Vinnie Rattolle's

Something's coming to eat the world whole!

2012-01-14T05:30:00.001-06:00

Well, it looks like the folks at WB are trying to be sneaky. In the latest update of MPAA ratings for upcoming films, there's a listing for "Little Shop of Horrors: The Intended Cut." Director Frank Oz mentioned the forthcoming release last November, citing a Halloween 2012 2-disc DVD/Blu-Ray release, but there was no further evidence to support his claim at the time. But with this latest announcement, it appears we're finally on the verge of getting an official release of the 1986 cult classic with the original unhappy ending intact! For those who don't know the story...

"Little Shop of Horrors" began its life as a corny 1960 Roger Corman b-movie which was notorious for its short shooting schedule of two days (and some change). In 1982, the film was adapted into a wildly successful off-Broadway musical by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman (the duo who went on to write music for Disney's "The Little Mermaid," "Beauty and the Beast" and "Aladdin") and their musical was ultimately translated into the 1986 film. Initial test audiences loved the 1986 movie... up until the point when this Greek tragedy's hero and heroine were devoured by the carnivorous plant. As a result, this footage (along with the subsequent elaborate $5 million sequence featuring the world being overrun with Audrey II's offspring) was scrapped and replaced with a new, upbeat happy ending.

Full page newspaper ad

Studio-imposed alterations have always happened, though it wasn't common public knowledge back in the days before DVD. However, "Little Shop of Horrors" was a high profile film that was anticipated to do big business during its Christmas 1986 release (it under-performed theatrically but quickly became a smash hit and cash cow on home video). The press ran with the story of the original ending in countless TV and magazine articles (and it was also discussed in The Little Shop of Horrors Book), photos of the now-missing sequences adorned trading cards, paperback novels and other tie-in merchandise and, as the years passed, various cast and crew members voiced their displeasure with the reshoot ending. All of this exposure left fans dying to see the ending that should have been...

Special Edition DVD Cover

In 1998, a few fans finally got that chance when "Little Shop" was released as a special edition DVD. One of the bonus features included was a 23 minute rough black-and-white copy of the original ending duped from director Frank Oz's VHS workprint. Producer David Geffen knew nothing about this release until it hit store shelves and he immediately hit the roof. "They put out a black-and-white, unscored, undubbed video copy of the original ending that looked like shit," Geffen complained to Entertainment Weekly. The result was the world's first collector's-item-DVD; one week after it hit shelves the special edition disc was recalled. When eBay went mainstream later that year, resale prices lingered just under $100 and have increased as the years have passed to as much as $300. Ouch!

Why, this thing could be bigger than hula-hoops!

Geffen rationalized the DVD recall by declaring he had color footage of the original ending and intended to see the film re-released as originally envisioned-- much like a similar move that had paid off for WB in 1993 with the lauded director's cut of "Blade Runner" (gotta remember that DVDs were still in their infancy in 1998... though we'd soon be inundated with unrated editions and director's cuts galore). It was speculated that when the DVD was reissued, it would include the color footage, but instead they essentially just removed the alternate ending and re-released the disc without the "special edition" tag. Then years passed and nothing seemed to happen.

In 2006 Oz's workprint ending surfaced on You Tube, offering the meek who couldn't afford to shell out $100+ for the recalled DVD the opportunity to finally see this infamous lost footage. In 2007 an announcement was made that the studio was working on an HD restoration complete with the original ending. When it failed to happen, rumors began to spread that the color footage of the original ending had been destroyed in a studio fire. I've never been able to pinpoint exactly where this rumor began, but it doesn't seem to have been leaked in any official statement (yet many fans took it as fact) and it's particularly irksome since Geffen stated way back in 1998 that he had the color footage. In 2008, a director's cut was cited by Fangoria for a 2009 release, though the disc that was ultimately issued was just a repackaging of the non-special edition DVD in a plastic case (the original releases were packaged in cardboard snap-cases). And that leads us to today.

Topps Trading Card

So what else is going to be included on this forthcoming release? No telling at the moment since WB seems to have been trying to keep it under wraps. There's no question, however, that "Don't Feed the Plants" will be shorter and more polished than in the now widely-seen black-and-white version (which was a really rough early edit). Some additional footage was excised from the film prior to its original release, including numerous verses from the songs "Some Fun Now" and "The Meek Shall Inherit," the latter of which featured a lengthy Rick Moranis solo accompanied by a trippy dream sequence in which he transformed into a plant. Here's hoping that makes it. It's a good bet that there will be an upgraded dupe of the originally released version along with the new version. Would also be nice to have an isolated score on the new cut, the blooper reel without Frank Oz's commentary (it isn't optional on any of the previous DVD releases) as well as the full workprint ending for posterity. And doubtlessly we can expect some sort of new retrospective featurette along with the other extras from the original DVDs. Beyond that I can't speculate (and this entire paragraph is just mere speculation) but it's wonderful to see it's finally happening!

Thanks to Aryeh for the heads-up!

Help with the Restoration of Manos!

2011-12-30T00:00:00.005-06:00

First of all yep, I'm still alive and apologize for the lack of updates and being flaky with email (long, mostly uninteresting story about a downed PC, lack of internet access, legal threats and other personal dramas). But something just came to my attention that I feel the need to pass along...

Generally cited as one of the very worst movies of all time, the 1966 trashterpiece "Manos: The Hands of Fate" quickly fell into obscurity but was resurrected and has since gained notoriety through airings on MST3K. It's notable for kicking off the celluloid satanist motif before "Rosemary's Baby" and the myriad of subsequent '70s drive-in devil-worshiper flicks ("The Devil's Rain," "Brotherhood of Satan," "Warlock Moon," etc.) but it has all the charm and production values of an Ed Wood film.

I'd seen the movie before and too thought it was horrible but, after watching the "Mistress-Piece Theatre" episode of the short-lived "Elvira's Movie Macabre" revival earlier this year, I came to the realization that it's a very interesting, weird, surreal piece of '60s indie, no-budget filmmaking in which practically everything was done wrong -- though the few things they did right were really right, which makes it kind of memorable and special. Plus it has a bizarre soundtrack/score that has a way of getting under your skin. And to boot, countless behind the scenes legends are now fact, thanks to interviews and lengthy exposition on Wikipedia and imdb. Easy to see why it's become a cult movie, and it's doubtlessly one that benefits from the right sort of audience and abundant intoxicants. So thank you, Elvira, for changing my opinion. And thank you for not suing me over my share of your "Attack of the Killer B-Movies" TV-special (please?).

Public domain DVD screen-cap

Unfortunately, the only circulating prints of "Manos" are what one would expect of a public domain film: The colors are so muted that they're murky. The picture's dirty and scratched up. Shot on 16mm, edited on 16mm, blown up to 35mm, transferred to VHS, and finally to DVD (then digitized again on The Internet Archive), details are difficult to discern through this multi-generation visual bastardization (the only visible feature on the black poodle are the whites of its eyes and its wagging tongue!). The picture has been oddly cropped, cutting out many production details and nuances (such as people's heads and feet!). The original opening has been lopped off from every version available. All in all, this is a movie that has not been treated well, and known existing 35mm copies have reddened with age and deteriorated even more than the widely available versions.

Workprint negative scan with cropping comparison

Recently cameraman Ben Solovey decided to resume his hobby of collecting 16mm films and found an eBay auction that had no bidders. Next thing he knew, he discovered he had inexplicably bought the original 16mm workprint of "Manos." The picture is sharp, the colors are bright and vivid, and it's seen in its proper framing for the very first time.

Now Solovey's spearheading an ambitious attempt to both restore the film and preserve it for future generations and he's looking for donations, which will be collected in February. Although he's already exceeded the bare minimal goal of $10,000 for the restoration, all additional money is being sunk into the project for other things, including the creation of documentaries, audio commentaries by surviving cast members and a 2K to 35mm film-out preservation negative, which will enable the striking of new 35mm prints. The tentative release of this new version is August 2012.

I'm the first to admit "Manos" is a bad movie, but it's one that's so spectacularly bad that it's downright endearing. And for whatever it's worth, Quintin Tarrantino has cited it as his favorite "comedy." While it might not reach the importance of something like, say Fritz Lang's "Metropolis," it's still important to see that it's restored and preserved while it's still possible in order to retain the highest quality. And the fact that the film has fallen into the hands of a private collector who's trying to make that happen makes it especially unique and noteworthy.

A lot people who visit this blog are here cuz I cover culty films, so you should know that movies like "Manos" have a tendency to only be available in low quality, having been neglected and/or lost for decades by uncaring studios. The reason more movies don't undergo a proper restorations is because it's ridiculously expensive to have it done right. Whether you like the film or not, here's a chance to help ensure one less movie is forever only seen in a substandard format.

There are a variety of cool incentives for contributing (restoration credits, pins, T-shirts, Blu-Ray/DVD, silkscreen posters, etc.), and if you contribute now you won't be charged until February 4, 2012 (which gives you a while to save up!). Might sound like I'm doing a bad infomercial here (CALL NOW!), but I'm over-selling it because this is one project that I wholeheartedly support -- I mean, things like this sooooo seldom happen. For more, just check out the sites below:

Kickstarter's "Manos: The Restoration" Donation page

"Manos" in HD blog

"Manos" in HD Facebook page

Watch/Download the (bad) Public Domain Print

Fur is murder!

2011-10-02T13:00:00.000-05:00

(But not in the way you might think....)
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I'm not real anymore....

2011-10-01T13:30:00.001-05:00

1969's "Daughter of the Mind" is a creepy, plodding supernatural thriller starring Ray Milland as a scientist who becomes convinced that he can communicate with the spirit of his deceased little girl. The film boasts a great cast including Gene Tierney (in her final film role), Don Murray, John Carradine, and Ed Asner. Tragically never issued on VHS or DVD, this copy is very good quality, duped from a recent uncut movie channel broadcast (massive thanks to the person who ripped it, as I spent years trying to track down a copy!).

DAUGHTER OF THE MIND
1969. Not Rated. 90 mins.

DOWNLOAD LINKS:
MegaUpload

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I Dream of... different characters

2011-08-20T13:30:00.004-05:00

Thanks to a five year run of 139 episodes that have been in syndication for 40+ years, Larry Hagman and Barbara Eden will forever be known as Tony and Jeannie Nelson. Eden reprised her role in two made for TV movies (as well as appearing in a cameo in "A Very Brady Sequel"), but Hagman never played Major Nelson again. However, a year after "I Dream of Jeannie" went off the air, Eden and Hagman were reunited -- with a bit of role reversal -- for the 1971 movie of the week "A Howling in the Woods." They wouldn't work together again until 1990, when she did a guest-starring stint on "Dallas" as a favor to him.

Liza Crocker (Eden) decides to leave her husband Eddie (Hagman), so she returns to the Nevada lodge her father owns, where she grew up. There she is greeted by her young stepmother Rose (PSYCHO's Vera Miles) and her new step-brother Justin (John Rubinstein). The rest of the townspeople, however, aren't so anxious to greet her, and they're even less thrilled with the mysterious hound who's been baying outside the hotel. And to make matters weirder, her father has vanished to Mexico on a trip. Soon Liza uncovers a mystery revolving around the death of her childhood friend Sally's (Tyne Daly) young daughter.

The movie was filmed in the winter of '71 in Glenbrooke and Dayton, Nevada. The brisk temperatures caused production problems, and Eden claimed that during one scene it was so cold she couldn't make her lips move. But one of the problems during the shoot was off-camera. "Our outboard motorboat ran out of gas on Lake Tahoe where we were filming," said Barbara. "It was choppy and snowballs froze like ice cubes in the water. John Rubinstein look the one oar and rowed us ashore. It took 45 minutes."

Probably should note that there's several scenes featuring Rubinstein playing the piano, and it becomes increasingly clear that it's actually him tickling the ivories. In real life, John's the son of Artur Rubinstein, a renowned Polish concert pianist.

Somebody requested this movie and I was kinda shocked I'd never heard of it. Once again, I turned to those great people at CG and had it an hour later. There's a bit of a sense of deju vu, as the way the story unfolds is very reminiscent of "The Stepford Children," which Eden starred in 16 years later. Like most TV movies from its time, the film is paced slowly and some of the dialogue is laughable, but they amassed talented actors who managed to sell it. And since there's numerous scenes which feature an inordinate amount of exposition, they had to get good actors. On the downside, Hagman doesn't really show up until halfway through the film, and once he's there he has little to do. It's also kinda weird to see HER rejecting HIS advances.

As for the movie's big mystery, there's a few aspects of it that were a bit predictable (like the dog), but I still hadn't put all the pieces together until the big reveal -- and I have a lot of respect for old movies that can keep me guessing. Unfortunately, the final tag scene felt kinda forced, but considering the stars and the era, it's forgivable. All in all, it's a nifty little thriller.

The movie premiered on NBC in November 1971, garnering mostly good reviews, and it aired infrequently on TV until the mid-'90s. As was the trend at the time, it found its way into theatres internationally soon after it debuted, but doesn't seem to have had an official home video release anywhere in the world. Which leads me back to this copy. This is ripped from a broadcast on WGN in the mid-'90s; it runs 93 mins. and has a very good picture quality.

I'm baffled by the running time though. The film debuted in a 90 minute time slot in 1971 -- 1971 TV movies run 74 minutes once commercials are removed. So it's possible that this is the international version. However, imdb cites a running time of 100 mins. Running times on imdb are frequently inaccurate, so I don't know if this is longest version released or not -- and I probably won't know until the studio decides to give it a proper release (but considering what company made it, I don't see that happening any time soon). So without further ado, here's another TV obscurity!

A Howling in the Woods
1971. Not Rated. 93 mins.

DOWNLOAD LINKS:
MegaUpload, MegaShares

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It's time for Roseanne Barr!

