Twice a year, around June and November, Deep Discount DVD has a sale in which their already low prices are augmented by an additional 25% discount. At The Old Dark Arthouse, this is a time of rejoicing and spending.

The Old Dark Arthouse usually adds DVDs to its vast archives all year long, but with the economy and all, the acquisitions have been meagre in 2009. So... we went a little wild at Deep Discount's sale last month - mostly European titles, catching up on the year's many Euro-trash and Euro-art releases, but also some 1930s Hollywood.

Five of the European titles here are from the relatively new, still fairly obscure label MYA, who have been putting out barebones editions of Italian films for a few months now. According to this unofficial blog, they have a plan to put out quite a few more. This sort of thing can bankrupt an obsessive collector! But please don't stop.

THE HERCULES COLLECTION from Retromedia packs 9 Pepla into one box, some with - it seems - better than usual transfers for the genre. I am really looking forward to the widescreen HERCULES.

MANEATER OF HYDRA was shot in Europe by Mel Welles, a cohort of Roger Corman and director of the much-beloved LADY FRANKENSTEIN. It used to play on Sacramento UHF stations that I could only get fuzzy reception from, and I have not seen it in almost 40 years. I'm giddy about this, even though the transfer looks suspiciously like it was taped off one of those Sacramento UHF stations.

DEADLY SWEET is an early Giallo by Tinto Brass, who would later find fame as Italy's master of rump-centric softcore porn. IN THE FOLDS OF THE FLESH is another Giallo from a few years later, with a reputation for having a deliriously complex plot. We'll see!

BLOOD ROSE and TRAGIC CEREMONY are unknown quantities, other than that they are Eurohorror gothics. BLOOD ROSE is the most promising, if only because DVD label Mondo Macabro simply never puts out uninteresting films.

From Italy to Germany, Giallo to Krimi, EDGAR WALLACE v1 and v2 and MONSTER OF LONDON CITY are all Krimi collections issued by Retromedia. I have some Krimi in German boxed sets, but not all Krimi issued in Germany have English options, so these are the next best choice. Retromedia DVDs are always a mixed blessing, however, as they are a quasi-greymarket label without any means in doing

BAVARIAN SEX COMEDY COLLECTION and the companion EURO SEX COMEDY COLLECTION are what they sound like - softcore comedies, mostly from the 70s. There are LOTS of these, and quite a few have been issued in decent editions in their countries of origin, but these sets were a cheap way to sample this unfamiliar genre with English options.

MANIACS and SWEET PUSSYCATS are 1960s-vintage Italian sex comedies; while MONIKA seems to be an Italian erotic drama. Note that MONIKA stars the delicious Gloria Guida, who remains painfully under-represented on DVD in the USA.

BREAD LOVE AND DREAMS and INVETERATE BACHELOR are 50s Vittorio De Sica comedies. It is a blessing to have any Italian comedies from this era on DVD at all. SOPHIA LOREN COLLECTION is a collection of 4 titles from her filmography, one directed by De Sica. These are also all very welcome on DVD. Italian genre films - horror, giallo, erotica - are fairly common on DVD, but comedies and dramas from the 40s - 60s are not. That was an incredibly fertile time for the Italian film industry, and it is to be hoped better represented in the future.

3 STOOGES COLLECTIONS 4, 5 and 6 document the transition of the team from Curley to Shemp.

I will state here for the record, on The Curley Vs. Shemp Question I remain fully in both camps. Shemp was every bit Curley's equal as a comedian.

W.C. FIELDS COLLECTION v2 brings together another 5 Fields pictures from the 1930s and 1940s. I haven't checked yet, but aside from MILLION DOLLAR LEGS, this might mean that all of Fields' sound films are now on DVD.

UNIVERSAL PRE-CODE HOLLYWOOD contains 6 features from Universal and Paramount studios dating from the era before the Production Code went into effect. We've already screened HOT SATURDAY, and found the quality of the transfer to be excellent.

CLASSIC BRITISH THRILLERS is a complete unknown - I found it while looking for the Pre-Code box. It contains be 3 British mysteries of 30s vintage, but I've heard of none of them.

Finally, I could not pass up the ICONS OF HORROR SAM KATZMAN box. Don't tell Sony Pictures, but I would have paid the cost of this four film set JUST to get CREATURE WITH THE ATOM BRAIN.

GALLERY OF HORRORS is a faux Roger Corman Poe anthology film. Yes. It is. Look at Lon Chaney, Jr.'s face. Just look at it!