Sunday, June 30, 2013

Movie Ad of the Week: BLACK SAMURAI w/ GREEN HORNET II (1977)


JIM KELLY
May 5, 1946 - June 29, 2013


Al Adamson's BLACK SAMURAI (1976), starring the late Jim Kelly and based on the sixth novel in Marc Olden's Black Samurai paperback series (The Warlock), returned to 15 theaters in the New York area -- edited for a PG rating -- on September 9, 1977. The co-feature was GREEN HORNET II, a retitled re-release of FURY OF THE DRAGON (1976), the second collection of GREEN HORNET television episodes.

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Movie Ad of the Week: ICY BREASTS (1975)


RICHARD MATHESON
February 20, 1926 - June 23, 2013


LES SEINS DE GLACE (1974), directed by Georges Lautner and starring Alain Delon and Mereille Darc, opened as ICY BREASTS in two New York theaters on December 10, 1975 as part of Joseph Green Pictures' "International Film Firsts" series. The story is from the late Richard Matheson's first novel, Someone is Bleeding, published in 1953.

Sunday, June 16, 2013

Movie Ad of the Week: NIGHTMARE w/ STAYIN' ALIVE (1980)


This action-packed double bill opened at the Woods Theater in Chicago on September 26, 1980. NIGHTMARE was shot in 1978 as SPREE but received its widest exposure as SURVIVAL RUN (1980), while STAYIN' ALIVE is one of several alternate titles for Robert Endelson's grindhouse favorite FIGHT FOR YOUR LIFE (1977).

Saturday, June 15, 2013

The Endangered List (Case File #136)



MAFIA ON THE BOUNTY
(1980)


Starring
Jackie Gayle
Jackie Vernon
Joe E. Ross
Jay Lawrence
Frank de Kova
Robert Adell
Joe Bellucci
Helen Slayton-Hughes
Sally K. Marr
Marius Mazmanian
Vic Tayback
Stan Ross
Richard Stuart
Gerald Nelson
Janet Wood
Rudy Diaz
Jimmy Christy
Al Kahn
Vera Lockwood
John Hanson
John Decker
Bob Leslie
Marlene Tracy
Michael Perrota
Lionel Decker
Luce Medalla
Jeffrey Reese

Written and Directed
By
Joseph Van Winkle

Produced by
Sidney H. Levine

Executive Producer
Robert Adell

Cinematography by
George E. Mather

Supervising Sound Editor
Richard L. Anderson

Adell Productions

Released by
American General, Inc.

MPAA rating: PG (1977)


SYNOPSIS

In a most unusual plot to gain control of America’s newly legalized gambling territory, Atlantic City, Albert Sordi conceives a highly nefarious scheme to eliminate several top Mafia family figures by arranging an Appalachia type meeting aboard a yacht which is stationed off the shore of San Diego, California.

However, the unusual doesn’t really begin to happen until the gay liberated crew of “The Pinky Bee,” which is captained by liberationist John Hansen, meets the mobsters. And when comedian Jackie Gayle (Pinky), a member of the crew who suffers from mental seizures which leads him to believe that he is actually Captain Bligh, the power that rises within him readily enables the crewman to overpower the Mafia chieftains (Jackie Vernon, Joe E. Ross, Frank DeKova, Robert Adell and Jay Lawrence). Thus, in a most hilarious, side-splitting seagoing adventure, where a female crew member, believing that the mobsters are actually motion picture producers, tries to audition for the Cosa Nostra bosses before the planted bomb (aboard the ship) goes off.


PRODUCTION NOTES

Filmed in San Diego starting on July 25, 1977. Submitted to the MPAA for rating in October 1977. A sneak preview was held at the Fallbrook Theatre in Canoga Park, CA on March 7, 1980. A soundtrack album, most likely a 12-inch 45 rpm, was issued and consists of only two tracks: "Big Boss (Disco Long Version)" and "Big Boss (Vocal)."

Sunday, June 09, 2013

Movie Ad of the Week: ONLY THE COOL (1972)



Jean Delannoy's LE PEAU DE TORPEDO (1970) -- starring Stéphane Audran, Klaus Kinski, Lilli Palmer and Michel Constantine, and based on the novel by Francis Ryck -- opened in Ogden, Utah forty-one years ago today (June 9, 1972) under the title ONLY THE COOL. It was re-released as THE DEATHMAKERS.

