Red Dust (Blu-ray)

The jungle-set torrid one said to have run at smokers back in the day, and a longest awaited of precode signatures to be writ on DVD, Warner Archive the deliverer with best-ever Blu-Ray a result of what I understand was extensive patch-up. How spoiled we are today ... a blurry TV transmission of Red Dust would once have been a thrill, but no more. Now it's pristine off camera elements or nothing. My question: Was Red Dust ever code-cut? The only reissue I'm specifically aware of was in 1963 as part of a larger Metro bring-back of oldies, but there's a still I found with a 1954 date. Could Red Dust have lost footage after 1932 circulation? What's here looks complete, as much so as a 16mm print among my collecting first in 1973 ... that's how long RD has been a favorite.

Surely it's a best of Gable-Harlow teamings, China Seas a worthy second even as essentially a Dust remake. Red Dust seems also the best Howard Hawks film he never directed, but always wished he had. Word is, HH was not a little green over Victor Fleming's success here and tried to grab some credit for Dust development. There's also John Gilbert done out of starring in Gable's favor --- Red Dust might have revitalized Jack, but it wasn't to be. From this, Gilbert's plummet got steeper. Harlow husband Paul Bern took leave with a bullet during production, Harlow back to finish Red Dust after brief mourning (she chose work over stress of inactivity) --- a guessing game might be to spot before-and-aft, but that…