News

Olive Sturgess, who appeared on about two dozen TV Westerns and got to act alongside Vincent Price, Boris Karloff, Peter Lorre and Jack Nicholson in the Roger Corman 1963 cult horror spoof The Raven, died Feb. 19, her family announced. She was 91.

Through two decades starting in the mid-1950s, the fresh-faced Sturgess showed up on (by her count) about 300 episodes of television, including 12 from 1956-59 as the girlfriend of Dwayne Hickman’s character on the NBC-CBS sitcom The Bob Cummings Show.

The Canadian-born starlet also was seen on such series as West Point, Perry Mason, Panic!, The Donna Reed Show, Hawaiian Eye, The Danny Thomas Show, Petticoat Junction, Dr. Kildare and Ironside, but TV Westerns dominated her résumé.

Sturgess appeared on Tales of Wells Fargo, Cheyenne, Sugarfoot, U.S. Marshal, Rawhide, Have Gun — Will Travel, Lawman, Laramie, The Rebel, The Tall Man, Bronco, Whispering Smith, Maverick, Wide Country, Destry,...

Scanned in 4k from an original 35mm camera negative, Film Masters announces its first special edition of 2025, the cult classic, Monster From The Ocean Floor (1954), available 4th February 2025 on Blu-ray and DVD.

The first feature-length film produced by the iconic king of pop cinema, Roger Corman, Monster From The Ocean Floor was inspired by a Los Angeles Times story Corman read about a one-man submarine manufactured by Aerojet General. He couldn’t pay for utilizing the sub in his move, but he promised plenty of publicity … and a deal was struck.

For his inaugural endeavor, Corman recruited first-timers William Danch (Shazam!, The Jim Backus Show, Mickey) to write the screenplay and director Wyott Ordung (A Whale of a Tale, The Mummy and the Curse of the Jackals, The Navy vs. the Night Monsters). Other first-timers included actor Stuart Wade (Teenage Monster) and, soon to be a regular Corman player, Jonathan Haze...

Terror strikes from beneath the sea when Monster from the Ocean Floor hits Blu-ray and DVD on February 4 via Film Masters.

The 1954 creature feature was the first film produced by the legendary Roger Corman. After reading an article about an electric-powered one-man submarine, Corman convinced the company to let the production use one in exchange for free publicity.

Robot Monster writer Wyott Ordung directs from a script by Bill Danch. Anne Kimbell, Stuart Wade, and Dick Pinner star. Corman also has a small role.

Monster from the Ocean Floor has been newly scanned in 4k from the original 35mm camera negative.

Special Features include:

Audio commentary by film historian Tom Weaver and The Weaver Players with archival contributions from Roger Corman Bob Baker: From Monsters to Marionettes featurette Roger Corman: Becoming a B-Movie Maker featurette Stills gallery Original 35mm theatrical trailer Re-cut 2025 trailer Liner notes by Tom Weaver

In the film,...

Jonathan Haze, who starred for Roger Corman as the flower shop assistant Seymour Krelborn in the original The Little Shop of Horrors, just one of two dozen films he made with the B-movie legend, has died. He was 95.

Haze died Saturday at his home in Los Angeles, his daughter, Rebecca Haze, told The Hollywood Reporter.

A cousin of drummer Buddy Rich, Haze was a valuable and versatile member of Corman’s repertory company from 1954 — when he acted in The Fast and the Furious and Monster From the Ocean Floor — until 1967, when he appeared in The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre and served as an assistant director on The Born Losers.

In one of his more noteworthy turns, Haze portrayed one of the three teenagers who stumble upon $250,000 worth of heroin and become dealers in Warner Bros. drama Stakeout on Dope Street (1958), the first feature directed by Irvin Kershner.

The Pittsburgh...

A mutant stalks the Earth when the body of a dead astronaut is used as an alien incubator … Meanwhile, people are being attacked by giant leeches … It doesn’t get any more revolting (or entertaining) than that in this ‘50s creature double feature from producer Roger Corman and Emmy-nominated director Bernard Kowalski (Hot Car Girl).

Night of the Blood Beast (1958)—with an extensive restoration, a new 4K scan from original 35mm archival elements—and Attack of the Giant Leeches (1959)—newly restored in HD—will be available on Blu-ray and DVD on 12th November 2024, in a special collector’s two-disc edition from Film Masters.

