Diller Memories...MAD MONSTER PARTY?

A classic post from October 2008 in memory of Ms. Diller.One of my alltime favorite Halloween treats when I was a kid was when local channel 9 WOR in New York would broadcast MAD MONSTER PARTY? (the question mark is part of the title-who knew?) on their 4:00 MOVIE.This wonderful Rankin/Bass "Animagic" feature was released theatrically in 1969-but really found its legs when it was syndicated to local stations in the 1970s. It's cast boasts a who's who of movie monsters - Count Dracula! The Wolf Man! The Mummy! The Invisible Man! Frankenstein's Monster! Dr. Jekyll! Mr. Hyde! The Creature (from the Black Lagoon)! The Hunchback of Notre Dame! It! (aka King Kong) and Phyllis Diller! The only one missing was John McCain.Boris Karloff voices Baron Von Frankenstein - who assembles these characters (The Worldwide Organization of Monsters) to announce his retirement - and introduce his nerdy nephew Felix and shapely new creation Francesca to the group. Even as a gay kid, I knew Francesca was HOT! I wonder if Francesca was the visual inspiration for MAD MEN's Joan Holloway? Hmmm...With character designs by the great Mad Magazine cartoonist Jack Davis, and some of the best stop-motion imagery ever, MAD MONSTER PARTY? is an absolute must-see for animation lovers. While the story may now be a bit slow-moving, and not as clever as I remember it from my childhood - I'd rather sit through this than the more recent "monster mash" called VAN HELSING any day of the year.MAD MONSTER PARTY also features some great musical numbers...and come on, you gotta love Phyllis Diller - here a pic of me and my husband John with Ms. Diller at her lovely Brentwood home in 2008. She's was 90+ and still a hoot!

For more info about Rankin/Bass visit Rick Goldschmidt's enchanting blog.

Scary TV: The Horror Show

Damn - I wish I had this on VHS tape. Anthony Perkins (who I once had the pleasure of meeting) hosts at look at 60 magical years of movie monsters, madmen and creatures of the night. Imagine of the networks still had the moxie to program stuff like this?

Scary TV:Dracula vs. Frankenstein

A low-budget 1971 shocker from Poland starring Lon Chaney, Jr. (in his last role), musical-comedy star Russ Tamblyn and DALLAS patriarch Jim Davis. A crappy movie, but a great TV GUIDE ad. I love that it aired TWICE - at 11PM for the adults then the next day at 4PM for the kiddies.

Random Christmas Crap

I know I've been neglecting my readers lately with mostly wordless posts and reruns from years gone by. I don't want to become the NBC of Blogger, so while I devise a plan to come up with some new and exciting topics, here's a bunch of random Christmas crap that I've collected over the years.

Wow DC Comics gave us SHAZAM! for Christmas one year...and history seems to be repeating itself because this year SHAZAM is coming back for another issue. In January, SHAZAM #1 will arrive, continuing the tale of current Captain Marvel Freddy Freeman, powerless former Cap Billy Batson and his sister Mary. Black Adam, Isis and back-from-the-dead Osiris also figure into the plot! Let's hop it's good and leads to an ongoing series!

If superhero zombies aren't your cup of nog, perhaps a yuletide-themed Frankenstein cover of Monster World magazine is more your speed. What an awesome cover, I so wish I had this framed on my bathroom wall. Gotta love all that hand-drawn blood-dripping typography. Nothing says Scary Christmas like monsters, ghouls, zombies and vampires...and not those soft-core porn TWILIGHT vampires!

Yikes! Speaking of scary...how many poor defenseless animals were slaughtered so Mr. Showmanship can pose for this horrifying holiday portrait? I'm so sure it must have been below zero when he stepped out of this Palm Springs home for this snapshot. Well, if Lee was still alive, I'd be first in line to toss a bucket of red paint on that atrocity. Twas the night before Christmas, and all through Lee's house, not a creature was furry, not even a mouse!

MAD MONSTER PARTY?

One of my alltime favorite Halloween treats when I was a kid was when local channel 9 WOR in New York would broadcast MAD MONSTER PARTY? (the question mark is part of the title-who knew?) on their  4:00 MOVIE.This wonderful Rankin/Bass "Animagic" feature was released theatrically in 1969-but really found its legs when it was syndicated to local stations in the 1970s. It's cast boasts a who's who of movie monsters - Count Dracula! The Wolf Man! The Mummy! The Invisible Man! Frankenstein's Monster! Dr. Jekyll! Mr. Hyde! The Creature (from the Black Lagoon)! The Hunchback of Notre Dame! It! (aka King Kong) and Phyllis Diller! The only one missing was John McCain.Boris Karloff voices Baron Von Frankenstein - who assembles these characters (The Worldwide Organization of Monsters) to announce his retirement - and introduce his nerdy nephew Felix and shapely new creation Francesca to the group. Even as a gay kid, I knew Francesca was HOT! I wonder if Francesca was the visual inspiration for MAD MEN's Joan Holloway? Hmmm...With character designs by the great Mad Magazine cartoonist Jack Davis, and some of the best stop-motion imagery ever, MAD MONSTER PARTY? is an absolute must-see for animation lovers. While the story may now be a bit slow-moving, and not as clever as I remember it from my childhood - I'd rather sit through this than the more recent "monster mash" called VAN HELSING any day of the year.MAD MONSTER PARTY also features some great musical numbers...and come on, you gotta love Phyllis Diller - here a pic of me and my parter John with Ms. Diller at her lovely Brentwood home last year. She's 91 and still a hoot!

For more info about Rankin/Bass visit Rick Goldschmidt's enchanting blog.

The Whiz Kid and the Carnival Caper

Adapted from a two-part 1975 WONDERFUL WORLD OF DISNEY episode, this paperback tells the tale of the Fernald siblings, Alvin and Daffy, who with their friends help Professor Dimitrik build a monster for the Riverton Carnival. Only things get complicated, as they often do in Disney TV plots - and the kids get involved in a bank robbery, a car chase and a shoot out! Who will save the day? How about the professor's creature - the WANGDOODLE MONSTER? (I'm not making this up).I bought this book when I was in the 5th grade and I remember thinking how cool the cover was. From the great Tinker Bell Disney TV logo on the top to the realistic painting of Alvin about to get mauled by the Frankenstein-like creature. I still think the cover is pretty cool - and I'd love to see the TV-movie again just to re-live those innocent times when a teen boy detective could help a creepy professor build a man named Wangdoodle and no one would bat an eye.