Buchanan

THE CURSE OF THE SWAMP CREATURE-1966-More Larry Buchanan madness with John Agar as a geologist looking for oil in the swamps with a trio of crooks. They run into the crazy experiments of Dr. Trent (Tony Houston; also the screenwriter) who is trying to make a fish monster out of a man! He feeds his failures to some stock footage crocodiles. Meanwhile the locals practice voodoo (called “snake worship”). Except for Agar the acting in this is quite comical. Especially Huston, an amateur ham who would make Shatner seem like Olivier! (“My beautiful indestructible fish man”). Francine York is Mrs. Trent and Bill McGhee (Ben in DON'T LOOK IN THE BASEMENT) is a dim-witted servant. Buchanan regular Bill Thurman is one of the crooks and the swamp creature.

Buchanan throws in some interesting camera angles but otherwise it's pretty boring. Agar also starred (with Houston) in Buchanan's ZONTAR: THE THING FROM VENUS the same year!

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The Bad Penny Finally Turns Up!

THE HELLCATS-1968-When a police detective investigating a drug dealing motorcycle gang is murdered, his fiance' Linda (Dee Duffy) and soldier brother Monte (Ross Hagen, a regular on TV's DAKTARI at the time) infiltrate The Hellcats, a bunch of weird drug using bikers with names like Six Pack, Hiney, Snake, Zombie and Scorpio. Their kind of leader is Snake (Sonny West). Linda and Monte hang out with the stoned gang and drink beer at a place run by an old man (Fredric Downs). Sometimes everyone talks in a strange incomprehensible slang. Snake and another guy have a chain fight. Monte breaks it up saying "Peace brothers. No more war...yet". Later Monte and Linda are roughed up by the dealers but it's scummy dirtbag bikers to the rescue!

There's a lot of bad acting, boredom and people riding motorcycles...and not much else. Future director Gus Trikonis is in one scene. One of THE HELLCATS producers was Anthony Cardoza (who worked on Coleman Francis' 3 movies) who appears as an artist who gets beat up. Co-writer/assistant director Tony Huston co-starred in 3 Larry Buchanan movies! Director Robert F. Slatzer (who made BIGFOOT in 1970) is Mr. Adrian, a drug dealer.

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