The brand logo as seen at the start of VHS releases.
The Walt Disney Gold Classic Collection, or the Gold Classic Collection for short, is a series of VHS and DVD releases of animated Disney films, similar to the Walt Disney Classics and Walt Disney Masterpiece Collections that preceded it. The series notably also featured the first home video release of Make Mine Music and the first VHS and DVD release of Saludos Amigos (although content from these two was cut).
The DVDs were similar in content to the failed Limited Issue DVDs, to the point that the Gold Collection DVDs for Pinocchio, Hercules, and Mulan were actually reissues of those films' Limited Issue DVDs. Most of the DVDs contained a few bonus features in the form of interactive read-alongs, trivia games, and sing-alongs, though some also contained making-of featurettes and bonus cartoon shorts.
Each wave of Gold Collection videos and DVDs were released on select days of each month from January 11, 2000 through March 20, 2001. However, due to subpar sales as a result of too many videos in the series being released all at once, Disney discontinued the line afterward. Sadly as a result, later releases with similar content and cover designs were not labeled as Gold Collection videos.
Many of the films released in the Gold Collection have since been released on DVD again, one of them as part of the Walt Disney Platinum Editions (and its second successor series, the Walt Disney Signature Collection) and many others released as individual "special edition" DVDs. As of 2015, Make Mine Music, Melody Time, and A Goofy Movie are the only films released in the series that have not been given new Region 1 DVD releases since then, although the latter film has been released on Blu-Ray as as a Disney Movie Club exclusive in 2019.
The Spirit of Mickey and So Dear to My Heart were apparently going to be re-released as part of the Gold Collection (as seen on a trailer for the collection on various videos), but these videos were never released. The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Oliver & Company were also planned to be included but were cut from the collection and instead released as stand-alone videos without the "Gold Collection" banner. So Dear to My Heart was eventually released on DVD as a Disney Movie Club exclusive.
Releases
| VHS Cover | DVD Cover | Film | Released | DVD bonus features | Moratorium |
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Toy Story | January 11, 2000 (VHS); October 17, 2000 (DVD) (with Toy Story 2) |
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May 1, 2003 |
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Mulan | February 1, 2000 |
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January 31, 2002 |
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Pinocchio | March 7, 2000 |
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January 31, 2002 |
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The Aristocats | April 4, 2000 |
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The Fox and the Hound | May 2, 2000 |
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The Three Caballeros | May 2, 2000 |
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Saludos Amigos | May 2, 2000 |
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Make Mine Music | June 6, 2000 |
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Melody Time | June 6, 2000 |
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Pocahontas | June 6, 2000 |
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A Goofy Movie | June 20, 2000 |
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Fun and Fancy Free | June 20, 2000 |
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Alice in Wonderland | July 4, 2000 |
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Mary Poppins | July 4, 2000 |
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Robin Hood | July 4, 2000 |
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The Rescuers Down Under | August 1, 2000 |
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Hercules | August 1, 2000 |
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A Bug's Life | August 1, 2000 |
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Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World | September 5, 2000 |
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The Black Cauldron | October 3, 2000 |
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The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad | October 3, 2000 |
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Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas | November 7, 2000 |
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Pete's Dragon | January 16, 2001 |
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The Sword in the Stone | March 20, 2001 |
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Bedknobs and Broomsticks: 30th Anniversary Edition | March 20, 2001 |
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Oliver and Company (VHS only) | June 5, 2001 |
Similar later releases
The following videos, similar in appearance and design to the Gold Collection releases, came out after the Gold Classic Collection line was discontinued.
| VHS Cover | DVD Cover | Film | Released | DVD bonus features |
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Dumbo: 60th Anniversary Edition | October 23, 2001 |
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Peter Pan: Special Edition | February 12, 2002 |
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The Hunchback of Notre Dame | March 19, 2002 |
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Oliver & Company: Special Edition | May 14, 2002 |
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The Great Mouse Detective | July 23, 2002 |
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The Rescuers | May 20, 2003 |
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Trivia
- While the VHS versions use the Walt Disney Gold Classic Collection logo in place of the 1991 golden-colored Walt Disney Home Video logo at the beginning, both logos use the same music. The DVD versions, however, use the 1991 Walt Disney Home Video logo.
- This series' release of Melody Time is censored to remove scenes involving cigarettes from the Pecos Bill segment, much like its previous 1998 VHS/Laserdisc release.
- This one, Saludos Amigos and Make Mine Music all have an aspect ratio screen on the VHS and DVD release in this series stating that they have been "edited for content" since these three films are affected with censorship and cuts.
- Almost all the VHS tapes have the exact same opening previews, including a trailer to the then-recent direct-to-video film The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea. This could be due to many videos in the series being released all at once.
- A Goofy Movie is presented as a pan-and-scan version on the Region 1 DVD, though the PAL regions have non-anamorphic widescreen formats on the DVD (the Region 2 DVD is in 1.78:1, while the Region 4 DVD is in the theatrical ratio of 1.85:1).
- Toy Story is the only Gold Collection DVD not to be released simultaneously with its VHS release.
- New VHS covers with updated images included The Aristocats, Saludos Amigos, The Three Caballeros, Pocahontas, Fun and Fancy Free, Mary Poppins, Hercules, A Bug's Life, Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, The Sword in the Stone, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, The Black Cauldron, The Rescuers Down Under, Melody Time, Make Mine Music, and Pete's Dragon.
- The 2000 release of Melody Time has a different cover featuring an image of Donald Duck as a conductor, as opposed to the 1998 Masterpiece Collection cover with Johnny Appleseed, Pecos Bill, Bumble Boogie, and Donald standing on a piano.
See also
