Horror on TV: Spectre (dir by Clive Donner)


Produced by Gene Roddenberry and directed by Clive Donner, 1977’s Spectre was a pilot film for a television series about an occult detective (Robert Culp) who solved supernatural mysteries while dealing with a curse that had been put on him by the demon, Asmodeus.

In this film, Culp’s William Sebastian and his associate, Dr. Ham Hamilton (Gig Young) travel to the UK to investigate a supernatural case involving an old family.  Despite the efforts of a succubus and a cursed airplane, Sebastian and Ham are determined to solve the mystery.  John Hurt appears as a member of the cursed family.

This pilot was not picked up and developed into a series but it was popular enough that it was released as a theatrical film in Europe.

Horror on the Lens: Spectre (dir by Clive Donner)


Produced by Gene Roddenberry and directed by Clive Donner, 1977’s Spectre was a pilot film for a television series about an occult detective (Robert Culp) who solved supernatural mysteries while dealing with a curse that had been put on him by the demon, Asmodeus.

In this film, Culp’s William Sebastian and his associate, Dr. Ham Hamilton (Gig Young) travel to the UK to investigate a supernatural case involving an old family.  Despite the efforts of a succubus and a cursed airplane, Sebastian and Ham are determined to solve the mystery.  John Hurt appears as a member of the cursed family.

This pilot was not picked up and developed into a series but it was popular enough that it was released as a theatrical film in Europe.

Horror On The Lens: Tales From The Crypt (dir by Freddie Francis)


For today’s Horror on the Lens, we have 1972’s Tales From The Crypt, a British anthology film which features The Crypt Keeper (Ralph Richardson) informing five strangers of how they will die.  This classic, all-star film was based on stories that originally appeared in the Tales From The Crypt comic book.

In general, I’m not a huge fan of anthology films but Tales From The Crypt is an exception to that role.  It’s an entertaining collection of macabre stories and the cast is to die for …. maybe literally!

This Amicus-produced movie is probably best remembered for the segment in which Joan Collins is menaced by an evil Santa but the whole thing is good.