“Svengoolie” to present his big broadcast of Roger Corman’s “The Undead” (1957), this Sat. on Me-TV

Fellow Svengoolie Super SvenPals everywhere will be dancing and jumping for joy for his big broadcast of a classic mammoth supernatural/horror/fantasy masterpiece a legendary feature film director.

“Svengoolie” to present his big broadcast of Roger Corman’s “The Undead” (1957)

Original 1957 American-International Pictures** theatrical release trailer for Roger Corman’s “The Undead.”

“A thousand years of naked terror!” Original 1957 American-International Pictures theatrical poster art for Roger Corman’s “The Undead.”

The legendary and iconic Berwyn/Chicago-based horror film host will present his big broadcast of “The Undead” (1957), this Sat.; Dec. 30 at 8 p.m. Eastern/7 p.m. Central on Me-TV.

The classic mammoth horror/supernatural masterpiece production of “The Undead” (1957) was directed and produced by legendary veteran feature film director-producer Roger Corman.  Corman got into the motion picture business as a messenger for Twentieth Century Fox (Twentieth Century Studios) in 1948 after graduating from Stanford University with an Engineering degree and was promoted to the story department; according to a March 1957 profile on Corman in Motion Picture Exhibitor. After studying at Oxford University in 1950, Corman returned to Hollywood and sold his first original screenplay to Allied Artists; which was made into a film by veteran director Nathan Hertz Juran, titled “Highway Dragnet” (1954).  Corman would later produce one of his classic creature and sci-fi fantasy feature film masterpieces for release thru Allied Artists, “Attack of the Crab Monsters” (1957) with a pre-“Gilligan’s Island” Russell Johnson, Pamela Duncan and Richard Garland.

For the majority of his career, Corman collaborated with Samuel Z. Arkoff and James H. Nicholson’s American-International Pictures and was responsible for most of the feature film successes for Arkoff and Nicholson’s motion picture releasing/distribution firm.  Some of Corman’s best-known early classic mammoth AIP feature film masterpiece productions that he worked on include “The Fast and the Furious” (1954/55 which was one of the very first feature films released by Arkoff and Nicholson’s company) with John Ireland and Dorothy Malone, “It Conquered the World” (1956) with Peter Graves, Beverly Garland and young Lee Van Cleef and  “A Bucket of Blood” (1959). 

Both Arkoff and Nicholson established American-International as the American Releasing Corporation in 1954, according to the Samuel Z. Arkoff papers collection housed at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California.   Arkoff later sold American-International to television and feature film production-syndication company Filmways in 1979, which was later acquired by Orion Pictures in 1982.  Orion, along with the majority of the American-International/Filmways holdings** was then sold to the present incarnation of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) in 1997.  Inspired by MGM’s re-introduction of the “Orion Pictures” moniker for feature films and television productions (minus modern TV syndication of feature films, where the American-International/Filmways/Orion holdings are still syndicated under the MGM Television moniker), the modern incarnation of MGM recently revived the “American-International Pictures” (AIP) moniker for certain theatrical releases/feature film productions for theatrical release and premium streaming/video-on-demand service providers.

 **”The Undead” (1957) was one of several early features from Arkoff and Nicholson’s American-International that were not sold to Filmways in 1979. Samuel Z. Arkoff acquired the rights to several early classic mammoth American-International feature film masterpiece productions.  Under the moniker of Selma Enterprises, the Samuel Z. Arkoff estate owns the rights to “The Undead” (1957), the home entertainment, television syndication and streaming rights are currently licensed to Shout! Factory, LLC/Shout! Studios (by arrangement with Selma Enterprises/the Samuel Z. Arkoff estate).  –C.H.

Roger Corman was also known for his classic mammoth American-International masterpiece screen thriller adaptations of Edgar Allen Poe’s literary thriller works, including “House of Usher” (1960, a.k.a. “The Fall of the House of Usher”) with Vincent Price, the American-International adaptation of Poe’s “Pit and the Pendulum” (1961, with Vincent Price and Barbara Steele), the American-International adaptation of Poe’s short stories, “Tales of Terror” (1962, with Price, Maggie Pierce, Peter Lorre and Basil Rathbone), the AIP adaptation of Poe’s “The Raven” (1963, with Vincent Price, Boris Karloff, Peter Lorre, Hazel Court and young Jack Nicholson).  Corman’s latter American-International productions include “The Wild Angels” (1966) with Peter Fonda, Nancy Sinatra and young Bruce Dern, Corman also produced Daniel Haller’s “The Dunwich Horror” (1970) with Sandra Dee, Dean Stockwell, the senior Ed Begley and Sam Jaffe.

Roger Corman and Charles B. Griffith, ca. 1957.

While he was producing features for Arkoff and Nicholson’s American-International, Corman founded his own brief independent production-releasing firm, Filmgroup.  His company was known for the production of “The Little Shop of Horrors” (1960) with Jonathan Haze,  Jackie Joseph and young Jack Nicholson (Corman’s 1960 production inspired Howard Ashman’s latter 1982 Broadway musical-comedy, “Little Shop of Horrors” and Frank Oz’s modern classic mammoth 1986 Warner Bros. feature musical-comedy film adaptation of “Little Shop of Horrors”).  Corman shut down his Filmgroup firm one year later, according to a June 1961 issue of Boxoffice.

Later in his career, Corman set up his own independent production-distribution firm, New World Pictures.  Some of Corman’s classic mammoth New World masterpiece productions/releases include “Death Race 2000” (1975) with David Carradine,  Simone Griffeth, young Sylvester Stallone and legendary Los Angeles radio disc jockey “The Real” Don Steele, Ron Howard (of “The Andy Griffith Show,” 1962’s “The Music Man” and “Happy Days” fame), “Grand Theft Auto” (1977, directed by Ron Howard, he also appeared in the aforementioned production with, Nancy Morgan, Marion Ross (also of “Happy Days” fame), Clint Howard (the real-life brother of Ron Howard) and “The Real” Don Steele (Corman was responsible for giving Ron Howard his first big break in directing motion pictures) and Allan Arkush and Joe Dante’s classic mammoth rock comedy masterpiece production “Rock ‘n’ Roll High School” (1979) with legendary rock group The Ramones; along with P.J. Soles, Vincent Van Patten and “The Real” Don Steele.

Produced for Arkoff and Nicholson’s American-International under the moniker of “Balboa Productions,” the screenplay for Corman’s “The Undead” (1957) was written by veteran screenwriters Charles B. Griffith and Mark Hanna.  Griffith collaborated with Corman for many feature film productions, including “It Conquered the World” (1956), “Attack of the Crab Monsters” (1957), “The Little Shop of Horrors” (1960), “The Wild Angels” (1966) and “Death Race 2000” (1975).  Mark Hanna also wrote the screenplay for Bert I. Gordon’s classic mammoth American-International Pictures sci-fi masterpiece, “The Amazing Colossal Man” (1957).  The original working title for the 1957 Corman/American-International Pictures production of “The Undead” was “The Trance of Diana Love.”

