From 1951 through 1958, Imagination magazine brought stories of science fiction and horror to eager readers. Among the writers who appeared in Imagination were Philip K. Dick, Robert Heinlien, Robert Sheckley, and John Wyndham. Today, the magazine is well-remembered for its exciting covers, which were done by some of the best artists working in the pulps. You can’t have art without Imagination.
Below is a sampling of The Covers of Imagination: Stories of Science and Fantasy.
Hi! Welcome to Horrorthon! It’s a tradition around these parts that we offer up a classic (or not-so-classic) horror film for our readers to watch every day in October. As we have just lost the great Roger Corman, it seems appropriate to start things off with one of his best films.
And so, without further ado….
Enter singing.
Little Shop…Little Shop of Horrors…Little Shop…Little Shop of Terrors…
For the 2024 Horrorthon’s first plunge into the world of public domain horror films, I’d like to present you with a true classic. From 1960, it’s the original Little Shop of Horrors!
When I was 19 years old, I was in a community theater production of the musical Little Shop of Horrors. Though I think I would have made the perfect Audrey, everybody always snickered whenever I sang so I ended up as a part of “the ensemble.” Being in the ensemble basically meant that I spent a lot of time dancing and showing off lots of cleavage. And you know what? The girl who did play Audrey was screechy, off-key, and annoying and after every show, all the old people in the audience always came back stage and ignored her and went straight over to me. So there.
Anyway, during rehearsals, our director thought it would be so funny if we all watched the original film. Now, I’m sorry to say, much like just about everyone else in the cast, this was my first exposure to the original and I even had to be told that the masochistic dentist patient was being played by Jack Nicholson. However, I’m also very proud to say that — out of that entire cast — I’m the only one who understood that the zero-budget film I was watching was actually better than the big spectacle we were attempting to perform on stage. Certainly, I understood the film better than that screechy little thing that was playing Audrey.
The first Little Shop of Horrors certainly isn’t scary and there’s nobody singing about somewhere that’s green (I always tear up when I hear that song, by the way). However, it is a very, very funny film with the just the right amount of a dark streak to make it perfect Halloween viewing.
So, if you have 72 minutes to kill, check out the original and the best Little Shop of Horrors…
Though Corman worked in almost every type of film genre imaginable, he’s probably best remembered for his science fiction and horror films. This was one of the first of them.
2. Bucket of Blood (1959)
In Bucket of Blood, Roger Corman gave Dick Miller a starring role and also mixed comedy and horror in a way that influence many future horror directors.
3. Little Shop of Horrors (1960)
Roger Corman famously shot Little Shop of Horrors in just two days. The end result was a mix of comedy and horror that continues to be influential to this day. The musical is very good but I still prefer the cheerful low-budget aesthetic of the Corman original.
4. The Terror (1963)
Corman was famous for his ability to spot new talent. His 1963 film The Terror starred a then unknown actor named Jack Nicholson.
5. The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
In the 60s, Corman was also well-known for his Edgar Allan Poe adaptations, the majority of which starred Vincent Price. With these colorful and flamboyant films, Corman showed himself to be a pop artist at heart.
6. Frankenstein Unbound (1990)
In the 1970s, Corman retired from directing and instead focused on producing and distributing movies. In 1990, he briefly came out of retirement and gave us his final directorial effort, Frankenstein Unbound.
Here’s hoping this month finds you with joy, family, friends, fiends, ghouls, and ghosts!
Today is also the start of the Shattered Les’s annual horrorthon! Sit back, enjoy the reviews, the art, and the music videos, and have a great month of ghoulish fun!
Welcome to October! October is a big month here at the Shattered Lens. It’s the month when we devote the majority of our time to the horror genre. It’s time for our annual Horrorthon! Last year, we had a record number of Horrorthon posts. I’d love to that record this year but mostly. I just want this year’s Horrothon for both our writers and our readers!
Here’s what I’m looking forward to in October!
Anora — Sean Baker’s latest film may not be a horror film but it’s still the October film to which I’m most looking forward to. A hit on the festival circuit, the early word is that Anora is going to be one of this year’s major Oscar contenders.
The Horror Movies On TCM — TCM never lets me down in October. I can’t wait to binge all of the classic horror that will be aired this month.
Joker: Folie a Deux — This film is one of the big question marks on the upcoming calendar. When I first heard that the sequel to Joker would be a musical, I thought it sounded like a disastrous idea. But the early word has been that Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga both give excellent performance and that the sequel is worthy follow-up to first film. We’ll find out in just a few more days!