2011-07-25T13:40:00.005-05:00

Can't explain why I like Roseanne, but I do. Maybe cuz I identify with nuts? But before there was "Roseanne's Nuts," Roseanne Barr (Pentland-Arnold-Thomas-Argent?) appeared in another reality show... that lasted all of two weeks on the air. 2003's "The Real Roseanne Show" chronicled the making of Roseanne's cooking show, "Domestic Goddess."

The original plan was that "The Real Roseanne Show" would air in hour-long blocks over six weeks on ABC from August-September 2003, and "Domestic Goddess" would debut on ABC Family immediately following. Unfortunately, there was no clear concept to "Domestic Goddess," as is painfully evident in "The Real Roseanne Show." Roseanne decided "Domestic Goddess" had to be reworked before it could be aired, but the kibosh was put on both shows when she announced she needed time off for a hysterectomy.

Since only four episodes were broadcast of "The Real Roseanne Show," it's pretty much been forgotten. But with "Roseanne's Nuts" now on the air, it's sort of interesting to revisit her previous reality show. The 2003 series came at the beginning of Barr's relationship with songwriter Johnny Argent, and at that point, it wasn't clear if their relationship was going to last. Roseanne's son Jake and son-in-law Jeff were the inept producers of "Domestic Goddess," and other friends and family members appeared in both series, including Colleen Camp and Sandra Bernhard -- though episodes of the 2003 show featuring John Goodman, Phyllis Diller and Bonnie Bramlett never aired.

So below are the four episodes of the show that aired ("Roseanne Unbarred," "Kinder, Gentler, Hungrier," "What's the Pitch?," and "Where's the Doughnuts?"). Since they're serialized and less than 90 minutes combined, I ripped 'em as a single video. Unfortunately, I didn't have a DVR at the time and there's a buzz on the hi-fi tracks (the tapes were practically inaudible when I turned off the hi-fi), which is annoying but not overbearing.

The Real Roseanne Show
Episodes 1-4

DOWNLOAD LINKS:
MegaUpload

"So lights, camera, shut the f*** up! It's time for Roseanne Barr!"
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"The Real Roseanne Show" Gallery!
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What is wrong with making money?

2011-07-18T01:45:00.012-05:00

For those who've discovered the joys of Nai Bonet's goofy disco-vampire comedy "Nocturna," here's a companion. 1980's "Hoodlums" (aka "Gangsters") is Bonet's follow-up, which also holds the distinction of being her final film.

Loretta (Bonet) is a singer and escort in a NYC mob-owned nightclub/illegal casino. The favorite working girl of manager George (Tony Page), Loretta is unhappy with her current occupation and looking for a way out. George, meanwhile, is losing his stranglehold on the business. Complications arise when Loretta finds herself falling for a man she meets in her off-hours. Clearly this isn't gonna end well...

Some backstory is required to fully appreciate this trashterpiece. Bonet is a half-French, Vietnamese-born, NYC raised belly dancer who became a headliner at age 13. Around the age of 20 in the early '60s, Nai was rubbing elbows with Hollywood royalty nightly, and she found her way into a few now-obscure films, an episode of "The Beverly Hillbillies," TV talk shows, and commercials -- almost always appearing as a exotic dancer. By the '70s, Nai decided to set her sights exclusively on acting. She appeared on Broadway and had bit parts in a few films like "Soul Hustler" and "Fairy Tales," but she yearned for bigger roles -- so she began filling up a notebook with ideas for movies to star in.

In 1978, Nai got "Halloween" producer Irwin Yablans to fund a disco comedy called "Nocturna," in which she portrayed the title character, Dracula's granddaughter. The movie received a minor release in '79, horrid reviews, and one home video release in 1983. Hilariously bad, intentionally campy, featuring horror icons John Carradine and Yvonne DeCarlo as well as a pair of club disco hits by Gloria Gaynor and Vicki Sue Robinson, the movie's gone on to attain a small cult following... which is really beginning to snowball, thanks to internet word-of-mouth.

"Hoodlums," on the other hand, has been completely ignored and forgotten. Probably funded by real-life gangsters ("Nocturna" was rumored to have been, but I've since found evidence that it was fully funded by Yablans), the movie seems to have gotten a theatrical release somewhere (I've got a 1-sheet to prove it), but it doesn't appear to have attained wide distribution before its video release(s) by the obscure Twilight Home Entertainment. And today the tapes are very pricey and difficult to obtain.

Again Bonet conceived the story, along with "I Spit on Your Grave"'s Bill Tasgal, and they pawned off screenwriting duties on an unknown named Edith E. Colegrave. "Nocturna" cinematographer Mac Ahlberg returned to direct, and Vicki Sue Robinson's role expanded from that of mere soundtrack singer to starring in a big supporting role.

Clearly a soundtrack was planned to boost awareness of the film, but one was never issued. Robinson, Cissy Houston and Theodore "T" Life all appear and sing in the film -- and their songs are recycled over and over again in the background. It would appear that Nai also sings a song, but her performance of "Long Lonely Night" is actually lipsynched to vocals by Cory Daye. Oddly, not only is it Nai's finest moment in the movie, but she mouthed better to someone else's voice than she did to her own in her 1966 "Jelly Belly" music video.

As for the movie itself, "Hoodlums" is very much akin to "Nocturna" in execution. There's a combination of professionals and people off the street both in front of and behind the camera, overlong disco sequences, slim story, overacting and bad acting galore, atmospheric NYC pre-city cleanup, and corny dialogue. Where the two films deviate is in tone. "Hoodlums" is much darker, and the Loretta character is less one-dimensional than Nocturna. Of course, Nai's performance isn't any more dimensional, but that's part of her charm.

Some of the other actors fare better... though none fare especially great. Vicki Sue Robinson is a scene stealer as Loretta's best friend and coworker. And in a smaller scene-stealing role is Jean Smart ("Designing Women," "24"), who wildly overacts in her second film and is saddled with a clown-styled wig. Michael V. Gazzo ("Godfather II") makes a formidable crime boss, though his performance devolves into total camp at one point. Peter Iacangelo gives a standout performance as George's henchman Zoo, though he's involved in two of the goofiest fight scenes this side of "Dynasty." And then there's Tony Page, who's also pretty good, though it sounds like he gargled with razor blades and horse piss to attain his gravel gangster voice (apologies if that's his real voice, but it sounds fake).

All in all, it's an enjoyable, splendiforously bad little b-movie that deserves to be better known than it is. And this post is a good start! Make sure to watch for one of the phoniest punches ever captured on film (trust me, you'll know it when you see it) and the ugliest cat that ever lived!

Hoodlums
1980. Rated R. 89 mins.

DOWNLOAD LINKS:
MegaUpload
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Thanks for lending me the tape, Tess!
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You know the inside of my brain so well...

2011-06-24T04:30:00.007-05:00

Since you guys obviously have a thing for Elizabeth Montgomery, here's another rare flick from the "Bewitched" star... "The Victim" began Montgomery's reign as one of the queens of TV movies from the '70s until her death in the mid-'90s. She was offered roles in series, but turned them down, instead seeking out parts that could (in her words) "be done in any medium." Meaning stagy dramas, like this one...

First mounted in 1934 as a stage play, "Dark Victory" has become synonymous with Bette Davis, who starred in the quintessential tearjerker film in 1939. The story concerns a woman with a brain tumor who falls in love with her doctor before she dies. In the 1950s, it was remade at least six times for television (first in 1951 on Elizabeth Montgomery's father's series, "Robert Montgomery Presents"), it was adapted as a radio play, and remade again in 1963 as "Stolen Hours."

Initially Montgomery had some trepidation about taking the role. "I'm not one for remakes, but this one held up when I re-read it. It's nice to do a love story for a change," she remarked. One factor that made her want to pursue a tragic love story instead of more then-popular made for TV horror was a perplexing piece of mail she received after "The Legend of Lizzie Borden" aired. "One guy wrote a critique that went on for three pages. It was very articulate. I put it down and looked at the envelope and it was from a state institution. I'm wondering what he was in for. He didn't tell me."

In a twist of irony, Bette Davis and Elizabeth Montgomery were real-life friends -- Davis once jokingly referred to Montgomery as "my illegitimate daughter." When Elizabeth decided to take the role in the film, she tried to call Bette to tell her about the part. "You could reach Betty Ford quicker," Montgomery quipped.

Although the basic plot is the same, the two films are very different. "We strove very judiciously to eliminate all the soap opera qualities and the corn," Montgomery said. "It's essentially a poignant and very possible story about an every-day situation," Montgomery continued. "It's a marvelous love story and though it's sad it's not totally sad."

Every-day situation indeed. Ironically, Davis and Montgomery both died of cancer -- and "Stolen Hours" star Susan Hayward died from brain cancer. Hope that's a heads-up to anyone considering taking a role in the play. Now I should note that the above interview excerpt was stated at the time of the film's release. By 2011 standards, the 1976 movie is WILDLY corny and soap opera-ish. It's also extraordinarily campy, and the depiction of doctors and hospitals in general is probably offensive to everyone in the medical profession (wasn't until "E/R" came along in the '90s that TV writers put any real research into medical jargon and procedures). Still, it's very likable and memorable, and the actors are all very good... at least in the moments when the film's not treading heavily in camp territory.

Costarring Anthony Hopkins as Montgomery's doctor/love interest, Michelle Lee as her best friend and Vic Tayback and Michael Lerner as coworkers, the movie performed admirably on TV, though critical reaction was mixed. It was subsequently released theatrically internationally. Unfortunately, probably due to its extended length, I don't think it was released on video anywhere in the world and it's not out on DVD.

So here's a rip of the film taken from a broadcast last year on cable. I'm guessing this is either a syndication print or the international version, as it runs 12 minutes shorter than the original 150 minute broadcast. Still pretty rare, and doesn't seem to be circulating on the net, other than for sale on ioffer -- and most of those are probably dupes of this slightly-shorter version as well.

Dark Victory
1976. Not Rated. 138 mins.

DOWNLOAD LINKS:
MegaUpload

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You'd better leave that cowboy alone!

2011-06-23T09:45:00.005-05:00

If you've never seen Dolly Parton bruised and bloodied, I'll bet you thought you never would. The photo above is the result of a beating she sustained at the hands of Gary Busey in 1991.

Okay, so not really. The pic is from the duo's 1991 movie of the week, "Wild Texas Wind," in which Dolly portrayed a country singer who was trapped in an abusive relationship with her psychotic boyfriend/manager, played by Mr. (a-)Busey. Inspired casting on both accounts.

Also starring in the film was Asleep at the Wheel frontman Ray Benson (as a character named Ben Rayson -- yep, what a stretch!) and a then-poverty-stricken Willie Nelson began his comeback with a cameo in the film singing (what else?) "On the Road Again."

The film was issued on VHS in Canada, the UK and Australia (good luck finding a copy, as they are next to impossible to come by -- at least the NTSC version, the UK tape's not quite as rare) but no soundtrack was released. I rectified the soundtrack situation a while ago, but never offered the movie, so... Below is the soundtrack again, with a few new bonus tracks, as well as a high quality rip of the movie. I finagled this copy of the film from someone who works at a TV network -- and the quality is excellent. Unfortunately, it's the syndication print, which is two minutes shorter and missing one brief scene that appeared in the original network broadcast. And more unfortunate, I can't seem to find my (crummy quality) tape of the original broadcast at the moment. When I do find it, I'll share the missing scene, but this oughta please a bunch of Dolly fans in the meantime...

Wild Texas Wind
1991. Not Rated. 94 mins.

DOWNLOAD LINKS:
The Movie: MegaUpload

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Wild Texas Wind

01. Big T
02. There's a Ring Around the Moon
03. Say It's True (Partial) - with Ray Benson
04. Road Happy/On the Road Again - with Ray Benson & Willie Nelson
05. Cover Up a Heart That's Broke
06. Swingin' Like Tarzan and Jane - with Ray Benson
07. Farther Along
08. Leave That Cowboy Alone - with Ray Benson
09. Wild Texas Wind
10. Speakin' of the Devil
11. Tall Man - with Ray Benson
12. My Songbird - Willie Nelson
13. Big T/On the Road Again (reprise)
14. End Titles
BONUS
15. Speakin' of the Devil - album cut
16. Say It's True - unreleased solo version

DOWNLOAD LINKS:
The Songs: MegaUpload

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It'd be great to play house here!

2011-06-19T06:00:00.015-05:00

Growing up in an era before TV ratings and V-chips, I was exposed to a lot of wildly inappropriate programs -- and I am indeed grateful for that! But there's one movie that traumatized and scarred me for life: a schlocky 1981 made for TV thriller called "This House Possessed." (But since I already told how the film scarred me at the end of an old spoiler-filled Retro Junk article that I wrote, I won't rehash that aspect...)

Gary Straihorne (Parker Stevenson) is a schmaltzy pop singer with millions of adoring fans. When he collapses from "exhaustion" (according to the doctor, though viewers know better) he winds up hospitalized and cared for by nurse Sheila Moore (Stevenson's "Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries" costar Lisa Eilbacher).

Gary convinces Sheila to quit her job and become his personal nurse as he recuperates, and he buys a sprawling mansion with all the modern conveniences of 1981, including video surveillance, solar power and storm-proof windows.

But before either of them ever arrived at the mansion, they were showing up on the video surveillance monitors -- and after they arrive, really strange things begin to happen... Soon Gary's pill-popping ex Tanya (Shelley Smith) arrives to create an awkward love triangle, and Sheila finds herself intrigued by the mysterious town eccentric, The Rag Lady (screen legend Joan Bennett, in one of her final roles).

What makes "This House Possessed" so interesting is it's not, as the title suggests, a haunted house film. The house itself is living, breathing (literally, at one point) entity with a mind of its own that is capable of using anything within its confines to achieve its ultimate goal. And that ultimate goal is... just plain weird! When I saw the movie again in the early '90s, I recognized it was schlock, but it's very unusual, highly atmospheric schlock filled with great performances, odd moments and an über-creepy score by perennial '70s and '80s TV composer Billy Goldenberg ("Duel," "The Legend of Lizzie Borden").

