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Phil Tucker
Phil Tucker (May 22, 1927 – November 30, 1985) was an American film director, producer, writer, and editor. While Tucker directed his first six feature films in the span of two years (while still in his mid-20s), he is best known for his first film, the science fiction B movie ''Robot Monster'', often considered an example of "so bad it's good" film-making in the Ed Wood vein, and for the Lenny Bruce movie ''Dance Hall Racket'' featuring Bruce's wife Honey Harlow. In 1952, he was reportedly offered $300,000 to make a sympathetic biopic about Lucky Luciano. In December 1953, he attempted suicide in response to the poor reception of ''Robot Monster'' and his subsequent inability to find work. According to ''Keep Watching The Skies!'' by Bill Warren, his attempted suicide was actually fueled by depression and a dispute with the film's distributor, who had allegedly refused to pay Tucker his contracted percentage of the film's profits. There are further claims that after 1955, Tuc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
B Movie
A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feature (akin to B-sides for recorded music). However, the U.S. production of films intended as second features largely ceased by the end of the 1950s. With the emergence of commercial television at that time, film studio B movie production departments changed into television film production divisions. They created much of the same type of content in low budget films and series. The term ''B movie'' continues to be used in its broader sense to this day. In its post-Golden Age usage, B movies can range from lurid exploitation films to independent arthouse films. In either usage, most B movies represent a particular genre—the Western was a Golden Age B movie staple, while low-budget science-fiction and horror films became more popular in the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robot Monster
''Robot Monster'' (or ''Monster from Mars'')"Robot Monster." ''United States Copyright Office Public Catalog''. Retrieved: January 15, 2016. is a 1953 independently made American 3D science fiction film, remembered in later decades as one of the |
Ed Wood
Edward Davis Wood Jr. (October 10, 1924 – December 10, 1978) was an American filmmaker, actor, and pulp novel author. In the 1950s, Wood directed several low-budget science fiction, crime and horror films that later became cult classics, notably ''Glen or Glenda'' (1953), '' Jail Bait'' (1954), '' Bride of the Monster'' (1955), '' Plan 9 from Outer Space'' (1957)Rudolph Grey, Nightmare of Ecstasy: The Life and Art of Edward D. Wood, Jr. (1992). pg. 197. ISBN 978-0-922915-24-8. and '' Night of the Ghouls'' (1959). In the 1960s and 1970s, he moved towards sexploitation and pornographic films such as '' The Sinister Urge'' (1960), '' Orgy of the Dead'' (1965) and '' Necromania'' (1971), and wrote over 80 lurid pulp crime and sex novels. Notable for their campy aesthetics, technical errors, unsophisticated special effects, use of poorly-matched stock footage, eccentric casts, idiosyncratic stories and non sequitur dialogue, Wood's films remained largely obscure unt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lenny Bruce
Leonard Alfred Schneider (October 13, 1925 – August 3, 1966), known professionally as Lenny Bruce, was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, and satirist. He was renowned for his open, free-wheeling, and critical style of comedy which contained satire, politics, religion, sex, and vulgarity. His 1964 conviction in an obscenity trial was followed by a posthumous pardon in 2003. Bruce paved the way for counterculture-era comedians. His trial for obscenity was a landmark of freedom of speech in the United States. In 2017, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine ranked him third (behind Richard Pryor and George Carlin) on its list of the 50 best stand-up comics of all time. Early life Bruce was Jewish, born Leonard Alfred Schneider in Mineola, New York. He grew up in nearby Bellmore, and attended Wellington C. Mepham High School. According to his biography, during part of his high school years, he lived at Dengler's Farm on Wantagh Avenue in Wantagh, New York. His parents divor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dance Hall Racket
''Dance Hall Racket'' is a 1953 American film directed by Phil Tucker starring Lenny Bruce (who also wrote the script) and his wife Honey Harlow. Plot A gangster who operates a sleazy dance hall uses a sadistic bodyguard to keep his girls afraid and his customers in line. A merchant marine seaman is found murdered and suspicion falls upon the operator of a dime-a-dance honky tonk joint. A federal undercover agent is planted in the place to gather evidence, and he soon learns that the dive is only a cover-up for diamond-smuggling activities, and that one of the operation's henchmen, who is handy with a switch-blade knife, is the killer. Before they can be arrested, the henchman kills his boss and is shot while trying to escape. Cast * Timothy Farrell as Umberto Scalli * Lenny Bruce as Vincent *Bernie Jones as Punky, the Swedish Sailor * Honey Bruce Friedman Rose (as Honey Harlow) *Sally Marr as Hostess *Bunny Parker as Dancehall Girl *Joie Abrams as Dancehall Girl *Ronald Lee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lucky Luciano
Charles "Lucky" Luciano (, ; born Salvatore Lucania ; November 24, 1897 – January 26, 1962) was an Italian-born gangster who operated mainly in the United States. Luciano started his criminal career in the Five Points gang and was instrumental in the development of the National Crime Syndicate. Luciano is considered the father of modern organized crime in the United States for the establishment of The Commission in 1931, after he abolished the boss of bosses title held by Salvatore Maranzano following the Castellammarese War. He was also the first official boss of the modern Genovese crime family. In 1936, Luciano was tried and convicted for compulsory prostitution and running a prostitution racket after years of investigation by District Attorney Thomas E. Dewey. He was sentenced to 30 to 50 years in prison, but during World War II an agreement was struck with the Department of the Navy through his Jewish Mob associate Meyer Lansky to provide naval intelligence. In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Cape Canaveral Monsters
