Two weeks ago I did a plug for Arnold Leibovit’s latest restoration of his classic compilation – The Puppetoon Movie. I had an open spot on the blog today and coincidentally Arnie emailed me a bunch of comparison frame grabs (below) and in the physical mail I actually received the actual blu ray of the new restoration and collection.
I haven’t had time to watch and rewatch the whole thing – give yourself at least three or four hours to do that… as this baby is loaded. I did as much skimming I could in an hour, so this isn’t a formal review. But I can tell you one thing: This is a MUST-HAVE.
This is the ultimate version of Arnie’s one-man effort to restore and revive Pal’s Puppetoon series – and that’s a cause I can get behind. If it wasn’t clear from my last plug, this is much much more than the feature “spruced up” – its a “director’s cut” slightly with a revised order, with an additional Puppetoon (“Wilbur The Lion”), and fully restored Paramount opening and closing’s. And they look fantastic.
Not only that – the bonus materials, the extras, are incredible. The centerpiece is The Puppetoon Movie: A Legacy Revisited – a brand new 50 minute tribute to pal and the Puppetoons with Joe Dante, Floyd Norman, Phil Tippett, Bob Kurtz, Dennis Murren – a dozen other – and somehow he included me!
After that there is an extra special ten minutes with Aardman’a Peter Lord as a stand-alone tribute to Pal stop-mo greatness. After that – almost a dozen Pal Puppertoon odds and ends, including a second Mounds candy commercial, I hadn’t seen before; the best version of the Tashlin/Sutherland “Daffy Ditty” – The Lady Says No; cel animation from the 1930s; Industrial films for Shell, Phillips, and other clients – amazing rareties.
And if that weren’t enough, a full color 28-page booklet that is the Puppetoon story, all in Arnie’s words (and rare color photos), literally everything you need to know. A masterclass in Pal puppetry on film.
This disc set is available NOW – Arnie is selling it now on his own site. It’s now available on Puppetoon.net. My advice, get it now while you are able.
One more plug for the first of series of in-person screenings Arnie is planning. Puppetoons and Sci-Fi classics on the big screen – as they were meant to be seen. With Arnie and special guests in person.
Here is info on his very next screening in Southern California :
Saturday, April 18, 2026
The Frida Cinema – Santa Ana
305 E 4th Street, Santa Ana, CA 92701
https://thefridacinema.org/movies/the-day-the-earth-stood-still/
We’re celebrating the 75th Anniversary of THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL with the following unique presentation:
• A theatrical screening of The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
• 8-Foot-Tall Gort Robot — Live-on-Stage
• Two restored George Pal Puppetoons
• Plus a Bonus Pre-Screening Premiere of The Puppetoon Movie – A Legacy Revisited
Arnie will be hosting as he was a friend of director Robert Wise and George Pal.
Tickets $20 – Get Tickets Soon As We Expect A Sell Out
: https://thefridacinema.org/purchase/1377240/
Schedule:
4:00 PM – Doors Open
5:00 PM – The Puppetoon Movie – A Legacy Revisited
7:00 PM – Two George Pal Puppetoons + The Day the Earth Stood Still
This event is being presented only once, and seating is limited.
On June 1, Norma Jeane Mortenson would have turned 100. She died at the age of 36, on August 4, 1962, but her artistic alter ego, Marilyn Monroe, became a film legend. The Bombshell Blonde façade concealed a very harsh childhood during which she lived in as many as 12 foster homes, a torturous romantic life, and a career marked by artistic self-doubt and very poor health (she never carried a pregnancy to term).
© Baron (Getty Images)
Login