Probably should mention the rest of the actors. Amanda Wyss appears as a horny teenager in the opening (scare) scene, and she'd go on to be Freddy Krueger's first on-screen victim. Slim Pickens, who mostly starred in westerns (as well as "The Howling" and the twisted '80s sitcom "Filthy Rich") plays Gary's manager. K. Callan plays the town's nosy librarian, and she's been a staple TV guest star for four decades. Similarly stock character actor Barry Corbin plays a cop... a role he's perfected over the years. David Paymer shows up briefly as a doctor, and he'd go on to win an Oscar as well as appear in flicks like "Night of the Creeps," "Howard the Duck" and the whacked-out black comedy "Bartleby." The ubiquitous Philip Baker Hall has a blink-and-you-missed-it role as a records office clerk, and he'd later star in genre films like "Ghostbusters II" and "Die Mommie Die" as well as the remakes of "Psycho" and "The Amityville Horror." Not a shabby cast.

I really want this script but can't afford $68 for it!

Filmed under the title "American Gothic," the producers were planning on finding a Victorian mansion for their principal character. But when scouting locations, they came upon a $25 million modern mansion in San Diego that sat on a whopping 220 acres of land -- and they knew they'd found their location. "I studied architecture at Princeton, and for me to spend three weeks on location in this house was wonderful," Stevenson told the Associated Press.

Stevenson performed three songs in the movie (co-written by composer Goldenberg and "Rocky" theme song lyricist Carol Connors), and this was the first time he'd sang professionally -- but he wasn't worried about that aspect. "I come from a family of singers," he boasted, adding, "My sister, Sarah McCord, is a professional singer."

And with his feathered helmet-hair, open shirt, corny lyrics and on-stage collapse, one could easily mistake him for one of the brothers Gibb. Actually, it's too bad there's no soundtrack, cuz the songs are kinda catchy in an annoying late '70s Barry Manilow sorta way.

Nope, that isn't Carrie White...

The film was a direct result of Stevenson's "Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys Mysteries" show. In his contract, he had the option to make two movies for ABC after the series ended. Problem was, he was attracted to projects that "weren't commercial" enough for the network. After having numerous ideas rejected, Stevenson settled on this starring vehicle, hoping it would be successful enough that the network would approve a follow-up that was a little less commercial... though a second film never materialized.

In an ironic twist, "This House Possessed" debuted on ABC the same night "The Brady Girls Get Married" premiered on NBC. What makes it ironic is that "The Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys Mysteries" and "The Brady Bunch Variety Hour" both debuted on ABC around the same time (matter of fact, this "Hardy Boys" promo aired during the "Variety Hour") -- obviously one was successful and the other wasn't, leading the Bradys to jump network (for the second time) for another short-lived revival.

Best as I can tell, "This House Possessed" was never issued on video anywhere in the world (don't ask me where the art directly above originated). The rip below originated at CG: it's an uncut broadcast from the now-defunct Turner South network (as the prominent logo in the corner so clearly states), and the quality's the best you're likely to find. Here's hoping the film will one day get the deluxe, remastered DVD release it so desperately deserves!

This House Possessed
1981. Not Rated. 96 mins.

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I don't have enough leftover images to warrant a gallery (and imagebam's giving me problems at the moment anyway), so.... Here's two vintage articles!

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Who planned this thing, the 3 Stooges?

2011-06-18T02:45:00.007-05:00

What happens when you plop precocious Gary Coleman into the middle of a caper comedy with great actors like Paul Le Mat, Dee Wallace, Ruth Gordon, Cleavon Little, Pat Morita, TV personalities Don Adams and Avery Schreiber, and perennial 'fat guy' character actor Walter Olkewicz? You get one of the most moronic forgotten comedies of the '80s!

Based on the novel of the same name by Donald E. Westlake, with a script penned by "Saved By the Bell" creator Sam Bobrick, and directed by "The Black Hole"'s Gary Nelson, "Jimmy the Kid" centers on an eclectic group of petty burglars (Le Matt, Wallace, Gordon, Olkewicz) who decide to use a novel as their inspiration for a kidnapping heist that they hope will result in the biggest payoff of their criminal careers. The target? Obviously that's the young, wealthy, wisecracking Coleman, in his second (and last) leading role in a theatrical film. Soon detective Adams (in Maxwell Smart mode, as always) is on the trail of the kidnappers, bumbling all the way. Here's the trailer:

Although made in the early '80s (Dee Wallace most likely went right from the set of "E.T." to this), the film's got a distinctly late '70s vibe to it. There's car chases, off-color jokes, bumbling cops, there's even a scene set at McDonald's and a great period score by John Cameron ("Psychomania"). And speaking of that score, the end credits cite a soundtrack release on Regency Records, which I spent a quarter of a century searching for... but apparently it was never actually issued.

The story's pretty dumb and some of the gags are lame -- but there are a bunch of great one-liners, and scene stealing Ruth Gordon's character is one of the funniest she ever played (aside from her iconic role in "Harold and Maude," of course). Wallace is also cute and charismatic, speaking with a fabricated squeaky voice that makes her seem like a 1930s gangster's moll. Matter of fact, the whole gang of criminals are extremely lovable and well cast... but other characters didn't fare quite as well.

Pat Morita as Coleman's blind limo driver(!) gets stuck in one eye-rolling gag after another. Don Adams spends a good chunk of the film in drag doing his inane schtick. (Chances are Adams was cast because director Gary Nelson directed many episodes of "Get Smart" as well as the '80s TV movie "Get Smart Again.") Jimmy's parents (Cleavon Little, Fay Hauser) are cartoonish country singers who sing a painfully stupid song called "Keep Your Paws Off of My Dog." And former Doritos spokesman Avery Schrieber briefly appears as Jimmy's perpetually confused German psychiatrist.

The film was released in November 1982, which ensured its fate as a forgotten film. The easiest way for a studio to bury a picture is to release it in mid-November, because ticket sales are slow and it's pretty much guaranteed it'll be bumped out of theatres within a few weeks to make room for an onslaught of holiday movies. Didn't help matters that 1982 was an especially big year for blockbusters. But, like so many other movies that suffered the same fate, it quickly turned up on HBO and was scheduled fairly continuously for the next five years. Unfortunately, it's since been forgotten and has never been released on DVD. Similarly, the novel's been out of print for almost 20 years and now fetches ridiculous resale prices.

Should mention that Bobrick opted not to keep a great inside joke from Westlake's novel: the kidnappers were following a book called "Child Heist," written by Richard Stark. Stark is one of Westlake's aliases. Westlake's novel was again adapted to a 1999 German film released by Buena Vista (?!). There's not much information about the '99 film online (though there's a brief TV spot on YouTube) and that version's never been issued on video in any format, but it's worth noting that the German "Jimmy" was a little white girl.

So here's a rip of the '82 movie taken from my VHS. Minor glitch before "Keep Your Paws Off of My Dog," but otherwise it plays fine. I switched software, so this one plays much more smoothly than some of my other recent video rips.

Jimmy the Kid
1982. Rated PG. 88 mins.

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I'm sure her bite is poisonous!

2011-06-16T06:30:00.009-05:00

After "Bewitched" was canceled, star Elizabeth Montgomery was looking to change her image. She eventually succeeded by starring as Lizzie Borden, but before that she appeared in another horror movie of the week called "The Victim" (later re-titled "Out of Contention"), which was adapted from a short story titled "The Storm" (also the basis for a 1962 episode of the anthology series "Thriller").

Montgomery starred as Kate Wainwright, a women who travels to the country to see her sister, Susan (Jess Walton). Arriving during a terrible rainstorm that ultimately cuts her off from civilization altogether, Kate discovers there's no signs of Susan anywhere, only creepy housekeeper Mrs. Hawkes (Eileen Heckart, "The Bad Seed"). As the night wears on, Kate begins to fear something horrible has happened to Susan... and with good reason, since it's established to the audience pretty quickly that Susan is dead in the basement!

"The Victim" is not a great movie, mostly because there's a whole lot of nothing happening. Montgomery wanders around an empty house, converses with the neighbor (Sue Ane Langdon) and others via telephone, as well as with the housekeeper and Susan's soon-to-be ex husband (George Maharis, "Route 66"). Unfortunately, it's blatantly apparent how the movie's gonna end eons before it actually concludes. It's one of those old movies of the week that people seem to have very fond memories of... fuzzy memories of a film that's better than it actually is.

However, the performances are all great -- Heckart and Montgomery bounced lines off one another particularly well. There's also a great sense of dread, a genuinely creepy atmosphere, and some stalking POV shots pre-"Black Christmas" and "Halloween." Not too many films can claim the latter.

The movie's never been released on DVD, but it was issued on VHS in both Canada and the UK as "Out of Contention." This rip is my own of the Canadian video. There's a few minor glitches as the movie begins and a tracking line on the very bottom that I couldn't get rid of, but otherwise the quality is pretty good. Worth noting, however, that the tape ends abruptly without closing credits. And apologies for lack of cover art -- my tape got loaned out years ago and the box wasn't returned (the NTSC cover had a pretty generic painting of a gloomy house; no photos).

The Victim (aka Out of Contention)
1972. Not Rated. 70 mins.

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Elvira's NEW Movie Macabre in stores now!

2011-06-14T05:00:00.012-05:00

She's back and she's badder than ever! Yep, in case you were unaware, Elvira returned to the air last September with a new incarnation of her '80s "Movie Macabre" show. In the old days, the bewigged one was at the mercy of her bosses and network censors. She had no control over which movies were shown and, although she spouted off as many double-entendres as the (TV) law would allow, she couldn't be as sleazy as she wanted to be. Well, times have changed, and now she's her own boss, which means a lot of z-grade '50s-'70s trash and dirty jokes galore!

Four episodes of the new series are now available on two discs. First up is the classic "Night of the Living Dead" (the premiere episode) and the moronic "I Eat Your Skin," which (as Elvira points out) contains no actual skin-eating. Volume 2 includes the dull schlocker "The Satanic Rites of Dracula" (which was enlivened by some humorous editing during its broadcast) and the likably dopey "Werewolf of Washington." If you're looking into the show for the first time, "Werewolf of Washington" is a great place to start -- if for no other reason than to see Elvira's deadpan send-up of Sarah Palin:

Both discs seem to have the same special features: Behind the scenes, photo shoot, Ghoultown music video, and previews. Retail price is $14.98, amazon's got 'em for $10.99.

On August 14th, two more sets of DVDs will be released, including the Roger Corman/Jack Nicholson snoozer "The Terror" with the Arch Hall Jr. musical campfest "Eegah," and the tacky classic "The Brain That Wouldn't Die" with the cornball, aptly-named "The Manster."

Probably should mention that the theme song, "What Can I Do?" by The Black Belles, is available as a 7" picture disc from Thirdman Records. One side is the instrumental (featured during the opening credits), the other includes lyrics (featured during the closing credits), and it comes wrapped in a fold-out coffin sleeve (above), featuring Elvira on the front and her makeup secrets (along with a pic of The Black Belles) on the back.

Plus elvira.com recently got a massive makeover, which includes exclusive content for her fan club members! After a near-decade-long absence from the spotlight (save for that moronic reality show), it's good to finally have Elvira back!

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Get high on Jesus!

2011-06-13T02:45:00.012-05:00

Sometimes decent little b-movies simply fall through the cracks and are forgotten. That certainly seems to be the case with "Soul Hustler," a great '70s flick starring singer Fabian (Forte), belly-dancer Nai Bonet, Tony Russel, Larry Bishop (son of Joey Bishop) and perennial voice-man Casey Kasem.

Matthew (Fabian) is a grifter who picks up a former-junkie hitchhiker (Bishop) who just got back from 'nam and then stops at a church revival tent to swindle the patrons out of their hard earned cash. The stunt lands him in jail, but evangelist Evin (Russel) sees potential in the young conman and takes him under his wing. Next thing you know, Matthew is being billed as "the son of Jesus," he picks up a manager (Kasem), cuts a record and is on his way to superstardom. Late in the game, Matthew meets Helena (Bonet), who hopes to take him away from his unhappy life as a reluctant messiah.

To say much more of the plot itself is to spoil it -- there's a few pretty unexpected twists thrown in here and there. Fabian really shines as Matthew, which makes it especially sad that this was one of his final big roles (of course, he's still alive, so there's always hope...). He also gets to sing some groovy songs composed by biker movie music great Harley Hatcher ("Satan's Sadists," "The Wild Angels").

Bishop is so well cast as Matthew's hapless sidekick that it's a shame his character didn't have more to do. Russel is commanding as Matthew's constant foil, and a mustached Kasem provides some much needed comic relief. Of course, at least one instance with Kasem wasn't intended to be funny, but the sight of him in a Speedo that doesn't come even remotely close to matching his tan line seems ridiculous.

And then there's Nai Bonet ("Nocturna"), who's also surprisingly good... for the most part. The biggest problem with her performance is it feels like a huge chunk of it ended up on the cutting room floor -- her motivations aren't always clear and her emotional level seems out of whack in more than one instance, as if scenes that were meant to bookend were nixed. Still, being familiar with some of Nai's other films, this one seems like the crown jewel on her short-lived acting resume.

Writer/director Burt Topper was responsible for a lot of drive-in fare and, unfortunately, that brand of cheap exploitational sensationalism shines through in several instances. Matthew's backstory is delved into during a flashback that's unintentionally hilarious, and the ending is marred by a similarly tacky plot twist. It's not enough to completely destroy the film's narrative, but a few sequences really feel like they belong in another movie.

Really a shame that the film's never been officially released on disc, and the video's been out of print for decades. So, you know the drill... Not my rip, credit goes to Cinemageddon's badfish (and thanks to him/her... whatever, thank you!).

