TARANTULAS: The Deadly Cargo / Alan Landsburg Productions - 1977

Welp, here's a TV movie about an airplane carrying coffee beans from South America that has some creepy little stowaways, you know, the title... Tarantulas!! The plane crashes near an orange-producing town in California and the cargo of poisonous spiders escape, causing much tumult, screams and death... Like, in the poster!

I have a sound clip for your approval, sooooo, you can push the big red 'GO' button located there by our tarantula cage, NOW, Ralphie The Tarantula!.. Here's a little sample from... TARANTULAS: The Deadly Cargo!

Here's the classic plane carrying the deadly cargo, a good old DC-3 Gooney Bird...

But, during the flight, a bunch of the tarantulas escape from their bags and bite the Hell out of all the crew members.

The plane crashes and the locals in the agricultural community go out to survey the situation.

It stars Claude Akins, owner of the local packing warehouse. He's out there with the rest of the stars milling around... Claude played a lot of sheriffs in his career, he was also General Aldo in BATTLE FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES.

Pat Hingle plays the doctor, another familiar face from the world of TV.

This dude arrives to show off his new CAT cap when one of the little critters sez, hey!

The tarantulas are loose in the countryside and trying to get friendly with some of the girls!

Here's a shot for Eegah!! His first job back in the early sixties was working at a potato packing house... Looks like it's break time!!

Anywho, the guys risk their lives to get rid of the tarantulas from the warehouse. Get this, apparently, the little pests are rendered motionless by the transmitted sound of buzzing bees!

WILL IT WORK??!.. Tune in again on Wednesday when we submit our last post for September!

THE DEADLY MANTIS / Universal International Pictures - 1957

It's Monster Redo Monday with Tabonga, here at The Dungeon!.. In the fifties, Universal pretty much led the way into the atomic age with some of their big bug movies like this one and TARANTULA, both of which, again, I was lucky enough to see at the theater at the time!

Eegah!! sent over a musical soundclip from the flick, sooooo, you can push the big red 'GO' button there next to the atomic ant farm, NOW, Ralphie The Tarantula! Here's our audio offering for... THE DEADLY MANTIS!

Here's an interesting shot of the different radar networks in use at the time, to warn of a nuclear attack from Russia, for real. I vividly remember numerous squadron formations of low flying B-36's around 1952, patrolling up and down the west coast on their way to the arctic and back! Pretty amazing for a little kid to see.

Craig Stevens plays Colonel Parkman, he's found this odd looking thing at an outpost where there was total destruction. Now, the military has the fun job of identifying it... "Hmmm, looks like some kind of chocolate nuget.. Sanderson, get yer ass over here and taste this!"

If a real I-Phone person of today were to be sent back to this time, they would probably flip out and commit suicide!

Is this a freakin' teriffic shot or what?!..

This is the scene where the boys put a 45 on the phonograph and start swinging out to the tune, that is, until sultry Alix Talton enters the room. Then, Mr. Obnoxious (with pool cue) opens his big yap, as heard in the soundclip.

The Deadly Mantis gets a face full o' fire!

The Colonel goes on TV where he explains the scale of the monster to the public!

I lived in the town where this bus driver mysteriously disappears in the fog!

There are some really nice visuals in this movie.

A single fighter pilot finally brings down the mighty menace!

The Colonel shows up to take charge of the situation, the big bug's wounded and has taken refuge in the Manhattan Tunnel.

It wasn't his fault!..

LET'S KILL UNCLE / William Castle Productions - 1966

Welcome to Friday Night Drive-In with Tabonga, here at The Dungeon!.. William Castle gets plain weird in the sixties, this, SHANKS and PROJECT X are good examples of that weirdness. Based on a novel by Rohan O'Grady, the story's about a 12-year-old boy who has just inherited his father's fortune and is trapped on an island with his famous uncle, a former British intelligence commander who intends to kill him in order to get his hands on the inheritance himself...

William Castle gives himself a choice cameo as the accident victim at the beginning of the movie, the dead millionaire industrialist, Russell Harrison.

The music is by the great Herman Stein, who had 101 composing credits that includes film titles like SON OF ALI BABA, CITY BENEATH THE SEA, ABBOTT AND COSTELLO GO TO MARS, IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE, CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, THIS ISLAND EARTH, TARANTULA, THE MOLE PEOPLE, THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN, THE LAND UNKNOWN and THE MONOLITH MONSTERS!

Lettuce bring in our littlest Dungeon helper and Friday Night button pusher, Rufus The Gnat!.. Howdy dort, Rufus! Let's get the ball rolling, so, push the big red 'GO' button, now, Rufus! Here's our Eariffic Soundclip for... LET'S KILL UNCLE, BEFORE UNCLE KILLS US!

From left to right... Pat Cardi as heir Barnaby Harrison, Robert Pickering as Sgt. Frank Travis, Mary Badham as Chrissie and the familiar Nestor Paiva as the ship's steward. They're on the way to the island.

Linda Lawson plays Justine, here, she tries to explain boys to Chrissie.

Bill would be remiss if he didn't add one of his extra strange characters to a production, this time it's Ref Sanchez as the creepy dude on a creeper, Ketchman! Ref also played Igor in EVERY THING YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT SEX * BUT WERE AFRAID TO ASK.

We like showing book covers, here at The Dungeon.

Chrissie and Barnaby go exploring the island. Mary was in TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD and a classic episode of TWILIGHT ZONE. Pat went on to be in BATTLE FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES and HORROR HIGH.

Well, if it isn't one hole, it's another!

I chose this still because I'm super alergic to bananas.

Chrissie runs out the door and falls directly into that mucked up pool, which is infested by sharks!! This mismatch of reality and images is like having someone spin you around and then sucker punch you right in the nose.

Ketchman is mysteriously there to help pull her out of the pool, just before a shark sinks it's teeth in!

Uncle finally joins the fun, flying in with his plane. Sadly, Nigel Green died at age 47 in 1972 from an overdose of sleeping pills. Go figure.

Anyway, before long, the real fun begins!

Uncle pretends to be poisoned, just for fun!

He also has a fun assortment of deadly weapons in his cabinet!

Ralphie The Tarantula even shows up for a fun little role as the spider!

This is how you milk an airplane!

And, we all know what happens when you run out of milk!

Got blood?!..

Uncle is also a master hypnotist and commands Barnaby to do some pretty weird things.

You'll have to see for yourself how it all ends, got this nice print off TCM!