Night Of The Blood Beast (1958)

Astronaut John Corcoran (Michael Emmet) dies upon returning to Earth following a space mission, but mysteriously comes back to life! As the scientists at a remote space research station investigate Corcoran’s revival, they discover that a parasitic, alien lifeform is utilizing...

Film Masters, a group of historians and enthusiasts who seek to keep old films from falling into disrepair, have repaired another one. Night Of The Blood Beast, one of director Roger Corman’s many, many schlocky B-movie bills, has been remastered in 4K and will be available on Blu-Ray this November. If you’ve heard of this at all, it’s because it has its own MST3K episode — well, that’s actually on the disc, along with the restored original, a full commentary track by Tom Weaver and The Weaver Players, and even the silent 8Mm cut for home projectors (that was once a thing!) Astronaut John Corcoran (Michael Emmet) dies upon returning to Earth following a space mission, but mysteriously comes back to life! As the scientists at a remote space research station investigate Corcoran’s revival, they discover that a parasitic, alien lifeform is utilizing his body...

James Darren, the former teen idol and pop singer who played the dreamy surfer Moondoggie in three Gidget movies before starring on television on The Time Tunnel and T.J. Hooker, died Monday. He was 88.

Darren died in his sleep at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, his son Jim Moret, a correspondent for Inside Edition, told The Hollywood Reporter. He had entered the hospital for an aortic valve replacement but was deemed too weak to have the surgery; he went home but had to return.

“I always thought he would pull through,” Moret said, “because he was so cool. He was always cool.”

Early in his career, the dark-haired Darren received excellent notices for starring in Let No Man Write My Epitaph (1960) — portraying the son of a hoodlum defended by Humphrey Bogart’s character in 1949’s Knock on Any Door — and for playing the Greek soldier Spyros Pappadimos in The Guns of Navarone...

Ron Harper, who starred on Planet of the Apes and four other short-lived primetime series and on the final season of the beloved kids TV show Land of the Lost during a very busy 15 years on television, has died. He was 91.

Harper died Thursday of natural causes at his home in West Hills, his daughter, Nicole Longeuay, told The Hollywood Reporter.

After understudying for Paul Newman on Broadway, Harper portrayed Det. Bert Kling alongside Norman Fell, Robert Lansing, Gregory Walcott and Gena Rowlands on the 1961-62 NBC cop show 87th Precinct, based on the novels of Ed McBain.

He played Jeff Conway, the husband of Connie Stevens’ character, on the 1964-65 ABC sitcom Wendy and Me, also starring George Burns, who produced the show and appeared as the owner of the apartment building in which the young couple lives.

Next up for Harper were turns as the son of Jean Arthur...

The classic Universal Monsters have returned to life and they’re looking better than Ever before in the freshly unleashed Universal Classic Monsters Limited Edition Collection, a brand new 4K Ultra HD + Digital set that is now available… for a limited time!

Only 5,500 of these limited edition Universal Monsters 4K Ultra HD sets have been produced, and you can grab yours over on Amazon right now for $129.99 while supplies last.

From the era of silent movies through present day, Universal Pictures has been regarded as the home of the monsters and this upcoming collection showcases 8 of the most iconic monsters in motion picture history including Dracula, Frankenstein, The Mummy, The Invisible Man, The Bride of Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, Phantom of the Opera and Creature from the Black Lagoon. Exclusive to Amazon, the limited set consists of book-style packaging with rare photos, bios, trivia, and original cover art by renowned artist Tristan Eaton.

Newly restored in 4K from original, 35mm archival elements, the harrowing, supernatural thriller Tormented (1960) will be available 23rd April 2024 in a must-have collector’s edition loaded with bonus features, on Blu-ray and DVD from Film Masters.

Iconic cult film director Bert I. Gordon (Empire of the Ants, The Food of the Gods, The Mad Bomber, The Cyclops) helmed this terrifying story of passion from beyond the grave, starring Richard Carlson (Creature From the Black Lagoon, It Came From Outer Space), Susan Gordon (Ben Casey, The Five Pennies) and Lugene Sanders (The Life of Riley).

In a tight-knit island community off the coast of California, Tom Stewart (Carlson) is about to marry the woman he loves (Sanders). All is well until Tom’s ex-girlfriend, Vi (Reding), confronts him at the top of the island’s lighthouse, claiming he is hers and hers alone! When a freak accident occurs, he refuses to intervene,...

