[narfstar]

My wife and I are watching though Stargate SG1 and Atlantis. Great series we like Atlantis the best.

[profh0011]

 DRAGONWYCK

I've never seen this movie before... an interesting study in class struggle, and character dynamics... NOT a horror movie, but it has a look and feel that could easily be a warm-up for both the POE series, and DARK SHADOWS!

[Captain Audio]

I've been watching episodes of "the Champions" a sci fi/spy fi series from the late 60's.
I noticed something familiar about one of the characters. The main male lead looked suspiciously like Sterling Archer, in appearance and clothing choices, and the character's name is Craig Sterling.
I also noticed just how much the color and contrast of the filming and composition of the scenes resembled comic book panels. In fact the appearance very much resembles the style of the "Archer" animations.
I suspect that the creators of "Archer" were influenced by this old spy series.

[profh0011]

I remember liking THE CHAMPIONS on its brief run over here, then being baffled decades later when I ran across numerous reviews knocking the show terribly.

I also recall the show having in common with CAPTAIN SCARLET AND THE MYSTERONS in that they both had episodes where one of the characters spent the entire story being interrogated about past cases (what they call these days a "clip show"). The difference being, in CAPTAIN SCARLET, it was The Mysterons trying to get info about Spectrum, while on THE CHAMPIONS, it was HIS OWN people trying to find out the truth about some of his reports, which seemed to defy logic (due to all 3 heroes not being allowed to tell their own people the truth about their super-powers).

I'd love to see it again, mostly because one of the heroes was William Gaunt, who many years later played "Orcini" in "Revelation of the Daleks".

[jimmm kelly]

I used to watch THE CHAMPIONS back in the '60s when I was a kid. Some day, I'd like to watch the whole series again. The actor who played Craig Stirling was Stuart Damon. Apparently there was also a TV movie in 1983, but I missed that.

Damon appeared on GENERAL HOSPITAL for many many years as Dr. Alan Quartermaine--from 1977 to 2013. Quartermaine was a sanctimonious cad, but I think he may have mellowed in later years.

The thing I liked about CHAMPIONS was it showed how super-heroes could be done seriously and not just as objects of fun. At the time, in the '60s, the only super-heroes on TV were all rather campy and it bugged me that I couldn't get people to respect something that I valued so highly. But people could watch THE CHAMPIONS and take them seriously--probably because they didn't wear costumes.

[narfstar]

Never heard of the Champions it looks pretty good

[profh0011]

My FAVORITE Roger Corman film that he didn't direct...

ROCK AND ROLL HIGH SCHOOL  (1979)

"Do your parents KNOW you're Ramones??"

[Captain Audio]

About the Champions, I noticed that they were a lot more serious than run of the mill TV spy series when it came to bad guys killing anyone that got in their way, and the team seemed to accept sending others to their death with little remorse so long as it got the job done.
The character played by William Gaunt was down right brutal in eliminating some of the bad guys and seemed to delight in breaking mens arms or other body parts, or throwing them out a window to their death. He reminded me of the Movie serial Captain Marvel in the way he didn't hold back. In one scene he had just beaten the devil out of three men and when Craig Stirling showed up and said he would yie them up Gaunt said there was no need, either the men were dead or so badly injured they were no longer a threat.

[profh0011]

By a very wide margin, "Revelation of the Daleks" was the single best piece of work Eric Saward ever did no his far-too-long run on DOCTOR WHO.  Even so, many fans have complained about how "sick" and violent it is, along with the fact that the main characters hardly show up in the first half, and have ALMOST no real effect on the proceedings.  Saward just wasn't interested in writing "DOCTOR WHO"... so you wonder, WHY was he ever story editor on the show in the first place?  (Lot of sick, disturbing stuff going on behind-the-scenes on that show at the time.)

That said, "Orcini" (William Gaunt) was the COOLEST character to turn up on the show that entire season.  I love the bit where he and his squire hear a noise, he turns and STARTS FIRING his machine pistol before he can even SEE what he's firing at.  Result? One Dalek BLOWN to atoms. But on the down side, it shows just how screwed up Saward was that he would pointlessly KILL OFF the best character he ever created at the end of the story... and he didn't even succeed in killing the bad guy he was paid to go after!

