S5E5. Let's go clean 'em up: Rolling Thunder (1977)

Anthony King (The Cult Movies Podcast) returns to the show to discuss Rolling Thunder (1977). Directed by John Flynn from a script by Paul Schrader and Heywood Gould, based on an original story by Schrader. Rolling Thunder stars William Devane as Major Charles Rane who has returned to his home of San Antonio after seven years as a POW in Viet Nam. He realizes quickly that his wife has moved on, and that his son barely remembers him. During a robbery of his home his hand is mangled, and his family is slaughtered. With nothing left to live for, he sets out on a dangerous path for revenge. The film also stars Tommy Lee Jones, Linda Haynes, James Best, and Luke Askew.

Where to watch • IMDb listing • Wikipedia page

S5E4. I died for you: Deathdream (1974)

Welcome to the finale of WUH's series on the early horror films of Alan Ormsby and Bob Clark. The series-long co-host is Mike White, from The Projection Booth Podcast, with Heather Drain, Chris Stachiw, and Samm Deighan joining us for one of the three episodes, respectively. Also included in each episode is a portion of an interview with Simon Fitzjohn, who wrote I'm Going to Kill You, a book on the films of Bob Clark.

On this final episode Samm Deighan joins Mike and me to discuss Deathdream, which was filmed on the heels of CSPWDT in 1972, but not released until 1974, after Deranged. Bob Clark directed from a script by Ormsby, who once again created the make-up effects with help of first-timer Tom Savini. 

Deathdream aka Dead of Night et al, is the story of Andy Brooks (Richard Backus) who is killed in Viet Nam, but willed back to life and back home by his grief-stricken mother. As with most "Monkey's Paw" inspired tales, this does not bode well for Andy or those he cares about. Also starring John Marley and Lynn Carlin as Andy's parents, Anya Ormsby as his sister, and Jane Daly (both from CSPWDT) as his old girlfriend. Ormsby, Clark, and Jeff Gillen all have cameos. 

Where to watch • IMDb listing • Wikipedia page

S5E3. Deranged: Confessions of a Necrophile (1974)

Welcome to the second in a three-episode series on the early horror films of Alan Ormsby and Bob Clark. The series-long co-host is Mike White, from The Projection Booth Podcast, with Heather Drain, Chris Stachiw, and Samm Deighan joining us for one of the three episodes, respectively. Also included in each episode is a portion of an interview with Simon Fitzjohn, who wrote I'm Going to Kill You, a book on the films of Bob Clark. 

On this episode Chris Stachiw joins Mike and me to discuss Deranged: Confessions of a Necrophile, a very faithful telling of the Ed Gein story. Ormsby wrote the script and co-directed the film with Jeff Gillen (an Ormsby/Clark regular), with Bob Clark acting as (an uncredited) producer. As with CSPWDT and Deathdream Ormsby also supplied much of the special make-up effects, with help from a young up-and-comer named Tom Savini.

Roberts Blossom plays Ezra Cobb, a middle-aged mid-westerner who has been sheltered and coddled by his domineering religious zealot of a mother. When she dies, Ezra is left to his own warped devices and starts to lose what little he had left of his sanity. This leads to grave-robbing, morbid arts and crafts, and, ultimately, murder. With Clark regulars Leslie Carlson, as an intrepid news correspondent, and Marian Waldman, as a potential love-interest for Ezra.

Why yes, I have talked about Deranged before. Might be interesting to see what I said back on this early WDIRT episode.

Where to watch • IMDb listing • Wikipedia page

S5E2. Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things (1972)

Welcome to the first in a three-episode series on the early horror films of Alan Ormsby and Bob Clark. The series-long co-host is Mike White, from The Projection Booth Podcast, with Heather Drain, Chris Stachiw, and Samm Deighan joining us for one of the three episodes, respectively. Also included in each episode is a portion of an interview with Simon Fitzjohn, who wrote I'm Going to Kill You, a book on the films of Bob Clark. Simon also supplied the fun promotional "menu" for the player image of this episode.

