Halloween Havoc!: THE CREATURE WALKS AMONG US (Universal-International 1956)

Posted on October 31, 2018 by gary loggins

THE CREATURE WALKS AMONG US – and he’s not too happy about it! Can’t say that I blame him, as once again he’s used and abused by humans, kidnapped from his watery home, suffers third degree burns, and transformed into a landlubber! This third and final entry in The Gill-Man saga unfortunately isn’t as good as its two predecessors, with too much melodramatic nonsense spoiling what was an intriguing premise.

Dr. Bill Barton (Jeff Morrow ) leads a search in the Florida Everglades for the Creature, who escaped Ocean Harbor Oceanarium in the last film. Along with Barton are geneticist Dr. Tom Morgan (Rex Reason), Dr. Borg (Maurice Manson), Dr. Johnson (James Rawley), and macho guide Jed Grant (Gregg Palmer ). Also on board is Barton’s wife Marcia (Leigh Snowden), a beautiful blonde trapped in a loveless marriage with her insanely jealous, controlling prick of a husband.

The Creature…

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Halloween Havoc! Extra: Boris & Bela’s “Forgotten” Universal Film!

Posted on October 31, 2018 by gary loggins

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I’ve covered every Universal Horror Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi made together on this blog but one… it’s a Universal Picture, but not a horror! Instead, the Demonic Duo make cameo appearences in 1934’s GIFT OF GAB, an “all-star comedy with music” featuring the likes of Edmond Lowe, Gloria Stuart , singers Ruth Etting and Ethel Waters, Victor Moore, and others. In this scene, Paul Lukas , Binnie Barnes, Chester Morris, Roger Pryor, and June Knight perform a murder mystery sketch in which the Twin Titans of Terror make all-too-brief cameos:

The Terror Twins worked together one other time, in a 1938 guest shot on Ozzie Nelson’s radio program, “singing” (if you could call it that!!) a little ditty called “We’re Horrible, Horrible Men”:

Thankfully, Boris and Bela stuck to acting… though I have to admit, their singing’s pretty scary, too!!

Happy Halloween from Bela and Boris!

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Halloween Havoc! Extra: Boris & Bela Do THE MONSTER MASH!

Posted on October 31, 2018 by gary loggins

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Bobby “Boris” Pickett’s 1962 hit “The Monster Mash” was not only a graveyard smash, but has become an annual Halloween tradition here on Cracked Rear Viewer. This season, I’ve picked out a Monster Mash-Up of clips starring Universal Horror icons Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi set to Pickett’s groovy ghoulie tune. Break out your dancing shoes and get ready to Do The Mash with Boris and Bela:

Have a Happy HORRORween, Dear Readers!

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Halloween Havoc!: REVENGE OF THE CREATURE (Universal-International 1955)

Posted on October 30, 2018 by gary loggins

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The Gill-Man made his second appearance in REVENGE OF THE CREATURE, a good-not-great sequel that finds The Creature out of his element and in the modern (well, 1955) world. In fact, The Creature is the most sympathetic character in the film, as he’s hunted, ripped from his home, chained up, tortured, and treated like a freak-show attraction. The humans, with the exception of heroine Lori Nelson, are your basic 50’s sci-fi hammerheads who fear what they don’t understand and try to force The Gill-Man to their will.

Old friend Captain Lucas is once again heading down the Amazon to the Black Lagoon, in his new boat The Rita II. Joe Hayes and George Johnson of Florida’s Ocean Harbor Oceanarium are out to capture The Creature and use him as a theme park attraction. Underwater dynamite charges stun The Gill-Man into a coma, and he’s trussed up and transported stateside. Professor…

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Halloween Havoc!: THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON (Universal-International 1954)

Posted on October 29, 2018 by gary loggins

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By the early 1950’s, the type of Gothic horrors Universal was famous for had become passe. It was The Atomic Age, and science fiction ruled the roost, with invaders from outer space and giant bugs unleashed by radiation were the new norm. But the studio now called Universal-International had one more ace up its collective sleeve: THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, last of the iconic Universal Monsters!

Scientist Dr. Maia, exploring “the upper reaches of the Amazon” with his native guides, discovers a fossilized hand that may be the evolutionary “missing link”. Taking his finding to the Institudo de Biologia Martima, he teams with ichthyologist David Reed, David’s pretty assistant/fiancé Kay Lawrence, institute chief Dr. Mark Williams, and fellow scientist Dr. Thompson to form an expedition. They charter the steamer The Rita, skippered by Captain Lucas, and head down the river into the Black Lagoon. Maia’s Indian guides…

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Love That Dirty Water: BOSTON RED SOX WIN 2018 WORLD SERIES!!

