Erv Coppi: Horror Host!

Sometime in the depths of my youth I was poring over the newest issue of TV Guide - something I did regularly and with great fervor - looking for anything interesting I might want to watch that next week.

I guess I saw that WSIU - the TV channel for local Southern Illinois University (SIU) - was going to be showing one of the classic Universal Studios Monster movies the next Friday at 10pm. The odds were very good that the movie was Frankenstein, though it's not out of the realm of possibility that Dracula was that first movie - as it had hit theaters first in 1931.

In any case, as a kid barely in double digits, I had nothing better to do on Friday night, and I had a small black and white TV in my room - so at 10pm on that Friday night - I turned on channel 8 and there was a high shot of WSIU's resident movie host Erv Coppi - who hosted classic old movies on Saturday nights and some Sunday afternoons on the channel. He was sitting on a stool, in his standard issue suit and WIDE "regular guy" tie. A really creepy and cool classical piece was playing - I found out later it was Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D Minor. Let's stop for a bit of that - to set the mood...

Now, that's a smaller and faster rendition than the one I heard on WSIU that night - but it's also the shortest version I could find - as most ran 9 or 10 minutes, and they only used about 40 seconds on the show.

But there Erv sat, behind him a framework holding up six or so big posterboard sized pictures from classic Hollywood. The shot would dissolve down to a tight shot on Erv as he would introduce himself - as his name appear in super below him. This was a trick he'd learned to get people to know how his name was pronounced and spelled! Well played, Mr. Coppi!

Erv would quickly segue over to the name of the night's movie, along with a couple of its stars. He might introduce a small bit of trivia about the movie here - much like Robert Osborne does on TCM now. He'd then tell you he'd be back at intermission to talk about upcoming movies - and they'd fade back to the high shot as Erv calmly sat holding his microphone. Then it was movie time - or at least half the movie time. But let's get a look at Erv in action on WSIU - though sadly none of these pictures are of him actually hosting one of the horror movies.

Here's Erv waving next to his public television pledge drive co-host Virginia Marmaduke.

Erv and Vriginia Marmaduke greeting the univesity's mascot during another pledge drive.

At the midway point in the movie Erv would come back on for a couple of minutes - talk about upcoming movies they'd be showing, usually with a brief clip. Then it was back to that night's movie until the end credits.

Erv would return at the end for a quick wrapup - all told I'd say he was on screen less than five minutes per show - and the channel would shut down for the night. (Remember when they did that?)

The films were pretty much all from the Universal Studios collection - Frankenstein, Dracula, The Wolfman, The Mummy, and all their various sequels and team-ups.

After the popularity of the Friday Night Horror Theater grew - WSIU expanded it into double features - starting the show an hour earlier - at 9pm central time - and going until somewhere between 11pm and midnight. This meant you could get to see all 8 main Frankenstein movies in just four weeks! Awesome!

These shows went on for several years, though I'm not sure when they actually stopped showing them - a young man I used to babysit for who became a fan when I introduced him to these movies - told me he thought it went on to the late 80's, and then the station seemed to lose its mind and jettison most of the good stuff they were showing then. I'd moved on to more teenaged pursuits on my Friday nights and missed those last couple of years.

Erv was marvellous though - if you're not going to have someone dressed up as a character - Baron von Crypt, etc., then a low key serious film buff approach works well too. Just like John Stanley and that fellow who proceeded him on Creature Features on the West Coast.

As those pictures up there show - Erv also hosted the station's yearly pledge drive to raise money for public television - and you could ask him a movie trivia question - which he would answer on air. If he got it wrong you didn't have to pledge. If he got it right you did have to pledge. SPOILER - he never got it wrong. Ever. And it was hard to come up with this stuff with no internet assist, let me tell you. But my parents let me send in $5 or $10 each year after he slaughtered my question on air, which was invariably about some old horror movie I'd been reading about that week.

I'm pleased to say that while he retired from WSIU in 1993, Erv is still around - participating in the station's 50th anniversary celebration last year and still being a cool guy. I enjoy owning all these movies - but I kinda miss watching them on my old black and white TV - in that magical circle of several thousand people around the broadcast tower...



Until next post, you Can Poke Me With A Fork, Cause I Am Outta Here!

Buddha Man's Tricks or Treats 2012!

It is high time we get the Golden Headed Movie Reviewer into this Halloween Horrorfest - and he's raring to go!

Apple.

The Crater Lake Monster (Crown International, 1977) In this nostalgic throwback to the Creature Features of the 1950’s, a meteor sets things off by landing in an Oregon lake coincidentally near a dormant dinosaur egg. The incredible heat from the space rock raises the lake’s temperature considerably, so of course the still viable egg hatches. The little bundle of joy that emerges from the shell reveals itself to be a plesiosaur, and one growth spurt later, the local residents find themselves on the menu for the big flippered beastie. While the local scientist type tries to convince the local authorities that they now have a local dinosaur, a parade of goofs wander into the dino’s mouth and two yahoos work overtime to provide some comic relief. Eventually the good guys come up with a plan to stop the big lizard and it consists of two words: Heavy Equipment. Let the battle commence!

I have been a huge fan of stop motion animation ever since I first saw the original 1933 King Kong as a wee lad. It was also the effects process that got me interested in special effects, which informed a lot of my reading in those days. As a result, I was always gung ho to watch any movie with stop motion effects. Here we have another example of a movie I was aware of and champing at the bit to see that escaped me for something like three decades. It didn’t make it to any local theaters; and I never found it for rental at any of the dozens and dozens of video stores I frequented throughout the 80’s and 90’s across five states. I finally found it on a used VHS a year or so ago and bought it, throwing it onto my watch pile. Then, this year, after having had no access to the movie for all those years and finally owning it, imagine my surprise when it came out – not on DVD – but on Blu-Ray as a double feature with another Crown International classic: Galaxina. My mind boggles at some of the movies I now own on Blu-Ray.

