Subliminal Terror

TERROR IN THE HAUNTED HOUSE-1958-Sheila (Cathy O'Donnell) has been having the same mysterious dream her whole life. A old house with the name Tierney on the outside. She goes up the stairs “where death awaits her”. She tells this to a psychiatrist in Switzerland just before she and her husband Philip (familiar character and voice actor Gerald Mohr) leave for America. Phil seems loving but some things he says also sound sinister. He takes her to  a secluded house in Florida so she can get some rest. Guess what? It's the same house from her dreams! Caretaker Jonah (John Qualen) says he's waiting for the original owners to come back. They decide to leave but wouldn't you know it...someone tampered with their car engine. Phil blames Jonah but it was Phil who was out there alone while getting their bags. Later Jonah tells Sheila that the previous owners were known as “The Mad Tierneys”. At night Sheila hears a scream, sees a figure at the window (“a hideous inhuman face”) and is chased by Jonah's dog (which seems to obey Phillip). After finding evidence that hubby is responsible for the car not running, she prowls around, sees the stairs in her dream and faints. The next day she accuses Phil and he leaves in a huff. Then a guy named Snell (William Ching) shows up and claims to own the house and the couple are there without permission. Later Sheila finds out from Jonah that grandpa Tierney killed most of his family and that Snell and Phil, the last of the Tierneys, are cousins. When it seems like Phil tries to kill his wife with a faulty chandelier, Snell tells Sheila about a strain of madness that only gets stronger with age. 

Despite its low budget this little psychological mystery keeps you guessing right up to the finale. Aka MY WORLD DIES SCREAMING, the original version used subliminal images to scare viewers. Rhino Video later acquired it and released it with their own messages. Director Harold Daniels made BAYOU the year before also with Cathy O'Donnell.

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Filmed On The Bayou

BAYOU-1957- Hi-jinx in the Cajun swamps as crab fisherperson Maria (Lita Milan) is ogled by pervert store owner Ulysses (Timothy Carey; bizarre as usual) while NY architect Martin Davis (Peter Graves; also in Bert I. Gordon's THE BEGINING OF THE END the same year) tries to win a contract to build a “civic auditorium”. His contractor friend (Douglas Fowley) gets him an interview with the city commissioner but Murphy (who calls Cajuns “animals”), his rival for the job embarrass him. Maria's father Emil (also played by Fowley though he doesn't get credit for the dual roles) has no more credit at Ulysses' store but U urges dad to put the hard sell on his daughter and make Maria attend a dance with him. After Davis almost runs Maria down in his speed boat, Ulysses does his greasy best to put the moves on her but when she resists he tries to rape her. Fortunately her father comes home and U scrams. Maria and Davis hook up at a bar and she shows him around the carnival. Ulysses beats Davis in a “pirogue race” and gives Davis a hard time. When Davis backs down from fighting everyone thinks he has no guts. Maria though is stuck on him and Ulysses starts trouble when they go for a boat ride. 

At a wedding “shivaree” Ulysses does a wild dance where he looks like he's being tortured. Again he challenges Davis to a fight but again the future MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE star backs down. When a storm hits, the two lovers decide to elope but dad is killed. After his funeral Davis and Ulysses have their fight and Davis whips his ass. Everyone (even his abused little pal Bos, played by Jonathan Haze) deserts Ulysses. Ed Nelson is also in the cast. 

Director Harold Daniels was later one of the credited directors of HOUSE OF BLACK DEATH. This nonsense, full of bad Cajun accents, played for years on the drive-in circuit under the title POOR WHITE TRASH.

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