According to veteran director Joe Dante’s “Trailers From Hell” video on Roger Corman’s classic mammoth American-International supernatural/horror masterpiece production of “The Undead” (1957) and IMDB; it was reported that Corman was partially inspired by hypnotist/businessman/author Morey Bernstein’s book, titled “The Search for Bridey Murphy.”

According to historian Chris Root’s 2019 Denver Public Library article on Bernstein and Bridey Murphy, it was reported that Bernstein hypnotized Ruth Mills Simmons of Pueblo, Colorado; a.k.a. Virginia Tighe into a past life.  Bernstein claimed that under hypnosis, Simmons/Tighe recounted a “past life” under the name of “Bridey Murphy” of Ireland, claimed to be born in 1798.  For the “past” life of  “Murphy,” Simmons/Tighe recounted past stories of her past life as “Murphy” in several hypnotism sessions. When Bernstein published his book about the hypnotic findings of Simmons/Tighe/”Murphy,” it was mentioned that there were many inaccurate findings from Bernstein and Simmons/Tighe’s “Murphy” trance.

Roger Corman’s classic mammoth American-International supernatural/horror/fantasy masterpiece production of “The Undead” (1957) was not the only film that was partially inspired by Bernstein’s story.  According to additional details from Chris Root’s 2019 Denver Public Library article and IMDB, veteran film director Richard Bartlett directed the classic Universal Studios supernatural-fantasy drama production of “I’ve Lived Before” (1956) with Jock Mahoney, Leigh Snowden and a pre-“Beverly Hillbillies” Raymond Bailey.  Veteran screenwriter Norman Jolley and veteran actor/writer William Talman (who played Hamilton Burger opposite Raymond Burr in TV’s “Perry Mason”) co-wrote the screenplay adaptation.

For the exterior sequences in Roger Corman’s classic mammoth production of “The Undead” (1957), elements were filmed on location at the “Witch’s Cottage”/”Witch’s House” Spadena House in Beverly Hills, California; according to film historian Tom Weaver’s retrospective book on classic mammoth sci-fi and horror film masterpieces “A Sci-Fi Swarm and Horror Horde” and Allison Martino’s Los Angeles Magazine article on the “Witch’s House.”  Alongside Corman’s production of “The Undead” (1957); the “Witch’s House” was previously used as an office for film producer Irvin Willat for his studio lot in Culver City, California and was featured in several of Willat’s feature film productions The house was later moved to Beverly Hills, California and in recent years, the “Witch’s House” is one of the top non-celebrity houses within the Beverly Hills area in terms of visitor and tourist requests, especially around Halloween season.

This will mark Sven’s third big coast-to-coast broadcast of “The Undead” (1957) on Me-TV.  He previously showcased Corman’s classic mammoth 1957 American-International supernatural horror feature film masterpiece as a big coast-to-coast Me-TV broadcast premiere back in April 2021 and as a regular Me-TV big broadcast back in Dec. 2021. From Sven’s earlier 2021 Me-TV big broadcasts of “The Undead” (1957), an older “Teleworld, Inc.”-syndicated print was supplied to Me-TV by Shout! Factory/Shout! Studios.  According to additional details from the syndicated print via Shout! TV (which includes the 1980s-era Teleworld logo at the conclusion) and according to 1997 edition of the International Television & Video Almanac, syndicator Teleworld, Inc. handled the TV syndication rights to “The Undead” (1957) under the moniker of “17 AIP Science Fiction Classics,” by arrangement with Arkoff’s Selma Enterprises at the time.

Who was in Roger Corman’s classic horror-fantasy masterpiece production of “The Undead” (1957)?

The players who appeared in Roger Corman’s classic American-International horror-fantasy production of “The Undead” were Allison Hayes (as Livia the witch), Pamela Duncan (in the dual roles of Diana Love/Helene), Richard Garland (as Pendragon), Dorothy Neumann (as Meg Maud the witch), Billy Barty (as an imp), Val Dufour (as Quintus Ratcliff), Mel Welles (as Smolkin, the gravedigger), Bruno VeSota (as Scroop, the innkeeper), Dick Miller (as a leper, Miller received screen credit in Corman’s production of “The Undead” under his full name of Richard Miller), Maurice Manson (as Prof. Ulbrecht Olinger), Richard Devon (as Satan), and Aaron Saxon (as Gobbo, the jailer) and Don Garrett (as a knight).

“Svengoolie” presents his big broadcast of “The Black Cat” (1941), this Sat. on Me-TV

Fellow Svengoolie Super SvenPals everywhere will be dancing and jumping for joy for his upcoming big broadcast of a classic mammoth Universal Studios mystery-comedy masterpiece adaptation for the holidays.

“Svengoolie” presents his big broadcast of “The Black Cat” (1941)

Latter Realart theatrical re-issue trailer for Albert S. Rogell’s classic mammoth Universal mystery-comedy masterpiece adaptation of “The Black Cat” (1941) with Basil Rathbone & Bela Lugosi.

Original 1941 Universal Studios theatrical release poster art for “The Black Cat.”

The legendary and iconic Berwyn/Chicago-based classic mammoth mystery-comedy feature film masterpiece host will present his big expanded holiday broadcast of “The Black Cat” (1941), this Sat., Dec. 23 at 8 p.m. Eastern/7 p.m. Central on Me-TV.

The classic mammoth Universal mystery-comedy adaptation masterpiece production of “The Black Cat” (1941) was directed by veteran feature film & TV director Albert S. Rogell.  Throughout his directorial career, Rogell directed numerous productions- including his classic mammoth RKO Radio Pictures drama masterpiece production of “Suicide Fleet” (1931, produced under the RKO-Pathe moniker) with William Boyd (later of “Hopalong Cassidy” fame), Ginger Rogers (before going onto greater fame for her numerous RKO feature dancing musical appearances with Fred Astaire), Robert Armstrong (later of 1933’s “King Kong,” 1933’s “Son of Kong” and 1948’s “Mighty Joe Young” fame), James Gleason, Harry Bannister and Frank Reicher and young Ben Alexander (of 1930’s “All Quiet on the Western Front” and later of the 1952-59 TV rendition of Jack Webb’s “Dragnet” fame); his classic mammoth Columbia Pictures drama masterpiece production of “Air Hostess” (1933) with Evelyn Knapp, Thelma Todd (who was known for her numerous appearances in Hal Roach’s comedic short subjects), James Murray, Arthur Pierson, Jane Darwell and archival footage of then-Columbia contract player Jack Holt; his classic mammoth Columbia mystery masterpiece adaptation in the studio’s “Lone Wolf” series, “The Lone Wolf in Paris” (1938) with Francis Lederer in the title role; along with Frances Drake, Bess Flowers, Albert Dekker (of 1940’s “Dr. Cyclops” fame), Olaf Hytten, Walter Kingsford and Vernon Dent (who appeared in numerous supporting roles in Columbia’s numerous “Three Stooges” classic mammoth comedic short subjects); the classic mammoth Universal comedy masterpiece production of “Butch Minds the Baby” (1942) with Virginia Bruce, Dick Foran, Shemp Howard (of “The Three Stooges” fame), Grant Withers and Tom Kennedy (of Warners’ “Torchy Blane” fame) and six episodes of the classic mammoth Twentieth Century Fox (Twentieth Century Studios) TV western adaptation of “Broken Arrow” (Rogell directed from 1957 until the conclusion of the series in 1958) with John Lupton and Michael Ansara (the real-life husband of Barbara Eden).

