scsu1975

First, the Academy must get rid of the name "Oscar."

Tom, you might want to check out the 1922 version of The Headless Horseman, with Will Rogers. It is a real curio, with Rogers miscast (in my opinion) as Ichabod Crane. The film is fairly dull; however, the ending is a bit creepy.

I believe Shire did most of the orchestrations, although one piece was orchestrated by Jack Hayes (a frequent orchestrator for Elmer Bernstein). The theme, as played by the trombone, is very mournful-sounding, and indicates to me a sense of fatigue. When the alto sax picks up the theme, it is much "sexier."

Bingo. Alto sax, played by Ronny Lang.

The Fox Film Corporation 1915-1935 by Aubrey Solomon is a good look at that studio prior to its merger with 20th Century Pictures.

Agree about the score. However, as a former trumpet player, I have to tell you that's not a cornet. It's a trombone, played by Dick Nash.

Herrmann also used one cathedral organ and four electronic organs in his score. The cathedral organ is prominently featured in the opening credits, as well as when the ray of light shows the cast the way to descend to the center of the earth. Later in the film, Herrmann used a medieval instrument known as the "serpent" when the lizard appears, prior to the climactic volcano. One tiny correction: it was Thayer David, not David Thayer, who played the Count. He appeared frequently on Dark Shadows.

The Night The World Exploded (1957) youtube It doesn’t, so don’t get your hopes up. This is an unexciting world-is-in-danger flick, with William Leslie as a seismologist and Kathryn Grant as his assistant. Earthquakes have knocked the earth 3 degrees off its axis, which means the only people who don’t notice are the winos. Leslie et al descend into Carlsbad Caverns (I’m still not sure why), where they discover a mysterious mineral that grows and explodes when removed from water. This crap, dubbed “Element 112,” keeps pushing to the surface, causing havoc around the globe. Leslie figures out that the only way to stop the catastrophe is to flood every area he can think of. He should have started with director Fred Sears’ office. (In fairness to Sears, he did direct Earth vs. the Flying Saucers, which is a decent film. Then again, he also directed The Giant Claw.) Leslie and Grant make a tepid couple, which adds to the overall dullness of the film. They both act as if they are on valium. Gerald Mohr supplies the narration, which is good since we don’t have to see his face. The budget is minimal – one guy on an airplane (veteran 1940s B-movie actor Dennis Moore) is sitting on a folding metal chair. And then he suffers the further indignity of getting yanked off the plane because it was overbooked. The only suspense occurs early on, when Grant is climbing down a ladder in the caverns and freezes up. At this point, Leslie, standing below, decides to use reverse psychology and yells at her: “Wouldn’t you know a woman would pull a stunt like this? You’re all scientists until there’s the slightest bit of danger, then you fold up. Want your mommy and daddy?” I had no problem with this sexist dialogue, but when he accused her of having visible p a n t y bulge, that crossed over the line.

I used to joke that this film should have been called Thirds. I found the first thing intriguing, the middle third boring as hell, and the final third suspenseful.

And then the cameraman got his shot at her afterwards.

I demand that General Motors be sued for cultural appropriation. For that matter, Ford should be sued for presidential appropriation.

Just realized he is examining a "spectograph report." This secretary is achieving some fame here. Now I wonder who she is.

Susan Shaw was quite attractive. It is interesting that the woman playing the secretary is not listed in the IMDb credits, but most of the "fire maidens" are. I just revisited that scene where she is taking dictation, and the scientist seems to be playing with a slide rule, or some measuring device. Nothing symbolic there, of course. Then he sings "I'm never too old" while she ascends the stairs.

I knew there was such a version, but I watched the blu-ray version on youtube so I could see it unedited.

I wonder if the goggles enabled the kids to see in 3D .. or in this case, 33DD.

By all means, Marie should be Star of the Month (after Tor Johnson, of course). Why doesn't TCM ever show any of her films?

Tom, you described that scene perfectly. Dexter and the other actor regarded the secretary as if she were a piece of meat. Note: I had the wrong title for this film. I corrected it to read Fire Maidens of Outer Space.

Fire Maidens of Outer Space (1956) youtube Cringeworthy (as my fiancée kept saying) attempt at sci-fi. The opening credits warn us that “All characters in space are fictitious.” Apparently this is for people who are too dumb to understand what is written at the bottom of a beer bottle: “Open other end.” The film begins with Anthony Dexter flying to London, probably because his Hollywood career has gone into the toilet. In short order, he is on a mission to the 13th moon of Jupiter with four horn-knee morons. Miraculously, the trip only takes three weeks, which is slightly faster than flying Delta from New York City to Miami. Along the way, we are treated to thrilling moments like a meteorite shower and Dexter shaving. Of course, the 13th moon is inhabited, otherwise the film would have been over and everyone would have gone home happy. The population consists of an old geezer, over a dozen chicks in Greek miniskirts, and one creature. Welcome to “New Atlantis,” where the people of Atlantis fled after their continent went belly-up. The film sinks into tedium the rest of the way, with Dexter and a companion captured, and the other guys wandering around aimlessly trying to find them. The finale features an attempted human sacrifice, but unfortunately the screenwriter escaped. Selections by Borodin are played throughout, including “The Gliding Dance of the Maidens,” aka, “Stranger in Paradise.” It was at this point that actor John Williams made a surprise appearance to hawk records: The film is loaded with product placements. Everyone has a Longines “space watch.” A Coke machine stands prominently in a hallway. One of the crewmen has a Polaroid camera. And the entire crew light up Chesterfields when they land on the 13th planet. Man, that must have been one great ride.

I saw Rickles live at a local outdoor theater, back in the 70s. He used quite a few vulgarities in his act, which, nonetheless had me laughing hysterically. However, the two nuns sitting in front of me did not appear to be amused.

Postal Inspector (1936) youtube Entertaining quickie from Universal, this film stars Ricardo Cortez as the title character investigating various mail fraud schemes, and, ultimately, the theft of 3 million bucks earmarked for destruction. Patricia Ellis plays a nightclub singer who falls for Cortez’ brother. Bela Lugosi plays the nightclub owner who pulls the heist. The second half of the film takes place during a flood, with Cortez promising everyone the mail will still get through, by train, plane, or boat if necessary. Right. I can’t even get my store circulars delivered on time during a sunny day. Cortez is better than usual, and Ellis is very attractive. She sings a few songs which are not memorable, including this ditty aboard a plane flying through dense fog while her maid (Hattie McDaniel) bugs her eyes out a la Mantan Moreland: “Here we are together flying high, We’re up in heaven, you and I, We’ll be coming down to earth someday, But in the meantime, let’s be gay.” Well, I guess if you think you’re about to crash, it’s a good time to experiment with your orientation.

Do you remember Phil Tead from Horse Feathers? He plays the announcer during the climactic football game who asks Professor Wagstaff to say a few words to the audience.

I remember Sedan as the scientist who freezes Superman in the episode entitled "The Big Freeze."

Yes, the guys got plenty of action in the back seat of a Rolfe Sedan.

The conductor was played by Rolfe Sedan, who goes back to the silent era. I recognized his face (and voice) right away. He had a high-pitched throaty voice, while Brooks' voice was a bit lower. I'm sure it's Sedan's voice, and not Brooks'.