HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

from Great Old Movies and B Movie Nightmare. 
 

THE VAMPIRE'S GHOST

Charles Gordon, John Abbott, Adele Mara

THE VAMPIRE'S GHOST (1945). Director: Lesley Selander. Colorized.

In the village of Bokunda in Africa, dead bodies are turning up partially drained of blood. The natives believe a vampire is on the loose, something which is scoffed at by Father Gilchrist (Grant Withers of Jungle Jim), as well as Roy Hendrick (Charles Gordon), his girlfriend, Julie (Peggy Stewart), and her father Thomas (Emmett Vogan of Hop Harrigan). On an expedition to a nearby village, tavern owner Webb Fallon (John Abbott of Deception) puts a spell on Roy and reveals that he is four-hundred years old and fond of drinking blood. As more murders occur, Fallon develops an overwhelming "fondess" for Julie, whom he hopes to make one of the Undead to ease his loneliness. Will Roy be able to shrug off the mind control and save his lover? 

John Abbott as the unlikely vampire

The Vampire's Ghost -- there is actually no ghost in the picture -- is a cheap Republic horror film that has some well-staged sequences (a night time attack on gambler Roy Barcroft, for instance) but is overall mediocre. In motion pictures vampires tend to be frightening and/or romantic figures, but the funny-lookin' John Abbott more often played comical or weaselly roles. However, Abbott is a good enough actor to be entirely credible as the sinister Fallon. Republic contract player Charles Gordon, who only made ten pictures, is effective as Roy, who doesn't seem much of a match for Fallon. Peggy Stewart, and Adele Mara as the ill-fated dancer Lisa, are also good. Grant Withers and Roy Barcroft, old standbys in classic serials, go through their paces with panache, especially Barcroft. The conclusion at a jungle temple devoted to a long-gone cult of evil is so drawn out that the film, which is less than an hour long, temporarily seems interminable. Lesley Selander also directed the serial Jungle Raiders. 

Verdict: Worth seeing just once. **1/2. 

CURSE OF THE UNDEAD

CURSE OF THE UNDEAD (1959). Director: Edward Dein. 

In the old west the Sheriff (Edward Binns of Without Warning!), Dr. Carter (John Hoyt), and Preacher Dan (Eric Fleming) are appalled at the deaths of several young girls whose bodies are drained of blood. When Dr. Carter dies the same way, his son, Timmy (Jimmy Murphy of Wall of Noise), and daughter, Delores (Kathleen Crowley), are convinced that the perpetrator is Buffer (Bruce Gordon of The Scarface Mob), a neighbor who coveted Carter's land. Delores hires a gunslinger named Drake Robey (Michael Pate of Thunder on the Hill) to take care of Buffer, but she is unaware that it is Robey who is one of the Living Dead. Now the vampire and the preacher are in combat for the lady's immortal soul. 

Michael Pate carries Kathleen Crowley

Curse of the Undead is, I believe, the first of the horror-westerns. (Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter and Billy the Kid Versus Dracula came out years later.) The picture has a good story -- although on occasion the script is confusing and inconsistent -- that needs a much stronger directorial hand, but the acting from every single player can not be faulted and is what makes the picture work. Michael Pate may not have possessed Tyrone Power-type looks, but he was still attractive and certainly charismatic in his way, and he gives a very good lead performance in this. He is matched by Kathleen Crowley, whose talent was greater than her TV-B movie origins. Jimmy Murphy also scores as Timmy, and has a particularly good scene when he challenges Buffer to a duel in the local saloon. As for Bruce Gordon, Elliott Ness' nemesis in so many episodes of The Untouchables, he also exhibits his customary charisma while also displaying a more vulnerable side to his character. Eric Fleming makes the most of his role as the preacher. Edward Dein also directed The Leech Woman. 

Verdict: It isn't always easy to be convincing in stories of this type, but all of the actors pull it off. **3/4. 

THE MAD DOCTOR

Basil Rathbone and Ellen Drew

THE MAD DOCTOR (1940). Director: Tim Whelan.

