The Bloody Pit

For nearly fifty-five years the British science fiction television show Doctor Who has been a staple of geek culture. Admired for it's imaginative stories, if not always for it's high budget, the show has managed over time to be so popular that it has reached a status that often surpasses other science fiction franchises. These days being a fan of Doctor Who is pretty mainstream, with the public at large now having a good idea of the show's premise and stars. Such was not the case decades ago when fans begged for the show's return and fandom had to sustain itself on repeated viewings of the episodes produced from 1963 to 1989. Re-watching the Doctor battle Cybermen, Ice Warriors, Sontarans, Silurians and a host of other villains became fan's comfort viewing as they hoped for new adventures. Even if the story was a well know one, it was still proper Doctor Who and therefore a fun time!

But there is a strange tributary that branches off from main river of classic Who that was, and still is, generally ignored by fans. In the mid-1960's a film production company saw the incredible popularity of the TV show and thought the time was right for the Doctor and his companions to make the leap to the big screen. Hammer Horror star Peter Cushing was cast in the lead role, huge sets were built and, before you could activate the Tardis controls, a pair of cinematic adventures appeared. These two films were successes on their own and are the first instance of a Who story being shot in color. Cushing is his usual excellent self but you might have noticed that when images of the character's various incarnations are assembled, his face is never included. Often referred to as the Forgotten Doctor, Peter Cushing should be better known for his entertaining turn in the role and so, we present this podcast.

Stephen Sullivan and I have decided to draw some much deserved attention to these movies and in this episode, we focus on the first of them as this alternate Doctor Who discovers the big daddy of Who villains - The Daleks! By the middle of the 1960's the television show had made the mutated, mechanical monsters a (British) household name so they were the natural choice for the move to theaters. With the addition of color and the widescreen imagery (not to mention a lot more money) the relentless bad guys were more formidable looking than ever and I'm sure caused more than a few nightmares for years afterward. And in the theater there was no couch to hide behind!

Join Stephen and I as we glide through this first cinematic Who tale. We talk about the story, compare it to the TV episodes it's adapted from, discuss the production, point out things missing from the finished picture and just generally geek out over how cool everything looks. We lament the fact that this Doctor isn't really the one we know and love from the television show while at the same time enjoying this separate version of a beloved hero.

The podcast can be reached for comment at [email protected] and Stephen and his work can be found at his website. Thank you for downloading and listening!

NOTICE - There is an audio glitch in the first couple of minutes of our conversation that pushes our voices into one channel. It clears up quickly and remains fine for the rest of the show. It is not you equipment - it was ours!

Having covered a number of Godzilla films over the past two years Troy and I finally move outside of the Toho stable of giant monsters to talk about GAMERA! The giant friend to children everywhere has gone through many iterations over the past fifty-two years but one thing remains the same - he's a flying turtle! How in the hell did that even become a thing?

Regardless, we dig into the genesis of everyone's favorite giant Testudine -(yeah, we're educated) and relate our history with Gamera as well as the strange ways in which we discovered his films. We delve into the two separate versions of the film with attention paid to the alterations and additions made when the film was brought to America. Originally a lean 75 minutes the film's extended US length adds much but is the extra time well used? We have much to say about that, let me tell you! We dig into the pathology of young Toshio as he endlessly seeks to end his own life and the lives of his countrymen by offering himself up as bait/sacrifice to the hideous turtle monster. Rarely has attempted suicide been presented in such a positive light, much less the desire for immolation by prehistoric sea-beast. Circa 1965, truly, the Japanese child-rearing standards were well overdue for an overhaul!

I try (and fail) to contain my hatred for small, precocious, turtle obsessed Japanese children named Toshio while Troy does his best to keep the show on an even keel. We marvel over the technical achievements of the film and it's audacious move to co-opt the younger audience of the Godzilla franchise. The more serious aspects of the story are discussed along with some of the fascinating behind the scenes tales that demonstrate the difficulty of producing movies at this level of complication. Always remember - Mr. Flame is not always your friend!

We can be reached at [email protected] or on the Bloody Pit FaceBook page. If you have any comments or suggestions please drop us a line. Thank you for downloading and listening to our little dog and turtle show.