Soul Hustler 1973. Rated PG. 80 mins.

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As a p.s.: The soundtrack is forthcoming...

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Oh Charming, just charming!

2011-06-12T21:00:00.002-05:00

Growing up in the '70s and '80s, westerns were out, so I tended to avoid them (not to mention both my father and father-in-law had raging hardons for John Wayne, which made me like the genre even less). However, western-comedies are a different matter altogether. It's hard not to like stuff like "Blazing Saddles," "Best of the West," "Back to the Future III," "The Adventures of Brisco County Jr."... and one that my best friend introduced me to nearly a decade ago, "The Villain."

Unquestionably the most inane of the bunch is "The Villain," a mindless take-off of the Wile E. Coyote/Road Runner cartoons starring Kirk Douglas as the titular anti-hero, a Black Bart type named Cactus Jack Slade. Aided by his mistrustful black stallion Whiskey, Cactus Jack is out to foil The Handsome Stranger (Arnold Schwarzenegger), who's accompanying the voluptuous Charming Jones (Ann Margret) and her father's fortune to their final destination. Unfortunately for Cactus Jack, all of his plans seem to have been ripped straight from the Acme handbook. And unfortunately for the horny Charming, the Handsome Stranger is either gay or merely asexually oblivious to her neverending advances.

I'm the first to admit "The Villain" is not a great movie. There's virtually no story, a few of the gags don't work, there were countless missed opportunities, Paul Lynde was painfully unfunny (in his final film) as a very un-PC eunuch Indian, and the ending is too abrupt and off-the-wall. Critics savaged it, audiences ignored it, and it debuted on network TV less than a year after its theatrical release -- which was pretty unheard of in 1980.

But at the same time, there's something downright endearing about the flick. Kirk Douglas (in his first comedy) absolutely devours the scenery. In a 1979 interview he said, "I doubt that many producers or directors would have pictured me in the role. I'm not even sure that I would have thought of me." Maybe the reason he's so damned good in the part is because he was the unlikely choice... though he was continuously upstaged by the eight stallions who played Whiskey. Almost equally as good as Douglas was Margret, who'd perfected the role of the nymphette years before taking this part.

Schwarzenegger, meanwhile, was still very green as an actor, but that kind of worked to his advantage as the hapless Handsome Stranger. Donning a form-fitting, powder-blue cowboy outfit and sporting his trademarked accent, the over-buffed former Mr. Universe was the antithesis of a celluloid western hero. Not a bad thing in a movie that was never intended to be taken seriously.

Also noteworthy are the visuals. In addition to goofy runaway boulder and painted-tunnel sight gags, the film was beautifully framed to take advantage of the Arizona landscape. And I'd be very surprised if the crew escaped the abundant stuntwork unscathed.

It's really a shame that this little movie's been neglected by the studio. The region 1 DVD is open matte rather than its original widescreen ratio (normally I wouldn't complain about that, but the framing seems off numerous times) and there's no extras whatsoever. This is a film that would benefit from the insight of the cast and crew -- who all seemed to be having a grand old time making it.

But perhaps the biggest travesty is that there's never been a soundtrack. Bill Justis created a western-comedy score that was practically perfect in every way, and Mel Tillis (who had a small role) sang theme songs for the three lead characters. There's no way to rip the score from the DVD without all the dialogue and sound effects (since it's mono, using a vocal removal filter removes the music too). But below are rips of the main title overture as well as the longest variations of the three Tillis songs!

The Villain
Music from the Motion Picture

01. Main Titles
02. The Villain (Cactus Jack Slade)
03. Charming
04. Handsome Stranger

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And as a bonus (minor share, after all!), here's a photo gallery which includes some vintage articles and reviews!

"The Villain" Photo Gallery

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Sweet Charlotte rehearsal

2011-06-12T07:00:00.002-05:00

While perusing an old book called "Movie Psychos and Madmen" by John McCarty, I noticed this photo, which I'd never seen before, from rehearsals for the 1964 schlocker "Hush... Hush Sweet Charlotte." Seated on the right is Joan Crawford, who worked a total of four days on the movie before becoming ill and being replaced by Olivia de Havilland. Whether or not Crawford really was sick has been up for debate for decades; more than likely she feigned illness to get out of working with Bette Davis again (the two had previously starred together in the equally campy trashterpiece "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?," from the same writer and director). Note the bottle prominently placed between Crawford and director Robert Aldrich.

Very bloody appropriate!

2011-06-07T16:00:00.009-05:00

In 1984, Paul McCartney released his first (and only) solo movie. Although the plot of "Broad Street" is slightly more coherent than his previous screenwriting credit, "Magical Mystery Tour," it's somehow even less satisfying (which is really saying something!). The master tapes for Paul's new album, which were entrusted to a rogue named Harry whom he befriended and employed, have gone missing and Paul only has until midnight to find them or the consequences will be dire. Predictably, we never learn what those dire consequences are, which is a shame cuz THAT might've made for a better movie.

The problem is the story drags on for almost two hours but doesn't really go anywhere -- and a seemingly disinterested Paul comes across with about as much charm, wit and charisma as an uncooked potato. The saving grace of the movie is the music video portions ("Ballroom Dancing" and "Eleanor Rigby/Eleanor's Dream" are particular standouts), but that's also sort of the problem. It feels like the plot was quickly cobbled together around the musical segments. As a mainstream movie, it's an epic failure. But much like "Magical Mystery Tour," as a cult movie, it does have a surreal sort of appeal. And the music is wonderful.

Okay, share time! Here's a brand-spanking-new version of the soundtrack. Although the album itself is great, the CD releases were never remastered (obligatory hiss and even cranked up to 11 you can barely hear it!), it doesn't fully represent the versions heard in the film (the whole mid-section of "Ballroom Dancing" was omitted), and the score wasn't included (unless you count "Eleanor's Dream," which was severely truncated). I put a lot of care into this rip to get it just right (especially proud of how well the full version of "Ballroom Dancing" turned out); only "Good Day Sunshine," "Band on the Run" and the bonuses were lifted straight from albums, the rest of the tracks were remixed by yours truly utilizing the DVD's pristine 5.1 and a few portions of the soundtrack where the 5.1 was hampered by dialogue/sound effects.

Give My Regards to Broad Street
The Complete Soundtrack & Score

01. No More Lonely Nights Stinger
02. Good Day Sunshine
03. Car Ride
04. Stinger
05. Stinger
06. Yesterday
07. Here, There and Everywhere
08. Wanderlust
09. March Stinger
10. Ballroom Dancing
11. Silly Love Songs
12. Hunting Harry
13. Silly Love Songs Stinger
14. Not Such a Bad Boy
15. He'll Turn Up
16. So Bad
17. No Values
18. We'll Find Him Tonight
19. Corridor Music
20. Pomp March
21. For No One
22. Eleanor Rigby/Eleanor's Dream
23. Band on the Run
24. The Long and Winding Road
25. Give My Regards to Broad Street
26. No More Lonely Nights (Ballad Version)
27. Yesterday (Streetcorner Version)
28. Paul Finds the Tapes
29. Paul and Harry Have a Laugh
30. We've Got the Tapes
31. No More Lonely Nights (Playout Version)
BONUS
32. No More Lonely Nights (Remix)
33. No More Lonely Nights (Special Dance Mix)

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Mad Monster: Coolest 'zine I've ever seen!

2011-05-02T06:30:00.005-05:00

I spent the weekend at Texas Frightmare Weekend, an annual horror convention. As always, lots of things caught my eye, but one thing in particular really jumped out at me: a new magazine called "Mad Monster." The cover is a take-off of the unused Frank Frazetta art for the Rankin-Bass stop-motion classic "Mad Monster Party?" featuring a vast array of horror icons, and the front and back have been yellowed to make it look aged. I walked by the table ten times (and noticed the cover every time) before one of the guys working there accosted me. And I'm glad he did. Quite a promotional gimmick in the grand tradition of William Castle, they were offering a seemingly-free copy of the 'zine... if you sold them your soul. They had a contract that was drafted by a lawyer and everything! Once I saw how cool the content was, I opted to support them and shell out the $6.66 for the book instead (besides, I already sold my soul years ago for an unreleased soundtrack).

The magazine is printed on high grade, thick, stiff, glossy paper. Between the covers are the types of articles one would expect to see in a horror 'zine -- essays on films and people -- along with a lot of stuff I've NEVER seen in a horror 'zine.... There's a coloring page, a crossword puzzle, a Lon Chaney puppet, outfits for paper dolls (about the only complaint that I have is they didn't put the dolls in the book, you've gotta get 'em from the website -- but they didn't bother to mention that in the 'zine), a cut-out-and-assemble model of the "Psycho" house (called "That Old House on the Hill" for legal reasons, I'm sure), the corners of the pages feature flip-book photos, there's speculation on what a few movies might've been like if The Man of 1000 Faces were cast, plus more!

I'm also extremely impressed by the range of eras of movies/people covered. I can't recall ever seeing Lon Chaney Sr. and David Cronenberg featured in the same publication. Other things featured in the premiere issue include "Battle Beyond the Stars," "Christine," "The Devil's Rain," the classic TV-movie "Satan's Triangle," the 1896 short "House of the Devil" (often regarded as the first horror movie), the 1974 Turkish "Exorcist" rip-off "Seytan," William Castle's "Bug," and much more!

On one hand, with its cut-outs, games and groovy retro ads, the magazine feels like a throwback to the '50s and '60s, when horror movies were primarily targeted at children. On the other hand, stuff like "Videodrome" was never targeted at kids. It's a very unusual juxtaposition. All in all, this is a really cool, unique publication that I wholeheartedly endorse and hope to see gain popularity and be around for a long time. So head on over to the website to learn more and order a copy of your own!

MAD MONSTER Website

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Gremlins Storybook & Record Set

2011-04-30T00:00:00.002-05:00

If you couldn't tell from the other books I recently shared and my "Dr. Coppelius" post (the soundtrack sync-up with that movie is just freaky), I'm in "Gremlins" mode! So here's something I've been asked about a handful of times over the years....

When "Gremlins" was first released way back in 1984, the fast-food chain Hardee's offered tie-in storybook and record sets which told the tale of the film. For five weeks, patrons could get a different book with purchase of food. Manufactured and distributed by Buena Vista Records (i.e. Disney), the books are pretty faithful to the movie, they've got some phenomenal artwork, good audio production values, and Zach Galligan reprised his role of Billy Peltzer. A few years after they were first released, the sets found their way on to shelves in toy stores -- probably overstock, as there's no way to differentiate the Hardees sets from those found in stores. Here's a vintage commercial for the Hardee's offer:

Hardee's (Gremlins offer) by weatherguru76

So today I've got all the complete set of books and records! Each zip includes the records in mp3 format as well of scans of all of the books, in your choice of PDF or CBR format.

Gremlin Adventures
Hardee's Storybook & Record Set

DOWNLOAD LINKS:
MegaUpload: PDF, CBR
Mediafire: PDF, CBR
Rapidshare: PDF, CBR
Hotfile: PDF, CBR

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Okay, I remember tons of Gremlins merchandise, but I absolutely do not remember the Gremlins candy bars cited in this Venture ad from June 1984.

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Nocturna Press Kit

2011-04-29T14:00:00.002-05:00

In case you missed the charmingly moronic vampire disco-comedy "Nocturna" when I shared it last year, now's your chance to catch up and learn even more about the film with the original press kit! Who else gives you such a wealth of information about tacky, obscure movies that you've never heard of?

Nocturna Press Kit

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OR
Gallery!
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Dr. Coppelius!!! (and his Mysterious House)

2011-04-28T03:30:00.008-05:00

In 1966, the classic ballet "Coppélia" got a big-screen makeover. Familiar Austrian actor Walter Slezak ("Lifeboat") starred as title character Dr. Coppelius, a lovably diabolical inventor who delighted in terrifying the townspeople to keep them from learning his secret: the guests frequently seen in his home were actually life-sized wind-up toys that he'd built. But when a young man named Franz (Caj Selling) flirts with one of the good doctor's creations from afar, girlfriend Swanhilda (Claudia Corday) and her pals break into the doctor's foreboding mansion and discover the truth. Enamored by his clockwork friends, Swanhilda dresses up as one of the dolls and fools the doctor into thinking his creation has come to life.

Featuring lavish sets, costumes, camerawork and choreography, the movie is wonderfully off-kilter... but admittedly, as a whole it doesn't entirely gel. Slezak and Corday are thoroughly appealing (shame that the Corday didn't make more films -- the camera absolutely adored her). Unfortunately the Franz character has little to do but prance around seeming overtly gay (though that's almost always the problem with stock Prince Charming characters). A secondary love story for Dr. C. which was devised especially for the film feels a bit forced, but Eileen Elliott is delightful as his wannabe girlfriend. And perhaps it's because I'm not a ballet fan, but it seems like there's an inordinate amount of dancing -- there's several overlong sequences featuring the townspeople kicking up their heels which have virtually nothing to with the story and don't further the plot. Kinda like the "Portobello Road" sequence from the restored version of "Bedknobs and Broomsticks," though not quite as endless. Still, the movie is engaging -- clearly it was a labor of love for everyone involved -- and anyone who likes the production design in old time horror movies should get a kick out of Dr. C's mysterious house.

Interesting and heartbreaking backstory. What began as a experimental ballet/mime workshop in Florida eventually segued to the movie in 1966. Conceived, directed and choreographed by a husband/wife team, financed by a Floridan investor, featuring an international cast, filmed in Madrid and only released in Spain under the title "El fantástico mundo del doctor Coppelius" ("The Fantastic World of Dr. Coppelius"), the movie failed to do much business. In 1968, the film found a slightly wider worldwide release when distributor Childhood Productions latched onto the flick, edited it down and ushered it out under the title "Dr.?? Coppelius!!!" The movie got glowing reviews from the London and New York press, but following its New York premiere "Dr. Coppelius" was abruptly pulled from circulation when Cinecom, the parent company to Childhood Productions, went belly up. That secured its fate as a forgotten film. For the next 7 years, the movie was tied up in legal limbo.

