[profh0011]

Once again, DO NOT READ THIS if you haven't seen the film and don't want plot points blown for you.

ON the other hand, if you've watched MURDER MY SWEET a dozen times already and still can't figure it out, read on...


: )


Henry

PS: There's lot more at the IMDB site in this one thread,  "Help! I'm confused!!!! Is there a coherent explanation anywhere!"





*****SPOILERS!!!!!*****





"I would love to know what happened!"

Me too.




"The key thing that Marlowe eventually discovers is that Ann's stop-mother, Mrs. Helen Grayle, is actually Velma Valento, the woman Moose has been looking for."

This is THE key piece of information that they hold back until nearly the end of the movie. The first time I got a sense of it in the film was when Marlowe, out of nowhere, tells Moose he's found Velma. WHA'... I didn't get that.

Sometimes it's fun, KNOWING a plot (after you've seen it or read it), to watch again, this time knowing in advance, and being able to piece everything together because you've seen it before. But NOT this time. KNOWING in advance who Velma really was, I STILL could not make heads or tails of this plot!!!




"When Marlowe sees Mrs. Florian making that phone call, she is calling Velma (Mrs. Helen Grayle) to let her know that a detective named Philip Marlowe is looking for her."

4 or 5 times I'vbe watched the film, I still didn't "get" that. What kind of screenplay was this, anyway?




"I certainly didn't catch all of that from watching the film."

Me either!




"Chandler built his plotline for the novel by combining three short stories he'd previously published in Blask Mask magazine"

Just like THE BIG SLEEP was based on 2 shorter stories. Did this guy have a shortage of story ideas?




""Ann Grayle" -- the stepdaughter -- doesn't exist in the book; "Ann Riordan," on the other hand, is a freelance writer who happens upon the scene after Marriott is murdered and takes an interest because her deceased father was a cop. Establishing this cinematically would have weighed down the continuity, however."

I found it ironic that the only version of this story that DID feature "Ann Riordan" was-- heh-- THE FALCON TAKES OVER.

I believe Ann Riordan also appeared in a couple episodes of the Powers Booth TV series, played by Kathryn Leigh Scott (one of my favorites!).




"I lost interest about 1/3 of the way through."

I keep hoping it'll make more sense on repeat viewings. Not so far.




"that scene at the Coconut Beach Club was a huge risk for Velma/Mrs. Grayle, if she knew that Moose was going to be there. If Moose had spotted her, that would have blown a few things wide open for her"

KNOWING Mrs. Grayle was Velma, that thought was going thru my mind, too. Moose showing up at that exact moment, she had to have gotten Marlowe there just so he'd be a target. I just wasn't sure why until in read this thread. (5 viewings of the film certainly didn't help. I'm not usually dense with mysteries like this...)




"It is possible that Velma/Mrs. Grayle wanted Moose and Amthor to get connected so that Moose might bump off Amthor, or even Amthor could have bumped off Moose? Just a thought... They were both problems to her."

A very good point. As it happens, Moose DID kill Amthor. It was funny how when Marlowe blurted that out, he realized he'd made a mistake, since Mrs. Grayle WANTED both Amthor and Marlowe out of the way.




"I remember reading once a really long time ago that Chandler said his plots were so confusing that sometimes even he wasn't sure what was going on with them - especially in the Big Sleep."

The irony, for me, is that the 1st time I saw thru THE BIG SLEEP-- the version with Robert Mitchum-- I had NO TROUBLE WHATSOEVER following every single detail of the plot. (Do you know, there are actually people online who COMPLAIN about that movie's plot being told in such a crystal-clear fashion???)


I'm really glad that amidst all the discussions about which Marlowe is best of which version of this story is best, that there was at least ONE thread actually discussing the "plot" (and I use that word loosely-- heehee).

[josemas]

Movie Night viewings-

A String of Diamonds-1926-Van Pelt-Rock-2 rls, A Dumb Romeo-1926-Van pelt-Rock-2 rls. Detective K-9-1926-Van Pelt-Rock-2 rls-  Three more films starring our favorite canine hero Fearless.

The Old Fashioned Way-1934-Paramount-   Hilarious W, C, Fields comedy feature.  Way too long since I last viewed this.

Blotto-1930-Roach-MGM-  Prohibition era comedy with Laurel and Hardy getting drunk (or at least thinking they are getting drunk).  Classic!

