KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER / "Primal Scream" - 1975

Here's a series I used to watch a lot in the seventies, loved it. Darren McGavin stars as Carl Kolchak, Simon Oakland plays newspaper boss Tony Vincenzo, John Marley plays Captain Maurice Molnar, with guest stars Pat Harrington Jr., Katherine Woodville and Jamie Farr.

This episode is about an arctic oil-drilling expedition that unearths some strange organic matter, cells which begin to spontaneously multiply. When the cooling unit in their storage facility fails, the cells grow into a violent and deadly life-form, a murderous ape-man! Kolchak plans on writing about the murder, but the details are being blocked by the authorities. And, it seems that pressure from the corporation which sponsored the drilling is threatening Kolchak's investigation!

Here's Kolchak, he helps a woman carry her fern into the hospital in order to interview Dr. Helen Lynch, part of the research team that were storing the cells. She was in a car accident, and, Kolchak was ordered to stay away from her. He gets some important info.

It's not long before this pretty boy is attacked and killed by the on the loose ape-man!

Kolchak heads out to see what all the hubbub's about. It's all about the ape-man, of course?

Then, Carl goes to see Jack Burton (a reoccurring character) to get a little lesson in the evolution of man. Hopefully, it answers some question about the creature for our reporter...

Kolchak gets a lead about the whereabouts of the ape-man, he finds a door decorated by hippies so he knows he's at the right place.

Kolchak's in the sewer system wouldn't you know! He gets a few surprises, like bats, as he searches for his illusive ape-man!

He comes across a dead woman, and then, he sees the ape-man coming at him!

Kolchak tries to calm the thing, and it's working! Well, until...

The police show up and start shooting away at the ape-man. Holy crap, they shoot the poor guy without even trying to capture him!

Our hero pulls out his recorder and we learn that the police shot the ape-man with tranquilizer darts, and, he was taken to a research facility for study! Hey, check back on Wednesday for more cool junk, just for you, here, at The Dungeon!

MY FAVORITE MARTIAN - "Pilot Episode" (1963)

Tonight's Saturday Night Special is locked and loaded!

I was going to do another movie that featured Ray Walston tonight, but it got me to thinking that we never have discussed the show "My Favorite Martian" before, and since it was one of my favorite shows during my formative years, I thought it was about time.

This is Episode 01 of the first series, and it aired on September 29, 1963!

This portrait of Ray Walston was part of the opening titles sequence.

On the left is the intoxicating Ina Victor as Annabelle, and the amorous Ann Marshall as Angela Brown is on the right!

Something has gone awry at Space Central!

Long before "The Courtship Of Eddie's Father," and "The Incredible Hulk," Bill Bixby was Tim O'Hara in 107 episodes of "My Favorite Martian."

 It's hard to believe that he only lived to be 59 years old!

Among his many other accomplishments, Bill was also OOD in "The Twilight Zone" episode titled "The Thirty-Fathom Grave."

Tim discovers the Martian's crashed spaceship, and decides to take the injured Martian back to his home to recuperate.

They don't know how to sneak the Martian in, so this is the first time he reveals the extendable antennas in his head that can make him turn invisible!

Tim tells the landlady that he is just doing a charade of carrying an invisible man, and she falls for it!

Ray Walston is The Martian! 

Ray is different! He's a character, he knows it, and he uses it, and he's very good at it!

Ray had 155 amazing credits spanning from 1954 to 2001, the year he passed away!

He was one of a kind!

Someone posted on IMDB that this story line was actually based on a true story of a real UFO event recorded by Time Magazine July 27th, 1962 when a Major White test flew the X-15 at supersonic speeds and claimed he saw a UFO out the window.

The Feds want to know where Tim got his confidential information and haul him off to the hoosegow, so he says good-bye to Uncle Martin just in case he leaves before he gets out!

Martin visits Tim while he's incarcerated, and almost gets caught when two voices are heard so he turns invisible, and Tim pretends to be throwing his voice like a ventriloquist!

After the ordeal is over, Uncle Martin tells Tim that he might be around for a while, because he needs some stuff to fix his spaceship, some of which has not even been invented yet!

Tim tells Martin that it sounds expensive, and Martin tells him how he just found out about a fascinating place called Las Vegas!

Who knows what a man can do that can read minds and get inside the heads of horses?

"My Favorite Martian" was on TV from 1963 to 1966!
The funniest thing is that in the Ray Walston movie I'm going to tell you about on Wednesday, he lives in a small town on a back road to Las Vegas, and it was filmed in 1964. It's kind of hard to watch and still not see him as The Martian who lost his memory, and all his powers and his money, and ended up in Climax, Arizona!

POPEYE THE SAILOR In "Wotta Nitemare" - 1939

Today's treat is a classic Popeye cartoon, in this one, Popeye is having a dream where Bluto takes Olive on a picnic in the clouds. Even though it's Popeye's dream, Bluto has the upper hand until Popeye pulls out his spinach!

Popeye's having a dream and he's acting out as he tries to get comfortable...

In his dream, he's with Olive in a heavenly surrounding. All is fine until Bluto drops in, he persuades Olive to go on a picnic with him, Popeye can bring the food along. Love Bluto's devilish costume!

On the way to the picnic, a steam roller shows up and collides with Popeye, whose feet are glued down! The steam roller turns into butterflies, confusing our hero.

Back on Earth, Popeye has destroyed his pillow and feathers fill in for the butterflies.

At the picnic, Popeye can't get one bite to eat and is getting frustrated. Even Jeep gets to eat!

While Bluto is choking Popeye in the dream, Popeye is actually choking himself on his bed!

It just keeps getting worse for Popeye, finally, facing the giant laughing head of Bluto, he gets knocked off the cloud...

On his way down, he grabs for his spinach, but, he keeps getting the wrong vegetable!

Finally!!.. He grabs hands full of good old spinach and chomps it down.

As he is actually eating mattress stuffing, a spring hits him in the chin, waking him up!

Still a little confused, he says... Bluto can't get away with this!! He runs down the street and finds Bluto smoking a cigar. Popeye starts swinging and Bluto gets the full force of Popeye's nitemare! Tune in tomorrow when Eegah!! will fill this slot!