“Prophecy” * (1979, Kino Lorber) Mercury leached from a paper mill mutates the fauna in a remote Maine town, including a colossal bear (voiced by Frank Welker) with an appetite for revenge (and campers). Snort-inducing monster movie by John Frankenheimer aims for a sort of classy studio take on the ’70s nature-gone-amuck cycle (see also: “Kingdom of the Spiders”) but with its rubbery bear and leaden script (by “Omen” writer David Seltzer), ends up as a drive-in-styled monster movie, albeit one handled with some care by its director and an appreciably nasty temperament (most memorably illustrated by the assault on a slumbering family). No doubt the current EPA would root for the paper mill; Kino’s 4K UHD/Blu-ray combo features restored 4K image and bundles a new commentary track with the extras from 2019’s Scream Factory release (interviews with Seltzer, stars Talia Shire and Robert Foxworth, FX creators Tom Burman and Allan Apone, and actor/director Tom McLaughlin, who played one version of the bear, all of whom express varying degrees of dismay with the final project.
Ringo Starr celebrated his birthday today by sending out wishes for “peace and love”, while surrounded by his family and friends in Beverly Hills. The legendary drummer’s traditional greeting to his international fans followed a program in the park featuring performances from Jackson Browne, Sam Phillips, Lucius and Molly Tuttle, borrowing a high class backing band from T-Bone Burnett, organizer of the musical festivities. It was joyous to watch Ringo watch the performances of “Octopus’ Garden”, “Photograph” and “Yellow Submarine”, laughing at the funny bits, filming them on his phone. “Paul just texted that he loved it!,” he informed the band after a festive version of “Birthday.”
Joe Walsh got on stage to say a few words – his wife is Ringo’s wife’s sister, so they run into each other regularly. Ringo himself spoke warmly of his affection for the city, and how back in his old neighborhood, one never dreamed of coming to the states, and how once they got here, they immediately wished to get to California, not certain they would. It was a sweet moment for the folks gathered, as we put our energies together and sent peace and love out to the planet. Continue reading →
“Kingdom of the Spiders” * (1977, Kino Lorber) Pesticide use, that smoking gun of many a nature-gone-amuck horror film in the 1970s, drives an army of tarantulas to prey on the occupants of a small Arizona town. Well-remembered for giving drive-in and TV viewers the heebie-jeebies with scenes of real, fist-sized spiders crawling over its cast — which includes a somewhat restrained William Shatner, Tiffany Bolling, and Altovise Davis (wife of Sammy Jr.) — “Kingdom” retains its power to creep out by neatly crystallizing everything that people find unpleasant about spiders, and does so on a drive-in movie budget. Kino’s Blu-ray has three commentary tracks – vintage tracks with (among others), Bolling and director John “Bud” Cardos,” and a new track with writer Lee Gambin — and interviews with Bolling and writer Steve Lodge.
Brian Wilson at Peterson Automotive Museum (Photo by Elise Thompson)
With LA still collectively grieving the loss of Brian Wilson, some of his friends and family are gathering to play his music and raise money for the Get Together Foundation, this Thursday night at the Canyon Club in Agoura Hills.
The Tribe Band, led by director Steve Bauman, is going to be joined by an orchestra and eight-piece vocal section as they perform Beach Boys classics with a number of guest vocalists. Among the announced participants are former Beach Boys members David Marks and Blondie Chaplin, Brian’s daughters Carnie and Wendy Wilson, and the Honeys, the group formed by Brian’s first wife Marilyn Wilson-Rutherford in the 1960s. Lyricist and spoken word artist Stephen Kalinich, who collaborated with both Brian and Dennis Wilson in the 1970s, will be performing. You can expect local luminaries Leo Knutson, Lola Bonfiglio and keyboardist Don Randi, a member of the studio collective known as the Wrecking Crew as well as his own band, Quest. Continue reading →
It’s summertime in America, time to listen to some Creedence. Not that there is ever a BAD time for that, but summertime is really when you’re choogling around town, dropping in to listen to street performers and dance barefoot in the moonlight, blast Buck Owens from the record player in the living room while sitting on the porch etc. Things fall out of the sky in the summer. And we are exceedingly lucky to have John Fogerty still with us, singing and playing his songs well, to get us through it.
Somebody interviewing him pretty recently noted that he still practiced the guitar every single day, and asked him “why?” “Well, I’m trying to get better.” That’s a real American musician, and you should go see him this weekend. After the fireworks have died down, you might ponder the lyrics to “Fortunate Son”. But also the ones to “Born On The Bayou”. I know, John Fogerty was born thousands of miles from the bayou and learned about it from records – that’s also part of the American story. I might not have been born on a bayou, but I have been there, to hang out, and when I hear those chords that start that song, I’m right back there. I’ve never played a gig in Lodi either, but at the same time, I feel that I have. I’ve had that feeling he’s singing about, myself, the exact zip code isn’t that important. Those simple songs carry a strong feeling, that’s the best thing you can ask for from a rock song.
John Fogerty appears at the Hollywood Bowl on Sunday, July 6 at 7:30pm. Tickets from $24 are available at the Hollywood Bowl website.
“Rock, Pretty Baby” * (1956, Kino Lorber) World-class teenage brooder Jimmy Daley (John Saxon) knows that the ticket to the big time for his high school combo, the unfortunately named Ding-a-Lings, is a brand new guitar, but its price tag is a bridge too far for Jimmy’s decidedly un-hep doctor dad (Edward Platt, who busted James Dean one year before in “Rebel Without a Cause). Salvation arrives in Luann Patten’s Joan, who not only provides musical arrangements and a romantic outlet for Jimmy’s unbridled angst, but also a shot at the dough in the form of a battle-of-the-bands contest at the Palladium hosted by Johnny Grant (as himself). Silly but earnest teenage drama, which seeks a tone somewhere between the emotional youthquake of “Rebel” and the guileless theatrics of proto-rock-and-roll pictures like “Go, Johnny, Go” and “Mister Rock and Roll.” Director Richard Bartlett and writers Herbert Margolis and William Raynor — all future TV vets — are more successful at the latter than the former, and if the songs are mostly stiffs (whitebread R&B-and-jazz influenced pop by, among others, Henry Mancini, Sonny Burke, and Bobby Troup; rockabilly wildman Kip Tyler is apparently the uncredited vocalist on the title track), the performances are professional and in some cases, amusing — most notably top-billed Sal Mineo as it’s-a-me drummer Angelo and Shelley Fabares as Jimmy’s boy-crazy little sister — and Saxon and Patten generate a surprising amount of hormonal chemistry for such a chaste project (a college party is treated as a den of iniquity). Universal later released a sequel, 1958’s “Summer Love,” with most of the cast returning (sans Patten and Mineo). With Fay Wray (of all people) as Jimmy’s mom, Rod McKuen (ditto) as bassist Ox, TV producer John Wilder as keyboardist Fingers, George “Foghorn” Winslow as Jimmy’s little brother, and celebrity twins Susan and Carol Volkmann as the objects of Angelo’s desire; Kino’s Blu-ray is taken from a 4K scan of the 35mm camera negative and features informative and amusing commentary by David Del Valle.
