Tag Archives: Craccked Rear Viewer

RIP Sid Haig: A Career Retrospective

Posted on by gary loggins

gary loggins's avatarcracked rear viewer

Quick, name an actor who’s played villains opposite everyone from Batman to  James Bond, and Captain Kirk to TJ Hooker. Not to mention sharing screen time with stars like Ann-Margret, Lucille Ball, Lon Chaney Jr, Pam Grier, Nancy Kwan, Lee Marvin, and Anthony Quinn, and working with directors as diverse as Robert Aldrich, Jack Hill, Richard Fleischer, George Lucas, Quentin Tarantino, and Rob Zombie.  There’s only one, and his name was Sid Haig, one of the last links to Old Hollywood and an Exploitation Icon, who sadly passed away yesterday at age 80.

Young Sidney Moesian, born 7/17/39 in Fresno, was bitten by the show biz bug early, dancing onstage as a child and even scoring a regional rock hit with his teenage band The T-Birds:

Sid got his acting education paying his dues at the famed Pasadena Playhouse, alongside roommate Stuart Margolin (THE ROCKFORD FILES, DEATH WISH, etc). His…

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Farewell, Captain Spaulding

Posted on by gary loggins

gary loggins's avatarcracked rear viewer

News has reached us that character actor Sid Haig has passed away at age 80. I’ll have a full tribute/career retrospective on Sid later tonight or tomorrow evening. Meanwhile, enjoy this pictorial tribute to the late, great Sid Haig…

Spider Baby (1964; D: Jack Hill)

CC & Company (1970; D: Seymour Robbie)

Diamonds Are Forever (1971; D: Guy Hamilton)

Foxy Brown (1974; D: Jack Hill)

Jackie Brown (1997; D: Quentin Tarantino)

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4 Shots From 4 Films: Happy Birthday Joan Blondell

Posted on by gary loggins

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. Hollywood Pre-Code Queen Joan Blondell was born on this date in 1906. After starring in vaudeville and on Broadway, Joan made her film debut in 1930, beginning a screen career that lasted 50 years, until her death in 1979 (her final film was released posthumously in 1981). In honor of one of my favorite stars of the Golden Age, here are 4 Shots from the Films of Joan Blondell (and be on the lookout for more on Joanie, coming next week!):

Blonde Crazy (1931; D: Roy Del Ruth)

Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933; D: Mervyn LeRoy)

Nightmare Alley (1947; D: Edmund Goulding)

Grease (1978; D: Randal Kleiser)

Happy Birthday, Joanie!

4 Shots from 4 Films: Happy Birthday Robert Mitchum

Posted on by gary loggins

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 reaps that we usually post, 4 Shots from 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking. Acting icon Robert Mitchum was born on this date in 1917, and in his honor, here are four shots from four of his best films (and with a 50-plus year career, it was tough to choose just four!):

His Kind of Woman (RKO 1951; D: John Farrow)

Night of the Hunter (United Artists 1955; D: Charles Laughton)

Cape Fear (Universal 1962; D: J. Lee Thompson)

The Friends of Eddie Coyle (Paramount 1973; D: Peter Yates)

Happy American Redneck Day from Gretchen Wilson!

Posted on by gary loggins

My father’s family is from South Carolina, my mother’s from Massachusetts, which makes me half Redneck, half Yankee, and 100% American! Since Lisa has already let us know today is American Redneck Day, let’s celebrate with Gretchen Wilson doing her 2004 country music hit, “Redneck Woman”:

Happy American Redneck Day, y’all! Now somebody give me a Hell Yeah!

 

4 Shots From 4 Films: Happy 102nd Birthday Olivia de Havilland

Posted on by gary loggins

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. Hollywood royalty Olivia de Havilland is alive & well, and celebrating her 102nd birthday today! In her honor, here are 4 shots from the films of Olivia de Havilland:

The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938; D: Michael Curtiz)

Gone With The Wind (1939; D: Victor Fleming)

The Snake Pit (1948; D: Anatole Litvak)

Lady in a Cage (1964; D: Walter Grauman)

4 Shots From 4 Films: RIP Maria Rohm

Posted on by gary loggins

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. It was reported today that Austrian actress Maria Rohm, best known for her work with Exploitation masters Harry Alan Towers and Jess Franco, passed away at age 72. In her honor, here are 4 shots from the films of Maria Rohm:

House of 1,000 Dolls (1967, D: Jeremy Summers)

99 Women (1969, D: Jess Franco)

Venus in Furs (1969, D: Jess Franco)

Count Dracula (1970, D: Jess Franco)

Ulmer Out West: THE NAKED DAWN (Universal-International 1955)

Posted on by gary loggins

gary loggins's avatarcracked rear viewer

A Technicolor modern-day Western noir directed by legendary low-budget auteur Edgar G. Ulmer ? Count me in! THE NAKED DAWN probably wouldn’t be remembered today if it weren’t for Ulmer, who had a knack for making silk purses out of sow’s ears. Ulmer uses the outdoor locations and his trademark tight shots to disguise the budgetary restrictions, and creates a small gem of a movie. It’s not THE SEARCHERS  or anything, just a compact little drama with a rare starring role for actor Arthur Kennedy .

Kennedy plays Santiago, an ex-revolutionary turned bandito. He’s a drifter, unfettered by societal norms, whose lust for life and freedom are constantly threatened by the powers that be. A metaphor for Ulmer himself, perhaps? Santiago robs a train of some merchandise, and his friend Vicente is killed in the process. Stumbling upon God-fearing Maria and her husband Manuel on their modest farm, Santiago’s roguish…

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