back in 1999, when I first got the channel. Over 10, 000 movies in it's library, that they could actually show! Many of them exclusive to TCM. They were still running this promo in 2002. Maybe even 2003? I may even have a recording of it around here someplace?

I believe TCM still has access to all the MGM/United Artists, and obviously Warner's stuff that is in a broadcast format? They aren't limited to just a few hundred Cherry-picked titles that Warner's is willing to share with them. They can still lease what is available. Have you tried request a movie?

"Gee, then I'd be watching the same movies over and over again." - Marlena445

If TCM only showed "classic" studio-era movies, after a few years you'd end up watching the same thing "over and over again" anyway, right? Sounds like someone needs to record some new titles on their "TEVO". Technology is a wonderful thing.

"Please make sense."
Well, I dare say I make more sense than this -
" Budget? I don't think so. TCM sells many of these titles and, therefore, should have unlimited access to everything in their catalogue." - Marlena445

The two ideas have nothing to do one another.
A) What catalogue? TCM doesn't have a "catalogue". But the retailer "MoviesUnlimited" does and, yes, TCM does receive a small cut from all sales referred from this website.
B) TCM doesn't "own" any films. Films for sale through the website do not belong to TCM. So if you believe that any sales of films (such as Casablanca ) somehow puts pennies in the pockets of TCM, you're wrong.

Kyle In Hollywood

Kyle In Hollywood

I can only imagine that what you are saying is true...

Yes, it is. My memory is pretty remarkable that way. Rarely do you find someone on a classic movie board that hates musicals, WWII movies, and too much Judy Garland. To find more than one who does so sets off an alarm in my head. I'm one of the rare ones that love all three. And if you saw several WWII movies strung together, it was more than likely Memorial Day weekend or Veterans Day. How terrible. Otherwise, you have to search really hard to find more than one or two a week.

TCM sells many of these titles and, therefore, should have unlimited access to everything in their catalogue. And it costs money to "rent" junk too, if that be the case.

TCM does not sell all the titles, Movies Unlimited does. Movies Unlimited has deals in place with Home Video departments of the various studios. There are very few TCM produced stand alone DVDs. Many are done in partnership with Warner Brothers which, since Ted Turner merged with Time-Warner back in the late 1990s, has control of the former Turner Film Library, with WBros getting lion's share of the profit because they put up the lion's share of the money for restoration and/or digitization.

As we have learned from TCMProgrammr over the years of posting here, TCM now has to rent all the films they show including those that were part of the original Turner Film Library. Before anyone starts talking about how the coffers of Time-Warner are so deep, please remember that the country is in a deep economic downturn and studios and companies are laying off large numbers of people.

To think that this economic crisis is not affecting the budgets of companies like Time-Warner, Warner Brothers or TCM flies in the face of the almost hourly bad news being delivered about the state of this economy.

They have worked some wonderful deals for access to the old Columbia Library, the post-1949 Paramount library and even the Fox library despite Fox having its own classic film channel. They are currently working with Universal to try and bring more Universal films to TCM. It isn't always easy because some Home Video departments don't understand the value of their classic film library and don't want to go to the trouble of getting films restored or digitized for TCM to air.

What you consider junk, other viewers may not. They may love the films that you consider junk. TCM does not program for any one person nor have they prescribed to a very insular view of what films should they show. They have managed to survive all these years without following AMC's lead by thinking big tent.

I don't remember it being this way in the recent past, and it seems to be getting increasingly worse.It will drive many people away, otherwise we wouldn't be here discussing it, would we?

This argument is as old as this message board and has been debated on these pages since these forums debuted in 2001 (it's all there in the archives if you would like to spend a day looking back).

Earlier this year, TCM was very much into themes each day and that drove some posters here nuts. They wrote about that very subject at great length. However since late summer, there has been a move away from the all day themes and they have been mixing it up more. When that happened, posters remarked how much more they were enjoying TCM.

TCM does listen but it is one thing to write about certain programming you don't like or would like to see them do differently.

It is entirely a different thing to demand of them to change their entire way of appealing to the many film buffs to suit the demands of the few.

Message was edited by: lzcutter because verbs matter

I've noticed entire days dedicated to musicals or WWII flicks. Judy Garland was talented, but it gets old quick. So does WWII. People are tired of WAR!

Wow, I bet if I did a search of that quote, I'd come up with a post within the last couple of years from a "different" poster (or posters) with nearly the exact same words.

And if you want a constant stream of different movies, all to your liking, all hours of the day, try renting.