tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64786135418816956442024-02-18T23:18:18.840-08:00A Lone Fan Crying In The WildernessA blog dedicated to comic books, science fiction, fantasy, horror, weird movies, weirder movies, cult tv, cult film, video games, pulp novels, vhs obsessions, random rants about geeks and geek culture, and other addictive practices!Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.comBlogger71125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-22307267509591750482012-07-29T22:25:00.003-07:002012-07-29T22:25:47.689-07:00It's Yesterday Tonight!!!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
A.J. LoCascio made his mark on geek culture by bursting onto the scenes of <a href="http://www.telltalegames.com/" target="_blank">Telltale Games'</a> recent point and click adventure series <em><a href="http://www.telltalegames.com/bttf/" target="_blank">Back To The Future: The Game</a></em>, as the voice of Marty McFly, giving a standout performance by not only perfectly mimicing Michael J. Fox's voice, but by endowing it with a sense of life and passion that truly stood out!<br />
<br />
Now, Mr. LoCascio has returned with a pilot for a show focusing on the glorious 80's and 90's! If you were a Nick Kid, if you watched TGIF, if you can do the Carlton Dance, or love to geek out with Rugrats trivia, this is the show for you!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/YDUkYN6L2l4?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
Mr. LoCascio hopes to have this series picked up by a network, so if you liked it, visit his <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/mooniteman" target="_blank">youtube page</a> and give this video some legitimate views! Facebook it! Tell your friends! Preach the good news! The past can be the present, and yesterday can be tonight, but only with your help! Now you know, and ...<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnFiLyRg2KhbCkqaiYeJjqt-OG1sJVviDbSkyemj1FRN2sng_Ai0rjGa2oY7RMd8EVCO1-wSKsxYGelFetJTVmfk2J1jM0aoB4Qtxbwy4BRgnKHvLqxmeSWs6rOiEvTZXragWveIQ7MqXi/s1600/knowing-is-half-the-battle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="155" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnFiLyRg2KhbCkqaiYeJjqt-OG1sJVviDbSkyemj1FRN2sng_Ai0rjGa2oY7RMd8EVCO1-wSKsxYGelFetJTVmfk2J1jM0aoB4Qtxbwy4BRgnKHvLqxmeSWs6rOiEvTZXragWveIQ7MqXi/s320/knowing-is-half-the-battle.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-35853318956268869982012-07-16T06:24:00.001-07:002012-07-16T14:56:42.694-07:00Godzilla Director Speaks Out And So Do I<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMIhaAFkYJuaTiH05JIVZdNpkteXY_aobH67Bxj6_5aHHjD8O0Maij5NnLJxUCLcvZNbxYDPeOnqrNciiUd5byr6MFsz3XbBbXHSanN_URtXt7wRB3SNHmJE5EkRMPjM7sz6m2k_c2ilgN/s1600/Gareth+Edwards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMIhaAFkYJuaTiH05JIVZdNpkteXY_aobH67Bxj6_5aHHjD8O0Maij5NnLJxUCLcvZNbxYDPeOnqrNciiUd5byr6MFsz3XbBbXHSanN_URtXt7wRB3SNHmJE5EkRMPjM7sz6m2k_c2ilgN/s1600/Gareth+Edwards.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://famousmonstersoffilmland.com/" target="_blank"><i>Famous Monsters of Filmland</i></a>'s website recently put up a <a href="http://famousmonstersoffilmland.com/2012/07/15/comic-con-2012-here-comes-godzilla/" target="_blank">short post</a> involving quotes from Gareth Edwards the director of <i>Monsters</i> about his upcoming Godzilla reboot at Legendary Pictures as well as a teaser poster for the film (which you'll have to follow the link to see, I'm not reposting it)! <br />
<br />
The main quote of the article, and the one that seems to have raised both my eyebrows, reads thus:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“We’re going to take it seriously…If this really happened, what would it be like? It’s very grounded and realistic"</blockquote>
<br />
On one hand I'm okay with that. Obviously Mr. Edwards is a fan, and we certainly don't want the King of the Monsters put through a camp fest, but by the same token I'm not sure I want a grim, gritty Godzilla picture. Monster movies, for me at least, have always been about fantasy and escapism and while realism is all fine and good too much of it can suck the fantasy right out of a project.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Of course that doesn't necessarily mean that such a film will be bad. Gareth Edward's previous film <i>Monsters</i> certainly had more to do with reality than fantasy and it was actually pretty darn good in my estimation. It was a very grounded, human story with the giant monsters involved used as a catalyst for the fears and anxieties that plague us all.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSx6XG5vBtKEbk28M62eTqRI0vZR5NMSUDxI7Xtv2bkBufG99yS5Ate2nIRXnghuz2xH4mb-jRXRfCDYR5LdNtYEf5Oka0JAH69xnq0-BlvpLsdSemmxWt2Kv24_J2FZiu9WVQtGKcPWNp/s1600/monsters-one-sheet-poster2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSx6XG5vBtKEbk28M62eTqRI0vZR5NMSUDxI7Xtv2bkBufG99yS5Ate2nIRXnghuz2xH4mb-jRXRfCDYR5LdNtYEf5Oka0JAH69xnq0-BlvpLsdSemmxWt2Kv24_J2FZiu9WVQtGKcPWNp/s320/monsters-one-sheet-poster2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
But then there are other examples of this too, such as Dino DeLaurentis' 1976 remake of King Kong. This is not only a bad picture, it's a boring one! And why? Because all the fantasy elements were stripped away. Oh, a few of them survived as pitiful, down-to-earth abominations in comparison to their former glory, but all in all, this is the best example of the worst case scenario for the type of film a 'realistic' Godzilla movie could possibly be. One viewing and this turkey will have you begging for mercy like Jessica Lange in the paws of the Mighty Kong!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOBwANECGqhxGiY-bJh1AWg7-Bq0Sx5zxCjk4YeFMnqlGh8K5T42jeCFCVL2HrZf9-F5pPQyi5reSJ9fZegYHxMHYRkdF_cZej-GTSA7BsOEuYJVJ8etQr-l3ynoRohyFlT_tyk5R-AG9v/s1600/king-kong-1976-wallpapers_26106_1280x960.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOBwANECGqhxGiY-bJh1AWg7-Bq0Sx5zxCjk4YeFMnqlGh8K5T42jeCFCVL2HrZf9-F5pPQyi5reSJ9fZegYHxMHYRkdF_cZej-GTSA7BsOEuYJVJ8etQr-l3ynoRohyFlT_tyk5R-AG9v/s320/king-kong-1976-wallpapers_26106_1280x960.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
All that said and done, my primary concern is whether or not there will be another giant monster involved in Mr. Edward's film. See, the problem with Godzilla fighting only the military is that inevitably the military has to win. I don't mind that as long as there's an element of fantasy involved in their victory (like the oxygen destroyer from the original masterpiece) or when a force of nature intervenes (ala the iceberg in <i>Godzilla Raids Again</i>, or the Volcano in <i>Godzilla 1985</i>). But if they just shoot him down with missiles like they did in <i>Godzilla</i> (1998), I'm going to be severely disappointed.<br />
<br />
Godzilla's invulnerability is as important a part of his mythology as Superman's is. I don't want to see a Superman movie where conventional weapons can harm him, and I sure don't want to see a Godzilla film where the same is true.<br />
<br />
The beauty of the monster brawl is that it gives Godzilla an opponent who is on even footing with him. To exclude that element would be like making a Spider-Man film sans super villains because it takes away from the realism of the story. Once done, Spidey's actions would be a lot less interesting because his opponents would never be able to keep up with him.<br />
<br />
I sincerely hope despite a realistic tone that the fantasy elements will not be diminished. It is possible to have both. <i>John Carpenter's The Thing</i>, Ridley Scott's <i>Alien</i>, and Christopher Nolan's <i>Batman Begins</i> are all wonderful examples of how combining fantasy and realism can work and even compliment each other.<br />
<br />
The Thing is more frightening because the characters and settings feel real, leaving you with the distinct impression that this could really happen. The same is true of Alien and Batman's fantastic gadgetry is less likely to take you out of the moment because Nolan goes to great pains to explain how everything works and why it's there.<br />
<br />
Despite all my conjectures, I do want it known that I believe Gareth Edwards has a great Godzilla movie in him. I just hope it's a great fantasy movie as well!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMG_pZcgMKL7Z9AT2AnHgfy9YYdT9wh8tzLdS3JvsaJfJ0KlpMaPMV0JoY-G0jqctqDNLyeZn0jCf0oHe_4eE7RmV1d4nL-9QrILoOXDL82HSse5Lb_x2cPsFvyXTkE8HLxC4DutUwSRUw/s1600/Legendary-Pictures-Godzilla-Modern-Day.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMG_pZcgMKL7Z9AT2AnHgfy9YYdT9wh8tzLdS3JvsaJfJ0KlpMaPMV0JoY-G0jqctqDNLyeZn0jCf0oHe_4eE7RmV1d4nL-9QrILoOXDL82HSse5Lb_x2cPsFvyXTkE8HLxC4DutUwSRUw/s320/Legendary-Pictures-Godzilla-Modern-Day.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br /></div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-60022615225149433002012-07-14T00:23:00.001-07:002012-07-14T00:23:56.095-07:00Destroyer14 wants you to know 'Why The World Needs Godzilla'!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="http://www.comicbookmovie.com/" target="_blank">ComicBookMovie.Com</a> recently posted a blog entry by contributer Destroy14 entitled: <em>Why A New GODZILLA Film Is Necessary</em>! It's not terribly comprehensive, but his idea is solid and should resonate well with Godzilla fans.<br />
<br />
You can read the blog <a href="http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/Destroyer14/news/?a=63627" target="_blank">here</a> and if you like it, be sure and <a href="https://twitter.com/intent/follow?original_referer=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.comicbookmovie.com%2Ffansites%2FDestroyer14%2Fnews%2F%3Fa%3D63627&screen_name=Destroyer_199&source=followbutton&variant=2.0&xd_token=b9463dbb338ae" target="_blank">follow him on tumblr</a>! Every good commentator deserves a following!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPnMT7bCGHhTZtBrqlrNc_93E7YWtEHt7RKxRSeHZbCB-5ziMPwMBD2zXuoPVcJXhjS8Z2B8UIPwlp4NsDB8X3ZKhOVD67rwJoB-7eABE5ityShy-E1Flc1nauxwkSRAMGINhytN398WPM/s1600/Legendary-Pictures-New-Godzilla-Image1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $ca="true" border="0" height="320px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPnMT7bCGHhTZtBrqlrNc_93E7YWtEHt7RKxRSeHZbCB-5ziMPwMBD2zXuoPVcJXhjS8Z2B8UIPwlp4NsDB8X3ZKhOVD67rwJoB-7eABE5ityShy-E1Flc1nauxwkSRAMGINhytN398WPM/s320/Legendary-Pictures-New-Godzilla-Image1.jpg" width="283px" /></a></div>
</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-49823820893027666352012-07-14T00:12:00.001-07:002012-07-14T00:12:44.243-07:00Comic-Con Hints From The Hub: My Little Pony Friendship is Magic SEASON 3!!!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs4N8ANy5uRmOu5yIihy9sf209Gj7RTRcUQ2kfuJzX0qL4tfkAnsnuyvNIWlXn2WY6-e7H9xSa6C1Ls_WAARr5LFIgOoCLfHm69blf29RIwQftMxoCpypqGfHaZoPoxydbu9Q72SjWSmk/s1600/3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $ca="true" border="0" height="320px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs4N8ANy5uRmOu5yIihy9sf209Gj7RTRcUQ2kfuJzX0qL4tfkAnsnuyvNIWlXn2WY6-e7H9xSa6C1Ls_WAARr5LFIgOoCLfHm69blf29RIwQftMxoCpypqGfHaZoPoxydbu9Q72SjWSmk/s320/3.jpg" width="191px" /></a></div>
<br />
The kind folks over at <a href="http://www.equestriadaily.com/" target="_blank">Equestria Daily</a> have recently posted some pics from upcoming additions to Hasbro's MLP toyline (see photo above) as well provided a video of a new song from Season 3 of the series and a few highlights from a Q & A session with some of the staff (read that <a href="http://www.equestriadaily.com/2012/07/season-3-spike-and-twilight-song-from.html" target="_blank">here</a>)!<br />
<br />
Ah Comic Con! Tis the season for spoilers galore!<br />
<br />
<br />
UPDATE: A higher quality version of the Twilight Sparkle/Spike duet from the first link has recently been posted on EQD alone with another brand new pony tune. <a href="http://www.equestriadaily.com/2012/07/another-season-3-song-chrysal-fair-hd.html" target="_blank">Check it out</a>!</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-86668352437753892932012-07-11T22:46:00.000-07:002012-07-11T22:46:13.882-07:00Music To Geek By: Doctor Who Rocks!!!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Fresh from musician David O' Flynn comes a wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey track of audio excellence as sure to delight Whovians as it will enrage the Daleks! A fantastic rock reimagining of Ron Grainer's classic Doctor Who theme!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/ssdPsMx4ZJo?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
You can check out Mr. O'Flynn's <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/Believethelie2004" target="_blank">youtube channel</a> for more of this sort, and catch an extended version of the DW rock theme on his <a href="http://www.myspace.com/jdrockmusic" target="_blank">myspace page</a>.</div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">
<img $ca="true" border="0" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHXi4icSu9AamjDlLoqI9wSNPVEpFs_5esOtP3nkGqNMyBIZwD2pnzsMCkSl3741h7jF3oA6vDAecvq6AaqAIcCDZi33NWXvFzj2h-UBGu_Gq331lFQKv-FHXuXkM7NPmiYre1XMJ9StN3/s320/untitled.JPG" width="320" /></div>
</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-81341122923330004962012-07-11T03:16:00.000-07:002012-07-11T03:16:33.665-07:00From The Archives: My Animated Conversation With Buzz Dixon<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
(originally posted on June 7, 2010)<br />
<br />
Buzz Dixon is a writer, specializing in animation. With a career that has involved him with such animation giants as Hanna-Barbera, Ruby-Spears, Filmation, Sunbow Productions, Marvel Productions, Walt Disney Television Animation, and Warner Brothers Studios, he has contributed to some of the most memorable animated television shows of the 1980s and early 90s. From G.I. Joe and The Transformer to Scooby Doo and Chip N’ Dale, all of them been graced by the unique touch of this master craftsman.<br />
<br />
Mr. Dixon’s career has also extended to motion pictures and graphic novels. I have been fortunate enough to speak with Mr. Dixon today about his life, his career, and where it’s going.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>To begin with, what inspired you to become a writer?<br />
<br />
<strong>Buzz Dixon</strong>: Parents, a grandmother, and an aunt who read to me as a child. I was mesmerized by stories and with comic books. I could remember which dialog was supposed to go with which panel even though I couldn’t read yet. I was interested in writing and telling stories at a very early age; in fact, the first “book” I ever wrote was at age 5. I drew a bunch of dinosaur pictures where I painstakingly copied their names out of books I had, even though I hadn’t been taught my ABCs yet! I stapled the whole thing together when it was done.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>You've worked in several mediums but your animation credits appear to be the most numerous. Did you set out to become a cartoon writer or was it something that just happened?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> When I left the Army in spring of 1978, I was accepted into USC’s film school. However, film school didn’t start until fall, so I decided to get a job at a studio as a driver or working in a mail room until classes began. I began at the top -- Universal, Warner Bros, etc. -- worked my way down past Samuel Z. Arkoff (I never met him but I heard him bellowing) and finally ended up at Filmation Studios, which was the penultimate bottom rung on the Saturday morning ladder at that time. I walked in the front door just about the same time producer Lou Scheimer was saying, “We need to find another staff writer and fast!”<br />
<br />
I met Art Nadel, the producer/director of Filmation’s live action shows, while looking for a job as a driver. When he learned I had been a newspaper editor and a public affairs specialist for the Army, and had written a number of short stories (none of which had sold at the time), he asked if he could see some of my stories. He also mentioned a show they were working on where they were having problems coming up with story ideas and hinted (since he couldn’t actually ask without violating WGA rules) I could pitch some ideas to that.<br />
<br />
I brought a batch of short stories the next day and after the weekend some story ideas for the series he mentioned. Art showed my story ideas to Lou, who said, “I don’t know if we should hire this guy or the guy last week who wrote the short stories.” Art said: “They’re the same guy” and Lou said: “Get him!”<br />
So I ended up as a staff writer at Filmation Studios and never made it to USC’s film school!<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Were there any cartoons that inspired you in your work?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I was already aware of Japanese animation prior to working at Filmation Studios, and while at Filmation I met members of the Cartoon Fantasy Organization, one of (if not the) very first anime/manga fan groups in America. I was greatly impressed by the depth and complexity of Japanese story telling (and their giant robots as well, to be perfectly honest) and tried to bring as much of that as I could to the stories I wrote.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Which writers do you draw the most inspiration from?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> My tastes have changed over the years, which is not to say any particular writer is better or worse than another, just that I find different writers speak to my better at some times than others. My earliest preferences were Ray Bradbury and H.P. Lovecraft, and the stories I wrote as an early teen were pretty much pastiches of either of them. By the time I was drafted in 1972, my tastes had shifted to include Theodore Sturgeon, Alfred Bester, and Harlan Ellison. As I grew more serious about my writing, I broadened my reading and went back to “re-learn” Dickens (who I think is the best character writer ever) and other classic and/or mainstream writers. I have always liked Mark Twain and I’m a huge, HUGE fan of H. Allen Smith, a humorist from the 1940s to 1960s who is unjustly overlooked today. Among contemporary writers I like James Elroy’s sparse and direct style. Recently I’ve come full circle and rediscovered Bradbury, who may be the single best short story writer ever.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Lou Schiemer is sometimes seen as the Roger Corman of animation. To some he's a genius, to others he's a hack. He developed a system to produce animation in the US without outsourcing by reusing stock footage and other corner cutting methods. Some people see that as simple economy, others as a blatant crime against cartoon art. What are your feelings on the process? Do you see it as a good thing, in that he was able to employ more people in house or a bad thing in that it hindered the final outcome of the production?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> There’s no reason it can’t be both economy AND a crime against cartoon art. Seriously, Lou is a sweetheart, a wonderful, wonderful guy who put up with a lot of crap from me and gave me a chance to learn the basics of my craft. He ran a very tight, economical business model that worked so long as everybody in the process knew the limitations. As a result, the shows tended to be more character driven since dialog was easy to animate, and we were encouraged to use stock footage as much as possible. They actually handed the writers on some shows big thick books of stock footage storyboards and told ‘em to assemble the shows around as much of the footage as possible.<br />
<br />
Years after leaving Filmation I came back and did a freelance episode of “Bravestarr” for them called “The Ballad of Sara Jane”. I have taken great pains NOT to look at any other episodes, just mine, so I won’t be disappointed in seeing how much of the show was stock footage!<br />
<br />
As for it being a “good” or “bad” thing, it was a dramatic restriction. It taught us to construct stories where we couldn’t buy our way out of a corner by ordering scads of new animation. Insofar that it encouraged ingenuity and a more thoughtful approach to story telling, it was a good thing.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>What was your take on Mr. Schiemer himself? Was he easy to work for, or not? Was he controlling, or did he give you a certain amount of creative freedom?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Lou is a great guy and as long as the scripts weren’t expensive or likely to raise the ire of the networks’ high sheriffs, he let us do what we liked. I almost introduced sex to Saturday morning. He was going to do a series about twin girls who were superheroines and I pitched a story (which he and the network accepted) in which the girls went after a unicorn. One sister couldn’t get near the unicorn while the other one captured it quite easily. Unfortunately, the series was cancelled before it even got into production.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>What were his views on animation in general? I know from a comment I heard Paul Dini make concerning his tenure on "He-Man and the Master of the Universe" that Mr. Schiemer preferred for the villains to be seen as comical and not especially threatening. Did you ever have an experience like that, where he asked you to tone a story down?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Well, my instincts with fantasy adventure (which by my definition includes superheroes in particular but also spy thrillers, sci-fi, sword & sorcery, or any larger-than-life story) is that the basic premise is absurd, so you might as well run with it. Now, by “absurd” I don’t mean ridiculous or even necessarily “funny”. If one starts thinking too logically about Indiana Jones or James Bond or Batman or Tarzan or any of a thousand other heroic characters, one finds big gaping plot holes in the logic. To mangle metaphors, trying to fill in the plot holes only opens a can of worms, which then requires an even bigger can of worms, etc., etc., and of course, etc., so at some point one might as well say, “okay, this is how this world operates and everybody in it accepts it” and then move on.<br />
<br />
As a result, while I don’t wink at the audience and only rarely play it tongue in cheek (and even then, usually for a very specific reason), I do let ‘em know that anything can happen in my stories so long as it doesn’t violate the central premise of that title.<br />
<br />
A show today that does this sort of thing absolutely perfectly is “The Venture Brothers”. It’s a comedy-adventure and they send up the cliché’s of the genre superbly, but they play their world absolutely straight and no matter how absurd it seems to us in reality, they never violate the precepts that they operate under.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>In regards to Mr. Dini’s comment, do you feel that Mr. Schiemer was merely being consciences, or that he was trying to dumb down the final product under the auspices that it was simple children's entertainment?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Filmation shows looked cheap, but their scripts and characters were far and beyond anything done at Hanna-Barbera or any other TV animation studio at the time. There was complexity of plot, character, and motives that made the characters at least two-dimensional instead of just a cluster of catchphrases. Lou’s economizing forced us to write better, and the reason the shows are fondly remembered to this day is that they didn’t dumb things down for the kids watching them.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>The earliest credit I can find for you as a writer was on a show called "Tarzan and the Super 7". I tried digging up some information on the show, but wasn't able to uncover much. Could you tell us about the show and its premise?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> It was a logistical nightmare. There was no configuration of characters that ever totaled “7” -- if one counted teams as a single entity, then there were fewer than 7, and if one counted the characters individually then there was over a dozen. Further, there were changes made in costumes and characters up to the last minute before the shows went on the air. The aforementioned superheroine twins were meant for this show but they were ditched. “Web Woman” originally had a cool and somewhat plausible looking costume but at the last minute they decided she looked too much like Marvel’s Black Widow so they gave her a silly leotard which undercut the slightly more serious tone of the stories. Lou and his lawyer got beat up regularly by attorneys for DC, Marvel, and other comic books/comic strips who were trying to drive all competition out of business. For example, if I recall correctly, both Marvel AND DC sued over “Manta and Moray”, claiming they were too much like Sub-Mariner AND Aquaman. Ditto “Super-Stretch and Microwoman”, whom they sued for being too similar to the Elongated Man/Mr. Fantastic and the Atom/Ant-Man.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>What were the details of the episode you wrote, which was called "The Robot"? What was the overall plot and which characters from the show were involved?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> As I mentioned earlier, I was greatly impressed by Japanese animation and saw the appeal of giant robot stories long before anyone else did. I had wanted to do a nod towards Japanese animated robots, but the final design in “The Robot” looked kinda clunky and Jetson-y. We had a team of legendary superheroes, including Isis and Aladdin, who would come together whenever there was an emergency at any point in history.<br />
