Chinese Hercules (1973) Trailer

kind of fitting to end the month with a Hercules trailer... or is it? this of course has nothing to do with Hercules, other than Yang Sze's build. I've never seen this movie at all, but the trailer makes it look pretty cool. at least Yang Sze is called by his real name here. I wonder if he minded being known as "Bolo" for most of his career? he's even listed on IMDB by that name.

Muscles, Myths and Movies

here's an interesting and well written book from 1993 (and a little from 1994).  it is written by Stephen Flacassier and does a commendable job with the material he had at the time- mostly fullscreen dubbed and faded prints of a LOT of peplum movies.  he has a good sense of humor about them and knows a LOT about the stars of the movies, both male and female.  he also has a cool way of rating the movies, where he shows how much the star is "pumped", whether or not the women have actual character, if there are monsters and how the movie ends, i.e. hero vs villain, hero vs army, hero vs everything.  it's an effective and memorable way to do it.

Misfits-Don't Open Til Doomsday

how is it I am only now starting to listen to the Misfits? that's a little mind boggling to me. my first real exposure to them was when they were managing or wrestling on Monday Nitro- they were involved with Sting and El Vampiro. I don't remember their music being played at all. I did meet Glen Danzig in 2000 at G-Fest, but that's a story for another time.

not a new Star Trek review

it's not a review from me, anyway.  I haven't seen the second remake.  I have read a few reviews, but it seems to be generally well regarded- mostly for the cast.  it's a good thing they have great archetypes to work with then.

Godzilla Fights Kumonga

or Spiga, if you will. this is just a short clip from SON OF GODZILLA, but one has to marvel at the wirework used for the humongous spider puppet. there had to be at least 10 wires moving the spider about, and how they didn't get them tangled up is beyond me.

Maciste in King Solomon's Mines (1964)

I really wanted to like this movie more than I did.  it's 92 minutes long, and it takes forever to get going, and then it still meanders around a bit.  it commits the grave sin of not having enough action, or not being that interesting between the action.  or both, take your pick.  it's a cool idea, having a muscleman show up in a well known setting, but the execution isn't that great.  of course, all this would have occurred long before Alan Quartermain would show up, so it's really a prequel to that story.  perhaps I am overthinking it..

Kaufman Lawler Feud: Chapter 12 - Mr. Russell, Mr. Russell, Mr. Russell...

this is the interview after the match against Jerry. no mention of the Colossus is made, but Andy delivers a great promo against Jerry and Memphis in general. he turns into a real heel here, and really doesn't need Jimmy Hart, but they sure work well together.

JLA: Tabula Rasa (29, 30)

Lex is in pitched battle with the Justice League.  he's wearing his purple and green power suit, but it's no match for Superman and Hawkgirl.  it's a nice touch to see the power suit again, after Lex being "only" a businessman for so long.

NEW ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN: Superman meets Brainiac

with all the talk of the new Superman movie (ooh, he's "darker" now) makes me wish they wouldn't tamper with what makes Superman Superman. these cartoons are so indicative of what Superman was like in the 60s. now I see he's got some new costume and even Zod (do movie makers have no new ideas now?) is wearing armor. why would a Kryptonian need to wear armor? I sure wouldn't if I was from Krypton.

Journey to the Beginning of Time (1966)

I really like this movie- view a few thoughts and the trailer here (fixed, since the original trailer was taken down).  I never realized the dinosaurs were based on the paintings by Burian, which I really like.  I think I saw them first in a Time-Life book on evolution.

this is one movie that never aired in my area while I was growing up, as I am sure one of my friends would have told me about it.  I don't even think it aired in WV either, as none of my cousins ever mentioned it to me.  and they knew about Gamera and the movie LATITUDE ZERO.  they didn't know how lucky they were back then!

Tillicus vs Dirch Passer

I know I've posted this before, but here's a nice version of it to watch. I saw a subtitled version of it many years ago at Comic Con for a panel devoted to Reptilicus. can't even imagine that happening these days. Dirch Passer was a well known comedian in Denmark, which is why he got a completely out of place musical number for this movie.

Alakazam the Great

anyone else remember this movie?  I wrote a review of it for G-Fan way back in the day, and I think I should update it now.  it's a lot of fun, and has a nice little backstory for it's adaption for US audiences.

also one of the worst kept secrets in filmdom ever.