On this episode Heather Drain joins Mike and me to discuss Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things, a low-budget horror/comedy inspired in part by Night of the Living Dead (1968). Bob Clark wrote and directed the film, with script contributions from Alan Ormsby. Ormsby also designed and created the make-up effects and plays Alan, the leader of a Miami theater troupe. 

Alan, an egomaniacal tyrant, takes the troupe to an island graveyard to perform a Satanic ritual that will raise the dead, whom he wants to use as slaves. But before the real ritual begins he scares the rest of the group with help from Roy and Emerson, two other troupe members, hamming it up as ghouls. After everyone is properly frightened, and pissed off at Alan, they return to their cabin with an actual corpse named Orville. Has the summation of spirits really worked? Or is Alan just having more fun at everyone else's expense? Tune in and find out.

Ormsby's signature on the poster:

Where to watch • IMDb listing • Wikipedia page

My two part chat with Simon about his quest to get The Haunting of Julia restored and released:

Special Guest: Anthony King

Anthony King, host of The Cult Movies Podcast, pays a visit to WUH Headquarters and brings along a movie that traumatized him as a child, but has since become one of his favorites. On this Special Guest episode we talk about John Landis's 1982 classic horror/comedy film An American Werewolf in London, Anthony's show, Jenny Agutter, and why Grandma should always keep the bedroom door closed.

Where to watch • IMDb listing • Wikipedia page

Guest Spot: Fear Street Trilogy (2021) on The Kulturecast

Listen to "Fear Street" on Spreaker.

Chris invited me back to The Kulturecast to discuss the new Fear Street Trilogy on Netflix. Having never read an R.L. Stine book in my life I figured I was the perfect co-host! Haha.

"We take another break before TV Movie Month with a trilogy of films that reinvigorates the horror genre and queer identity in the genre: Fear Street. Split into three films, they follow the parallel stories of Shadyside and Sunnyvale, towns torn apart due to a witch's curse. After the witch's curse begins again, a group of teens must figure out a way to stop the curse and save Shadyside. Wake Up Heavy's Mark Begley joins Chris to talk all about the films, the films they reference, and the kills."

WDIRT V4E3: Macabro (1980)

Macabro (1980) (aka Macabre, aka Frozen Terror) is a New Orleans set horror film from director Lamberto Bava, the son of famed Italian director Mario Bava. Although Lamberto helped his father direct Shock (1977), Macabro was his first official solo job as director. The film stars Bernice Stegers (XTRO) as Jane Baker, a woman who's adultery leads to tragic consequences, and Stanko Molnar (A Blade in the Dark) as the blind land-lord of the building where she resides. Veronica Zinny, in her only role, is perfectly cast as Jane's troubled and troublesome daughter. 

This one goes to some very dark places and I don't know what Young Mark would have thought about it back in the VHS glory days. Old Mark things it's pretty fascinating.

Where to watch • IMDb listing • Wikipedia page

Guest Spot: Sabata (1969) on The Projection Booth Podcast

From The Projection Booth Site:

"Guest Co-Hosts: Heather Drain. Mark Begley

Spaghetti Western month continues with a look at the Sabata films -- it's something of a trilogy, but not really. And some might say that there are seven films in the series… but, really, there’re just two. The original film, Sabata (1969), was written and directed by Gianfranco Parolini and stars Lee Van Cleef as the titular gunfighter who’s no stranger to gadgets.

Mark Begley and Heather Drain join Mike to discuss the three official Sabata films and four of the knock-offs which have little to nothing to do with the titular gunfighter."

Please visit The Projection Booth for more amazing, in-depth episodes on a wide variety of films.

WUH: Cleo vs. The Thing (1982)

I really like showing Cleo some of my favorite Classic Horror films, and this happens to be one of my all time faves. On this episode we take a look at John Carpenter's 1982 practical effects masterpiece The Thing. I love this movie, but where will it rank for Cleo amongst the other Classics we've watched? You'll just have to have a listen.

Oh, and get your WUH swag over on TeePublic, send me a screenshot of your purchase and I'll send you a pin and some stickers.

Where to watch • IMDb listing • Wikipedia page

WUH: What's happening

This is one of those episodes. A good half-hour of me just flap-jawin'. If you like watching paint dry, you'll love hearing me talk about painting our house. But there's also movie recs, lots o' clips, and general news and notes. Sorry for being absent during May, but I mean, I gave y'all FOUR EPISODES last week.

Quick note, I've had a pretty serious amount of plays this month, more than any previous month since the inception of the show. It'd be cool to hit 1,000 plays in June, so listen to this episode if only to help WUH reach that goal. 

I could not find the Letterboxd list of the films featured in Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror, but I will keep looking.

Yes, that's the Heavy House painted in Dark Engine. I'm calling our style, "Mid-Century Macabre."

Guest Spot: KCxWUH: The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do What??

I made another trip to the Kulturecast, but this time Chris has been so kind as to share the episode with me for the WUH audience. 

On this episode we discuss the latest entry in the Conjuring universe, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021), as well as the previous entries, the Annabelle films, The Nun and La Llorona. All, or most, of the films are currently streaming on HBO Max.

WUHxKC: Poltergeist (1982)

The Kulturecast Crossover continues with this look at Tobe Hooper's 1982 horror classic Poltergeist. Chris Stachiw joins WUH to talk about the movie that traumatized him as a wee-one and turned him off of horror for years. We also delve into the sequels and the 2015 remake.

Our Crossover also includes an episode of The Kulturecast on the new Conjuring film, and its cinematic universe. Look for that episode soon in the Wake Up Heavy stream.

Where to watch • IMDb listing • Wikipedia page

Guest Spot: More Kulturecast

Chris keeps asking me back, and I keep accepting. These appearances give me an opportunity to branch out and watch some films I wouldn't normally get around to, or talk about on WUH. 

First up is my discussion with Chris and Mike White about Citizen Kane, a film neither Chris nor I had watched prior. 

Listen to "Citizen Kane" on Spreaker.

Coming soon, Chris will be joining me on WUH to talk about an influential film in his young life: Poltergeist (1982).

Check out my other Kulturecast appearances below, and visit their podcast site here.

S5E1. Looking for Mr. Goodbar (1977)

Guest co-hosts: Mike White and Samm Deighan

On this episode of WUH we discuss the 1977 film Looking for Mr. Goodbar. Goodbar was written and directed by Richard Brooks, based on the 1975 novel by Judith Rossner, which is loosely based on the real life and death of Roseann Quinn. The film stars Diane Keaton as Theresa Dunn, a twenty something woman living in The Big City who leads a “double life.” A devoted teacher of deaf students by day, Theresa frequents bars and discos at night seeking out the company of men, if just for one night. Richard Gere and Tom Berenger, in early roles, play two of those men. Tuesday Weld and William Atherton also star. Due to music rights issues Goodbar has never been released on DVD or Blu-Ray, and is not available to stream. 

Visit The Projection Booth Podcast.

Pre-order Samm Deighan's book The Legacy of World War II in European Arthouse Cinema.

IMDb listing • Wikipedia page

WUH: Monster Battle Series w/ special guest Cleo!

In each episode of this series my daughter Cleo and I will be hopping around the Godzilla and King Kong Franchises (mostly Godzilla) and talking about two or three films. Naturally we started with their epic Match-Up in the 1962 Toho film King Kong vs. Godzilla. We'll be discussing that film in comparison with Mothra vs. Godzilla which came out two years later. Each new episode will be posted here. Find out at the end of the series which film rules them all! The songs featured are King Kong by the Kinks, and Mothra's Theme.

WUH: Godzilla vs... King Kong & Mothra:

Cleo's back to talk about two more Monster Battle Movies, and this time we have two appearances from Kong! First up is King Kong Escapes from 1967, co-produced by Toho Studios and Rankin/Bass! Check out the Rankin on Bass podcast's episode on the same film below. Cleo and I finish up this episode on the just-released Godzilla vs. Kong. Songs featured this go around are King Kong by Jimmy Castor, Go Go Godzilla by Blue Oyster Cult, and King Kong Song by ABBA.

WUH: King Kong vs...