Rogell’s classic mammoth 1941 Universal mystery-comedy masterpiece adaptation of “The Black Cat” was produced by veteran Hollywood associate producer Burt Kelly.  Kelly also produced A. Edward Sutherland’s  classic mammoth Universal “Invisible” fantasy-comedy masterpiece, “The Invisible Woman” (1940) with Virginia Bruce, John Barrymore, Margaret Hamilton of the classic 1939 mammoth MGM masterpiece adaptation of “The Wizard of Oz,” Oscar Homolka, Shemp Howard of “The Three Stooges” fame from 1946-55 and produced Arthur Lubin’s classic mammoth Universal Studios thriller masterpiece production of “Black Friday” (1940), He also produced the latter classic Columbia Pictures live-action comedy masterpiece adaptations of Chic Young’s King Features Syndicate/Hearst “Blondie” newspaper comic strip series with Penny Singleton and Arthur Lake  from 1945–48. with Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Anne Nagel, Stanley Ridges, Anne Gwynne, Virginia Brissac, Edmund MacDonald, Paul Fix and Raymond Bailey (later of TV’s “The Beverly Hillbillies” fame).

Inspired by Edgar Allan Poe‘s 1843 short story of the same name, the screenplay adaptation was written by veteran screenwriter Robert Lees, Robert Neville, Frederic I. Rinaldo and Eric Taylor.  The same year that they co-wrote the 1941 screenplay adaptation of “The Black Cat,” both Lees and Rinaldo wrote the screenplay for Arthur Lubin’s classic mammoth Universal spook comedy masterpiece production with Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Joan Davis, Richard Carlson, Evelyn Ankers and Shemp Howard; “Hold that Ghost” (1941).  Lees and Rinaldo also co-wrote with veteran Universal screenwriter John Grant the screenplay for Charles T. Barton’s classic mammoth Universal monster-comedy masterpiece, “Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein” (1948) with Abbott, Costello, Glenn Strange, Bela Lugosi, Lon Chaney Jr., Lenore Aubert, Jane Randolph,  Vincent Price and Charles Bradstreet.

This will mark Sven’s fourth big coast-to-coast broadcast of Rogell’s classic mammoth Universal mystery-comedy masterpiece adaptation of “The Black Cat” (1941) on the airlanes of Me-TV.  He previously showcased Rogell’s classic mammoth 1941 Universal mystery-comedy masterpiece adaptation as a coast-to-coast big broadcast premiere back in Sept. 2014 and as regular Me-TV big broadcasts back in Nov. 2016 and Feb. 2019.

During Sven/Rich Koz’s WFLD Berwyn/Chicago days as the “Son of Svengoolie,” he previously showcased “The Black Cat” (1941) as a Berwyn/Chicago big broadcast premiere back in March 1982, according to IMDB.

Who was in Albert S. Rogell’s Universal adaptation of “The Black Cat” (1941)?

The players who appeared in Albert S. Rogell’s classic mammoth Universal mystery-comedy masterpeiec adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Black Cat” (1941) were Basil Rathbone (as Montague Hartley), Bela Lugosi (as Eduardo Vigos), Gale Sondergaard (as Abigail Doone), Alan Ladd (as Richard Hartley), Anne Gwynne (as Elaine Winslow), Hugh Herbert (as Mr. Penny), Broderick Crawford (as Hubert Smith), Gladys Cooper (as Myrna Hartley), Cecilia Loftus (as Henrietta Winslow), Claire Dodd (as Margaret Gordon), John Eldredge (as Stanley Borden), Erville Alderson (in an uncredited role as Dr. Williams), Harry C. Bradley (in an uncredited role as a coroner), Edgar Sherrod (in an uncredited role as a minister) and Jack Cheatham (in an uncredited role as a moving man).

“Svengoolie” to present his big broadcast of “The Night Walker” (1964) with Barbara Stanwyck, this Sat. on Me-TV

Fellow Super Svengoolie SvenPals everywhere will be dancing and jumping for joy for his upcoming big broadcast of a classic mammoth Universal Studios thriller masterpiece from a legendary macabre film director.

“Svengoolie” to present his big broadcast of “The Night Walker” (1964) with Barbara Stanwyck

A snippet from William Castle’s classic mammoth 1964 Universal Studios macabre thriller masterpiece production of “The Night Walker” with Barbara Stanwyck.

“Do you know you may be driven to dream?” Original 1964 Universal Studios theatrical poster art for William Castle’s “The Night Walker.”

The legendary and iconic Berwyn/Chicago-based horror/thriller film host will present his expanded big broadcast of “The Night Walker” (1964), this Sat., Dec. 16 at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT on Me-TV.

“The Night Walker” was directed by veteran macabre thriller feature film masterpiece director William Castle.  Some of Castle’s best known classic mammoth macabre “gimmick” feature film masterpiece productions include his classic mammoth Allied Artists masterpiece productions of “Macabre” (1958) with William Prince, Christine White, Jim Backus (of “Mr. Magoo” and TV’s “Gilligan’s Island” fame) and Jacqueline Scott and  “House on Haunted Hill” (1959) with Vincent Price. Carol Ohmart, Richard Long, Alan Marshal, Carolyn Craig, Elisha Cook Jr., Julie Mitchum, Leona Anderson, Howard Hoffman and the Skeleton.

For the majority of his feature film directorial career, Castle directed numerous productions for Columbia Pictures, notably for his classic mammoth macabre/gimmick screen thriller masterpieces and various genres of feature film productions, including numerous classic mammoth film noir, mysteries and western masterpieces for Columbia.   Some of Castle’s best-known classic mammoth Columbia macabre/gimmick-thriller masterpiece productions include “The Tingler” (1959), “13 Ghosts” (1960, with Charles Herbert, Jo Morrow, Martin Milner of TV’s “Route 66” and “Adam-12” fame, Margaret Hamilton of MGM’s “The Wizard of Oz” fame and John Van Dreelen), “Homicidal” (1961, with Glenn Corbett), “Zotz!” (1962, with Tom Poston of TV’s “Newhart” fame, Julia Meade, Jim Backus, Margaret Dumont; who previously appeared in seven of The Marx Brothers’ classic mammoth feature film comedy masterpieces from 1929–41 and  Fred Clark), “The Old, Dark House” (1963, with Poston and Janette Scott) and “Strait-Jacket” (1964, with Joan Crawford, Diane Baker and young George Kennedy).