<br />
See? That’s an example of the absurdity I was speaking of. If one has the ability to travel through time (as these heroes did), then there’s never an “emergency” since the moment one becomes aware of a problem one can simply back track to the moment prior to the tipping point and put a stop to it. If one has a hundred crisis over a millennium, one doesn’t have to rush immediately from one to the next. “Quantum Leap” handled that by tying in the act of time travel to very specific crisis moments, but that’s all handwaveum to avoid the logic hole.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>You also worked on "The New Shmoo", the Shmoo of course being a character from Al Capp's classic newspaper comic strip "Lil Abner". Did you refer back to Mr. Capp's original work during your tenure on that show?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Not in the slightest. It was another rip-ff of “Scooby-Doo” (or, as that sub-genre was referred to in the animation industry at the time, “three kids and a nyah-nyah”, the “nyah-nyah” being any animal or gimmick one cared to throw in). There was no connection to Capp’s creation whatsoever; I could never figure out why they wasted money obtaining the license to the character since none of the network people knew what a Shmoo was, much less the kids in the audience.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan:</strong> "The New Shmoo" was produced by Hanna-Barbera. What were the key differences between working for Hanna-Barbera vs. working for Filmation?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Better pay, better parking.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Did you get to meet, Joseph Barbera or William Hanna over the course of production?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I’m sure I met Joe at some point, but I think it was just in passing in the hall. My main point of contact was Chuck Menville, the story editor.<br />
<br />
I scared the hell out of Chuck one day. H-B had a pair of three story buildings with a court yard between them; one of the buildings had a concrete lattice on the side strong enough to climb. When I would see Chuck for a story conference, I’d park, walk the length of the courtyard to get to the front reception area, then have to walk the length of the building to get back to his office.<br />
<br />
This particular day, as I left the parking lot I saw Chuck on the phone in his second story office, his back to me. I thought, why go all the way down and all the way back when I can simply climb the lattice, so…up I went. I rapped on Chuck’s window and he almost fell out of his chair in shock. After that they posted a guard in the court yard to keep people from taking vertical shortcuts.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Your next project was a comic book adaptation of a DC comics' character called Plastic Man. During your work on "The Plastic Man Comedy/ Adventure Show" did you ever research or refer back to his comic book roots?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Unlike Filmation, which gave individual writing credits to each episode, H-B and Ruby-Spears originally offered only gang credits at the end of the show. So, while I worked on the show, I didn’t write any Plastic Man segments. My specialty was “Mighty Man and Yukk” which was a knock-off of “The Blue Falcon and Dyno-Mutt”.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>"The Plastic Man Comedy/ Adventure Show" was produced by Ruby-Spears. How did you come to work for them?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I was laid off at Filmation and heard R-S was hiring. I showed ‘em my resume, did a few freelance scripts for them, then they put me on staff.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Did you have any interaction with the company's founders, Ken Spears or Joe Ruby? If so what were they like and how did you relate to them?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Lou Schiemer put up with a lot of crap from me but Joe Ruby had the patience of a saint. If I had been in his shoes I woulda fired myself a dozen times over. Joe and Ken are both really nice, bright guys. They’re two of the best guys in the business and my time at Ruby-Spears was some of the most fun I ever had in show biz.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>In 1982 you began working on "The Scooby and Scrappy Doo Puppy Hour" which was a co-production of Hanna-Barbera and Ruby-Spears. What was your role on that series?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I had no memory of that show until you mentioned it. I remember co-writing some episodes with a writing partner I had for live action screenplays, but beyond that I’m drawing a presumably merciful blank.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Ken Spears and Joe Ruby had previously worked at Hanna-Barbera and were even in charge of the development of Scooby Doo when the show was first created. Did their role as creators have anything to do with this joint studio effort?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Boy howdy! They’re contractually not allowed to mention just how crucial they were to the creation of “Scooby-Doo” but suffice it to say without them there probably never would have been a “Scooby-Doo” show in the first place. They left H-B the following year and served as freelance story editors for a variety of ABC prime time shows before getting ABC to set them up as an animation studio.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>In 1983 you worked on one episode of "The ABC Weekend Special" which was a showcase for different stories each week. The episode you wrote was called the "Puppy's Further Adventures." Could you tell us a little bit about that story, and the character it featured?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I worked on the series “The Puppy’s New Adventures” that was a continuation of the story from the Weekend Special, but not on the special itself. I recall it was a light, fun show and I had a good time with the story I did, but past that…nada.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>You wrote one episode of "Dungeons and Dragons" an animated series based on the popular role playing game. Were you a fan of the role playing game at the time you wrote the episode?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I was aware of D&D but not a player. I’d been involved in some classic military and historical gaming when I was in the Army, so I was familiar with the basic game playing concept, and I was a long time reader of fantasy stories ranging from Robert E. Howard to J.R.R. Tolkien, so I grasped the concept fairly quickly.<br />
Years later I briefly got involved with a group of D&D players at one of the studios. My character was a dwarf named Upwynde Fart-Snyffe. You see what I’m saying about embracing the inherent absurdity of a concept?<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Comic book writer and historian Mark Evanier was a co-developer of the television series. Did you get to meet him while working on the show?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I met him while freelancing at R-S, prior to going on staff for them. Mark is another great guy in the animation business and has been one of my best friends for close to 30 years now. He’s a kind, thoughtful, generous person and on top of that a tremendously funny and entertaining writer.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>In 1985, the National Coalition on Television Violence issued a report against "Dungeons and Dragons" stating it was the most violent show on television. Do you feel the show was at all inappropriate or that the Coalition was overreacting?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> If I recall correctly, I was disappointed that we didn’t score even higher on their violence ratings. I’m sure they must’ve overlook something.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>"Dungeons and Dragons" was a co-production of Marvel Productions and TSR who distributed the actual role playing game. Can you define Marvel Productions for us? How big of an operation was it at the time "Dungeons and Dragons" was being made?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Marvel Productions was a quasi-spinoff of DePatie-Freleng, if I recall correctly. It was a big, gutless, soulless entity whose only virtues for me were the occasional paycheck and a chance to meet and work with Stan Lee.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Did the company fall under the auspices of Marvel Comics or was Marvel Comics a subsidiary of Marvel Productions?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I don’t think anybody working there at the time could have told you the answer to that one. It really was a case of the left don’t know what the right hand is doing.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>How did you come to work for Marvel Productions?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I drove a Dodge Aspen. >rimshot<<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>What was their approach to making cartoons?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Unlike Filmation, R-S, and H-B where the heads of the studios actually had some knowledge of and hands on participation in the production process, far too many people at Marvel were suits who were eager to take the money and the credit while fobbing the responsibility and then the blame on other people. Stan was reduced to pretty much a figurehead even at that time but it was always great to have a meeting with him. Other people who worked there, the ones who had not worked their way up the production ladder but who played corporate politics well, couldn’t locate their own posteriors with the aid of a Geiger counter and a plutonium enema.*<br />
<br />
(*tip o’the hat to Michael Reaves for coming up with this line)<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Marvel Productions would later go on to partner with Sunbow Productions to create the animated versions of G.I. Joe, The Transformers, and others, many of whom you contributed to. Was Marvel responsible for your introduction to Sunbow Productions?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> No, thank heavens, because then I would have never worked on the show! I was brought aboard “G.I. Joe” by Steve Gerber, who had been a story editor at Ruby-Spears when I was on staff there. I did some freelance episodes for them, then Steve hired me to be his assistant story editor. The next year I was promoted to the story editor position on “G.I. Joe” though we would all pitch in and work on other shows in production. At the same time I was writing my episode of “Inhumanoids” I was probably also working on “My Little Pony”.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>During your tenure at Sunbow, you wrote three episodes of the Transformers, "Prime Target", "The God Gambit", and "Carnage in C-Minor". There were a lot of cartoons from the 80s that were popular for a time, but quickly faded away. How does it feel to have contributed to a show that people still remember and are actively interested in today?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Good, but humbling. I am genuinely very happy that things I wrote are fond childhood memories for many people. I always tried to put a little bit extra in everything I did, to try to make it distinct and different. This usually meant arguing with the suits who wanted everything done in cookie cutter fashion, but if one is successful one tends to get more chances to push the envelope.<br />
<br />
At the same time, I try not to let it go to my head. That was then, this is now. As proud as I am of what I did in the past, it is in the past. I can’t rest on what I did back then; time and tastes have changed.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>The Transformers were launched in 1984. That same year Hanna-Barbera launched a similar cartoon called "Challenge of the Go-Bots". Both the Transformers and Go-Bots were based on toy lines that were imported from Japan, and had back stories developed by competing American toy companies. Was there ever an attitude at Sunbow that Hanna-Barbera was in some way ripping off the Transformers idea, or that the two shows were in competition?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> As I mentioned before, I was the giant robot nut in the animation industry prior to the arrival of Transformers. I was aware of the various transforming mecha long before Transformers were introduced to the American market.<br />
<br />
In fact, R-S had a show prior to both Transformers and Go-Bots called “Turbo Teen”. They had 50% of a good idea: A teenage boy who transformed into a car. If it had been a robot that transformed into a car they would have cleaned up.<br />
<br />
Here’s another example of embracing absurdity -- and why Joe Ruby had the patience of Job when it came to me. Joe asked me to develop some episode ideas for “Turbo Teen” and gave me the bible of the series to read. I came back and said, “Okay, I’ll work up some ideas if you explain a few things to me: If he turns into a car and they remove his tires, when he changes back is he minus his hands and feet? If he turns into a car and they remove his engine, when he changes back is he minus his heart? If they put a suitcase in his trunk when he’s a car, when he changes back is it in his -- “<br />
<br />
“We’ll move you to another show,” Joe said.<br />
<br />
The problem with “Turbo Teen” is that they never found the right note for the show. It could have worked as an utterly absurdist Archie-type story, or it could have worked as a straight adventure show, but they never decided on which tone to take. As a result they squandered a chance to be out in front on the transforming robot craze.<br />
<br />
Sunbow came to Joe and Ken before selecting Marvel as the production studio; they had visited all the animation houses looking for a good production partner.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Having worked previously at Hanna-Barbera, did you have any friends who were working on "Challenge of the Go-Bots" at the same time you were writing for "The Transformers"?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I’m pretty sure I did, but we didn’t keep track of what they were doing. We had a buncha 65 episode freight trains we had to tend to!<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>One of the more memorable bits about the episode "Prime Target" was that it featured a brief cameo by a member of the October Guard from G.I. Joe. Were there ever any plans to do a crossover between the two shows?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Oh, there was more than that! I created the character Hector Rameriez, a Geraldo Rivera-style TV journalist, for “G.I. Joe” and once the character was vetted by Hasbro’s legal department, he became the de facto news source for all Sunbow shows since it was easier just to plug him in than to create a new minor supporting character. So Hector is the link between “Joe”, “Transformers”, “Inhumanoids”, and even “Jem”!<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>The villain from "Prime Target" is a human named Lord Chumley. Supposedly he was an original character you developed for a comic book project that never got off the ground. Is that correct?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Did he end up being called Lord Chumley in the final version? I remember naming him Baron Steygar originally but since I didn’t story edit the “Transformers” series, it could have been changed. I had come up with a far future sci-fi version of “The Most Dangerous Game” as an idea for a live action movie, but never got any further than jotting down some initial notes. When we needed a “Transformers” story I threw my movie idea into service, changing the characters to robots.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Your next Transformers episode, "The God Gambit" dealt with a primitive alien species mistaking the Autobots and Decepticons for gods. This was a very mature topic for a cartoon. Was it just another story idea or were you trying to elevate the subject matter for a more adult audience?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I always tried to add something more to a story than the standard babyface vs. heel* storyline of most animated shows of that era. I am a Christian and matters of faith are very important to me, but I am also distressed when I see crooks and con men clothing themselves in religion to pass off their schemes, or when fellow believers turn off their critical faculties and refuse to face facts and re-examine their own beliefs. So, yes, this was very much a deliberate effort to elevate the story line into something more than the standard fight-chase-fight plotting of too many shows of that era.<br />
<br />
(*little pro wrasslin’ lingo for ya)<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>You worked as a writer and a story editor on the G.I. Joe animated series for Sunbow and Marvel Productions. G.I. Joe dealt with a very real issue for the time, that of military action against terrorists. The cartoon also took a somewhat tongue in cheek approach to its material. Do you feel that approach was necessary to soften the blow of the much harsher reality its premise was based on?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Well, this goes back again to what I was saying about embracing the absurdity of a concept. First off, Cobra technically is not a terrorist organization. Terrorist organizations have clearly stated agendas; there’s no point in terrorizing anyone unless they know why, is there? Secondly, almost nothing Cobra did ever fell into the category of terrorist activity; i.e., assassinations, kidnappings, bombings, etc. Virtually everything they did was a large scale military operation involving hundreds if not thousands of combatants. Those are company and battalion size units, not small cells of three or four guys who get together every Friday night to make pipe bombs in the basement. You got any idea the size of the logistical support needed to keep a hundred combatants in the field? At least 600 support troops, and that’s not counting the personnel who build the equipment, obtain the material to make the equipment, etc. There’s no way an organization the size of Cobra could come into existence, much less operate at the level of activity it does, without the overt support of a major world power.<br />
<br />
But of course we couldn’t have that, because then everyone would accuse us of war mongering against the Soviets (which they did anyway, but that’s a different topic). For Cobra to operate at the troop levels of the show, with elaborate technical support, and not have a “safe haven” territory where they could retreat without fear of betrayal or attack is ridiculous.*<br />
<br />
Nonetheless, those were the cards we were dealt. The question that flows logically from the premise is how does an operation like Cobra continue operating without a large civilian population supporting it? Well, obviously they’ve got to have alternate sources of income, they’ve got to be knocking off banks and service stations like nobody’s business, they’re doubtlessly smuggling all sorts of illegal material we couldn’t discuss at the time, and when times get really rough they’ve gotta have a telethon to raise money.<br />
<br />
Now, the trick is, how does one do this with just straight enough a face that the audience can suspend their disbelief for half an hour? Like a Hitchcock movie, it doesn’t have to stand up to scrutiny once “The End” flashes on the screen, but it’s got to be absolutely engrossing while it’s unspooling.<br />
<br />
I’m pretty sure I was the only writer on the show who ever had any military experience. At first I was there just to provide a patina of verisimilitude to the proceedings: Make sure the characters acted like they did belong in a military unit, that they did operate under standard military discipline and courtesy, that they did understand what a chain of command was.<br />
<br />
But there were other problems. The writer of the first two mini-series, Ron Friedman, is a very gifted and talented writer, but not only was he unaware of basic military protocol, he had no idea how the weapons and equipment actually worked, much less how they were actively deployed in the field. Case in point: In the first mini-series, he had Joe jets swooshing down from the sky to slash Cobra tanks in half with their wings. I can tell you how such an encounter would play out in the real world, and it wouldn’t be a happy ending for the pilot.<br />
<br />
One reason Steve Gerber wanted me aboard was that I could supply first hand knowledge to balance out some of the more far fetched concepts. Again, going back to the idea of embracing the absurdity, when one accepted the background limitations imposed on the show by Hasbro and tried to filter it through a veneer of realism, it ends up pushing the storylines in certain directions.<br />
<br />
As a result, we ended up with some pretty wild but pretty entertaining stories (if I do say so myself). I’d like to think we delighted and surprised our audience, but we never tricked ‘em or lied to ‘em.<br />
(*I’m aware Larry Hama dealt with this in the comic book, but we considered the comic book to be a separate continuity from the TV series)<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>G.I. Joe began its first regular season the same year that the NCTV issued its report against “Dungeons and Dragons”, a show which was also produced by Marvel Productions. Did the presence of that report have anything to do with the slightly comical approach to the material that Sunbow chose?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> No, the off-kilter POV was entirely the writing and editorial staff. Besides Steve Gerber and myself there was Flint Dille, a screenwriter and game designer, long time comics pro Roger Slifer, Doug Booth, Mike Hill, and literally dozens of tremendously talented screen, TV, and comics writers. Hasbro just wanted x number of product promoted in each episode; as long as we didn’t do anything to arouse negative attention from parents they let us do what we wanted.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>"G.I. Joe" was also very political, taking pot shots at anti-military newscasters, portraying French government officials in an arrogant light, and even went so far as to parody the coddling of criminals by the prison system. Was this approach something that evolved or was their a certain social outlook that the series wanted to portray?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> The political POVs of the writing and editorial staff ranged from hard right to far left. We’d argue politics and social issues all the time, but we respected one another’s abilities as creators and our willingness to debate points instead of just sticking to dogmatic, unbending positions. Steve and Flint are probably two of the four best friends I’ve ever had in my life, yet I don’t think one could have found two more diametrically opposed culturally and politically personalities if one looked.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>What were your duties as a story editor for "G.I. Joe"?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> To fix the two things I hated the most in each script, slap a bow tie on it, and kick it out the door. We had to turn in five half-hour scripts a week per show in order to stay on schedule. At one point I think we had a grand total 118 script commitments for various shows, all due in a twenty-four week period.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>As story editor how much influence did you have over the show as a whole?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> In retrospect, probably quite a lot. Once I was trusted not to embed pornographic messages or tout rival products* they generally let me do whatever I thought would be an interesting story, and I generally let my writers do anything they felt passionate about. I’m happy that I gave a number of writers their first shots and that they all turned in sterling work for us.<br />
