Wicked Stuff?

WICKED WICKED-1973-This typical slasher/stalker film was shot in "duo-vision" a split screen process showing two different scenes at one time.

Randolph Roberts (later Chuck Cunningham, Richie's older brother in TV's HAPPY DAYS) plays Jason, a handyman/custodian/electronics expert who also kills women (while wearing a scary mask) who come to stay at the hotel where he works. The split screens not only shows the goings on in the hotel but also provide flashbacks while certain characters talk about their lives.

Tiffany Bolling is a singer (and does the horrible theme song) who performs at the hotel and Jason 's next target. David Bailey (later a regular on the soap opera ANOTHER WORLD) is the house detective (and Bolling's character's ex-spouse) trying to figure it out and Scott Brady (who had a role in THE NIGHT STRANGLER the same year) is a no nonsense detective he butts heads with. Roger Bowen (Col. Blake in the movie version of MASH) is the pompous hotel manager. Madeleine Sherwood and Arthur O'Connell are also in it. Edd Brynes (formerly TV's Kookie on 77 SUNSET STRIP) is a red herring waiter who uses the phrase "honest bread" a few times. Meanwhile an old woman plays the organ as background music.

It's a little better than the usual serial killer stuff clogging up '70's cinema, uses some ironic comic touches and puts the split screen to good use. This was the last feature film directed by Richard L. Bare (who also wrote the screenplay), better known for his TV work on such comedies as GREEN ACRES. Lyrics to the insipid songs are by Irwin Levine who co-wrote "This Diamond Ring". Charles Pierce was the set decorator. Actor Bailey later died in an accidental drowning.

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