Saturday, June 08, 2013

The Endangered List (Case File #135)



FEMALE FEVER
(1977)

a.k.a. FUSION

CAST
Luanne Roberts (Ruth)
Eric Stern (Michael)
Damian Zisk (Cathy)

with
Uschi Digart
Neola Graf
Dede Daily
Shannon Lane
Sandra Henderson
James Sweeney
Mitch Evans
Jane Peters
Kendall Saunders

Directed by
Alain Patrick

Written by
Mikel Angel

Produced by
Ed DePriest

Cinematography by
Michael Stringer

Production Manager
Mike Weldon

Location Sound
Don Jones

Music by
Jack Preisner

Vocals by
Darrell Cotton

Re-recording
Ryder Sound Service

Sound Boom
Bob Chinn

Wardobe
Antoinette

A
Canyon Films
production

MPAA rating: R (May 1973)

Released by
American Films Ltd. (1977)


Filmed for $500,000 in 1971 as FUSION, and supposedly based on a novel by Richard Evans. Submitted to the MPAA in May of 1973 by Adpix, Inc. Released as FEMALE FEVER by American Films Ltd. in 1977. New York-area opening on January 25, 1978 handled by Downtown Distribution Corp. (a.k.a. Cinema Shares International).


PLOT

A bizarre tale of sex and psychodrama begins when Cathy, an inexperienced young artist, is befriended by Ruth, a worldly and sophisticated woman. On the spur of the moment, Ruth invites Cathy to live with her.

At first, Ruth is flattered by Cathy’s devotion, and the undertones of a lesbian relationship bring them closer and closer. As Cathy develops a possessive fixation on the older girl, we begin to realize that she has a dark, psychotic side to her nature.

At a house party given by Ruth, she encourages Cathy to mingle with her guests. Cathy is persuaded by Michael, a gentle, handsome man, to go with him to his home. There, in spite of herself, she succumbs to his masculine charm. It is her first love affair with a man and she is torn by her feelings toward Ruth and her newly found attraction to Michael. She confesses to Ruth these mixed emotions and of her affair with Michael. Ruth tries to explain to an innocent Cathy, that it is possible to love more than one person at the same time.

Later, in a chance meeting, the triangle takes form. Ruth and Michael are attracted to each other and begin an exciting courtship. They try to let Cathy down gently but she is hurt and confused. In their desire not to hurt her, they include Cathy in all their activities, but soon their longing to be only with each other leads Ruth and Michael to exclude Cathy more and more from their company.

Eventually in a desperate move to break away, Ruth and Michael go to Acapulco. Brooding alone, Cathy is torn between the two people she loves. In a scene remarkable for its outstanding photography, she fantasizes the murder of Ruth and Michael, her tortured mind rationalizing her act because she had loved them both. She has crossed the thin line between love and hate and now they must pay for her rejection. The is one of the most eerie and bizarre murder scenes ever put on film.

As Cathy’s fantasy comes to an end, we find Ruth and Michael at the door. They are returned from their vacation and together they inform Cathy that they were married in Acapulco. Cathy feigns delight, but starts living out her nightmare in reality. As the picture ends, suspense grips us and we are left wondering whether or not Cathy’s murderous fantasy will become real.

Sunday, June 02, 2013

Movie Ad of the Week: Bela Lugosi in New Rochelle (December 1950)


"Mr. Horror himself" Bela Lugosi and his Horror & Magic Stage Show appeared at the RKO Proctor's theater here in New Rochelle on December 29, 1950. The movie screened before his performance, THEY CREEP IN THE DARK, was a retitling of THE APE MAN (1943).

Saturday, June 01, 2013

The Endangered List (Case File #134)



STUMP RUN
(1959)

a.k.a. STUMP RUN IN SKUNK HOLLOW

Starring
Edgar Buchanan (Buck Gaskin)
Slim Pickens (Babe Gaskin)
Rand Brooks (Wayne Lawson)
Kaye Elhardt (Leatha Gaskin)
Helen Jones (Sarah Good)
Nada Zawodny (Hannah Hoover)

with
Sandy Cuthbert
Gene Herlocker
Harry Kirk
Ralph Nelson
Vincenz Panny
Rudy Pfeiffer
Bob Stanovich

Directed by
Edward Dew

Written by
Rod Peterson

Story by
Ralph Benedict
and
Billie Iles

Produced by
William "Red" Reynolds

Cinematography by
Leonard Clairmont

Edited by
Ronnie Ashcroft

Music by
Paul Dunlap

Released by
Ronnie Ashcroft

Re-released as STUMP RUN IN SKUNK HOLLOW beginning in 1965








Compiled by John W. Donaldson
and Chris Poggiali