to give up and use the Fox system." Theatrical release Even with the production troubles that came with the location shooting in 3D, the studio thought it was a worthwhile venture since 3D pictures were at the height of popularity at the time of the film's development. However, by the time the film was completed, public interest in 3D had started to wane. The distributing studio Warner Brothers did everything it could to promote its new 3D camera process and how it went beyond the typical gimmicks used by other popular 3D films at the time such as House of Wax, producing a richer sense of perspective. Hondo was released on November 27, 1953, and was presented in the 3D format in only extremely few if any theaters at the time; theaters were unable to show the film in the stereoscopic format because the Polaroid 3D projection system required a brighter and more light-reflective screen, referred to as a "silver screen," which was an added cost theater owners were reluctant to pay. The film has an intermission, which comes right after Hondo is captured by the Apaches. This is included on the DVD version. The film ended up becoming quite popular with audiences, eventually grossing $4.1 million at the box office and placing it in the top 20 money-makers for that year. Restoration and DVD release An initial restoration of Hondo was overseen by Wayne's son Michael, head of Batjac Productions, in the late 1980s culminating in a syndicated broadcast of the film in June 1991 on American over-the-air stations in anaglyph 3D. 3D glasses were sold to viewers, with proceeds going to charity. A frame-by-frame digital restoration by Prasad Corporation of the film was later completed, and the DVD of it was released on October 11, 2005. The 3D version of Hondo has yet to be released on either DVD or Blu-Ray. A restored 3D theatrical version was exhibited for a week in 2015 at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, and projected the following year at New York's Film Forum, introduced at both venues by Michael Wayne's wife Gretchen Wayne. References in popular culture Part of a 1988 episode of Married... with Children, titled "All in the Family", has Al Bundy readying himself to watch Hondo in peace during a three-day weekend, but Peggy's family comes to visit, and their ensuing problems prevent him from