Before he went into the art and innovation of classic mammoth “gimmick” macabre-thriller feature film masterpiece productions, he directed numerous classic mammoth Columbia feature film masterpiece productions, including the western “Klondike Kate” (1943) with Glenda Farrell (of Warner Bros.’ “Mystery of the Wax Museum” and “Torchy Blane” fame), Ann Savage, Tom Neal and future TV producer Sheldon Leonard.

Castle also produced Orson Welles‘ classic mammoth critically-acclaimed Columbia Pictures film noir-drama masterpiece production of “The Lady From Shanghai” (1947) with Welles, Rita Hayworth and Everett Sloane, Castle also co-wrote the screenplay for the aforementioned 1947 Columbia production with Welles and Sherwood King.   The veteran director-producer also directed hs classic mammoth Columbia feature-length adventure masterpiece and the very first 3-D film for Columbia Pictures, “Fort Ti” (1953) with George Montgomery, Joan Vohs, Irving Bacon and young Rusty Hamer (later of TV’s “Make Room For Daddy”/”The Danny Thomas Show” fame).

Later in his career, William Castle directed his classic mammoth Paramount Pictures sci-fi/mystery masterpiece production of “Project X” (1968) with Christopher George and Greta Baldwin.

The screenplay for Castle’s classic mammoth 1964 Universal macabre thriller masterpiece production of “The Night Walker” (1964) was written by veteran author/screenwriter Robert Bloch.  One of Bloch’s best-known novels was made into a classic mammoth Paramount Pictures thriller-suspense masterpiece feature film adaptation by the “legendary master of suspense,” Alfred Hitchcock; “Psycho” (1960) with Janet Leigh, Anthony Perkins, Vera Miles, Martin Balsam, Simon Oakland (of TV’s “Kolchak: The Night Stalker” and “Baa, Baa Black Sheep”/”Black Sheep Squadron” fame), Frank Albertson, young Robert Osborne (future film critic/film historian, later of Turner Classic Movies fame) and young Ted Knight (later of TV’s “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” 1980’s “Caddyshack” and TV’s “Too Close for Comfort” fame).   Bloch’s novel was adapted into a screenplay for Hitchcock’s production by veteran screenwriter Joseph Stefano.   Bloch also wrote the screenplay for Castle’s classic mammoth Columbia macabre “gimmick” thriller masterpiece production of “Strait-Jacket” (1964).

One of his latter collaborations with Castle was that he wrote the screenplay for an episode of the classic mammoth Columbia/Screen Gems thriller anthology TV series masterpiece with Sebastian Cabot, “Ghost Story/Circle of Fear” (for the 1972 episode “House of Evil”).

Castle co-produced his classic mammoth 1964 Universal macabre thriller masterpiece production of “Night Walker” (1964) with veteran associate producer and frequent Castle collaborator Dona Holloway.

This will mark Sven’s fourth big coast-to-coast broadcast of “The Night Walker” (1964) on the airlanes of Me-TV.  He previously showcased Castle’s classic mammoth 1964 Universal macabre-thriller masterpiece production as a big coast-to-coast broadcast premiere back in Sept. 2015 and as regular coast-to-coast Me-TV big broadcasts back in Dec. 2016 and June 2018.

Who was in William Castle’s classic mammoth Universal macabre-thriller masterpiece production of “Night Walker” (1964)?

The players who appeared in Castle’s classic mammoth Universal Studios macabre-thriller masterpiece production of “Night Walker” (1964) were Barbara Stanwyck (as Irene Trent), Robert Taylor (as Bobby Moreland), Hayden Rorke (as Howard Trent), Judi Meredith (as Joyce Holliday), Rochelle Hudson (as Hilda), Jess Barker (as Malone), Marjorie Bennett (as a manager), Lloyd Bochner (as “The Dream”), Tetsu Komai (as a gardener), Paulle Clark (as Pat), Forrest Draper (in an uncredited role) and the vocal stylings of veteran voice-over artist Paul Frees (as the narrator).

“Svengoolie” to present his big broadcast of “The Raven” (1963) with Vincent Price, this Sat. on Me-TV

Fellow Svengoolie Super SvenPals everywhere will be dancing & jumping for joy for his big broadcast of a classic mammoth American-International macabre adaptation masterpiece.

“Svengoolie” presents his big broadcast of “The Raven” (1963) with Vincent Price

A snippet from Roger Corman’s classic mammoth American-International macabre thriller-comedy masterpiece adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe‘s “The Raven” (1963) with Vincent Price, Boris Karloff, Peter Lorre, Hazel Court and young Jack Nicholson.  From the now-out-of-print Shout! Factory/Scream Factory Vincent Price Blu-Ray compilation set, “The Vincent Price Collection II.”   Kino Lorber’s “KL Studio Classics” imprint currently has the Blu-Ray rights to “The Raven” (1963, by arrangement with the current incarnation of MGM; owners of the American-International/Filmways/Orion holdings).

 

The legendary & iconic Berwyn/Chicago-based classic thriller feature film masterpiece host will present his big broadcast of “The Raven” (1963) this Sat., Dec. 9 at 8 p.m. Eastern/7 p.m. Central on Me-TV.

“The Macabre Masterpiece of Terror!” “Contact your American-International Exchange!” Original 1963 American-International exhibitors’ leaflet for the original theatrical release of “The Raven,” directed by Roger Corman.

The classic mammoth American-International macabre thriller masterpiece production of “The Raven” (1963) was directed by veteran feature film director-producer Roger Corman.   The same year that he worked on his classic mammoth macabre thriller masterpiece adaptation of “The Raven” (1963), Corman also worked on his classic mammoth American-International sci-fi thriller  masterpiece production of  “X: The Man with the X-Ray Eyes” (1963) with Ray Milland, Diana Van der Vlis, Don Rickles, Harold J. Stone, John Hoyt, Morris Ankrum, Bert Stevens and Hans Moebus.

Some of Corman’s best-known classic mammoth feature film masterpiece productions that he worked on include “The Fast and the Furious” (1954, with John Ireland and Dorothy Malone; one of the earliest films from Arkoff and Nicholson’s American-International), “It Conquered the World” (1956, with Peter Graves, Beverly Garland and young Lee Van Cleef), “Attack of the Crab Monsters” (1957, with a pre-“Gilligan’s Island” Russell Johnson and Pamela Duncan), “A Bucket of Blood” (1959), the classic mammoth American-International Pictures* masterpiece thriller adaptations of Edgar Allen Poe’s “House of Usher” (1960, with Vincent Price),  tPoe’s “Pit and the Pendulum” (1961, with Vincent Price and Barbara Steele), “Tales of Terror” (the 1962 adaptation of Poe’s short stories with Vincent Price, Maggie Pierce, Peter Lorre and Basil Rathbone), “The Wild Angels” (1966, with Peter Fonda, Nancy Sinatra and Bruce Dern), Corman’s classic mammoth New World masterpiece productions of “Death Race 2000” (1975, with David Carradine,  Simone Griffeth, young Sylvester Stallone and legendary Los Angeles radio disc jockey “The Real” Don Steele), Ron Howard’s “Grand Theft Auto” (1977, with Howard, Nancy Morgan, Marion Ross, Clint Howard and “The Real” Don Steele) and Allan Arkush and Joe Dante’s “Rock ‘n’ Roll High School” (1979, with legendary rock group The Ramones; along with P.J. Soles, Vincent Van Patten and “The Real” Don Steele).  