In a saner TV universe, "Orcini" would have become a recurring character, turning up about once a season, to serve as a contrast between personalities and working methods of himself and The Doctor.  He was certainly far-better written than "The Master" (Anthony Ainley) was at the time.

[Captain Audio]

I found another similarity between Craig Stirling and Sterling Archer.
Due to his gift of super powers Craig Stirling is among other things a lightning calculator, Sterling Archer who someone described as borderline autistic has a similar rainman like ability to work complicated math in his head and automatically count every bullet fired by each participant in a gun battle and know exactly how many rounds each has left in his magazine.

[profh0011]

There was ONE review of "ZOMBIES OF THE STRATOSPHERE" at the IMDB that really spelled out and explained the bizarre nature of the serial.  I thought I'd pass it on here...

Commando Cody got beat out of a TV episode.
17 May 2006 | by Leslie Howard Adams (longhorn1939@suddenlink.net) (Texas)

The story/scenario for "Zombies of the Stratsophere" was originally written to be used as the fourth episode ( of the eventual twelve) of the Republic-produced "Commando Cody- Sky King of the Universe" syndicated television 1951-52 production season series. The studio unit that was doing the television series, under Associate Producer Franklin Adreon, was also doing the serials (for theatre distribution) and after the first three "Commando Cody" TV episodes were completed, then started production on "Zombies of the Stratosphere" prior to finishing the remaining nine Cody-TV episodes. On April 10, 1952, Adreon sent a memo to all Republic Pictures Corporation departments advising that certain character names in production number 133 (internal house number for the upcoming serial) have been changed as follows: Commando Cody becomes Larry Martin; Joan Gilbert becomes Sue Davis; Ted Richards becomes Bob Wilson; Mr. Henderson becomes Mr. Steele and Hank becomes Dick.

"Zombies" utilized stock footage from various Republic serials, features and one western; all of the 17 flying sequences of the airborn-wired dummy came straight from "King of the Rocket Men.", and the uranium-smuggling airplane sequence was lifted from the Roy Rogers western, "Bells of Coronado," which is why Clifton Young (as Ross)and Henry Rowland (Plane Heavy)show up in this serial. Larry Martin's space ship was recycled from "Radar Men from the Moon", while the Martians flew a new model (created for "Zombies")that featured a transparent bubble-gum turret housing a ray cannon atop the fuselage.

Republic contract-player Roy Barcroft is not seen in the serial but his voice was heard on the radio (chapters 1 and 11) and as dubs for Ross (chapter 4)and Tarner (chapter 7.) There was a fabricated "Introducing Leonard Nimoy" added to the opening cast-sheet when this film was colorized in the '90's, a bit of revisionism catering to Trekkies. Republic Pictures Corporation itself did not pass out "Introducing" credits to players listed ninth in the cast.

Filming started on April 4, 1952 and was completed on May 1, 1952. The budget (expected filming cost of the production) was $172,838 and the finished negative cost came in at $176,357, or slightly four thousand dollars over budget. These were the real numbers and, of course, do not fit the revisionist definitions of budget currently employed by some websites.

[profh0011]

It should have been so "simple".  They did 4 stories, it should have been 1 single series.  That's how I'm watching them-- pretending they were all ONE SERIES.  It makes more sense than what they actually did.

You had 3 sets of actors, and 3 sets of characters-- but not in the same 3 films.  Commando Cody is "introduced" in the 2nd one, yet there is NO proper "introduction" for him or his rocket suit.  Scenes in the 1st episode of "RADAR MEN..." make it painfully obvious it's a SEQUEL... but it's not (not really, sort of).


I suppose one can just shake one's head and figure, oh well, you can tell Republic was on their way down...   

[profh0011]

TO THE DEVIL... A DAUGHTER  (1976)
One of the very last films from Hammer before the studio went bankrupt.  This co-production with a German studio was their 2nd (and final) adaptation of a Denis Wheatley novel, but unlike the previous one, had almost nothing to do with the book.  That alone turned out to be the most "Hammer"-like aspect of the movie (the studio long had a habit of throwing the book away when they did so-called "adaptations"), as, in an attempt to update their image, virtually NOTHING of how the film looks or feels (including the choice of font in the opening & closing credits and the almost-total absence of any music score whatsoever) would ever remind anyone of a "Hammer Film".