<br />
(*That’s a JOKE, people)<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>How many story editors did G.I. Joe have?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I think it was Steve Gerber, myself, and two others the first season (65 episodes) and myself alone for the 2<sup>nd</sup> season (25 episodes + 5 part miniseries + re-edited Joe movie).<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>I've heard that "G.I. Joe: the Movie" was originally being prepared for a theaters, but was released straight to video after "Transformers: The Movie" and "My Little Pony: The Movie" failed to perform at the box office. Is that true?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Yes. Afterwards a couple of people told me. “We should have released them in reverse order”. The “My Little Pony” movie did well, but there were some discrepancies about promised playdates, then the brouhaha over the death of Optimus Prime in the “Transformers” movie, and by that time the relationship with the distributor had soured so except for a special screening at that year’s San Diego Comic Con, it never played inside a theater.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>You were the story consultant on "G.I. Joe: The Movie". How much influence did you have on the final screenplay?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I wrote the screenplay. Ron Friedman had been hired to write the original script but with the exception of one character, the flying villain, nothing he came up with was used. However, he had a good agent, and since animation was not covered by WGA rules he managed to get sole screenwriting credit even though the script was actually written by me. I bear him no grudge; he had a savvy agent who looked out for his best interests.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>How did the movie evolve? Was it always going to be an introduction for Cobra-La or were there other ideas that were brought forth before the final direction was taken?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I feel like a character in a Merle Haggard song: “I paid the debt I owed ‘em / But they’re still not satisfied”.<br />
<br />
Here’s what happened (and it goes back to what I was saying about the inherent absurdity in certain ideas): At the start of the second season I proposed a story that would have been called “The Most Dangerous Man In The World”. The premise was that Cobra had been holding a mysterious prison in isolation in a secret cell; when he escapes Cobra immediately suspends all operations around the world and begins an intensive search for him. The Joes also begin searching, not knowing who the prisoner is but figuring he must be potentially harmful to Cobra. They get him first and discover he is the Karl Marx / Friedrich Nietzsche of Cobra, the man who created their basic philosophy but who, when he saw how Cobra Commander was misapplying it, criticized Cobra’s leadership and earned their enmity since he’s the only one capable of invalidating their whole raison d’etre. The Joes soon learn he is a prickly and obnoxious sort and in the end when he escapes from them they let him go, figuring he’s more of a threat to Cobra than he is to the rest of the world.<br />
<br />
To my delight, Sunbow and Hasbro accepted the idea but before I could begin work on it they told me there was a new character being added to the line-up: Cobra Emperor a.k.a. Serpentor.<br />
I said, “Excuse me?” and asked how he fit into the Cobra chain of command. He’s the supreme leader, they said. I said, “Excuse me?” again and pointed out that we had done nothing to date to indicate there was anyone above Cobra Commander in the line-up and that we couldn’t very well drop him in without explanation. They mulled it over and told me to come up with a suitable origin.<br />
<br />
So I developed two ideas. The first, the one I favored, would have Cobra create Serpentor from the DNA of history’s greatest military leaders as a replacement for Cobra Commander’s ineptitude. The other was that there was a heretofore unknown larger, even more secret organization that used Cobra as a pawn. I turned both ideas in. A few days later they called and said great, do it. “Which one?” I asked. Both, sez they.<br />
<br />
Well, that pretty much torpedoed “The Most Dangerous Man In The World” because if Cobra was founded and secretly run by a mysterious organization, they wouldn’t go about drawing attention to themselves by proclaiming their philosophy.<br />
<br />
So the creation of Serpentor became the plot for the 2<sup>nd</sup> season opening mini-series, and the story of the super secret organization behind Cobra would become the movie. Now the question became one of where the super secret mysterious organization was located. Since Sunbow and Hasbro didn’t want this organization to be identified with any known country, I suggested it be located in some remote part of the world like Antarctica, the Sahara, or the Himalayas. They liked the Himalayas and then I made my fatal mistake: So that we would know what we were referring to when we wanted to talk about the secret organization, I gave them a placeholder name of “Cobra-La” thinking surely no one would accept that as the final name.<br />
<br />
Guess what: They did. (My advice to other writers is never ever come up with a placeholder name you’re not prepared to live with.)<br />
<br />
From that point on, the movie plot flowed pretty easy. It had to mesh with the mini-series, but we’d allowed for that and dropped some hints in those episodes. The biggest change was turning Golobulus from a Nero-esque / Charles Laughton-style villain to a bizarre freak of nature. My original intent had been to present him as a big, soft, somewhat effeminate leader who was waited on hand and foot, yet when the time came for him to engage Sgt. Slaughter in hand-to-hand combat, he’d prove incredibly fast, agile, and strong. This idea was vetoed because of concerns he might come across as a homosexual.<br />
<br />
I also came up with the battle cry of “Cobra-Lalalalala” based on the ear piercing warning of the Bedouin women in “Lawrence of Arabia”. If you’ve seen that film, you’ll know they had an incredibly loud, trilling shriek that was unnerving and unearthly. Unfortunately, the actor selected to play Serpentor was Dick Gautier, a very fine performer but one with a voice about four octaves too deep to do “Cobra-Lalalala” justice. I wasn’t able to prevent them from using the battle cry since they had already recorded several characters screaming it.<br />
<br />
So there you have it: Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Duke was originally supposed to die in the movie, but the outcry over the death of Optimus Prime in "Transformers: The Movie" caused Sunbow to rethink that position. How did you feel about killing Duke? Did you think it was a good move or was there some part of you that was against the idea?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> A legitimate criticism against the original mini-series was that no one was ever hurt, they always ejected or jumped free just before their vehicle exploded. When I started writing and then editing for the series, I insisted there be at least some reference to injury in every episode if we couldn’t have anyone die. Someone always gets seriously hurt in the shows I had a hand in. I also had the Joes refer to “casualties” figuring (correctly) that neither Sunbow nor Hasbro would realize that meant dead and wounded.<br />
<br />
For the movie I argued successfully (at least originally) for Duke’s death: It was logical, it would be emotionally moving, and it would blunt possible criticism of the movie glorifying violence while minimizing the consequences. Unfortunately, Hasbro decided if one hero dying was good, two heroes dying would be even better and so ordered Optimus Prime to die in the “Transformers” movie.<br />
<br />
Now, again this goes back to embracing inherent absurdities. If a character is a robot, as George Lucas has repeatedly pointed out, one can smash ‘em, bash ‘em, trash ‘em, slash ‘em, and splash ‘em all one wants: Robots can always be re-built, their personalities and memories downloaded to a new body. “Death” for a robot is an inherently absurd concept, and in the context of a series where robot characters get trashed and repaired regularly, one that violates the basic premise of the show.<br />
<br />
It also shocked a lot of younger kids who came to see the “Transformers” movie. “Transformers” audiences tended to skew somewhat younger than “Joe” viewers; I believe the median age was 9 instead of 12. Nine year olds had to see “Transformers” with their parents, who were made uncomfortable when their sons’ hero dies. The “Joe” audience, being older on average, would be better prepared emotionally for Duke’s death and probably wouldn’t have their parents present in the theater.<br />
<br />
After the “Transformers” movie traumatize a significant portion of its audience, Hasbro order Duke’s death scene to be changed with a very clumsy dialog overlay. If one watches the film without sound, it’s pretty obvious he’s died, but a dubbed in line assures us he’s just “in a coma”.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: “</strong>G.I. Joe: The Movie" was the last G.I. Joe project released by Sunbow. Afterwards the series was continued by DIC. How did Sunbow lose the rights to the property?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> DIC is known in the animation industry as Do It Cheaper. They significantly underbid Sunbow and Marvel for the 3<sup>rd</sup> season of “Joe” and other series. The suits I talked to at DIC at roughly that time about another project proved themselves to be interested only in lining their own pockets with no interest whatsoever in quality. The DIC suits appeared to be openly contemptuous of their audience. I never watched any of their Hasbro related shows, but other programs I saw later were about as insulting to viewers as can be imagined.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>If Sunbow had been allowed to develop the series after "G.I. Joe: The Movie" would Cobra-La have replaced Cobra as the main opposition to the Joes?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Mike Hill came up with a really cool idea about the remnants of Cobra forming a new, leaner, meaner organization called The Coil, but that idea died a’borning when DIC took the series over.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Now that G.I. Joe is finally being released on DVD, can we expect to see you on any of the special features?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I’m in the phone book. All they gotta do is ask.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Getting back to another Hasbro/ Sunbow collaboration, let's talk about "My Little Pony: The Movie". You were the Associate Story Consultant on that project. How much control did you have on the final outcome of that feature?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Relatively little. The basic plot was already in place; I just story edited it to make sure the plot flowed smoothly. I think I also suggested areas where musical numbers could be inserted.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Something that always bothered me about "My Little Pony: The Movie" is that there seems to be more focus on the villains than there is on the Ponies themselves. Many of the best scenes from that feature focus on the witches who are trying to drive the Ponies out of the valley and the witches get as much or more screen time than the Ponies do. Was that intentional or did the Witches manage to steal the show all on their own?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> The problem was that instead of hiring voice actors purely on ability, as had been done with the TV series, they looked for big name talent. As a result they felt they had to focus on the stars’ characters as opposed to the regular series characters.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>One more question. I realize your involvement with the Pony franchise was limited, but I've often wondered something. The pilot episode to the series is very dark, focusing on a villain named Turrak who's every bit as evil as Megatron or Destro. The story felt like less of a fairy tale and more of a straight fantasy adventure. Why did the focus on the show go lighter with the other episodes? Do you know?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Roger Slifer might be a better person to ask; while I wrote some episodes of the TV show and edited the movie script, my daily involvement was limited at best.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>There's a lot of talk these days about the roll toy companies played in the development of animated television during the decade of the 1980s. Sunbow produced "Transformers", "G.I. Joe", and "My Little Pony", all of which you worked on and all of which were based on popular toy lines of the day. From your own experience, was the presence of the toy companies a negative or positive collaboration?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> It varied. Some toy companies actually had a desire to do something worthwhile as well as sell product. Some wanted to sell product but were wise enough to find good, creative people and let them have their head. Some were cheap money grubbers and didn’t care as long as their quarterly profits kept improving.<br />
<br />
And it was not impossible for one company to behave differently at different times for different shows. A bad quarter might make a toy company take short cuts. Conversely, Hasbro kept “Jem” going as a TV show for an additional season even after the toy line had been cancelled.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>How would you describe Hasbro's relationship with Sunbow and Marvel Productions? Was it an easy or tenuous partnership?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Easy. I’ve worked with far, far worse people but very few better.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan:</strong> You worked on Ruby-Spears 1988 Superman cartoon on the episode "Cybron Strikes", wherein a character named Cybron is converting humans into energy beings. At the time this series was made, the Superman comics were being completely remade from scratch. Cybron was intended to be a reworking of the classic Superman foe Brainiac since his character's final remake was still not yet established in the comics. How much input did you have in the actual creation of the Cybron character?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> The concept for “Cybron Strikes” comes from “The Chameleon” episode of the original “Outer Limits” series. In “The Chameleon” Robert Duvall plays a human secret agent who is transformed into an alien so he might spy on a crash landed saucer; in the end he opts to stay in alien form and go with them to their planet. The idea that some of the humans Cybron converts into energy beings might opt to help him re-create his world and people, struck me as a nice new level of complexity to add to an otherwise standard alien possession story. I was well aware of the various incarnations of Brainiac but also knew he was no longer in continuity at the time the series was being made.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>There was an episode of "Jabberjaw", an earlier series also produced by Ruby-Spears, which featured a character named Dr. Cybron. Was the name Cyrbon lifted from this earlier character or is its repeat usage merely a coincidence?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Coincidence. The only Jabberjaw story I’ve ever seen is the one they did on “Harvey Birdman, Attorney-at-Law”.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>You co-wrote one episode of "Chip N' Dale Rescue Ranger" for Disney, which was called "Flash the Wonder Dog". Did you create the character of Flash or was he a preconceived character that was handed to you?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> He wasn’t pre-conceived by Disney Studios and handed to me, but at the same time I’m almost certain I based the idea on a cartoon I’d seen years and years ago. The basic premise of the braggart who pretends to be a hero but is really a coward is an old one, of course.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Did you have any input on his visual design?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Other than referring to him as a German shepherd, no.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Animation Director Tad Stones of ‘Hellboy Animated’ fame and the recent feature ‘Turok: Son of Stone’ was the co-creator of Rescue Rangers and the acting script editor for the show. How big a hand did he have in the writing of your episode? I've heard reports that he was very active in terms of scripting.<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I think Tad’s hand is normal size. >rimshot<<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Did you get to meet Tad Stones during your short stay on "Chip N Dale Rescue Rangers"? If so, what was your general impression of him?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I can’t recall if I actually went into the office, or if I just did business with him via phone and modem. I know he was highly recommended by other people who had worked with him before and all my memories of my “Rescue Ranger” foray are good ones.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>How did you get the job writing that episode?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> If I recall correctly, it involved a lot of begging and pleading but no outright bribery. (That’s another joke, folks.)<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Why did you only write one episode?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> That’s all I had that they liked.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>So, were there any other episode ideas you pitched that might have been rejected?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I can't remember what else I pitched to Chip N’ Dale’s Rescue Rangers. I know one was a story involving Gadget that would have been set in Central Park. I find plotting to be fairly easy once I know who the characters are and what the central conflict is about. "Flash the Wonder Dog" hinged on Dale's hero worship of Flash. When writing for a series (TV or comics) I try to build stories around the central characters, not around guest stars/villains.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Despite having been out of production for close to two decades, "Chip N Dale Rescue Rangers" has developed a very loyal cult following with several websites, its own wiki, fan databases, and several smaller personalized websites devoted to various characters of the show. "Flash the Wonder Dog" is actually one of the better remembered characters from the show. He is often mentioned, and is frequently used in fan fictions. One fan has even created a series of fan fictions that starred Flash in his own adventures. Does it ever surprise you when you work on something and come back years later to find this small stop in your life is still loved and cherished by others?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Somewhat. I’m very glad for the good memories people have of my work, and if some of it has inspired others to be creative, I’m especially happy.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>In the early 90's you contributed to "Conan the Adventurer" an animated adaptation of Robert E. Howard's character Conan the Barbarian. Were you familiar with Howard's work prior to contributing to the series?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Very much so. I’d read all the Conan stories when I was a teenager.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Were you influenced by any one story of Howard's while working on the show?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I think “A Witch Shall Be Born” is my favorite Conan story and if I could find any inspiration from that for the script I wrote, I would have certainly worked it in!<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Could you tell us a little bit about the production? Were the crew aware of the Conan mythos and did they refer back to it, or was Conan merely a template they used to re-imagine the brand and take it in a new direction?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> This was a case where everything was done over the phone and via the Internet. I’d worked with story editor Christy Marx in the past and thought she was a dynamite writer and editor (I wish somebody would bring her epic Amazon story “Sisterhood of Steel” back into print). Christy certainly knew who and what Conan was, but I’m sure Hasbro had their own ideas.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>You wrote one episode, the fourth episode in the series I believe, "Conan the Gladiator". Can you tell us what that episode entailed and what your inspiration was behind the story?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> Basically get Conan in trouble as fast as possible and have him hack his way clear in the most expeditious manner, to paraphrase Howard’s own advice on writing the character. I know he’d been a gladiator in other stories. Since the studio was squeamish on real swordplay, coming up with the weird battle machines gave us an opportunity for a lot of swashbuckling with no human injuries.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>You also wrote one episode of "Batman: The Animated Series". I read a statement from David Wise that in one episode of the show he was assigned to write an introductory story for the Riddler. Did the producers assign you characters when working on the show or were you allowed to pitch stories with any character you wanted?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I actually wrote three scripts for “Batman: The Animated Series”. The first involved a brand new pair of villains, a father and daughter Eurotrash team. That got me hired, but the script was eventually put aside when they decided to concentrate on established trademarked licensed characters. The next script was “Cat Scratch Fever” which was based on a story by Sean Catherine Derek; it was good and fun and marked the beginning of Catwoman’s gradual turn from 100% bad to half and half. The third script was “Beware The Creeper” which Steve Gerber asked me to help out on since he was facing deadline pressure. I collaborated with Steve on a number of projects during the years I knew him, starting with “Destroyer Duck” and ending on “She Hulk”.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan:</strong> You also worked on a science fiction feature in 1995 called "Dark Planet". How did you come to be associated with that production?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I had known Shari Bowles, now a producer but then an office manager and production supervisor of producer-director John Eyres, for quite some time. When John wanted to do a trio of sci-fi films back to back in order to amortize production costs, he asked Shari to help him locate scripts. John had already done small promotional flyers that proclaimed the films’ titles and gave only the vaguest of descriptions of their stories. His pitch for “Dark Planet” essentially boiled down to “Ooooooh! Scary!” Shari told me what he was looking for in terms of budget and I created a story accordingly. I kept the action confined to two starships and realized that while the title was “Dark Planet” we didn’t have to actually land on it.<br />