Stephen Kandel, the prolific screenwriter whose work over four decades in television spanned Sea Hunt to Star Trek, Batman to Barnaby Jones and Mannix to MacGyver, has died. He was 96.

Kandel died Oct. 21 of natural causes in his Boston apartment, his daughter Elizabeth Englander told The Hollywood Reporter.

Kandel also wrote multiple episodes of such shows as The Millionaire, The Rogues, Gidget, I Spy, Ironside, The Wild Wild West, It Takes a Thief, Dan August, The New Mike Hammer, Mission: Impossible, Room 222, The Magician, Medical Center, Cannon, Hawaii Five-o and Hart to Hart.

Plus, he co-created Iron Horse, a 1966-68 drama from ABC and Screen Gems that starred Dale Robertson, as a gambler turned railroad baron, Gary Collins and Ellen Burstyn.

“His résumé reads like a Baby Boomer’s dream list of must-see TV,” Tom Weaver wrote in his 2005 book, Earth vs. the Sci-Fi Filmmakers.

Kandel had a hand...

Mark Goddard, best known for playing Major Don West on Lost in Space, has died at the age of 87.

Goddard’s death was announced by his wife Evelyn Pezzulich on Facebook. “I’m so sorry to tell you that my wonderful husband passed away on October 10th,” Pezzulich wrote. “Several days after celebrating his 87th birthday, he was hospitalized with pneumonia. We were hopeful when he was transferred to a rehabilitation center, but then doctors discovered he was in the final stages of pulmonary fibrosis for which there is no cure.“

When Goddard’s agent first pitched Lost in Space to him, he wasn’t too sure he wanted to be involved. “I said, ‘Gee, I don’t know, I’m not sure, because of the subject matter.’” Goddard said in Tom Weaver’s book They Fought in Creature Features. “And [Goddard’s agent] said, ‘Well, listen, you just do it and don’t worry about it.

We have sad news to report on this Friday evening.

Mark Goddard, best known for his work on Lost in Space, has died.

He was 87.

Goddard died Tuesday in Hingham, Massachusetts, his wife Evelyn Pezzulich told The Hollywood Reporter.

The actor's impressive TV career kicked off in 1959 on Johnny Ringo, appearing in 38 episodes over a year.

He followed that up with The Detectives, where he starred as Detective Sergeant Chris Ballard.

He appeared in 64 episodes between 1960-62.

Additional TV credits include The Rifleman, The Bill Dana Show, The Beverly Hillbillies, Gunsmoke, Perry Mason, The Fugitive, and Many Happy Returns over the next three years.

His big break came in Lost in Space, where he played Major Don West, the pilot of Jupiter 2.

He appeared in all three seasons of the CBS comedy.

Lost in Space followed the adventures of the Robinsons, a pioneering family of space colonists who struggle to...

Mark Goddard, who played Major Don West, the hot-tempered pilot of the Jupiter 2, on the 1960s CBS adventure series Lost in Space, has died. He was 87.

Goddard died Tuesday in Hingham, Massachusetts, his wife Evelyn Pezzulich told The Hollywood Reporter.

Goddard had worked as a regular on the Four Star Television series Johnny Ringo and The Detectives when he was approached by his agent about coming aboard the new Lost on Space, created and produced by Irwin Allen.

The sci-fi show revolved around the adventures of the Robinson family: Professor John Robinson (Guy Williams), his biochemist wife, Maureen (June Lockhart) and their children Judy, Penny and Will (Marta Kristen, Angela Cartwright and Billy Mumy).

Major West also was on board, as was a stowaway, Dr. Zachary Smith (Jonathan Harris), and a robot (designed by Forbidden Planet‘s Robert Kinoshita, played by Bob May and voiced by Dick Tufeld). Their space colonization mission,...

Phyllis Coates, the first actress to play Lois Lane on television, has died. She was 96.

Coates portrayed the “Daily Planet” reporter and Clark Kent’s love interest for just one season on “Adventures of Superman.”

Coates, who also appeared in Republic Pictures serial shows and in films like “I Was a Teenage Frankenstein,” died Wednesday of natural causes at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills.

Her daughter Laura Press confirmed the news to The Hollywood Reporter.

Coates grew up in Wichita Falls, Texas. She first took on the role of Lois Lane alongside George Reeves as Superman in “Superman and the Mole Men” (1951), a dark science fiction film. The success of the Lippert Pictures film — the first full-length theatrical feature starring the Man of Steel — brought about the production of a syndicated television show.

