HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO......

A.J. Khan is 38.

SHORT TAKES.....

I watched a few films with the late, great Christopher Lee, and here are two of them which were talked about here a long time ago.

TERROR IN THE CRYPT 1964 (RETROMEDIA)...This is also known as Crypt Of the Vampire. Lee stars as Count Ludwig Karnstein, a man who believes that his lovely daughter, Laura is possessed by the spirit of a dead ancestor named Carmilla.

Laura is played by Adriana Ambesi whom many fans will remember for her ultra sexy performance as Blinka in "Fangs Of The Living Dead". This film is in gorgeous black and white and very atmospheric.

Ursula Davis is Ljuba, a young woman who comes to stay with Laura who may not be what she seems to be. Lee is fine in the role of a man who is surrounded by things he does not understand, and the print from Retromedia is one of the better ones I have seen of this film. This makes for great Saturday morning viewing.

CITY OF THE DEAD 1960 (VCI)...One of the best horror films around!!

Christopher Lee again stars in this film. He plays the role of a college teacher of the supernatural who sends students to a small New England town called Whitewood. He sends them there to be sacrificed as he is part of a devil worshiping cult that is headed by a witch who was executed 300 years past.

This film is loaded with dark atmosphere and it seems like Whitewood is constantly enshrouded in fog. The first young student is captured and killed so her boyfriend goes to investigate.

The print from VCI is excellent and this film really holds your attention. John Moxey directed this gem with his usual flair for gothic style. One of Lee's best films and one not to be missed by horror fans.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO....

Peter Lupus is 83.

SHORT TAKES.....

Finally got a disc back that had been lost from my collection for some time and it was a joy to watch again. Both have been talked about here before, but not for a very long time.

COUNT YORGA VAMPIRE 1970 (MGM)...Robert Quarry stars as suave vampire Count Yorga, who preys on people in modern day California.

Yorga meets a group of young people at a seance he is conducting and then things soon start happening. One of the young women is bitten by a vampire and soon everyone starts falling victim to Yorga.

There are some very effective moments such as when Yorga stalks a young couple stranded on his property in a van, an the classic scene when one of the women named Erica is found feasting on a kitten. This is a scene that is not ever forgotten when you see it. Yorga's brides are a frightening sight to behold and nothing to be messed with.

The rest of the cast includes Roger Perry, who is also in the sequel, Michael Murphey, Marsha Jordan and Donna Anders. The narration is provided by actor George Macready whose son Michael also stars and co-produced.

Bob Kelljan effectively directs this film which once it takes off it never slows down. The ending is a twist that is welcome. If you haven't seen this film, you are missing one of the most well made horror films of the 70's. This has been slated for a Blu-ray release in October 2015.

RETURN OF COUNT YORGA 1971 (MGM)... I remember the very effective newspaper ads for this film, an it is my favorite of the two films. Quarry again stars, and he is one of the best vampires in movie history.

The opening to this is creepy as hell. A young boy is playing outside of an orphanage, and kicks his ball into a cemetery. as he rests a bevy of female vampires comes out of the ground and begin chasing the child. He runs into someone and screams. The scene then cuts to a small costume party going on inside the orphanage.

Yorag appears at the party and meets a woman named Cynthia (Mariette Hartley) whom he is very soon smitten with. She introduces him to the others including her fiancee, David Baldwin (Roger Perry).

Cynthia's entire family is killed by Yorga's brides and he makes her believe that she was in an accident thru hypnosis and that she must stay at his home.

Bob Kelljan returns as director and does another great job. The scene where Yorga kills a man played by Micheal Pataki is filmed by showing the killing thru the reflection in the water where his boat is parked. It is one of the best scenes ever to appear in a horror film.

Again, the brides are vicious and nothing to mess with, as Baldwin and two detectives soon discover when searching Yorga's mansion. Cynthia is rescued, but there is a very cool twist to this one as well.

Both films are on one disc and look very, very good. A damn good double feature worth picking up. This film has just been announced for a Blu-ray release from Shout Factory in October 2015. Recommended!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO....

Joan Van Ark is 72, Vilmos Zsigmond is 85, Dagmar Lassander is 72, and Suzan Farmer is 73.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO....

Judy Pace is 73, Joy Bang is 70, and Antony Carbone is 88.

ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK 1981 (SHOUT FACTORY)

John Carpenter's classic sci-fi adventure film finally arrives on Blu-ray.

It's 1997 and New York is a maximum security prison. During the course of a night a plane carrying the President Of The United States crashes into the prison and the authorities have to move quickly.

When a rescue attempt fails they send in an inmate whom they have arrested for robbery. Hauk (Lee Van Cleef), the man who runs the prison offers Snake Plissken (Kurt Russell) a full pardon if he can go in and rescue the president within 24 hours.

Snake agrees, rather reluctantly, and is dropped into the prison by glider. Once inside he runs into an odd assortment of inmates including Cabbie played with much gusto by Ernest Borgnine, Brain played by Harry Dean Stanton and Maggie played by Adrienne Barbeau. With their help he lots a rescue attempt to get the President (Donald Pleasence) away from the self appointed leader of the inmates called The Duke played by Isaac Hayes.

The ending to this film is one of the most bleak, but it fits the tone of the film perfectly. This is when Carpenter was in top form, making all kinds of enjoyable films like this and also including "Halloween", "The Thing" and much more.

there is a lot of interesting trivia with this film including the fact that Kris Kristofferson was considered for the role of Plissken, but wasn't talked to after the failure of "Heaven's Gate". I however, feel the casting of Russell was perfect.

it's hard for me to believe that this film is 34 years old. It seems like only yesterday I went to the theater to see this gem. Seeing this after many years is a joy and it looks better than ever thanks to the efforts of Shout Factory. This is a two disc set on which disc one has the feature film and disc two is crammed full of extras which any fan of the film will love, including interviews with many cast members including the late Isaac Hayes.

The rest of the cast for this great film includes Season Hubley, Tom Atkins, Charles Cyphers and the voice of Jamie Lee Curtis who narrates the opening. Look quickly for Ox Baker and John Carpenter. I cannot say enough good things about this film. Totally enjoyable from start to finish and not a flaw to be seen. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!

FROGS 1972 (SHOUT FACTORY)

Another of my favorite films comes to Blu-ray via Shout.

Ray Milland stars as a very cranky rich man named Jason Crockett who has a huge estate that he suddenly fins being overrun by frogs. His family is gathered for their annual birthday and 4th of July celebration. A careless boating accident introduces them to Pickett Smith (Sam Elliot) who is concerned with their use of poisons to control wildlife.

Joan Van Ark is Karen Crockett, Adam Roarke is Clint and lovely Lynn Borden is his neglected wife, Jenny. The most beautiful cast member is Judy Pace as Bella Carrington, a gorgeous model who happens to be the girlfriend of one of the family members. Jason does not take kindly to this, but he accepts it none the less.

Over the course of the weekend several of the family members are killed by lizards spilling some poison, one being killed by spiders, and other grisly ways. nature soon beings a full scale attack and Milland is left in his house alone, which the frogs take care of at the end.

I have read so much bad press about this film, but is has a place in my heart as a fun thriller, and as I have said in an older review of the regular DVD release, I will watch any film with Judy Pace.

If you like horror I can't see you missing this, and it really looks great on Blu-ray. The disc also has an interview with Joan Van Ark who talks very kindly of the film. One of the best releases of the year so far, Shout paired it with "Food of the Gods", another fave. RECOMMENDED!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO.....

Malcolm McDowell is 72.

RAMBLINGS....

Yesterday was a pretty awful day.

The film world lost one of the greatest and most well known actors in Sir Christopher Lee and the wrestling world lost a true legend in Dusty Rhodes.

Both hit me hard as they did a lot of people, and I decided to not review anything yesterday. Sir Lee has been a part of my life since I was very, very young and it is hard for me to believe he is gone. It really brings ones own mortality to the mind when someone you have never met, but has kept you entertained throughout your life passes away.

Nothing lasts forever, but the impact of Sir Lee's passing was like a blow directly in my gut. The man has been with me so long it was hard to imagine him not doing any more films. The good side is that his films will live on for younger people who knew him from his more recent films, and for those my age who have watched him since the 60's or further back.

Early yesterday afternoon, while still reeling from the death if Lee, I get a phone call from a friend telling me about the death of Virgil Runnels, aka Dusty Rhodes. It made the day even worse. Again, I have watched Dusty wrestle and perform since the late 70's, and it was quite a blow.