Kaufman Lawler Feud: Chapter 11 the Colossus of Death

here we have a handicap match between the King and Andy and his deadly wrestler, the Colossus of Death. I would think that they had the Colossus do a couple squash matches on TV to show how destructive he was, and I would doubt he ever appeared after this match. mostly it looks like it was to set up Andy teaming with Jimmy to torment the King.

Jason and the Argonauts (1963)

I watched this movie for the first time in years the other day after Ray Harryhausen passed away.  my copy came from the OOP laser disc from Criterion, and features Ray's first commentary along with film historian Bruce Eider.  it sounds like they didn't record their commentary together, but it works really well, since Ray can talk about his effects and then Bruce can talk about the cast, crew and otherwise during the non-effects parts.  interestingly enough, the back cover of the Criterion LD claims that the movie is being released in it's original aspect ratio, that is, fullscreen, or Academy ration.  all subsequent releases have been in 1.85.1.  I'm no expert, but it seems like I've read somewhere that the movie was shot in an "open matte" framing, so it could be projected either way.

I saw this movie on it's re-release in the summer of 1978 (I think) as SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER had been a hit for Columbia and they realized they could cash in with more of Ray's movies.  I was glad they did, as it's always a good thing to see a movie like this on the big screen.

Batman 1968 - The Jigsaw Jeopardy

I'm still surprised that these cartoons have not been released to home video due to the success of the recent Batman movies. probably too comic booky for the current audience now. maybe with the marketing of new merchandise based on the live action show we will get both shows on DVD. hard to believe that's Ted Knight now. the cartoon is very much based on the tv show at the time, complete with cliffhangers and such.

MOTW- Horned Lizard

from the fun 1981 movie Caveman, we get today's monster of the week.  it's not a monster per se, but it's also not a dinosaur at all.  it's the first critter we see in the movie, and it's a really impressive shot, as Atouk is looking for food, not realizing he's food to something else...

Serenity (2005) trailer

finally finished up the whole Firefly saga. I'll have a review of the movie coming up soon, but while I watched all the special features on the DVD I didn't see any trailers for the movie. so here's one of them. pretty good trailer, too. doesn't give too much away, like many trailers seem to do these days. I don't remember seeing the trailer on TV at all, but then, apparently I wasn't paying attention to anything about this show at all back then.

Ursus in the Valley of the Lions (1961)

in Ed Fury's second Ursus movie (he made three) we get his origin.  not that it matters, since they aren't really connected at all.  he is the heir to a kingdom which naturally was overrun by an evil warlord.  he was only a baby when he was rescued.  his bassinet was dropped in a valley of lions, and they raised him, complete with the ability to speak fluent English (or whatever language he gets dubbed with) thanks to passing caravans and he also knows how to shave and at least dress properly.  he also can speak to the lions, who understand him easily and do his bidding when asked.

Speed Racer open and close

when Speed Racer debuted, this is what it sounded like. when Speed Racer was re-released later on in the 90s on VHS and then later on DVD, the credits were changed a bit. for one thing, the original song is a bit slower than what we get now. there's some other differences, you can see for yourself!

Ulysses Against the Son of Hercules (1962)

in this interesting and fun peplum, Jupiter sends Heracles (in the English dub, a "son" of Hercules") to get Ulysses so he can be punished for blinding Polyphemus, the cyclops.  so they spend most of the movie fighting each other and other enemies, plus gaining the whole mutual respect thing that you knew was going to happen eventually.  there's a slight undercurrent to the men vs will of the gods as well, but it is not addressed very much.  mostly at the very end of the movie, but you can guess what that might entail for yourself.

Kaufman Lawler Feud: Chapter 10 - A Taste of Your Own Medicine

it's time for Monday night wrasslin! Andy is determined to get revenge on Jerry. here we have the prep for a handicap piledriver match. Andy has a mystery partner who is bigger and tougher than the King, and he will win this time!

Thor and the Amazon Women (1963)

apparently May is Peplum" month now.  not something I was planning on, but I've got at least two or three more to review and they've been fun to watch, even the less sword and sorcery ones.  which isn't a bad thing, overall.  I remember when the existence of several of these movies was questionable, like SAMSON AND THE SLAVE QUEEN (yes, it's on the list).  thanks to cheapo PD DVD sets, many of them are easily seen.

