BATTLE OF THE WORLDS / Astounding! Awesome! Fantastic! - 1961

Here's a redo from a 2007 post which only had 3 pics! Also, it's a movie Eegah!! and I saw together way, way back in 1961 at the good old Sierra Theater, where, we'd roll down the aisles whenever we got bored! A great way to impress the girls... This story's about a runaway asteroid dubbed "The Outsider" that mysteriously begins orbiting the Earth and threatens it with severe weather and deadly flying saucers!

London born Claude Rains stars as Professor Benson, I take it that he's an American scientist living in space age Italy (wow, what a concept!). Claude only had 78 acting credits but they include THE INVISIBLE MAN, THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD, THE PRINCE AND THE PAUPER, THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD, MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON, THE WOLF MAN, CASABLANCA, PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, NOTORIOUS, THE LOST WORLD and more!

Here's Professor Benson, he's a busy guy, lives in his own little world, and, he doesn't like people!! But, a huge asteroid is headed this way and is on a collision course with Earth and the other scientists (who he really hates) come begging for his help!! He finally gives in but not before he humiliates them X to the 9th power!

In the meantime though, Earth's rockets and pilots are being pummeled in space by the asteroid's saucers and gravitational fields!

Then, we start doing the same thing to the alien saucers, this one here crashes but good.

As the Outsider gets closer and closer to Earth, the weather gets as bad as it can get!.. And, if you need to go get a pack of smokes, well buddy, good luck getting to a 7-11 in that!..

The Outsider has gone into orbit around Earth exactly at the distance the professor had predicted. So, he demands that he go with the space crew on a mission to land on the asteroid's surface! They land safely.

Of course this is a sixties Italian production, just look at those Euro designer spacesuits!

The professor uses one of his gadgets to open a portal into a system of super weird pink tubular caves. As they explore, they come across what the professor says are the long dead aliens, but, you can decide for yourself what that stuff is!

Then, the crew gets the word from Earth to get to their ship and head back asap! Nice shot, I'd have to believe that the art director was on some pretty good drugs!

Of course, the professor finds the Outsider's brain and starts chatting with it, holy crap, he's finally found something that truly understands him!!!..

Anyway, the crew blasts off without the professor, he has elected to stay behind with his new found friend! Then, nuke-filled Atlas rockets from Earth bear down on the asteroid and completely annihilate it to smithereens (great word). THE END!.. So, check in again tomorrow for another Dungeon Treat for your bag!

INTIMATE INTERVIEWS - "Bela Lugosi" (1931)

It's a Welcome Wagon Wednesday down in The Dungeon, and I've got a special little gift for you called "Intimate Interviews" that was a series of three short films made in 1931. Each of them lasted about six minutes, and beside this one, there was an interview with James Cagney, and one with Walter Huston!

A short casual interview with Bela Lugosi is just about as cool as you would expect it to be!

The interviewer was a New York gal named Dorothy West.

Bela explains to Dorothy that he is from Hungary, and that he liked becoming an American citizen, because "It's nice to live in a country where people mind their own business."

He also tells her that he's working on learning American slang, like the word "Baloney!"

When she asks him if he goes to a lot of parties, he tells her "No, because I don't know how to play the ukulele!"

He shows her a picture of himself as Dracula on stage!

Then after being this warm and friendly guy..........

................Bela starts talking and looking weird!

Dorothy gets spooked, and turns and runs away!

Bela cracks up, and it's just cool to watch him laugh!
It's just a short interview, so whenever you need a shot of six minutes of feel good, just follow this link!

Bela Lugosi Interview
And while you're there at The Archive, go check out the latest radio show offerings from Lord Litter, since he was the guy who found this interview for me and you in the first place!

THE WITCH'S MIRROR / Cinematográfica S.A., Producciones ABSA - 1962

I had this DVD up for sale and realized that we had not done this title yet!! So, here we go... A husband murders his wife, and years later, her ghost emerges from a witch's mirror to take her revenge on him and his new wife! Now, that's one tasty double bill poster, eyeball poppin'...

It stars Rosita (THE AZTEC MUMMY AGAINST THE HUMANOID ROBOT) Arenas, Armando (ORLAK, THE HELL OF FRANKENSTEIN) Calvo and Isabela (EL BASTARDO) Corona.

This is Sara, she's a real bitch.. err.. witch! Her powers are lethal.

She sets this hexagram (?) on fire with her devil dust to prove her point!

And, she has a mirror, but, not just any mirror... A Witch's Mirror!! You go girl.

Edwardo (the dude that killed his wife) and his new wife Deborah, show up to his place (where Sara lives) after the wedding. Freaky shit is happening with the mirror and Edwardo sees his dead wife in it, and, he's starting to come unglued!

He gets so upset with the situation that he throws a wine bottle into the mirror! Then, Deborah becomes engulfed in flames!!! (huh?) That's her there before Edwardo eventually puts her out. What's a little weird is that when they show her burned face and hands, her hair is untouched by the fire!.. It looks great! Just look at those goddamn flames, what the HELL!!!

So, who knew Edwardo was an artistic genius?! He starts with a skull and ends up with a new face for Deborah using skin grafts from imprisoned women in the basement!

Deborah just wanders around the place, Edwardo promises he will restore her beauty...

I love old neon signs, like this one for a funeral home, so cool! But, I remember going with a friend (not Eegah!!) to a small town near where we lived and we'd shoot out neon signs with BB guns, stupid fucking teenagers!

Here's a weird shot of Edwardo's basement lab... Does that woman in the closet even have a head?.. Or, is that her head on the left?! I'm confused! What's with the fridge, got any sodas?

Sara wants to crow like an old bat, she's causing so much trouble for Edwardo that she can't control her emotions, revenge for his dead wife is so damn sweet you know!..

Edwardo grafts new hands on Deborah, later, he unveils his successful operations, she's now fully recovered from the burns! So, what could go wrong?..

Well, just about everything!! First, Deborah stabs Edwardo in the back while embracing him! He dies... Then, Deborah's grafted hands fall off and start crawling around, leaving her with her burned ones! Her face eventually falls off, revealing her ugly burned mug. And, she can't believe she just killed her husband... Rickyyy!..

Of course, the cops finally show up! Man, what a cool shot.

One of Deborah's crawling hands pulls the knife out of Edwardo's back and actually commits another murder before this wild story ends! We're back Wednesday with another post selected just for you'se all, so, check it out, or...