Once the creators re-established their rights, the film got a drastic overhaul in an attempt to attract a broader kiddie matinee audience, and it was re-released in 1976 under the titles "Dr. Coppelius" (minus ridiculous question and exclamation marks) and "The Mysterious House of Dr. C." Problem was kiddie movies were not big box-office draws by this point (even Disney was struggling), and the movie already felt dated. In the earlier incarnations, all of the characters were silent, but in the '76 cut they were given overdubbed voices (and being dumbed-down for kids, the voices usually stated the obvious). Although the music itself remained unchanged, lyrics were added to several pieces of the score, which resulted in a few original songs. But the most off-the-wall change in the '76 cut were two animated sequences which replaced two live-action dream sequences (one of which was only seen in the original 1966 cut).

The animation was done in the USA (cheaply, I must add), and the '70s style of these segments is a stark contrast to the 1950s feel of the live-action portion of the movie. Doesn't help matters that the cartoons feature such out of place atrocities as Dr. C. fighting a talking bull (voiced by Terry Thomas), an opera singer who flies around on a cloud supported by cherubs causing worldwide destruction with the power of her voice(!), and a gaggle of little green aliens. Infinite weirdness.

So for today's shares, I'm giving a WHOLE lot of love to a film that's been neglected for far too long, in hope that it'll gain a little more notoriety. First is "The Mysterious House of Dr. C.," a widescreen print of the 1976 version that debuted last week on Turner Classic Movies. I left Robert Osbourne's insightful intro/outro intact (bringing this video's running time up to 97 mins), but I opted not to make any of the video anamorphic, cuz that would deteriorate the quality... which isn't HD to begin with.

The Mysterious House of Dr. C.
1976. Rated G. 93 mins.

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The second share is a recreation of the 1968 version. I've re-edited the widescreen TCM print, dropped in some alternate sequences and the original soundtrack. Since the second dream sequence is missing, this version runs about three minutes shorter than the '76 cut. This was a nightmare project for a guy who's not particularly experienced with video editing. The soundtrack and alternate scenes were lifted from the 1986 PAL VHS release, which was cropped down, washed out, shaky and played faster than the NTSC version. The transition to the live-action dream sequence is unavoidably jerky, but otherwise I think I did a helluva job with this edit. And I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Cinemageddon's salemnian, without whom this cut wouldn't have been possible.

Dr. Coppelius
1968 Rated G 90 mins.

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One more version of the movie... and this one's absolutely bizarre. After "Dr. C." aired but before I found the '68 version, I decided I wanted to see what the movie was like without dialogue. So I turned on the film, muted it and randomly put on Jerry Goldsmith's score from "Gremlins." It worked really well. Too well. Not quite "The Dark Side of the Rainbow," but it's pretty damned close. I figured there's music and dancing, so any music should work to accompany it, but I've since tried syncing it with a vast array of other scores and songs and discovered nothing else even comes CLOSE to working with the film like "Gremlins."

The truly crazy thing here is yes, I did rearrange and slightly edit some tracks (didn't seem right to like, have "The Gremlin Rag" blaring while the ballerinas are gently bouncing) but I didn't go to any real effort to sync it (spent around the movie's running time on this edit)... yet much of the music syncs absolutely flawlessly with the visuals. Can't imagine how well it would sync if I put a few days effort into re-editing the music. Never thought of the "Gremlins" score as being remotely ballet-like before, but this odd experience has completely changed my perspective. Since this edit is more of a rough demo than anything, the quality of the avi is a little lower and I'm not bothering with VOBs.

Dr. C. (Gremlins Version)

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Moving right along, here's a makeshift soundtrack for the film. The score from the '68 version is ripped at 128 (sorry, that's the bitrate of the original video's stream) and I'm not certain I've named all the tracks right -- but not for lack of effort. Many of the tracks are slightly different than the various versions of the music that I've found and the final act of the film seems to radically deviate from the ballet, so I generically named some of those tracks "Scène."

Dr. Coppelius
Soundtrack

Dr. Coppelius:
01 Prelude et Mazurka
02 Valse Lente
03 Scène
04 Mazurka
05 Scène
06 Ballade de L’Epi
07 Thème Slave Varie
08 Czardas
09 Finale
10 Entr’acte et Valse
11 Scène
12 Entreacto y Vals
13 Musique des Automates
14 Spanish Dance
15 Scene
16 Scène
17 Scène
18 Chanson a Boire et Scène
19 Scene et Valse de la Poupeé
20 Scène
21 Gigue
22 Scène
23 Scène
24 Scène
25 Scène
26 Danse de Fete
27 Galop Finale

The Mysterious House of Dr. C:
28. Swanhilda's Song
29. Franz's Song
30. Swanhilda's Wedding
31. Finale

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And finally, here's pressbooks for both the 1968 and 1976 versions (they're short, so I've put them together), which I lifted from TCM's site.

Dr. Coppelius/Mysterious House of Dr. C.
Pressbooks

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Well, that's it. Perhaps someday the film will get the proper home video release that it deserves (probably too much to hope for a multi-disc Criterion Blu Ray set), but for now these meager shares will have to suffice.

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Supergirl Paper Dolls!

2011-04-11T14:05:00.001-05:00

So I'm thinking to myself, "What can I share that'll simultaneously please the girls, the geeks and the gay guys?" Supergirl paper dolls! Yes, these stylish (circa mid-'80s) figures were marketed as a tie-in with the ill-fated big screen adaptation in 1984, which starred Helen Slater (Supergirl/Linda Lee), Faye Dunaway (Selena), Marc McClure (Jimmy Olsen), Maureen Teefy (Lucy Lane), and Hart Bochner (Ethan). Brenda Vaccaro had a memorable role as Selena's sidekick too, but I guess they figured it'd take too much paper to outfit her.

Now, in my humble opinion, it's Faye Dunaway that makes the movie watchable. The problem with Supergirl has nothing to do with Helen Slater herself, it's the way her character was written -- Linda/Supergirl is a bland character who spends a whole lot of screen time doing very little. Dunaway's Selena, on the other hand, is so wildly over-the-top doing absolutely nothing that she's downright lovable. Of course, anything Dunaway did at this point was hard to differentiate from "Mommie Dearest."

Funny thing about Dunaway though, she wasn't the first choice for the role. Nope, the producers were banking on landing Dolly Parton. They were so confident that Dolly would take the role that they even cited her as the star in the early press materials. Parton ultimately passed, claiming she could never play a witch (which seems sorta weird considering she'd already played a prostitute). Dolly instead went on to star in "Rhinestone," which was even more of a disaster than "Supergirl." Go figure.

Supergirl
Cut-Out Paper Doll Book
Illustrations by Tom Tierney

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Soapdish Pressbook!

2011-04-10T13:15:00.001-05:00

I once thought the movie "Soapdish" would go on to be one of those movies that would never leave the public's consciousness. You know, "A Fish Called Wanda," "When Harry Met Sally," "Airplane," "Pretty in Pink," etc. I mean, look at that cast! Yet 20 years later it's been virtually forgotten. (Aside from talk of an obligatory remake.) Weird.

In any event, here's the pressbook, which includes background on the film, its fictional soap opera, character bios, cast/crew bios, photos and more!

Soapdish Pressbook

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The Phenomenon of Benji!

2011-04-10T12:45:00.003-05:00

Today's share is simultaneously kinda sweet and kinda creepy. In the early '60s, animal trainer Frank Inn found a pound puppy named Higgins, adopted it, and trained it to star in the sitcom "Petticoat Junction" as Uncle Joe's unnamed "Dog." Higgins retired after the series ended, but was lured out of retirement for one last outing when director Joe Camp decided he was perfect for the titular "Benji."

"The Phenomenon of Benji" is essentially Frank Inn's black and white scrapbook of the pooch that he and his homely wife so clearly loved.Okay that's what's sweet about it.

So what's creepy about it? Well, "Higgins" was only referred to as "Benji." Then again, I guess that's better than "Dog." But as the book goes along, it's clear that Inn was enjoying his 15 minutes of fame by hanging onto his four-legged-friend' tail. Okay, so it was Inn's dog, and perhaps that wouldn't be so bad... if not for the fact that this book was published in 1977. Higgins died in 1975. Yet there they are plugging his next movie, "For the Love of Benji," which starred a lookalike. I guess dead dogs don't sell tickets, but still, that was just wrong!

The Phenomenon of Benji
By Frank Inn

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Gremlins: A New Friend

2011-04-09T15:30:00.000-05:00

Seems as though you guys are digging these movie tie-in storybooks, and I'm getting good with the new scanner software, so here's another "Gremlins" book. "A New Friend" was the first part of a two-book set released by Golden books, which chronicled the first part of the movie (minus the Chinatown sequence) on the day of Gizmo's arrival. The second book, "To Catch a Gremlin" (which I currently don't have a copy of) followed the Gremlins from birth to death. Wow, that sounds like kiddie fare alright.

The illustrations are comic-ish and the characters barely resemble the actors who portrayed them in the film. The illustrations aren't bad but they certainly pale in comparison to those in the 5 part book-and-record sets that were available at Hardees restaurants.

Gremlins: A New Friend

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The Killing Kind Pressbook

2011-04-09T08:30:00.005-05:00

In 1973, director Curtis Harrington assembled a small cast that included Hollywood legend Ann Sothern, his two "Night Tide" costars Luana Anders and Marjorie Eaton, 1966 Playboy Playmate Sue Bernard, Ruth Roman and then-virtual unknowns named Cindy Williams and John Savage to star in his movie "The Killing Kind." A plodding, gritty character study of a killer's oedipal relationship with his mother, many consider "The Killing Kind" to be Harrington's finest film and, taking into consideration the type of films that were popular in the early '70s, it certainly had the potential to be an enormous hit and garner award nominations for its two leads (Sothern and Savage). Here's a trailer for the movie (that I made myself, since none of the original trailers have surfaced):

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Unfortunately, the investors handed off the film to a dubious wannabe distributor who made grandiose promises of making their money back and securing wide theatrical distribution. He was full of hot air. Furthermore, this distributor demanded the cut of a pivotal sequence in which Terry visits the zoo and spies Tina making out with her boyfriend. A producer agreed to this cut, which enraged Harrington. The film ultimately did get distributed in a few American cities (there are reports that it was screened in California and Florida), but no records were kept of where it played, so Harrington was never able to secure any further theatrical distribution.

Well, this artwork couldn't be any more '80s...

The film got a small release on VHS (under the title "The Psychopath" in the UK) and was barely seen again until 2007, when it first turned up on DVD. And it's now either lapsed into public domain or is being bootlegged, because it's since turned up in a few $5 DVD multi-movie packs.

So, moving on to the share, today I've got the original pressbook for "The Killing Kind." On the surface it looks like your typical book filled with poster/ad slicks. However, both the "Facts" and "Publicity" sections feature a treasure trove of information on the film and its stars. Really a shame that the film barely screened anywhere...

The Killing Kind (1973)
Press Book

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The Back to the Future Storybook

2011-04-06T00:00:00.000-05:00

Well this is weird. I've covered most Spielbergesque '80s blockbusters but have never offered any sort of share for "Back to the Future." To rectify that, here's the storybook by Robert Loren Fleming. Enjoy!

Back to the Future: The Story
By Robert Loren Fleming

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Anyone wanna build a DeLorean?
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The Dragonslayer Storybook

2011-04-05T04:00:00.002-05:00

Back in that wonderfully creative but financially unsuccessful pre-Eisner period, Disney took some risks. The same year Paramount brought life to Jason Voorhees, the House of Mouse paired with the studio for a second venture (following their partnership on Robert Altman's big-screen, live-action "Popeye"), a dark fantasy called "Dragonslayer." Virgin sacrifices and nudity -- not your usual Disney fare.

What the film has going for it most is the titular dragon. Thirty years later, there's never been another dragon on-screen that's been nearly as impressive as Vermithrax Pejorative. And given thirty years of technological advancements in filmmaking... that's just sad.

So here we have "Dragonslayer: The Storybook Based on the Movie" by Larry Weinberg. Dumbed down a bit for children and not as fleshed out as the novelization (a great read in its own rite), the book does include a lot of nice photos. And since this new computer isn't continuously working against me, I got the scans to look perdy good. So without further ado...

Dragonslayer
by Larry Weinberg

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The Gremlins Storybook

2011-04-04T05:40:00.001-05:00

We're overdue for a Gremlins post, so here's The Gremlins Storybook by Mary Carey! (Mary's parents must've hated her.) I really put some care into scanning this book but there's not much else to say, other than enjoy!

The Gremlins Storybook
By Mary Carey

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And remember! No matter how much they cry, no matter how much they beg, never, never dress your Mogwai in white after labor day. Cuz Kathleen Turner might come along and stab your pet to death. And then eat it, probably... I mean the woman literally played a house.

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American Film #2 - Nov '75

2011-04-02T09:30:00.000-05:00

Have had some computer troubles (story of my life), so I finally got a new PC. Still working on setting it up, loading my standard programs and getting things running, but scanning seems to be going much more quickly, and I can give some much needed attention to each individual page (which was virtually impossible when scanning books/magazines on the old machine). So...

Here's the second issue of American Film Magazine. Included are stories about oft-overlooked silent film star Harry Langdon, Francis Ford Coppola, Sherlock Holmes films, part one of a two-part article on "The Rise and Fall of the Rock Film" (a genre which still had a little bit of life, since "Grease" came three years later and garnered its own American Film cover), and an interview with director Robert Wise, who discussed everything from "West Side Story" and "The Sound of Music" to "The Hindenberg" and "The Body Snatcher."

American Film Magazine
Volume 1, Number 2
November 1975

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Sorry, both Rapidshare and MultiUpload are giving me problems at the moment...
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Workprint Extravaganza!

