Last week I brought up the fact that few or, recently, NONE but Yours Truly, showed up for the "extra" presentation of that week. I suggested the possibility of eliminating the concept of the "extras" and simply beginning the arrivals portion of our Monday Evening Chats at 8:00 PM, Eastern Time, with us beginning the simultaneous viewing of our featured film fifteen minutes later, at 8:15.
For the next couple of Chats, we can continue with the 7:30 Eastern start for arrivals and extras and see how it goes,..
Rush, I probably shouldn't weigh in on this. First, because I'm guilty as charged. And second, I find it hard to spend that much time--even though I rarely have the opportunity to join in the chats. I usually join in at the start of the film.
If the purpose of the extra time is a type of social hour (cocktail hour) for chatter, then the "EXTRAs" actually detract from that in my humble opinion. And in a way they detract from the film. That's my 2-cents for whatever it is worth.
I don't always have the time, and I'm not always interested in the particular extras, but some of them have been great. I guess keeping them is up to you, Rush, and whether that's extra work you don't need, or something you feel strongly about keeping. I for one would favor keeping them; not all of us find the same things of interest, but it's nice to have the option. I'll miss this week's session altogether as I have a reunion to go to Monday evening, but will be back next week. I should take the opportunity here to thank you. The Monday night gatherings provided a very needed and appreciated social outlet for a very lonely, isolated old man during the pandemic. :heart:
Posting late to this subject however... Completely your call if you want to continue or discontinue starting the Monday night festivities early to provide time for people to view the "extras" and discuss them. However, even if you discontinue the early start time, please continue to provide a description of the extras and the link(s) thereto as part of a given Monday's offerings. In my humble opinion, these "extras" are a valuable addition to our collective knowledge of all things Chan and certainly of the time period. A sampling of the "extras" from the past several weeks should prove my point. From the trailer for "Charlie Chan Carries On" to the film of the Olands' trip to China to the film preservation "shorts", our collective knowledge is enhanced greatly by having access to these. So, again, even if consensus indicates not to allocate extra time for viewing and chatting about the "extras" prior to the start of the main event, please at least list, describe and post a link to them as part of the overall description of the Monday night watching event.
