Ertha Kitt on Frost Show

[Martin Ireland]

Can someone tell me if this interview and performance from the early seventies survives. I presume it was on the LWT Frost series. It's quite important. Many thanks in advance.

[H]

This one?

uk.imdb.com/title/tt0892561/

very few early Frosts survive, although a December 69 edition does , so you might just be lucky? goodluck

[dbarchive]

Frost On Sunday - 22.03.70 - I'm afraid it's listed as Junked in the Kaleidoscope listings

[Martin Ireland]

I have bought an old reel to reel tape on Ebay, and a friend kindly transferred it to dvd. There is a 10 minute segment of Frost interviewing Ertha Kitt followed by a performance from her.

If this is missing, it is available for immediate return to ITV or the BFI. However, I was under the impression that these shows all survive. This is why I am hoping from a definitive answer from someone who would know.

[Mark Tinkler]

I would suggest contacting someone at the ITN Archive as they own the LWT library for which the "Frost On's" were made...

[Sherwood]

Mark said:

I would suggest contacting someone at the ITN Archive as they own the LWT library for which the "Frost On's" were made...

They only own the rights to sell extracts from the LWT library. ITV retain the actual LWT material. This sounds like one for the 'Raiders of the Lost Archives' project that ITV are running at the moment. Great confusion is caused by the LWT database that can be viewed via ITN Source (aka ITN Archive) containing lots of material that they don't hold anymore. And I know you've mentioned that very same fact on this board Mark! (Simon Dee springs to mind). It would be a crying shame if they turned it down just because they had a database entry but no material!

The Kaleidoscope database doesn't have any listings for Frost on Friday but it does for the Saturday and Sunday shows. Cut and pasted as follows:

Frost on Saturday Series 1
03.08.68 Featuring Bob Hope (missing)
10.08.68 Episode 2 (missing)
17.08.68 Episode 3 (missing)
31.08.68 Episode 5 (missing)
07.09.68 Episode 6 (missing)
14.09.68 Episode 7 (missing)
21.09.68 Episode 8 (missing)
05.10.68 Episode 10 (missing)
12.10.68 Episode 11 (missing)
19.10.68 Episode 12 (missing)
26.10.68 Episode 13 (missing)
02.11.68 Episode 14 (missing)
09.11.68 Episode 15 (missing)
23.11.68 Episode 17 (missing)
07.12.68 Episode 19 (missing)
21.12.68 Episode 21 (missing)
28.12.68 Episode 22 (missing)

Frost on Saturday Series 2
20.09.69 Episode 1 (missing)
27.09.69 Episode 2 (missing)
04.10.69 Episode 3 (missing)
11.10.69 Episode 4 (missing)
18.10.69 Episode 5 (missing)
25.10.69 Episode 6 (missing)
01.11.69 Episode 7 (missing)
08.11.69 Episode 8 (missing)
15.11.69 Episode 9 (missing)
29.11.69 Episode 11 (missing)
06.12.69 Featuring Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan, Ringo Starr (missing)
13.12.69 Episode 13 (missing)

Frost on Sunday Series 1
11.08.68 Featuring Sandie Shaw, Hines Hines & Dad (missing)
18.08.68 Episode 3 (missing)
25.08.68 Episode 4 (missing)
01.09.68 Episode 5 (missing)
08.09.68 Featuring The Beatles (missing)
15.09.68 Episode 7 (missing)
22.09.68 Episode 8 (missing)
29.09.68 Episode 9 (missing)
06.10.68 Featuring Charlie Callas, Sandie Shaw (missing)
13.10.68 Episode 11 (missing)
20.10.68 Featuring Vicky Carr (missing)
27.10.68 Featuring The Bachelors, Tessie O'Shea (missing)
03.11.68 Featuring Joan Rivers (missing)
10.11.68 Featuring Des O'Connor, Françoise Hardy, Dorothy Squires (missing)
17.11.68 Featuring Stanley Baxter, Marion Ryan, Howard Storm (missing)
01.12.68 Featuring Tom Jones, Herman’s Hermits, Caterina Valente (missing)
08.12.68 Featuring Dusty Springfield, Nina Simone, Johnny Ray (missing)
15.12.68 Featuring Joe Brown, Roy Hudd, Abbe Lane (missing)
22.12.68 Featuring Jackie Trent, Scott Walker, Dudley Moore Trio (missing)
05.01.69 Featuring Topol, Billy Eckstine, Nina & Frederick (missing)

Frost on Sunday Series 2
04.01.70 Featuring Rolf Harris (missing)
11.01.70 Featuring Billy Eckstine (missing)
18.01.70 Featuring Sam Costa (missing)
25.01.70 Featuring Woody Allen (missing)
22.03.70 Featuring Eartha Kitt (missing)


So it looks like it could be that final missing Sunday show!

[Martin Ireland]

Well, I have the original reel to reel tape and a dvd copy ready to lend to the BFI or ITV. It is not the whole show - just the 10 minute segment with her on it. I will endeavour to get in touch with the ITV missing website.

[emitron]

Martin said:

Well, I have the original reel to reel tape and a dvd copy ready to lend to the BFI or ITV. It is not the whole show - just the 10 minute segment with her on it. I will endeavour to get in touch with the ITV missing website.

I've heard the missing ITV have already been knocking back film material. Seems they are mostly interested in film material connected with the Xmas shows based on distinct performers.

There is quite a bit of missing material on audio, I've got missing material in this form and to be frank, the archives aren't much interested in it unless it is film.

[Peter Bradford]

emitron said:

Martin said:

Well, I have the original reel to reel tape and a dvd copy ready to lend to the BFI or ITV. It is not the whole show - just the 10 minute segment with her on it. I will endeavour to get in touch with the ITV missing website.

