TWILIGHT ON THE TRAIL 1941 (PLATINUM)

Another fun Hoppy entry.

It's a pretty standard western, but it's very well done.

Hoppy (William Boyd), California Carlson (Andy Clyde) and Johnny Nelson (Brad King) are called in to investigate cattle rustlers in Antelope Valley, especially on the ranch of Jim Brent (Jack Rockwell).'

Hoppy and his men arrive as bogus Englishmen to fool the rustlers. The three of them finally get to the bottom of the issue and manage to stop the rustlers and their evil scheme.

As I said, this is a very entertaining entry in the long series and was a good way to end my viewing of the 35 film set I have. If you like Hoppy westerns, this is a good one indeed.

Well, this is my FINAL review on this blog. I figured this would be a good way to end it. It's been a fun 12 1/2 years and I hope everyone has enjoyed it and will continue to use this as a reference.

THANKS AGAIN TO EVERYONE WHO FOLLOWS ME AND READS THIS.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Angie Dickinson is 91, Ian Ogilvy is 78, Candice Michelle is 44, and Marilyn McCoo is 79.

MISSION MARS 1968 (YOU TUBE)

I caught this obscure gem on You Tube on a Commander USA feature.

This is a strange film about 3 US astronauts who are on a trip to Mars. Col. Mike Blaiswick (Darren McGavin), Nick Grant (Nick Adams) and Doug Duncan (George De Vries) encounter a few dangers on their way to the red planet including a meteor storm and 2 bodies of dead Russian cosmonauts drifting thru space.

When the finally land on Mars they find another frozen Russian and take his body back to the ship. They also encounter a mysterious talking orb and several weird creatures that can burn you to death with a light ray.

These aliens are determined to kill the men for unknown reasons and it turns out to be a fight for survival. Meanwhile back on Earth Mike's gorgeous wife Edith (Heather Hewitt) and Nick's girlfriend Alice (Shirley Parker) dread the entire mission.

Doug is killed by the monsters and then Nick sacrifices himself so Mike and the still living Russian can make an escape and return safely to Earth. This is a bizarre kind of film that works in a lot of spots, and then in some it falls flat.

It was directed by Nick Webster who also helmed "Sants Claus Conquers The Martians". Depending on your frame of mind you might enjoy this one. Also, lovely Heather Hewitt also appeared in "I Eat Your Skin" and will be turning 87 on Oct. 2nd.

EUROCRIME 2012 (TUBI)

One of the best documentaries I have ever seen.

This runs over 2 hours and it NEVER gets boring. This is a great look at the crime films from the 70's and early 80's that were churned out by the hundreds in Italy.

We hear from many actors who appeared in these films such as John Saxon, Henry Silva, Franco Nero, Fred Williamson and quite a few more. We also get the perspective from many directors and stunt men.

There are too many clips to mention and this is loaded with more information about these films than one human could imagine. No stone is left unturned in looking at this excellent genre of film.

If you're not of fan of these after you see this, then there isn't much hope you'll ever be. Eurocrime films are one of a kind even though they rip off many American films, but the difference is, they all used current events going on in Italy as the backgound for all of these films.

I can't recommend this enough, especially for fans of the genre. It was made in 2012, but I just discovered this on Tubi and had a good time watching this and learning so much about how all this insanity came into being.

Check it out, you'll love it!!

RIP SARA SHANE 1928-2022

I just got the word of this beautiful lady's death.

The stunning blonde beauty was born Elaine Sterling in St. Louis, MO and starred in a few movies and TV shows in her short career in front of the camera.

She started her movie career as an uncredited pretty face in musical such as "Easter Parade" in 1948 and others included "Julia Misbehaves" and "Neptunes Daughter".

Her most meorable role for me was in the 1956 gem entitled "Three Bad Sisters" in which she looked absolutely gorgeous. It was probably her best role ever.

She also appeared in TV shows such as "Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea", "Perry Mason", "Outer Limits" and "Tarzan".

She retired from acting in 1964 and moved to the Gold Coast in Australia where she passed away on July 31, 2022 at the age of 94.

RIP VENETIA STEVENSON 1938-2022

The beautiful British actress has died.

Stevenson had a very brief but memorable career in both movies and TV.

Her career started in 1954 in TV and moved to movies in 1958. Some of her films include ""Colt .45", "Island Of Lost Women", "Day Of The Outlaw" and "Jet Over The Atlantic".

Her Tv appearances include "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", "The Millionaire", and "Lawman".

