The not-so-real Ghostbusters coming to DVD

Children of the 80’s should remember well that there were in fact two cartoons with the name Ghostbusters. The difference being the cartoon based on the hilarious movie franchise was called the Real Ghostbusters. This is not the show we are talking about here. BCI, known for their releases of the original He-Man and She-Ra series, has put out a press release announcing the first box set of Filmation’s Ghostbusters on DVD. This 6 disc set will retail for 39.98 and should be available February 27th. Looks like it will be packed with lots of extras, just don’t expect to see Slimer or Gozer in any of them.

Also of note is that there were 65 episodes in all, so it will be likely that there will be one more set (volume 2) to complete the series.

I have included the lengthy Press Release after the jump.

“GHOSTBUSTERS” Volume One

6 DVD Set Available February 27th For $39.98

Los Angeles, CA – BCI Eclipse, a Navarre Corporation Company, and leading UK media company and underlying rights owner, Entertainment Rights Plc (“ER”) are proud to announce the release of Filmation’s animated cartoon series “Ghostbusters.” Volume One will be available on DVD for the first time under BCI’s Ink and Paint brand and will be released on February 27th at a suggested retail price of $39.98. The 6 disc set contains the first 32 episodes in story continuity order with a host of bonus features including creator interviews, the original promo pilot and a bonus episode of “The Ghost Busters” live-action series.

“We are excited to add another memorable Filmation cult classic cartoon series to our release lineup” said Jeff Hayne, Director of Acquisitions, BCI. “With its universal name recognition and stellar voice talent, we are confident that the ‘Ghostbusters’ franchise will be another success.”

With the rallying cry of “Let’s go, Ghostbusters!,” Jake Kong Jr. and Eddie Spenser Jr. are following in their father’s footsteps and have teamed-up with the original gorilla sidekick, Tracy, to become the new Ghostbusters! From their base of operations in Ghost Command, the Ghostbusters are always ready to battle Prime Evil and his never-ending army of bewitching monsters who are out to haunt the Earth! Aboard the flying Ghost Buggy, the gang often takes comical adventures through time itself, Dematerializing prehistoric ghouls in the past, or zooming thousands of years into the future to zap some phantoms with the help of the bewitching Futura!

In 1975, Filmation created the live-action series The Ghost Busters, featuring the original Spencer, Tracy, and Kong. Nine years later, the name was also used as the title of the unrelated feature film, but in 1986, Filmation reintroduced their original concept with their own animated Ghostbusters cartoon! The syndicated series perfected a spirited balance between action and comedy, and scared up huge ratings. With its imaginatively colorful cast of characters — voiced by some of the best voice talent from that decade — and featuring spookily cool animation, Ghostbusters has haunted its way into the halls of history! Now on DVD for the first time ever, you won’t need to call anyone… you can “Go Ghostbusters!” until the ghouls go home!

“Ghostbusters” features the first 32 episodes from the 1986 series which was a spin-off from “The Ghost Busters,” Filmation’s classic live-action 1975 series. The show featured some of the best voice talent including Brad Garrett (“Everybody Loves Raymond”), Alan Oppenheimer (“He-Man and the Masters of the Universe”), Linda Gary (“Batman”), Pat Fraley (“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”), Peter Cullen (“Winnie The Pooh”), Maurice LaMarche (“Pinky and the Brain”), Frank Welker (“Transformers”), Susan Blu (“Transformers”) and Lou Scheimer.

Special Features include:

* Creator interviews with producer Lou Scheimer, writer Robby London and directors Tom Tataranowicz and Tom Sito
* Ghostbusters anti-drug spot
* Original 10 min presentation of the promo pilot for Filmation’s animated series “Ghostbusters”
* Slideshow storyboard for episode 22 “Laser and Future Rock”
* Image gallery of “Ghostbusters” heroes includes the original model sheets and sketches
* English & Spanish audio for all 32 episodes
* Easter eggs and series trivia
* Ink & Paint trailers
* DVD-ROM material – the complete five-episode script for the Ghostbusters “origin story”
* Bonus episode: “The Ghost Busters” live-action series episode #1 – “The Maltese Monkey” featuring ghost busting trio Forrest Tucker, Larry Storch and Bob Burns

Producing the special features, documentaries and most of the extra content is entertainment writer Andy Mangels, a best-selling novelist, and author of Animation on DVD-The Ultimate Guide.