I've heard the missing ITV have already been knocking back film material. Seems they are mostly interested in film material connected with the Xmas shows based on distinct performers.

There is quite a bit of missing material on audio, I've got missing material in this form and to be frank, the archives aren't much interested in it unless it is film.

Andy,

Sorry to go OT but I notice on your site you mention that the Hippodrome show was recorded ATV's Wood Green Studio, Wembley. In fact it was recorded at Rediffusion's Wembley Park Studios (?). The cameras used were made by Marconi (and not RCA) although the design and some of the hardware was certainly based on the RCA chassis.


I would have replied via your site but there seems to me to be no way of contacting you on your blog (there probably is but i couldn't see it) apologies for hi-jacking the thread.

[emitron]

red16v said:

emitron said:

I've heard the missing ITV have already been knocking back film material. Seems they are mostly interested in film material connected with the Xmas shows based on distinct performers.

There is quite a bit of missing material on audio, I've got missing material in this form and to be frank, the archives aren't much interested in it unless it is film.

Andy,

Sorry to go OT but I notice on your site you mention that the Hippodrome show was recorded ATV's Wood Green Studio, Wembley. In fact it was recorded at Rediffusion's Wembley Park Studios (?). The cameras used were made by Marconi (and not RCA) although the design and some of the hardware was certainly based on the RCA chassis.


I would have replied via your site but there seems to me to be no way of contacting you on your blog (there probably is but i couldn't see it) apologies for hi-jacking the thread.

Well done for spotting that! When writing an entry on a daily basis errors can creep in. I think the confusion here was that there had been a circus show in the ATV Studios. I just don't know why I wrote that! You know more than me about the cameras. I thought they were imported RCA. I'd need to dig deeper. In fact today I found a fragment from a missing Hippodrome show, but more on that in a later entry. Again thanks and I will correct the blog. My e-mail is top right on the blog and you can post comments underneath each blog entry.

Andy.

[Dirk Winchester]

big sweaty image orthicons Marconi 848s

[RWels]

Martin said:

I have bought an old reel to reel tape on Ebay, and a friend kindly transferred it to dvd. There is a 10 minute segment of Frost interviewing Ertha Kitt followed by a performance from her.

If this is missing, it is available for immediate return to ITV or the BFI. However, I was under the impression that these shows all survive. This is why I am hoping from a definitive answer from someone who would know.

Pity it isn't on youtube...

[Daniel E]

I've heard the missing ITV have already been knocking back film material. Seems they are mostly interested in film material connected with the Xmas shows based on distinct performers.

There is quite a bit of missing material on audio, I've got missing material in this form and to be frank, the archives aren't much interested in it unless it is film.

If this is the case, shame upon them. People offer missing things in good will, and they turn them down simply because they do not meet their needs at this particular time ? I say what about the needs of other filmmakers or historians ?

Shouldn't there be a law that the BBC (and others of course) are obligated to accept submission of material that is missing, or higher quality than currently held ?

It seems the shortsightedness of the archives that lead to stuff being missing, still exists today, and these second chances will also be missed.

[emitron]

The film collector has traditionally had a bad name in all this because people assume that the official organisation (whatever that might be) would be beyond reproach. Then when they think they are doing posterity a favour by returning a short audio clip they cannot comprehend why it isn't accepted. Likewise another person may find their clip accepted depending on the needs, financing, contact and office politics of the moment.

So when people hear of someone having a film and not wanting to return it, it may be because they felt burnt in the past and are unwilling to explain why. I know of a few collectors who feel that way for various versions of that basic reason.

From the archivists point of view, this is a bit of a nightmare as I doubt there is anything written in stone about donations from the public. It's a bit like someone going to you local library with a rare book and offering it to the library. Staff are used to dealing with fellow staff and not the whims of an unknown quantity who often want to place conditions on their donation.

I'm going to cover this in my blog in detail to show what happens when collectors do feel let down, particularly when they over value what they have and make unrealistic demands on archives. In one infamous case of craziness, they shredded the films up in protest.

Andy.

[Sherwood]

emitron said:

The film collector has traditionally had a bad name in all this because people assume that the official organisation (whatever that might be) would be beyond reproach. Then when they think they are doing posterity a favour by returning a short audio clip they cannot comprehend why it isn't accepted. Likewise another person may find their clip accepted depending on the needs, financing, contact and office politics of the moment.

So when people hear of someone having a film and not wanting to return it, it may be because they felt burnt in the past and are unwilling to explain why. I know of a few collectors who feel that way for various versions of that basic reason.

From the archivists point of view, this is a bit of a nightmare as I doubt there is anything written in stone about donations from the public. It's a bit like someone going to you local library with a rare book and offering it to the library. Staff are used to dealing with fellow staff and not the whims of an unknown quantity who often want to place conditions on their donation.

I'm going to cover this in my blog in detail to show what happens when collectors do feel let down, particularly when they over value what they have and make unrealistic demands on archives. In one infamous case of craziness, they shredded the films up in protest.

Andy.

It's true that TV companies don't have much interest in audio copies of missing programmes which is a shame as they can fill in some vital gaps in the archives.

Some missing Likely Lads episodes were returned to the BBC on audio formats. You'd have thought that they would have made ideal bonus items on the recent Likely Lads dvd releases. But then they couldn't even get all the complete episodes released!

On the other point - I do hope that the ITV project is more than just a trawl for clips to fit in with one show - but my cynical nature is beginning to tell me otherwise.

The chances of anything turning up that fitted such a narrow brief must be pretty remote. I can see it now though, a 'before they were famous' type show with ITV's biggest stars shown the clips they never thought they'd see again.....David Jason, Chris Tarrant, erm Ant and Dec (?!)