The first season of “Adventures of Superman” contained 26 episodes. “The Mole...

Phyllis Coates, the actress who first played the iconic Daily Planet Reporter Lois Lane on the small screen, has died.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the beloved actress died Wednesday of natural causes at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills.

She was 96.

Coates first appeared in the superhero universe opposite George Reeves in the 1951 movie Superman and the Mole Men.

The movie was a roaring success and paved the way for the syndicated TV series The Adventures of Superman.

While the series lasted six seasons and had a devoted following, Coates stepped away following the first.

Noel Neill took over the role for the next five seasons, keeping Lois Lane a part of the franchise.

Neill had previously played the role on two occasions.

Coates' decision to leave was reportedly driven by her desire to work on a pilot for a series that would find...

Phyllis Coates, the first actress to play Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane on television, only to leave the Adventures of Superman after just one season, has died. She was 96.

Coates, who also appeared in Republic Pictures serials and in such films as I Was a Teenage Frankenstein, died Wednesday of natural causes at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, her daughter Laura Press told The Hollywood Reporter.

A native of Wichita Falls, Texas, Coates first portrayed the headstrong Lois opposite George Reeves as the Man of Steel in the dark sci-fi movie Superman and the Mole Men (1951).

The success of that Lippert Pictures film — the first full-length theatrical feature starring the comic-book hero — led to the quick decision to start production on a syndicated show for television.

Coates segued to the series and got into jams as Lois in all 26 episodes of the first season...

A couple months ago, it was announced that eight of the classic Universal Monsters movies – Dracula, Frankenstein, The Mummy, The Invisible Man, The Bride of Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, Phantom of the Opera, and Creature from the Black Lagoon – would be receiving a limited edition 4K box set release. That box set was supposed to reach store shelves today, October 3rd… but you may have noticed that it’s not available, and Amazon stopped taking orders. That’s because the release of the box set has been delayed until February of 2024.

Our friends at Bloody Disgusting shared the following message from Universal: “Due to an unexpected packaging issue, the originally planned October 3, 2023 release of Universal Pictures Home Entertainment’s upcoming 4K collectible box set of the “Universal Classic Monsters Limited Edition Collection” is moving to February 13, 2024. We appreciate your patience and are very sorry for the inconvenience.”

An image of...

Killer Collectibles highlights five of the most exciting new horror products announced each and every week, from toys and apparel to artwork, records, and much more.

Here are the coolest horror collectibles unveiled this week!

The Wicker Man 4K Uhd Steelbook from Best Buy

Best Buy will exclusively carry The Wicker Man on Steelbook 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital on October 17 via Lionsgate. Richey Beckett designed the artwork. Pre-orders are live for $21.99.

In her recent 50th anniversary retrospective, Meagan Navarro called the 1973 British folk horror film “a classic horror movie whose legacy only seems to grow more potent with age.” Robin Hardy directs from a script by Anthony Shaffer (Frenzy). Edward Woodward, Britt Ekland, Diane Cilento, Ingrid Pitt, and Christopher Lee star.

The 94-minute “Final Cut” has been restored in 4K with Dolby Vision/Hdr and Lpcm mono audio. Special features include “The Wicker Man at 50” featurette; interviews with Hardy,...

Here’s some cool news: eight of the classic Universal Monsters movies – Dracula, Frankenstein, The Mummy, The Invisible Man, The Bride of Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, Phantom of the Opera, and Creature from the Black Lagoon – are being released in a limited edition 4K box set! The release date is October 3rd, and the set can already be pre-ordered through Amazon. But we have to warn you, there is indeed a very limited number of sets being made. Only 5500 of them will exist. So if you want the set, you might want to secure your copy very soon.

An image of the set can be seen at the bottom of this article. The discs come with the following bonus features:

Disc 1 – Dracula (1931):

Includes 4K Uhd, Blu-ray and a digital copy of Dracula (1931) (Subject to expiration. Go to NBCUCodes.com for details.)

4x Sharper than Full HD with High Dynamic...

Film historian Phil Hopkins has launched Film Masters, a new vintage film restoration and distribution company.

Each month, one Blu-ray/DVD title will be released, beginning on Sept. 26 with a two-disc collection featuring cult favorite “The Giant Gila Monster” with bonus film “The Killer Shrews,” which were both originally released as a double-feature bill in 1959. Following the pilot slate, the 1959 horror “Beast From Haunted Cove” will release on Oct. 24 followed by the 1934 drama “The Scarlett Letter” on Nov. 21.