Terrifier 3 — Art the Clown is one of the scariest villains around. Terrifier gave me nightmares. Terrifier 2 was overlong but well-made. I’ll be interested to see what happens with the third film. If nothing else, I appreciate that the Terrifier films are unapologetic about being the type of films that they are. It takes courage to fully embrace a genre that hasn’t always been accepted by the mainstream.
Conclave — This is another film that’s expected to be an Oscar contender. Based on what I’ve heard about the film’s plot, I’m not as enthusiastic about this film as some people are. But I do always look forward to seeing a good Ralph Fiennes performance and the word is that he’s excellent in this film.
Halloween — It’s my favorite holiday! I can’t wait to see all the decorations, all the parties, and all the costumes!
October’s going to be a great month and those of us at TSL can’t wait to celebrate it with you! What are you looking forward to in October?
Happy Horrorthon! This could be a rough start. I would normally be really rough with a short like this, BUT he’s got <500 subs and he’s definitely young. So, I’m gonna play nice.
Noah hear me, I get that you have a love for film, especially weird esoteric film. Here is your MAIN PROBLEM: there is no real story here that is identifiable outside of your own description. A short film needs a beginning, middle, and an end. What makes short-films a special artform is that they create: story, character, and suspense in an instant. They can make you laugh, jump, or cry- if they are done with intentional care. Other than the make up, there is no character here. It is unclear the lady’s motivation, fear, hope, or even psychosis. The cat is a stranger in the film and it just gets gory for its own sake at the end. I hope you cleaned up after filming and thanked your amazingly patient and lovely parents for letting you do this.
There is NO STORY here. You need a story. You need character. You need for us to care about your protagonist or this is just you messing around with a camera. It is good to have an interest in film, but it’s like you’re trying to fly an airplane before you’ve learned how to walk. Come up with a SIMPLE STORY and get it right; then, go all weird, but even then, you still need a story and character or NO ONE will care about your characters or what happens. I am not doing a plot summary for this because there isn’t one.
I don’t want to be too hard on Noah here, but he’s missing the point of this art. There’s short films on YouTube that are barely a minute long that establish: Story, Character, and Stakes. This is not that, but Noah MIGHT be able to get there if he tries again and starts EXTREMELY small and tells a small story well.
The 1970 documentary Let It Be, which is now streaming on Disney+ after being impossible to see for decades, follows the Beatles as they record music, occasionally argue, occasionally laugh, collaborate on songs, and ultimately play the famous rooftop concert that was eventually ended by the London police. Paul McCartney smiles and laughs and jokes but he also obsesses over every little musical detail and often seems to be talking in order to keep anyone else from getting a cross word in. John Lennon dances with Yoko Ono and occasionally smiles but often seems like his mind is elsewhere. George Harrison smiles whenever he know that the camera is on him but, when glimpsed in the background, he doesn’t seem happy at all. Ringo patiently waits for his chance to perform, sometimes bored and sometimes amused but always the most likable of the bunch. He and George work on Octopus Garden and it’s a charming moment, if just because it’s obvious that both men would rather be there than in the studio.
Even if you haven’t seen Peter Jackson’s The Beatles: Get Back (which was constructed out of material that was shot for but not used in this documentary), Let It Be is often time one of the most depressing behind-the-scenes documentaries ever made. The more the individual members of the Beatles smile and perform for the camera, the more one can see the cracks that have formed in their relationships. With Lennon spending most of his time with Yoko, it’s Paul who dominates the documentary. Paul comes across as being charming and talented but his habit of nonstop talking gives the impression of someone who is desperately trying to hold together a sinking ship. At one point, George snaps that he’ll play the guitar however Paul tells him to and it’s obvious that, for George and probably the others as well, being the world’s most popular band has gone from being a thrill to just being another job. When Paul and John talk about how much fun they had when they first started playing live in Hamburg, it’s obvious that the conversation is at least partially staged to set up the rooftop concert but there’s a genuine sadness to their voices. Even as they write and record new songs, they’re realizing that all things must pass.
But then the Beatles give a rooftop concert and they bring London to a halt and, for a few minutes, it seems like everything is going to be alright. Standing on the roof and performing a wonderful version of Get Back, the Beatles are suddenly a band just having fun and it’s delightful to see. Later, John Lennon gets a devilish gleam in his eyes as he sings the raunchy (for 1969) lyrics for I’ve Got A Feeling. Even George looks happy for a few moments. People gather in the street below to watch and the camera is quick to show us that both young and old love the Beatles. Of course, eventually, the police show up and shut down the show. (Of course, being British police, they’re very polite about it. One has to breathe a sigh of relief that the Beatles didn’t try to do their rooftop show in New York or Los Angeles.) It’s a reminder that nothing lasts forever. Eventually, every concert comes to an end.
