‘Roger Rabbit,’ ‘Bambi’ on Video This Fall

Disney moved Thursday to corner the holiday home video market with not one but two blockbusters, announcing the fall release of “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” and “Bambi.”

“Bambi,” released in 1942, will be available from its Buena Vista Home Video subsidiary on Sept. 28 at $26.99, while “Roger Rabbit,” priced at $22.99, is due Oct. 12 from its Touchstone Home Video division.

“Roger Rabbit,” famed for its innovative integration of animation and live action, grossed $325 million worldwide at the box office. Disney has calculated that, in today’s dollars, “Bambi” has earned $490 million.

These releases will be supported by a $60-million marketing campaign. During the holiday season, limited-time-only rebates will be available for both titles.

Touchstone came up with a rebate idea that feathers its own nest. People who buy “Roger Rabbit” will get $3 back by sending in receipts from three Touchstone video rentals or a ticket stub from a Touchstone movie.

There will be a $3 rebate from “Bambi” for consumers who send in a proof-of-purchase label from Crest toothpaste. “Bambi” will also have commercial tie-ins with M&M;/Mars candies.

Coupled with the fall release of MCA’s animated “The Land Before Time” and MGM/UA’s “The Wizard of Oz,” which is due for a big push in conjunction with the movie’s 50th anniversary, Tower Video’s John Thrasher predicted Thursday that more than half the home video sales will be these four kid-oriented titles.

Speculating about “Bambi’s” sales to retailers and distributors, Thrasher said: “It should be at least 8 million units--and that’s a conservative estimate.” But he guessed that “Roger Rabbit” would sell about 25% less--roughly 5-6 million.

Last year, “E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial” and “Cinderella” radically expanded the home video sales market at the mass-merchant (K mart, Target, etc.) level. The huge sales of “Roger Rabbit” and “Bambi” will be possible because so many copies will be shipped to those outlets, where they’ll be heavily discounted.

Trasher said the mass merchants will probably drop the price of “Roger Rabbit” to as low as $14.95 and “Bambi” to $17-$19.