I'm kind of surprised to learn Sinister Cinema is still in business, due to a lot of their movies being in the public domain.

"Sons of Hercules" Theme Song

I really thought I had posted about this before, but the blog search reveals nothing. it's such a cool tune that even if I have written about it before it will be worth repeating! there were 14 of these movies with the "The Sons of Hercules" title, four of which were about Maciste, two about Ursus, and many were just one and done characters. many times the theme song was the best part of the movie, as it's not boring at all.

Hero of Rome (1964)

I'm not a big fan of the gladiator type peplum movies- I much prefer the one with a more supernatural element.  those usually have monsters of some kind.  the ones in the later cycle were not even musclemen, just regular guys. 

however, I've watched a few of them, and this one is pretty good.  this copy came from one of those 50 packs of movies, and the title here is video generated.  the credits are all in French.  makes me wonder if this movie was ever actually released in this country at all, since I'd think French credits would be remarked upon even back in the day.

Jason and the Argonauts (1963) Trailer from 1978

I watched this movie today, and will have a review of it up in the next few days. here's the trailer from the re-release in 1978, which I was fortunate enough to see in the theater with my brother. it was a great time, even if I knew exactly what would happen in the movie, thanks to the book I recently bought.

The Giant of Metropolis (1961)

watched this movie the other day, in Italian with subtitles, and nice crisp widescreen picture.  that sure does help make a movie look a lot better.  it's too bad more of these movies don't get a proper release, as the cheapo collections are usually beat to hell pan and scan versions.  the dubbing was good for the US release as well, so the subs weren't that needed, but it's interesting to hear it in Italian.

it's a very imaginative movie, especially this early in the peplum cycle.  Gordon Mitchell is Obro, who's family gets killed by the Atlanteans when they accidentally cross over the border.  this naturally annoys Obro, who eventually brings the whole place down.

Ray Harryhausen Creature List tribute

here's a nice little video tribute to Ray Harryhausen, featuring all the critters he animated in his career. the music is by Tito Fuentes, and is really kind of cool. other will people can tell me if he animated every creature in CLASH OF THE TITANS, as I'm no expert on that movie, and there were two other animators that worked on that film.

Ray Harryhausen, Master Of Stop-Motion Animation, RIP

I didn't plan on posting anything so soon again today.  and I certainly didn't plan on posting something like this.  Ray Harryhausen passed away in England today.  he was 92 years old. 

here's slightly more information. 

Happy Birthday, Honda-san

Today is the birthday of Ishiro Honda, director of GODZILLA (54) and many other great Japanese genre movies, along with being a pretty great person overall.  I would hate to think of a world where these movies didn't exist, or had a lesser talent directing them. Honda was an amazing director who made great movies, no matter what the subject matter.

Kaufman Lawler Feud: Chapter 9 a recap

here we get the great Lance Russel and Dave Brown showing us a recap of Andy's antics that started the fued. there's clips from their appearance on David Letterman's show as well. well done and succinct. Dave and Lance are great as well, possibly the best duo in wrestling.

Comic Book Prices and such

had a conversation with a friend of mine about comic book prices in the seventies.  which piqued my interest, so I did a little researching.  I found this site, which is fascinating.  it features a ton of information (OK, click on the home page when you get there if you want to see more than just the prices from the 60s to the 90s).

it was amazing to me that comic book prices doubled in 6 years, from 1971 to 1977, and then again six years later.  it seems like that wasn't quite equal with the inflation index, does it? 

Mr Steve Martin, original stand up material!

he's so funny and such a great banjo player. remember when comedians were actually funny? here's some of Mr. Steve Martin's early stand up, I'm assuming from the first and second albums. it's really great to see him live, since half the comedy is in his expressions.

The Flash #173

"Downward Flight of the Flashes"

Script: John Broome

Pencils: Carmine Infantino

Inks: Sid Greene

I love team up stories, and I miss the multiple Earths of the DCU.  it was in the pages of the Flash comics the original heroes of the 40s were brought back to life, via Earth 2.  it wasn't too long until there were team ups with the original Green Lanterns, Atoms and some other originals, though I don't recall if the two Supermen or Batmen ever got to team up together in stories.  the Flashes did it the most, which makes a certain bit of sense, since they started the whole thing.