New Episode of Discover the Horror Podcast is Up!

November 17, 2021 by Jon Kitley in Discover the Horror Podcast and tagged Blood Freak, Creatures of the Abyss, Discover the Horror Podcast, The Giant Claw, Turkey Day | 8 Comments

When talking Turkeys, the only bad movie is a boring one! And the films we discuss in this episode are anything but boring! We delve into the world of the Turkey! Films that may not be the best made in the technical aspect, or in the acting department, or even a cohesive story line, or could have you scratching your head wondering if aliens had created these films. But no matter what, they are damn entertaining.

Tonight, we discuss The Giant Claw (1957), Blood Freak (1972), and Creatures from the Abyss, aka Plankton (1994). With each of these films, there are moments where you will ask yourself, “just how did these ever get made?” I know we’re glad they did because we have all enjoyed them over and over again, for all their strangeness, oddness, or just downright craziness.

So sit back and enjoy some very intellectual discussions on some films that deserve your attention!

Prepare for Turkey Day 2021!!!

November 9, 2021 by Jon Kitley in Turkey Day Marathon and tagged Turkey Day, Turkey Day Marathon | 1 Comment

It is that time a year again, folks. Time to set aside those classic movies and dive right into the mud! We are just a few weeks away from our annual Turkey Day Marathon, which once again, we will be doing it online, like we have been for the last 2 years. It will take place on Friday, November 26^th, at 10am sharp! We are scheduling at least 5 features, but maybe more if everyone is so inclined. I have 7 planned out, so we’ll have to see how the day goes. So, mark you calendar! I’ll be posting the link once we get a little closer but will also be having a trial run with a screening of 1 film on Saturday the 20th. Not sure exactly when but probably around noon. This will be just so everyone can try to get logged in and see how it all works, especially if you’ve never done this before, or (like me) you might have forgotten and want to make sure you don’t have any issues.

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Turkey Day 2020

December 3, 2020 by Jon Kitley in Turkey Day Marathon and tagged 1984 Publishing, Creatures from the Abyss, Destination Inner Space, The Love Butcher, The She Demons, Turkey Day, Turkey Day Marathon, Werewolf of Woodstock | Leave a comment

We may have just set a record with this year’s Turkey Day, at least when it comes to attendance. Once again, with the pandemic raging on, we were force to hold our Turkey Day marathon online, through a streaming service. This time though, we opened it up to everyone if they wanted to join in. And I think we had around 20+ people in the screening throughout most of the day. So for that, I think it was a great success. We did have a few glitches in the beginning, but thankfully my technical staff (aka Jason Coffman) was able to help me fix the problem and from there on went on with very little issues. Continue reading →

Turkey Day 2019

December 4, 2019 by Jon Kitley in Turkey Day Marathon and tagged 4-D Man, Astro Zombies, Billy the Kid Versus Dracula, Blood Beat, Crash!, Doug Hobart, John Carradine, Mesa of Lost Women, Robert Lansing, Scream Baby Scream, Ted V. Mikels, Turkey Day, Turkey Day Marathon | Leave a comment

“The only bad movie is a boring one”, a statement made by author Stephen Thrower that I not only agree with, but live by as well! This last Turkey Day, we put that statement to the test and proven it to be true! For the most part, that is.

Before we get to our 17th year of holding our annual Turkey Day Marathon, I have to first say how thankful I am to have so many like-minded friends that journey out to the Chicago suburbs twice a year to celebrate the types of films that we watch. They are not only true cinephiles, but know that there is entertainment and enjoyment in even the lowest rated film out there. Well… most of them! Continue reading →

Time for the Turkey!

November 17, 2019 by Jon Kitley in Misc. Ramblings, Movie Events, Turkey Day Marathon and tagged Turkey Day, Turkey Day Marathon, Turkey Day Marathons | Leave a comment

giantclaw

Now that Halloween season is official over, the next thing on calendar for us is of course, Turkey Day. No, I’m not talking about Thanksgiving, but our annual Turkey Day Marathon. Trust me, after getting through some of the titles we’ve watched over the years, just surviving is thankful enough! In all honestly, what I’m really thankful for is that I have a group of friends that make the trek out here every Black Friday to celebrate these Cinematic Shipwrecks along with me, and we have a lot of fun doing it. Continue reading →

Steve Hawkes – Rest in Peace

June 28, 2019 by Jon Kitley in Rest in Peace and tagged Blood Freak, Steve Hawkes, Steve Sipek, Turkey Day | 1 Comment

Steve Hawkes - RIP If ever there was a film that would be at the top of a cult and/or exploitation genre, or especially a Turkey Day festival, it would have to be the 1972 film Blood Freak. I mean, where else could you find a movie about a Turkey-Headed, blood-drinking, religious-backed horror film, than in this must-be-seen-to-believed film. Unfortunately, Steve Hawkes (real name Steve Sipek), co-writer, co-director, co-producer, and star of this film has passed away.

