TALES OF FRANKENSTEIN (TV Pilot) (1958)

Here's a tasty little piece from a lesser known Hammer TV show from 1958 with an awesome title card, "Tales Of Frankenstein" that never really reached full development despite the fact that it featured Anton Diffring and that "other" monster guy, Don Megowan!!!

The narrator's mug shot was culled from Universal's "Inner Sanctum."

And this scene without a doubt, will be all too very familiar to any Universal fan!!

I've always liked the looks of the Don Megowan Frankenstein monster!!

Classic Anton Diffring is quite acceptable as the Baron Frankenstein!

Lovely Helen Westcott is Frankie's love interest Christine!

Sci-Fi writing couple and dynamic duo, Henry Kuttner and C.L. Moore wrote this tale which adds some real class, but any credit for the pretty dang cool music is like impossible to find!

Probably the bottom line is, this Curt Siodmak directed pilot was just a little too brainy for 1958 TV, but it sure is something you can appreciate 50 years later!!

Don't look in the mirror, boy!! Do not look in the mirror!!!

KAIDAN HEBI-ONNA (Snake Woman's Curse) - Shunsuke Kikuchi - "Ghost Story Of The Snake Woman" (1968)

We've written about composer Shunsuke Kikuchi and his music before, for his fine work on "Goke" and "Gamera" and and his massive portfolio of Kamen Rider, Ultraman, and Dragon Ball Z credits! The man is a musical messiah, and "Kaidan Hebi-Onna" is no exception!

In a chestnut shell, here's the deal. You've got this big shot dude, and his son, shown here, who are both, and I don't know any better way to say it, they're just a couple of rich pricks!!

They take advantage of a beautiful young woman, who has some hookups in an alternate glorified serpent universe, and end up paying the ultimate price. You know, the kind of thing you would want to happen to a couple of jerks like that!!!

The female Japanese version of Jimi Hendrix works out some deep funk on traditional Japanese instrument, 'The Shamisen!'

They're lookin' for snakes, okay I got that, but am I the only one who thinks something looks just a little bit weird here??!!

Actually the slimeball son and his old man got off pretty easy, I think she left them their souls!!

This soundtrack utilizes some cool electric guitar, and music toward the end that has a distinctive Spaghetti Western feel to it!! Theremin, harmonica, and more!!! Cool stuff!!

Here is a fascinating poster from one of writer and director Nobuo Nakagawa's earlier films, "Jigoku" or as it was also known, "Hell."

"Snake Woman's Curse" is a fine classically made movie, that while being very smart, is also very easy to follow, available on Netflix, and would provide a fine evening of enjoyment in the year 2009 with some popcorn and a nice warm glass of saki for anybody with even a meager amount of intelligence!!!

THE MAGNETIC MONSTER / Ivan Tors - 1953 / Music by Blaine Sanford

SCARY XMAS, EVERBLOODY, AND, WELCOME TO OUR POST NO. 600!!!

Wow, an' here is nice lil' yuletide su'prise from year 1953! Science producer guy Ivan Tors makin' RIDERS TO THE STARS and GOG the next year. In 1955 he produce SCIENCE FICTION THEATRE for TV!.. A-MEN, brother!!

Tonight music dude Blaine Sanford compose for one flick only, this one!! Good stuff though, so, give listen to a MAGNETIC MONSTER!

Flick begin with Richard Carlson contemplating uncertain fate of world as he look at Magnetic Monster through lens... Oh, lordie, when did whole crazy nightmare start, anyway??

Well, remember, it start last Tuesday, 3:16 pm!.. You and boys watching stag film you cop in big Commie bust when boss come in and say, "Get back to work!"

Poor Richard, he get nag from both ends!

When fish line want go UP, well, something terribly wrong!!.. Scientific fact!

A-MEN dude track down Monster to creepy Dr. Denker who make thing in mad lab... Now, everbloody gonna die!!

Richard have to take Monster and put in nuclear-powered Cyclotron to control growth.

Here is look at Magnetic Monster!

And, here is small XMAS present, in case nobloody give you one!!

