Author Archives: Jon Kitley

David Hedison & Rutger Hauer – Rest in Peace

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I had been meaning to post about David Hedison’s passing, but now the news of Rutger Hauer has hit and it is a double dose of sadness.

David Hedison is one of those actors that only made a handful of genre appearances, but the ones that he did, definitely made an impact. Growing up watching a lot of TV, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea was basically Star Trek but underwater, so it had my attention. Of course, then seeing The Fly (1958) would forever make me know who David Hedison is. Even though his face is covered through a good part of the film, he was still able to make you feel for his character. That is the power of a good actor, that they can only appear in a few things you’ve seen, but it still makes a lasting impression.

David Hedison
Rutger Hauer

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Free Kryptic Shirts at Book Launch!

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For those coming out to the Music Box Theatre this Saturday for our Book Launch, we will be giving away Kitley’s Krypt anniversary shirts, for FREE! Below is what is on the front and back of the shirts.

FRONT
BACK

We only have a limited supply of these so when they’re gone, they’re gone! Hope to see you on Saturday! Continue reading →

Horror History: Sam Katzman

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Sam KatzmanSam Katzman
Born July 7th, 1901 – Died Aug. 4th, 1973

Katzman was known as one of those B-movie producers, usually taking pennies to get films made. But how could that be considered bad, if he stayed in business for almost 40 years. And during that time, he produced 241 films. That averages out to 6 films a year, but early on, such in 1953, he produced 17 films! Okay, so most of them may have not been memorable, but when he worked in the sci-fi / horror genre, I think they were. Especially one particular title, The Giant Claw (1957).

He is the man responsible for instead of paying the money for someone like Ray Harryhausen to create the title creature, he spent a rumored $50 to some guys down in Mexico. You could barely tell by the end result, can you?

Besides that epic, he also produced genre films like It Came from Beneath the Sea (1955), Creature with the Atom Brain (1955), Earth vs the Flying Saucers (1956), The Werewolf (1956), The Night the World Exploded (1957), and Zombies of Mora Tau.

So while he might not have made the right choices all of the time, the choices that he did make are probably one of the reasons we’re still talking about him today.

Movie Review: Viy

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Viy (1967)
Directed by Konstanitin Ershov & Georgiy Kropachyov
Starring Leonid Kuravlyov, Natalya Varley, Aleksei Glazyrin, Vadim Zahkarchenko, Nikolai Jutuzov.

There are films in out there that are extremely important in our horror history, ones that make such an impact that they can change the genre itself. George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead (1968) or Mario Bava’s Black Sunday (1960) are two examples that can create a whole new sub-genre of films and/or inspire new generations of filmmakers from that point on. Continue reading →

Horror History: Mara Corday

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Mara CordayMara Corday
Born Jan. 3rd, 1930

There are some actors and actresses that only make a handful of genre pictures, but make such a strong impression that we always remember them. Mara Corday is one of them. If she would have kept acting longer, instead of deciding to take care of her growing family, maybe we might have seen her in a few more. But it didn’t sound like her marriage to actor Richard Long was the easiest, so maybe it was better not to compete in the business.

But she did make a few genre pictures within a couple of years that I’ve always remembered her from. The first one was Jack Arnold’s Tarantula (1955), where she met a young actor who she became good friends with. His name was Clint Eastwood. In fact, they remained such good friends, that after her husband died, Eastwood would give her little bit parts in his films, such as The Gauntlet (1977) or Sudden Impact (1983).

She would appear in The Black Scorpion in 1957, with Richard Denning, but it was the other film she made that same year is one that I am most fond of, those she probably isn’t. It is The Giant Claw! Granted, she, along with the rest of the actors, never saw the title terror until it was already out. 

Corday even appeared in Playboy magazine as Playmate of the Month in Oct. 1958, but this was when they didn’t appear nude. But it is shame that we didn’t see more of her on the big screen, since she was a talented actress.