Corman was motivated to film an adaptation of Poe’s “The Raven” after the instant box-office success of his classic mammoth American-International masterpiece adaptation of Poe’s “Tales of Terror” (1962), according to the American Film Institute’s database entry on the veteran director’s classic mammoth 1963 Poe masterpiece adaptation entry for American-International.  Corman’s classic mammoth American-International feature film masterpiece adaptation of “The Raven” (1963) marked the fifth Edgar Allan Poe-inspired feature film masterpiece adaptation production for  American-International Pictures, according to additional details from Rob Nixon’s Aug. 2012 Turner Classic Movies online article.

Inspired by Edgar Allan Poe‘s 1845 gothic poem of the same name, the screenplay for Corman’s classic mammoth 1963 macabre thriller feature film masterpiece adaptation production was adapted as a screenplay for the veteran director-producer by veteran sci-fi/horror author-screenwriter Richard Matheson.  Matheson wrote the original story treatment for  Jack Arnold’s classic mammoth Universal Studios sci-fi/fantasy/visual effects masterpiece, “The Incredible Shrinking Man” (1957) with Grant Williams, Randy Stuart, April Kent, Paul Langton, a pre-“Beverly Hillbillies” Raymond Bailey, William Schallert,  Lock Martin of 1951’s “The Day the Earth Stood Still” fame and “Orangey the Cat” of 1951’s “Rhubarb,” 1955’s “This Island Earth” and 1961’s “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” fame.   Matheson also wrote the screenplay for Steven Spielberg‘s classic mammoth Universal Studios action-adventure-thriller masterpiece production of “Duel” (1971, originally produced as a Universal/ABC made-for-TV movie production and one of Spielberg’s earliest productions) with Dennis Weaver,  Jacqueline Scott, Lucille Benson, Eddie Firestone,  Lou Frizzell, Shirley O’ Hara, Gene Dynarski and Amy Douglass.  Matheson also wrote the teleplay for John Llewellyn Moxey and Dan Curtis’ classic mammoth ABC “Kolchak” made-for-TV movie masterpiece pilot, “The Night Stalker” (1972) with Darren McGavin, Carol Lynley, Claude Akins, Larry Linville (later of TV’s “M*A*S*H” fame), Simon Oakland, Ralph Meeker, Charles McGraw, Kent Smith, Elisha Cook Jr., Stanley Adams, Jordan Rhodes and Barry Atwater.  The classic mammoth 1972 ABC “Kolchak” made-for-TV movie masterpiece pilot also served as the inspiration for the classic mammoth ABC “Kolchak” made-for-TV movie pilot sequel masterpiece, “The Night Strangler” (1973) and the brief classic mammoth Universal Studios/ABC TV supernatural masterpiece series, “Kolchak: The Night Stalker” (1974-75, both McGavin and Oakland reprised their roles for the aforementioned 1973 ABC made-for-TV movie sequel and the 1974-75 “Kolchak” series).

Corman’s classic mammoth 1963 macabre masterpiece feature film adaptation production of Poe’s “The Raven” was co-produced and released by Samuel Z. Arkoff and James H. Nicholson’s  production/distribution/releasing firm, American-International Pictures; both Arkoff and Nicholson established American-International as the American Releasing Corporation in 1954, according to the Samuel Z. Arkoff papers collection housed at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California.   Arkoff later sold American-International to television and feature film production-syndication company Filmways in 1979, which was later acquired by Orion Pictures in 1982.  Orion, along with the majority of the American-International/Filmways holdings** was then sold to the present incarnation of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) in 1997.  Inspired by MGM’s re-introduction of the “Orion Pictures” moniker for feature films and television productions (minus modern TV syndication of feature films, where the American-International/Filmways/Orion holdings are still syndicated under the MGM Television moniker), the modern incarnation of MGM recently revived the “American-International Pictures” (AIP) moniker for certain theatrical releases/feature film productions for theatrical release and premium streaming/video-on-demand service providers.

This will mark Sven’s second coast-to-coast big broadcast of Corman’s classic mammoth 1963 American-International macabre thriller masterpiece adaptation production on the airlanes of Me-TV.  He previously showcased Corman’s classic mammoth American-International masterpiece adaptation production of “The Raven” (1963) as a coast-to-coast big broadcast premiere back in Jan. 2023, which also marked the first expanded big broadcast of Sven’s Saturday evening Me-TV classic mammoth thriller/horror/monster/sci-fi masterpiece feature film showcases.

During Sven/Rich Koz’s days as the “Son of Svengoolie,” he previously showcased Corman’s classic mammoth American-International macabre feature film masterpiece adaptation of Poe’s “The Raven” (1963) on WFLD in Berwyn/Chicago back in March 1981 and in Jan. 1982, according to IMDB.

Sven also previously showcased the classic mammoth Roger Corman/American-International masterpiece production of “The Raven” (1963) as a Berwyn/Chicago big broadcast on his hometown TV station in Berwyn/Chicago, WCIU-TV 26 back in Dec. 2006; according to IMDB and fellow wonderful Super SvenPal/Super Tooner Dave Fuentes of “Terror From Beyond the Dave” fame & his recording of maestro Sven & maestro Doug Graves’ classic WCIU Berwyn/Chicago Sven parody song for Corman’s American-International adaptation of Poe’s “The Raven” (1963) via Dave’s official YouTube channel.

Who was in Roger Corman’s classic mammoth American-International macabre-thriller masterpiece adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven” (1963)?

The players who appeared in Roger Corman’s classic mammoth feature film masterpiece adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven” (1963) for Samuel Z. Arkoff and James H. Nicholson’s American-International Pictures were Vincent Price (as Dr. Erasmus Craven), Peter Lorre (as Dr. Adolphus Bedlo), Boris Karloff (as Dr. Scarabus), Hazel Court (as Lenore Craven), Olive Sturgess (as Estelle Craven), young Jack Nicholson as Rexford Bedlo, Connie Wallace (as a Maid), William Baskin (as Grimes), Aaron Saxon (as Gort), Leo Gordon (in an uncredited role as the voice of Grimes) and Dick Johnstone (in an uncredited role as Roderick Craven).

“Svengoolie” to present his big broadcast of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933) with Fay Wray, this Sat. on Me-TV

Fellow Svengoolie Super SvenPals everywhere will be dancing and jumping for joy for his big broadcast of a classic mammoth Warner Bros. pioneering two-strip Technicolor thriller masterpiece.