Despite a confusing script-- which was constantly being written AS the film was shooting (I suspect this was the main reason star Richard Widmark was pissed off for the entire production and kept threatening to fly back to America) the film is generally workable and quite disturbing on a number of levels... until, the ending.  Oh dear.  Christopher Lee, playing one of his nastiest villains EVER (an excommunicated Catholic priest who still wears the outfit despite now running a SATANIC CULT), went on record in an interview decades ago saying the ending completely RUINED the film.  I waited to see what they did.  Apparently, after the film was finished, at the very last minute, the studio was worried that the CLIMAX, where Lee's villain runs thru a mystic circle and is VAPORIZED TO ASHES by a sudden bolt of lightning, was "too similar" to the ending of the earlier SCARS OF DRACULA... so they cut the shot out of the film.  As a result, Widmark escapes with the girl, and turns to see Lee has... simply vanished.  Roll credits.  WTF??  Apparently that piece of film has been LOST, preventing any chance of the film ever being "restored" to a more sensible form.  Sheesh.

From what I read, the film was a box-office success, but the financial deal Hammer made with the Germans to finance the film saw them make virtually NO MONEY off it, and after only ONE more film, they closed their doors...

Also in the cast are Honor Blackman (THE AVENGERS), Denholm Elliot (THE HOUSE THAT DRIPPED BLOOD), Nastassja Kinski (CAT PEOPLE), and Derek Francis (THE TOMB OF LIGEIA).


HERCULES IN THE HAUNTED WORLD  (1961)
Reg Park proves he's a far better actor (despite the dubbing) than Steve Reeves in his 2nd Hercules film.  This is the BEST one I've seen so far, as Herc must venture into the realm of Pluto to bring back a mystic stone that will (in theory) drive off an evil curse affecting the woman he loves and her entire city.  Mario Bava directs, and the film is a visual FEAST of colors not to be missed!!! Strangely, Christopher Lee as the main villain was dubbed by someone else for the English-language version.  You gotta wonder at the decisions of some people...

[jimmm kelly]

You probably know that all Italian movies were made without recording sound. Everything was dubbed in after all the scenes were filmed. Some directors would just have the actors count during filming. It didn't really matter, as long as their mouths were moving. The dialogue was put in after, so the actors really could have been saying anything.

This might be why Italian movies (both the great and the small) had so many foreign actors in them. Because there was no worry about language in making these movies. But, I would guess that the original actors were not always available once it came time in post-production to record dialogue for dubbing into the movies.

I think of this method of making movies as being like how Marvel made their comics--with Jack Kirby drawing everything first and then Stan Lee putting in all the dialogue.

While dubbed movies bug me (I like to hear the original actors, even if they're speaking in a language I don't understand), in the case of Italian movies it's not really a concern--as I know every version of an Italian movie (no matter what the language) is going to be dubbed. There's no such thing as an original language version, if you get my drift.

[profh0011]

It's STILL stupid NOT to get an English actor to dub his own voice for the English version.

And please don't bring up Marvel... the ONLY reason Stan Lee wrote dialogue was because he would NOT ALLOW his writers to write their own dialogue.  That way, HE could take credit AND PAY for the FULL writing job (and in addition, that way, make it look like a salaried employee had created everything-- so it would be "work for hire" and the company would then OWN everything.  It was IN NO WAY a "creative" move, or any kind of actual "collaboration".  Wholesale THEFT is more like it.)

[narfstar]

Does anyone else get aggravated when people do really stupid things in shows. Just watched Stargate Atlantis episode. The ship dropped its shields in battle to beam two of the stars onboard. Of course the hits they took nearly took out the whole ship. Of course if the ship had been taken out the two stars would have died also along with the entire crew plus loosing a very important battle ship. Yes it adds excitement to the story, but come on now... They at least would have gone to a little bit safer location before dropping shields. This kind of stuff happened a lot in the show and many others.