Nobody, but nobody exemplified the "every day" man as Rhodes did. Dusty taught me how to use a mic, and if you're going to imitate someone, always imitate the best, and that was what he was. In the 70's and 80's Rhodes wrestled in the NWA and was seen on WTCG which became WTBS. His legendary feud with Ric Flair and the Four Horsemen is legendary, and it filled arenas across the land, especially the Omni in Atlanta, GA.

Rhodes built my passion for wrestling, and that too has stayed with me. I lost two icons of my two passions in life, movies and wrestling in one day. June hasn't been a good month for the last two years as last year I lost my favorite radio personality, Casey Kasem.

I guess it hits you hard when you lose people who have either entertained you, taught you and have done both things well. These two men, Lee and Rhodes were part of my life as far back as I can remember. They are gone now and time marches on, but the feelings of sadness will remain for a while. Both men achieved international stardom, but remained gentlemen, not ego driven, like those "stars" today.

As I see all of these people passing on, and my past slowly disappearing, I realize that life is very short and people should always enjoy it no matter what. Yes, there are ups and downs, but people like Christopher Lee and Dusty Rhodes can at least entertain us and take our minds off of our troubles for a short while.

RIP gentlemen. I will miss both of you, but thank you for keeping my passion alive for all these years.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO....

Shari Eubank is 68.

RIP DUSTY RHODES 1945-2015

What a very sad day for wrestling fans and horror fans. First Christopher Lee and now a true wrestling Icon, Dusty Rhodes (aka Virgil Runnels).

Dusty Rhodes was an iconic wrestler whom I grew up watching for many, many years. Rhodes had one of the best work ethics around and his long time feud with "The Four Horsemen" was legendary.

Rhodes could captivate any audience and drew sellouts almost where ever he wrestled. He was a three time world heavyweight champion and held many other titles around the world.

One of his most passionate lines in an interview was "I have eaten pork and bean, and dined with kings and queens". Dusty was one of the nicest men I have met and he will be missed. What a shitty day.

I owe Dusty a great deal. I learned my mic skills from him.

RIP CHRISTOPHER LEE 1922-2015

The last Hammer legend has passed away.

I don't really know what to say here except very large part of my upbringing has now gone away. Lee, of course, is best known for all of his great roles in British horror films from the Hammer Company.

Lee made Dracula a household word again in the late 50's and 60's by starring in six vampire movies starting with "Horror of Dracula" in 1958. it is with this and many other roles that he became a star in the USA.

Lee acted in hundreds of films and TV shows, but will always be remembered by people of my generation as "King of The Vampires". A very sad day for people like me, but Lee lived a nice long life and has left an untouchable legacy. The Golden Age Of Horror Cinema" has ended with his death, as Lee was the last horror star.

He will be missed by everyone who knew him. He was 93.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO.....

Adrienne Barbeau is 70, Dawn Wildsmith is 52.

FOOD OF THE GODS 1976 (SHOUT FACTORY)

The classic Bert I. Gordon film finally arrives on Blu-ray.

The 70's were the best time of my life, and I remember seeing this in theaters and have always loved this film. Marjoe Gortner stars as one of three men who travel to a remote island for some relaxation, and find that such creatures as wasps, chickens and rats have grown to gigantic size.

It seems that a mysterious substance from inside the earth has bubbled up on a small farm, and the owners have been feeding it to the animals. Ida Lupino is Mrs. Skinner who owns the farm with her husband. One of Gortner's friend is killed by giant wasps and he intends to get to the bottom of things.

Meanwhile, a corporate executive who is working with Mr. Skinner arrives on the farm and claims rights to the weird goo. Ralph Meeker is perfect as Besington, the greedy exec who wants to make millions. Pamela Franklin is his assistant, Lorna.

Soon everyone finds themselves fighting for survival against an army of giant rats. Will they survive? This is very loosely based on the story by H.G. Wells, and Wells would probably spin in his grave, but damn, it is fun.

As I said, I love this film, and always will. The effects are super cheap, but that is the charm of this film. Thank God there is no CGI shit here. The cast works well together and also includes Belinda Belaski, Jon Cypher, and Chuck Courtney.

It's great to see this on Blu-ray and it looks better than is has ever looked. The disc also includes an interview with Belaski which is very informative and fun. This is paired with "Frogs", another one of my all time faves, and I will review that film here tomorrow. Great stuff here. Recommended!!