Der Golem-1920-   Great art direction in this German film take on the ancient Jewish legend.  Hadn't seen this for quite some time.

A couple of 1967 episodes from the second season of Batman (taken from studio masters!)-"The Black Widow Strikes Again" and "Caught in a Spider's Den"-  Tallulah Bankhead having a wonderful time hamming it up in one of her last roles.

Perry Mason-"The Case of the Libelous Locket"-1963-  A 6th season episode that was done while Raymond Burr was recovering from cancer surgery.  We only see Burr briefly twice (laying in bed) and the load of the acting is taken on by guest star Michael Rennie as a law professor solving the case.

Circus World-1964-  Big budget Samuel L. Bronston production (which probably looked much better on a Cinerama screen) has a lively cast (John Wayne, Rita Hayworth, Lloyd Nolan, Claudia Cardinale, Richard Conte) which can't quite overcome a mediocre script.

New Brooklyn to New York Via the Brooklyn Bridge (1899-Edison), New York City in a Blizzard (1902-Edison), Eastside Urchins Bathing in a Fountain (1903-Edison), Madison Square, New York (1903-Biograph), Ice Skating in Central Park (1904-Edison), The Skyscrapers of New York (1906-Biograph) and Over the East River-(1919-Ford Motor Co.)-all short doumenatry glimpses of New York from the late 19th and early 20th century.

plus more episodes of the 5th season of The Dick Van Dyke Show, our current serial The Son of Tarzan (we're about half way through it at this point) and we also recently started a Ric Burns documentary series New York (1999).

Watching stuff with the Lil Missus-

Despicable Me-2010-   Funny recent animated feature about battling bad guys.

The White Seal-1975-  Another Chuck Jones take on a Rudyard Kipling tale.  I didn't find this one nearly as engaging as Rikki Tikki Tavi.

Invisible Agent-1943-Universal-   This one is pretty much a straight adventure romp with Jon Hall in the title role tackling the Nazis!   Peter Lorre is on hand as a Japanese agent (and he thought he'd left those sort of roles behind with the Mr. Moto series).

The Invisible Man's Revenge-1944-Universal-  A return to form with Jon Hall (playing a different character from the previous film) out for revenge against those he feel has wronged him.

Battle in Outer Space-1960-Toho-  Fine special effects for the era.  Lots of neat battle scenes on the moon which looks like it was modeled on Chesley Bonestell's famous moonscape paintings.

Land of the Minotaur-1976-Crown International-  So-so Greek/British/USA co-production about pagan cult kidnapping victims for sacrifice.  Enlivened mainly  by Peter Cushing and Donald Pleasance in the lead roles and some interesting Greek location shooting.

The Creeping Terror-1964-Crown International-   Unintentionally hilarious super cheap sci-fi flick where the monster looks like a piece of carpet with hoses and other nick knacks attached to it.  Victims have to practically leap into the monster's "mouth" in order to be eaten.  I remember seeing this as a kid on World Beyond (our local weekend sci-fi television movie showcase for years) but I'm sure I didn't laugh so hard then.

Plus episodes of The Outer Limits (1963), Zorro (1958), Mad Men (2008), The Adventures of Sir Lancelot (1957), The Adventures of Isis (1975), The Munsters (1964), Hogan's Heroes (1965), and some Popeye cartoons from 1936 and Walter Lantz cartoons from the 1930s and 50s.


At the Theaters-

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2-2011-   Finally took the Lil Missus to see the final chapter in the HP saga.  I must say that I wish that they had started doing these two-part adaptations two or three movies back as the last few movies seemed so heavily edited down from their literary sources while this last did more justice to the book by being presented over two movies.

Captain America: The First Avenger-2011-  I really enjoyed this one and felt that they got a lot more right than wrong.  Looking forward to The Avengers next summer.

Cowboys and Aliens-2011-   Nothing special but a decent Summer movie with plenty of action.  Certainly a lot better budgeted than Charles Band's 1994 take on the same theme (Oblivion-Full Moon Entertainment).



This and That-

The X-Files:Fight the Future-1998-   Watched this just before starting the the 6th season of the show.

Captain America-1979 and Captain America II-1979-   As weak as I remember them from over three decades,  Now though they really scream 1970s TV at me-the editing, pacing, music, etc...

Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things-1972-  This film seemed to pop up perennially at the Phoenix drive-ins throughout much of the 1970s but (except for a one time stumbling onto a brief bit airing on late night TV) it always seemed to elude me until now.  It's very low budget but also pretty enjoyable.  The no-name actors do an overall good job and the script is actually rather fun

Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars-1938-Universal-   The second of Buster Crabbe's three FG serials isn't as well budgeted as the first and Jean Rogers (as Dale Arden) is not dressed anywhere nearly as sexy as she was in the earlier chapterplay either (which was certainly a disappointment to the many dads who took their kids to see the serial back in the day) but its still pretty fun Saturday morning stuff.

Battlestar Galactica (mini series and first season 2003, 2005)  Took me a while to get into this recent SyFy channel remake of the 1970s series (now airing weekends on BBC America) but they had me hooked about half way through the first season.

Outcasts (2011)   I never really warmed up to this sci-fi series which recently finished its 8 episode run on BBC America.  I may take a skip if its back for a second season.

The Inbetweeners (2010)  The third season of this Britcom was even raunchier than the first two (even with BBC America's bleaping and fogging) but still often funny.

Falling Skies (2011)  This 10 episode Steven Spielberg/TNT sci-fi production grew on me and I think I'll be back for next season if it's renewed.

Andy Barker P. I. (2007)   This was a short (6 episodes) NBC comedy series (co-created by Conan O'Brien) about a CPA/amatuer detective that was probably just a little too esoteric and off the wall to catch on with a general audience but I enjoyed it.

plus some odd ball 1930s cartoons from a collection called Cultoons!: Rare, Lost and Strange Cartoons.

Best

Joe

[bowers]

Well, last night was another episode of "Prof. Fred's Movie Marvels". This week's entry was "Teenage Zombies", featuring a slinky female evil scientist in skin-tight dress and bullet-bra, communists, a gorilla, a herd of dumb kids, and a sheriff with a REALLY bad wig! (And, oddly enough, no real zombies.) Sadly,  even all of the aforementioned elements could not save this picture. Two of the cast members did go on to make their marks in Hollywood , but not as actors. IMDB has some good trivia notes on this flick. Cheers, Bowers

[narfstar]

I never could get into the new Battlestar and gave up after the second season because it just was not FUN to watch. I watch to enjoy. I do really like Falling Skies and my wife even watches and enjoys it with me. I tried to watch Outcasts but it could not hook me. My wife and I do watch Alphas and it is enjoyable. Not as good as Skies. I enjoyed the old Flash seriels and the scantily women when I watched them some decades ago. I never saw Andy Barker but being esoteric makes it sound intriguing to me. Any remember Beans Baxter? I loved that early Fox show.

[josemas]

I never could get into the new Battlestar and gave up after the second season because it just was not FUN to watch. I watch to enjoy. I do really like Falling Skies and my wife even watches and enjoys it with me. I tried to watch Outcasts but it could not hook me. My wife and I do watch Alphas and it is enjoyable. Not as good as Skies. I enjoyed the old Flash seriels and the scantily women when I watched them some decades ago. I never saw Andy Barker but being esoteric makes it sound intriguing to me. Any remember Beans Baxter? I loved that early Fox show.

The new Battlestar is definitely grimmer than the old series and while I also wouldn't call it fun it is intriguing and has some interesting character development going on.  For me, at least, not everything I watch has to be fun.  Sometimes I watch for edification or other reasons.

Falling Skies is also somewhat grim (although a toned down Spielbergian sort of grim) but what I mostly like about it are the characters and their interaction (some good actors working on this show).

I'm also getting into Alphas.  Really enjoyed the most recent episode with Bill (very strong ex-F.B.I agent) and Greg (autistic young man with remarkable powers for tracking broadcast waves and such) teaming up to track down kidnappers and save a young woman.

Am also enjoying the second season of Haven but my favorite show this summer is the third season of Warehouse 13.  Now that is a show that is really fun with great character interaction and occasionally some intriguing ideas!!

Best

Joe

[narfstar]

Not everything I watch has to be fun but it has to at least leave not feeling down. BG got to be a total downer. I have tried to watch W13 and while I like some of the characters the overall show just does not grab me. I also lost interest in Haven. While I would like to know all the secrets they are not revealing enough. I figure like most of that type of show it will be canceled before all is revealed leaving PO'ed. Or like LOST leaving me feeling like I wasted all those years watching it. So I figure I might as well quit before I get too upset. I love the Greg character on Alphas. He brings a lot to the show. I can not over emphasize the need for good characters and characterization on any show. You can often put up with a lot of missteps if you like the people. All the episodes of Leaverage may not be gems but as long as they have Parker I will watch. The others characters are a winning group and individuals but ya gotta luv Parker.