Posted on October 28, 2018 by gary loggins

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108 regular season wins… playoff victories against bitter rivals the Yankees and defending champs the Astros… a historic 18 inning loss in Game 3… and finally, the Boston Red Sox seal the deal to become the 2018 World Series Champions! And best of all, they did it before midnight!!

No one thought this team was anything special at first. Their new manager, Alex Cora, had no experience running a team on his own. They didn’t sign free agent slugger J.D. Martinez until late in spring training. There were questions about David Price, the bullpen looked shaky, superstar Dustin Pedroia was unable to come back from knee surgery, Jackie Bradley couldn’t hit, Rafael Devers couldn’t field. They lost their first game to the Tampa Bay Rays, and I had low expectations about them.

Then something magical happened. The team won nine in a row, then another eight-game streak, and they never…

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Halloween Havoc!: HOUSE OF HORRORS (Universal 1946)

Posted on October 28, 2018 by gary loggins

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Rondo Hatton (1894-1946) was dubbed by “The Ugliest Man in Hollywood” by Universal for his repulsive visage. Originally a Tampa-based sportswriter, Hatton began developing the disease acromegaly as a young adult, a form of gigantism which distorts the facial features and bone structure (wrestler Andre the Giant suffered from this). Rondo moved to Hollywood and got work as a film extra and some bit parts (he can be spotted in SAFE IN HELL , IN OLD CHICAGO, THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME (’39 version), and THE OX BOW INCIDENT, among others).

1944’s “The Pearl of Death”

Hatton played “The Hoxton Creeper” in the 1944 Sherlock Holmes entry THE PEARL OF DEATH (with Universal Scream Queen Evelyn Ankers as a villainess, for a change), then proceeded to scare the daylights out of audiences in JUNGLE CAPTIVE and THE SPIDER WOMAN STRIKES BACK. While not a trained actor, his unique looks made…

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Halloween (On The Big Screen) Havoc!: THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI & YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN Double Feature

Posted on October 28, 2018 by gary loggins

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Yesterday I took a break from watching every single moment of the World Series (since Friday’s game went seven freakin’ hours!) to attend a Halloween-themed double feature at the Zeiterion Theater here in New Bedford, MA. Despite the fact that a pounding rainstorm was in full effect, I was determined to get my big screen horror fix – in fact, the rain only added to the monstrous mood of the day. I met my friend Rob at the theater, and proceeded to enter the beautifully refurbished 1920’s era movie palace. First on the agenda was a real classic – Robert Weine’s 1920 Expressionistic silent film THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI!

Conrad Veidt & Werner Krauss in “Cabinet of Dr. Caligari”

CALIAGRI is a landmark of the horror genre and the German Expressionist style that influenced the visual styles of both early Universal Horrors and the film noir movement of the…

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Halloween Havoc! Extra: A Double Dose of Alice!

Posted on October 28, 2018 by gary loggins

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What’s Halloween without a little Alice Cooper , eh, bats and ghouls? The veteran shock rocker has been combining horror with rock’n’roll since I was a young monster, and I’ve unearthed a double dose of Alice’s macabre music in anticipation of the upcoming All Hallows Eve. First up is “He’s Back (The Man Behind the Mask”) from Alice’s 1986 album Constrictor, and used as the theme for the movie FRIDAY THE XIII PART VI: JASON LIVES!:

Oh, how very 80’s! Next we join everybody’s favorite headbangers Wayne and Garth, as they attend an Alice show in 1992’s WAYNE’S WORLD, where the mighty Alice performs “Feed My Frankenstein”:

I saw Alice do this number at a Summer 2017 show, complete with Alice dressed as a ten foot tall Monster onstage! He’s still the Master of Grand Guignol Rock!

What’s that you say, my fiends? You’ve got time for one more…

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Halloween Havoc!: HOUSE OF DRACULA (Universal 1945)

Posted on October 27, 2018 by gary loggins

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Since I’ve already reviewed HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN back in 2015, we now turn our attention to HOUSE OF DRACULA, the last “official” entry in the series (though the Universal Monsters would ‘Meet Abbott & Costello’ three years later). The film tries to put a new slant on things, using science to conquer the supernatural, but winds up being just a hodgepodge of familiar horror tropes without much cohesion. HOUSE OF DRACUA does have its fans, but I’m not one of them.

John Carradine returns as Count Dracula, introducing himself as Baron Latos to Dr. Edlemann (Onslow Stevens ) and seeking a cure for his vampirism. Edlemann discovers a “peculiar parasite” in Dracula’s blood, and believes he can cure him through a series of transfusions. But the Count, that sneaky devil, has his fangs set for Edlemann’s pretty nurse Militza (Martha O’Driscoll), whom he hypnotizes with those hypnotic eyes of his…

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