Yes, Harry and the Hendersons Is Coming to DVD!

Back around 1982 -- just around the time a little movie called E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial was dazzling everyone and their grandmother -- young director Steven Spielberg instantly morphed into an absolute juggernaut of an executive producer. Along with partners Frank Marshall and Kathleen Kennedy, Spielberg lent his name/stamp of approval to a whole bunch of family-friendly comedies and adventure flicks. During the Amblin' Era, the trio gave us Gremlins, The Goonies, Back to the Future, The Money Pit, An American Tail, Young Sherlock Holmes, Innerspace, Three O'Clock High and Batteries Not Included. Oh, but wait... I'm forgetting one...

Ah yes, 1987's Harry and the Hendersons, which was little more than a slightly sitcommier version of E.T., but it boasted more than enough assets to warrant its own loyal fan base. (For those who don't remember, it's a flick about the craziness that occurs when a Sasquatch is invited to live in a nice little suburban home.) Starring John Lithgow as the dad, Melinda Dillon as the mom and Don Ameche, Lainie Kazan and M. Emmet Walsh in supporting roles, Harry proved to be quite the decent little hit for the Amblin' gang and their Universal partners. The flick was in heavy HBO rotation for a while and (of course) it made its way to VHS ... but thousands of hardcore Harry fans have bemoaned the lack of a DVD release for some time now. (Geek Tidbit: The guy who played Bigfoot in this movie also played the title characters in Prophecy and Predator!)

Their calls of misery are about to be answered: William Dear's Harry and the Hendersons will hit the DVD shelves on April 24, and Universal is promising a fairly solid collection of extras: Mr. Dear (who also directed Northville Cemetery Massacre, Timerider: The Adventure of Lyle Swann, If Looks Could Kill and the recent Crispin Glover slasher flick Simon Says) will contribute a feature-length audio commentary, plus there will be a pair of production featurettes, a handful of deleted scenes, the original theatrical trailer and a few more random treats.