[josemas]

Not everything I watch has to be fun but it has to at least leave not feeling down. BG got to be a total downer. I have tried to watch W13 and while I like some of the characters the overall show just does not grab me. I also lost interest in Haven. While I would like to know all the secrets they are not revealing enough. I figure like most of that type of show it will be canceled before all is revealed leaving PO'ed. Or like LOST leaving me feeling like I wasted all those years watching it. So I figure I might as well quit before I get too upset. I love the Greg character on Alphas. He brings a lot to the show. I can not over emphasize the need for good characters and characterization on any show. You can often put up with a lot of missteps if you like the people. All the episodes of Leaverage may not be gems but as long as they have Parker I will watch. The others characters are a winning group and individuals but ya gotta luv Parker.

I, personally, don't find the new BG a total downer as, even though they are in a very grim situation with things seeming grimmer all the time, they still struggle valiantly on, accomplishing scattered small victories and keeping the spirit of humanity alive.  Of course I still have plenty more episodes to go and it could get a whole lot worse.

Haven't watched Lost yet but may check it out someday on DVD as a number of people have recommended it to me.  I have heard though from several people I know that they didn't care for the finale.  Sorta the same reaction I heard from some people about The Sopranos (another series I may check out someday).

I tend to agree with you that Greg (on Alphas) and Parker (on Leverage) are probably the most appealing characters on those shows but it helps that they have a good cast of other characters to play off against.

Best

Joe

[profh0011]

I hope there aren't any *****SPOILERS!!!!!***** in what I'm about to say... Read (or avoid) at your own discression.



I had absolutely no intention of watching the new BATTLESTAR GALACTICA until my best friend just happened to mention when it was on, and that weekend I was feeling particularly down and not doing anything, so, I just sort turned it on. Oh GOD did it start out BAAAAAAAAAAD.

It's the closest thing in my experience to being mesmerized by a train wreck.  I kept watching.

Somewhere during the 2nd season (how did I ever get that far?) I suddenly noticed a very unexpected phenomena. The show was getting better. What I mean is, they had started out with every single character-- every one of them-- being unlikeable. But by the end of the 2nd season, due to the writing, there had been genuine character growth in every character I could think of. EVEN the villains were becoming more sympathetic, or at least, interesting.

It really was like a much more downbeat version of DEEP SPACE NINE (at least one of the main people involved in both).

I also noticed another phenomena. I began PREDICTING major points in the show. That realy flipped me out. It was like, I was on the same wave length as the writers. Something I had actually written in my own BG fan-fiction parody tribute many years earlier, turned up almost verbatim on the show (and my book had such a small print run, I can't believe anyone involved with the show ever read it).

When they got to the sequence with The Pegasus, I was really hooked.  Unlike the original Commander Cain, the one on the new show had allowed themselves to become totally corrupt and evil. And yet... even THIS character was given a chance, and actually started to redeem themselves. Except, they'd gone too far, and PAID for it.  Never thought I'd have regretted seeing THAT person get WHACKED.

It was bizarre-- and fascinating-- to see how story elements and ideas from the old show were reincarnated in the new one, often completely out of sequence. Like, after having skipped the original episode 3 (where Ray Milland tries to convince the refugees to stop running and settle down on a new "safe" planet"), they finally decided to do a variation on that story, beginning at the end of the 3rd season. And the 4th season (if memory serves) turned into a viscious sci-fi allegory for Iraq-- with the American Army "cast" as the CYLONS! (And some people complain that George Lucas put too much current politics into his later movies.)

Perhaps the high point of the entire series for me was when the Galactica returned to RESCUE the colonists from their new planet. It was shocking and possibly pointless what they did to the Pegasus, but the image of the Galactica pulling a very short space warp INTO the atmosphere of the planet, and the entire squad of Vipers launching right thru the flames of re-entry friction was probably the most exciting moment in the entire show.

Sadly, my cable got cut off and so far I have never seen the last season... and so I have been AVOIDING any discussion of it. I wanna be able to watch it someday, "cold", without knowing anything in advance.