Upon each release, films will be restored with new 4k scans of 35mm with original film elements, offered in original aspect ratios while being presented on region-free discs with DTS-hd sound and Dolby AC3s sound.

“Preserving these films in an increasingly homogenized media world is more important than ever,” said Hopkins. “As a consortium of historians and avid enthusiasts, Film Masters was launched to celebrate the preservation and restoration of vintage movies,...

Hello, dear readers! We’re back with a brand new edition of our rundown of this week’s home media releases, and it’s definitely a good time to be a Nicolas Cage fan as we have two different films featuring the iconic actor headed to various formats - The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent and Vampire’s Kiss which is receiving the Special Edition treatment from Mvd Visual. We also have some killer new horror movies headed home today too, including The Cellar and You Are Not My Mother, and one of my favorite ‘90s sci-fi/horror movies is also headed to Blu-ray today courtesy of Scream Factory as well: Fire in the Sky.

Other Blu-ray and DVD releases for June 21st include Uncle Sam 4K, The Initiation of Sarah, The Brain From Planet Arous, Forced Entry and Monday Morning.

The Brain From Planet Arous: Special Edition

When Gor,...

“Woman Warriors in Brutal Death Battle!” This adventure thriller has no reputation to speak of, and is mainly notable as a strange chapter in the topsy-turvy life of Curt Siodmak, who as a producer-writer-director, filmed this and another equally absurd jungle romp on location in Brazil. How Siodmak got these pictures going is a mystery — they received national releases, in Technicolor through Universal-International. CineSavant makes its best, wholly un-researched guesses, breaking all the rules of ethical film reportage. But honest, this is the jungle fantasy populated by Amazon warriors — all painted green.

Love Slaves of the Amazons

Blu-ray

Kl Studio Classics

1957 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 81 min. / Street Date June 14, 2022 / available through Kino Lorber / 24.95

Starring: Don Taylor, Gianna Segale, Eduardo Ciannelli, Harvey Chalk, Wilson Viana, Eugenio Carlos, Tom Payne, Gilda Nery, Ana Maria Nabuco, John Herbert, Louis Serrano — and Paul Frees, times six.

Cinematography: Mario Pagés

Art Director: Pierino Massenzi

Film Editors: Oswald Hafenrichter,...

New Featurette: Take a look inside The Black Phone with Ethan Hawke: "The phone is dead. And it’s ringing.

Director Scott Derrickson returns to his terror roots and partners again with the foremost brand in the genre, Blumhouse, with a new horror thriller. Finney Shaw, a shy but clever 13-year-old boy, is abducted by a sadistic killer and trapped in a soundproof basement where screaming is of little use. When a disconnected phone on the wall begins to ring, Finney discovers that he can hear the voices of the killer’s previous victims. And they are dead set on making sure that what happened to them doesn’t happen to Finney.

Starring four-time Oscar® nominee Ethan Hawke in the most terrifying role of his career and introducing Mason Thames in his first ever film role, The Black Phone is produced, directed, and co-written by Scott Derrickson, the writer-director of Sinister,...

Another key ’50s sci-fi makes it to Blu-ray in an admirable encoding. Roger Corman’s end-of-the-world survivalist struggle against radioactive mist and three-eyed mutants shines in the glory of Superscope: Richard Denning and cute Lori Nelson must contend with a human monster in Touch Connors’ gangster. Adele Jergens spices things up, while Paul Birch delivers downer sermons about doomsday. It’s a truly marvelous atom fable, full of fanciful silly-science that makes for good storytelling. With a commentary by Tom Weaver. And don’t forget to click the ‘Rhododendron’ link.

Day the World Ended

Blu-ray

1955 / B&w / 2.00:1 widescreen / 79 min. / Street Date December 21, 2021

Starring: Richard Denning, Lori Nelson, Adele Jergens, Touch Connors, Paul Birch, Raymond Hatton, Paul Dubov, Jonathan Haze, Paul Blaisdell, Chet Huntley (voice).

Cinematography: Jock Feindel

Set Decoration: Harry Reif

Film Editor: Ronald Sinclair

Special Effects: Paul Blaisdell

Original Music: Ronald Stein

Written by Lou Rusoff

Executive Producer:...