The wife of Dr. Sebastian (Basil Rathbone) dies of pneumonia but her death seems suspicious to her personal physician Dr. Downer (Ralph Morgan). Nevertheless Sebastian and his good right hand Maurice (Martin Kosleck of House of Horrors) settle the will and quickly leave for New York City. In Manhattan Sebastian sets up practice as a prominent psychiatrist and moves in on his latest victim, a wealthy neurotic named Linda (Ellen Drew of The Crooked Way) who has tried to throw herself off of a roof. As the not so good doctor and Maurice cheerily plan what they'll do with the loot once Sebastian marries -- and murders -- Linda, her former boyfriend, reporter Gil Sawyer (John Howard of The Invisible Woman), is checking the background of Sebastian, and crosses paths with the suspicious Dr. Downer. Meanwhile Maurice is not thrilled that Sebastian claims to be truly falling in love with Linda ... 

John Howard and Ellen Drew

The Mad Doctor is more of a suspense-thriller than an out and out horror film, although it is macabre and occasionally chilling. An interesting aspect of the film is the relationship between the two villains, as Maurice seems to be much more than a mere servant. Apparently Sebastian saved Maurice's life at one point and is beholden to him. Maurice sprays cologne on himself with an atomizer, which may have been the film's dated way of suggesting he is queer. In any case, Rathbone offers a superb performance -- no one can display withering contempt as well as Rathbone. The under-rated Kosleck is also excellent. Morgan is quite good as well, but Drew and Howard are simply not in the same league. 

Companions in crime: Rathbone; Kosleck

There are flavorful supporting performances from Barbara Jo Allen (appearing as "Vera Vague") as Linda's sister and Hugh O'Connell as her brother-in-law, although he tries too hard to be inappropriately comical. Billy Benedict and Kitty Kelly are fine in smaller roles and Douglas Kennedy has a bit as a hotel clerk. At one point Linda inexplicably asks to meet a certain person at the 79th Street subway, the only point of which is to apparently set up a chilling subway murder sequence. The picture could have used much more music during certain suspenseful sequences. The screenplay is rather dismissive of the benefits of psychiatry, going to far as to suggest that all shrinks are charlatans. 

Verdict: An outstanding Rathbone performance is the chief joy of this entertaining suspense film. ***. 

LONG WEEKEND

Briony Behets and John Hargreaves

LONG WEEKEND (1978). Director: Colin Eggleston.  

Peter (John Hargreaves) and Marcia (Briony Behets) are a couple undergoing serious marital difficulties. Inexplicably, they take off on a camping trip to an isolated spot near the seashore. As the vacation progresses, they have a couple of unpleasant encounters with wildlife, but far worse is the fact that their tempers fray and their relationship completely unravels. But their travails aren't over ... 

On the beach

Long Weekend, an Australian flick, purports to be a horror film and many viewers apparently even saw it as a "nature gets revenge"-type movie. Well ... Peter gets briefly attacked by an eagle and bitten by a possum -- and at the opening someone on the radio news talks about strange bird behavior -- but if one is hoping for something along the lines of The Birds or even Frogs, look elsewhere. The film is moody and well-directed, setting an eerie and disquieting tone almost from the beginning, but it's all just a tease. It's almost as if the filmmakers decided they could get more people into the theater if they somehow fashioned this into a horror film instead of a marital drama, but it just doesn't work.   

Peter tries to befriend a possum -- bad idea!

What does work are the performances by Behets and Hargreaves, although their characters are not the most pleasant of people; the wife is especially negative. The two actors do a great job dealing with the varied physical and emotional crises they face during the running time. Vincent Monton's cinematography is first-rate, and there's an interesting score by Michael Carlos. While the movie does build up to tragic events, it never really comes to a boil. 

NOTE; Coincidentally a novelization of the film, written by Brett McBean, has just come out from Encyclopocalypse Publications. This might be very interesting! You can find it on Amazon. 

Verdict: Take this as a moody marital drama and it might work for you. **1/4. 

THE HALF-NAKED TRUTH

Lee Tracy and Lupe Velez

THE HALF-NAKED TRUTH (1932). Director: Gregory La Cava.  