Unfortunately, the episodes leading up to the last season, it seemed to me someone must have decided the show was beginning to get TOO "upbeat", and so they went out of their way to screw over certain characters, AGAIN, to no good purpose.


A big complaint, early-on, of the original BG was, you had this tragically downbeat premise, and yet the stories were played far too upbeat and silly. What always saved the old show for me was, just about EVERY character on it was extrememly likeable. While watching the redo, many times I found myself thinking, if only the old show had been written THIS good-- or, if only the new show had actors and characters I could actually care about more.

[profh0011]

The last few days...

THE BIG SLEEP  (1946)
MURDER MY SWEET
MARLOWE  (alias "THE LITTLE SISTER")
FAREWELL MY LOVELY
THE BIG SLEEP  (1978  /  my favorite Marlowe movie!!)


Somehow when Marlowe interrupts a potentially romantic scene to repeatedly ask the older Sternwood sister "What's Eddie Mars got on you?", it's a lot FUNNIER with Robert Mitchum than Humphrey Bogart.

Oh, by the way, MARLOWE actually gets my vote for the movie with the most impossible-to-follow plot.

[bowers]

This week Prof. Fred treated us to a double feature- "Attack of the Giant Leeches" ('nuff said) and a 1952 television adaptation of "A Connecticut Yankee" starring Thomas Mitchell as Hank and Boris Karloff as King Arthur. This was an episode of "Studio One in Hollywood", a popular anthology series in the earlier days of TV. I didn't even know any of these still existed. Even though Mitchell was a bit old for the role, he was still pretty good and Karloff is always a treat. This same channel is also airing a new local series, "Let's Watch A Movie". Featured this week was "Galactic Raiders"- sorry I didn't have time to watch it. Anyway, if you're on cable, check out the local access and college channels sometime. You never know what you might find! Cheers, Bowers

[josemas]

This week Prof. Fred treated us to a double feature- "Attack of the Giant Leeches" ('nuff said) and a 1952 television adaptation of "A Connecticut Yankee" starring Thomas Mitchell as Hank and Boris Karloff as King Arthur. This was an episode of "Studio One in Hollywood", a popular anthology series in the earlier days of TV. I didn't even know any of these still existed. Even though Mitchell was a bit old for the role, he was still pretty good and Karloff is always a treat. This same channel is also airing a new local series, "Let's Watch A Movie". Featured this week was "Galactic Raiders"- sorry I didn't have time to watch it. Anyway, if you're on cable, check out the local access and college channels sometime. You never know what you might find! Cheers, Bowers

The Lil Missus and I watched Attack of the Giant Leeches several years ago.  Not quite as low budget as the The Creeping Terror but pretty close and goofy fun in its own way.

There are actually quite a few episodes of Studio One that survive fortunately.  IIRC a number of kineoscopes of the episodes were found in some old shed at a Westinghouse (the sponsor of the show for many years) site some years ago and sent to one of the film archives.  Prior to that the majority of episodes were thought lost.  Other odd episodes have also turned up here and there prior to and since then. 
I've been working my way through a particularly nice collection of them that I got from my local library.  It contains about 20 episodes and features many name stars (Eddie Albert, Chester Morris, Art Carney, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Leslie Neilsen, Lee Remick, Ralph Meeker, Sal Mineo, Theodore Bikel, Jack Lemmon, Glenda Farrell, Eve Marie Saint, Cyril Ritchard, Berry Kroeger, Marsha Hunt, James Daly, Miriam Hopkins, Elizabeth Montgomery, Robert Cummings, Franchot Tone, Edward Arnold, Charlton Heston) and writers (George Orwell, Rod Serling, George Axelrod, Gore Vidal, Reginald Rose, William Shakespeare, George S, Kaufman, Ring Lardner, Emily Bronte).
The Lil Missus and I watched that Studio One episode of "A Connecticut Yankee" last year on an Alpha Video DVD collection of old TV shows.  Not bad but quite low budget.  Mostly interesting for seeing Karloff and Mitchell, IMHO.

