James Bond, Rocky Balboa, Det. Virgil Tibbs and Robocop are all on hand to help Metro Goldwyn Mayer celebrate its 90th anniversary in a new video released Wednesday.
The studio that perhaps best personified Hollywood’s golden age and once famously boasted that it had “more stars than there are in heaven” has had its shares of ups and downs over nearly a century of moviemaking. Most recently, it was forced to file for Chapter 11 protection, but it has battled back from the financial brink, re-emerging from bankruptcy with a series of hits such as “Skyfall,” “21 Jump Street” and “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.”
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Clearly it’s in a festive mood. In addition to the two minute spot, which features clips from such memorable MGM features and library titles as “West Side Story,” “Get Shorty,” “Some Like It Hot,” “Dances with Wolves” and “The Silence of the Lambs,” the studio is gearing up for a number or re-releases and special events.
It will have its company icon, Leo the Lion, immortalized with a paw print ceremony at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood and will re-release versions of films such as “Rocky,” “Rain Man,” “Fargo” and “The Good, The Bad and The Ugly,” on Blu-ray. The films have been restored in 4K resolution, the studio said.
It will also release Blu-ray additions of films such as “In the Heat of the Night,” “A Chorus Line” and “The Birdcage.”
In addition, the company will offer up a collector’s book about its history and a documentary that includes interviews with former MGM stars such as Sylvester Stallone, Clint Eastwood, Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon.