Couch Killer

 

THE COUCH-1962-A psychopath Charles (Grant Williams; THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN) under the care of a psychiatrist Dr. Jantz (Onslow Stevens in his last role) murders random victims at 7 pm and tips off the police before hand. He's screwy because he hated his father and made his older sister his mother substitute after mom died. Despite this he somehow romances the shrink's niece Terry (Shirley Knight). He lies to her about most everything and they plan to marry! He makes a fatal mistake though when he decides to kill the doc who doesn't die as planned. Charles disguises himself as a surgeon and wants to sabotage the surgery. Fortunately he cracks up before he can kill the doc who he believes is now his father. Disappointing conclusion but funny final scene. 

Hal Smith and Harold Gould have unbilled roles. Robert Bloch penned this psychological  drama from a story by Blake Edwards. Director Owen Crump didn't make many feature films.

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Space Rocks

THE MONOLITH MONSTERS-1957-Space rocks fall on a small town and become giant sized when exposed to water. Geologist Dave Miller (Grant Williams; he starred in THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN the same year) tries to figure out why townsfolk are turning into carbon. Naturally Miller's girlfriend Cathy (Lola Albright; mainly a TV actress who died in 2017) takes kids on a rock hunt with disastrous results. Miller and the sheriff (William Flaherty) team up to find a solution and a frustrated newspaper publisher Cochrane (busy radio and character actor Les Tremayne) tries to assist them. They bring in Prof. Flanders (Trevor Bardette). A little girl in shock (Linda Scheley) helps them find a cure for the carbon crisis but the monoliths still threaten the town.

 John Sherwood directed this unusual low budget '50's sci-fi film (a year after making THE CREATURE WALKS AMONG US) which features no “bug eyed monsters” and a lot of talk about silica. Paul Frees narrates, William Schallert (as a weatherman) and Troy Donahue have un-billed roles.. Co-screenwriter Robert M. Freaco penned TARANTULA in 1955. Jack Arnold has a story credit.

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Al's Back!

BRAIN OF BLOOD-1971-Sometimes this Al Adamson horror film is said to have been made in The Philippines because it was produced by Hemisphere, a company that put out the John Ashley/Blood Island movies. According to Sam Sherman the whole production was wrapped up in 90 days. It looks more like it took nine days.

In the far off Middle East country of Kalid, their benevolent leader Amir (Reed Hadley) is dying. Some of his fellow countrymen who seem to worship him hatch a plot to take him to America after he dies and have his brain transplanted into a new body. His future wife Tracy (Regina "Mrs. Adamson" Carroll) and two colleagues Bob (Grant Williams; THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN in better days) and Mohammed (Zandor Varkov; the count in Adamson's DRACULA VS. FRANKENSTEIN the same year) take him to Dr. Trenton (Kent Taylor in one of his 6 Adamson movies), a mad, egotistical surgeon who's created a some kind of brain transplant and is assisted by mean dwarf Dorro (2' 11" Angelo Rossitto who'a also in DRACULA VS. FRANKENSTEIN).  When the body they intend to use is damaged, Trenton uses his very big, mentally challenged go-fer Gor (7' 4" John Bloom also in THE INCREDIBLY TWO HEADED TRANSPLANT the same year) to temporarily house Amir's brain. Gor is also disfigured because some yahoos once threw battery acid on his face (terrible make-up job). Later, after Mohammed is killed, Tracy urges Amir to turn against Bob and Trenton and they run away but have problems getting a car. Trenton goes after Gor/Amir with a crazy ray gun. In the end Trenton transplants Amir's brain into Bob's body and goes to help rule Kalid.

The late Al Adamson made this crazed horror movie between FIVE BLOODY GRAVES and THE FEMALE BUNCH. There's lots of talk, long chase scenes and a bloody but phony brain operation. The acting is bad with only old timer Kent Taylor rising above the mediocre script. Vicki Volante (who's film career seems to be made up entirely of appearances in Adamson movies) plays a captive who kills Dorro with a hypodermic needle.

BRAIN OF BLOOD used to play on late night TV as THE CREATURE'S REVENGE. It's also been released as THE UNDYING BRAIN and THE OOZING BRAIN.

