As some of our regular readers undoubtedly know, I am involved in hosting a few weekly live tweets on twitter and occasionally Mastodon. I host #FridayNightFlix every Friday, I co-host #ScarySocial on Saturday, and I am one of the five hosts of Mastodon’s #MondayActionMovie! Every week, we get together. We watch a movie. We snark our way through it.
Tonight, for #MondayActionMovie, the film will be 1987’s Karate Warrior! It’s an Italian take on The Karate Kid and I picked it so you know it’ll be good.
Following #MondayActionMovie, Brad and Sierra will be hosting the #MondayMuggers live tweet. We will be watching 2005’s Red Eye! The film is on Prime!
It should make for a night of fun viewing and I invite all of you to join in. If you want to join the live tweets, just hop onto Mastodon, pull up Karate Warrior on YouTube, start the movie at 8 pm et, and use the #MondayActionMovie hashtag! Then, at 10 pm et, switch over to Twitter and Prime, start Red Eye, and use the #MondayMuggers hashtag! The live tweet community is a friendly group and welcoming of newcomers so don’t be shy.
In 1980, Bauhaus covered Mac Bolan’s tribute to his drug dealer, TelegamSam. Of course, they added their own unique spin to the song. The music video finds them apparently locked away in a boiler room. While the band plays, Peter Murphy dances through the room while dressed up as the contortionist from The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Hopefully, Telegram Sam will get everyone out in time to record the first Love & Records album.
Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Sundays, I will be reviewing the made-for-television movies that used to be a primetime mainstay. Today’s film is 1973’s The Bait! It can be viewed on YouTube!
Tracey Fleming (Donna Mills) is the widow of a cop and an undercover detective herself. Unfortunately, her superior, Captain Maryk (Michael Constantine), is not convinced that Tracey has what it takes to be in a dangerous situation and, as a result, Tracey spends most of her time riding the bus and busting perverts and low-level drug dealers. When four woman are raped and murdered by the same serial killer, Tracey writes up a report on what she thinks is motivating the killer. Captain Maryk is, at first, skeptical about Tracey’s claim that the killer is fueled by a puritanical rage but, when it turns out that the killer has been wiping off his victims’s lipstick (just as Tracey speculated that he was), Maryk starts to think that Tracey might have something to offer the investigation.
Tracey becomes the bait in an operation to lure out the killer. Leaving behind her son and her mother, Tracey moves into an apartment in the neighborhood that is believed to be the center of the killer’s activities. Tracey is given a job as a survey taker and soon, she’s walking around the neighborhood and asking random men for their opinions on current events and women’s liberation. A local waitress (Arlene Golonka) recognizes Tracey as a detective but Tracey lies and say that she’s no longer with the force. When the killer makes the waitress his next victim, Tracey becomes even more determined to capture him but will she able to get Marsyk and the rest of the force to give her the room to investigate the murders?
This may sound like an intriguing whodunit but, for some reason, The Bait reveals early on that the murderer is a bus driver named Earl Stokely (played, in a very early performance, by William Devane). There’s really nothing to be gained by revealing the killer’s identity as early as the film does. Perhaps if the film was split between scenes of Tracey investigating the neighborhood and Earl stalking Tracey, that would have generated some sort of suspense but, with the exception of one bus ride, Tracey and Earl barely even interact before he comes after her at the film’s end. Devane does give a good performance as a homicidal lunatic but, when viewed today, it’s impossible to watch him in this film without spending most of the time thinking, “Hey, that’s the usually Kennedyesque William Devane, playing a killer bus driver!”
I was not surprised to learn that The Bait was intended to be a pilot for a weekly television series that would have followed the future investigations of Tracey Fleming. Donna Mills was likable in the lead role and she had a good chemistry with the other actors playing her colleagues so it’s easy to imagine a series in which Tracey solved a new case every week while Marsyk continually underestimated her. Ultimately, though, that series never happened and The Bait would be the sole televised adventure of Detective Tracey Fleming.
4 Or More Shots From 4 Or More Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking!
119 years ago, on this date, the great director Edgar G. Ulmer was born in what is today the Czech Republic. It’s time for….
