Welcome to the May 2024 
newsletter from the Spaghetti Western Database, your regular newsletter of what happened last month in the world of European westerns.
How to receive this newsletter automatically: Read instructions here on how to receive this to your inbox or notifications 
newsletter. Contact us if you have any questions or news/rumors/contributions.
NEW STUFF IN AND AROUND THE SWDB IN 
MAY 2024:
WANTED:
We’re still trying to get in touch with the person who ran the Altervista website as well as our friend from Finland who went by the name of Shobary (with the popular SW website with that title). If anyone has reliable contact information, please send us a message. We want to rescue and preserve the remnants of these two websites, like we’ve done with A Fistful of Pasta.
New around the SWDb:
- Let us know if you want to help with
our new master calendar Calendar - The Spaghetti Western Database and 
company directory Company directory - The Spaghetti Western Database. These are just slowly progressing but are meant to be mostly companions to ongoing efforts to improve release date information in the database, as well as biographical information. Please contact us at any time with any info you have that is missing in the database, it’s all highly appreciated. - A steadily rising number of film pages in the database now have picture-powered dedicated credits pages. These are incredibly valuable in a lot of peoples’ quests to identify actors and characters. More are added every week.
… as always: join the SWDb, help out, it will make it better 
You don’t have to become a full time editor or official staff to contribute. Anything from being active in the forum to correcting mistakes to joining entire improvement projects is more than welcome. From all over the world, in all languages, we welcome help!
Emerging, ongoing and future improvement projects
- Improving locations information with the locations project
- Cataloging home video special features with the featurettes project
- Improving and expanding information about VHS releases in the database (these aren’t nearly as reliable and complete as we have it for DVD and BluRay)
- Improving soundtrack pages (not started, volunteers welcome)
- Adding more company, production and box office data
- technical improvements for the SWDb, including a better search, which will require time, expertise and likely money, all of which aren’t plentiful. Donations welcome, maybe at some point I could hire someone to do it.
- Lastly, more outreach is in order to reach into the far corners of the internet, and beyond the English-speaking spots.
SWDb 
Letterboxd
If you’re a Letterboxd user, we hope you follow the official SWDb Letterboxd HQ account. Click here to learn more about that. For the new year we’ll finally bring more exclusive content to that channel as well. And your reminder: all the revised film pages in the SWDb have a direct link to their respective LB entry and the bottom.
Locations
The reconstruction of the Betterville POW camp has begun in Spain. Follow the activities on Facebook here.
Home video news:
In May the big story was Paramount’s eagerly awaited 4K UltraHD release of Once Upon a Time in the West, which was accompanied by mixed reviews, disc replacement in Germany and availability issues. The SWDb doesn’t have a full review of the disc yet, but the short version is that while it may be the best thing available, it’s not a release that does the film any justice. Maybe hold off until the regular releases in July. More interesting then is an overdue UK release of Hannie Caulder, the HD debut of Django Strikes again in Germany, the HD premiere of Lanky in France and a few other titles, including a soundtrack release of the two Ringo movies.
June then, things get even more interesting. First up are not one but two Bud Spencer movies coming out in Germany. The one by Plaion is English friendly and will offer uncut versions of the film, the other by Dolphin is not English friendly and will offer the long version in SD (and German) only. Spaniards can rejoice as the Dollars movies make their 4K UHD debut there, and we are certain that they will come out elsewhere, too. The documentary Ennio will finally make it to the USA, albeit only as DVD. There are few other interesting minor titles out of Germany as well.
Stay tuned and keep sending us rumors and inside info! Don’t forget to use our Amazon links if you can.
Visit the SWDb home video release calendar
Obituaries
Our head of obits, the spaghettiologist @Tom_B had to update the boot hill cemetery with an unfortunate 5 new obituaries over the course of the last four weeks.
Check out “Cemetery with crosses”
Reviews:
Please contact us if you want your reviews published. We are especially looking for reviews of movies that have no, or very few, reviews in the SWDb. We publish them in all languages, and you don’t need to be a professional writer!
https://www.spaghetti-western.net/index.php/Film_review_of_Patience_Has_a_Limit,_We_Don’t
BluRay-Kritik: ...und Santana tötet sie alle - The Spaghetti Western Database
The Road to Fort Alamo BluRay review - The Spaghetti Western Database
Oklahoma John BluRay Rezension - The Spaghetti Western Database
Those of you who feel inclined to donate a dollar or euro or yen or real or whatever, head here. PayPal has improved the donation experience, check it out - and you don’t even need a PayPal account to donate. Also, whenever you shop at Amazon, click on one of the SWDb’s Amazon links first, it doesn’t matter which one and what you buy.
Lastly, get ready to enjoy (or be disapointed by) Paramount Home Entertainment’s new 4K Ultra-HD BluRay release of Once Upon a Time in the West. Details and shopping links HERE.
See you next month!
