THE FALCON TAKES OVER - "The Moose & Velma Show Part 04" (1942)

Tonight's Wednesday Weirdness is the fourth and what should be the final segment of shows based on Raymond Chandler's novel, "Farewell, My Lovely." I guess if I ever planned anything I would have done them in chronological order, but that's a different story!

Proving to be a very versatile story, "Farewell, My Lovely" is able to change lead characters at will. "The Falcon Takes Over" from 1942 was actually the first film version. Like the other three versions I've shown you, they take the basic story and cherry pick what details they choose to use!

I guess when you consider Raymond Chandler's methodology, it all makes great sense, since according to Wikipedia, Mr. Chandler liked to  cannibalize his own stories and "Farewell, My Lovely" was actually a combination of three of his other stories, "Try The Girl," "Mandarin's Jade", and "The Man Who Liked Dogs". 

 

It kind of all makes sense to me now how the filmmakers were able to pick and choose what parts of the story seemed pertinent to them in each case.

In the book, the story takes place is Los Angeles, but this version is set in New York instead!

It's a little ritzy for my tastes, but this looks like my kind of place!

Big mean Moose Malloy is played by Ward (Wagon Train) Bond in this version! 

Moose looks even bigger when you shoot from the ground up

The character of Moose is one of the few things that is a constant in all these films, but completely different in Chandler's novel. In the movies, Moose is a fairly dapper dresser, but in the book, he's described thusly!

"He wore a shaggy borsalino hat, a rough gray sports coat with white golf balls on it for buttons, a brown shirt, a yellow tie, pleated gray flannel slacks and alligator shoes with white explosions on the toes. From his outer breast pocket cascaded a show handkerchief of the same brilliant yellow as his tie. There were a couple of colored feathers tucked into the band of his hat, but
he didn’t really need them."

"Even on Central Avenue, not the quietest dressed street in the world, he
looked about as inconspicuous as a tarantula on a slice of angel food." - Raymond Chandler

And even though this Moose isn't dressed as flamboyantly as that description, he's still not dressed well enough to fit in with the crowd in this upper-crust club!

Moose picks The Falcon's unwilling buddy Goldy Locke to be his getaway driver!

Goldy is played by Allen (Singin' In The Corn) Jenkins. Allen was also Officer Dibble's voice in the "Top Cat" cartoon TV series!

First I read that Ward Bond was 6'6", but Google has him at 6'1" and IMDB says he was 6'2".

George Sanders was almost 6'3" himself!

The "lady with a face like a bucket of mud" is played this time by Anne (The Devil Commands) Revere.

A very young Ringo Starr makes an appearance as Marriot. Actually, of course, this is everybody's favorite piano teacher, Hans (Fractured Flickers) Conried!

Looks like you could expect Dracula to show up any second!

Lovely Lynn (The Amazing Mr. X) Bari has the role of Ann Riordan.

At least being a ravishing blonde was an accurate portray from the book for the role by Helen (Girls In Prison) Gilbert! Being beautiful wasn't enough for Helen, she was also a performing cellist!

The always mysterious Turhan Bey is the phony psychic Jule Amthor.

I couldn't find Allen Jenkins' height anywhere, but he looks like he was at least a foot shorter than Ward Bond!

Velma, Velma, Velma!

This gal has caused more problems lately!

George Sanders is always great as The Falcon Gay Lawrence, but he's not so good as filling Philip Marlowe's shoes. George Sanders is so proper and debonair, I don't think they were able to use even one line of Philip Marlowe's. Forgetting all that, and adding the fact that it's a comedy of sorts, it's still a fun movie to watch on it's own. Just don't try comparing it to the other versions!

DEVIL DOG: The Hound Of Hell - 1979

Welp, gots a weird one for you today, it's a TV movie directed by Curtis Harrington with a big cast of stars. The story's about a devil cult that forces a female dog to give birth to ten pups fathered by the devil, if you can process that...

Tons of stars including Richard (WAIT UNTIL DARK) Crenna, Yvette (THE TIME MACHINE) Mimieux, Kim (RETURN TO WITCH MOUNTAIN) Richards, Ike (ESCAPE TO WITCH MOUNTAIN) Eisenmann, Lou (THE OTHER) Frizzell, Ken (THE SEVEN UPS) Kercheval, Martine (DR, JEKYLL & SISTER HYDE) Beswick and more. Curtis Harrington directed six shorts between 1942 and 1956 and got his break in 1961 when he directed his first feature film, NIGHT TIDE.

The Barry's are a happy well to do family in LA. Daughter Bonnie wants a dog for her birthday or something, so, she picks up a pup from a weird dude out in the country...