It’s interesting to compare Let It Be to another 70s documentary about a famous British rock band. InGimme Shelter, the Altamont Free Concert ends with a murder as Mick Jagger pleads with the crowd to stop fighting and just sit down. In Let ItBe, things end with a random joke from John Lennon, who would himself be murdered in just ten years. Both Gimme Shelter and Let It Be are about the end of an era and both are full of regret and a longing for a simpler and more idealistic era. For those of us who want to understand history, they’re essential.
David Bowie was one of the first artists to truly understand the potential power of a good music video and, as can be seen in this video for Ashes to Ashes, he was an early pioneer of the form. At a time when most music videos were just performance clips, Bowie put together a narrative that offered an artistic interpretation of the song’s lyrics and themes and which invited viewers to interpret the song on their own.
The video was largely shot on two beaches in the UK, at Beachy Head and Hastings. Interior scenes were filmed on the set of the Kenny Everett Show. Bowie’s followers were played by the Blitz kids, who were known for frequenting the Blitz nightclub in Covent Garden.
Bowie said that the video was meant to combine the past and the future, which is why Bowie not only appears as an astronaut but also as an Edwardian clown. The scenes with Bowie as an astronaut are, as the lyrics make clear, a reference to Major Tom. The look of the scenes was heavily influenced by H.R. Giger’s work on Alien.
David Mallet would go on to become one of busiest directors of music videos of the 80s, directing videos for Queen, Iron Maiden, AC/DC, and others. David Bowie would also go on to play a huge role in MTV’s history, due to both his videos and his willingness to call out that station’s initial refusal to feature videos from black artists.
Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Mondays, I will be reviewing CHiPs, which ran on NBC from 1977 to 1983. The entire show is currently streaming on Freevee!
This week, Jon Baker takes on …. THE REPO MAN!
Episode 2.14 “Repo Man”
(DIr by Alex Grasshoff, aired on January 6th, 1979)
This week features a truly memorable villain.
Doyle Ware (Mills Watson) is a repo man. When people fall behind on their car payments, Doyle is the guy who shows up to repossess the vehicle. That he’s a sleaze shouldn’t come as a surprise. I mean, who likes a repo man, right? But, as Baker and Ponch discover, Doyle is more than just a repo man.
He’s a criminal mastermind!
He steals cars and then informs the owner that the car has been destroyed in an accident. Doyle offers to buy what little is left of the vehicle. However, the truth is that the car hasn’t been destroyed. And once Doyle gets the title, he proceeds to sell the car under the original owner’s name. Then, once the buyer falls behind on their payments, he repossesses the car and sells it again. What a sleazy guy!
When Baker and Ponch prevent Doyle from repossessing an old couple’s trailer, Doyle reacts by trying to destroy their credit. He plants false reports that Baker and Ponch owe money. Baker tries to buy an expensive saddle, just to be humiliated when the clerk (played by future playwright Terrence McNally) informs him that his credit score is awful. Ponch starts to get notices at the police station, telling him that he owes money. Getraer offers to help Baker but not Ponch. Getraer can’t stand Ponch.
While dealing with his bad credit, Baker also becomes a local celebrity when he jumps, from a bridge, onto an out-of-control school bus. Baker’s face appears on the local news and soon, people are demanding his autograph. Baker is mortified. Ponch is thrilled because, for some reason, people want his autograph too. “Oh my God, you’re his partner!” someone says as they rush up to Ponch’s motorcycle. Seriously, Ponch didn’t do anything!
Meanwhile, Grossman (who, as played by Paul Linke, is the most consistently likable member of the show’s supporting cast) gets an article published in a magazine. Everyone at the station pretends like they haven’t read and enjoyed the article. Poor Grossie! Don’t worry, though. A news crew films Grossie putting out a fire and he soon replaces Baker as everyone’s favorite local hero. Baker’s happy to have both his good credit and his anonymity restored.
(This is actually a pretty big episode for Baker. He also gets a subplot in which a watchmaker, played by Ned Glass, destroys Baker’s watch after he bring it in to get the wrist band fixed.)
This was a good episode. The school bus rescue was genuinely exciting and Doyle Ware was a villain who was so sleazy that it was a lot of fun watching him get taken down. CHiPs did a good job with Repo Man.
Through the Shattered Lens