2011-03-27T08:45:00.024-05:00

To make up for the lack of shares lately (though I've got several in the works), I'd like to direct your attention to a wonderful thread I recently discovered in the bolt.org forums: Mr. Whorse's Workprint Film Collection. A "workprint" is what they call a film that's still in some stage of editing before the final cut is... well, finalized. Workprints are rarely glowing quality, as they're basically just an editor's blueprint (and they have a tendency to get bootlegged endlessly, which caused substantial generational deterioration back in the days of VHS). But what makes them noteworthy to film buffs is they usually include footage that didn't make the final cut.

Mr. Whorse has shared a wide array of workprints in the afore-linked thread. Some only slightly deviate from the final cuts, others are radically different. "54," for example, falls into the latter category. It includes the complete love-triangle storyline between Ryan Phillippe, Salma Hayek and Breckin Meyer that the studio deemed too racy and demanded be removed (which completely destroyed the film's narrative). There's countless differences throughout, but around the halfway mark of this two-hour cut it becomes a completely different movie. Shame that the picture's got some really bad ghosting issues, 'cuz this version is vastly superior to the reshoot-heavy cut that was released.

"An American Werewolf in Paris" includes definitive ties to the first film, much more Julie Bowen and a scene that explains her abrupt disappearance, as well as an explanation for how Serafine cured her lycanthropy (which would have been better suited for the final cut since she gives birth to a werewolf baby at the end of the workprint!).

As Jim Henson originally intended, the Skeksis don't speak English in the workprint of "The Dark Crystal," which runs about 10 minutes longer.

The last 20 minutes of "Sliver" features a completely different plot twist and concludes leaving viewers to decide for themselves whether or not Sharon Stone was hurled into a volcano! (The final scene is a total WTF ending which was rightfully reworked!)

John Lennon's "Imagine" video-album is nearly an hour longer than the versions that were officially released and "This Is Spinal Tap" runs over 3 hours longer!

Even in instances when deleted scenes were included on DVD, many of these films feature some additional/alternate footage that never made it to disc ("American Psycho," "Freaked," "Natural Born Killers," etc.). So now you know why workprints are a big deal.

For many of the films, Mr. Whorse has denoted the exact differences between the workprints and the released versions, plus there's screen-caps for every film to give downloaders an idea of the picture quality. Currently there's workprints available for more than 100 films:

54
The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai
Aladdin (1992)
Alien 3
American History X
American Pie
American Psycho
An American Werewolf in Paris
Apocalypse Now
Arlington Road
The Astronaut's Wife
Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me
The Big Lebowski
Blade Runner
The Blair Witch Project
Boiler Room
Boogie Nights
Bride of Re-Animator
Bubba Ho-Tep
A Bug's Life
Chasing Amy
Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice
Cliffhanger
Cop Land
Creepshow
The Crow (1994) - 2 versions
Cruel Intentions
The Dark Crystal
The Dark Half
Dazed and Confused
Detroit Rock City
Die Hard 2
Braum Stoker's Dracula (1992)
El Cantante
Election (1999)
Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn
Fight Club
Freaked
Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1994)
Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter
Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning
Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives
Gangs of New York
Halloween (2007)
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
Halloween: H20
Halloween: Resurrection
Hard Target
Heavy Metal
Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth
Hellraiser: Bloodline
Hostel: Part II
Idle Hands
John Lennon's Imagine (1972)
Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
Kids in the Hall: Brain Candy
Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3
The Lion King
The Little Mermaid (1989)
A Man Apart
The Mask (1994)
Men in Black
Mimic
Murder Set Pieces
My Best Friend's Wedding
Natural Born Killers
Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas
Night of the Living Dead (1990)
Nightwatch (1997)
One Hour Photo
The Patriot
Payback
Pet Sematary 2
Phantasm II
Howard Stern's Private Parts
The Prophecy
The Punisher (1989) - 2 different versions
The Return of the Living Dead
Ricky 6 - Unreleased Film!
Robo-Cop 2
Rocky V
Scary Movie
The Silence of the Lambs
Sliver
Starship Troopers
Star Trek: Generations
Star Wars: Episode III Return of the Sith
Dee Snider's Strangeland
T2 3-D: Battle Across Time
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2 (1986)
There's Something About Mary
This is Spinal Tap
Dario Argento's Trauma
Treasure Planet
Urban Legend
Vampires (1998)
Very Bad Things
Waterworld
What Dreams May Come
Willard (2003)

So go snag these rarities while you can!

***Heads Up!***

If you're planning on downloading the "Natural Born Killers" workprint, be aware that there's some sort of error in parts 2 & 6 of the rar, so WinRar will not unpack it. 7Zip kicks back an error message as it finishes but it will fully un-rar the NBK file. This is mentioned on the bolt board and I personally dealt with the same problem/fix.

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RIP Elizabeth Taylor

2011-03-23T23:20:00.005-05:00

Okay, so Elizabeth Taylor is dead. Hardly a surprise, she's been ill on and off for decades. Yes, she was Hollywood royalty. But you know, during my lifetime the press rarely ever ran positive Elizabeth Taylor stories like this one:

Nope, the press mostly ran sensationalistic Elizabeth Taylor stories like these...

Odd person to sport the Sinéad O'Connor look.

Fourteen years worth of living, to be precise. But only one film...

...the aptly-titled TV-Movie "These Old Broads."

If that dog's still alive, it just hit the jackpot!

If she had adopted Michael, that dog would've REALLY hit the jackpot!

Even an innocent photo-op with Rod Steiger was given a salacious slant.
(And you know the dog watched 'em do it.)

Man, that dog was everywhere.
Now we know who Paris Hilton aspires to be... as if.

In death, most of the news stories are akin to the first article... but she's still the center of a few sensationalistic headlines...

Maybe once the dust settles she'll finally be able to rest in peace.

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And in case you missed it, you can download the rare audio version of "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" right here!

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Wanna see something REALLY scary?

2011-03-05T14:00:00.010-06:00

Okay, so Mickey Rooney is prattling on about elder abuse. I mean, okay, good for him cuz it's a real issue. But on the other hand, "elder abuse" can be interpreted in two different ways. I mean, it seems these poor, nubile beach babes were being abused by an elder who was exposing far too vast an amount of aged flesh.* Woof. They should sue for mental anguish.**

And speaking of mental anguish, Charlie Sheen recently flipped his lid. When last spotted, he was laughing maniacally,*** wearing a viking helmet and trying to use his tiger's blood and God-like mental powers to blow up the heads of both his soon-to-be ex-wife and former porn-star goddess, Scanners-style. #Winning!****

And have you heard the news? Whoopi leaks!***** Now it makes sense why she and Frank Langella were trying to hide a bag of adult diapers when they emerged from a sex shop in 1996. They didn't seem to care who saw the bag filled with handcuffs, whipped cream and matching John Holmes dildos.******

* No disrespect to you, Mr. Rooney.
**I wonder if he realized two of them were trannies...
***But he's clean, folks!
****"#Winning" already seems dated one week after it was coined.
*****Did I mention, ewwwwwwwww!?
******Wow, that was a really weak punchline, wasn't it?
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Coming BACK to DVD!

2011-02-24T07:00:00.005-06:00

I missed announcing this before, but that's okay since the release got pushed back... The original Rhino DVD release of "H.R. Pufnstuf: The Complete Series" has been out of print for quite some time, and sets have been selling in the $60-$100+ range on online sites. I vehemently abhor it when people charge ridiculous prices for stuff just because it's out of print. The good news? It's coming back in print!

On April 12th, Vivendi Entertainment is releasing the series in two different versions: a regular edition and a "Collector's Edition" that comes with a bobble-head Pufnstuf. Of course, the bobble-head's sorta ugly, but any way you look at it the cover art is certainly better than the unimaginative Rhino release...

Also included on the new DVD is a bonus episode of "Horror Hotel," one of the segments of the short-lived "Krofft Superstar Hour" (aka "The Bay City Rollers Show"), which stars Billie Hayes as Witchiepoo and features her cohorts as well as other regular Krofft characters. No idea if it's just one "Horror Hotel" segment, a bunch of them (it was a weekly skit), or if the 1950s pilot "Here's Irving" will be ported over from the Rhino release (it's a safe bet that the interviews and commentaries from that set are history). It's also worth noting that the episode "Flute, Book and Candle" was transferred from a pretty rough print for the Rhino set, but judging from the version on Hulu, it appears the master has since been found and transferred. Pre-orders are available at amazon with the standard edition guaranteed for $22 and the Collector's edition for $29. And the prequel/follow-up movie (which co-stars Mama Cass Elliot and Martha Raye) is still in print and retails for $12.50 new at amazon. DVDs tend to go out of print quickly, so snag your copies while the price is right!

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Firefly: Resurrection?!

2011-02-19T09:57:00.005-06:00

I'm not a swooning Joss Whedon fanboy and I absolutely abhor TV's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" (which I desperately wanted to like). That said, Whedon did create another underdog show that started off slow and quickly grew into something special: the 2002 series "Firefly." Described as something of an anti-"Star Trek," the series was the adventures of a rag-tag group of misfits who worked upon a Firefly transport ship named Serenity. "Firefly" was sort of a quirky futuristic sci-fi western dramedy, and Fox really unceremoniously jerked it around (for example, the establishing feature-length pilot episode was amongst the last aired) before canceling it. Two years later, Whedon did the impossible and made the feature film "Serenity," which not only played phenomenally as a stand-alone movie, but it also tied up countless loose ends from the series. The film did respectable business, but it wasn't the hit that the studio hoped for and plans for a follow-up never materialized. But still, there's been nagging, persistent talk of resurrecting the show in some way. (And it's also worth noting that Walmart stores still keep DVDs in stock, which is highly unusual for an older series -- so it must be a helluva seller.)

Although all of the cast/crew have professed their love of the project, I don't think anyone has supported the show more than star Nathan Fillion (aka Captain Mal). In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Fillion made an off-the-cuff remark: "If I got $300 million from the California Lottery, the first thing I would do is buy the rights to Firefly, make it on my own, and distribute it on the Internet." Guess what? Fans have decided to take him up on that....

Now, there's definite obstacles in the way. Fillion is currently starring in "Castle" (renewed through 2012), Adam Baldwin is on "Chuck," Morena Baccarin is the villain on "V," Summer Glau is on "The Cape" (though there's little question of that show's imminent cancellation), and (SPOILER) a pair of series regulars were killed off in the movie. So reassembling the cast would be tricky. Pair that with legal hurdles, distribution, etc., and we're facing something that may potentially never happen. But on the other hand, they've already done the impossible once, and fans have been responsible for resurrecting other shows in the past ("Futurama," "Star Trek" spin-offs, "Family Guy," etc.). And Whedon himself had a hit (albeit not a profitable one) with the giddy internet-original film "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog," which eventually wound up airing on TV and released on DVD/Blu-Ray. So what if...

A game strategy is still being planned, but go check out Help Nathan Buy Firefly.com for further information (including a FAQ). If it appears feasible that these guys may actually get the show back in production, I know I'll certainly chip in some money and do whatever else I can to help! And it's also worth noting that "Firefly" begins airing March 6 on The Science Channel, with new wrap-ups by "Sci-Fi Science"'s Dr. Michio Kaku, who'll be discussing “theoretical science behind the show’s sci-fi concepts.” Sounds cool!

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American Film #1 - October '75

2011-02-17T06:00:00.005-06:00

Here's the premiere issue of "American Film" magazine, which features an article by Larry McMurtry about writing films, numerous stories on movies and the newsrooms, a feature on obsolete silent comedies, a story on the changing face of television (which has morphed into an entirely different beast 36 years later!), a story on Dalton Trumbo, an interview with Richard Zanuck and David Brown (with lots of talk about early Spielberg films), an article on the increasing popularity of Bruce Lee and martial arts films after his death, a story on the restoration of director Lois Weber's once-lost 1921 film THE BLOT, and more!

Since this is the first issue, I scanned and included the subscription cards as well. Note that it cost $15 to join AFI in 1975 -- the cheapest enrollment costs $60 today! Admittedly AFI is a good thing, but that seems like some pretty astronomical inflation...

American Film Magazine
Vol 1, No. 1
October 1975

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This case doesn't make any sense at all!

2011-02-15T20:30:00.005-06:00

In 2001 as the big Scooby-Doo revival was underway, Cartoon Network premiered a new Scooby special in a very unique way... For Halloween, the channel ran a 24 hour marathon of various Scooby episodes, with scenes from the new "Night of the Living Doo" injected as filler during the commercial breaks. Weird thing is, they played the entire special during commercial breaks (numerous times, as a matter of fact), then ended the marathon with the complete special in its entirety.

Like most CN originals from that time, "Night of the Living Doo" is cheaply made, really jokey and the humor skewers toward a more adult audience (though it's still kid-friendly) -- it's basically a spoof of "The New Scooby-Doo Movies." Gary Coleman joins up with the gang, and they wind up spending Halloween night in an allegedly-haunted mansion owned by David Cross. There they find mummies, zombies and other madness, as well as special guests Big Bad Voodoo Daddy (who cover the Scooby-Doo theme and sing an original song), Mark Hamill and Jabberjaw.

To the best of my knowledge, "Night of the Living Doo" never aired on TV again, and it's never been released on home video (which is a shame cuz it would've made a nifty DVD extra), though it was briefly available to watch on the Adult Swim website. This version, however, is ripped from my VHS. The quality's not spectacular, but it's not tiny and pixely like the other versions that have previously surfaced on the net. Here's hoping it gets an official release one of these years!

Night of the Living Doo
2001 TV-G 18 mins.

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Now on DVD(-R): Jabberjaw!

