Friday, April 18, 2014

'WAY OUT ~ William And Mary / Talent Associates - 1961

It's Way Out Friday with Tabonga, here at The Dungeon!.. I recently scored a disc with five episodes of 'WAY OUT, a program I saw way back in 1961. They're great! Unfortunately, nine of the original episodes are apparently lost. A few photos from the program showed up in the pages of FAMOUS MONSTERS. And, for the next four Fridays, I'll be posting the rest of the existing episodes.

The story's about a brilliant, bullying husband who's dying, he decides to allow his brain to be kept alive after his death. Stars Henry Jones, Mildred Dunnock and Fritz Weaver.

Here's Roald Dahl, host and writer of this story, he starts each episode with a twisted little intro to set the scene, while, he smokes a cigarette. In fact, a big part of the program has to do with smoking!

Eegah!! sent over a soundclip from this great TV series for our earjoyment, sooooo, you can push the big red 'GO' button there by the atomic brain machine and empty pack of smokes, NOW, Rufus The Gnat! Here's a taste of... WILLIAM AND MARY!

William Pearl is a dying man, but, still has time to be extra rude to his wife, Mary.

The doctor finally sells William, a professor of philosophy, on the idea of transferring his brain into a machine after he dies, but, basically, in order to keep on irritating his wife!

Swirling spots simulate the magic of modern medicine, like, you know, putting a brain and eyeball into a machine for the first time!

Mary's playing her records when the doctor calls about the operation, as heard in the rockin' part of the soundclip.

Mary goes to see the new William for the first time.

William's oscilloscope registers normal, until...

Mary bends down to let William see who's come to visit him!!

Mary gets the doctor on a technicality and insistes that William come home with her, because, she's still married to him! William is freaking out with fear!

William doesn't like Mary to smoke, soooo...

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

AGENTE LOGAN - MISSIONE YPOTRON - Nico Fidenco "Ypotron: Final Countdown" (1966)

I don't get the vibe that most of you people dig Eurospy movies as much as me, but there's something always fascinating about them to me, so I'm going to keep throwing them at you until you concede the match! That being said, Welcome to Wrasslin' Wednesday down in The Dungeon, and the armbar from Hell called "Ypotron - Final Countdown!" Now tell me honestly, is there any way you can look at this poster, and not want to see this movie? If so, then you better check your pulse!!

First off, it's Agent 077, stop the presses, what else do you need to know? The whole seven thing as a sales pitch absolutely floors me, and you'd be shocked to see how many more of them I've got planned for you! It's truly astounding!

"Ypotron" is rife with G's like weird GUYS, and Luis Dávila is a freakin' prefect example of what I'm talkin' about! Born Héctor González Ferrantino, but working mostly as Luis Dávila, he's credited in this film as Luis Devil! The last time we saw Luis in The Dungeon was in the 1965 flick "Espionage in Tangiers," an earlier agent 077 tale!

The second big G in this film is GIRLS!! Just like the real 007, agent 077 is a chick magnet!  Take a second look, that's two women, not one!

More weird GUYS, like 077's pain in the culo sidekick, Jesús Puente as Wilson! Dichotomies abound!

The third big G is for GAMES! Don't try and get cagey and think you can play with 077!

Next up, what else are you more likely to find in a 60's spy flick? Freakin' GADGETS!!!

This is Gaia Germani as Jeanne Morrow! She is fascinating without a doubt! Double G for sure!!

Gaia only has 21 credits to her name, but more than a couple are worth seeking out, like "Hercules In The Haunted World," "Your Turn Darling," "Castle Of The Living Dead," "OSS 77-Operazione Fior Di Lloto,"and "Mr. X!"

Here's equal towel time for agent 077, who by the way is named either Mike Murphy or Lemmy Logan depending on who you talk to!

What 60's Eurospy movie is replete without a GODDESS like Dungeon hot list fave Janine (Kiss Me Monster) Reynaud in it?  Personally, I don't really think the blonde coiffeur really suits here, but to each their own!! That's what makes freedom great!!

It's tests my credibility a bit to realize that the guys who are Hell bent on taking over the world are driving a funky station wagon like this!!

Meanwhile, out in the middle of the stinkin' African desert somewhere, a huge rocket base has been built without detection! See, that is what so cool about the 60's; something like this could go undetected, these days, it would have to be completely underground!

Anyway, while Gaia is busy channeling Audrey Hepburn in "Breakfast At Tiffany's," it gives me a great  opportunity to tell you the krazy title and ending credits were created by Nico Fidenco, a cat with arguably the credits for more weird movies than anyone, and here's what I'm talkin' about: "The Texican," "John The Bastard," "Supermen Against the Orient," "Zombie Holocaust," and if that ain't enuf, "Porno Holocaust!!" What a GUY!!