Best

Joe

[paw broon]

Been watching online some old shows from my childhood. Highway patrol here:-
http://www.videosurf.com/video/highway-patrol-oil-lease-8604788

Man with a Camera:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUldgn-j3ck

Sea Hunt:-
http://www.videosurf.com/video/sea-hunt-mark-of-the-octopus-8598838

Johnny Staccato:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Td5gaxpRK0c&feature=youtube_gdata

[bowers]

Thanks for the heads up on those old episodes,Joe. I'll be looking for them. Also thanks to Paw for the links to "Man with a Camera" and "Johnny Staccato". Haven't seen those in years. I actually get to watch  "Highway Patrol" and "Sea Hunt" back-to-back almost every morning at 3a.m. (I have to be at work by 5, so I'm usually up at that ungodly hour!) Now if I could only find some episodes of Peter Lawford and Phylis Kirk in "The Thin Man" series. Definitely nowhere near as good as the films, but still a lot of fun. Cheers, Bowers

[paw broon]

Now I'm starting to find shows I've never seen.  Lots of American shows didn't screen here when I was young(we only had one channel for years, then we got ITV. Amazing, 2 stations and only broadcasting for bits of the day), so I'm thrilled to find them.  Sky King here:-
http://www.videosurf.com/video/retrovision-media-presents-sky-king-three-59735904
Sergeant Preston of the Yukon (been reading his Dell adventures):-
http://www.videosurf.com/video/sergeant-preston-of-the-yukon-complete-episode-relief-train-1308423568
Videosurf also seems to have the Rifleman and a lot more.
You probably know all this but I didn't, so if you can suggest other old shows I should be searching out, let me know.

[bowers]

Really liked both "Sky King" and "Sgt. Preston". "Rifleman" is more about the father-son relationship, but still has some action. "Have Gun , Will Travel" with Richard Boone as a Shakespeare-quoting gun for hire was also a favorite as was Steve McQueen's "Wanted, Dead or Alive". Warner Bros. not only had a stable of westerns, but also quite a few private-eye series, such as 77 Sunset Strip, Hawaiian Eye, and Surfside 6. These might be worth a watch. Cheers, Bowers

[profh0011]

The last few days...

THE WORLD OF HENRY ORIENT  (watched twice in 2 days!!)
DR. STRANGELOVE
THE PINK PANTHER

I suppose when I first saw this movie as a kid on TV in the 60's, the long scene with the Princess on the tiger rug seemed a bit dull. The older I got, though, the better it was.

"Meglio Stasera", though, has ALWAYS been one of my favorite moments in the film, even if it makes NO SENSE being there! I figure it's the equivalent of a non-existent intermission, when people could go to the lobby or whatever and not miss any of the plot. I LOVE the song... and Fran Jeffries really turns me on.

However... the TWO very, very long scenes with Clouseau & his wife in the bedroom have long bored the hell out of me. The first time I watched the pictue, I put up with them, but on each suibsequent viewing, they got worse and worse. THEY really seem to go on forever. And decades later, I found out, they were inserted at the last minute, in order to give Sellers more screen time.

Tonight, for the first time, I took advantage of my VCRs fast-forward scan, and SKIPPED both scenes. Sure enough, I enjoyed the entire film much more this way. Let's face it, David Niven was SUPPOSED to be the star in this one. Peter Sellers got his shot in the sequel.

[bowers]

Needed a break from painting my house, so I watched one of my very favorite Bogart movies, "All through the Night". This 1941 romp featured Bogart and crew fighting Nazi spies in New York City and featured just about every Warner contract player the studio could cram into it. This is a comic/adventure tale that takes off quickly and doesn't stop- a lot of fun to watch! The wife and I also watched the new film , "The Debt". While the acting was very good, the film was awfully predictable and sometimes a bit plodding. A good film, but we both felt it wasn't worth the full price we paid to see it. Maybe a matinee. Cheers, Bowers

[profh0011]

THE AVENGERS:  "THE UNDERTAKERS"

"What with death duties, being rich hardly seems worth the trouble."

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Steed has the cushy job of escorting a top scientist who's just made a major breakthrough on a voyage to New York, and bids Cathy Gale a fond farewell. It's clear he was trying to invite her along, but she preferred having him out of her hair for awhile. But the scientist's wife informs Steed that her husband has suddenly decided to enter into "meditation" at an exclusive country rest-home, Adelphi Park, at which no one, apart from relatives, are ever allowed to visit. Thus begins a very twisted tale involving deception, doubles, marital infidelity, tax fraud on a massive scale, and a quaint funeral parlor whose specialty is MURDER!