4 Shots From 4 Edger G. Ulmer Films
The Black Cat (1934, dir by Edgar G. Ulmer, DP: John J. Mescall)
Detour (1945, dir by Edgar G. Ulmer, DP: Benjamin H, Kline)
The Man From Planet X (1951, dir by Edgar G. Ulmer, DP: John L. Russell)
Beyond The Time Barrier (1960, dir by Edgar G. Ulmer, DP: Meredith Nicholson)
This music video for the classic Def Leppard song was filmed in Ireland, outside of Dublin. The scenes inside the factory were filmed at Jacob’s Biscuit Factory and such a blue collar location feels just right for a hard-working band like Def Leppard.
David Mallett was one of those directors who worked with basically everyone at least once. If you were in any way a star, David Mallett probably did at least one video for you.
I watched the first two episodes of this Canadian show on Saturday, in preparation for a future series of reviews.
Dr. Phil (YouTube)
My mind was racing on Sunday morning so, around 3 in the morning, I attempted to calm it and ease myself into sleep by putting on an episode of Dr. Phil as background noise. Dr. Phil was talking to the daughter of a country music drummer. She was addicted to drugs and convinced that she was being stalked by strangers. It didn’t sound like Phil did that much good.
On Monday morning, I watched an episode featuring the creator of Jilly Juice. “Jilly Juice can cure cancer, grow back limbs, and reverse homosexuality!” Jillian happily announced about her salt-filled concoction before adding, “No, I’m not a doctor or scientist!” An actual doctor revealed that Jilly Juice actually caused explosive diarrhea. At one point, someone in the audience ran up on the stage and was grabbed by security. It made for a bizarre 43 minutes.
On Wednesday morning, I re-watched the classic episode in which two crazy women, Vicky and Darlene, accused a totally innocent woman of running a fake GoFundMe page. Darlene eventually saw the error of her ways but Vicky was a lost cause.
On Friday night and Saturday morning, I watched an episode about music videos and songs that centered around money. This was followed by a profile of Billy Idol.
My mind was racing on Sunday morning so, around 4 in the morning, I attempted to calm it and ease myself into sleep by putting on an episode of Steve Wilkos as background noise. I was really tired and out-of-it so I’m not sure what exactly was going on but Steve sure was yelling at a lot of people.
Fresh from an uneventful summit in Washington, a jet-lagged Prime Minister Hacker decide it was time to go on television and announce his Grand Design, which would include the return of conscription. Fortunately, Sir Humphrey was able to manipulate a few polls and the opinions of the other members of the cabinet and the Prime Minister decided that it would perhaps be better to go with a speech that announced (and said) nothing. The highlight of this episode was Hacker practicing for the broadcast. Paul Eddington perfectly captured the character’s mix of earnestness and self-importance. Hacker truly wants to be the best prime minister that he can be but he also doesn’t want to say anything that could run the risk of damaging his future political prospects. Early in the episode, he was stunned when Bernard explained to him that, as Prime Minister, he was really only required to work seven hours a week. By the end of the episode, Hacker seemed to be much more comfortable with the idea.
Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Saturdays, I will be reviewing Welcome Back Kotter, which ran on ABC from 1975 to 1979. The entire show is currently streaming on Tubi!
This week, Julie’s sister shows up and Juan Epstein falls in love.
Episode 2.7 “Sweathog, Nebraska Style”
(Dir by Bob LaHendro, originally aired on November 11th, 1976)
Gabe tells Julie about his Uncle Oscar, who was harassed one day by three bikers and who responded by “driving over three motorcycles in the parking lot.”
Unfortunately, Julie is not really interested in jokes this week. Her teenage sister, Jenny (Susan Pratt), suddenly shows up in Brooklyn and explains that she has left Nebraska because she had a fight with her longtime boyfriend, Roger Abernathy. Julie insists that Jenny attend classes at Buchanan High but is horrified when Jenny promptly starts to date Juan Epstein! Julie even goes up to the school to complain to the principal, Mr. Lazarus, about her sister dating a Sweathog. (Never mind, of course, that Julie herself married a former Sweathog.) This episode also establishes that the never-seen Mr. Lazarus is apparently best friends with Juan Epstein.
Jenny finally agrees to return to Nebraska but just because Epstein is planning on going back with her. Not even Barbarino and Freddie dressing up as farmers and Horshack putting on a cow outfit can convince Epstein to stay in New York. But then Roger Abernathy calls from Nebraska, apologizes for arguing with Jenny, and Jenny dumps Epstein and heads back home alone.