“Svengoolie” to present his big broadcast of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933) with Fay Wray

A snippet from the restored edition of Michael Curtiz’s classic mammoth Warner Bros. pioneering two-strip Technicolor thriller masterpiece production of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933).

“Will it be a hit- or a sensation?” “Warner Bros. for Novelty!” Original 1933 Warner Bros. theatrical exhibitors’ trade ad for “Mystery of the Wax Museum;” plus a mention of the theatrical re-issue of Warners’ “Vitaphone” short subject production of “The Meal Ticket” (originally released in 1931).

The legendary Berwyn/Chicago classic horror film host will present his big broadcast of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933), this Sat.; Dec. 2 at 8 p.m. Eastern/7 p.m. Central on Me-TV.

The classic 1933 mammoth Warner Bros. horror masterpiece production was directed by veteran studio director Michael Curtiz.   Some of Curtiz’s other best-known productions include his classic mammoth Warner Bros. three-strip Technicolor adventure masterpiece production of “The Adventures of Robin Hood” (1938) with Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland and Basil Rathbone; his classic mammoth Warners musical biopic masterpiece of George M. Cohan, “Yankee Doodle Dandy” (1942) with James Cagney, Walter Huston, Rosemary DeCamp, Joan Leslie, Jeanne Cagney and S.Z. “Cuddles” Sakall; his critically-acclaimed classic mammoth Warners wartime drama masterpiece production of “Casablanca” (1942) with Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Dooley Wilson, Paul Henreid, Claude Rains, S.Z. “Cuddles” Sakall, Peter Lorre, Sydney Greenstreet and Conrad Veidt, his classic Warners drama masterpiece production with Joan Crawford, “Mildred Pierce” (1945), his classic mammoth Paramount Pictures Holiday/Christmastime musical-comedy masterpiece with Bing Crosby, Rosemary Clooney, Danny Kaye, Vera-Ellen, Dean Jagger and young George Chakiris (later of “West Side Story” fame), Irving Berlin’s “White Christmas” (1954); which was Paramount’s first “VistaVision” widescreen feature film production and his classic mammoth Paramount musical-drama masterpiece adaptation production of “King Creole” (1958) with the legendary Elvis Presley, Carolyn Jones (of TV’s “The Addams Family” fame), Walter Matthau, Dolores Hart, Dean Jagger and Vic Morrow.

Adapted for the screen from Charles S. Belden’s original story, the screenplay for “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933) was written by veteran Warner Bros. feature film screenwriters Carl Erickson and Don Mullaly.  Curtiz’s classic 1933 mammoth Warners horror masterpiece production was produced by veteran studio producers Henry Blanke and Hal B. Wallis.  Both Blanke and Wallis were uncredited for their work in “Mystery of the Wax Museum.”

The cinematography for “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933) was done by pioneering Technicolor cinematographer Ray Rennahan, who was one of the first Technicolor camera operators and did experimental color motion picture photography when the Technicolor Company was established in 1915, according to Jennifer Rhee’s UCLA Film & Television Archive blog interview with UCLA Film & Television Archive head of preservation Scott MacQueen on the production of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933).  The original source music orchestral score was composed by veteran Warner Bros. studio composer Leo F. Forbstein under the “Vitaphone Orchestra,” which was named in honor of Warners’ pioneering sound-on-disc motion picture projection process.  The Vitaphone Orchestra was renamed as the Warner Bros. Studio Orchestra, Forbstein composed music scores for numerous Warners sound feature film productions until his death in 1948.

Two decades after the original Warner Bros. theatrical release of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933), Warners re-made Curtiz’s aforementioned feature for their classic mammoth horror masterpiece production in pioneering Natural Vision 3-D/WarnerColor/WarnerPhonic stereophonic sound, “House of Wax” (1953) with Vincent Price, Phyllis Kirk, Frank Lovejoy, Carolyn Jones (later of TV’s “The Addams Family” fame), Paul Picerni and a young Charles Bronson (Charles Buchinsky).  The classic mammoth Warner Bros. 1953 3-D masterpiece production was directed by veteran feature film director Andre de Toth.

A 35mm nitrate frame fragment of Michael Curtiz’s Warner Bros. production of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933), from the George Eastman Museum.

Michael Curtiz’s classic mammoth Warner Bros. thriller masterpiece production of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” was considered as a “lost” film for a brief period of time after the original 1933 theatrical release; according to film historian and Warner Bros. Home Entertainment executive George Feltenstein’s findings in the May 2020 edition of the Warner Archive Podcast.

Around 1970, a truncated nitrate film print of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933) was discovered in the private vault of Warner Bros. co-founder Jack L. Warner.  That version was showcased at numerous art house and film preservation screenings, including the New York Film Festival.   The Jack L. Warner private nitrate print of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” contained missing frames and missing dialogue; the lone print suffered from a lot of wear and tear and emulsion problems from being screened after its discovery.  United Artists*, who owned the pre-1948 Warner Bros. feature film, cartoon & short subject holdings at the time (as a result of United Artists’ 1958 acquisition of Eliot Hyman’s Associated Artists Productions, Hyman/A.A.P. acquired the pre-1948 Warner Bros. holdings in 1956); made dupe safety copies of the Jack L. Warner nitrate print for theatrical/nontheatrical revival screenings and 16mm reduction prints for TV syndication; the quality of the dupe prints were not faithful to the original two-strip Technicolor palette.  Another 35mm reduction transfer was made from the Jack L. Warner print and was utilized for VHS, LaserDisc and television syndication (via broadcast videotape) by MGM/UA-Turner* in the late 1980s.  Another broadcast/video transfer was made by Turner around the mid-1990s, but with an entirely different color palette that was not true to the original two-strip Technicolor palette.  The mid-1990s Turner* transfer of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933, sourced from the Jack L. Warner print) was presented as a bonus feature for the Warner Home Video/Warner Bros. Home Entertainment/Warner Archive DVD and Blu-Ray releases of “House of Wax” (1953).

A reference workprint edition of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933) was recently discovered in France with a different color palette, according to additional details from Jennifer Rhee’s UCLA Film & Television Archive blog interview with Scott MacQueen.  The 2020 restoration of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933) was the first major feature film restoration collaboration between Warner Bros., the UCLA Film & Television Archive and the Film Foundation, with funding from the George Lucas Family Foundation, according to additional details from Feltenstein’s Warner Archive Podcast.  Modern restoration and color correction techniques were utilized to match the original two-strip Technicolor palette, along with the repair of emulsion scratches, added frames from the French workprint and the elimination of reel change/cue marks from the two aforementioned prints.  A line of Glenda Farrell’s missing dialogue was restored by using an identical source dialogue recording from one of her other Warner Bros. feature films.  The complete restoration of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” was released through Warners’ “Warner Archive” line on Blu-Ray in May 2020, according to The Digital Bits.