But I digress.

So, after roughly 10,000 days of not watching the movie, how did it finally stand up to being watched? Okay, I guess. I’d heard over the years that the stop motion in the movie was minimal, and that pretty much everything else about the movie was pretty bad; so my expectations had been sinking lower and lower across the intervening time. Everything in the movie that isn’t stop motion is pretty bad, and it’s easy to see why this movie represents the only cinematic output for most of the people involved. For the effects they hired David Allan, one of those journeymen special effects guys and stop motion gurus from the 70’s like Jim Danforth who never got quite as famous as Ray Harryhausen but who turned out some really good work on films of varying quality. Allan’s work is here is not his best – I imagine he was at least somewhat hampered by budget and schedule – but it’s serviceable; and there’s actually a pretty good amount of it. I’m not 100% thrilled with the plesiosaur’s design either – I think the flippers are goofy and that legs would have looked cooler – but it’s still neat to see stop motion in these days of rampant CGI. So, based on that and a general nostalgia for nearly anything filmed 1977-1980, I give this one a qualifed recommendation – it’s mainly for stop motion fans and 70’s completists, but anyone looking for some PG rated low budget thrills might find this worth a look, so check it out!

Chewy Sweet Tarts.

Lady on a Train (1945) Mystery loving Nikki Collins (Deanna Durbin) witnesses a murder in a building outside her train window, then can't convince anyone she saw it in this entertaining comedy mystery. When she can't get the police to believe her, (they think the death was an accident) she turns to mystery writer Wayne Morgan (David Bruce) but he is also skeptical. Nikki then mixes herself up with the dead man's family (including Ralph Bellamy-Trading Places) to try to prove there was a murder, even as the murderer continues to kill, making each murder look like an accident.

They could have called it Legs on a Train as far as I'm concerned.

This is a very entertaining blend of comedy and mystery, which was a vehicle to move singing star Durbin away from the romantic musicals she was hugely popular in. To ease the transition Durbin does sing three songs, which are spaced out well and aren't too obtrusive. The mystery is fun, there is some suspense, and Durbin is a very attractive lead. If you like a good old fashioned movie that throws in a little of everything to entertain, this is a safe bet.





That will complete our time together. And always remember - a kiss is but a kiss...

Foto Frenzy: Halloween II!

After ineffectually shooting Michel Myers six times, Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasance) is desperate to find his
former patient, teaming back up with Sheriff Brackett (Charles Cyphers) as they comb the streets of
Haddonfield Illinois on the night of October 31st, 1978.

The Shape (Dick Warlock) wastes no time finding a new blade.

Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) is taken to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital to have her physical wounds cared for.
The emotional wounds from this night of horror are going to take longer to heal. And the night isn't over yet!

The Shape is soon prowling the halls at Haddonfield Memorial Hospital, and people start disappearing....

The police investigate a break in at the elementary school, and they find a word written in blood on the chalkboard.
Samhain - a Celtic word for the time of the dead - Halloween. While seemingly a shout out to Curtis Richards's
excellent novelization of the first movie, which added a wild backstory about the murderous rage that came from
those Celtic times, striking the males in the Myers family every few generations - this instead sparked too much
imagination in some future filmmakers, leading us to the low points of the series. And yes, I'm looking at you,
Halloween 5 and Halloween 6!

Nurse Jill (Tawny Moyer) finds herself distressingly alone as the night wears on.

Has Michael Myers found his victim?



Whoever is in that bed is definitely not prepped for surgery - but that scalpel is about to see some use anyway...

Can Dr. Loomis stop Michael Myers and save Laurie Strode?

I have a soft spot for this horror sequel, and will watch it with anyone who wants to sit down and spin it with me.



Until next post, you Can Poke Me With A Fork, Cause I Am Outta Here!

PSA A Go Go 10/16/12!

Once again, in the public interest - and to serve through announcing, LGOOH and artist Rob Kelly present the following Public Service Announcement:

Sounds like words to live by - and John Carradine certainly did!



Until next time we meet, you Can Poke Me With A Fork, Cause I Am Outta Here!

Maniacal Movie Poster Monday #90!

Redneck Zombies  (Troma, 1989)

I've never seen this one - but it would probably play well with a group - and not so well solo.









Cry of the Banshee  (American International, 1970)

Vincent Price is always worth a look - and this flick isn't bad either.
















Let's Scare Jessica to Death  (Paramount, 1971)

Weird early 70's flick that I only finally saw in the DVD age - not bad, has some solid eerie scenes.









Tomorrow is just a few hours away - and another post will go up! Until then, you Can Poke Me With A Fork, Cause I Am Outta Here!

Celebrity Endorsement: Ari Lehman!

Several men have played Jason Voorhees over the years, but only one can call himself First Jason - Ari Lehman! Thankfully, the Original Voorhees knows good blogging when he sees it!

Thank you Mr. Lehman!



Until next post, you Can Poke Me With A Fork, Cause I Am Outta Here!

Saturday Night at the Movies 10/13/12!

Who cares what picture we see?


I think Jason Lively would mull it over, then definitely care. While he's doing that, let's pick:

An unsung gem - this got dumped theatrically by Tri-Star, but found an audience on cable TV - it's a heck of a lot of fun, with Tom Atkins at his bombastic best as Detective Cameron.


I have this on a fine DVD and we could be watching Tom Atkins bellow "Thrill me!" into telephones as soon as...tonight...if you wanted to join me at my joint.


Until next post - just 24 or so hours from this moment - you Can Poke Me With A Fork, Cause I Am Outta Here!