2011-02-15T15:30:00.003-06:00

In the last six months, the Warner Brothers Archive has been releasing many of their '70s and '80s Hanna-Barbera cartoons, and the latest one to hit disc is "Jabberjaw!" Here's their press release:

Jabberjaw finally gets some respect in this complete Hanna-Barbera Classics collection of his show. In the far-flung world of 2076 Jabberjaw, a great white shark that sounds like Curly Howard and talks like Rodney Dangerfield, tours the undersea world with his human bandmates in The Neptunes, solving mysteries and battling villains along the way. To quote Jabberjaw's pal Clamhead, "Wowee-wow-wow-wow"! Jabberjaw is voiced by the great Frank Welker (Scooby-Doo's Fred).

The Warner Bros. Archives discs are not available in stores, and they're not pressed silver discs either. All of their discs are burn-on-demand DVD-Rs. In the early '90s, Ted Turner bought out Hanna-Barbera and had the entire catalog re-transferred/remastered, and these are the prints that are still being used today (even for the releases that are available in stores). There's only two annoyances I've found with the Archive discs... First and foremost, there's no chapter stops at the credits, they're at random 10 minute intervals. Particularly troublesome for kids with ADD (which seems to be ALL kids these days). The second is that the original swirling-star Hanna-Barbera logo has been replaced with a (very LOUD) Turner logo. Those annoyances aside, these are the best prints available.

Other animated titles currently available include The Addams Family (1973), The Dukes, The Funky Phantom, Goober and the Ghost Chasers, Josie and the Pussycats in Outer Space, Speed Buggy, SWAT Kats, Thundarr the Barbarian, Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch, and the movies The Phantom Tollbooth (newly remastered and in widescreen!), Rover Dangerfield (a dog who ALSO gets no respect), Yogi's Great Escape, Yogi and the Invasion of the Space Bears and Yogi Bear and the Magical Flight of the Spruce Goose. And doubtlessly many more are in the works.

Prices vary (between $19.95 & $29.95) but if you're interested and want to be frugal, I should point out the WB Archive seems to have some sort of sale going (often with free shipping) almost continuously. Might not hurt to keep checking the prices every few weeks to get the best deal. Might also consider signing up for the WB Archive newsletter to keep abreast of sales and new releases.

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Guido Update/News!

2011-02-12T23:55:00.002-06:00

Tonight I spent about 45 minutes on the phone with writer/director Tony Vitale, who was able to fill in some blanks and offer additional insight (and a big correction) into the genesis of the film "Kiss Me, Guido" and the spinoff sitcom "Some of My Best Friends," the latter of which I covered earlier this week. Turns out it was originally pitched as a sitcom years before the film was made! Unfortunately, there's no conversation recorder on my telephone (I know he mentioned a few things I'm overlooking) so I'm unable to offer a transcript (though there'd be no way to accurately replicate his deadpan Harvey Fierstein impersonation!). However, I just added a wealth of new information to the page about the show.

And as a p.s., it's pilot season and Vitale's been working on another adaptation for TV -- this time described as "Kiss Me, Guido" meets "Modern Family" (which could be a helluva lot of fun!) .If you're a fan of any of the incarnations of the story, send good vibes his way! I'll keep you posted when/if I hear anything further.

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American Film, June '82

2011-02-11T00:00:00.007-06:00

Hunh, this should've been up last week, but better late than never... It's another complete issue of American Film Magazine!

In this issue, the tale of the long and arduous journey to get Werner Herzog's FITZCARRALDO to the screen is revealed. (Never seen the film myself, but the behind the scenes story is utterly fascinating!) Steve Martin is featured in promotion for DEAD MEN DON'T WEAR PLAID. In an article entitled "War of the Wizards," they highlight special effects men working on the then-forthcoming classics E.T., TRON, POLTERGEIST, THE THING and BLADE RUNNER. There's an interview with Bob Ward and Barry Levinson for DINER. There's an essay from director John Waters about the ten films he wanted to own on home video (titles in the off-the-wall list include THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE, THE WIZARD OF OZ, I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE, BUTTERFLY and the bisexual Joe Gage porno EL PASO WRECKING CO.!). There's an article about how videotapes were becoming commonplace in the courtroom. And another about how Robert Altman, Shirley Clark and Laurie Anderson were getting into video performance art. Plus more!

American Film Magazine

June 1982

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Send yer dollars!
(But adjust for inflation)
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Buck Rogers Souvenir Program

2011-02-10T06:00:00.003-06:00

Another share that doesn't need much explanation or an overlong rant... Here's the souvenir program for the 1979 theatrical release of the pilot episode for the TV series "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century." Say that five times fast.

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
Souvenir Program

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Addams Family Values Press Book

2011-02-10T00:00:00.002-06:00

Here's one that's doesn't require a great deal of writing/research on my part: the press book for the second big-screen Addams Family outing, "Addams Family Values." Production information, bios, cast lists, pics and other obligatory info is included. Enjoy!

Addams Family Values
Press Book

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So it's not John Wayne, but you have to admit it's not gay.
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Some of My Best Friends Are...

2011-02-09T15:30:00.012-06:00

Yesterday when I shared the "Kiss Me, Guido" spinoff sitcom "Some of My Best Friends," I mentioned that the title it ultimately got saddled with was lifted from the seldom-seen and completely unrelated 1971 film "Some of My Best Friends Are..." What I didn't realize as I was writing is the movie is next to impossible for the average person to find -- which is quite a shame considering it's an early landmark of gay cinema. The only reason I knew anything about the film is because I caught it on the late show years ago (man, I miss the days when obscure movies, not infomercials, dominated late night TV!). I found the movie on a torrent at Cinemageddon, so I figured I might as well go gay for one more day....

Originally intended to be titled "The Bar," "Some of My Best Friends Are..." is a slow and meandering film that follows a wide array of patrons (straight, gay, bi and tranny) of a NYC bar one Christmas eve in the early '70s. Each has their own little stories to tell, but it takes a while for those stories to unfold. Matter of fact, the first half hour of the movie really drags (and no, that's not a reference to Candy Darling!). There's lots of little comic moments and self-loathing characters in this overlong drama, but the movie's more realistic, less-dated and infinitely more watchable than the excruciating, overrated previous year's "The Boys in the Band."

What makes the movie even more notable than being an early gay film is the bizarre cast of TV regulars that they amassed. Gary Sandy ("W.K.R.P in Cincinnati," "Troll") plays a belligerent hustler. Rue McClanahan ("The Golden Girls") is his huge-haired female counterpart. Comedienne Fannie Flagg ("Match Game") is the bar's hostess, who has to dance with gay couples so they don't get arrested for lewd conduct(!!). Gil Gerard (aka Buck Rogers) is a bisexual airline pilot (lusted after by "dragonlady" McClanahan) whose boyfriend has some serious mommy issues. Dick O'Neill ("Cagney & Lacey") is a seemingly straight guy with a thing for trannies (perhaps this is why he was later cast as a man smitten with Jack Tripper in drag on an episode of "Three's Company"). Someone who worked on the film mentioned on imdb that Erik Estrada was in it, and he could very well be kitchen worker Jose (who was barely seen and uncredited). Throw in pre-op transexual / Warhol regular Candy Darling for good measure and you have... an extremely eclectic cast.

"Would you like to see a menu?"

Apparently the movie was released on DVD in 2008 by Cabin Films, a Hawaiian company that doesn't have a website (mail-order only), which seriously makes me question its legitimacy. This version, however, seems to be duped from a rare TV broadcast in the UK -- nudity and profanity is intact but it runs 5 minutes shorter than the running time cited on imdb (could be due to PAL Speedup or imdb might merely be wrong). I'm also presuming it was broadcast open-matte since a microphone is prominently seen waving back and forth above Rue McClanahan's head for an entire scene.

Some of My Best Friends Are...
1971 Rated R 105 mins.
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Wait a minute! We're not finished yet....
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While looking for info on the film (of which there's virtually none), I stumbled onto Queer Music Heritage. The podcast for June 2003 that included radio spots for the movie doesn't appear to be available anymore, but the press book is viewable and mp3s of four songs from the film that were released as promotional singles are still downloadable (doesn't appear that a full soundtrack was issued), so I cleaned up the vinyl rips a bit for your listening pleasure (or displeasure, as the case may be)....

Music from "Some of My Best Friends Are..."

01. Where Do You Go - Gordon Rose
02. The Bar - Novella Nelson
03. Inside My Head - Gordon Rose
04. People People - Dave Grover

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Wow, I really need to offer something John Wayne-ish tomorrow to offset all the recent gayness....

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Some of My Best Friends

2011-02-08T14:00:00.033-06:00

In early 1991, aspiring filmmaker Tony Vitale pitched the idea for a television series starring John Travolta as a macho new yorker who answers an ad that reads "GWM Seeks Roommate," assuming "GWM" stands for "Guy with Money." When he arrives, he discovers the GWM is actually Gay White Male Harvey Fierstein. The story was loosely torn from his own life -- Vitale was a macho hetero New Yorker with some close gay friends -- but he was told that a lead gay character on TV would never fly, and was instead asked to write an episode of "Harry and the Hendersons." Unsurprisingly, he declined. Six weeks later, Vitale happened to be watching "Arsenio Hall" when Fierstein came out and began talking about his upcoming project -- the same show. This was news to Tony, who decided he needed to get a copyright on his idea before the Fierstein vehicle proceeded any further.

The first incarnation, "96 Greenwich Street," was performed as a one-act play at The Village Gate in New York later the same year. In 1993, Vitale wrote a second act, and a screenplay followed in 1994. It took a while to get financing, but it was eventually turned into a film called "Kiss Me, Guido," starring Nick Scotti ("Detroit Rock City") as the straight guy and Anthony Barrile ("Friday the 13th V: A New Beginning") as the GWM. The little indie film wound up being bought and distributed by Paramount, and it received glowing reviews and wide acclaim. So again, Vitale tried to get it turned into a sitcom but was told there was no place in prime time for a gay lead.

Flash forward to 1998. NBC found success with a little underdog show called "Will & Grace." In 1999, Vitale thought the time was right to pitch his idea again, and based on the success of that series, there was now an interest in turning "Kiss Me, Guido" into a show of its own. The pitch wound up with the Axelrod-Widdoes production company (responsible for the short-lived sitcoms "Can't Hurry Love" and "Brother's Keeper"), who were without a project at the time. Production company co-founder Jonathan Axelrod was married to actress Illeana Douglas, who was good friends with Craig Chester, who co-starred in the film. (Confused?) Douglas rented the movie and screened it for her husband, who saw the series potential. (Oddly, most of the press once the series finally came to fruition cited Douglas as the one responsible for the idea of bringing it to TV. ) Sitcom veteran Marc Cherry ("The Golden Girls," "The 5 Mrs. Buchanans" and later "Desperate Housewives") was brought in to develop/produce the series, and he and Vitale instantly hit it off and had a shared vision.

Cast as gay guy Warren Fairbanks was Jason Bateman, whose career was floundering as he jumped from one short-lived sitcom to the next. Bateman went into the Axelrod-Widdoes office to pitch a spec script he'd written but wound up instead being asked to star in the series. He liked the pitch and decided he wanted the role -- but network president and longtime associate Les Moonves didn't want him in the part. After a long search for an actor that Moonves found suitable turned up no one, he finally relented. Bateman initially tried playing the character overtly gay, but that didn't fly. "There's no fire coming out out of Warren's ears." Bateman told the Associated Press. "I've been instructed to play him fairly straight, you know, or just as gay as I am, basically, was the line. I don't think Frankie has to be that stupid to not notice Warren is gay."

Cast as straight guy Frankie Zito was Danny Nucci, who had mainly been setting his sights on films at the time. Nucci had worked with Illeana Douglas in the film "Alive," and she and Axelrod were able to get him interested in the material. "I've got a buddy from the Bronx, Joey," said Nucci. "Through the years I've watched him grow from looking at the world this way" —Nucci held his palms close together — "to this," he said, stretching his hands apart. "So he's a great template."

Although there was still a bit of a stigma at the time, neither Bateman nor Nucci had fear of being associated with a gay show. "I've been asked a couple of handful of times throughout my career if I'm gay," said Bateman. "It doesn't bother me. People used to think I was a girl right before I did 'Little House on the Prairie,"" he joked. Nucci commented, "It's old hat to me. I played a bisexual in 'The Unknown Cyclist' and gay in a film called 'Friends and Lovers.'"

The pair seemed to genuinely like the material and each other -- which came across on screen. "I'm tired of telling all my friends how good it is," carped Bateman, "because I just sound like some idiot actor twattling on about his latest project." Nucci conceded, saying, "I did the show because it's funny. I love it because it's funny. I can't stop laughing!" As an aside, that was apparent; Nucci seemed to be right on the verge of breaking character and bursting into laughter numerous times over the course of the series.

In the film, Warren's best friend Terry was played by the aforementioned Craig Chester ("Adam & Steve") as sort of a slobbish gay guy, and that's the role that the producers were looking to cast when flamboyant little Asian Alec Mapa ("Ugly Betty," "Half & Half") burst through the door to audition. Mapa's vibrant personality won over those in the casting room, but nobody thought he was right for the role -- except Vitale, who knew the moment he saw Mapa that this was the guy. Mapa was repeatedly called back to audition and finally landed the part in the zero hour -- but not that of Terry. The character was re-imagined, specifically tailored to Mapa and named Vern Limoso. ("Terry" then became the name of Warren's condescending ex-boyfriend. ) As the only gay actor on the show, Mapa was referred to by producers as "the authentic voice."

As Frankie's dimwitted best friend Pino Polumbo, Michael DeLuise ("Sea Quest DSV," "Brooklyn South") was cast. Although not as drastic of a reinvention as Terry/Vern, this was another slight change as Pino had been Frankie's brother in the film. Vitale didn't want Pino to know that Warren was gay (figuring there'd be more room for comedy if Frankie tried to keep Pino in the dark), but this is a battle which was ultimately lost. Jessica Lundy ("Hope & Gloria") was originally cast as building manager Meryl, who was in lust with Frankie and lusted after by Pino, but after the pilot was filmed somebody got the idea to turn her into Warren's sister. And so it was done -- Meryl then became Warren's oft-divorced, slutty older sister. Also seen regularly were Frankie's parents (Camille Saviola, Frank Grifasi), who owned an Italian restaurant .

