TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED Season 03, Episode 09 - "The Party" (1980)

Tonight I've got a post-Christmas 1980 episode of "Tales Of The Unexpected" for you! It's not much of a Christmas story, so I don't feel bad that your present is late!

Roald Dahl was all but done with the show at this point, and is no longer the narrator!

It's simply called "The Party!"
The brilliant actor Robert Morley could probably have easily done this solo as a one man stage act, and it might have actually been more entertaining!

Western civilization was at it's zenith in 1980!

You're never going to go wrong with girls and gambling. It has absolutely nothing to do with the show except that it's unexpected!

Here's the deal: Robert Morley has worked for the same toy company for 40 years, and every year he's in charge of the Christmas party, but this year, he's getting usurped by the youth in the company who are throwing a disco dance party the night before his party, and stealing all his thunder!

He goes to talk to the boss about it, but by looking at this picture, it won't take much to see how far he's going to get with that! The boss is a little self-consumed!

Robert goes to check out the location of the other party and figures out that it's a banquet, not a disco! There's going to be a company merger, and he's not going to be invited to come along, so he gets a little bitter, and sloppy.....

.....And sort of accidentally starts the whole place on fire!

Robert gets a big stick in the eye when he finds out that he was wrong, and that it was a surprise Anniversary party for him that he ruined!

What a Mamón! What a Maroon!! What a Morley!!!

XTRO / Amalgamated Film Enterprises - 1982

We gots a weird one today, actually, one I saw when it came out. I didn't really dig it. The story goes like this... Tony, a small boy, is out playing in the yard with his father, Sam, when, a bright light appears in the sky and Sam is abducted by aliens. Three years pass, and, Sam returns to Earth and seeks out Tony and his wife, Rachael, but, Rachel has since been living with a photographer and the reunion is nothing less than awkward. And, Sam is not the same person he was when he disappeared and he's affecting Tony in frightening ways!

I was collecting Famous Monster magazines again (I eventually had a complete set!) but sold them all on eBay starting in 1998. They helped me fund THE CREEP in 1999 when we started production...

Three years after Sam's abduction, a UFO crashes into the countryside and a weird creature digs its way out of the dirt and starts creeping around! What in the Hell!

A couple are driving at night and run over the thing as it's crossing the road. You can see how they fit the person in the monster suit, such a strange idea!

Well, anyway, the driver goes to check the condition of the thing and... C'mon!.. we all know what's going to happen to the stupid idiot! He deserves it.

Later, XTRO attacks this poor lady and I guess, has sex with her! The good old eighties!

Anyway, she balloons out to a record size (Wowsers!!) and gives birth to...

Freakin' Sam, he's back! He grabs a fast shower to get the funk off and then heads off to find wifey and sonny boy...

After locating his loved ones, Sam quickly bonds with Tony. Snakes are now a big fascination with the two for some reason, twists and turns at every corner.

Are you ready for a tasty snake salad surprise?!... Not me!!

Then, this evil little clown shows up with his spinning, mayhem light. He causes a lot of problems including creating this life sized Army action figure with fully working rifle.

The close ups are gross, but, that's a woman whose only job is to lay rubbery alien eggs! There is also an evil egg retriever and the story goes into 'way too many turns' overdrive!

Now it's time to steal a scene from CLOSE ENCOUNTERS, you know, why the Hell not?!...

Sam takes Tony's hand as the boy decides to go away with pops. It really ain't that bad onest you's get used to it!

Mom's left back on Earth to tend to the eggs, but, she gets the works instead! We have three more posts for 2016, so, check back as we close out the year!!..

THE MONKEES - "The Christmas Show" (December 25, 1967)

Happy Holidays, and welcome to the beginning of this Christmastide!

The Monkees had a pretty good show that ran two seasons from 1966 to 1968! For the most part, they're pretty stupid, but when you consider they were pumping them out once a week, it's pretty remarkable! This Christmas Show was from season two, episode 15, and was originally broadcast on Christmas day 1967! It looks like they live in "Pebble Beach!"

The story is about a snotty little rich kid named Melvin that the boys get conned into babysitting! Melvin doesn't like Christmas, and he doesn't like having fun! 

Melvin is played by Butch (Eddie Munster) Patrick!

In an effort to entertain Melvin, the boys try different things like going out to chop down their own Christmass Tree, but Mickey gets a poison ivy rash instead.

Peter goes on an unintentional joyride in a big department store on a Moped!

Davy gets to top a tree for the first time in his life, but topples the whole thing over at the same time!

Melvin is not entertained by the Monkees antics one bit, and goes back home where through a series of flashbacks of the way things could have been, he breaks down and sobs, and decides he needs to learn how to have fun!

Merry Christmas!!

Mickey and Davy try one last time to get Melvin to cheer up by going down his chimmney dressed as Santa Claus and an Elf! The timing is right and Melvin learns the joy of happiness!

After all the zaniness comes to a halt, the boys do a lovely accapella version of the mid 1500's Spanish folk song " Ríu Chíu!" The song was arranged by photographer extraordinaire Henry Diltz, Chip (Turtles, Monkees) Douglas, Cyrus Faryar, who was the narrarator on the whack 1967 album, "The Zodiac: Cosmic Sounds," and also was a producer with The Firesign Theatre! That elevates him to the next level in our book, and Jerry Yester of "The Lovin' Spoonful Fame!" All four of them were also members of The Modern Folk Quartet!

I don't really like all this talking about rebuilding arsehole nuclear arsenals!

What this world really needs is:

PEACE and Love!!!! 

Actually my favourite part of the whole show was during the ending credits where they bring the whole crew out on stage!

It seriously looks unscripted, and like........

........They were all having a whole lot of fun!!

It's good to see a large group of people clowning around!!

Oh, Yeah, and don't forget, 

PEACE OUT!!

They even bring out the Monkee Girls from the office!

Merry Christmas everybody!

I hope you're all having just as much fun as these people are, and if not, well, then get with it, you're running out of time!