I am joined by the bane of my podcasting existence John Hudson and the much nicer Bobby Hazzard to heap praise upon EATING RAOUL (1982). This is the film I’ve always though of as ground zero for Paul Bartel appreciation and more than forty years later I think it still holds up as the perfect introduction to his comedic sensibilities. If you laugh your way through this film, chances are good that you will love his other movies as well. Even the ones that don’t involves running over little old ladies to win a cross-country race or cannibalism.

We jump into the discussion by detailing our history with Bartel’s work and what each of us find so appealing about his screen persona. All three of us bring some tales of the production history to the table with the start and stop nature of the filming process leading to information about locations and casting. We do eventually get to a synopsis of the plot and spoil most of the funnier moments so be aware that you should probably watch the movie before listening to us giggle our way though the many deaths by frying pan. Our peanut gallery has returned for this episode taking the time to laugh with and at us during the show. Long time podcast fans will recognize Beth and Steph from previous episodes but we also get some very funny contributions from Laura as well. Luckily, she keeps John in line and I will take any help I can get corralling the monkey-mad Mr. Hudson. Strap in for this one, folks and stay out of the hot tub!

The show can be reached at [email protected] where we’ll be thrilled to hear from you. You can also find the show on our Facebook page and wherever odder podcasts are downloaded. Thank you for listening.

Author David Annandale joins me for the second time to talk about another 1940’s horror film! This time we wade through STRANGLER OF THE SWAMP (1946) which is one of the more interesting examples of the output of the smallest of the Poverty Row studios - PRC (a.k.a. Producer’s Releasing Corporation). This is a fascinating low budget film that manages to make its lack of resources a virtue by leaning into the creepy fog and mists to hide the set limitations. It’s a favorite of both of us and we love getting to talk about it.

STRANGLER OF THE SWAMP is actually a remake of a German movie made by the same director a decade before. We start the show by digging into the earlier film to compare the two and delineate their many differences. The American film is much more a horror tale than the 1936 German original with a dark foreboding hanging over the characters living in an isolated village. The 1946 film has the vengeful ghost of a wrongfully accused man stalking and strangling the men responsible for his death and extending his attacks to the male children of the families as well. Having watched this moody little gem repeatedly over the years we were surprised to only now take note of the heroic town mothers the movie presents. While the men flail around trying to find a ‘reasonable’ excuse for the horrific events the female population works to deal directly with the problem. We note that this story element might be related to the changing view of women’s place in society during the second world war and wonder if this was a conscious choice by the filmmakers. We may never know, but it shows just how intriguing this little film can be and points to how creativity can make a movie endlessly rewatchable. There are always thought-provoking things buried in this swamp to drag out of the muck!

Mr. Annandale and I last discussed THE MONSTER MAKER and that episode can be found here. If you have any comments about this film or any other Poverty Row horror film [email protected] is the place to send them. Thank you for listening!

With this episode Troy and I start a new thread of shows focused on an unjustly neglected area of classic horror - the Universal Horror films of the 1940's. Not that there hasn't been attention paid to some of the movies of this period but, beyond the respect given to THE WOLF MAN (1941), there is a general distain for these later entries in the cycle. We're not sure we can rectify this injustice but we do plan to shine a light on the (admittedly) lesser 40's output with hopes of elevating their reputations a bit. Surely even the least charitable fans recognize how the various Mummy and Frankenstein sequels add some bizarre ideas to the Universal Monster Universe that make the entire sequence richer. Right?

We start with the first Invisible Man sequel THE INVISIBLE MAN RETURNS (1940) which gives us the chance to talk about the very young Vincent Price. Of course, he's invisible for most of the movie but the rest of the cast is more than capable of holding your attention. The film sports some high quality special effects and some foggy, creepy atmosphere so, regardless of the fact that the story is more of a murder mystery than a horror film, it feels like a proper continuation. Under discussion is the difficult attitude of the director, the consistently excellent score, the haunting beauty of Nan Grey and the odd sound of Vincent Price's voice. We are able to stay almost completely on the main subject and both of us manage to keep all our clothes on which means we avoided going mad - unlike some people we could name! (Anybody got a hit of monocane? I got the cash! Really!!)

At the end of the episode we read out a few emails we've received prompting some off topic discussion. It's always good to know there are folks out there enjoying what we're doing. If you have any comments, the show can be reached at [email protected] and we'll be thrilled to hear from you. We end things with a feisty little punk song and Vincent ranting us out the door! Thanks for listening.