Harvey Comics is releasing Filmation's ARCHIE and SABRINA animated TV episodes on DVD, March 29, 2004. Each of the four videos in The Legacy Collection will contain four complete half hour TV cartoons. This collection consists of the following videos: ARCHIE'S CLASSIC CARTOONS, THE ARCHIE SHOW, SABRINA THE TEENAGE WITCH and ARCHIE'S TV FUNNIES priced at $12.98 each. Harvey is offering a special -- all four for $44.98 plus a free Archie music CD. The Riverdale adventures will be available for purchase at the Harvey Website: http://stuffshop.archiecomics.com/videos.html.

HAMILTON MATTRESS (MGM, $14.95), the charming 30-minute stop-motion work produced by Harvest Films/Egmont Imagination in 2001, is currently available on DVD. The aardvark with a heart that drums, indeed. Sludger (voiced by David Thewlis) dreams of making it big in Beak City with his caterpillar agent (voiced by Henry Goodman) in this light fable from Christopher Moll, the producer of WALLACE AND GROMIT, and director Barry Purves.

SECONDHAND LIONS (New Line Platinum Series, $27.95), the eccentric yet warm-hearted coming of age story starring Michael Caine, Robert Duvall and Haley Joel Osment, is noteworthy for being Digital Domain's first in-house feature production (with Erik Nash serving as visual effects supervisor). The effects and digital animation are subtle but effective, as revealed in the supplementary comparisons.

Thanks to Warner Home Video, collectible DVD box sets of the initial seasons of THE FLINTSTONES and SCOOBY-DOO, WHERE ARE YOU? kick off a new Hanna-Barbera signature Gold series. Released March 16, 2004, each four-disc set retails for $64.92 and features transparent slipcases designed to resemble a vintage animation cel from each series.

The highest selling TV series on DVD will be returning in June. THE SIMPSONS SEASON FOUR DVD COLLECTION will arrive in stores on June 15, 2004 from Fox Home Entertainment. The collection will feature all 22 episodes from the fourth season (1992-1993) and include exclusive bonus material such as commentary on each episode, an introduction by Matt Groening, a voiceover featurette with James L. Brooks, an Animation Showcase multi-angle feature, animatics, commercials, deleted scenes and more. The four-disc set will have a suggested retail price of $49.98.

First CURIOUS GEORGE and now the upcoming DVD premiere movies for VAN HELSING and THE CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK. Just proves that 2D animation is alive and well at Universal.

With two major tent pole releases coming this summer, the studio is extending the marketing reach with two animated prequels produced exclusively for DVD with the participation of stars Hugh Jackman and Vin Diesel and directors Stephen Sommers and David Twohy: VAN HELSING: THE LONDON ASSIGNMENT (May 11) and THE CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK: DARK FURY (June 15).

Twentieth Century Fox Home Ent. confirmed that it has snapped up domestic DVD rights to Mel Gibson's THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST, which has earned an astounding $213.8M in 12 days. Fox, which has a first-look deal with Gibson's Icon Pictures and passed on domestic theatrical distribution, is also negotiating to distribute in key foreign theatrical markets. No release date has been officially set for the DVD, but one unconfirmed online report says it's August.

SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS - SPONGEBOB GOES PREHISTORIC (Paramount Home Ent., $16.99) is the latest themed disc highlighted by last week's well-received Nick special, SPONGEBOB GOES PREHISTORIC, which drew nearly six million viewers on March 5, 2004. Includes eight other episodes: "Nature Pants," "Fools In April," "I'm With Stupid," "Patty Hype," "Squid On Strike," "The Great Snail Race," "Plankton's Army" and "Squilliam Returns."

Extras include BATTLE FOR BIKINI BOTTOM PC Game demo.

With THE FLINTSTONES and SCOOBY DOO, WHERE ARE YOU? debuting on DVD next week in full season glory, Warner Home Video is following up on May 11, 2004, with two more entries in the "Hanna-Barbera Golden Collection": THE JETSONS: THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON and JONNY QUEST: SEASON ONE. Each four-disc set, featuring more than 11 hours of original TV programming and bonus content, will retail for $64.92.

New Line Home Ent. announced on Monday that THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING will be released May 25, 2004 on DVD in its theatrical version for $29.95, and that the Extended Edition will arrive in time for the holidays.