[crashryan]

Agreed, it would have been preferable for English-speaking actors to dub themselves. However a lot of those Italian movies, particularly the muscle-man features, were intended only for release in Europe, where the faded American stars still had some name-recognition value. The English versions were created later by an entirely different company. They probably had no contact with the American actors and likely didn

[profh0011]

"The ship dropped its shields in battle to beam two of the stars onboard."

How many times on STAR TREK did Kirk, on a planet, ORDER whoever he left in charge NOT to drop shields, and if necessary, GET OUT OF HERE and "Protect my ship!" ?

[profh0011]

I'd swear the same group of actors dubbed "HERCULES IN THE HAUNTED WORLD" who also did "SPEED RACER"-- and "MAD MAX" (the American dub)-- and the 3rd season of "STAR BLAZERS".

While watching "...HAUNTED WORLD", I laugherd at one point and said, "I could do a better Christopher Lee than this guy!"

[profh0011]

One of my favorite quotes...

"Why don't you let me do YOU? I could do you BETTER than you!"
--Paul Frees (to Rhodes Reason) while dubbing "KING KONG ESCAPES"


Paul Frees turns up in my "BUNNY ROGET" cartoons...
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jBulzZSA9-Y/T7z8Gu596pI/AAAAAAAACf0/3eRP0SotRKI/s1600/BUNNY+p006.jpg

[crashryan]

You're right, Prof. The Speed Racer crew--Paul Fernandez, Jack Curtis, Jack Grimes, and Corinne Orr--did a ton of stuff. In the animation field their work (alone or together) included Star Blazers. Marine Boy, and Galaxy Rangers. I don't know about Mad Max. Here's a dated but interesting article about them:

http://udel.edu/~mm/anime/speed/production/usa.html

I was amused to learn that Corinne "Spritle" Orr was the voice of the Snuggle bear. The two Jacks had distinctive voices and I've found them in the oddest places, for example on an educational record from the late 60s teaching kids about different jobs. One of the "kids" is a dead ringer for Speed's pal Sparky.

[narfstar]

Good point Prof. and Stargate makes a lot of Trek and other scifi references.

[profh0011]

I went to see MAD MAX when it first came out with my best friend Jim.  A little ways into the film, Jim commented about Max's superior on the highway patrol, saying, "So THAT's what he looks like!"  He had recognized the voice as one of the characters on SPEED RACER.  What he didn't realize was, the actor he was thinking of wasn't in the movie-- the entire movie had been dubbed INTO AMERICAN.  The distributor didn't think Americans could understand Australian.

MAD MAX was the #1 most successful film in Australian movie history at that point, so a sequel was a given.  But when MAD MAX 2-- which surpassed its predecessor in Australia-- got to America, the distributors felt that audiences might stay away, since the 1st one had more or less BOMBED at the box office.  So they changed the title... to THE ROAD WARRIOR.  (A much-better title, in my opinion!)  However, this time, they left the soundtrack intact-- so Americans got to hear Mel Gibson speaking in an Australian accent for the first time.

When MAD MAX turned up on cable, it was still the American dub.  That's the one I have on videotape.  At some point... the original version turned up on American TV.  But I'm not sure when that happened.

[profh0011]

The one time I felt it was a TRAGEDY that that group of actors was used, was the 3rd season of STAR BLAZERS.  In my mind, the voices used in the 1st and 2nd seasons were so completely identified with their characters, it just felt "wrong" and VERY distracting, especially considering the art and the MUSIC was still the same.  (Allegedly, the actors used for the 1st 2 seasons were "non-union"-- and the people distributing the 3rd season-- MANY years after the earlier ones-- didn't know how to contact any of them!  I would have thought after all these years, their identities would have been figured out, and that season could have been RE-dubbed... although I imagine the expense of doing that would be considered too much of a luxury...)

[Captain Audio]

Its a good thing the original voice actor for Optimus Prime was still around, I don't think the movies would have gone over nearly as well if another actor had voiced the main character.

Just ran across a cute little film on youtube. Its an ancient British sci fi film called "the Supersonic Saucer". What makes it special is almost all the characters are kids.
It reminds me of the various kid oriented sci fi books and comics we have discussed in the past.