Rankin on Bass Ep. 8: King Kong Escapes (1967)

Listen to "Episode 8: King Kong Escapes (1967)" on Spreaker.

WUH: TV and the Projection Booth

It's been a little over a year since quarantine began. As I've discussed numerous times over this past year my brain has been a little fuzzy due to this, "new normal." My movie viewing, and therefore, my episode output, has greatly reduced. When I do have the time to watch a film I tend to seek out films I've enjoyed from my past. "Comfort films," as they say. All of this, along with my recent ruminations on past obsessions, got me to thinking about what I watched as a kid, and more specifically, how I watched things. 

The second part of this episode loosely ties into the above, but is also a celebration and acknowledgement of the 10-year Anniversary of The Projection Booth Podcast. Like those stacks of movie books I poured over as a teen (see below) TPB has introduced me to numerous films I had never even heard about, let alone seen. I discuss those, plus some of my favorite episodes of the show.

In my Watch List at the end of the episode I forgot to mention the name of the film with Lulu Wilson and Kevin James. It's called Becky. Blame it on the Smooth Brain.

BONUS EPISODE:

I found that movie! Have a listen to find out what it is, as well as how my memory vs. the reality of the film differ. And to check out the story about the comic book I re-discovered after more than 35 years you can find it here.

Guest Spot: The Kill-Off (1989) on The Kulturecast

Listen to "The Kill-Off" on Spreaker.

From The Kulturecast:

We continue Noiruary with a Jim Thompson adaptation that is next to impossible to find, primarily because it's never been released on DVD: The Kill-Off. The film takes place in a seaside New Jersey town that has fallen on hard times and features even harder people. It's a slice of salacious Americana that only Jim Thompson could have written. Wake Up Heavy's Mark Begley joins Chris to talk about the performances, the lack of physical releases, and other Jim Thompson adaptations.

WUH: Interview with Michael Pilmer

Instead of trying to remember more of my scattered and inaccurate memories of my longtime fascination with DEVO I got the opportunity to speak with someone who turned their obsession into a job... with DEVO! Michael Pilmer, aka Devo-Obsesso, stopped by to chat all things DEVO, his longtime love of the band, their music, and what they meant to him from a young age. Find out what took him from DEVOted fan and collector to meeting and working for the group.

• Visit Michael's YouTube page.
• Check out all the wonderful DEVO ephemera at DEVO-Obsesso.
• And don't forget to hit the band's official website here.
• Vote for DEVO's inclusion in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
• The Dickies and Thor: The Rock Warrior. 
• Music from Silica-Gel.

Thank you for indulging one of my longest running obsessions! Back to regular programming soon.

Guest Spot: Camp Rock (2008) on The Kulturecast

Listen to "Camp Rock" on Spreaker.

Another fun time was had over on The Kulturecast! This time Chris, Mike White and I dig deep into the Disney Channel Original Movie Camp Rock. 

"Starring Demi Lovato and the Jonas Brothers, the film follows Demi Lovato as Mitchie, a talented young singer who attends the titular camp to further her musical training. At the camp, she learns to find herself and becomes romantically entangled with one of the Jo Bros."

WUH: A little bit me

A full year ago, on the WUH: Twenty Nineteen episode, I talked about wanting to do some shows in 2020 on the myriad obsessions I entertained back in my youth. That never really happened. It's strange listening to that episode now after the year we had, and realizing no one knew what was coming down the pike, myself included. But those old obsessions have begun to percolate again, so instead of a year-end wrap-up I'm going to touch on some of those, as well as some other interesting(?) things from my childhood. 

A note about the player image. Yes, that's me. And yes, I'm f@#king adorable!

Check out my Lettrboxd account for lists and diary entries from 2020. 

Did somebody say Fresno?

And here's a picture of DEVO's Turkey Monkey Bank:

Guest Spot: 18 Again (1988) on The Kulturecast

Listen to "18 Again!" on Spreaker.

Need a little levity in your day? I know I do! I got to guest on Chris Stachiw's The Kulturecast to discuss 18 Again, one of a good handful of body-swap films from the late 1980s. Oh, and we talk a little about a few of the other ones as well.