Episode 12: Robert Harris
Lee has known Robert “Bob” Harris for over 20+ years. “I’ve called him so many times for film advice dozens of times” said Lee. “What I love about Bob is his honesty and confidence when I ask a question, and sometimes the question seems so unique I’d think ‘would Bob even know the answer to this’ and of course he usually does.” “There was this one time I had an 8 perf negative on the Visconti Film “The Leopard” and it had all these white slugs throughout. So, as usual, I called Bob. As soon as I asked the question he said ‘thats called Auto Select and the white slugs were used to tell the film timer where and how to make the optical. Everything you need is right there in that negative’ said Bob”. Well, he was right…as always.
In this episode, we go back to Bob’s early days starting out as a collector and what got him going toward a career in restoration. These are the people who have the knowledge of things that we still need to know, and we’re thankful people like Bob still exist.
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Borrowing a bit of dialogue from the film, Robert Harris thought it would be "fun" to resurrect the complete version of the favorite film he had never seen. The "fun" project turned into a two-year odyssey, encompassing months of research, detective work, a touch of modern archaeology, a worldwide search and inventory of surviving elements and the painstaking examination of over four tons (sixty miles) of picture and sound elements. With neither surviving prints nor a written continuity of the premiere version of LAWRENCE OF ARABIA as a guide, he took on the task of reconstructing, restoring and joint- producing the restoration.
After LAWRENCE was restored on paper, the project moved from Harris' NY base to LA, where the final work was performed on the selected picture and track materials. It was "an extraordinary honor," said Harris, "to be joined in the final restoration process by first Anne Coates" (who received the Academy Award for her editing of LAWRENCE) "and then by Cinematographer Freddie Young, and Sir David, who, after directing the dubbing of some needed dialogue, flew to LA to not only oversee and approve the final form of the restoration, but after 27 years to create the Director's Cut of his masterpiece."
Harris, who studied film at New York University, was also involved in the restoration of Abel Gance's NAPOLEON, and was instrumental in its presentation in a joint effort with Francis Coppola's Zoetrope Studios. Harris served as consultant for a new digital restoration of SPARTACUS for Universal, a 50th Anniversary digital restoration of MY FAIR LADY for CBS, as well as THE GODFATHER and THE GODFATHER PART II for Paramount Pictures. Previously he restored Williamsburg: The Story of a Patriot for the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and Francis Thompson’s three panel production, To Be Alive, for the S.C. Johnson Company.
His prior work includes the restoration of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1954 REAR WINDOW, as well as the 1958 VistaVision production “VERTIGO.” In addition Harris also performed analogue restoration on George Cukor’s 1964 MY FAIR LADY for CBS, as well as the reconstruction and restoration of Stanley Kubrick's SPARTACUS for Universal Pictures. He also produced (with Martin Scorsese) the critically acclaimed motion picture THE GRIFTERS.
Most recently Harris served as restoration consultant for Universal on Alfred Hitchcock's 1956 THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH, and restored (with archivist James Mockoski), the 1926 silent film, THE JOHSTOWN FLOOD.
He currently is splitting his time between restorations of favored classics and the preparation of new productions. His restoration work stands as the most extensive, complex and innovative ever attempted.
He is currently parnterned with Mr. Mockoski, working on BEAY GESTE (1926), THE AFFAIRS OF ANATOL (1921), MISS LULU BETT (1922), and THE VANISHING AMERICA (1925).