Abigail Folger (1943-1969)
Wojciech Frykowski (1936-1969)
Gary Hinman (1934-1969)
Leno (1925-1969) and Rosemary (1930-1969) LaBianca
Steven Parent (1951-1969)
Jay Sebring (1933-1969)
Donald “Shorty” Shea (1933-1969)
Sharon Tate (1943-1969)
Paul Richard Polanski (unborn)
William Wellman’s THE STORY OF G.I. JOE tells the tale of boots-on-the-ground combat soldiers through the eyes of war correspondent Ernie Pyle, Pulitzer Prize winning syndicated columnist for Scripps-Howard newspapers. The film was one of the most realistic depictions of the brutality of war up to that time, and made a star out of a young actor by the name of Robert Mitchum . In fact, this was the one and only time Mitchum ever received an Oscar nomination – a shocking fact given the caliber of his future screen work.
Burgess Meredith plays Pyle, who embeds with the 18th Infantry’s ‘C’ Company in order to give his stateside readers the grim realities of war from the soldier’s point of view. The men accept him, affectionately calling him ‘Pop’, as he shares their hardships, heartbreaks, and victories. Meredith’s voice over narrations are taken directly from Pyle’s columns, detailing the cold nights, dusty…
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“The roar of the .45 shook the room. Charlotte struggled back a step. Her eyes were a symphony of incredulity, an unbelieving witness to truth. Slowly, she looked down at the ugly swelling in her belly where the bullet went in.
“How c-could you”, she gasped.
I only had a moment before talking to a corpse. I got it in.
“It was easy”, I said. “
– from I, THE JURY by Mickey Spillane, first published in 1947 by EP Dutton
Mickey Spillane’s PI Mike Hammer made his debut in I, THE JURY, and set the shocked literary world on its collective ear with its sex-and-violence laden story. Critics savaged Spillane, but the book buying public ate it up, turning I, THE JURY into a best seller and launching Hammer as a pop culture icon. Hammer’s roots were deeply set in the bloody pulps and another 20th century phenomenon… the four-color comics!
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This is from a 1956 episode of the Ed Sullivan Show:
Rock and roll legend Fats Domino passed away yesterday in Harvey, Louisiana. He was 89 years old. Beginning his career in 1947, Fats Domino performed for 60 years straight before retiring in 2007. He leaves behind 5 gold records, 37 Top 40 singles, and 35 records in the Billboard Top 40.
Once, when a reporter called Elvis “the king,” Elvis pointed at Fats Domino and said, “No, the real king of rock and roll is right over there.”
RIP, Fats Domino.
Thank you for the music.
4 Shots From 4 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps we usually post, 4Shots From 4 Films is all about letting the visuals do the talking. Today is the 135th anniversary of the birth of one of horror’s most iconic stars, the great Bela Lugosi! In his honor, here’s a special Halloween tribute to everyone’s favorite Hungarian actor!
White Zombie (1932; D: Victor Halperin)
Mark of the Vampire (1935; D: Tod Browning)
The Devil Bat (1940; D: Jean Yarborough)
Zombies On Broadway (1945; D: Gordon Douglas)
In an era of throbbing disco beats, ponderous prog rock, and angry loud punk, Tom Petty’s rootsy, guitar-jangling sound was like a breath of fresh air blowing through the late 70’s radio airwaves. Petty was a Southern boy, but didn’t fit the ‘Southern Rock’ mode of the Allman Brothers or Marshall Tucker. Instead, he and his band The Heartbreakers were influenced by the stylings of The Beatles and The Byrds, crafting tight-knit pop tunes for the ages.
The Florida-born Petty was an artsy type of kid, an outsider in a world of machismo. He met his idol Elvis Presley when The King was making the 1961 film FOLLOW THAT DREAM on location, and three years later, when The Beatles appeared on Ed Sullivan, Tom knew what he wanted to do with his life. By age 17, he’d dropped out of high school, and three years later started Mudcrutch, a…
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Words fail me right now.
Rest in peace, Tom Petty.
Thank you for the music.
Update, 4:39 pm — Now, CBS, which was the first outlet to report that Tom Petty had died, have backtracked their report. He’s on life support but apparently, he’s still hanging on.
4:44 pm — The LAPD has apologized for “inadvertently providing false information.”
12:25 am — Sadly, Tom Petty’s passing has now been confirmed.
4 Shots from 4 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. Character actor Harry Dean Stanton (1926-2017) had a film career that spanned seven decades. Stanton passed away today at age 91, and in his honor, here are 4 Shots from the Films of Harry Dean Stanton.
The Man from the Diners Club (1963)
Dillinger (1973)
Repo Man (1984)
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992)
I first became aware of actor Samuel S. Hinds watching those old Universal pictures that played frequently on my local channels. What I didn’t know about the stately, distinguished thespian is he had a secret past: Hinds was a successful, practicing attorney for over 30 years before the stock market crash of 1929 wiped him out, and he decided at age 54 to pursue his second love, acting. Hinds, born in Brooklyn in 1875, was a Harvard educated lawyer who had a long interest in amateur acting. When he made the decision to turn pro, he wrangled film parts large and small, credited and uncredited. His first talking picture was 1932’s all-star comedy drama IF I HAD A MILLION, in which he played…. you guessed it, a lawyer! (Hinds previously had a small role in the silent 1926 THE AMATEUR GENTLEMAN starring Richard Barthelmess).
Hinds had a small role as…
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I’ve got a confession to make: I’ve had an insane crush on 70’s exploitation queen Cheryl “Rainbeaux” Smith ever since I first saw her brighten the screen in Jack Hill’s 1974 THE SWINGING CHEERLEADERS. Never a big star by any stretch of the imagination, the delightful, delectable blonde graced us with her presence throughout the 70’s and 80’s, making even the tiniest of parts memorable. This girl was just soooo damn cute!
Cheryl Lynn Smith was born on June 6, 1955. A typical California girl with blonde hair and freckles, Cheryl used to hang out on the Sunset Strip, a fixture at all the rock clubs: The Whiskey A-Go-Go, The Roxy, The Rainbow. She allegedly got the nickname “Rainbeaux” from the owner of these venues, the legendary rock impresario Mario Maglieri. Cheryl was well-known in the LA rock scene, and later in life played drums in an incarnation of The Runaways featuring…
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Through the Shattered Lens 