Carnival Barker Jimmy Bates (Lee Tracy), dancer Teresita (Lupe Velez) and the portly Achilles (Eugene Pallette) all work for the same struggling outfit. Jimmy is convinced he'd make a better press agent than the one employed by the carnival, and he concocts a scheme for Teresita that backfires, forcing the trio to flee on the first train to New York. There Teresita is rechristened "Princess Exotica" from Turkey and ensconced in a suite at the Ritz. Using his wiles, Jimmy is able to secure Teresita a spot in the latest show put on by producer Merle Farrell (Frank Morgan), but Jimmy decides, using even more outrageous schemes, to make a star out of hotel employee Gladys (Shirley Chambers) when he thinks Teresita and Farrell are pushing him out.  

Lupe

The Half-Naked Truth is a cute, if minor, comedy with excellent performances from the entire cast, which includes Franklin Pangborn as the hotel manager and Asta from The Thin Man in a butcher shop cameo. Velez, who is sassy and spirited, later starred in the Mexican Spitfire series before committing suicide at 36. Her bouncy "Carpenter" number on stage is a highlight of the picture. The film's composer, Max Steiner, appears as the conductor during this sequence. The following year Tracy played another press agent bedeviling Jean Harlow in Bombshell. 

Verdict: Some very amusing stuff in here. **3/4. 

ALL MY YESTERDAYS: EDWARD G. ROBINSON

ALL MY YESTERDAYS: An Autobiography. Edward G. Robinson with Leonard Spigelgass. Hawthorne; 1973.

"For male actors it is possible, though not easy, to slip gradually from leading man into character roles. For me, it just came naturally, since I was never Tab Hunter ..."

In this posthumously published autobiography, the great actor, who became a star with Little Caesar, writes frankly of his life and career and relationships with friends, actors and other co-workers. He gives candid, honest -- but not mean-spirited -- assessments of such co-stars as Bette Davis and Kay Francis, and describes his love of art and how he set out amassing his great collection of masterpieces. He also writes about the brutal days when he was unfairly accused of being a communist. Robinson died before he could complete his recollections, so the book was finished by his collaborator Spigelgass, who provides some interesting footnotes and a compilation of Robinson's opinions on various subjects. He also writes of Robinson's divorce, how he lost most of his great art treasures, and his troubled relationship with his only son.

Verdict: Compelling reading from a great star and superb thespian. ****.

THE GIRL IN THE KREMLIN

Michael Fox and Lex Barker

THE GIRL IN THE KREMLIN (1957). Director: Russell Birdwell.

Joseph Stalin (Maurice Manson) has faked his death with a lookalike corpse, changed his face via plastic surgery, and is hiding out in Greece with associate and assassin Igor Smetka (Michael Fox of The Lost Planet) and his nurse Miss Gresenko (Zsa Zsa Gabor). This woman is the twin of Lily Gresenko (also Gabor) -- the two women were separated and one was taken to Moscow some years before. Lily desperately wants to find her sister, and hires callous private eye Steve Anderson (Lex Barker of Tarzan's Savage Fury) for the job until he deems it too impossible to finish. Importuned by Lily to continue, he teams up with an old friend, a one-armed agent named Mischa (Jeffrey Stone of Money, Women, and Guns). Learning that the monster Stalin may be alive, and that Lily's sister may be with him, the hunt is on. But others are aware of this search, and are going to do their best to stop it, by murder and kidnapping if necessary. 

Zsa Zsa gives two mediocre performances

The Girl in a Kremlin is a lurid melodrama that is caught somewhere between being a serious, if far-fetched, spy thriller and a wild, rather absurd Man from UNCLE episode. Zsa Zsa Gabor, never much of an actress although they kept giving her parts, is slightly better as the Stalin associate than she is as the concerned Lily, but that's not saying much. Lex Barker doesn't put himself out too much, playing the role in a flippant style that makes you wonder why his character bothers doing anything. Jeffrey Stone, the model for Disney's Prince Charming, is much better as the attractive and very appealing Mischa. Perennial supporting player Michael Fox has a good role as an assassin who carries a bullet-firing umbrella, and Maurice Manson is effective as Stalin, and even more so in his new identity, which I won't reveal here. 