Under its Ink & Paint brand, BCI has to date announced the following titles:

* The Best of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe® [2005 TV DVD Award for Best 1980’s Series release]
* He-Man and the Masters of the Universe® Season One Volumes I & II
* He-Man and the Masters of the Universe® Season Two Volumes I & II
* The Best of She-Ra, Princess of Power®
* He-Man® and She-Ra®: A Christmas Special
* Flash Gordon – The Complete Series
* The Legend Of Prince Valiant Volume 1
* Blackstar – The Complete Series
* Space Sentinels & The Freedom Force – The Complete Series
* Defenders of the Earth – Volume 1
* Groovie Goolies – The Saturday “Mourning” Collection
* Journey Back to Oz
* Dungeons & Dragons – The Complete Series
* She-Ra Princess of Power®, Season One, Volume 1
* The New Adventures of He-Man® Volume 1
* The Legend of Prince Valiant Volume 2
* Ghostbusters Volume 1

The entire line of Ink & Paint titles can be viewed at www.inkandpaintdvd.com.

About Navarre Corporation
Navarre Corporation is a publisher and distributor of physical and digital home entertainment and multimedia products, including PC software, CD audio, DVD video, video games and accessories. Since its founding in 1983, the Company has established distribution relationships with customers across a wide spectrum of retail channels which includes mass merchants, discount, wholesale club, office and music superstores, military and e-tailers nationwide. The Company currently provides its products to over 19,000 retail and distribution center locations throughout the United States and Canada. Navarre has expanded its business to include the licensing and publishing of home entertainment and multimedia content, primarily through the acquisitions of Encore, BCI, and FUNimation. For more information, please visit the Company’s web site at http://www.navarre.com.

About BCI
BCI, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Navarre Corporation, is an independent entertainment video and audio supplier. BCI has continually redefined the standards and concepts of this industry, often introducing national success categories through its intuitive mass marketing skills. Its vast collection of titles represents both exclusively licensed titles from around the world, as well as in-house produced CDs and DVDs.

About Entertainment Rights
Entertainment Rights Plc (ER) is one of the UK’s leading media groups focused on the ownership of high-quality children’s and family programming, characters and brands. ER owns or controls the rights to many global characters, including He-Man and the Masters of the Universe®, Fat Albert and the Cosby kids™, She-Ra®, Ghostbusters, Postman Pat®, Jess the Cat™, Basil Brush®, Little Red Tractor™, Rupert Bear® and Jim Jam & Sunny™. Since 1999, ER’s library has grown from just 50 to nearly 2,000 hours of entertaining and educational programming for children and families around the world. This includes certain rights to global brands such as Mattel’s Barbie™, Scholastic’s Clifford the Big Red Dog™, Hasbro’s Transformers™, Harveytoons’ Casper the Friendly Ghost and Classic Media’s Felix the Cat. ER’s wholly-owned subsidiary Tell-Tale Productions, created and produced The Tweenies, one of the UK’s most successful pre-school brands. Most recently, ER acquired the majority interest in Rupert Bear®, one of the most recognizable children’s characters in the world, which will appear on Channel Five’s Milkshake slot in the UK beginning Fall 2006. ER’s Jim Jam & Sunny is being produced by the creators of The Tweenies. Jim Jam & Sunny has been commissioned by the UK’s ITV and is set to air on ITV1 and the network’s new digital children’s channel, CiTV, in Fall 2006. For further information please visit www.entertainmentrights.com