Lou On His Own

 

 

 (themoviedb.org)

THE 30 FOOT BRIDE OF CANDY ROCK-1959-Small town rubbish collector inventor Artie Pinsetter (Lou Costello), a "world famous scientist who isn't famous yet", is in love with Emmy Lou (Dorothy Provine; THE BONNIE PARKER STORY (1958)) who's uncle the grouchy mayor Raven Rossiter (Gale Gordon) doesn't like Artie and won't allow them to get married until he thinks Emmy is pregnant. 

Unfortunately, Emmy wanders into a strange mist and grows to 30 feet tall! Rossiter is trying to run for governor and is followed around by a TV reporter (Peter Leeds) which helps Artie when he needs Rossiter's help. The mayor is also head of The Boosters, a club Artie would like to join. Other boosters include Charles Lane, Doodles Weaver, Bobby Barber and Joey Faye. Eventually Emmy gets mad and invades the town. Later, a goofy army patrol thinks Emmy is from Mars and orders missiles to destroy her. Artie's computer-like machine Max turns the army into a confederate army and then into cavemen. It also makes Artie airborne. Max cures Emmy's gigantism but then shrinks her out of existence. But in the end, Emmy is cured and Artie becomes a hero. Also with Will Wright and Veola Vonn. 

This was the last role for comedian Lou Costello (and his only starring role without Bud Abbott) and was released about 5 months after his death in 1959. While it's not very good with old gags and some situations that are supposed to be funny but don't succeed, Costello tries hard and shows that if given the right material he probably would have made it as a solo performer. 

Director Sidney Miller (also an actor) didn't really seem to have a grasp as to what was going on. Lead actress Provine was also in RIOT IN JUVENILE HALL the same year and later co-starred in two short lived TV series “The Alaskans” and 'The Roaring 20's”.

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Bigfoot!

 

 (imdb)

BIGFOOT-1970-In the Pacific Northwest (?), Jasper (John Carradine) & Elmer (John Mitchum; Robert's brother), two itinerants, need water for their jalopy. Meanwhile Joi Landis (Joi Lansing in her last movie) heads out in a plane and has engine trouble. While getting the water Elmer sees strange footprints and hears weird noises. Joi parachutes out and on the ground encounters something. Roll credits.

 Jasper & Elmer stop at a general store run by Mr. Bennett (Ken Maynard in his last movie) where a motorcycle gang has just left. The gang's leader Rick (Christopher Mitchum; Robert's son), and his girlfriend Bobbie (Jennifer Bishop from several Al Adamson movies) find a mysterious graveyard (“Dig the size of these graves”). They are attacked by a hairy creature that knocks out Rick and steals his girl. Rick calls the hick sheriff Cyrus (James Craig; Bert I. Gordon's THE CYCLOPS) but he won't come by so he calls his gang. Before they arrive Jasper and Elmer drive Rick to the place where he had his encounter. Jasper wants to capture the creature alive. Meanwhile in the Bigfoot camp, Bobbie and Joi are prisoners. While tied to trees they discuss the missing link and call their captors “sub-human”. Apparently there's a whole family including a "hybrid" baby. The Bigfoots attack Jasper, Elmer and Rick. Meantime, Rick's gang now lead by Wheels (Lindsey Crosby; Bing's son) go looking for their friends. They hook up with locals Slim (Nick Raymond) and Hardrock (former boxer Kid Chisum) who lost an arm to a Bigfoot. Joi is taken to be sacrificed to a much larger Bigfoot but she escapes when a grizzly bear attacks. The gang rescues the captives. Doodles Weaver has one scene as a ranger. Haji (from FASTER PUSSYCAT, KILL KILL!) is one of the girl bikers. 

This is a pretty inept movie is almost saved by the interesting casting. Director Robert F. Slatzer (who once claimed to be married to Marilyn Monroe for three days!) filmed this partially in Northern California where many Bigfoot sightings took place. He later wrote the Bing Crosby biography “The Hollow Man”. Ken Maynard started out as a stuntman in silent films and became a huge western star beginning in the late 1920's but by the late '30's his career was nearly over. One of his scenes in BIGFOOT shows him talking on the phone, a poster from one of his movies on the wall. Lindsey Crosby was one of father Bing's four sons (with singer Dixie Lee). He battled depression and alcoholism most of his adult life and committed suicide at age 51 in 1989. Doodles Weaver was a radio comedian who later played with Spike Jones and was the uncle of actress Sigourney Weaver. In the early '60's a he hosted a children's show “Day With Doodles”. His career was hampered by alcoholism and he committed suicide in 1983.

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The Zodiac

THE ZODIAC KILLER-1971-This is based on the real life incidents that took place in California,from 1968 to 1969 in which the killer was never caught. It's very cheap, exploitative and badly acted with terrible dialogue (except for the Zodiac's rantings). The story focuses on two characters who could be the killer. One is Grover (Bob Jones), a truck driving, drug user alcoholic who hates women (especially his ex-wife), goes to bars wearing an ill fitting wig, gets drunk and can't remember anything. The police suspect him but when he holds his daughter hostage they shoot and kill him. Then there is Grover's friend Jerry (Hal Reed), an unhappy mailman who likes rabbits and breaks down crying when one of them dies. He turns out to be the Zodiac and kneels in front of an idol and rants (“I am the supreme Zodiac!”). He shoots various people and taunts the police (“I want headlines!”). One couple he stabs to death then he kills an old woman with a tire and drops a jacked up car on her. He wears a false nose and glasses to kill an old man in an elevator then cuts off his ear. He kills an old woman by crushing her head with a car hood. Apparently the heart of his problem was being unloved by his father who he visits in an insane asylum (the father completely ignores him when Jerry emotes during a visit). So that the visit isn't a total loss, Jerry kills two patients. The final scenes show Jerry helping various people in his neighborhood while his ominous voice-over talks about how trusting and unsuspecting future victims are (“I'll be seeing you”). It ends with the words “This is not the end”. 

Comedian Doodles Weaver (his name is spelled “Doddles” in the credits) has one scene as Jerry's neighbor who says of women “I like them plump, juicy and dumb”. The director Tom Hanson made one other movie A TON OF GRASS GOES TO POT (also with Hal Reed and Doodles Weaver) and acted in Coleman Francis' NIGHT TRAIN MUNDO FINE'.

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