I really like this 'through the candles' shot!

There's absolutely nothing that says 60's Eurospy flicks like making out in a strip club! Go Murphy!!

By this time agent 077 has just about had his daily minimum requirement of bullshit!

What other G could possibly exist in a spy movie? GUNS! That's what!!

In what appears to almost be a Disney moment, I'll leave you with this parting shot of Gaia Germani and this little antennae watching over all of us for eternity!

Monday, April 14, 2014

EVEN MORE OF TABONGA'S FAVORITE FIFTIES MONSTERS

Welcome to Monster Monday with Tabonga, here at The Dungeon!.. Here's my last installment in this series of favorite fifties and sixties monster flicks. Still, I vote the fifties monsters the greatest of any decade, how lucky for us to grow up at that time, enjoy!

THE ANGRY RED PLANET - 1959 / This could be the first flick that Eegah!! and I saw together as a monster team. I love this Bat Rat Spider creature, truly, one of the top 10 most terrifying creations from the fifties!

Here's a drawing I did when I was sweet 16, you can see how seriously I took those monsters.

THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS - 1953 / This is the first monster movie I saw when my parents took me to see it at the beautiful Tulare Theater in 1953, when I was just 5 years old! That's the scene I remember the most, at the roller coaster ride in the amusement park.

FIRST MAN INTO SPACE - 1959 / I like this flick, and, watch it quite a bit. Another unique creation, pilot Dan Prescott gets covered in meteor dust when he ventures too far into space in his rocket plane!

THE FLAME BARRIER - 1958 / Saw this one with my neighbors in 1958, this shot of the multiplying blob from space brought to Earth in a satellite still gives me the creeps! Fairly mind bending for a youngster with a vivid imagination...

FRANKENSTEIN'S DAUGHTER - 1958 / Now, here's a wild and crazy flick! It remains a favorite for a number of reasons, like, those bug eyes by my favorite fifties makeup artist, Harry Thomas, I always enjoy watching Sally Todd, who becomes the monster, and, I used to live a block away from where Page Cavanaugh and his Trio (who did the rock and roll music at the pool party) played nightly at a fancy Italian restuarant in LA in the eighties and nineties.

GODZILLA, KING OF THE MONSTERS! - 1956 / Godzilla was a truly terrifying monster in this one. Godzilla was a metaphor for the horror of Japan being bombed by two atomic bombs in 1945! There was a total of 15 Godzilla movies made through the seventies.

I WAS A TEENAGE FRANKENSTEIN - 1957 / I didn't get to see this one at the time, but, I remember walking by the theater displaying the double bill posters for it and I WAS A TEENAGE WEREWOLF! Great makeup on the muscular hunk, Gary Conway.

INVADERS FROM MARS - 1953 / Saw this one on TV in the mid-fifties, it always left me with a very depressed feeling. Shown are two giant Martian mutants in the spaceship hidden beneath the earth, they're holding the beautiful Helena Carter and 12 year old Jimmy Hunt.

THE MONSTER THAT CHALLENGED THE WORLD - 1957 / Here's another movie with an awesome monster! This staged shot of the creature holding the shapely Audrey Dalton was used for the poster art, I'm pretty sure. I used to have the lobby card showing the monster.

NOT OF THIS EARTH - 1957 / Saw this one in 1957... Paul Birch looked totally wicked when he removed his sun glasses, I think Corman used a special type of film for the closeups of his eyes because it has a weird glow to it. Also, Paul Blaisdell's shocking Umbrella Monster puts the icing on the cake!

A little reminder, I'll be doing a special All-Blaisdell post soon, so, you'll want to check that one out for sure!

RETURN OF THE FLY - 1959 / Saw this in the Tulare Theater with my cousins, even though the budget for this one was far less than the original, the large fly head really came on strong! I also like the freaky part where the detective ends up with guinea pig hands and feet.

RODAN - 1956 / Caught this one for the first time on TV, Rodan and his mate were very cool looking creatures, but, the creepiest parts had the giant subterranean insects, the Meganulon! Here's a shot showing one of them clearly.

TARANTULA - 1955 / Saw this one with my neighbors, and, freaked me out good, especially the diseased scientists and Leo G. Carroll shown here in the photo!! It was double billed with THE WEREWOLF.

Tune in Wednesday when Eegah!! will present another twisted little flick!

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Monster Music
AAARRGGHHH!!!! Ya'll Come On Back Now, Y'Hear??