After Jenny leaves, Gabe tells Julie about his uncle SitDownThere Kotter, who got that name because of the time he stood up in a movie theater and everyone yelled, “Hey, sit down there!”
“That is the worst joke I’ve ever heard in my entire life,” Julie replies. Gabe looks sincerely hurt.
Actually, Julie doesn’t come across particularly well in this episode, flat out announcing that Juan Epstein is not good enough for her sister and basically acting like the biggest snob in Brooklyn. It’s hard not to feel bad for Epstein, who seems to have genuine feelings for Jenny but who gets rather abruptly dumped at the last minute. For all the talk about how moving to Nebraska would be a strange thing for Epstein to do, it probably would have also been a good thing for him. He would be free of his reputation for “being most likely to take a life” and he could start his own life all over again. In the end, though, Jenny abandons him and returns to Roger. According to the IMDb, this is Jenny’s only appearance on WelcomeBack Kotter, so I’m going to assume that things went well for her back in Omaha.
Let’s move on.
Episode 2.8 “Sadie Hawkins Day”
(Dir by Bob LaHendro, originally aired on November 18th, 1976)
Gabe tells Julie about his cousin Shermie, who didn’t start talking until he was 9 years old. Shermie’s first words were “cereal bowl.”
It’s time for the Sadie Hawkins Day Dance at Buchanan High! Barbarino is scandalized by the idea of girls asking out boys. “You know when girls should be able to ask us out?” Barbarino tells Horshack, “When they can get us in …. trouble.” Barbarino does, however, give Horshack some advice on how to get a date. His hair should always look like it’s been dried by the wind. Horshack should always use the “Barbarino stance,” which is defined as looking like you don’t care one way or the other. Barbarino sings his Ba-Ba-Barbarino song while showing Horshack how to relax. The audience loves it.
Barbarino is not the only person who has an issue with Sadie Hawkins Day. Mr. Woodman hides out in Gabe’s class and pretends to be a student in order to prevent Ms. Fishbeck from asking him out. Gabe tells Woodman that no one is going to mistake him for a Sweathog.
“Hi there,” Woodman replies, doing his best Freddie “Boom Boom” Washington impersonation.
Eventually, Ms. Fishbeck does manage to track down Mr. Woodman, hiding in the teacher’s lounge and jumping out of a cupboard. Barbarino, however, is less lucky than either Woodman or Fishbeck. With the day of the dance rapidly approaching, Barbarino doesn’t have a date! Barbarino is so self-absorbed that he doesn’t even realize when someone is trying to work up the courage to ask him out. Later, when one girl does find the courage to ask Barbarino to the dance, Barbarino turns her down because he doesn’t want anyone to learn that he didn’t get a date until the day before the dance. Gabe points out that Barbarino’s actions don’t make any sense. “It’s not easy being a living legend,” Barbarino explains.
Despite not having a date, Barbarino does show up at Buchanan High on the night of the dance. However, instead of joining everyone in the courtyard, he decides to sit in Gabe’s classroom. Gabe finds him in the room and starts to tell Barbarino a story about his time as a student at Buchanan High. “No more stories!” Barbarino begs before heading down to the courtyard. Barbarino confesses to the other Sweathogs that he doesn’t have a date. However, Judy Borden (Helaine Lembeck), making her first appearance since the end of the first season, reveals that she doesn’t have a date either. Quickly adopting the Barbarino Stance, Barbarino becomes Judy’s date. Everyone dances and, even though we’re supposed to laugh at Barbarino ending up with the loud and obnoxious Judy, they actually make a really cute couple.
As the dance wraps up, Gabe tells Julie about his Uncle Atlas, who used to play handball with a guy named Morty.
This episode worked largely due to the performance of John Travolta, who does a good job of portraying both Barbarino’s well-meaning stupidity and his (often hidden) sensitivity. On the one hand, Barbarino had no one to blame but himself. On the other hand, the scene where gazed out the classroom window at all of his friends having fun was actually a little heart-breaking. Personally, I hope things work out for Barbarino and Judy. They’re a great couple!
Through the Shattered Lens 