Her most well known film was the 1960 horror classic "City Of The Dead" co-starring Christopher Lee. Stevenson retired from acting in in 1961, but her beauty will always stand out in her films.

She passed away on September 26th, 2022 at the age of 84 from Parkinson's disease.

RIP KITTEN NATIVIDAD 1948-2022

The adult film and exploitation actress has passed away.

I saw Kitten in only her Russ Meyer films and the Fred Olen Ray gem called "The Tomb", but I never forgot what I saw.

She made her mark with film fans in her movies for Meyer called "UP" and "Beneath The Valley Of The Ultra Vixens". She made numerous adult films and made quick appearances in other films.

Kitten passed away on Sept. 24th, 2022 at the age of 74.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Brigitte Bardot is 88, Dita Von Teese is 50, and Naomi Watts is 54.

RAMBLINGS...

It's the end folks.

You know, I have been doing this for 12 and 1/2 years and have enjoyed bringing you my viewpoints on these films.

It's been a fun ride, but life has made it impossible for me to continue after this month. I've done over 9500 posts in those 12 plus years and have met a lot of great people.

I do hope you continue to use this blog as a guide to the many thousands of films I've written about. I have always loved movies and this was a great outlet for me to share my love for them and once in a while, my strong dislike for certain ones.

Once you get hooked on older cinema, it stays with you forever, and mine will ALWAYS be with me. In the last few years I haven't seen as many great releases as was the case in the mid 2000's, but there are a few, and there will no doubt be many more coming to Blu-ray.

Enjoy them, and remember 'WATCH HORROR FILMS TO KEEP AMERICA STRONG". See you guys...it's been a blast.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO,,,

Patrick Muldoon is 44.

STRANGE GAMBLE 1948 (PLATINUM)

This was the final of 66 Hopalong Cassidy movies, and it's a good one.

Hoppy (William Boyd), California Carlson (Andy Clyde) and Lucky Jenkins (Rand Brooks) are working for the US Government and hunting for the leader of a huge counterfeiting ring.

The phoney money is both US currency and Mexican money as well which also brings in Ramon De Lara (Alberto Morin) who Hoppy mistakes for one of the gang he's investigating.

The film moves along at a breakneck pace and it never slows down. There is plenty of gunfighting, fistfighting and horse chases. Hoppy and his men finally break the scheme and all ends well.

Cassidy remains one of the best role models for kids everywhere and it is quite a legacy to leave. Too bad they cannot make films with people like William Boyd anymore.

I recommend this little film to any westerns fan. The rest of the cast includes Elaine Riley, James Cravin, Herbert Rawlinson, Lee Tong Foo and Francis McDonald.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Lysette Anthony is 59, Christina Milian is 41, Victoria Vetri is 78, Martine Beswick is 81, and Kanako Urai is 41.

THE GREEN GIRL 2013 (TUBI)

Interesting documentary of the career and life of gorgeous actress Susan Oliver.

The title is taken from her appearence of Star Trek as the green alien who does a very seductive dance in the two part episode entitled "The Cage".

This in depth look at her career caught me a little by suprise as I have always loved her work, but never thought anyone would do a documentary on it. Susan was born in 1932 and passed away in 1990 from cancer.

Her body of work included both TV and movies, but it was TV that she made her mark. Some of the various shows she was in include "Seaway", Gomer Pyle USMC", "Peyton Place", "The Invaders", "Mannix", "Man From U.N.C.L.E." and "Night Gallery" just to name a few.

Her film credits included "Hardly Working", "The Monitors" and "Change Of Mind".

Susan never played by the rules and she really wanted to direct movies, but was never allowed the chance, which is our loss. If you get a chance to see this well made documentary, I suggest you check it out. It's unusual, but damn is it good.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Heather Locklear is 61, and Michael Madson is 65.

MUTANT X: SEASON 3 2003-2004 (LIONSGATE)

Season 3 strated out very different and the show went an entire new direction.

This season opened with the death of two members of the Mutant X team.

INTO THE MOONLESS NIGHT 9/29/2003... This episode is the conclusion to the season final from year 2. Adam and Emma are killed and the Mutant X team deals with the loss as well as the arrival of sexy newcomer Lexe Pierce (Karen Cliche). Her arrival makes the rest of the team question their fundamental function in life. This is an excellent way to start thje third and final season.

WAGES OF SIN 10/6/2003...The Mutant X team is sent in to stop the auction of a highly lethal substance that terrorists are trying to acquire.

THE BREED 10/13/2003...The Mutant X team is called to a military base that has been infected by a deadly virus. This episode is one of the best as it reminds me of Dawn Of The Dead from 1979 and 2004.