As part of its promotion for the May 21, 2004 release of SHREK 2, DreamWorks will be releasing SHREK 3D, which was part of the Shrek 4-D attraction at Universal Studios, on DVD with the re-release of SHREK on May 11. The two-disk set will be priced at $16.95. Four pairs of 3D glasses will be included.

The 15-minute short follows Shrek and Donkey on another adventure to rescue his wife Fiona and features the original voice cast of Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz and John Lithgow.

Although a major disappointment when released theatrically last year, LOONEY TUNES - BACK IN ACTION has quickly become a cult favorite among LOONEY fans for its inspired irreverence (a wild pursuit through paintings in the Louvre is just one of the many highlights) and cutting edge hybrid animation and vfx. On March 2, LOONEY TUNES is back in action on DVD (Warner Home Video, $27.95).

Despite fan quibbling about the packaging and lack of significant extras, STAR TREK VOYAGER - THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON (Paramount Home Ent., $129.99) nonetheless arrives on DVD with all 15 original episodes from '95 looking and sounding better than ever. For some, the series is better than NEXT GENERATION with its emphasis on the science, intrigue and fun of time travel, wormholes and four-dimensional creatures.

Buena Vista Home Ent. reports that sales of THE LION KING 1 1/2 have now reached six million combined DVD/VHS units in the first three weeks of release in North America. That's worth more than $130 million when combining purchase and rental dollars. The second sequel to THE LION KING (the first was SIMBA'S PRIDE, which will be reissued as a special edition this summer) is also the biggest selling DVD produced directly for the home entertainment market, surpassing last year's STITCH! THE MOVIE, VARIETY reports.

DIC Ent. and Mainframe Ent. will co-produce an all-new CGI INSPECTOR GADGET television special and DVD release, INSPECTOR GADGET SAVES THE DAY… MAYBE. Mainframe will handle distribution in Canada, Australia and the U.K. with handling the title internationally and Lions Gate's Family Home Ent. handling the U.S.

Not content with his theatrical 3D experiment, Robert Rodriguez has fine-tuned SPY KIDS 3-D - GAME OVER for DVD (Walt Disney Home Video, $29.99), which streets on Feb. 24, 2004, making it even more dynamic in the home theater. Thanks to James Cameron's revolutionary 3D camera that he developed for GHOSTS OF THE ABYSS and his upcoming feature, Rodriguez was able to utilize more 3D effects than he originally intended.

Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment has announced that it will release the Oscar-nominated animated film THE TRIPLETS OF BELLEVILLE on DVD May 4, 2004. Completed over a remarkable five-year process, THE TRIPLETS OF BELLEVILLE was written and directed by French-born artist Sylvain Chomet, who previously received an Academy Award nomination for his animated short film, THE OLD LADY AND THE PIGEONS.

Winner of six international children's film festival prizes, MARCO POLO: RETURN TO XANADU comes to DVD (Warner Home Video, $14.97) as a 2D family adventure worth checking out. Featuring the voice of Nicholas Gonzalez (TV's RESURRECTION BOULEVARD) as Young Marco, descendent of the famous explorer, the boy finds himself in the mythical kingdom of Xanadu, where he must battle the evil magician Foo-Ling. Directed by Ron Merk, produced by Igor Meglic, Chris Holter and Merk and written by Holter, Merk and Sheldon Moldoff, MARCO POLO features the following bonus features:

From the highly acclaimed anime director, Satoshi Kon (PERFECT BLUE, MILLENNIUM ACTRESS) TOKYO GODFATHERS will debut on DVD on April 13, 2004, from Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment. The Capra-esque tale of adventure from three homeless people - alcoholic Gin, drag queen Hana, and teenage runaway Miyuki – as they discover an abandoned baby in a pile of garbage and venture to return her to her parents.

Universal will be releasing DR. SEUSS' THE CAT IN THE HAT, based on the classic children's book, on DVD and VHS March 16, 2004. The pricing for the release is $26.98 SRP/$19.95 MAP for DVD and $24.98 SRP/$15.95 MAP for VHS. The film was directed by MEN IN BLACK production designer Bo Welch and produced by THE GRINCH producer Brian Grazer.

Interactive DVD exclusives include: