A few weeks ago, we made our annual trip to PA for the Monster Bash Conference, which we started attending way back in 2015. I can’t believe it’s been over a decade now, but we still continue to have so much fun there.
One of the reasons is some of the great items we find in the dealer room, most of which aren’t even something we’re looking for, but just happen to come across! For this show, since money has been a little tight as of late, my main goal was to try and not spend much at the show. I guess the key word there is “try”, because by Saturday, that was completely out the window.
Another very successful Turkey Day in the books. As usual, we got through 7 features, some hitting the low point, many hitting some high points, and one hitting so far off the grid that it would be tough to explain! But we managed through, because we are, after all, professional lovers of cinema! And if you can’t find enjoyment in some of the strangest films out there, you’re just looking too hard at them. These films are the ones that you just sit back and bask in the wonderment, that someone thought that not only was the story good enough to proceed, but that they actually found backers willing to put up the money!
Common Law Wife (1961) Directed by Larry Buchanan & Eric Sayers Starring Annabelle Weenick, George Edgley, Max W. Anderson, Lacey Kelley, Bert Masters, Libby Hall
Jennie: Wife/Child (1968) Directed by Robert Carl Cohen & James Landis Starring Jack Lester, Beverly Lunsford, Jim Reader, Virginia Wood, Richard Cowl
When I read about the announcement of the latest release from Film Masters, a Hicksploitation double feature, I was going to pass, since it’s not really in the horror genre. Then I realized that one of the titles, Common Law Wife, was partially directed by Larry Buchanan, a favorite cult director of mine! So, I figured I had to take on the assignment of reviewing them anyway because I just couldn’t pass up anything that Buchanan was involved with. I am so glad I did.
(1973) Directed by S.F. Brownrigg Starring Bill McGee, Rose Holotik, Annabelle Weenick, Michael Harvey, Gene Ross, Jessie Lee Fulton, Betty Chandler, Robert Dracup, Harryette Warren, Jessie Kirby, Hugh Feagin, Camilla Carr, Rhea MacAdams
When you’re discussing low budget movies, the conversation could go a few different ways. You could be talking about the kind of titles that were being churned out in the ‘80s, when the video market was booming and everyone and their brother had a camera and was trying to make their own little production. Nothing wrong with those.
Zontar: The Thing from Venus (1967), The Chooper (1971), and Lady Terminator (1989).
Last November, in Episode 4, we discussed the Turkey. Not what some would call a “bad” film, but would probably not be on anybody’s Oscar’s list. These are the cinematic shipwrecks, where the filmmakers tried their best to make a good film, but just missed the mark. But if they are still entertaining, then they can’t be bad, right? We’ll we’re back again this year to cover three more of these epic miss-adventures of cinema from directors Larry Buchanan, Ray Dennis Steckler, and H. Tjut Djalil. And boy, are you in for a treat with these!
Make sure you listen to the whole episode to get a special discount code for Pallbearer Press!
So, sit back and enjoy a nice second helping of some Turkey!
Attack of the Eye Creatures (1967), Beyond the Darkness (1979), Blood Shack (1971), Body Fever (1969), Brain from Planet Arous (1957), The Chooper (1971), Creature of Destruction (1968), Curse of the Swamp Creature (1968), Don’t Look in the Basement (1973), Don’t Open the Door (1974), Hand of Death (1962), Hell Raiders (1969), The Hollywood Stranger Meets the Skid Row Slasher (1979), In the Year 2889 (1969), Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-up Zombies (1964), It’s Alive! (1969), It Conquered the World (1956), Keep My Grave Open (1977), Lady Terminator (1989), The Lost Continent (1951), The Lemon Grove Kids Meet the Monsters (1968), Mars Need Women (1968), Mystics in Bali (1981), The Naked Witch (1961), Queen of Black Magic (1981), Revenge of the Creature (1955), Scum of the Earth (1974), The She-Creature (1956), Tarantula (1955), Thrill Killers (1964), Wild Guitar (1962), Zontar: The Thing from Venus (1967)
I made a choice years ago, right before Sideshow decided to make the horror toy market explode. I realized that if they started to bust out a ton of different figures, if I started collecting them, I’d have to get them all. I decided that, for the most part, I was not going to collect horror toys. They are cool and would be great to have, but that is not where I want to put my money. No judging, just a personal choice.
Granted, I have taken the plunge every now and then and picked up one or two, such as the Waldemar Daninsky figure from Night of the Werewolf from Distinctive Dummies, since, I mean, it is Paul Naschy, after all. And then there is the Emily & Dickie figure from The Beyond that Pallbearer Press & Distinctive Dummies put out, and then all those Hammer Horror figures from Mego, and a few Funko Pop figures, but that’s it!
What amazes me is the custom figure market that has developed over the last few years and has seemed to explode. These amazing and creative creations, as well as the obscure characters they decide to produce is just stunning. Which brings me to one figure I recently came across that almost had me busting into my wallet.
Compared to my movie-watching totals from last year, I really was slacking off! In 2020, I clocked in 422 titles! Not sure how I did that, but that really set the bar high for me from then on. But in 2021, I only got through 278 titles, but at least 160 of those were new viewings. My goal for this year is to hit at least 300, but we’ll see how that goes!
Below are the 10 films that I thought stood out amongst the rest and are definitely worth seeking out. These are listed in alphabetical order, and as always, these are all new viewings to me, so it doesn’t matter what year they actually came out. Enjoy!
Sure, while Tommy Kirk is best known for his roles in a plethora of Disney films, such as Old Yeller, The Shaggy Dog, The Misadventures of Merlin Jones, and many others, you might be wondering why I would be mentioning his passing here on the Krypt. Well, like a lot of stars that “fall from grace”, they sometimes end up in some low-low-low budgeted films, which is exactly what happened with Kirk.
Disney had primed him to be an even bigger star in his youth, but once they found out that Kirk was gay, that was all it took and gave him the boot. At that time, it was hard to recover from that. Having bouts with drug addiction, which was not helping his career. After Disney, he started to work with A.I.P. in films like Pajama Party (1964), as well as working with director Bert I. Gordon in Village of the Giants (1965).
This was a tough one for me this year. Not the movies actually, but just getting the whole marathon together. I am usually making plans and promoting it right from the first part of May, if not sooner, but for some reason or another, just couldn’t get motivated to get it going. But thanks to my Turkey Day co-pilot for over 15 years, Aaron Christensen, kicking me in the butt enough times to make sure it happened. So if you did join in the fun and had a good time, you can thank him as well! Got to give credit where it is due.
Texas Schlock: B-Movie Sci-Fi and Horror from the Lone Star State Published by LECR Press, 2018. 272 pages. By Bret McCormick
There are two things really special about this book. First, I love it when someone focuses on a specific region of filmmakers that you wouldn’t think spawned that many, such as Texas! Secondly, I also love when the spotlight is put on some names that might not be as familiar as their bigger counterparts to the west, such as Tom Moore, S.F. Brownrigg, and yes, even Larry Buchanan. When I found out Buchanan was covered here, I knew it was going to be a must read. And it is!
The author, a low-budget independent filmmaker (or schlockmeister as he calls it) himself, is probably best known for his 1986 film Abomination. In fact, he’s made several of these types thoughout his career. But within these pages, he wanted to show the filmmakers that inspired him to get into the business, and came up with the idea for this book, which he calls a “labor of love”. That’s the thing about these kind of movies, that they are made with that same passion. None of the people covered within these pages made the big time, but continued on because they had the passion. So no matter what the end result is, there has to be some commendations. Continue reading →
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