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Here is a unique cover song performed by Judy as part of her act at the Coconut Grove. It's presented and arranged as a satire of the then emerging sci-fi genre of movies.
"The Purple People Eater" was originally written and performed by Sheb Wooley. It was a pop novelty hit in 1958, both on the radio and in stores. I was six at the time of its release. My Mom bought me the 45 and I think I wore it out.
Ironic are Judy's lyrics about "red people, blue people" as we've now identified states and people that way demographically and for political purposes.
Hear how Ms Garland makes this song her own and in her inimitable style on my Halloween Countdown!
Vincent Price entered his campy period with great panache in Theater of Blood, 1974. It was made just after his Dr. Phibes films.
I have great fond memories of Theater of Blood, as I saw it in a movie house with my Mom and brother, when they came out to Colorado for my graduation commencement. We were VP fans, and this was a film we all enjoyed immensely.
In this movie, smartly directed by Douglas Hickcox with great style, Price plays a hammy Shakespearean actor (ironically not much of a stretch) who jumps off a bridge after his performance of King Lear is roasted by the London critics.
Believed dead, he returns to take revenge, killing each of the offending critics according to death scenes in the plays of William Shakespeare. Take notice, reviewers: bad notices can be hazardous to your well-being.
Price met future wife Coral Browne, who is cast in this film as one of the ill-fated critics. The great supporting cast features the divine Diana Rigg as Price's daughter (and partner in crime). Ian Hendry, Robert Morley, Harry Andrews, Jack Hawkins, Milo O'Shea and even Diana Dors amongst other great UK actors, all playing this straight-faced -- and straight-laced!
A great treat for the Halloween season. On dvd and download.
This is, simply, a terrific song done by Eartha Kitt in the Fifties. The lyrics are brilliantly playful and Ms Kitt sounds like she truly enjoys singing this, attacking it with great, growling relish.
It's already tailor-made for the Season of the Witch, but the video here adds an extra kick!
What's truly scary about this documentary short (1/2 hour long) is how dumb and crazy people in this country can be. The film focuses on the weird and wacky folk who are Elvis devotees. They're obviously clinically insane, and obsessed. Sadly, these guys sometimes even go to the polls and vote!
So many favorite moments of the interviews with delusional morons who are Elvis fanatics, impersonators and other freaks of nature giving their lives up to "the King of Rock & Roll." You just have to see it to believe it.
This film's full of testimonies as hilarious and absurd as they are heartbreaking. Watch and be afraid... be VERY afraid. Mondo Elvis was made in 1984 by Tom Corboy. The people seen in this film are probably, if still alive, packing serious heat in these open-carry days.
Elvis died seven years before this film was made. This is the true American horror story! Definitely the dark side of the United States.
I have this on VHS.
Below is the entire 30-minute video in all its jumpsuit glory.
Let's head to East Hampton and revisit the two Edies on today's Halloween Countdown!
This is a Grey Gardens dance remix with sound bites from the film smartly edited into a camp delight you can shake your groove thing to. Another tune perfect for Halloween parties.
The mix is by Stevers62. He does lots of fun stuff on Youtube you should check out. No doubt there will be more from him on this Halloween Countdown.
So here they are -- Big & Little Edie -- from the Maysles Brothers documentary Grey Gardens. Happy Halloween!
Bette Davis basically reprises her role in A Stolen Life (1946) in Dead Ringer (made 20 years later), though with more macabre touches. And, instead of Glenn Ford as a love interest, she gets Karl Malden. Oh, well!
When sisters are two of a kind (yes, Bette plays identical twins), mayhem and murder occur. Bette assays both roles, of course -- the desperate poor sister and the haughty, rich one (because she married well) -- very convincingly. I'd love to see Glenn Close give a remake a go!
This '64 melodrama was directed by Paul Henreid, Bette's co-star in Now, Voyager. He has a firm hand on this film, giving it a classic Hollywood feel.
Bette has many fabulous moments, especially when pretending she's her sister. You can lose your mind when Bette is two of a kind. The film employs the same split-screen f/x techniques as on the Patty Duke Show. What a crazy pair here!
Davis receives much support from veteran stars like Estelle Winwood and Jean Hagen. She gets romanced by gigolo Peter Lawford. Not bad for her age.
Highlights include Bette intentionally burning her hand on a red-hot poker from the fireplace and letting out the smokey howl of a sea hag, and her attempts to cover up her nefarious doings that, naturally, botch things up at times.
Overall, great fun, perfect for the Halloween season. Available on dvd and download.