Unfortunately, problems arose fairly quickly. Josette DiCarlo was originally cast as Frankie's mother but in reality she wasn't significantly older than Nucci. It was decided that someone older was needed in the role, so DiCarlo was quickly replaced by 50 year old brash character actress Camille Saviola -- unfortunately, no one bothered to clue DiCarlo in. "I honestly wasn't given any explanation," said DiCarlo, "but during studio audience filming an exec approached me prior to my first scene and said 'YOU'RE Danny's mom?'. I think I knew trouble could ensue... I did feel as if Connie was picture perfect for me, but one can never plan ahead in this business." With a new actress in tow, portions of the pilot episode then had to be reworked and reshot. The series went into production in September 2000 and wrapped its 7 episode commitment in November, with plans to debut sometime at midseason. But more complications ensued...

The title went through seemingly endless changes. "'Kiss Me, Guido' made no sense, because Warren's not trying to get Frankie to kiss him," explained Axelrod. "And 'guido,' it turns out, was offensive to Italians." Other titles announced included "Macho Man" and "Me and Frankie Z" before they ultimately settled on "Some of My Best Friends" at the last minute.

Neither of the leads were happy with the title. Nucci and Bateman individually each referred to it as "the worst title" in history. Said Nucci, "It's like you're looking in the dustbin: Let's find the worst title for a sitcom that's a mouthful and nobody will get." Bateman's response was the same. "Even if you happen to think of the phrase 'some of my best friends are gay, and I don't think most people will, that still is not that clever.... I can't believe that's the one they settled on after looking for one for six months." Worth noting that the final title is virtually identical to that of a completely unrelated film, the seldom-seen 1971 dramedy "Some of My Best Friends Are..." So much for any name-recognition-value.

Around the time the series debuted, there were rumblings online that Moonves hated the show -- which certainly makes sense, given the minuscule episode order and the way it was treated. But this involves a short parallel story... The same season, Bette Midler had a self-titled sitcom in which she played an exaggerated version of herself that was touted as the next big hit. It wasn't. Ratings began to steadily plummet, then Midler made the mistake of denouncing the show on Letterman. The network suits were furious and began looking for a way to get the show canceled, so "Some of My Best Friends" became the scapegoat.

When "Some of My Best Friends" finally made its debut in February 2001 (with virtually no promotion), they put it in Bette's slot and pushed her sitcom back a half hour. For those unfamiliar with the logistics of television, it's never a good sign when they start out an hour of sitcom programming with a brand new show. And if the second half hour does substantially worse in the ratings, the second show's as good as canceled too (though that's just a general rule of thumb). This seemed to be a way to kill two birds with one stone, and it worked like gangbusters. The show debuted near the bottom of the weekly Nielsen ratings in 77th place, and it ranked 102 out of 150 shows for the season.

Now in 2001, the only series to feature a gay character in the lead was "Will & Grace" (not that there have been many since) so comparisons were inevitable despite the fact the series was actually more of an update of "The Odd Couple." Some critics and viewers just couldn't seem to look past that popular NBC show; Warren was Will, Meryl was Grace, Vern was Jack. A few reviews of the series were genuinely good but most were less than glowing and the comparisons were rampant.

After a few low-rated weeks on Wednesday nights, they aired an episode after "Everybody Loves Raymond" in a high-profile time slot on Monday night. Instead of airing "Fight Night" (a great episode which might have kept some of Ray's viewers), they aired "Blah, Blah, Blah" -- an episode which was so weak that the writers allegedly apologized to the cast for the quality of the writing as filming was underway. (Though the writing quality still beats the hell out of most crap on the air today!) From the network's perspective, they could say they tested the show on a high rated night and it tanked when that was clearly the intention all along.

Soon after, the show was canceled and the final two episodes wouldn't see the light of day until they aired on Logo several years later. The show was nominated for a GLAAD Award in 2002 for Outstanding Comedy Series, but guess what it lost to? "Will & Grace." Might also be worth noting that Illeana Douglas and Jonathan Axelrod divorced just as the show was getting royally screwed over by the network . Coincidence?

In 2007, The Advocate asked Jason Bateman what went wrong. Always the nice guy, he replied, "It wasn’t the show’s fault, and it certainly wasn’t my fault.... I kept thinking that perhaps it was on the wrong network and the wrong night. Those are legitimate excuses -- I don’t think they’re just things that help you get to sleep at night. There are certain networks that are better for liberal fare, and CBS, at least at the time, was not leading in that race as far as their audience and demographic. "

I've been trying to keep personal interjection to a minimum but it's time: Like all of the sitcoms Marc Cherry was involved with, I still mourn this series. The movie was lovable chick-flickish fare but I always felt the sitcom was better and had great potential to be a long-running hit. Over the years I've screened the show for numerous people -- young and old, straight and gay -- and have yet to find a single person who didn't love it and question why it didn't last longer. That never happens. So without further ado (been enough already!), here's all 7 episodes as well as the original version of the pilot, all duped from VHS studio screeners!

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Episode 1: Pilot

Aspiring actor Frankie Zito answers an ad that reads "GWM Seeks Roommate," not realizing "GWM" stands for "Gay White Male," not "Guy With Money."

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Episode 2: The Marriage Counselor
Confusion abounds when Warren reluctantly gives Frankie's mother some sex tips.

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Episode 3: Scenes From An Italian Party
Everything seems to go wrong when Warren orchestrates a 25th anniversary party for Frankie's parents. Meanwhile, Meryl swoons over a completely oblivious Frankie.

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Episode 4: A Brief Encounter
Numerous misunderstandings ensue when Frankie's once-worn silk boxers go missing.

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Episode 5: Blah, Blah, Blah
Warren and Frankie decide to share custody of Frankie's girlfriend (Jacqueline Obradors).

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Episode 6: Fight Night
Frankie attempts to hide his gay roommate when his buddies come over to watch the fights.

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Episode 7: Shaggy Dog Story
Frankie and Warren take in a stray dog. Meanwhile, Meryl finally agrees to a date with Pino.

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BONUS: Kiss Me, Guido

Alternate version of the pilot episode featuring a few alternate/extended scenes and Josette DiCarlo as Frankie's mother.

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Great Tasting Meal Ideas from NFL Heroes!

2011-02-06T12:45:00.003-06:00

In honor of Superbowl Sunday, I thought I'd throw up (though not as in vomit) a second oddball ephemeral share today. "Great Tasting Meal Ideas from NFL Heroes" is a mini-recipe-book sponsored by Louis Rich Turkey that was included as an advert in a magazine sometime in the mid-80s. Recipes covered are "The John Unitas Turkey Sub," "The Elroy Hirsch Superbowl Sandwich," "Ollie Matson's Turkey Marsala," "Sam Huff's Zesty Turkey Franks," and "John Kramer's Parmesan Turkey." Also included are bios on each of the players. Sorry, I guess someone used the $1.50 worth of coupons that are cited on the cover.

Great Tasting Meal Ideas from NFL Heroes

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The Illustrated Art of Lock-Picking

2011-02-06T11:00:00.009-06:00

You might be asking yourself WTF Vinnie is doing sharing a book about picking locks on a site that mainly features a cavalcade of pop culture and cult movie shares. Good question. I like to be diverse. But more than that, I specialize in ephemera and this one's a doozy cuz it's not JUST a book about lock-picking. The first part, yes. The last part, not so much.

"The Illustrated Art of Lock Picking: An Educational Trade Manual" tells you everything you need to know about picking locks that were designed prior to 1976 (not much has changed). Well, maybe not everything (simple to pick locks that utilized skeleton keys aren't covered!), but an awful lot.

The latter portion of this share is a catalog for other books put out by Mentor Publications, which specialized in materials like "The Anarchist Cookbook." Other titles in their catalog include "The Poor Man's James Bond" (several followup volumes were subsequently published, and there was even a home video!), "How to Open Handcuffs Without Keys," "Improvised Weaponry," "Life After Doomsday,""How to Kill" (Volumes 1-5!"), "The Big Brother Game" and more!' Doubt the enclosed order form will do you much good 35 years later though, so don't expect to find any of the books at those prices... but it looks like many of the titles in the catalog have been scanned and uploaded to Scribd.

The Illustrated Art of Lock-Picking
An Educational Trade Manual

DOWNLOAD LINKS:

MultiUpload: CBR, PDF
MegaUpload: CBR, PDF
Rapidshare: CBR, PDF
Hotfile: CBR, PDF
Mediafire: CBR, PDF
OR
Gallery!

This share is offered for education/entertainment purposes only. But if you're planning on using it for illegal activities... I don't wanna know anything about it.

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Style & Substance redux

2011-02-05T10:45:00.001-06:00

Well, it only took me two friggin' years, but I finally got around to finishing ripping episodes of the short-lived 1998 sitcom "Style & Substance," which starred Jean Smart and Nancy McKeon. All 13 episodes (including the unaired finale) are now available, as well as the original press kit for the show. All of the rips are completely new; they're bigger xvid .avi files (the old were divx .avi) and should be a little higher quality than the ones which were previously available (much longer story but the old versions were played on one of my VCRs that didn't have stellar output; these new rips are duped from a player that produced a better quality picture). Rather than move the monstrous post back to the front, I'll just point you HERE.

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American Film, July-August '82

2011-02-03T07:45:00.002-06:00

Big apologies that Hallowkkah didn't go off as planned and email's backed up yet again (if it was something important that I haven't gotten to, shoot me another email -- can't emphasize enough that I'm really flaky with email and my in-box is generally overflowing). I'll save the long, uninteresting tale and just jump to a new share...

Here's the July-August 1982 issue of American Film Magazine featuring a coverstory on Disney and their struggle to find a new identity (with movies like TRON, TEX, and SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES) during the pre-Michael Eisner years. Also included are articles on director George Roy Hill's THE WORLD ACCORDING TO GARP, director Robert M. Young's ORDINARY PEOPLE, a story about a staggering amount of seemingly-related deaths following a TV broadcast of THE DEER HUNTER, an article about cable television and another about satellite being a threat to Ted Turner's livelihood, lengthy blurbs on MONTY PYTHON and HILL STREET BLUES and more! It's been my goal to get all 18 years worth of this great magazine scanned in their entirety and uploaded, but I dunno that it's ever gonna happen...

American Film
July-August 1982

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PDF: Rapidshare, MegaUpload, Hotfile, Multiupload
CBR: Rapidshare, MegaUpload, Hotfile, Multiupload
OR
Gallery

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Aunt Roo is a witch!

2010-12-12T14:40:00.002-06:00

Ever since the death of daughter Katherine, eccentric Mrs. Forrest (Shelley Winters), who's affectionately know to the locals as Auntie Roo, has been using a medium to try to contact the girl, as well as inviting the local orphans to spend Christmas at her mansion. When six year old orphan Katy (Chloe Franks) arrives unannounced for Christmas with brother Christopher (Mark Lester, "Oliver!"), Aunt Roo thinks she's found the reincarnation of her daughter. And since Forrest has flipped her lid, she decides to kidnap the children!

"Whoever Slew Auntie Roo" (not to be confused with the demented "Cat in the Hat" spoof "Who Slew Simon Thaddeus Mulberry Pew?") is a warped variation of "Hansel & Gretel." The film was director Curtis Harrington/star Shelley Winters' follow-up to "What's the Matter with Helen?."

Winters agreed to star in both films solely based on her friendship with the director... but Harrington didn't have much input on the rest of the cast. He remarked that Mark Lester "had a wonderful quality and presence," but the boy's heart wasn't in acting and it was difficult to keep him focused while filming. Similarly, there were problems with Michael Gothard, whose acting abilities (or lack thereof) were highly criticized by the director on numerous occasions -- Gothard apparently ruined countless takes and was generally difficult. Harrington liked Hugh Griffith, but commented the actor was a drunk whose wife accompanied him to the set to keep him on the wagon. Meanwhile, Shelley Winters was so afraid that she'd be upstaged by Judy Cornwell that she had Cornwell's role drastically rewritten and reduced. And there were four (credited) writers. Doesn't sound like a fun shoot, but one would hardly know that seeing the final result.

However, Harrington always had nice things to say about Chloe Franks, the young girl who played Katie. In 1994, Harrington told Scarlet Street Magazine, "In the scene with the teddy bear, when Shelley Winters gets the idea that Chloe's the reincarnation of her daughter, she was supposed to say, 'I had one just like it a long time ago.' I was trying to get a certain line reading out of her, you know -- to get that sort of mystical feeling that would be conveyed to Shelley -- and Chloe looked at me and said, 'How could it be a long time ago? I'm only six years old!'"

Looks like the movie is currently (and legally!) available to view online for free at Camp Here!, a gay video site (with an interesting selection of movies and TV shows) that I stumbled on while doing a search on the film. But that's not my share...

The share is a collection of radio spots from the American release, which was titled "Who Slew Auntie Roo?" (a slightly shorter title that Harrington objected to). And since the share is small and there's no official soundtrack, I've also included the main title overture and two of the songs from the film...

Who Slew Auntie Roo
Radio Spots

01. Radio Spot #1
02. Radio Spot #2
03. Radio Spot #3
04. Radio Spot #4
BONUS!
05. Let No Man Steal Your Thyme - Shelley Winters
06. Main Titles
07. Tit Willow - Shelley Winters
08. Trailer

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Whoever Slew Auntie Roo photo gallery!

And remember! When kidnapping children and serving them for New Year's dinner, it's always best to baste them with butter to ensure their skin turns golden brown. Presentation is everything and chances are you won't have time to swipe, gut and bake another kid before your guests arrive for the feast.

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