He starred in a couple of Spanish made Tarzan films back in the late ’60s and early ’70s, the last of which he was severely burned on the set. After his film career ended in the mid-’70s, he would later start an animal refuge. In July of 2004, he was in the news when one of his Bengal tigers was shot and killed by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission after it had escaped. He was seen on the news openly weeping, blaming the officers for “murdering” his pet.

While he never had a huge career in film, it is because of Blood Freak that most fans of the cult, exploitation, and horror genre will remember him for. And because of this film, he WILL always be remembered. Our thoughts go out to his friends and family during this difficult time.

Turkey Day 2018

November 27, 2018 by Jon Kitley in Turkey Day Marathon and tagged Attack of the Beast Creatures, Corpse Eaters, Frankenstein Meets the Space Monster, Frostbiter, Island Claws, Legacy of Blood, Syngenor, Turkey Day, Turkey Day Marathon, Turkey Day Marathons | Leave a comment

When we get to November, here at the Krypt is all about Turkey Day. While most are planning ahead for Thanksgiving or even an early start on Christmas, we are planning Turkey Day. From picking the right titles for our bi-annual event, to my wife Dawn and son Nick coming up with some new ideas for pizzas, it really is a family event. And not just us, but our convention family that shows up to enjoy these movies and pizza with us! This is our 16th year holding our Turkey Day Marathon, and there is no stopping us now!

Turkey Day group 2018

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Turkey Day in May 2018

May 20, 2018 by Jon Kitley in Turkey Day Marathon and tagged Dracula vs Frankenstein, MST3K, Slithis, Spine, The Slime People, Track of the Moon Beast, Turkey Day, Turkey Day Marathon, Twilight People, Zontar The Thing from Venus | 1 Comment

slime people

It’s strange how things turn out in life. In case you didn’t know, these Turkey Day marathons that I’ve been doing since 2003, were started in tribute to Mystery Science Theater 3000 back when they were on Comedy Central, and used to show 24-hours of their shows non-stop the day after Thanksgiving, which they would call their Turkey Day Marathons. I loved that show and had most of them on VHS at one point. I loved that they brought a new audience to some of the films that I loved as a kid. But then a few weeks ago, I picked up a copy of Frank Conniff’s (TV’s Frank) book on his years on MST3K, called Twenty Five Mystery Science Theater 3000 Films that Changed my Life in No Way Whatsoever. It’s a little book, barely 100 pages, but as I paged through it, reading his thoughts on some of the titles were my favorites, it was almost like my childhood crashing down.
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Turkey Day 2017

November 26, 2017 by Jon Kitley in Turkey Day Marathon and tagged Bill Rebane, Brides Wore Blood, Capture of Bigfoot, Don England, Earl Owensby, Frozen Scream, Monster of Piedras Blancas, The Strangeness, Turkey Day, Turkey Day Marathon, Winterbeast, Wolfman | Leave a comment

Fifteen years. I can’t even fathom the idea that for the last one and a half decades, I’ve been spending my Black Friday sitting in front of my TV watching some of the finest is cinematic shipwrecks. But even better, for most of those years, I have been watching them with some great friends, which makes the experience even better. Including this year’s titles, we’ve “experience” over a hundred titles in those fifteen years. And I do mean “experience”, because some titles it is so much more than just watching. Sitting there with a bunch of like minded crazy cinephiles, really does make it an “experience”. This year, there was moments when the laughing was so loud and hard, that I actually feared for some of the sanity in the room!

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Time of the Turkey

November 17, 2017 by Jon Kitley in Turkey Day Marathon and tagged Turkey Day, Turkey Day Marathon | Leave a comment

T-DAY 2017

That’s right, folks. October may be over, but that just means that Turkey Day is approaching. And no, I don’t mean the Thursday that we sit around the table and stuff ourselves more than the Turkey you’re eating, but an even more important occasion…our Annual Turkey Day Marathon! And this year marks our 15th year of our little crazy tradition.

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