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We're Doomed!

DOOMSDAY MACHINE-1972-In 1975 it's discovered that Red China has a "doomsday machine" are going to use it to destroy the world! Around the same time, Project Astra, a manned spaceship to Venus has it's own problems. At the last minute three of the male astronauts are replaced by women which for some reason doesn't fit in well with the other guys. Grant Williams (THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN) and TV actor Denny Miller are the two grouchy commanders and singer/dancer Bobby Van is the comedy relief. The philosophical older leader is played by Henry Wilcoxon who was Marc Anthony in Cecil B. DeMille's CLEOPATRA in 1931. Obviously things weren't going so well for the old guy if he had to be in this junk! TV actress Ruta Lee is the super serious doctor Turner and Mala Powers (OUTRAGE) is the Russian major Bronski. Lorri Scott is the flirty Lt. Carlson.

After the Earth is destroyed it becomes apparent that sending the women along was not for pure scientific purposes. It's up to the crew to make it to Venus and carry on the human lifeline! But radioactivity from the destroyed Earth threaten to sterilize the men! While most of the crew talk procreation Grant suddenly can't control his hormones and attacks Lt. Carlson. They wind up getting vaporized. Nothing much else happens until two of the space travelers almost get to Venus but are warned by the collective Venus psyche that because of the "destructive ways of earthlings" they are not allowed to land. The voice seems to suggest other adventures await the two but their spaceship seems to blow up. The End.


THE DOOMSDAY MACHINE first started filming in 1967 under the title ARMAGEDDON 1975 by director Herbert J. Leder (FIEND WITHOUT A FACE) but ran out of money and was never finished.

For some reason Harry Hope (who produced some Al Adamson movies) and Lee "Roll 'Em" Sholem (SUPERMAN AND THE MOLE MEN) saw a need to do it. They filmed an ending without any of the original cast or sets and finished and released it in 1972. The cheesy effects are some of the most ridiculous ever and their ship changes size and color several times. The spaceship scenes were shot on a very cheap set with multi-colored lighting. Stock footage from WIZARD OF MARS (directed by David Hewitt who had a hand in this) is thrown in.

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1960

THE LEECH WOMAN-1960-A stuck up scientist Paul Talbott (Phillip Terry) insults his alcoholic wife June (Coleen Gray; still alive at this writing) at his clinic where he's trying to reverse the aging process. An ancient woman named Malla (Estelle Hemsley) visits him and claims to be 142 years old. She says that her tribe in Africa holds the secret to eternal youth. After some tests, Talbott decides to take a journey there and convinces June to come along. He acts very cheerful and nice but only wants to use her. They hire a European guide (John Van Dreelan) and are eventually captured by the tribe where they meet Maila who promises to show them the eternal youth ceremony but then they must die! Malla does turn young (and into actress Kim Hamilton who just passed away in September) but the secret ingredient is human fluid found at the base of the skull. So a life has to be sacrificed when doing it. When June is offered the "treatment" she gets her revenge on hubby by picking him as her victim/sacrifice. She turns young and hightails with the guide to civilization but not before June starts to turn old again and kills the guide. 

Back home she's beautiful and youthful (and bitchy) and posing as her own niece where she seemingly mesmerizes her lawyer Neil Foster (Grant Williams; THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN), much to the irritation of his fiance' Sally (Gloria Talbott with a terrible hairstyle). When she gets old again June (now posing as herself) puts on her finest jewelry and lures an unsuspecting robber/gigolo (familiar TV actor Arthur Batanides, who had an un-billed role in SPARTACUS the same year!) to his death.

Just when June thinks she has everything going her way (she kills Sally for her vital fluid and plans to have Neil all to herself) the injections fail to work, she turns permanently old and falls out a window to her death.

Director Edward Dein (SHACK OUT ON 101) moves the episodic story along quickly (maybe too quickly!) giving it  a "Corman" type of feel. Producer Joseph Gershenson (also a music supervisor on many films) work on lots of things including MONSTER ON THE CAMPUS and several Abbott & Costello comedies.

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