This will mark Sven’s second big broadcast of Michael Curtiz’s classic mammoth Warner Bros. pioneering two-strip Technicolor thriller masterpiece production on Me-TV.  He previously showcased “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933) as a coast-to-coast Me-TV big broadcast premiere back in March 2021.

Starting at the 00:01 mark: In Sven’s home area of Berwyn/Chicago, Illinois; he previously showcased Curtiz’s classic mammoth Warner Bros. two-strip Technicolor thriller masterpiece production of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933) as a Berwyn/Chicago big broadcast premiere in his “Son of Svengoolie” days on WFLD (during Metromedia’s then-ownership of WFLD) in Aug. 1985, according to an original 1985 WFLD/”Son of Sven” commercial that was unearthed from a recording by Berwyn/Chicago television archivist Rick Klein’s “FuzzyMemoriesTV: The Museum of Classic Chicago Television.”

Who was in Michael Curtiz’s classic Warner Bros. mammoth horror masterpiece production of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933)?

The players who appeared in Michael Curtiz’s classic mammoth Warner Bros. horror masterpiece production of “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933) were Fay Wray (as Charlotte Duncan), Lionel  Atwill (as Ivan Igor), Glenda Farrell (as Florence), Frank McHugh (as Jim), Monica Bannister (as Joan Gale), Allen Vincent (as Ralph Burton), Gavin Gordon (as George Winton), Edwin Maxwell (as Joe Worth), Holmes Herbert (as Dr. Ramussen), Claude King (as Mr. Galatalin), Arthur Edmund Carewe (as Prof. Darcy), Thomas E. Jackson (as a detective), DeWitt Jennings (as the police captain), Matthew Betz (as Hugo) and Robert Emmett O’Connor (in a uncredited role as policeman Joe).

“Svengoolie” to present his big broadcast of Vincent Price in “House on Haunted Hill” (1959), this Sat. On Me-TV

Fellow Svengoolie Super SvenPals everywhere will be dancing and jumping for joy for his big broadcast of a classic mammoth macabre/thriller feature masterpiece.

“Svengoolie” to present his big broadcast of Vincent Price in William Castle’s “House on Haunted Hill” (1959)

A snippet from  William Castle’s classic mammoth Allied Artists macabre thriller masterpiece production of “House on Haunted Hill” (1959) with Vincent Price. Sidebar: This is from the now-out-of-print Shout! Factory (Shout! Studios)/Scream Factory Vincent Price multi-film anthology Blu-Ray compilation set, “The Vincent Price Collection: Vol. II;” which featured Warner Bros.‘ official/authorized High-Definition restoration of Castle’s classic mammoth 1959 Allied Artists macabre thriller masterpiece production**. -C.H.

“The ’13’ greatest shocks of all time!” “First film with the amazing new wonder ‘Emergo!'” “The thrills fly right into the audience!” Original 1959 Allied Artists newspaper advertising proof for William Castle’s “House on Haunted Hill” with Vincent Price.

The legendary and iconic Berwyn/Chicago-based classic mammoth thriller feature film masterpiece host will present his big broadcast of “House on Haunted Hill” (1959) this Sat., Nov. 25 at 8 p.m. Eastern/7 p.m. Central on Me-TV.

“House on Haunted Hill” (1959) was directed by legendary veteran macabre-thriller feature film masterpiece director William Castle. Alongside his classic mammoth 1959 macabre/thriller masterpiece production of “House on Haunted Hill” for Allied Artists Productions, he also directed his classic mammoth Allied Artists macabre/thriller masterpiece production of “Macabre” (1958) with William Prince, Christine White, Jim Backus (of “Mr. Magoo” and TV’s “Gilligan’s Island” fame) and Jacqueline Scott.

For the majority of his feature film directorial career, Castle directed numerous productions for Columbia Pictures, notably for his classic mammoth macabre/gimmick screen thriller masterpieces and various genres of feature film productions, including numerous classic mammoth film noir, mysteries and western masterpieces for Columbia.   Some of Castle’s best-known classic mammoth Columbia macabre/gimmick-thriller masterpiece productions include “The Tingler” (1959), “13 Ghosts” (1960, with Charles Herbert, Jo Morrow, Martin Milner of TV’s “Route 66” and “Adam-12” fame, Margaret Hamilton of MGM’s “The Wizard of Oz” fame and John Van Dreelen), “Homicidal” (1961, with Glenn Corbett), “Zotz!” (1962, with Tom Poston of TV’s “Newhart” fame, Julia Meade, Jim Backus, Margaret Dumont; who previously appeared in seven of The Marx Brothers’ classic mammoth feature film comedy masterpieces from 1929–41 and  Fred Clark), “The Old, Dark House” (1963, with Poston and Janette Scott) and “Strait-Jacket” (1964, with Joan Crawford, Diane Baker and young George Kennedy).

Later in his career, Castle’s directed his classic Universal Studios mammoth thriller masterpiece productions of “The Night Walker” (1964) with Barbara Stanwyck and Robert Taylor and “I Saw What You Did” (1965) with Joan Crawford,  John Ireland, Leif Erickson, Sara Lane, Andi Garrett, Sharyl Locke, Patricia Breslin. William Castle also directed his classic mammoth Paramount Pictures sci-fi/mystery masterpiece production of “Project X” (1968) with Christopher George and Greta Baldwin.

Castle’s “House on Haunted Hill” (1959) was released theatrically through Allied Artists, according to IMDB.  The classic 1959 mammoth Allied Artists macabre thriller masterpiece production was co-produced by Castle and veteran associate producer Robb White, who also wrote the screenplay for the Allied Artists production of “House on Haunted Hill” with Castle.

40 years after the original theatrical release of William Castle’s classic mammoth Allied Artists macabre thriller masterpiece, director William Malone re-made “House on Haunted Hill” (1999) for Warner Bros.** with Geoffrey Rush, Famke Janssen, Taye Diggs, Peter Gallagher, Ali Larter and Chris Kattan (of “Saturday Night Live” fame).  Warner Bros. owns the rights to the majority of the Monogram/Allied Artists/Lorimar Productions library, including the original “House on Haunted Hill” (1959) as part of Warners’ 1989 acquisition of Lorimar Productions/Lorimar-Telepictures, Lorimar Productions acquired Allied Artists after Allied Artists went bankrupt in 1979.  Warner Bros. also produced and released a follow-up direct-to-video sequel to the 1999 re-make version of “House on Haunted Hill” in conjunction with director Víctor García, titled “Return to House on Haunted Hill” (2007)  with Amanda Righetti, Cerina Vincent, Erik Palladino and Tom Riley.

This will mark Sven’s third big coast-to-coast broadcast of William Castle’s production of “House on Haunted Hill” (1959) on the airlanes of Me-TV.  He previously showcased Castle’s classic mammoth  1959 macabre-thriller masterpiece production as a coast-to-coast big broadcast premiere back in Aug. 2021.  He showcased “House on Haunted Hill” (1959) as a regular coast-to-coast big broadcast on the airlanes of Me-TV back in May 2022.