Jeffrey Stone and Lex Barker

William Schallert also gives a good performance as Stalin's son, Yakov, who somehow survived his death in a German concentration camp after his father sent him to the front and refused a prisoner exchange that would have brought him home! Norbert Schiller (of The Return of Dracula) scores as Brubov, who is told he must kill Steve if he wants to see his wife and boys again, and dresses up as a nun to carry out his assignment. Elena Da Vinci makes a sinister, whip-wielding Olga, Smetka's wife, and Phillipa Fallon sneers competently as her associate, Nina. At one point Steve is whipped by Olga. Meanwhile Zsa Zsa has a cat fight with herself. 

Natalie Daryll gets her head shaved

One cast member you can only feel pity for is Natalie Daryll, who plays Russian prisoner, Dasha. In an early, protracted sequence, she has her locks shorn and head shaved in almost pornographic detail, right down to the use of a straight razor and shaving cream. This whole business is not faked and one can only hope the poor woman was well paid for this disturbing exhibition. This was her first and last movie; and she had only two TV credits afterwards. The whole sequence is rather pointless aside from illustrating Stalin's weird tastes and cruelty. As for the movie, it is strangely compelling and entertaining if impossible to take entirely seriously. DeWitt Bodeen was one of the screenwriters. No composer is credited, but the score, presumably stock music, really helps put the movie over.

Verdict: Here's a strange one! ***.  

YOO-HOO, MRS. GOLDBERG

YOO-HOO, MRS. GOLDBERG (2009). Written, produced, and directed by Aviva Kempner.

Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg is primarily a biography of Gertrude Berg, who played the much-beloved character of Molly Goldberg on the long-running radio/TV series The Goldbergs. (Her neighbor would yell out of her window, "Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg.") But it is also an evocation of a particular time in history, and a look back at the radio, television and motion picture industries as they were during a different era. In addition, Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg also covers everything from WW2, the holocaust and anti-Semitism to the often tragic consequences of the blacklist in the fifties and its effect on many careers in show business. Berg, born Tilly Edelstein, became "the first woman to build a media empire." She wrote but originally had not intended to act on the radio show The Rise of the Goldbergs, but she was so suited for the lead role that she got it, and continued to play the part when it debuted as the TV series The Goldbergs on 1/10/49. Philip Loeb was excellent as her husband, but due to his liberal and labor causes he was branded a communist and CBS dropped the show when Berg refused to drop Loeb. However, Loeb finally had to leave the series when it became apparent that no other network would air the program as long as he was a part of it (he later committed suicide). 

The Goldbergs continued with first Harold Stone, and then Robert Harris, as Mr. Goldberg, but it lost much of its audience when the family moved from the Bronx to the suburbs. Although focusing on a Jewish family, it was the universal themes on the program that made it a hit with so many. Berg later wound up doing more than one project with, of all people, Sir Cedric Hardwicke! The movie is bolstered by interviews with the late Berg's relations, co-workers, and many people both in and out of the industry who were greatly influenced by her. Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg is charming, sad, and altogether excellent. NOTE: The DVD release of Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg contains many extras, including a few episodes of the series itself. 

Verdict: This is a superb documentary on every possible level. ****

B MOVIE NIGHTMARE -- THE BOOK

Duncan "Dean" Parkin as The Cyclops

B MOVIE NIGHTMARE: B Movies and Genre Films from Monsters to 

Spies.  

William Schoell.

Here it is! My first collection of reviews taken from this blog -- these reviews were originally posted many years ago. 

There are sections on horror films; sci fi films; movies of intrigue and suspense, including film noir; cliffhanger serials; monster movies; B movie series (Crime Doctor, Nancy Drew etc.); TV shows; exploitation films (admittedly the shortest section in the book); spies; and Alfred Hitchcock. Admittedly, Hitch rarely made a "B" movie but the book, like this blog, also covers genre movies from A to Z. The films are listed in chronological order in each section, and there are movie stills as well. Available in the following formats: Kindle, trade paperback, and hardcover. You can buy this book on Amazon. 

NOTE: Dean Parkin not only played the Cyclops, but also was the giant man in War of the Colossal Beast, the sequel to The Amazing Colossal Man.