As a series, THE AVENGERS continued to slowly evolve from beginning to end, and this episode marks another step in that. Apart from being shot on video, it looks and feels very much like a 4th-season episode with Mrs. Peel. You've got a mystery that slowly unfolds as the story progresses, some interesting locations, an unusual premise, and some very eccentric characters, especially the scientist's wife and the greedy funeral director.

It also marks several first for the series. 1)Steed is seen wearing a pin-stripe suit, making him more "Edwardian" than ever; 2)the action climax is shot entirely outdoors on film; and 3)the epilogue features Steed & Cathy drinking champagne.

At its core, "THE UNDERTAKERS" is Malcolm Hulke's BRILLIANT satire (or vicious attack, take your pick) as the insanity of the British tax system. 15 years before Robert Holmes took aim at it in the DOCTOR WHO story "THE SUN MAKERS", Hulke points out how the Inland Revenue will take 80% of a millionaire's money when he dies-- UNLESS of course they give it away as a gift, but only if this is done at least 5 years before they die.

As Batman's nemesis The Joker once said, "And you SEE why I am FORCED to crime!" Frankly, apart from the various murders committed in order to keep the scheme a secret, I'm on the side of the CROOKS in this one! The clue to the mystery first crops up when the scientist's wife tells Steed, "What with death duties, being rich hardly seems worth the trouble." And she's right. It's well-known that many of English's richest have fled the country, in order to avoid unconscionable high-income tax brackets. What those in government fail spectacularly to realize is, if every person in the country paid the exact same percentage of their income on a flat-rate basis, they'd probably be taking in far more than they are, since EVERYONE would be paying their actual "fair share". (And that goes for the US as well as the UK.)

Pretty deep thinking for "light entertainment", HMM???

[paw broon]

Pheeeeewwww!!!!!!!!!!  Politics in The Avengers.  But I really don't want to get into our tax system (which is a bit different now) and the politics except to say that I have seen the episode many times and, like many from the time, it's very good.  But then, I'm an Avengers nut.
British shows from my youth that I loved, and still do, include No Hiding Place - great theme tune:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_rXXSp5N-c&feature=related
I found a dvd with the few surviving episodes, a couple incomplete, but worth watching nonetheless.

Dixon of Dock Green, which hasn't stood the test of time and was a low key police show - you'll see what I mean.  The other parts of the episode are on the page:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdNAuDtf7vI

Fabian of the Yard.  A nasty villain in this one. The other parts are on the page. :-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gT7EJvc2XQ

Haven't inserted a link for Billy Bunter because I'm sure you'd all shout at me.  Heaven only knows what you'd make of it.  Search on Google videos if you feel the need.  Brilliant, funny, absolutely useless, cowardly, venal character from The Magnet, a famous British storypaper. Many to read here:-
http://www.friardale.co.uk/Magnet/Magnet.htm


Can't find Dial 999 with Robert Beatty online, which surprises me as I bought a dodgy dvd 2 weeks ago with the surviving episodes, none of which have been released commercially.  My dad loved this show.

[profh0011]

Trivia questions: what do the following have in common?

I THE JURY  (1953)
THE OUTER LIMITS: "Demon With A Glass Hand"
MARLOWE  (1969)
BLADE RUNNER



And, what do these have in common?

MARLOWE  (1969)
THE NIGHT STALKER
Mickey Spillane's MIKE HAMMER  (w/ Stacy Keach)


And, these?

THE MALTESE FALCON
THE BIG SLEEP
I, THE JURY

[JVJ]

Trivia questions: what do the following have in common?

I THE JURY  (1953)
THE OUTER LIMITS: "Demon With A Glass Hand"
MARLOWE  (1969)
BLADE RUNNER

The Bradbury Building in LA.

(|:{> (do I get a No-Prize?)

[JVJ]

Trivia questions: what do the following have in common?
And, what do these have in common?

MARLOWE  (1969)
THE NIGHT STALKER
Mickey Spillane's MIKE HAMMER  (w/ Stacy Keach)

Darren McGavin (ain't Google grand? I've never even SEEN these).

(|:{>

[josemas]

And, these?

THE MALTESE FALCON
THE BIG SLEEP
I, THE JURY

All three are the first novels featuring famous hard-boiled private eyes-Sam Spade, Philip Marlowe and Mike Hammer, respectively.  All three novels have also been made into feature length films at least twice.

BTW just heard that the Darren McGavin Mike Hammer TV series from the 1950s is coming out on DVD.  Looking forward to finally seeing that one.