In Sven’s home area of Berwyn/Chicago, Illinois; he previously showcased William Castle’s mammoth classic Allied Artists macabre thriller masterpiece production of “House on Haunted Hill” as a Berwyn/Chicago big broadcast premiere back in Oct. 1998 on WCIU-TV, according to IMDB.

Who was in William Castle’s Allied Artists classic mammoth macabre thriller masterpiece production of “House on Haunted Hill” (1959)?

The players who appeared in William Castle’s classic mammoth Allied Artists macabre-thriller masterpiece production of “House on Haunted Hill” (1959) were Vincent Price (as Frederick Loren), Carol Ohmart (as Annabelle Loren), Richard Long (as Lance Schroder), Julie Mitchum (as Ruth Bridgers), Elisha Cook Jr. (as Watson Pritchard),  Carolyn Craig (as Nora Manning),  Alan Marshal (as Dr. David Trent), Leona Anderson (as Mrs. Slydes), Howard Hoffman (as Jonas) and the Skeleton (as himself).

“Svengoolie” presents his big Me-TV premiere of “Empire of the Ants” (1977) w/Joan Collins, this Sat. on Me-TV

Fellow Svengoolie Super SvenPals everywhere will be dancing & jumping for joy for his upcoming big coast-to-coast premiere of a cult classic mammoth American-International sci-fi thriller masterpiece.

“Svengoolie” presents his big coast-to-coast premiere of “Empire of the Ants” (1977) with Joan Collins

Original 1977 American-International Pictures theatrical release trailer for Bert I. Gordon‘s classic mammoth sci-fi thriller masterpiece production of “Empire of the Ants” with Joan Collins.

“For they shall inherit the earth.. sooner than you think!” Original 1977 American-International Pictures theatrical poster art for Bert I. Gordon’s “Empire of the Ants” featuring Joan Collins.

The legendary and iconic Berwyn/Chicago-based classic mammoth sci-fi thriller masterpiece host will present his big coast-to-coast broadcast premiere of “Empire of the Ants” (1977), this Sat.; Nov. 18 at 8 p.m. Eastern/7 p.m. Central on Me-TV.

The classic mammoth 1977 American-International sci-fi thriller masterpiece production of “Empire of the Ants” was directed by veteran feature film director  Bert I. Gordon.  Some of Gordon’s best-known cult classic sci-fi/visual effects feature film masterpiece productions include  “The Cyclops” (1957) for Allied Artists with Lon Chaney Jr., “Beginning of the End” (1957)* with Peter Graves, Peggie Castle and Morris Ankrum; “Earth vs. the Spider” (1958, a.k.a. “The Spider”)* with Ed Kemmer, June Kenney and Hank Patterson; “Tormented” (1960) for Allied Artists with Richard Carlson, Susan Gordon, Lugene Sanders and the vocal stylings of Paul Frees; “Village of the Giants” (1965) for Joseph E. Levine’s Embassy Pictures with Ron “Ronny” Howard, legendary singer Freddy “Boom Boom” Cannon (who wrote/performed the mammoth 2016 Sven song masterpiece with Sven, “the Svengoolie Stomp”), Joy Harmon, Beau Bridges, Tisha Sterling, Johnny Crawford, The Beau Brummels, Tommy Kirk, Toni Basil, Rance Howard, Tim Rooney  and Orangey the Cat.

The 1977 Bert I. Gordon/American-International feature production of “Empire of the Ants” was loosely inspired by a short story written by veteran science fiction author and novelist H.G. Wells.  The screenplay adaptation of Wells’ short story that inspired the production of “Empire of the Ants” was co-written by Gordon and veteran TV/feature film screenwriter Jack Turley.   Alongside his numerous TV and feature film screenwriting credits, Turley previously wrote the teleplay for two episodes of the brief classic mammoth Leslie Stevens–Warner Bros./NBC masterpiece adventure series “Search” (inspired by Stevens and Russ Mayberry‘s earlier classic mammoth 1972 Warner Bros./NBC made-for-TV movie masterpiece, “Probe“) that had an alternating lead for each episode of the week (Hugh O’Brian, Anthony Franciosa and Doug McClure) along with Burgess Meredith (Turley wrote the teleplay for 1972’s “The Andonis File” with O’Brian in the lead and 1973’s “The 24 Carat Hit” with Franciosa in the lead).

*For the majority of his motion picture directorial career, Gordon released his classic mammoth “giant” sci-fi/creature masterpiece productions, including “Empire of the Ants” (1977) through Samuel Z. Arkoff‘s American-International Pictures . Arkoff and James H. Nicholson established American-International Pictures in 1954, according to the Samuel Z. Arkoff papers collection housed at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California. During Nicholson’s final years at AIP, he often had personal and professional disagreements with co-founder Samuel Z. Arkoff, according to Eamon Harrington and John Watkin’s retrospective documentary on American-International Pictures titled;  “It Conquered Hollywood! The Story of American International Pictures” (2001).  Nicholson then worked for a brief while for rival studio Twentieth Century Fox (Twentieth Century Studios), but was short-lived, as Nicholson’s health declined due to a brain tumor.  Arkoff mentioned that in Nicholson’s last days that he was the only person outside of Nicholson’s family that kept in touch with him.  Nicholson died on Dec. 10, 1972; according to IMDB.

After Arkoff managed the company by himself, he sold American-International to Filmways in 1979, which was later acquired by Orion Pictures in 1982.  Orion (along with the majority of the American-International/Filmways holdings)** was then sold to the present incarnation of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) in 1997.  Following MGM’s recent revival of the “Orion Pictures” moniker, the studio recently revived the “American-International Pictures” moniker. The classic mammoth 1977 sci-fi thriller masterpiece production of “Empire of the Ants” was co-produced between Arkoff’s American-International Pictures and Gordon’s “Cinema 77 Productions” moniker.

Who was in Bert I. Gordon’s American-International production of “Empire of the Ants” (1977)?

The players who appeared in Gordon’s classic mammoth American-International sci-fi/insect thriller masterpiece production of “Empire of the Ants” (1977) were Joan Collins (as Marilyn Fryser), Robert Lansing (as Dan Stokely), Robert Pine (as Larry Graham), John David Carson (as Joe Morrison), Albert Salmi (as Sheriff Art Kincade), Jacqueline Scott (as Margaret Ellis), Pamela Susan Shoop (as Coreen Bradford), Edward Power (as Charlie Pearson), Brooke Palance (as Christine Graham), Tom Fadden (as Sam Russell), Irene Tedrow (as Velma Thompson), Harry Holcombe (as Harry Thompson), Jack Kosslyn (as Thomas Lawson), Ilse Earl (as Mary Lawson), Janie Gavin (as Ginny), Norman Franklin (as Anson Parker), Florance McGee (as Phoebe Russell), Jim Wheelus (as a crewman), Mike Armstrong (as Jim), Tom Ford (as Pete), Charles Redd (as a taxi driver) and the vocal stylings of Marvin Miller (as the opening narrator).