<br />
I tried to make a good, fast paced sci-fi action story that could be filmed as cheaply as possible. If you’ve seen the film you’ll know there are scenes where the villains monkey with the ship’s gravity and life support systems: The special effects consisted of the actors acting like they were freezing or weighed thousands of pounds! My original idea was an Afro-centric future with the hero being a token white guy, but I don’t think John felt comfortable with that so it was dropped.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Did you enjoy working on it?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> It was fun, not a deathless classic but nice enough.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>In terms of animation vs. live action, what are the key differences in writing for one or the other?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> When I first started writing animation, everything was spelled out in explicit detail: “MOVE IN TIGHT on Papa Smurf. HOLD A BEAT while be BLINKS in surprise, then TILT UP SLIGHTLY to show Smurfette in a tree above him” would now be “Papa Smurf looks surprised. Smurfette is in the tree above him”.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Do you prefer one to the other? And if so, which do you prefer to write for?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I find writing comic book / graphic novel scripts to be the format I’m most comfortable with. It forces me to be concise and focused scene to scene instead of rambling on.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>How many pages does a script for a half hour animated series run on average?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> When I started, a script ran 30 seconds a page, so a half hour (actually 22 minutes sans commercial breaks) would be 44-45 pages. Now they’re the same as live action (i.e., one minute = one page) so it would be a 22 page script.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>What's next for Buzz Dixon? Do you have any projects in the works? What are your plans for the future?<br />
<br />
<strong>BD:</strong> I’ve been doing graphic novels for the Christian tween-to-teen market, notably the Serenity series (not to be confused with Joss Whedon’s movie or comic books). The Serenity story will continue as a series of illustrated prose novels starting this year. A sports graphic novel, “Hits & Misses”, will launch shortly. I’ll be making a press release soon regarding my new company, Snokie, and the books we’ll be doing.<br />
<br />
<strong>Lone Fan: </strong>Thank you so much for speaking with me. I really appreciate it, Mr. Dixon. Have a good night.</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-79245185961105873602012-07-11T02:55:00.000-07:002012-07-11T02:55:38.696-07:00From The Archives: The Adventures of Enos Straight Beyond Hazzard County<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
(originally published on June 7, 2010)<br />
<br />
Howdy y'all! As a good ole Southern Boy myself, and a fan of the Dukes of Hazzard tv series to boot, y'all can understand that I'm a' bustin' at the seems to let y'all know about <strong><em>Enos</em></strong>!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/hu506w.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/hu506w.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-243" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/hu506w.jpg" height="300px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/hu506w.jpg" title="hu506w" width="400px" /></a></div>
<br />
Now for all y'all that thinks you know all 'bout Sheriff Roscoe's favorite deputy, then step up and let me learn yah a thing or three. See, round about the Duke Boys third season ole Enos up and left for yonder parts, while Boss Hogg's relative Cletus took over his deputy duties. But Enos weren't just away for nothin', no sirree! He was busy with this :<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/jnl8lJVxlwo?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
<br />
Enough with the vernacular for a bit. This show lasted one season and has never been released for home viewing. As the opening credits fairly well establish, Enos becomes a hero after capturing a dangerous criminal, more or less by accident. He uses his fame to transfer to the Los Angeles Police Department where his country charm provides some great comedy when clashing with his contemporary modern setting.<br />
The show was nominated for Two Peoples Choice Awards despite being canceled. It co-starred the fantastic Mr. Samuel E. Wright as Enos' jive talking partner... who I was unable to find a decent solo photo of. I did manage to find one featuring himself with Sonny Shroyer, John Dehner (far right) who played Lt. Jacob Broggi and John Milford (back center) who played Captain Dempsy.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/enos.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/enos.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-246" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/enos.jpg" height="290px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/enos.jpg" title="enos" width="360px" /></a></div>
<br />
For those who are interested Mr. Shroyer has a page dedicated to this show on his <a data-mce-href="http://www.sonnyshroyer.com/" href="http://www.sonnyshroyer.com/">official website</a>.<br />
Outside of a few fan efforts there has never been a major move to get this wonderful show on dvd. A large part of that lies in the fact that very few people, even within the DUKES fanbase, don't even know that this wonderful gem of a show exists. Hopefully this article and others will change that and draw <em>Enos</em> the attention he deserves.<br />
<br />
For those interested in learning about <em>Enos</em>, you can find more information at <a data-mce-href="http://www.crazyabouttv.com/enos.html" href="http://www.crazyabouttv.com/enos.html">crazyabouttv.com</a> and <a data-mce-href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080213/" href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080213/">imdb.com</a>, or you can support an Enos DVD release by voting for it on <a data-mce-href="http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/" href="http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/">tvshowsondvd.com</a><br />
<br />
And just to tide you over allow me to present a clip featuring Deputy Strate with none other than Catwom, I mean Michelle Pfeiffer!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/ecbA5tzrdB8?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
Y'all come back now, y'here!</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-27795429904478547412012-07-11T02:45:00.001-07:002012-07-11T02:45:35.240-07:00From The Archives: Is Cartoon Network Christophobic?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
(originally published July 21, 2010)<br />
<br />
Don't you just love it when fan blogs get all political and/or religious on you?<br />
<br />
In November of 1999 Cartoon Network premiered a little show called ...<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/250px-the_powerpuff_girls_logo.png" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/250px-the_powerpuff_girls_logo.png"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-197" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/250px-the_powerpuff_girls_logo.png" height="70px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/250px-the_powerpuff_girls_logo.png" title="250px-The_Powerpuff_Girls_logo" width="250px" /></a></div>
<br />
The show was the brainchild of then <em>Dexter's Laboratory</em> Art Director Craig McCracken (who has since gone on to create another little gem called <em>Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends</em>) Craig based his pitch off a short film he created in art school that he loving christened <em>The Whoop@$$ Girls</em>! Said student film is posted below.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/YQzxLLk26pw?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
Of course there was no way the Network was going to air a show with that title, so the term 'Powerpuff' was dreamed up at the last second to take it's place. However, according to an interview the now defunct <em>Cartoon Network Fridays: The Fan Site</em> conducted with Mr. McCracken that wasn't the only change the Network asked him to make.<br />
<br />
Anyone remember this guy?<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/him.gif" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/him.gif"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/him.gif" height="328px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/him.gif" title="him" width="226px" /></a></div>
<br />
What you see pictured above is the PPG's second worst nemesis. A creature so wicked, so evil, so horribly vile that even the mere utterance of his name strikes fear into the hearts of men! This is my friends, is the fiend that the citizens of Townsville could only refer to as ... HIM!<br />
<br />
Are you ready for another shock? Originally this character was supposed to be the Devil! Yeah, I know, the designers certainly did a good job of hiding that influence, didn't they?<br />
<br />
The Network vetoed that concept on the grounds that they weren't going to allow any religious references into their shows. Okay, fair enough, but I have to wonder. If there aren't going to mention religion then how the heck did this get made?<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/gcVqUwGmEOI?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
In case you don't have seven minutes to spare, the cartoon above was a pilot episode for a show that never got the green light. <em>Swaroop</em> as it was called, followed the life of a young Indian boy named (what else?) Swaroop and his family living in New Jersey and his attempts to save a cow from becoming his neighbor's barbecue. It's not hilarious, but it's not bad either though I'm sure it's a kick if you're on the animal rights bandwagon. Still, Swaroop clearly depicts several customs straight out of Hinduism, which are far more religion specific than a general reference to the Devil.<br />
<br />
Another interesting thing (and I actually hate to bring this up because I love this show) comes from Samurai Jack. Apparently both the pilot (Episode I) and Samurai Versus Ninja (Episode XL) depict our hero ...<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/11829-01.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/11829-01.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-200" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/11829-01.jpg" height="200px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/11829-01.jpg" title="11829-01" width="200px" /></a></div>
<br />
In a Buddhist Temple ...<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/2009369429.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/2009369429.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-201" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/2009369429.jpg" height="196px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/2009369429.jpg" title="2009369429" width="296px" /></a></div>
<br />
Now before anyone gets their panties in a wad, let me clarify my position. I have no problem whatsoever with Samurai Jack appearing in a Buddhist temple. I can't say that about Swaroop on the grounds that I really wanted sacred cow to get messily devoured.<br />
<br />
My problem is that, or rather would be, that CN feels, or at the very least felt at one time, that one religion was not suitable for their program, but others were. I say, at one time, because a number of shows currently featured on CN do mention Christianity. You want to know what the catch is, though? THEY ALL TEAR IT DOWN!<br />
<br />
Seriously, turn on <em>Family Guy, The Venture Brothers, Moral Oral</em>, and you know what you'll find? A seething pot of Christophobia!<br />
<br />
If they were biased against religion in the first place, that would be a different matter. It would be fair. But to exclude a single religion and then allow it admittance on the grounds that it can only be run down is nothing short of discrimination.<br />
<br />
See, the Powerpuff Girls and the renaming of Him are not the real subject of this piece. They only provide perspective for a growing problem on what was once a haven of geekdom for animation fans (again I saw 'once' because the moment they started airing live action content, yeah, things kind of went down hill after that).<br />
<br />
I'm speechless with contempt! Who's responsible for this? Who created this network in the ... oh yeah.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/ted-turner.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/ted-turner.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-202" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/ted-turner.jpg" height="560px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/ted-turner.jpg" title="ted-turner" width="450px" /></a></div>
<br />
... so that's why they didn't want to have Ted Turn, er, I mean the devil as a bad guy. Silly me.</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-27999584584794415622012-07-11T02:34:00.002-07:002012-07-11T02:34:56.528-07:00From The Archives: The 'Other' Wizards And Warriors<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
(originally published on July 16, 2010)<br />
<br />
Most everyone from my generation will remember <em>Wizards and Warriors</em> as a classic nintendo fantasy adventure.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/wizards_and_warriors_nes_screenshot1.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/wizards_and_warriors_nes_screenshot1.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-185" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/wizards_and_warriors_nes_screenshot1.jpg" height="224px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/wizards_and_warriors_nes_screenshot1.jpg" title="Wizards_and_Warriors_NES_ScreenShot1" width="256px" /></a></div>
<br />
This world of epic daring do pitted a bold medieval warrior against sorcerers, the four elements, and whatever else Japanese software designers could dream up. BUT! Did you know there was also a short lived television series by the same name?<br />
<br />
Ladies and Gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to the <em>other</em> Wizards and Warriors!<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/KWEoHek8IM0?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
As you might have guessed, the series is a bit tongue-in-cheek, but that's what makes it work so well. The humor was smart, snappy, and fun, the battles were grand (for their time anyway), the staging was epic, and the writing intelligent.<br />
<br />
It's set in the future, rather than the past actually, in a world where science is so advanced only wizards can comprehend it. Our locale is the dragon shaped continent of Aperans, where the sunlit southern kingdom of Camarand is under assault by the vile northern kingdom of Karteia and its dread ruler, Prince Dirk <br />
<br />
Blackpool portrayed by the multi-talented Duncan Regehr!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/blackpool4.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/blackpool4.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-186" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/blackpool4.jpg" height="187px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/blackpool4.jpg" title="blackpool4" width="250px" /></a></div>
<br />
But never fear, for at every turn Blackpool finds himself beset upon and foiled by the valiant efforts of Prince Erik Greystone, defender of Camarand!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/5_38.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/5_38.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-187" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/5_38.jpg" height="239px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/5_38.jpg" title="5_38" width="320px" /></a></div>
<br />
Who some of you may remember looking like this on the ABC/NBC sitcome <em>Taxi</em>!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/gmr3thgscslmlsg.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/gmr3thgscslmlsg.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-188" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/gmr3thgscslmlsg.jpg?w=198" height="300px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/gmr3thgscslmlsg.jpg?w=198" title="gmr3thgscslmlsg" width="198px" /></a></div>
<br />
So that's your premise. It's Bobby Wheeler vs. the Monster Squad's Count Dracula for the fate of a medieval kingdom in the future! And if that's not enough uncut awesome to satisfy you, would you believe it was directed by the Incredible Hulk?!?!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/bill-bixby-photograph-c10110896.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/bill-bixby-photograph-c10110896.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-189" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/bill-bixby-photograph-c10110896.jpg?w=240" height="300px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/bill-bixby-photograph-c10110896.jpg?w=240" title="Bill-Bixby-Photograph-C10110896" width="240px" /></a></div>
<br />
Bill Bixby who played Dr. David Bruce Banner in the CBS television series based on the Marvel Comics Character actually lent his expertise behind the camera, and boy did it show!<br />
<br />
Unfortunately, with a series this original, fantastic, and ground breaking, you'd have to realize it couldn't last long. The show premired in 1983 and lasted until ... yep, you guessed it, 1983. Only eight hour long episodes were made and the series has never had a release on vhs or dvd.<br />
<br />
The show has a cult following despite this, and quite frankly it deserves one. For those of you who might remember this series from your youth, for those who are interested in fantasy, or for those who are just looking for a good time, <em>Wizards and Warriors</em> might just be the fix you've been searching for!<br />
<br />
For the curious among us who are eager to learn more, please follow the below link where you'll find an excellent fansite just brimming with fun and exciting content!<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a data-mce-href="http://www.wizardsandwarriors.org/" href="http://www.wizardsandwarriors.org/">May the gods go with you!</a></div>
</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-5560322434164079932012-07-11T02:25:00.001-07:002012-07-11T02:25:41.781-07:00From The Archives: The Transformers Are Back!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
(originally published on July 27, 2010)<br />
<br />
Last year Hasbro, the toy company who owns <em>G.I. Joe, the Transformers</em>, and <em>My Little Pony</em> among other franchises announced they would be partnering with Discovery Kids with the object of relaunching that channel as THE HUB!<br />
<br />
That announcement was jointly unveiled with news that Hasbro would be creating it's own animation studio to produce a new series of cartoons based on their properties.<br />
<br />
The big talk at first was that Lauren Faust who wrote and directed for both <em>The Powerpuff Girls</em> and <em>Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends</em> (to say nothing as having served as an animator on <em>Cat's Don't Dance</em> and <em>The Iron Giant</em>) would be retooling <em>My Little Pony</em> in an effort to make a cartoon aimed at little girls that little girls might actually want to watch.<br />
<br />
Now, I'm a huge fan of animation and Lauren Faust is one of the best talents working in that industry so whether or not you like the Ponies, it's nice to hear that they're at least in good hands, HOWEVER, this is Hasbro we're talking about! These guys own Optimus Prime, Cobra Commander, and Stretch Armstrong! It was inevitable we'd be hearing more about some of (and maybe still hopefully all) these other characters.<br />
<br />
Well that day has dawned! At Comic Con, Hasbro has premiered test animation for a brand new Transformers cartoon called <strong><em>TRANSFORMERS PRIME</em></strong>! Below is a clip of said test animation.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/DyvCMgWooh4?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
<br />
Okay, a couple of quick comments. I'm not crazy that the characters are being rendered in CGI, and the designs, while not exactly unappealing are clearly based off the films by director Michael Bay. I can see where that makes sense, as that's what most new fans are going to know, but I can't help but feel myself pining for the original character layouts.<br />
<br />
That being said, the idea of the inhabitants of Cybertron in CG isn't exactly new. I still prefer my Autobots hand drawn, but <em>Beast Wars</em> was CG and that show was the last truly great entry in the Transformers series so far as I'm concerned.<br />
<br />
There was however, one more little tidbit of news that got me <em>VERY</em> excited.<br />
Hasbro has announce that <strong><em>Mr. Peter Cullen</em></strong> will be reprising the role of Optimus Prime!!!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/2008_cullen.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/2008_cullen.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-213" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/2008_cullen.jpg" height="300px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/2008_cullen.jpg" title="2008_cullen" width="450px" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
... and <em><strong>Mr. Frank Welker</strong></em> will be reprising the role of Megatron!!!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/welker.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/welker.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-214" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/welker.jpg" height="313px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/welker.jpg" title="Welker" width="410px" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
The most recent Transformer's cartoon, <em>Transformers Animated</em> was voice directed by Susan Blu who provided the voice of Arcee in the original cartoon. That series saw several of the voice actors from the 1980's animated series return to their previous roles, but for some odd reason neither Mr. Cullen nor Mr. Welker were among them.<br />
<br />
The news of their return sparks hope (in this Transfan at least) that other familiar voices will be joining the ranks of <em>Transformers: Prime</em> as well. Unfortunately hoping seems to be all we can do until further announcements are made, but as far as kick offs for new shows go, it's not a bad start! Not bad at all.<br />
<br />
Transform and Roll Out!</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-47949232537486311872012-07-11T02:20:00.001-07:002012-07-11T02:20:47.747-07:00From The Archives: Cartoons That Could Have Been<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
(originally posted on August 14, 2010)<br />
<br />
Here are three pilots I found on youtube.com for cartoon series that were never developed further. All of them are interesting, more so than any number of current animated programs currently littering Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon.<br />
<br />
Give 'em a look!<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong><em>CONSTANT PAYNE</em></strong><br />
<br />
This pilot was never aired because a scene near the end was said to be similar to the events of 911. Pity too. It looks like it had potential.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/o7fR6gLQ2C8?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
<br />
<strong><em>PLASTIC MAN</em></strong><br />
<br />
A pilot for the DC Comics character that was co-developed by Tom Kenny, the voice of Spongebob Squarepants, of all people!<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/vn74McRwEg0?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