Best

Joe

[profh0011]

JVJ wrote:
"The Bradbury Building in LA."

ALRIGHT!!!  You're the FIRST person who got this one!!!

I think I THE JURY may make the best use of the location. Lots of high-angle shots looking down, and Mike has a BRUTAL fistfight on one of the upper-level open staircases.



"Darren McGavin (ain't Google grand? I've never even SEEN these)."

While McGavin did play Hammer in the 50's, I don't recall him popping up anywhere on the Stacy Keach show, and he wasn't in the James Garner movie.

ALL 3 lead characters drive a 1964 Ford Mustang!




"All three are the first novels featuring famous hard-boiled private eyes-Sam Spade, Philip Marlowe and Mike Hammer, respectively.  All three novels have also been made into feature length films at least twice."

Very good! I wasn't quite sure about that. I knew they weren't the first movies of those characters, but there were the first novels, hmm?  Not what I was looking for, but terrific anyway.

Elisha Cook Jr. is in all 3 films.

[profh0011]

Just watched MY GUN IS QUICK for the 3rd time.  It's the 3rd Mike Hammer movie from the 50's.  Seems this one company bought the rights to Spillane's 1st 3 MH novels, and filmed all 3-- but, each one with a completely different cast and crew.  WTF???  Depending on who you ask is which one is better or worse than the others.  

   
I personally prefer Biff Elliot in I, THE JURY.  He's an animal, but totally incorruptible, and manages to figure out an impenetrable plot that I couldn't make sense of.  I love the description someone had of him online-- "He's like a Dead End Kid all grown up and packing a rod."

   
KISS ME DEADLY was directed by Robert Aldrich (HUSH HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE, THE DIRTY DOZEN).  It's got the best cast, the best direction, the best production values.  Just one problem.  NO likeable characters at all.  NOT EVEN the "heroes".  This is because the director and the screenwriter both held the material in utter contempt.  Mike & Velda's main business is deliberately setting up clients for blackmail.  Pat Chambers holds him in utter contempt.  And the only reason "Mike" sticks his nose into the story's case is he hopes to cash in on it big time.  Justice, revenge, none of these even come into play.  And the only way you know who the villains are is, they're 10 times WORSE.  Monsters who kill in the most brutal ways imaginable, even when it's totally not called for.  The novel's jewel theft plot was replaced with a sci-fi one involving a miniature nuclear pile, which explodes at the end of the film.  It's like a private eye story crossed with an episode of THE OUTER LIMITS.  It's viscious, mean-spirited, nasty, and has almost no redeeming features.  Some people like it that way.  About the 2nd or 3rd time I watched it, I finally figured out what was wrong.  Sheesh.  Too bad.  Ralph Meeker COULD have been the best Hammer ever-- except, with that script, he never got the chance.

   
Funny thing-- after decades, I believe I connected that Meeker was the role model for "Nick Fury" in the comics.  Meeker played some "unstable army types" in movies I haven't seen yet (hence, SGT. FURY AND HIS HOWLING COMMANDOS-- Sgt. Fury is a MANIAC!!!).  And, the way he looks in KISS ME DEADLY, he's a dead ringer for NICK FURY , AGENT OF SHIELD, the spy series set in the 60's.  I even found photos from one movie where he wore an eyepatch-- just like Fury in the SHIELD series.  Fury has long been one of my all-time favorite comics heroes, and it took a long time before I realized he was probably a big inspiration for my own character, The GUN! And I had no idea who Meeker was for decades, but in recent years I finally put two and two together.

   
MY GUN IS QUICK has a low-low budget.  Half the sets are blank, the director tends to set up a camera and let it roll, as if you were watching a stage play.  I kept thinking, if I did this as a comic, I'd be thinking about all kinds of cuts and camera angles to break it up and make it more visually interestring.  Anyway, this one stars Robert Bray.  I had no idea who he was until I looked him up...  turns out, when I was a kid, I used to watch him on TV every week!!  He was "Ranger Corey" on LASSIE!  Funny thing... several people online feel Bray may have been the most authentic to the books of any Mike Hammer.  Go figure.

   
I just remembered... there's a line near the end where this woman who turns out the be the baddie says, "Be kind to me, Mike."  That's the SAME line Mary Astor said to Humphrey Bogart in THE MALTESE FALCON!!  Of course, Bogart's reaction wasn't what she wanted to hear...  "You're taking the fall!"