Horror History: Fred F. Sears

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Fred F. SearsFred F. Sears
Born July 7th, 1913 – Died Nov. 30th, 1957

Being a director back in the ’50s is nothing like it is today. These days, a director can make one film every 5 or 6 years and still be considered a working director! But take a guy like Fred F. Sears, who’s directing career only lasted 10 years before dying of a heart attack in 1957. But during that decade, he cranked out over 50 features. So yeah, that’s averaging 5 pictures a YEAR!

He started his career on stage in regional theater, working as an actor, director, and producer. He was hired by Columbia pictures as a dialogue director, before moving into being a director. He always stayed with Columbia, working a lot with b-movie producer Sam Katzman. Together, they made films in just about every genre, from rock musicals, action thrillers, juvenile-delinquent pictures, and of course, the sci-fi flicks. He directed films like The Werewolf (1956), Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1957), with the incredible effects by Ray Harryhausen. And of course, that same year, he directed The Giant Claw. While some might consider that film a failure, to me, because we’re still talking about it, I would say that one is a big success! But that’s just me.

 

Mystery Photo 7-22

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Have we survived the summer heat? With all those 100 degree temps? Hopefully if you did have to go outside for any long period of time, you stayed hydrated. Our photo for this week might be something like I would like just by going outside in the sun! But before we get to that, let’s go over last week’s photo. It was from the amazing film Resolution, by two incredible filmmakers, Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead. This is just a small indie film, with a very small cast, but will pack a punch and is so well done. If you haven’t seen it, check it out. As well as their other films, Spring (2014) and The Endless (2017). Kudos to Bryan Martinez and William Wilson for sending in the correct answer. Honestly, I think there was one or more that sent in the correct answer but for the life of me, I either didn’t save the email or make myself a note. So if you did and I missed it, I apologize.

Okay, on to this week’s photo. It’s a real brain-buster! Yeah, I know… too easy. Take a look and see what you can come up with. As always, please don’t post your answers here so others can have a chance. Just send them to us in an email (to jon@kitleyskrypt.com). Good Luck!

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Kryptic Archives – Year 2001

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1-5-01 MOVIE NEWS!

According Dark Horizon, Vampires: Los Muertos will begin filming on January 10th, in Mexico, with Jon Bon Jovi.

Don Coscarelli latest project is Bubba Ho-Tep for Universal, which is based on a short story by Joe R. Lansdale. Bruce Campbell is set to star as a 70-year-old Elvis impersonator living in a rest home, who comes up against a “soul sucking mummy”. Also in the movie is Ossie Davis, who plays someone who thinks he’s JFK. This should be an interesting film.

There are rumors of a remake of The Birds, with Melanie Griffith possibly starring in the role that her mother had in the original. Effects might be done by KNB, and are said to be going for something a little bit more violent. As stated, this is just a rumor at this point.

Also in the film news, Elvira is finally coming back to the big screen in Elvira’s Haunted Hills. It will be filmed in Romania, with Sam Irvin directing. Richard O’Brien from Rocky Horror co-stars. Continue reading →

Kryptic Archives – Year 2000

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1-21-00  FANGORIA’s WEEKEND OF HORRORS / CREATION SUCKS!

We survived another Fango show, especially the trip. Let’s just say it’s a long drive from the Chicago are to the Big Apple. The shows line-up pretty much sucked, except for Udo Kier. Unfortunately, since I was watching my table most the time, I didn’t get the chance to hear Udo talk but for a few minutes. I did get a chance to get some photos (none of which turned out!!!) and did get an autograph. But there really wasn’t that much else to draw.  Even the number of dealers seemed to be smaller than normal. With the last two shows Fango did in New York pretty damn good, what happened? Continue reading →

Color Comes Back to Langella’s Dracula

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frank-langella-dracula-1979

I can remember watching the 1979 version of Dracula on VHS, and loving the look, the feel, and the atmosphere of it, especially in its glorious color. But something happened when it was released to DVD for the first time. All of the color was bled out, making it almost look black and white. Here’s the little backstory to that. Originally, director John Badham wanted to film it in black and white but the studios said no way in hell. When it came to be released on DVD, Badham had control over the look of the film and had it modified to fit the version he originally wanted to make. Continue reading →