<br />
<em>UPDATE: Since this article was first published, Cartoon Network has commissioned a series of one minute animated shorts based on this pilot to air as part of their Saturday morning DC Nation block. This hardly qualifies as the full fledged series originally imagined, but it is nice to know the idea has lived on in some form or another.</em><br />
<br />
<br />
<strong><em>BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER</em></strong><br />
<br />
<br />
This last one is only a promo and not a complete pilot but it's still interesting.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/mnUvZP7-5LM?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-21490417672649939552012-07-11T02:10:00.000-07:002012-07-11T02:11:17.746-07:00From The Archives: Sym-Bionic Titan Must Not Fail!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
(originally posted on March 28, 2011)<br />
<br />
Few animators have ever had both the acclaim and the vision of Genndy Tartakovsky. He created <em>Dexter's Laboratory</em> and served as the Executive Producer on <em>The Powerpuff Girls</em> where his talent and energy proved to be nearly inexhaustible.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/genndy1.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/genndy1.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-667" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/genndy1.jpg" height="427px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/genndy1.jpg" title="genndy1" width="341px" /></a></div>
<br />
From there Mr. Tartakovsky went on to create the Emmy Award Winning series <em>Samurai Jack</em> and the much lauded <em>Star Wars: The Clone Wars</em> mini-series (arguably the only good thing to come out of George Lucas' new trilogy). And after that ... he disappeared or at least that's how it seemed. Mr. Tartakovsky actually struck a deal to create a feature animation studio which lingered but never really finished anything due to funding issues. For a time he was attached to direct to the Jim Henson fantasy film <em>The Power of the Dark Crystal</em>, but bowed out of that for reasons that are unknown (at least to this blogger), and while he did storyboard some of the fight scenes for <em>Iron Man 2</em> his actual directorial output seemed nonexistent.<br />
Finally it was announced that Genndy was coming home! He was returning to Cartoon Network with a brand new series that spoke of his sci-fi/comic book/anime roots. This was <em>Sym-Bionic Titan</em>!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic_titan_6568.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic_titan_6568.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-661" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic_titan_6568.jpg" height="513px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic_titan_6568.jpg" title="Sym-Bionic_Titan_6568" width="412px" /></a></div>
<br />
A labor of love which has so far produced 20 stellar episodes that have delivered great competitive ratings which is why Cartoon Network has decided to reward one of the main men involved in its early success by ... canceling the show?<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic-titan-lance.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic-titan-lance.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-662" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic-titan-lance.jpg" height="253px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic-titan-lance.jpg" title="Sym-Bionic-Titan-lance" width="450px" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic-titan-ilana.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic-titan-ilana.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-663" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic-titan-ilana.jpg" height="253px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic-titan-ilana.jpg" title="Sym-Bionic-Titan-Ilana" width="450px" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic-titan-s06-17.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic-titan-s06-17.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-665" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic-titan-s06-17.jpg" height="253px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/sym-bionic-titan-s06-17.jpg" title="Sym-Bionic Titan (S06-17]" width="450px" /></a></div>
<br />
Yeah ... that was my reaction too. Nothing is confirmed, though one <a data-mce-href="http://www.cartoonbrew.com/tv/cartoon-network-cancels-sym-bionic-titan.html" href="http://www.cartoonbrew.com/tv/cartoon-network-cancels-sym-bionic-titan.html">quote</a> over at cartoonbrew.com did offer an interesting and somewhat disturbing suggestion for the series' abrupt end. And on the plus side a <a data-mce-href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Help-Sym-Bionic-Titan-Get-Another-Season/105855892830864" href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Help-Sym-Bionic-Titan-Get-Another-Season/105855892830864">facebook page</a> has been started to petition the network to renew the show, and this Lone Fan is solidly behind it! Now get on over there and let's put that guy from <em>The Social Network</em>'s Frankenstein brainchild to a good geeky use for once and save that show!<br />
<br />
SYM-BIONIC TITAN SHALL RISE FROM THE ASHES!!!<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/cartoon-networks-sym-bionic-titan.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/cartoon-networks-sym-bionic-titan.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-666" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/cartoon-networks-sym-bionic-titan.jpg" height="253px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/cartoon-networks-sym-bionic-titan.jpg" title="Cartoon-Networks-Sym-Bionic-Titan" width="450px" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
UPDATE: Since the posting of this article a little more than a year ago, the status of the series has not changed. Despite the efforts of fans online (of which I am one) Cartoon Network has failed to renew <em>Sym-Bonic Titan </em>and Mr. Tartakovsky has moved on to Sony Pictures Animation where he is currently directing an animated feature entitled <em>Hotel Transylvannia</em>.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
You can watch the trailer for it below:</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/ImYyzbbM-AY?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-63186779970818493092012-07-10T22:17:00.002-07:002012-07-10T22:17:22.719-07:00From The Archives: Ben Chapman, The Original Gill-Man!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
(Originally posted on October 2, 2010)<br />
<br />
If you've never bothered to look it up, you should know that there have been several famous men down through the ages named Ben Chapman. But I'm not here to tell you about the Ben Chapman who served Oliver Cromwell and later resided at Killua Castle, anymore than I'm going to mention the Ben Chapman who played for no less than eight major league baseball teams and stole more bases than anyone else before him. No, the Ben Chapman I want to talk about did something many would consider less important, but those many are not me. The Ben Chapman I want to tell you about put on a rubber costume and originated the role of one of the most famous monsters in the history of motion pictures. He created memories and helped shape a pop culture icon. In short, he was the Creature from the Black Lagoon.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/01chapmanmonster-pop.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/01chapmanmonster-pop.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-395" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/01chapmanmonster-pop.jpg" height="350px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/01chapmanmonster-pop.jpg" title="01chapmanMonster.pop" width="450px" /></a></div>
<br />
I had previously talked about the role of the Gill-Man in reference to Ricou Browning. Mr. Browning was the only actor to play the creature in more than one film and he was actually in the suit for all three of them. Once more, because it is obviously harder to swim in the suit than to walk in it, many people have felt he had a harder job than the actors who played the Gill-Man on land. But far too often the efforts of Ben Chapman have been overlooked and on the last day of Creature Week we're going to give the man his due!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/01chapman-pop.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/01chapman-pop.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-396" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/01chapman-pop.jpg" height="546px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/01chapman-pop.jpg" title="01chapman.pop" width="450px" /></a></div>
<br />
Mr. Chapman's film career was short. He only appeared in a total of five films, two television shows (in one of which he played the Gill-Man), and three documentaries (all of which were about the Gill-Man).<br />
<br />
His television appearance as the Gill-Man is especially worth noting because it not only plays a huge part in Gill-Man lore but it was also one of the actor's major claims to fame. In order to help promote <em>The Creature From The Black Lagoon</em> Universal Studios arranged to have the Gill-Man appear on the Colgate Comedy Hour in a short skit with legendary funny man Lou Costello.<br />
<br />
Here's the clip (though let me apologize in advance for the poor quality)<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<object width="320" height="266" class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://3.gvt0.com/vi/DmN6YT_J0g8/0.jpg"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/DmN6YT_J0g8&fs=1&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/DmN6YT_J0g8&fs=1&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div>
<br />
This brief cameo is the very first appearance of the Gill-Man, as it was shown prior to the film's release, and the monster was played by Ben Chapman with Ricou Browning nowhere to be seen.<br />
<br />
Ben loved the character! During the filming of the original movie, he used to hide submerged in a small pond on the Universal Studios' lot and rise slowly out of the water as he heard various people approaching. If his contract with Universal had not run out, he probably would have played the monster in all three films. He was very proud of the role and of his part in creating it, and it was that very attitude that sparked the controversy which is the other thing he is probably most known for.<br />
<br />
Decades after his participation in the original film. Mr. Chapman began touring the convention circuit and signing autographs. He never did it for the money, he simply enjoyed spending time with fans of the Gill-Man. However, after a time, he began to notice that pictures of the Gill-Man on land were being signed by Ricou Browning. Mr. Chapman responded indignantly to this, claiming that Mr. Browning was taking credit for the role he had created. He said that Ricou had no right to sign a photograph of the Gill-Man unless it was from a scene where he was actually in the suit. Mr. Chapman further added that he would never sign a photograph unless he knew it was of himself in the costume.<br />
<br />
Opinions varied on this reaction. Ricou had worked constantly in show business for most of his life, while Ben had moved on to other things. Some people claimed it was jealousy on Mr. Chapman's part while others thought he was being petty. Neither opinion does Mr. Chapman justice.<br />
<br />
If you read interviews with Ricou Browning one of the things that you'll discover is that while he is grateful for his part in shaping the Gill-Man's legacy, to him it was just a job. He never took it seriously. If someone handed him a photo and asked him to sign it, he did it because he didn't see how it mattered who was in the suit. He was known as the Gill-Man, someone wanted him to sign a picture of the Gill-Man, so he did.<br />
<br />
But to Ben Chapman, the Gill-Man was so much more! It was the role of a lifetime! It was his contribution to film history and monster lore! He took the monster, the part, and the movie seriously from the very beginning and he never lost that spark of reverence.<br />
<br />
I had heard Ricou Browning state in an interview that he and Ben Chapman met sometime after the initial controversy and got on pretty well. I haven't found a similar statement from Mr. Chapman, but then I haven't read every interview he ever gave and I have no reason to believe that Mr. Browning would lie, so it appears the story has a happy ending after all.<br />
<br />
Ben Chapman loved the Gill-Man, he loved the movie he helped make, and he loved his fans. With so many iconic Hollywood figures who either hated their roles or were ruined by them, its refreshing to find a man in such a position who was so defined by joy and pride for the craft he plied even if he never became a star. In his later years, he even created <a data-mce-href="http://www.the-reelgillman.com/" href="http://www.the-reelgillman.com/">a website</a> to honor his participation in the film.<br />
<br />
On February 21st of 2008, Mr. Chapman died in his Honolulu home. He was born in California but raised primarily in Tahiti, he served his country and was decorated in the Korean War, and he raised a family. None of these details were overlooked in his obituary but none of them were the focus of it either. They talked primarily of his participation in an old film, set in a far off land, where man was pitted against monster and a legend was born in the minds of millions. The article mainly spoke of the Gill-Man and honestly, I think Mr. Chapman would have wanted it that way.<br />
<br />
This is the end of Creature Week. It tells of Ben Chapman, but not of his end, for as long as the Gill-Man is remembered, so will he be and in that way he will never truly die.</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-7415838728434479332012-07-10T22:10:00.000-07:002012-07-10T22:10:55.245-07:00From The Archives: Julie Adams, First Lady of the Black Lagoon<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
(originally posted on September 28, 2010)<br />
<br />
As Creature Weeks starts to wrap (tomorrow is the last night) I thought we'd take some time to focus on one of the lovely ladies of the Creature Series.<br />
<br />
Here we have, courtesy of youtube.com ...<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/TerrorTransmission" target="_blank">TERROR TRANSMISSION'S</a> INTERVIEW WITH JULIE ADAMS<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/PogTRrE4y1I?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/TheOfficialFMoF" target="_blank">FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILM LAND'S</a> INTERVIEW WITH JULIE ADAMS<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/FI73Z1okm5Y?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
<br />
And finally, here's a brief clip of Ms. Adams being escorted out onto stage at Creature From <em>The Black Lagoon: The Musical </em>courtesy of youtube user <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/devincf" target="_blank">devincf</a>!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/Qri6uO5JgJ8?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
<br />
Julie was born and billed early in her career as Betty Adams, before adopting the stage name Julia Adams which she later shortened to Julie. Her film career began with a small, uncredited roll in a 1949 crime comedy entitled: <em>Red, Hot, And Blue</em>.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/220px-poster_of_the_movie_red_hot_and_blue.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/220px-poster_of_the_movie_red_hot_and_blue.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-385" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/220px-poster_of_the_movie_red_hot_and_blue.jpg" height="326px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/220px-poster_of_the_movie_red_hot_and_blue.jpg" title="220px-Poster_of_the_movie_Red,_Hot_and_Blue" width="220px" /></a></div>
<br />
She would gradute to a starring role for her next movie and make eighteen more pictures (most of them westerns) before landing the role of Kay Lawrence in <em>Creature From The Black Lagoon</em>.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/julie-adams-300x203.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/julie-adams-300x203.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-386" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/julie-adams-300x203.jpg" height="203px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/julie-adams-300x203.jpg" title="julie-adams-300x203" width="300px" /></a></div>
<br />
Though all the Gill-Man movies had strong and memorable female leads, Julie is the one who seems to have made the strongest impression on fans. She is still remembered today and <a data-mce-href="http://www.julieadams.biz/" href="http://www.julieadams.biz/">her official website</a> actually has a store devoted to Creature merchandise.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
She has remained active in film and is still acting today, having appeared most recently as Amelia on <em>Lost</em>.</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-54056138521608886392012-07-10T21:55:00.002-07:002012-07-10T21:57:01.762-07:00From The Archives: Island of the Fish-Men Revisited!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
(originally posted on November 8, 2011)<br />
<br />
Last year, I compiled a list of fifteen frightening films all about Fish-Men, Sea Monsters, and Gill-Man wannabes (The original list can be read <a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.wordpress.com/2010/09/25/children-of-the-creature-fifteen-fantastically-frightening-fish-man-films/" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.wordpress.com/2010/09/25/children-of-the-creature-fifteen-fantastically-frightening-fish-man-films/">here</a> in case you missed it) but one of those fish tales, namely <em>Island of the Fish Men</em>, has just gotten a great update with even more information supplied, though not by me.<br />
<br />
<strong><em>Johnny LaRue's Crane Shot</em></strong> (a fantastic blog I check on a regular basis) has just posted a great article on the history of this movie and it's various North American re-edits at the hands of Roger Corman.<br />
<a data-mce-href="http://craneshot.blogspot.com/2007/07/see-man-turned-inside-out.html" href="http://craneshot.blogspot.com/2007/07/see-man-turned-inside-out.html"><br />This article comes with my highest possible recommendation!</a></div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-84664939701138267652012-07-10T21:52:00.003-07:002012-07-10T21:52:56.081-07:00From The Archives: Children of the Creature: Fifteen Fantastically Frightening Fish-Man Films!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
(Originally posted on September 25th, 2010)<br />
<br />
<br />
If you remember way back on day one of Creature Week I explained that fish-men (or Gill-Men) films were technically a subgenre unto themselves. I had originally planned to post seven mini-reviews yesterday and eight more today detailing some of these other movies, but because I was a bit busier than expected I had to hold over till today, but not to worry! Because here they all are! 15 films that are (more or less) Fish-Man in type that followed in the wake of Creature's rampage.<br />
<br />
Let's get started!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><strong>The Alligator People</strong> (1959)</strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><br /> </strong><br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/alligator_people-poster.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/alligator_people-poster.jpg" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-360" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/alligator_people-poster.jpg" height="345px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/alligator_people-poster.jpg" title="alligator_people-poster" width="450px" /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Directed by Roy Del Ruth, a former journalist and gagman who had been involved in moving making as early 1915, this is a surprisingly good b-movie though a b-movie nonetheless.</div>
<br />
It tells the tale of Paul Webster (played by Richard Crane) a war veteran whose service cost him a limb or two. He is given a treatment by a Dr. Mark Sinclair (played by George Macready) that restores his limbs. However, the serum was derived from reptillian substance and pretty soon he begins to turn into ... well, just look!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/alligator-still.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/alligator-still.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-361" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/alligator-still.jpg" height="300px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/alligator-still.jpg" title="Alligator Still" width="356px" /></a></div>
<br />
In the way of a heroine, this film has a pretty good co-lead on in Beverly Garland who plays Paul's wife. She refuses to abandon him despite his mutation. Paul's foil in this picture comes in the form of Mr. Lon Chaney Jr. (here billed simply as Lon Chaney) who plays an alligator hating Cajun with a thing for the lovely Ms. Garland (convenient, no?).<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/alligator-people-i-lon-chaney.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/alligator-people-i-lon-chaney.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-362" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/alligator-people-i-lon-chaney.jpg" height="277px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/alligator-people-i-lon-chaney.jpg" title="Alligator People I-Lon Chaney" width="350px" /></a></div>
<br />
Hardly a classic by any stretch of the imagination, but still pretty good. Give it a look if you're interested.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>Creature from the Haunted Sea</strong> (1961)</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
This Roger Corman crap classic is a mess that has to be seen to believed! Cuban refuges, greedy gangsters, the most clueless American secret agent of all time, and one very testy sea monster! I can't even begin to describe this tongue in cheek pile of shlock, but luckily I don't have to! You can watch the entire movie below courtesy of youtube.com! Enjoy!</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/AikxLARMTfE?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>Curse of the Swamp Creature</strong> (1966)</div>
<br />
From the director of <em>Zontar: The Thing From Venus</em> and <em>Mars Needs Women</em> comes ... well, a basic mad scientist story as if you expected anything else. Evil doctor turns man into monster. Sounds boring? Well, it's really not. This movie falls into the <em>Robot Monster/ Plan 9 From Outer Space</em> category. The production values and story are so abysmally awful as to have to be seen to be believed, made even more incredulous because the director plays the entire story straight. Give this one a watch when you're in a silly mood and I guarantee you'll have a good time.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/curseswampposter.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/curseswampposter.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-363" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/curseswampposter.jpg" height="178px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/curseswampposter.jpg" title="CurseSwampPoster" width="292px" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>Creature Of Destruction</strong> (1967)</div>
<br />
From the writer and star of <em>Curse of the Swamp Creature</em> comes ...<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creature-of-destruction-1967-title.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creature-of-destruction-1967-title.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-364" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creature-of-destruction-1967-title.jpg" height="337px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creature-of-destruction-1967-title.jpg" title="Creature Of Destruction (1967)" width="450px" /></a></div>