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By Darren Allison

The Film Detective continues to thrill us with a couple of excellent cult classics. Frankenstein’s Daughter is a film that had been denied a great deal of exposure to fans of the strange and macabre. For many, it’s a title that has teased us for decades, with a still or a lobby card appearing once in a while by way of a horror book or a specialist periodical, so it is certainly welcome. It is typically what one would expect from this lush 1950s period. An incredibly low-budget affair, these films would often be produced for around $60,000, but the filmmakers certainly knew how to squeeze every ounce out of that budget. If anything, it ignited creativity and provided a lesson in how to make the most of the limited resources that were available to them.

Frankenstein’s Daughter is a fine example of that.

Richard Cunha’s third of four horror item for Astor Pictures is perhaps the most marketable: in 1958 almost anything with the name Dracula or Frankenstein could get a big release. The Film Detective’s new disc (remastered from a 4K scan) shows the picture at its absolute best and confirms Cunha as a decent director. The monsters are dire but most of the acting is rather good: Sandra Knight, Donald Murphy, Wolfe Barzell and Sally Todd in particular. It’s core nostalgia for monster fans, and much gorier than we remembered.

Frankenstein’s Daughter

Blu-ray

The Film Detective

1958 / B&w / 1:85 widescreen / 85 min. / Street Date October 26, 2021 / Available from The Film Detective / 24.95

Starring: John Ashley, Sandra Knight, Donald Murphy, Sally Todd, Wolfe Barzell, Harold Lloyd Jr., Felix Locher, Robert Dix, John Zaremba, Harry Wilson.

Cinematography: Meredith M. Nicholson

Art Director: Don Ament

Film Editor: Everett Dodd

Original Music: Nicholas Carras

Written by...

Hello, dear readers! November is officially upon us, as well as a new week of Blu-ray and DVD releases, which means it’s time to make some room for more horror and sci-fi to fill your home entertainment shelves. One of this writer’s favorite indie genre movies of the year, Come True, is getting released to both Blu and DVD this week courtesy of Scream Factory, and Kino Lorber is showing some love to a pair of classic thrillers as well: The Spider Woman Strikes Back and The Mad Doctor. Other releases for November 2nd include The Banishing, Pig featuring Nicolas Cage, and The Spore.

The Banishing

From acclaimed genre director Chris Smith (Creep) comes the true story of the most haunted house in England. A young reverend, his wife and daughter move into a manor with a horrifying secret. When a vengeful spirit haunts the little girl and...

“If you ask me, M’Lord, he’s a stench in the nostrils, a sewer of ugliness, and a gutter brimming with slop.”

The Val Lewton Double Feature The Ghost Ship (1943) and Bedlam (1946) are now available on Blu-ray from Warner Archive

This double-feature disc brings together two of producer Val Lewton’s classic Rko horror films, newly restored and remastered. In 1943’s The Ghost Ship, Tom Merriam (Russell Wade), the young third mate on a freighter bound for Patagonia, witnesses the murder of a crewman by the ship’s captain, Will Stone (Richard Dix). Merriam realizes Stone is going insane, but the rest of the crew won’t believe him…or that he may be the mad captain’s next victim!

Boris Karloff reunites with Lewton for a third and final time in 1946’s Bedlam, set in 1971 at a London asylum. Karloff gives an unforgettable performance as the doomed overseer...

Criterion gives this classic its first exposure on Region A Blu-ray! A new 4K remaster puts the story of a guy too tiny to escape from his own cellar in its very best light — Scott Carey’s combat with the spider is still a scary delight, with a newly-fixed imperfection. Criterion’s extras lean toward fan-oriented fare: Tom Weaver tops the stack with a fine commentary and we get good input from Ben Burtt, Craig Barron, Richard Christian Matheson, Joe Dante and Dana Gould — plus thoughtful liner notes by Geoffrey O’Brien. And don’t forget those excellent movie trailers narrated by a breathless Orson Welles. Robert Scott Carey should have his own statue in Los Angeles, like Rocky Balboa in Philadelphia.

The Incredible Shrinking Man

Blu-ray

The Criterion Collection 1100

1957 / B&w / 1:85 widescreen / 81 min. / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date October 19, 2021 / 39.95

Starring: Grant Williams, Randy Stuart, April Kent, Paul Langton,...

“You’ve always treated me as a monster, Trudy. Now you’re going to be one.”

