Warner Bros. Home Entertainment To Release Director David S. Ward's Cannery Row On Blu-ray This Coming June 09

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment announced a flurry of new Blu-ray product offerings that will be available for film fans to enjoy during the month of June.

Key among these is the new 4K film restoration — from the original camera negative — of director David S. Ward’s 1982 film adaptation of John Steinbeck's novels, “Cannery Row” (1945) and its sequel “Sweet Thursday,” (1954), which was condensed into simply Cannery Row for its theatrical release.   

Cannery Row will be available for the first time on Blu-ray on June 9.

What a complicated history this Depression-era story had getting to the screen.  Soon after Steinbeck published “Cannery Row” in 1945 he sold the screen rights, but by 1949 the production never got off the ground and the rights reverted to him.   30 years would pass before the idea of a film adaptation would rematerialize (John Steinbeck himself long since dead).

The central character of Doc (aka: Eddie “the Blur” Daniels) was rumored to be Paul Newman, and then Jack Nicholson, but it finally went to Nick Nolte, who, as the industry trades of the time reported, really got into the role, studying with an actual marine biologist and working out with the California Angels.   

The role of Suzy DeSoto, waitress at the Golden Poppy (among other things), had so many rumored actresses up for the part that it looked like a roster of who was who in Hollywood at the time — Olivia Newton-John (Grease in 1978 put her in the running), Liza Minelli, Bo Derek (10 in 1979 put her in the limelight) and even Julie Christie (Heaven Can Wait in 1978) were all in the running at one point or another.

They finally decided on Raquel Welch.   Filming got underway in mid-December of 1980 and just one week into the production … Raquel Welch was fired!!   Enter Debra Winger, who had read for the part six months earlier, but was rejected … and then a little film opened at the beginning of the summer of 1980 that made her a star, Urban Cowboy.   So Debra Winger is the new Suzy!!

The film finally opened during the Valentine’s Day period of 1982 … and now, for the first time, it will be available on Blu-ray on June 9.

Also added to the June Blu-ray release calendar from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment … June 16 is the street date for Romance on the High Seas, while three Blu-ray product offerings will follow on June 23, House of Wax 3D, Pennyworth: The Complete First Season (3 disc set) and Strike Up the Band.