<br />
Incidentally, that's the actual title as shown at the beginning of the feature. Riveting, no? The basic story revolves around a hypnotist who can predict when and where a notorious sea monster will strike.<br />
<br />
This!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/20081030-m2k3jg3u9cx3nkgs6ns9hx3y6x-creature-of-destruction.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/20081030-m2k3jg3u9cx3nkgs6ns9hx3y6x-creature-of-destruction.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-365" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/20081030-m2k3jg3u9cx3nkgs6ns9hx3y6x-creature-of-destruction.jpg" height="323px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/20081030-m2k3jg3u9cx3nkgs6ns9hx3y6x-creature-of-destruction.jpg" title="20081030-m2k3jg3u9cx3nkgs6ns9hx3y6x-Creature of Destruction" width="351px" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
... is the creature in question. There is a twist at the end, but don't expect M. Night Shyamalan quality. A basic b-movie. That's about all you need to know.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>The Octaman</strong> (1971)</div>
<br />
Forget Octo-Mom, let's talk about Octaman!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/1aman-octaman.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/1aman-octaman.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-366" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/1aman-octaman.jpg" height="350px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/1aman-octaman.jpg" title="1aman-octaman" width="217px" /></a></div>
<br />
Here's one with a more immediate tie to the Gill-Man. Octaman was written and directed by Harry Essex who co-wrote the screenplay for <em>The Creature From The Black Lagoon</em>.<br />
<br />
The story concerns a group of scientists who find several baby octopi that seem ... well, a little odd. When they take the little sushi samples with them for study, the Octaman promptly shows up and goes on a rampage to get them back. Apparently the Octaman was once a normal octopus until exposure to massive amounts of radiation made him the horrendous mutant he is today, and the odd little baby octopi (in case you hadn't guessed) are his offspring (Say, maybe he's the original Octo-Mom!)<br />
<br />
This is strict b-movie shlock served up just the way you like it! Give it a look and be amazed!<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>Island of the Fish Men</strong> (1979)</div>
<br />
Though available on dvd in North America ...<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/812592010196-island-of-the-fish-men.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/812592010196-island-of-the-fish-men.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-367" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/812592010196-island-of-the-fish-men.jpg" height="500px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/812592010196-island-of-the-fish-men.jpg" title="812592010196-Island of the Fish Men" width="354px" /></a></div>
<br />
... this film was first released on region 1 vhs as <em>Screamers</em>!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/screamers-1979-embassy-vhs-front.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/screamers-1979-embassy-vhs-front.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-368" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/screamers-1979-embassy-vhs-front.jpg" height="572px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/screamers-1979-embassy-vhs-front.jpg" title="screamers 1979 embassy vhs front" width="320px" /></a></div>
<br />
The original by veteran Italian director Sergio Martino has a slower (and some argue more thoughtful) nature to it. The vhs version was heavily re-edited with scenes removed and gore added by none other than legendary genre director Joe Dante (of <em>Gremlins</em> and <em>The Howling</em> fame) under the title Dan T. Miller. Opinions vary as to which version is better.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/mv5bmtk4njizmti5ml5bml5banbnxkftztywodk1mjg5-_v1-_sx214_cr00214314_.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/mv5bmtk4njizmti5ml5bml5banbnxkftztywodk1mjg5-_v1-_sx214_cr00214314_.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-369" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/mv5bmtk4njizmti5ml5bml5banbnxkftztywodk1mjg5-_v1-_sx214_cr00214314_.jpg" height="314px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/mv5bmtk4njizmti5ml5bml5banbnxkftztywodk1mjg5-_v1-_sx214_cr00214314_.jpg" title="MV5BMTk4NjIzMTI5Ml5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwODk1Mjg5._V1._SX214_CR0,0,214,314_" width="214px" /></a></div>
<br />
Overall this movie is a basic retelling of <em>The Island of Dr. Moreau</em> with an emphasis on fish-men instead of animal-men. The story tells of a prison ship that sinks, the prisoners and the ship's doctor wash up on a Island with only two inhabitants and army of Gill-Men just waiting to tear them apart. Fun for the whole Family! ... if your last name is Addams at any rate. Check it out if you dare!<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>Blood Tide</strong> (1982)</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/bloodtide2.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/bloodtide2.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-391" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/bloodtide2.jpg" height="685px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/bloodtide2.jpg" title="bloodtide2" width="450px" /></a></div>
<br />
This film is oft overlooked and not fully without reason. It drags here and there and nothing too terribly interesting or shocking happens, but overall it is a good film and it even stars James Earl Jones!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/blood-tide-3.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/blood-tide-3.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-392" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/blood-tide-3.jpg" height="408px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/blood-tide-3.jpg" title="blood tide 3" width="450px" /></a></div>
<br />
The basic plot deals with an American couple vacationing on a Greek Island. The townsfolk want nothing to do with them and the only other American on the Island is the materialistic treasure hunter Frye played by the distinguished Mr. Jones.<br />
<br />
While excavating an underground cavern, Frye opens a doorway that once held a fish-man like monster that the Islanders worshiped centuries ago. Hungry for virgin sacrifices the creature (who can move on land as well as underwater) feasts upon innocent swimmers and attacks a convent that is housed in its former pagan temple.<br />
<br />
The monster is barely seen which in some films would make the creature scarier but way too often this one creates more boredom than suspense while waiting for something to happen. It's worth a look, but only if you don't mind long talky periods in between all too short monster action.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>Humanoids From The Deep</strong> (1980)</div>
<br />
I almost didn't mention this one and honestly I don't recommend it. Still, it is a highly visible fish-man movie so we'll discuss it.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/humanoids_from_deep_poster_01_0.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/humanoids_from_deep_poster_01_0.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-370" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/humanoids_from_deep_poster_01_0.jpg" height="320px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/humanoids_from_deep_poster_01_0.jpg" title="humanoids_from_deep_poster_01_0" width="213px" /></a></div>
<br />
The plot centers around a small fishing town where toxic waste has mutated some of the fish into horrendous Gill-Men who are determined to mate with human women. The film was shot by director Barbara Peeters who made this into an entertaining monster movie, but prior to release producer Roger Corman added in new scenes of gore and sexual assualt.<br />
<br />
Reportedly Ms. Peeters was rather upset by this turn of events.<br />
<br />
If you like heavy gore and don't mind watching women get abused, the dvd will do you. If you're a hair more pruddish like I am, wait for it on tv. This is one case where the edited version is actually closer to the director's intentions.<br />
<br />
Released overseas under the alternate title <em>Monster</em>.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/humanoids_from_deep_poster_03.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/humanoids_from_deep_poster_03.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-371" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/humanoids_from_deep_poster_03.jpg" height="706px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/humanoids_from_deep_poster_03.jpg" title="humanoids_from_deep_poster_03" width="450px" /></a></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>Leviathan</strong> (1989)</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/levithan1.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/levithan1.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-390" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/levithan1.jpg" height="273px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/levithan1.jpg" title="Levithan" width="185px" /></a></div>
<br />
This film has more to do with <em>The Thing From Another World</em> than <em>Creature From The Black Lagoon</em>. The story is about a sci-fi-esque mining operation on the ocean floor that discovers the wreckage of a soviet submarine. The miners explore the wreck and bring back some Ruskie booze ... which turns out to be laced with an experimental drug that turns certain members into horrendous fish mutants.<br />
<br />
The acting is good, the settings and staging work well and the movie is frightening at times. It's a cut above the usual silliness and even makes an effort at some lite social commentary.<br />
<br />
From George P. Cosmatos the director of <em>Rambo: First Blood part 2</em> and co-director of <em>Tombstone</em>! Definitely worth a watch!<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>Curse of the Swamp Creature</strong> (1994)</div>
<br />
This is a film I would love to tell you about ... unfortunately I don't a thing about it! I'm not even sure if it's a remake of the 1966 film or if they just happen to share the same name. I know for a fact that it exists because it has a page on <a data-mce-href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0263243/" href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0263243/"><em>imdb.com</em></a>, but beyond the scant information offered there I haven't been able to uncover a thing about it.<br />
<br />
So there ... it exists. Now you know as much about it as I do.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>The Fishmen and their Queen</strong> (1995)</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/mya_812592010646.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/mya_812592010646.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-374" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/mya_812592010646.jpg" height="510px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/mya_812592010646.jpg" title="mya_812592010646" width="361px" /></a></div>
<br />
Sergio Martino the director of <em>Island of the Fish Men</em> is back, but you'd hardly know it. Where as his first romp among the Gill-People was a fairly well done 19th century monster movie, this semi-sequel is aimed at children and teenagers but really doesn't hit that mark.<br />
<br />
I will say it shows ambition as it neither tries to be a horror movie or a spoof of a horror movie. I think for that reason it is important to the history of the fish man subgenre in that it's at least trying (even if it does ultimately fail) to utilize the Gil-Man concept outside of the horror genre.<br />
<br />
The plot centers around two teenage boys named Sam played by Giuliano Gensini and Tom played by Michael Velez. They live in a <em>Mad Max</em>-style post apocalyptic city, but manage to escape the ruins of civilization with the help of an elderly man named Socrates (played by Donald Hodson).<br />
<br />
Together the three of them travel to a tropical island paradise that is unfortuneately being ruled by the iron fisted monarch the film draws its title from. There's a princess and a rebellion and a group of fish-men who seem more interested in overthrowing the Queen than helping her.<br />
<br />
One odd thing about this film (and believe me there are plenty of others) is that there's only so much original footage. New scenes were shot and added in with re-edited clips from <em>Island of the Fish Men</em> and another Sergio Martino film called <em>2019: After The Fall of New York</em><br />
<br />
Bland, but trying. You gotta give it credit for that.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>Curse of the Swamp Creature 2</strong> (1997)</div>
<br />
I'm assuming this is a sequel to the 1994 <em>Curse of the Swamp Creature</em>. I say assume because it might be a sequel to the original 1966 version for all I could find out about it.<br />
<br />
Once again, you know as much as I do.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>Peter Benchley's The Creature</strong> (1998)</div>
<br />
For those who don't know, Peter Benchley wrote the screenplays for <em>Jaws, Jaws 2, Jaws 3-D, Jaws: The Revenge</em>, as well as <em>The Deep</em> and <em>The Beast</em>. He is the co-author of this picture (along with Rockne S. O'Bannon who has contributed heavily to the <em>Alien Nation</em> franchise over the years.) and the movie is based on his book. One thing that can be said about Peter Benchley, this guy knows about terror on the water!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/n28517.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/n28517.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-373" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/n28517.jpg" height="475px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/n28517.jpg" title="n28517" width="295px" /></a></div>
<br />
The film stars Craig T. Nelson (of <em>Coach</em> and <em>The Incredibles</em> fame) along with Kim Cattrall (Samantha on <em>Sex And The City</em>)<br />
<br />
Back in the 1970s, a government experiment working with shark and dolphin DNA created a monster. It shows back up in the present, going on a rampage which could easily be avoided if the people in this movie had anything resembling good judgement. Craig T. Nelson is Dr. Simon Chase the sceintist who is blamed for the slayings at sea, after he frees a great white shark he was studying from captivity. Kim Cattrall is Dr. Amanda Mayson, his estranged ex-wife who comes along to help clear his name and who also brings their predictably imperiled son along for the ride.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/key_art_peter_benchleys_creature.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/key_art_peter_benchleys_creature.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-372" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/key_art_peter_benchleys_creature.jpg" height="175px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/key_art_peter_benchleys_creature.jpg" title="key_art_peter_benchleys_creature" width="450px" /></a></div>
<br />
A fun, well placed science fiction, action film with a hint of mystery, and a rather original looking monster.<br />
Available on dvd from director Stuart Gillard who previously churned out such surprisingly unfantastic tv shows as <em>90210</em> and <em>One Tree Hill</em> ... well, those and a little thing film called <em>Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III</em> among other things.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>Dagon</strong> (2001)</div>
<br />
Despite the title, this film is actually a loose adaptation of <em>The Shadow Over Innsmouth</em> another short story by the author of <em>Dagon</em>, H.P. Lovecraft.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/dagon-movie.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/dagon-movie.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-375" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/dagon-movie.jpg" height="450px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/dagon-movie.jpg" title="dagon-movie" width="450px" /></a></div>
<br />
Brought to life by legendary horror director Stuart Gordon who first made his mark on film (and on Lovecraft fandom) with <em>Re-Animator</em> and <em>From Beyond</em>. As with those, Gordon takes the central idea of the short story and builds upon it with fluid characters, a relevant storyline, lots of shock, plenty of surprises and a chilling final scene.<br />
<div class="mceTemp mceIEcenter">
<dl class="wp-caption aligncenter" data-mce-style="width: 386px;" id="attachment_376" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; width: 386px;"><div style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-376" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/gordon_63539.jpg" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/gordon_63539.jpg" title="TIFF 2007 Portrait Session For "Stuck"" /></div>
<br />
<dt class="wp-caption-dt"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;">
Stuart Gordon</div>
</dt>
</dl>
</div>
A group of travelers wreck at sea and wash up on the coast of the Spanish fishing town of Imboca that is inhabited by only one human but has a large population nonetheless. What remains in the town is a race of hideously deformed fish men who are either the product of mating with a pagan fish man god or of becoming transformed by the worship of said deity.<br />
<br />
The fish men want to induct the newcomers into the fold, the newcomers want to get home safely, and the last human on the Island is willing to help them. I won't spoil the end, but it will stay with you long after the initial viewing. This is one for the records, one of the absolute best fishy horror films you can find. Don't watch it alone!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/affiche_dagon_2001_1.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/affiche_dagon_2001_1.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-377" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/affiche_dagon_2001_1.jpg" height="469px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/affiche_dagon_2001_1.jpg" title="affiche_Dagon_2001_1" width="333px" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>Creature from the Hillbilly Lagoon</strong> (2005)</div>
<br />
In case the title didn't tip you off, this is yet another comedy poking fun at the fish man genre.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creature_from_the_hillbilly_lagoon.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creature_from_the_hillbilly_lagoon.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-378" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creature_from_the_hillbilly_lagoon.jpg" height="499px" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creature_from_the_hillbilly_lagoon.jpg" title="Creature_from_the_Hillbilly_Lagoon" width="352px" /></a></div>
<br />
The film breaks the 4th wall here and there, but in a good way. The jokes aren't classic, but they're not bad either and for a film that includes both 'Hillbilly' and 'Creature' in the title, the production values and acting are much better than you'd expect.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Originally released under the title of <em>Seepage</em>.</div>
</div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
</div>
</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-65641942950237843002012-07-02T20:09:00.000-07:002012-07-02T20:09:23.327-07:00From The Archives: The Creature Walks Among Us: A Look At An Overlooked Masterpiece<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
It’s time to talk about …<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/walksamongustit.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/walksamongustit.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-349" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/walksamongustit.jpg" height="306" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/walksamongustit.jpg" title="WalksAMongUsTiT" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
This
is the third installment in the Gill-Man’s saga, and even though it was
the last of the trilogy it did manage to claim a few firsts (though not
necessarily good ones).<br />
<br />
For instance, this was the first of the
series not to be shot in 3-D, it was the first not directed by Jack
Arnold, and it was the first to feature a Gill-Man who … really wasn’t a
gill man at all.<br />
<br />
The directing duties were passed to John
Sherwood who was a highly prolific assistant director, having worked in
that capacity on films like <em>Bend In the River, The Glenn Miller Story, and Francis</em> (the talking mule) <em>Joins The WACS</em>. <em>The Creature Walks Among Us</em> was only the second of a total of three films he would ever make as a full on director.<br />
<br />
On
the plus side, William Alland is once again producing, Ricou Browning
is back to perform the Gill-Man’s swimming scenes, and Arthur A. Ross
who co-wrote the original Creature movie (along with Harry Essex from a
story by Maurice Zimm) returns to pen the script.<br />
<br />
The movie is
notable not only for providing the Gill-Man with his most human
portrayal yet, but for literally making him the most humane of the main
protagonists all together.<br />
<br />
Following his escape from Ocean Harbor
at the end of the last movie, the creature is now living in the Florida
Everglades. An expedition led by the emotionally unstable Dr. William
Barton played by Jeff Morrow …<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/tr-jeffmorrow.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/tr-jeffmorrow.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-350" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/tr-jeffmorrow.jpg" height="302" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/tr-jeffmorrow.jpg" title="TR-JeffMorrow" width="367" /></a></div>
<br />
…
attempts to (what else?) find the Gill-Man and capture him for study.
Along for the ride are Dr. Thomas Morgan (the only human without serious
issues in the main cast) played by Rex Reason …<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/tyxtd00z-rex-reason.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/tyxtd00z-rex-reason.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-351" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/tyxtd00z-rex-reason.jpg" height="450" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/tyxtd00z-rex-reason.jpg" title="TYXTD00Z-Rex Reason" width="360" /></a></div>
<br />
…
swamp guide Jed Grant played by Greg Palmer, and Barton’s withdrawn and
rebellious (and much abused) wife Marcie played by Leigh Snowden.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/6807261_110591889633-leigh-snowden.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/6807261_110591889633-leigh-snowden.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-352" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/6807261_110591889633-leigh-snowden.jpg" height="460" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/6807261_110591889633-leigh-snowden.jpg" title="6807261_110591889633-Leigh Snowden" width="322" /></a></div>
<br />
They
eventually find the Gill-Man (didn’t see that one coming, did ya?) and
capture him but not before he is severely burned due to an incident with
a can of gasoline.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/2665939_f520-creature-burning.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/2665939_f520-creature-burning.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-353" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/2665939_f520-creature-burning.jpg" height="252" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/2665939_f520-creature-burning.jpg" title="2665939_f520-Creature Burning" width="450" /></a></div>
<br />
Dr.
Barton leads his fellow scientists in an emergency surgery where they
discover a layer of human-like skin beneath the creature’s chard gills.
He also appears to have conveniently developed lungs to breathe with.