''The Cape Canaveral Monsters'' is a 1960 independent American black-and-white science-fiction film, produced by Lionel Dichter and Richard Greer, and written and directed by Phil Tucker. It stars Katherine Victor, Jason Johnson, Scott Peters and Linda Connell, Though planned as a theatrical feature, it was ultimately released directly to television. The movies deals with two extraterrestrials who have come to earth to "transmit" healthy, living humans, especially women, back to their home planet and to disrupt rockets launched from Cape Canaveral. It was made shortly before the start of the USA's crewed space program and has been categorized by a reviewer as a later entry in the "reds-under-the-beds," fear-of-communism films that were often part of sci-fi during the 1950s Plot Two mysterious white circles move about on a solid black background. As they move, a woman's voice says they must obtain human bodies to carry out their mission. Meanwhile, a man and woman leave a beac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orca (1977 Film)
''Orca'' (also known as ''Orca: The Killer Whale'') is a 1977 American thriller film directed by Michael Anderson and produced by Dino De Laurentiis, starring Richard Harris, Charlotte Rampling and Will Sampson. The film follows a male orca whale tracking down and getting revenge on a boat captain for killing the whale's pregnant mate and their unborn calf. Upon release, the film was a minor box office success, but received mostly unfavorable reception from critics and audiences alike due to its similarities to the film ''Jaws'', released two years prior. In 2017, Umbrella Entertainment released ''Orca'' on Region B Blu-ray with a new 4-minute interview with Martha De Laurentiis. On June 30, 2020, Scream Factory released ''Orca'' on Region A Blu-ray with an improved video transfer. Plot Captain Nolan is an Irish Canadian living in South Harbour, Nova Scotia who catches marine animals in order to pay off the mortgage on his boat and eventually return to Ireland. Nolan's crew ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
King Kong (1976 Film)
''King Kong'' is a 1976 American monster adventure film produced by Dino De Laurentiis and directed by John Guillermin. It is a modernized remake of the 1933 film about a giant ape that is captured and taken to New York City for exhibition. It stars Jeff Bridges, Charles Grodin, and Jessica Lange in her first film role, and features mechanical effects by Carlo Rambaldi and makeup effects by Rick Baker. It is the 5th entry in the King Kong franchise. The idea to remake ''King Kong'' was conceived by Michael Eisner, who was then an ABC executive, in 1974. He separately proposed the idea to Universal Pictures CEO Sidney Sheinberg and Paramount Pictures CEO Barry Diller. Dino De Laurentiis quickly acquired the film rights from RKO-General and subsequently hired television writer Lorenzo Semple, Jr. to write the script. John Guillermin was hired as director and filming lasted from January to August 1976. Before the film's release, Universal Pictures sued De Laurentiis and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rotary Engine
The rotary engine is an early type of internal combustion engine, usually designed with an odd number of cylinders per row in a radial configuration. The engine's crankshaft remained stationary in operation, while the entire crankcase and its attached cylinders rotated around it as a unit. Its main application was in aviation, although it also saw use in a few early motorcycles and automobiles. This type of engine was widely used as an alternative to conventional inline engines ( straight or V) during World War I and the years immediately preceding that conflict. It has been described as "a very efficient solution to the problems of power output, weight, and reliability". By the early 1920s, the inherent limitations of this type of engine had rendered it obsolete. Description Distinction between "rotary" and "radial" engines A rotary engine is essentially a standard Otto cycle engine, with cylinders arranged radially around a central crankshaft just like a conventional ra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Nude Bomb
''The Nude Bomb'' (also known as ''The Return of Maxwell Smart'') is a 1980 American spy comedy film based on the 1965-70 television series ''Get Smart''. It stars Don Adams as Maxwell Smart, Agent 86, and was directed by Clive Donner. It was retitled ''The Return of Maxwell Smart'' for television. Co-creators Mel Brooks and Buck Henry notably had no involvement in the making of the film. Furthermore, Adams and Robert Karvelas (as Larrabee) were the only original cast members of the TV series to reprise their roles for the film. Dana Elcar portrays the Chief in ''The Nude Bomb'' due to the death of Edward Platt, the original Chief, in 1974. Eugene Roche was originally cast as the Chief in this film, but was replaced by Elcar due to illness. Barbara Feldon as Agent 99 in the TV series, does not appear in the film nor is she referenced; Feldon claimed that she was unaware of the film's production and was not asked to reprise the role of 99, but wouldn't have accepted in any ca ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Film Directors
A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, production design and all the creative aspects of filmmaking. The film director gives direction to the cast and crew and creates an overall vision through which a film eventually becomes realized or noticed. Directors need to be able to mediate differences in creative visions and stay within the budget. There are many pathways to becoming a film director. Some film directors started as screenwriters, cinematographers, producers, film editors or actors. Other film directors have attended a film school. Directors use different approaches. Some outline a general plotline and let the actors improvise dialogue, while others control every aspect and demand that the actors and crew follow instructions precisely. Some directors also write th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
