Tag Archives: Mr. Sardonicus

William Castle Fest at the Music Box!

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“For the first time in motion picture history…” was a line that director William Castle used quite often to promote his new movie, that usually came with a gimmick. Whether it was Percepto, Emergo, or Illusion-O, Castle made not only pretty entertaining pictures but made going to see one of his film an event. While he didn’t create ballyhoo, he damn near perfected it when it came to his films. This August, as Chicago’s Music Box Theatre, you’ll be able to experience 5 of his features, most of which from 35mm. See below for the schedule and start making your plans.

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Super-Horror-Rama Celebrates William Castle

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Continuing their film series at the Sideshow Gelato, next month they will be celebrating one of the best movie showmen ever to direct a film, William Castle. They will be screening 3 of his features on Wednesdays in October, all programmed by Matt Carr of the Music Box Theatre. Sideshow Gelato is located at 4819 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL 60625.

Oct. 2nd – House on Haunted Hill (1959) – presented in EMERGO!
Oct. 16th – Mr. Sardonicus (1961) – Presented with The Punishment Poll
Oct. 23rd – The Tingler (1959) – Presented in PERCEPTO

There are only 40 seats per show, so get there early! From 6pm to 7pm, there is a Social Hour with a Live DJ. Then at 7pm, there is a short feature and giveaways, then followed by a video intro by Drive-in Asylum, with the feature starting at 7:30pm.

For all the latest info, head over to Super-Horror-Rama’s Facebook page HERE.

DtH Podcast Episode 47 – William Castle

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House on Haunted Hill (1959), The Tingler (1959), and Mr. Sardonicus (1961). In the world of ballyhoo, nobody comes close to being a master at it than producer/director William Castle. From giving insurance policies to filmgoers in case they die of fright, promising the horrors onscreen will come off the screen into the audiences, to even letting the audience decide the fate of one of the characters in the film, Castle was a master of it. He treated his fans with respect and wanted everyone to have a great time with his pictures. And they still are entertaining today.

In this episode we’re going to delve into 3 of Castle’s films, as well as the man himself. Joining us to talk all things Castle is superfan and collector (not to mention Regional Warrior for Severin Films) Matt Harding!

Films Mentioned in this episode:

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Movie Review: Mr. Sardonicus

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(1961)
Directed by William Castle
Starring Guy Rolfe, Ronald Lewis, Oscar Homolka, Audrey Dalton, Vladimir Sokoloff, Erika Peters.

The groundbreaking doctor Sir Robert, specializing in muscle maladies, receives a strange message from an old love, asking him to come to her home in a distant land for some dire help. Once he arrives there, he meets the husband of his long-lost love, the Baron Sardonicus. Sardonicus had acquired his wife after paying off the gambling debt of her father. But the strange part of Sardonicus is that his face is hidden behind a mask. He tells his story of how he acquired his wealth, and the terrible secret he is hiding behind the mask. He blackmails Sir Robert into curing his affliction or his wife will come to great harm.

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Audrey Dalton Comes to Monster Bash

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monsterthatchallenegedtheworldblurayreview

One of the things that I really love about Monster Bash is the guests that they get are not the ones that you’re going to typically see at most shows. Sure, that may be because of the ones they do try and get are from the older and classic films. And by that I mean ones that came before the 80s! Not that there is anything wrong, but most of those names you will be able to see at a half a dozen different shows throughout the year. But like Cinema Wasteland, Ron Adams at Monster Bash tries to do it a little different.

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