Soon the Gill-Man is more of a land walker than a sea swimmer and enters
the human world.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/tumblr_kq3xb40hbx1qz72v7o1_500-gill-man-human.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/tumblr_kq3xb40hbx1qz72v7o1_500-gill-man-human.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-354" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/tumblr_kq3xb40hbx1qz72v7o1_500-gill-man-human.jpg" height="316" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/tumblr_kq3xb40hbx1qz72v7o1_500-gill-man-human.jpg" title="tumblr_kq3xb40HBX1qz72v7o1_500-Gill Man Human" width="450" /></a></div>
<br />
This film, much like <em>Revenge Of The Creature</em>,
is remarkable in that unlike so many horror franchises before it, it
precedes to explore new territory instead of re-treading the same tired
plot again and again. I think more than anything it’s the restless,
inventive quality of this series that has helped the Gill-Man to endure
so long in popular culture.<br />
<br />
The film not only defies convention
with its story, but also transcends its subject matter, using the
creature as an outside observer to some of the most inhuman qualities of
civilization. While still on the ship and recovering from surgery, he
saves Marcie Barton from essentially being raped by Jed Grant.<br />
<br />
He
is then taken back to the laboratory of Dr. Barton (who is unaware of
what Jed did but still distrusts him) and kept in a steel cage. But
despite his surroundings the Gill-Man’s genuine kindness shines through.
He is still capable of violence (as one scene involving a mountain lion
clearly attests), but does not desire to be.<br />
The film climaxes
when Dr. Barton accuses Jed of having an affair with his wife. The two
fight and Barton literally pistol whips Jed to death. Horrified at his
own actions (as is the creature who has had to bear witness to all this
from his cage), Barton dumps Jed’s body in the creature’s cell in
attempt to frame him for the murder.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/lagoon30.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/lagoon30.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-355" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/lagoon30.jpg" height="368" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/lagoon30.jpg" title="lagoon30" width="450" /></a></div>
<br />
This
sits none to well with the Gill-Man who bursts forth from his cage in
the climax, goes on a rampage, and eventually slays Barton himself. The
film ends with the Gill-Man walking back to sea.<br />
<br />
Despite its
by-the-numbers climax, manages to make several points of serious social
commentary, it reinvents the Gill-Man to make him more sympathetic and
less frightening, and its human characters deviate from the normal
stereotypes of heroic male, best buddy sidekick, and swooning heroine to
a dark, frightening glimpse of what some might term human monsters. To a
point, I think it predates the formula of commentary + shock that
George Romero would pioneer twelve years later with <em>Night Of The Living Dead</em>.<br />
<br />
It
is as much a character piece as it is a monster movie and a woefully
unsung entry in the Universal Studios’ Monster Library. I’m even going
to go so far as to say that I think it’s better than <em>Revenge Of The Creature</em> and almost as good as the original (and certainly more thoughtful).<br />
<br />
If
you’ve never seen this little gem, you are absolutely missing a
spectacle you will never forget! John Sherwood didn’t direct many
features, and after viewing this move I’ve come to regret that as deeply
as the ocean depths themselves.</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-10497968306690719812012-07-02T19:55:00.000-07:002012-07-02T20:02:23.365-07:00From The Archives: Revenge of the Creature: A Review and Overview of One Very Fishy Sequel<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creaturerevenge3.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creaturerevenge3.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-334" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creaturerevenge3.jpg" height="300" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creaturerevenge3.jpg" title="creaturerevenge3" width="391" /></a></div>
<br />
The
Gill-Man returns for his second film outing and lucky for us so do
William Alland and Jack Arnold! Alland wrote the story and hired veteran
screenwriter Martin Berkeley to script it out.<br />
<br />
Berkeley had
written and would continue to write a number of screenplays for both
film and television, but his real lasting fame (and mark of infamy)
would be his reputation as the witness to name (and thus blackball) more
Hollywood personalities than anyone else called before the House
Un-American Activities Committee.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/ben_chapman_gillman.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/ben_chapman_gillman.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-336" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/ben_chapman_gillman.jpg" height="342" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/ben_chapman_gillman.jpg" title="ben_chapman_gillman" width="280" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><b>Actor Ben Chapman In His Later Years</b></i> </div>
<br />
Ricou
Browning came back to play the Gill-Man’s swimming scenes, but Ben
Chapman who had played the creature on land in the first film was no
longer under contract to Universal when the sequel was put into
production, so he was replaced by Tom Hennesey, a Hollywood stuntman
turned actor.<br />
<br />
<i><b>Ben Chapman in the Gill-Man Costume</b></i><br />
<div class="mceTemp mceIEcenter">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/benchapman.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/benchapman.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-335" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/benchapman.jpg" height="351" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/benchapman.jpg" title="benchapman" width="450" /></a></div>
<i></i><br />
<i>Revenge of the Creature</i>
is not as good as the original, but it’s not bad as sequels go. Like
any good sequel, it takes the elements worked for it previously and
tries to find new things to do with them.<br />
The story opens with
Captain Lucas, (the Captain of the ship the Gill-Man attacked in the
first movie whom I’ve foolishly forgotten to mention thus far) once
again played by Nestor Paiva, taking a representative of the Ocean
Harbor Aquarium and a professional game hunter into the Amazon to look
for the Gill-Man.<br />
<br />
<div class="mceTemp mceIEcenter">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/lucas1.gif" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/lucas1.gif" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-337" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/lucas1.gif" height="240" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/lucas1.gif" title="lucas1" width="320" /></a>
<br />
<dl class="wp-caption aligncenter" data-mce-style="width: 330px;" id="attachment_337" style="width: 330px;">
<dt class="wp-caption-dt"></dt>
</dl>
They
find him soon enough which is good and bad in certain respects. On one
hand it’s foolish to hold off showing the creature. Everyone already
knows what the Gil-Man looks like so there’s not much point in making
them wait half the movie to see him again, but it’s also bad for the
fact that his sudden appearance in the movie distills any kind of dread
the audience might have felt while waiting for his big reveal.<br />
<br />
Captain
Lucas only has a small role at the beginning but his experience with
the creature helps to bridge this film with the last.<i><u><b></b></u></i><br />
<dl class="wp-caption aligncenter" data-mce-style="width: 330px;" id="attachment_337" style="width: 330px;"><dd class="wp-caption-dd"></dd></dl>
</div>
The rest of
the plot is more or less predictable. The Gill-Man is captured, taken to
civilization where he’s made the object of scientific studies and an
exhibit at Ocean Harbor. The story retreads even more familiar waters
when the Gill-Man escapes and goes on a hunt for the lovely ichthyology
student who had been observing him in his tank; Helen Dobson played by
Lori Nelson.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<i><b>Lori Nelson alongside her 'Revenge' co-start John Agar</b></i></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/9488020_gal.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/9488020_gal.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-338" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/9488020_gal.jpg" height="462" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/9488020_gal.jpg" title="9488020_gal" width="344" /></a></div>
<div class="mceTemp mceIEcenter" style="color: white; text-align: left;">
<dl class="wp-caption aligncenter" data-mce-style="width: 354px;" id="attachment_338" style="width: 354px;">
<dt class="wp-caption-dt">This plot is as old as the modern monster movie itself, and by that I mean as old as <i>King Kong</i>.
In faThis plot is as old as the modern monster movie itself, and by that I mean as old as <i>King Kong</i>.
In fact, it’s interesting how much the Gill-Man ends up echoing Kong in
this second feature. Both were savage beasts that displayed the all too
human emotions of love and sympathy and both of these creatures have
managed to stir those same feelings in movie goers down through the
years.ct, it’s interesting how much the Gill-Man ends up echoing Kong in
this second feature. Both were savage beasts that displayed the all too
human emotions of love and sympathy and both of these creatures have
managed to stir those same feelings in movie goers down through the
years. Both monsters are captured by humans and put on display,
both monsters escape and would probably stand a chance of getting away
all together if not for their attraction to a beautiful young woman.</dt>
</dl>
</div>
<i> </i><br />
<br />
I’m
not accusing the Gill-Man of ripping Kong off anymore than I would
accuse Captain Marvel of ripping off Superman (though did you know there
was a law suit in the 1940s wherein the owners of Superman sued the
creators of Captain Marvel for copyright infringement). What I am
pointing out is a very different take on an already established story
that manages to do new things and go new places by shifting the setting a
bit.<br />
<br />
As for the climax of this delightful picture? Sorry, I’m not
telling. You’ll have to watch it for yourself to see how Lori Nelson
gets out of this scrape and if the Gil-Man ever decides to climb the
Empire State Building.<br />
There are a few fun facts to mention though. For instance, both <i>The Creature From The Black Lagoon</i> and <i>Revenge Of The Creature</i>
were originally shot in 3-D. At the time this film was made and (so far
as I know) to this day, it remains the only sequel to a 3-D movie that
was also shot in 3-D.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<i><b>Clint Eastwood on Set </b></i> </div>
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/clintrevenge.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/clintrevenge.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-339" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/clintrevenge.jpg" height="200" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/clintrevenge.jpg" title="clintrevenge" width="199" /></a>And there’s more! This film also boasts the
very first on screen appearance of a talented young actor who would rise
to become one of the most famous action stars and film directors of all
time: Mr. Clint Eastwood! He has a minor uncredited role as an
assistant in a science lab, but still. It's Clint freakin' Eastwood! The
first movie introduced the creator of Flipper to film and the second
installment gives us a nerdy version of Dirty Harry! How cool is that!<br />
<br />
This
movie is definitely worth a watch. It’s only been released to dvd as
part of Universal Studios Legacy collection. The movie comes packaged
with the original <i>Creature From The Black Lagoon</i> as well as it’s second sequel (the follow up to <i>Revenge</i>) <i>The Creature Walks Among us</i>, which we’ll talk more about in the coming days.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/51ery9c5w1l__ss500_.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/51ery9c5w1l__ss500_.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-340" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/51ery9c5w1l__ss500_.jpg" height="450" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/51ery9c5w1l__ss500_.jpg" title="51ERY9C5W1L__SS500_" width="450" /></a></div>
<br />
If you’re interesting in buying the dvd, it can be had at <a data-mce-href="http://www.amazon.com/Creature-Black-Lagoon-Collection-Revenge/dp/B0002NRRRY/ref=sr_1_1?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1285135813&sr=1-1" href="http://www.amazon.com/Creature-Black-Lagoon-Collection-Revenge/dp/B0002NRRRY/ref=sr_1_1?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1285135813&sr=1-1">amazon.com</a> for a very reasonable price.<br />
Creature Week continues tomorrow, so stay tuned!</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-10546554680596528032012-07-02T19:34:00.002-07:002012-07-02T19:34:57.432-07:00From The Archives: You Will Believe A Fish Can Sing<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
(This article was first posted on September 22, 2011 and has been altered since its' original publication) </div>
<br />
Despite his numerous appearances in pop culture and film, the original feature <em>The Creature From The Black Lagoon</em> is considered by many to be the Gill-Man's finest hour.<br />
<br />
As
a study in contrasts, I thought that for day two of Creature Week we
might take a look at one of his low points. Yes, it's time to talk about
<em>Creature From The Black Lagoon: The Musical</em>!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/teaser.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/teaser.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-329" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/teaser.jpg" height="382" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/teaser.jpg" title="teaser" width="218" /></a></div>
<br />
On June 2nd of 2008, the studiotour.com (a great little website which you can view <a data-mce-href="http://www.thestudiotour.com/wiki/index.php?title=Main_Page" href="http://www.thestudiotour.com/wiki/index.php?title=Main_Page">here</a>) reported this:<br />
<blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
With
state-of-the-art stagecraft, acrobatic choreography and hilarious,
toe-tapping music, the Creature will be brought to life in a story based
on the original screenplay, updated to emphasize the element of romance
and just a bit of comic relief. Original new music and dazzling
production numbers will keep the attraction contemporary and lively.</blockquote>
</blockquote>
And
with those words, the great and mighty Gill-Man went through one of the
silliest ordeals ever to befall a movie monster! But why you ask? Well,
back in 2008 it looked like a remake of the Creature might actually get
produced. Like so many previous attempts to revisit or reinvent the
Gill-Man it was ultimately doomed to failure, but Universal was so sure
it would come to fruition they created a musical stage play to help
promote it.<br />
<br />
The director's credit fell to Lynne Taylor-Corbett
whose Broadway credits include choreography for "Titanic", "Chess", and
"Swing" among others. The latter of those three, she also directed. She
has also directed numerous Off Broadway productions and is a multiple
Tony Award Nominee.<br />
<br />
Gerard Alessandrini served as co-directer with
Ms. Taylor-Corbett, and also acted as co-lyricist with Fred Barton who
composed the music for the play.<br />
<br />
These were not untalented people
or hacks, and to be honest the production was lavish, fairly well staged
and beautifully constructed. The problem was not so much in a
misunderstanding of theater as it was their subject matter.<br />
<br />
The
basic premise of the play was that of a romantic comedy. The original
film had been a thoughtful tragedy with a very human monster. The source
material was subtle which is the opposite of a musical. Musical's work
in broad strokes. Monster films have always degenerated into camp when
their subtle aspects or humanity were removed.<br />
<br />
So it was the
Creature fell from grace and that's the reason why. On the plus side,
while the production hardly does the Gil-Man justice, it is a hoot to
watch! I might even be so bold as to say this musical does for the
Gill-Man what Adam West did for Batman.<br />
<br />
If anyone's curious, you
can check out the entire play below. It's only about 30 minutes and
seeing as how the production has been canceled for some time, this is
the only way you're ever going to see it ... maybe that's a good thing,
no?<br />
<br />
Enjoy! ... or cringe, your choice.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<object width="320" height="266" class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://1.gvt0.com/vi/_Uh1hKfvTBE/0.jpg"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/_Uh1hKfvTBE&fs=1&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/_Uh1hKfvTBE&fs=1&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />For those interested in the theater personalities involved you can check out <a data-mce-href="http://www.lynnetaylorcorbett.com/" href="http://www.lynnetaylorcorbett.com/">Lynne Taylor-Corbett's official website</a>, you can read up on this interview with Gerard Alessandrini <a data-mce-href="http://www.talkinbroadway.com/spot/gerard1.html" href="http://www.talkinbroadway.com/spot/gerard1.html">here</a> or you can go to <a data-mce-href="http://www.fredbarton.com/" href="http://www.fredbarton.com/">Fred Barton's official website</a>.<br />
<br />
But
for those of you who are interested in even more Gill-Man news and
trivia, stay tuned. There's more Creature Week coming up tomorrow!</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-83003011806707874532012-07-02T19:18:00.003-07:002012-07-02T19:18:37.068-07:00From The Archives: Getting To Know The Creature From The Black Lagoon<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
(originally published on September 20, 2010)</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creature_from_black_lagoon.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creature_from_black_lagoon.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-314" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creature_from_black_lagoon.jpg" height="450" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/creature_from_black_lagoon.jpg" title="creature_from_black_lagoon" width="301" /></a></div>
<br />
Unquestionably
one of the best science fiction films of all time and the introduction
of one of the most memorable movie monsters to boot. The Gill-Man (the
Creature’s actual name) came into this world in a rather bizarre
fashion.<br />
<br />
While attending a dinner at Orson Welles’ Hollywood home
in the early 1940’s, William Alland had a conversation with a Mexican
cinematographer named Gabriel Figueroa. Gabriel recounted a tale that he
swore was true, of a village along the Amazon river that offered virgin
maidens to a half-fish/ half-man that rose from the river once a year.
The story stuck with Alland, who decided to build a feature around it.
He eventually developed a script called <i>The Sea Monster</i> which would lay dormant for nearly a decade.<br />
<br />
Time
passed and Alland (then a producer for Universal Pictures) became
paired with director Jack Arnold who was having a good deal of success
with movies like <i>It Came From Outer Space</i>.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/itcamefromouterspace.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/itcamefromouterspace.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-309" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/itcamefromouterspace.jpg" height="520" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/itcamefromouterspace.jpg" title="Itcamefromouterspace" width="325" /></a></div>
<br />
The two decided to tackle <i>The Sea Monster</i>
and what came out of the collaboration was one of the best movies of
its kind, and the start of a whole genre of fish-man films.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/411jack_arnold.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/411jack_arnold.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-310" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/411jack_arnold.jpg" height="288" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/411jack_arnold.jpg" title="411jack_arnold" width="218" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><b>Jack Arnold In His Later Years</b></i> </div>
<br />
One of the most memorable marks the movie left behind wasn’t just the Gill-Man, but the man inside the Gill-Man suit. Ricou Browning was a college student living in Florida. A friend of his managed a wetland area known as Wakulla Springs. As a favor, Ricou agreed to show a group of Hollywood scouts around the springs while they searched out locations for a movie. One of them asked Ricou if he would swim in the spring to give them an idea of how the plant and animal life looked in comparison to a human body. Ricou was happy to do it. He continued to show them around after than and bid them farewell soon after.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/ricoubrowning_creature.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/ricoubrowning_creature.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-315" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/ricoubrowning_creature.jpg" height="306" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/ricoubrowning_creature.jpg" title="RicouBrowning_creature" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
A
few weeks later, he received a call from Jack Arnold. They were looking
for a local diver to wear the Gill-Man suit for the swimming scenes
they intended to shoot at Wakulla Springs and he wanted to know if Ricou
would like the job. Ricou accepted and the rest is history. He became
interested in film, and began working behind the lens, specializing in
shooting and later directing under water sequences.<br />
He was involved in films and numerous television shows, and he even created <i>Flipper</i>!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/1248720952-flipper.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/1248720952-flipper.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-316" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/1248720952-flipper.jpg" height="282" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/1248720952-flipper.jpg" title="1248720952-flipper" width="321" /></a></div>
<br />
That’s right, they call him Flipper but they’d probably be more accurate in calling him <i>Son of the Creature</i> because without the Gill-Man, it’s unlikely that he would ever have been born.<br />
<br />
(I
think I should note) that Ricou wasn't the only actor to play the
creature. He preformed the swimming scene out in Florida while a second
actor played the Gill-Man's land scene in Los Angeles. (But who is this
other creature actor? We'll get into that as time goes on.)<br />
<br />
The
plot of the film is as follows, a group of scientists traveling the
Amazon river in a search for fossils come across the Gill-Man, an
evolutionary missing link between land mammals and marine life. They
attempt to capture the creature, but the Gill-Man has other things on
his mind, namely Kay Lawrence played by the lovely Ms. Julie Addams
(more on her in the coming days).<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/blacklagoon.gif" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/blacklagoon.gif"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-312" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/blacklagoon.gif" height="499" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/blacklagoon.gif" title="blacklagoon" width="389" /></a> </div>
<br />
The
Creature attempts to abduct her, but when she is taken beyond his reach
aboard the scientists boat, the Gill-Man blocks the only waterway
leading in or out of the lagoon, trapping the researchers in his home
waters. The movie is tightly written, tense to a fault, and well acted.
