Corman and Cohen

 

 (imdb)

SATURDAY THE 14TH-1981-John (Richard Benjamin) and Mary (Paula Prentiss) inherit a haunted house from a recently departed uncle. 

Unfortunately, a pair of vampires want a book they have that their son (Kevin Brando) has already opened and releasing some monsters. Weird things happen. An exterminator (Mousie Garner) sends Van Helsing (Severn Darden) to get rid of their bats. Waldemar (Jeffery Tambor), the male vampire puts the bite on Mary. 

Despite the inane jokes and the deliberate bad acting, there are some violent deaths and a severed head. It may have been funny in 1981 but now it's just a dated piece of dumbness. Also with Kari Michaelsen as their daughter, Rosemary De Camp, Stacey Keach Sr., and Roberta Collins. 

Written and directed by Howard R. Cohen, who made a sequel SATURDAY THE 14TH STRIKES BACK in 1988. He worked a lot for Roger Corman. Later directing SPACE RAIDERS (1983) and DEATHSTALKER 4 (he wrote the other Deathstalker movies too).

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Biker Werewolves

 

WEREWOLVES ON WHEELS-1971-Biker gang scum (including “Eve of Descruction” singer Barry McGuire and “Father Knows Best” co-star Billy Gray) run afoul of a group of Satanists led by One (Severn Darden). After the gang is drugged the Satanists perform an elaborate ritual where a woman dances with a snake and a cat is sacrificed. The bikers break up the ritual and drive away. When they are frolicking in the woods that night a werewolf shows up and kills two of them. One of the gang is really a werewolf. The scenes are too dark, there's too much talk, the ending is stupid and there aren't any werewolves on wheels! 

Director Michael Levelesque started out doing production design for Roger Corman and made only one more feature length film SWEET SUGAR the next year. He was also was an art director on many TV shows and several Russ Meyer films. He died in 2010.

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Frank!

FEARLESS FRANK-1967-In this comedy/parody nuttiness country boy Frank (Jon Voight in his film debut) leaves his home and goes to the city where he falls for Plethora (Monquie van Voorhen,) daughter of mob leader Needles (author Nelson Algren) and is killed. “The Good Doctor” (Severn Darden) brings him back to life as a super hero to fight evil. Frank can fly, is bulletproof and is very strong. His strange gang consists of Cat (Ben Carruthers), Rat (David Steinberg) and Screwnose. Later the doctor's evil brother Claude (also Darden) shows up and creates “False Frank” to combat the hero. Eventually both Franks meet and have a fight on some roller coaster tracks. When Frank is killed it's up to False Frank to save the city from destruction. Director Phillip Kaufman creates a weird personal (maybe too personal) one of a kind low budget oddity that seems to be using elements of Frankenstein, Superman, My Fair Lady and even FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE SPACE MONSTER! Outrageous touches include Frank and Plethora having sex with loud Batman TV show sound effects.

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Not a Newton Room....

 

THE MAD ROOM-1969-In 1957 two children murder their parents and are placed in a mental institution. Their older sister a witness to the crime is now Ellen Hardy (Stella Stevens) a kind of live-in personal assistant to rich widow Gladys Armstrong (Shelly Winters) who's son () Ellen is engaged to. Things seem to be ok until Ellen gets a letter saying her to siblings are being released into her care. With no other choice Ellen brings them to stay in the Armstrong house where they get almost immediately into trouble for using Gladys private study as their “mad room”, a place to go when they are upset. Gladys winds up hacked to death after she learns the history of the two and her dog carries her severed hand around.

 

The pretty predictable story also features Severn Darden as a builder and Beverly Garland as Mrs. Racine, a drunken floozy who's husband/masseur is having an affair with Gladys. Her death scene is the highlight of the whole film when she commits suicide in a bathroom after making a bitter speech using the word “man-whore”. Another housewife is played by Jennifer Bishop who was later in several Al Adamson films (HORROR OF THE BLOOD MONSTERS, THE FEMALE BUNCH).

THE MAD ROOM is a remake of the 1941 film LADIES IN RETIREMENT, an adaptation of a hit Broadway play. Director Bernard Girard also made the seldom seen THE HAPPINESS CAGE.

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