Warner Home Video is set to make a lot of fans very happy when it finally releases the original 1933 King Kong on DVD for the first time this November. Due out Nov. 22, just a couple of weeks before director Peter Jackson brings his remake to theaters, the DVD boasts a feast of bonus features fit for the king of Skull Island himself.
The fully restored King Kong will be available as both a two-disc special edition ($26.99) and a two-disc, tin packaged collector’s edition ($39.98) featuring a 20-page reproduction of the original souvenir program and postcard reproductions of vintage theater one-sheets. Other bonus materials to look for include RKO Production 601: The Making of Kong, the Eighth Wonder of the World, a new seven-part documentary written by Animation Magazine contributor Ron Magid. Peter Jackson is featured in the doc, sharing his knowledge of the original production and discussing how it inspired him to make movies.
Hardcore Kong fans are well aware of the infamous "Spider Pit" sequence, which was cut out of the film following an early screening in Santa Monica, Calif. The scene followed the famous sequence where Kong rolls the men off the log and into a chasm. Those who survived the fall were then besieged by giant stop-motion animated spiders in the original print. Studio execs thought the arach attack was bad for the pacing of the picture and the footage was removed, never to be seen again. However, viewers will get to see a recreation on the DVD.
Also included in the DVD are a documentary on Kong director/creator Merian C. Cooper and commentary from legendary stop-motion animator Ray Harryhausen, Mighty Joe Young star Terry Moore and vfx whiz Ken Ralston. Harryhausen was a protégé of Willis O’Brien, the pioneer who created the animation effects for King Kong and The Lost World (1924).
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