Kaijû Daisenso aka GODZILLA vs MONSTER ZERO / Toho - 1965 / Music by Akira Ifukube

Talk about classics!!.. Tonight, we have another fine Toho entry directed by Ishirô Honda from 1965, and, starring our guy, Nick Adams! We have another very cool movie with Nick coming up, DIE! MONSTER DIE! So, be looking for that one, it's more awesome than you remember! A true Lovecraft classic!!

This particular title has a whopping 17! alternate titles including INVASION OF ASTRO-MONSTER, THE GREAT MONSTER WAR and INVASION OF PLANET X!

And, of course, Akira Ifukube does the excellent score. We've already posted many other films with music by Mr. Ifukube, so, give him a search!!

MONSTER ZERO and THAT DOUBLE-CROSSING FINK!!

Starts in space, Nick and the ever popular Akira Takarada land on Planet X!

They're met by some rather odd looking inhabitants! Kinda like ultra Devo... Notice those stylish electrodes on the top of their headgear!

Then, they're shown the monster that's keeping them from living on the surface... King Ghidorah!!! aka, Monster X!

The space guys come to Earth and tow Godzilla and Rodan back to Planet X, supposedly to fight Monster X!

Wow, when you stop and think about what you get with Toho movies, just look at this teriffic set and miniatures!! To put it in perspective, compare them to, say, BEAST OF YUCCA FLATS, ROBOT MONSTER, MONSTER A GO-GO or THE CREEPING TERROR!!!!!!!

Oh, yeah, those headgear electrodes serve more than one purpose!! Interesting, you turn 'negative' when you get shocked by them!

Poetry in motion!!.. The space guys bring the three monsters back to Earth to help them take it over, after they secretly took control of Godzilla and Rodan!

Earth brings out THE BIG GUNS!!

HEY, BA-BIT!..

Anyway, we turned up the volume on these space creeps and sent them back to space hell, where they belong!!

Here's a little bonus for your viewing pleasure!

THE MIGHTY GORGA - Charles Walden - "Stock Music" (1969)

Yes, Mildred, of course there is a Santa Claus!! Whaddaya thinkin'? And his real name is "The Mighty Gorga"!!!!

Anthony Eisley does another one of his remarkable, 'let me smoke a cigarette, and I'll do any scene you want' performances! Anthony is a perennial favorite around these parts, and you don't have to delve very deep into his list of titles to understand why! Starting right about 1966, Anthony had an almost unparalleled run of stinkers starting with "The Navy Vs. The Night Monsters," followed by "Journey To The Center Of Time" and "The Mummy And The Curse Of The Jackals!" That's like having the bases loaded, and you walk up to the plate, and knock it out of the park and into the parking lot with "The Mighty Gorga!" My word, what a movie, and Anthony is in there all the way!!

Anthony Eisley passed away in 2003, but his work will live on forever!!!!! What a sport!!

Anthony, Megan Timothy and Lee Parrish ponder the many hidden and subtle intricacies of the plot after he arrives at the zoo, I mean, in Africa!!

Using the zoo in L.A. for random shots of animals, and placing brightly coloured giant plastic flowers in strategic locations doesn't exactly make the mountain areas of California look like an African jungle, but you can't blame Anthony for that!!

Now, come on, doesn't this shot look pretty cool??

Mighty Gorga crashes the party!!!

You'd think with that big monkey chasing them around all the time, these natives would be in a little better shape! It was at this point, I really started doubting the authenticity of this film's historical value!

Time for another smoke!!!!

Gorga's big problem is his eyes don't move!!! That's pretty much it!!

The big eggs looked pretty real!!!

Arguably the worst dinosaur ever filmed!

Mighty Gorga A Go-Go as far as I can tell is nothing more than a massvie collage of music tracks put together by music supervisor Charles Walden! The last airy vibes and keyboards part is from another movie we've written about I know, with added jungle noises, but I just can't remember it right now. I thought it was Forry's scene in "The Time Travelers" but that isn't it. I'll figure it out one of these days, but in the meantime, the big show must go on!!! "The Mighty Gorga" is out there, and you really need to experience it in person to get the full effect!!!