WHERE EVIL DWELLS 10/20/2003...The team is assigned to stop a serial killer who leaves puzzels with his victims in order to play games with the police.

THE TAKING OF CROWS 10/27/2003...One of the most famous episodes ever!! Shalimar (Victoria Pratt) infiltrates a women's prison along with Lexi to stop a dangerous drug dealer. Reminds me of a WIP film, and too shabby either.

SHADOW OF DARKNESS 11/3/2003... The team investigates a haunted hospital. A very well made episode and one of the best of the entire three year run.

HAND OF GOD 11/10/2003...A powerful super mutant with God-like powers endangers the life of every Mutant X member, and the team sets out to stop him.

WASTELAND 11/17/2003...Jesse (Forbes March) is forced to get back together with his ex-fiance when it's discovered that she is involved with a company that is trying to change the genetics of crops.

NO EXIT 1/12/2004...Excellent episode about a paralyzed mutant that has the mental ability to enter into any computer. He traps both Jesse and Brennen (Victor Webster) while Lexa (Karen Cliche) and Shalimar (Victoria Pratt) try to rescue them.

BROTHER'S KEEPER 1/19/2004...Mutant X learns of Lexa's twin brother after he becomes involved with a corporation which is harvesting organs of mutants.

POSSIBILITIES 1/26/2004...Another top notch episode has the Mutant X team helping a time traveling mutant trying to defuse a very destructive bomb.

CONSPIRACY THEORY 2/2/2004...Brennen and Shalimar investigate a plane crash that causes Lexa to rethink her association with Mutant X.

ART OF ATTRACTION 2/9/2004...The Mutant X team fight to retrieve a formula hidden inside of a painting.

NORMAL LIFE 2/16/2004...While Mutant X helps track down a rogue scientist, Shalimar helps Adam (john Shea) find the real bad guy.

DIVIDED LOYALTIES 2/23/2004...Brennen is forced to return to his former life of crime when he discovers that his old partner is stealing secrets from the Dominion.

AGE OF INNOCENCE 3/16/2004...An old experiment is uncovered by Mutant X that involves age reversing, and it has dire consequences.

SHE'S COME UNDONE 4/12/2004...Mutant X discover that Lexa is a subject for covert experiments on mutants.

IN BETWEEN 4/19/2004...Brenne must enter Jesse's mind when he is near death. A very strange episode, but very well done.

DREAM LOVER 4/26/2004...Mutant X must stop a man from cloning women to use as his slaves. One of the best episodes of the series.

THE PROPHECY 5/3/2004...Brennen must battle the Guardian Of The Prophecy in order to stop the late Ashlocke's plan for world domination.

CIRQUE DE MERVEILLES 5/10/2004...Lexa suspects that a circus is actually a death camp for mutants world wide.

THE ASSAULT 5/17/2004...The final episode reveals many of the secrets of the Mutant X team as they are captured by the Dominion, forcing Adam to try and rescue them.

That wraps up a great 3 year run for this unique show. The final episode left the door open for another season, but, alas that was not to happen. If you get a chance you really should check out all three years of this show. I like it a lot.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Bert I. Gordon is 100, and April Hunter is 49.

CRAZE 1974 (TUBI)

It had been a very long time between viewings of this film.

I first saw this on a VHS I bought from K-Mart back in the day. I wasn't too impressed, but now all these years later I looked at this again on Tubi, and enjoyed the heck out of it.

This VERY odd film was the final movie for producer Herman Cohen. Jack Palance stars as Neal Mottram, an antique dealer who worships an African god named Chuku.

His bills are piling up as sales are way down and after praying to his God he and his shop employee find a stash of gold coins in an old wooden desk, and Mottram sees this as a reward from Chuku.

This sets in motion Mottram's plan to sacrifice young women to his God so he can have even more riches. A police detective named Wall (Michael Jayston) knows Mottram is a killer, but has no proof.

The killing continues and Neal gets richer and richer. His young employee, Ronnie (Martin Potter) is questioned by the police and almost spills the beans.

Palance is totally nuts as the man who is obsessed with his wooden God. He owns the film, but the supporting cast is wonderful as well. It includes Diana Dors, Julie Ege, Percy Herbert, Edith Evans, and Suzy Kendall.