The dog's name is Lucky, here he is after a year or so, he watches Mike, the dad, as he works on the lawnmower. The dog hypnotically tries to force Mike to stick his hand into the turning blade! Hmmm, wonder if there's a problem here...

This scene shocked me, mom's snooping around in one of the kids' rooms, they have both been acting strangely lately. She sees a drawing that creeps her out, when, Bonnie and Charlie show up with Lucky. They say things like "I said, what are you doing sneaking around in here?!" and "Leave my things alone. Get out of my room and forget all about this. I mean it!" Lucky licks Charlie's hand and the kids turn all nicey-nice, oh, we're sorry, we had just sat on a tack and were all angry and the such... We love you!

Yvette's still hot 19 years after The Time Machine, but, she plays a royal bitch after the Devil Dog gets control over her. The stuff she says to Mike, wow.

Then, the kid's principal is a target because he's concerned they have turned into sadistic bullies at school. The Devil Dog pays him a visit one night, the man runs into the street trying to get away, he's hit and killed by a passing car...

Dad decides to do some snooping of his own in the attic and is baffled by what he finds.

He also finds a drawing in blood, he turns around to see what had once been his adoring family. They all have some choice words for him...

Mike goes to see a lady that know a lot about the occult, she fills him in on a bunch of stuff, like, how to tell if a person is possessed by the devil. Bonnie is definitely possessed!!

So, Mike heads to Ecuador by himself to find some answers to his problem.

This dude just wanders into the scene, and for some reason, he knows why Mike is there in Ecuador. Mike gets the same tattoo on his palm that the old man has, but whyever for?..

Back home now, Mike gets access to an industrial facility (obviously for effect, I mean, you could fight a freakin' Devil Dog in a vacant lot!). Cool damn place though!

Once inside, it's not long before the Hound of Hell shows up to dispose of measly lil' Mike!

But remember that ding-danged tattoo, he holds up his hand and creates a counter force to the monster's ominous power.

He touches the thing and it starts burning the Hell out of itself until it evaporates... The spell is broken and the family's normal again, but Charlie asks dad, what about those other nine pups?!.. Okay then, here we go with another month of thrills, here at The Dungeon!!..

THE NEW MIKE HAMMER - "Harlem Nocturne" (1986)

This Saturday Night Special is the continuing story of how many times can they make one good story into a movie or TV episode. This episode of "The New Mike Hammer" show from season three in 1986 was titled "Harlem Nocturne" and even though they give absolutely no credit to Raymond Chandler, the story is obviously still based on Chandler's "Farewell, My Lovely!"

So instead of the main character being Philip Marlow, the role has now been turned over to Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer, and Mickey along with Director Ray Danton, don't seem to have a problem taking credit for it!

The "Moose" character in this version is called Malachi 'Bubba' Crown, and he's played by 6'6" Samm-Art Williams!

Mike Hammer is played by Stacy (Nebraska) Keach!

Besides being an actor, Samm-Art Williams was also a writer and a producer. He was the executive producer on both "Martin," and "The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air."

This story wouldn't exist without some bars, so this time it's "The Three Deuces".........

.........And Dixie Wells' Club!

This hooker named Peaches is played by Marguerite (The Incredible Hulk, The Powers Of Mathew Star) DeLain.

Bubba's looking for his girlfriend Bess Irwin, but the bar she used to sing in is now a strip joint and there's no more singing going on!

You gotta just love a good shot of a disco ball!

She might be Big Mama Vibes here, but for ten years and 253 episodes, Isabel Sanford was Louise Jefferson on "The Jeffersons,"

Same as the original story, Big Mama gives Mike Hammer a picture of the wrong woman to look for!

Ernie (Ghostbusters) Hudson is a record producer known as Digger Love!

Just like in the original story, there's a string of murders in an attempt to hide what's really going on, and Digger Love is just another one of the victims!

For a little while it seems that his episode of  "The New Mike Hammer" is nothing more than a music video for one the greatest, and most soulful jazz guitarists of all time, George Benson!

George has the role of a blind recording artist named Sweet Billy Marvel! Besides music videos, George was only ever in another Mike Hammer episode and as one of the many 'Our Guests At Heartland' in the "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' movie along with people like Jack Bruce and Donovan, just to name a couple.

Lynn (Josephine Baker) Whitfield has the role of Bess Irwin who is now Billy Marvel's wife Delia, and although she looks as sweet as candy, she's not somebody to be trifled with!

Big kudos and mucho thanx to Scott Lovrine for leaving a comment on "Farewell, My Lovely," and bringing this to our attention!

It's not the greatest copy in the world, but you can watch this episode of "The New Mike Hammer" on YouTube!