The human characters do border a hair bit on the cliché, but that’s not
entirely out of the ordinary for the time it was made and everything
else works so well you’d barely notice, if at all.<br />
<br />
In fact, the scenario of the movie itself seems to recall elements of Howard Hawk’s science fiction masterpiece <i>The Thing From Another World</i>.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/thingfromanotherworldposter_02.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/thingfromanotherworldposter_02.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-317" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/thingfromanotherworldposter_02.jpg" height="313" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/thingfromanotherworldposter_02.jpg" title="ThingFromAnotherWorldPoster_02" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Both
films depict small groups of people with conflicting motives forced to
rely on each other while trapped in an isolated area by a monster. The
primary difference between the <i>The Thing</i> and <i>The Creature</i>
is that Howard Hawk’s alien really is a vicious killer while the
Gill-Man is a misunderstood beast with no true malice. He’s acting on
his natural impulses and survival instincts. There’s a certain human
quality to him that makes him an object of pity rather than fear …
though honestly he is good at instilling it when he wants to.<br />
The film would be followed by two direct sequels that we’ll talk more about in the coming days.</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-57851364800009503182012-07-02T19:05:00.000-07:002012-07-02T19:20:17.671-07:00From The Archives: Why Creature Week?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
(originally posted on September 20, 2010) </div>
<br />
Perhaps you're asking yourself that.<br />
<br />
What it boils down to is
how amazed I am at the amount of people who lump horror movies into a
single genre, when there are so many subgenres in this field, and each
one with its own merits.<br />
<br />
There's suspense thrillers like <i>Psycho</i> ...<br />
<br />
<br />
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/psycho3sh.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/psycho3sh.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-304" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/psycho3sh.jpg" height="738" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/psycho3sh.jpg" title="psycho3sh" width="450" /></a><br />
<br />
<br />
Slasher films like <i>Halloween</i> ...<br />
<br />
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/halloween.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/halloween.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-305" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/halloween.jpg" height="644" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/halloween.jpg" title="Halloween" width="450" /></a><br />
<br />
<br />
Fantasy Horror like <i>Phantasm</i> ...<br />
<br />
<br />
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/phantasm-movie-poster1.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/phantasm-movie-poster1.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-306" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/phantasm-movie-poster1.jpg" height="682" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/phantasm-movie-poster1.jpg" title="phantasm-movie-poster1" width="450" /></a><br />
<br />
<br />
And of course, who could overlook monster movies.<br />
<br />
But
even among something as specific as a monster movie there's still any
number of subgenres to consider. Take vampire flicks and zombie pictures
for example. They are as different from each other as Westerns, such as
<i>The Big Country</i>, are from desert epics like <i>Lawrence of Arabia</i>.<br />
<br />
Incidentally I chose to mention <i>Big Country</i> and <i>Lawrence</i>
to make a point. Both of these movies are set in largely desolate
countries, both feature social commentary, both were serious dramas, yet
if you hold them up side by side there's not one chance in a hundred
that anyone would ever mistake the two as belonging to the same genre of
film.<br />
<br />
Getting back on topic, vampire thrillers often involve the
occult, some type of seduction or manipulation of other people, and of
course, lots and lots of sharp wooden stakes and big plastic fangs. The
zombie genre on other hand has a whole different list of qualifications.
They involve plagues or curses (usually) that spread to a large number
of people and by the end (not always but most times) degenerate into
simple survivor pictures.<br />
Now, I'm not here to talk about
westerns, desert films, or even vampire and zombie movies. I'm only
using that illustrate that there are tons of subgenres in horror films
and monster movies and these subgenres are usually very that’s why we’re
dedicating a whole week to <i>The Creature From The Black Lagoon</i>.<br />
<br />
I’m
not going to pretend to be an expert on fish-men, but as near as I can
tell the genesis of these beings seems to have originated with the
Gill-Man (the Creature's actual name in the movie) … on film that is.
There is a strong argument that H.P. Lovecraft was the father of these
strange creatures in terms of fantastic fiction. Short stories like <i>Dagon</i> or <i>The Shadow Over Innsmouth</i> seem to point towards a creature very much like the Gill-Man.<br />
<br />
Of
course, there’s no accounting for legends of mermaids, sea monsters,
and other superstitions. Undoubtably the idea of men from the murky deep
have been with us, and yet this subgenre in particular seems to be as
mysterious as the Oceanic depths themselves.<br />
<br />
Over the coming week
I’ll be providing facts and trivia about the Gill-Man and the three
Universal pictures that featured him, as well highlighting his other
appearances in animation, books, and even on stage. In addition to that
I’ll be talking about other films in this rarely considered fish-man
genre.<br />
<br />
Well, that’s enough splashing about with expository. Time to move out of the shallow waters and into deeper matters with …</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-13322892649914019702012-07-02T19:00:00.002-07:002012-07-02T19:19:40.369-07:00From The Archives: Announcing Creature Week<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
(originally published on September 17, 2011) </div>
<br />
If you've never seen ...<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/1253851153-creature.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/1253851153-creature.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-297" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/1253851153-creature.jpg" height="443" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/1253851153-creature.jpg" title="1253851153-Creature" width="450" /></a></div>
<br />
...
not only have you missed out on a true classic of Universal Horror but
one of the great classic films of all time! Not to worry, ladies and
gentlemen, because next week beginning on Monday and following through
with a new article every day until the following Sunday, your humble
host, The Lone Fan, will be presenting facts, trivia, and film reviews
concerning the most famous fish man of all time and the myriads of
monsters he inspired!<br />
<br />
Welcome To Creature Week! (Insert your own fish pun here)</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-63328945170116296872012-07-02T00:25:00.000-07:002012-07-02T00:25:10.716-07:00From The Archives: Where The Rubber Meets The Road<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div align="center">
(originally published February 25, 2011)</div>
<br />
This has got to be one of the weirdest ideas I've ever heard of, and I mean that as the highest term of praise I can think to give. Let's talk about <em>Rubber</em>.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/rubber-movie-poster.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/rubber-movie-poster.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-638" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/rubber-movie-poster.jpg" height="400" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/rubber-movie-poster.jpg" title="Rubber-Movie-Poster" width="300" /></a></div>
<br />
The premise is that an ordinary rubber tire gains awareness and psychic abilities and sets out to terrorize a small town. Wow! I can't believe in this age of remakes and also-rans that I just said that. If the premise hadn't got me excited, the trailer sure did! Check it out!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/GOyYp6JtwsU?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-61298375375715234962012-07-02T00:19:00.001-07:002012-07-02T00:19:47.652-07:00From The Archives: Great Guardians! Challenge Of The Go-Bots is coming to DVD!!!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
(originally published on May 3, 2011)</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/challenge-of-the-gobots.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/challenge-of-the-gobots.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-715" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/challenge-of-the-gobots.jpg" height="295" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/challenge-of-the-gobots.jpg" title="challenge-of-the-gobots" width="450" /></a></div>
<br />
Most people remember <em>Go-Bots</em> as being the <em>Transformer</em>'s stupid cousin. Most people who do are probably themselves, somebody else's stupid cousin (who says this blog's not edgy?)! After years of waiting, Hanna-Barbera's fantastic adventure, sci-fi show that was a mega-hit in the 80's is finally <a data-mce-href="http://www.wbshop.com/on/demandware.store/Sites-WB-Site/default/Product-Show?pid=1000207582&adid=WB_ADS_WAC_GobotsPreAnnounce" href="http://www.wbshop.com/on/demandware.store/Sites-WB-Site/default/Product-Show?pid=1000207582&adid=WB_ADS_WAC_GobotsPreAnnounce">coming home to own</a> on Digital Video Disc (and you know I'm excited when I spell out DVD)! The series is being released on May 17th as a manufacture-on-demand product by the Warner Archive collection, and will contain the show's pilot, a five-episode mini-series which can be had for an estimated cost of $14.95.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/gobots_miniseries.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/gobots_miniseries.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-714" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/gobots_miniseries.jpg" height="447" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/gobots_miniseries.jpg" title="Gobots_MiniSeries" width="300" /></a></div>
<br />
Critically speaking, I will admit that <em>Go-Bots</em> is not as challenging (pun intended) as <em>Transformers</em>, nor is the animation as dynamic, but where it fails on those points, it makes up for it in consistency. I'm not going to nitpick <em>Transformers</em>. It's one of the greatest animated shows of all time, but all that said and done, it's not fair to point out what it did better than Go-Bots without pointing in kind how Go-Bots actually outshined it.<br />
Like Transformers, <em>Challenge of the Go-Bots</em> featured a group of Robotic beings (well, in Go-Bots they're actually Cyborgs, but I'm not going into all that now) that are divided into two camps: the evil Renegades and the valiant Guardians! They originate the planet of Gobotron which has one of the coolest designs of any alien world I've ever seen!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/gobotron.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/gobotron.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-716" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/gobotron.jpg" height="225" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/gobotron.jpg" title="gobotron" width="300" /></a></div>
<br />
As would be expected, eventually both Guardian and Renegade alike end up on earth where they adapt their robot bodies to transfor, er, I mean convert (yeah, they call it converting in this show. Biiiiiig difference than transforming) into earth vehicles and from there they go to war.<br />
<br />
Go-Bots does offer somethings you don't find in Transformers though. For one, the Guardians are obligated to work with the human military, partly with the aid of General Newcastle and partly through their 3 human liaisons: Nick, Mac, and A.J. This is the first point that goes to Go-Bots. Unlike the Autobots whose companions never have any real reason to hang out with them when they should be out earning a living, the Guardians' companions are there because it's there job. Not only that, but the story had better direction from the start. The series suffers through far fewer plot holes than Transformers did and while the animation is less eye-catching it is more consistent with visual less goofs and virtually no choppy animation. And honestly, for a Hanna-Barbara cartoon the series was surprisingly mature. The first five episodes deal with issues of the Cold War and encourage American and Soviet cooperation.<br />
<br />
I'm not going to sell this as the greatest show ever made, but it is good and much better than its been made out to be. It's biggest sin has been living in the shadow of Optimus Prime, but if taken on its own terms and for its own merits, Challenge of the Go-Bots is not only fun, but actually can be quite exhilarating if you catch it at the right moment.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
Both <a data-mce-href="http://www.toonzone.net/news/articles/37366/warner-archive-announces-challenge-of-the-gobots-set-for-may-17-2011-release" href="http://www.toonzone.net/news/articles/37366/warner-archive-announces-challenge-of-the-gobots-set-for-may-17-2011-release">Toonzone</a> and <a data-mce-href="http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Challenge-GoBots-The-Original-Mini-Series/15326" href="http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Challenge-GoBots-The-Original-Mini-Series/15326">TV Shows On DVD</a> have additional details concerning the release, should anyone wish to pursue the matter further.</div>
</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6478613541881695644.post-32475142542404464852012-07-02T00:14:00.000-07:002012-07-02T00:14:03.395-07:00From The Archives: YO JOE!!!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
In this world there are good movies, b-movies, bad movies and movies that are so bad they’re good. Of course creating a definite list of what’s what is very hard since any movie’s classification depends entirely on the individual opinions of its audience. Still, there are some movies that in a given setting are pretty easy to rank.<br />
<br />
For instance if you were to play this!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/mpw-7354.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/mpw-7354.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-222" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/mpw-7354.jpg" height="351" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/mpw-7354.jpg" title="MPW-7354" width="450" /></a></div>
<br />
... for the crowd that made <em>Sex In The City</em> a hit, you’d probably get more frowns than cheers. The same would be true if you showed <em>Sex in the City</em> to any other audience besides the one mentioned above.<br />
<br />
The fact is there are some movies that just don’t go over well with certain crowds and the results are usually predictable. Slasher films resonate well with younger audiences as opposed to older ones, and people who have a habit of following Pat Robertson (much like myself) are more likely to watch Christian movies than the crowd who gets a kick out of George Carlin.<br />
<br />
There are, however, some movies whose love/hate relationship with certain fanbases out and out puzzles me, which brings us to the real point of this little article.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/gijoe_themovie_se_dvd.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/gijoe_themovie_se_dvd.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-223" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/gijoe_themovie_se_dvd.jpg" height="770" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/gijoe_themovie_se_dvd.jpg" title="GIJoe_TheMovie_SE_DVD" width="450" /></a></div>
<br />
<em>G.I. Joe the Movie</em> was released to Blu Ray and DVD in a remastered special edition last week from Shout! Factory!!!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/617bvk-yxkl.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/617bvk-yxkl.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-224" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/617bvk-yxkl.jpg" height="500" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/617bvk-yxkl.jpg" title="617bVk-YxKL" width="352" /></a></div>
<br />
<em>G.I. Joe: the Movie</em> is largely regarded by fans with either general contempt or uneasy appreciation. There’s a certain stigma attached to it, but the why of that matter is a bit hard to to understand.<br />
<br />
The most common argument I hear is that the movie is too unrealistic. It pits the United States Armed forces against an army of Snake Men from a hidden nation in the Himalayas called Cobra-La. The movie also gives an unsatisfying origin to Cobra Commander revealing him to be a bizarre freak of nature who ultimately turns into a large snake by the movie’s end.<br />
<br />
Most of the mainstream Joes are sidelined by the appearance of new characters who aren’t half as interesting and the familiar villains of the cartoon are downplayed in favor of the surprisingly bland residents of Cobra-La. There’s also outrage over the fact that movie was originally going to kill Duke, the Joe's field commander. This idea was scrapped before the movie’s initial release by a line of dialogue that tells everyone …<br />
<br />
“Duke’s gonna be a-okay!”<br />
<br />
Now, I could accept all those reasons as legitimate criticism if not for the fact that <em>Transformers: The Movie</em> (which was released the same year) committed every transgression the Joe film did and more! Yet despite a legendary outpouring of early rage, the Transformers animated feature outing has since gained cult recognition and a fairly decent following.<br />
<br />
<em>Transformers the Movie</em> killed Optimus Prime along with Star Scream, Iron Hide and half the characters who made the original cartoon worth watching. Not only that but it also sidelined established heroes and villains for newer, trendier, and ultimately inferior characters. It also incorporated a fair amount of screwball humor that <em>G.I. Joe: the Movie</em> had the dignity to avoid.<br />
<br />
For instance, in the Joe Movie, the bad guys don’t hold trials where they kill you for being innocent just to prove how ultimately evil they are, Sgt. Slaughter wasn’t reduced to an idiot and then refitted as comedy relief like Grimlock and the Dinobots were, and none of the new Joe characters tried to pass off speech impediments for personalities.<br />
<br />
<br />
Both Blur ...<br />
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/tf1.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/tf1.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-228" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/tf1.jpg" height="240" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/tf1.jpg" title="tf" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
<br />
... and Wheelie ...<br />
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/wheelie-transformers-001_12013226601.jpg" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/wheelie-transformers-001_12013226601.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-230" data-mce-src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/wheelie-transformers-001_12013226601.jpg" height="282" src="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/wheelie-transformers-001_12013226601.jpg" title="wheelie-transformers-001_1201322660" width="450" /></a><br />
<br />
... were ultimately doomed to that abysmal fate.<br />
<br />
Now all that being said, I like <em>Transformers the Movie</em>. In fact, I like it better than <em>G.I. Joe: the Movie</em>, but that’s only because it has a more unified story, better pacing, and better guest voices. Sorry but as much as I love Mickey, I'll take Orson Welles over Burgess Meredith any day of the week.<br />
<br />
Despite all its flaws, <em>G.I. Joe the Movie</em> is a fast paced action story with everything thrown in but the kitchen sink! It’s fun, funny, and has the best opening of any animated movie I’ve ever seen! The first three minutes of this film get my blood pumping harder than any six testosterone charged action flicks I can think of!<br />
<br />
And yes, while the story is a bit silly (Snake Men and all that) it’s nothing that the show hadn’t covered before. Keep in mind that in the actual cartoon both the Joe and Cobra forces were used as pawns by the ancient Egyptian gods, Cobra used fast food restaurants to fire missiles at America, and in one infamous Christmas episode Destro used a shrinking ray so Cobra troops could sneak into the Joe base disguised as gift wrapped toys leaving the Joes to chiefly retaliate through Shipwreck’s parrot Polly who gets blown up to gargantuan size by the self same raygun.<br />
<br />
<em>G.I. Joe</em> was many things: at times serious, at other times silly, sometimes poignant, sometimes jaded, but it was always opinionated. The writer’s personalities really show in their individual scripts and because so many episodes were being produced at once it was nearly impossible to get everyone on the same page. As a result, I think the single best description of the cartoon is ‘uneven’.<br />
<br />
There’s not much unity in terms of subject matter, content, or mood. But one thing most episodes have in common is that they are good. The silly bits are uproariously funny in the same way Adam West was everytime he’d strap on his grey leotard; the serious episodes are often dramatic reaching a kind of social commentary that was rare in cartoons of the day; and the action oriented episodes were spectacles unlike anything American children’s television had ever seen before!<br />
<br />
So it’s likely that a film based on a show whose greatest strength was division would not please all audiences when it was finally released. Fans of the silly antics are going to be left out in the cold and fans of the realistic aspects of certain episodes will be sorely disappointed. But while <em>G.I. Joe the Movie</em> cannot be all things to all people, it is not bad for what it is.<br />
<br />
The production was troubled. Most of the movie’s story concepts came from the mind of the regular series’ writer/story editor Buzz Dixon. But even so, a lot of Buzz’s original (and far superior) ideas were scrapped by the higher ups. Other drafts were written and abandoned except for a few bizarre ideas that would later shape the scope of the existing movie.<br />
<br />
What I’m trying to say is that if you’ve heard bad things about this movie or if you’ve never heard of it at all, for what my opinion is worth, go check it out. It’s worth watching! Heck, it’s worth owning!<br />
<br />
Not only that but the film comes with an audio commentary by Mr. Buzz Dixon himself! I know Buzz and let me tell you something, that's worth the asking price alone!<br />
<br />
<a data-mce-href="http://www.amazon.com/G-I-Joe-Real-American-Hero/dp/B003CNQPOM/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1280903218&sr=1-2" href="http://www.amazon.com/G-I-Joe-Real-American-Hero/dp/B003CNQPOM/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1280903218&sr=1-2">For those of you who are interested in checking this title out, here’s a link to where you can buy it at amazon.com.</a><br />
<br />
<a data-mce-href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.wordpress.com/category/buzz-dixon/" href="http://alonefancryinginthewilderness.wordpress.com/category/buzz-dixon/">And for those of you interested in learning more about Buzz Dixon, check out my interview with him here!</a><br />
<br />
YO JOE!!!</div>Mark Morganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00691410676775384078noreply@blogger.com0