Ege and Kendall are just so damned good looking I wish they had larger roles in the film. Check it out.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Maren Jensen is 66, and Paul Petersen is 77.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Catherine Oxenberg is 61, Asa Maynor is 86, and Debby Boone is 66.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Teresa Gimpera is 86 and Cynthia Hull is 75.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Sophia Loren is 88, and Brinke Stevens is 68.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

David McCallum is 89, Victoria Silvstedt is 48, and Bobbie Bresee is 75.

DEAD AIR 2009 (TUBI)

Another interesting find on Tubi.

This horror film was directed by Corbin Bernsen and it's not too shabby.

Bill Moseley stars as Logan, a radio talk show host who has an ego as big as the entire universe. One night during his show a group of terrorists release a strange gas at sporting events all across the country.

The gas has an effect on people that changes them into vicious monsters that tear their victims to shreds, and they even eat some of the people they kill. The people they kill get up and kill, and even a scratch from them can make you change.

Logan finds himself and his broadcast partners trapped in the building while the city is over run with zombie-like killers. This plays much like a zombie film, but the difference is that these monsters will die seven hours after they are contaminated.

There are some great set pieces here as we hear the USA falling apart from the point of view of Logan and the radio station. This reminded me a lot of "28 Days Later", but for some reason I liked this far more.

The ending is a little open ended as if there might be a sequel, but that never happened. The film works on many levels and if you haven't seen this, you should indeed give it a look.

The rest of the cast includes beautiful Patricia Tallman, David Moscow, Dan Lauria and Corbin Bernsen. A Recommended film.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Frankie Avalon is 82.

KING OF THE RANGE 1947 (PLATINUM)

One of the best of the Hopalong Cassidy series.

Hoppy (William Boyd, California (Andy Clyde) and Lucky Jenkins (Rand Brooks) stop at an abandoned church for some rest and food before hitting the trail back to the Bar-20 ranch.

In the middle of the night they hear the organ playing and find a young lady named Susan Crowell (Dorinda Clifton) playing. She and her mother tell the three men that the entire town was abandoned after many unusual deaths.

After the meeting the men go back to sleep and in the morning are awakened by a group of men tearing the church down. Hoppy chases them off but the men gather outside and star a shootout which keeps Hoppy and his men trapped in the church.

Hoppy is dtermined to find out what is going on and why the men want the church destroyed. This is a very unusual Cassidy adventure and it plays very, very well.

It's a good film and any fan of Hopalong Cassidy will no doubt enjoy it. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!

RIP HENRY SILVA 1928-2022

One of the greatest actors ever has died.

Henry Silva had a long and varied career. I loved him in everything I saw him in. I just watched a documentary with him called "Eurocrime" which I will be talking about here in a few days.

I also wished him a happy birthday here for turning 96 and that was before I heard he passed away one day before his 96th year.

His 51 year career touched every single genre of film there is and I could write a book about all of the things I liked him in. Some of my favorite films he starred in include "Dick Tracy", "The Tall T", "Secret Invasion", "Assassination", "Cry Of A Prostitute", "Alligator", "Chained Heat", and that's just the tip of the iceberg.

He also appeared in such TV shows as "Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea" and "The Outer Limits". He made dozens of gangster films in Italy and was a standout in everything he ever did.

His kind of actor will never be seen again. Silva died on September 14th, 2022 at the age of 95.

URSES IN THE LAND OF FIRE 1963 (TUBI)

Ed Fury stars as Urses.

This is a fun little muscle popper that I had never seen. The print leaves a lot to be desired, but hey, I got to watch it at least.

Hamikar (Adriano Micantoni)is a general whor murders his king and places himself on the throne. His queen is the former king's evil niece. He then begins waging wars on everyone, killing their women and enslaving the men.

Urses is victorious at a tournament that Hamikar throws, but is still arrested. The former king's daughter Diana (Luciana Gilli) helps Urses escape as she loves him. Hamikar makes several attempts to kill her, but to no avail.

Finally Urses leads a revolt and in an exciting confrontation, Urses throws Hamikar into a fire pit and ends his life. Urses and Diana can now live in peace as well as everyone else.

Any fan of these kinds of films should be pleased with this one. There is plenty of action and both leading women are very easy on the eyes. This is a somewhat rare Italian film for some reason. The print is not in widescreen and it is faded, but hell watch it anyway. It's fun!!.

The rest of the cast includes Claudia Mori, Nando Tamberlani, Giuseppe Addobbati and Pietro Ceccarelli.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Jennifer Tilly is 64.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Henry Silva is 94, Peggy Webber is 97, and Judith Ridley is 76.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Joey Heatherton is 78, Joyce Taylor is 90, and Judy Lang is 82.