Cinedigm, the leading independent streaming company super-serving enthusiast fan bases, announced today that The Film Detective (Tfd), the classic media streaming network and film archive that restores and distributes classic films, is releasing a special-edition version of the 1950s cult classic, Frankenstein’s Daughter (1958), starring John Ashley and Sandra Knight, on Blu-ray and DVD Oct. 19.

Fans of low-budget horror will recognize many familiar faces,including John Ashley, Harold Lloyd, Jr., and former Playboy Playmate of the Month, Sally Todd. For director Richard E. Cunha, Frankenstein’s Daughter was released in the heat of a historic year for low-budget favorites, also having directed such cult classics as She Demons (1958), Giant from the Unknown (1958) and Missile to the Moon (1958).

Frankenstein’s Daughter finds Dr. Oliver Frank (Donald Murphy) carrying on the legacy of his late grandfather, the notorious Dr.

¡Ai Caramba! It’s the best movie ever made about a killer Spanish Conquistador from beyond the grave. This is probably the most satisfying of Richard Cunha’s monster romps despite being rudimentary in all respects. The script is dire and the monster just a generic bogeyman, but the actors are pleasant and the locations attractive. The filmmakers had the last laugh anyway, as the plain-wrap show garnered a nationwide theatrical release. The Film Detective wisely brought on Tom Weaver to front the extras, as he had the picture fully documented years ago.

Giant from the Unknown

Blu-ray

The Film Detective

1958 / B&w / 1:85 widescreen / 78 min. / Street Date January 15, 2021 / Available from The Film Detective / 24.95

Starring: Ed Kemmer, Sally Fraser, Bob Steele, Morris Ankrum, Buddy Baer, Gary Crutcher, Oliver Blake, Jolene Brand, Billy Dix.

Cinematography: Dick Cunha

Makeup: Jack P. Pierce

Original Music: Albert Glasser

Written by Frank Hart Taussig, Ralph Brooke

Produced by Marc Frederick,...

Hello again, dear readers! We have a brand new batch of home media releases coming our way this week, which includes a few classic John Carpenter films getting some 4K love, several recent indie horror hits, and more. If you’ve been looking to upgrade your copies of Prince of Darkness or They Live, Scream Factory has put together stunning 4K Uhd releases for both films, and if you haven’t had a chance to catch either Spiral (2020) or The Cleansing Hour on Shudder, now is your chance to catch up with both of those movies as well.

Other Blu-ray and DVD releases for January 19th include Giant from the Unknown, The Village in the Woods, Godforsaken, The Clown Doll, and Dark Show.

The Cleansing Hour

Max and Drew run a popular webcast that streams “live exorcisms” watched by millions across the globe. In reality, the exorcisms are just elaborately...

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By John M. Whalen

Kino Lorber, in its relentless effort to make forgotten, hard-to-find films available in superior, like-new condition, has released a Blu-Ray edition of the 1959 Weird Western, “Curse of the Undead,” the first movie ever to mix cowboys and vampires. The Weird Western, in case you’re not aware, is a sub-genre that combines the traditional western with elements of the supernatural, horror, or science fiction. They’ve been around for about 90 years, first appearing in print in the 1930s when Robert E. Howard, a pulp fiction writer from Texas, best known as the creator of Conan the Barbarian, wrote several short stories for Weird Tales and Argosy magazine that combined the traditional western with supernatural horror. Today a number of authors including Joe Lansdale, Heath Lowrance, Jonathan Mayberry, David West and even yours truly, have turned out Weird Western novels and short stories,...

Available in Blu-ray & DVD, the 1958 Science-Fiction Cult Classic Giant From The Unknown Returns in Limited-Edition. Giant Cult Film Collector’s Box Set for the Holidays; General Release Scheduled for Jan. 19th. Check out the Trailer:

The Film Detective (Tfd), a classic media streaming network and film archive that restores and distributes classic films for today’s cord-cutters, announces the release of Richard E. Cunha’s science-fiction classic, Giant from the Unknown(1958),on limited-edition Blu-ray and DVD. The Giant from the Unknownrelease comes as the latest in a series of restorations in collaboration with The Wade Williams Collection.

For the first time ever, Tfd presents film fans with the ultimate cinematic experience, offering Giant from the Unknown in a Limited-Edition Giant Cult Film Box Set, available to order now through Nov. 13 from Tfd store via Imagen, delivered by Dec. 17 in time for the holidays.

Cult classic fans who order the Limited-Edition...

The Ape

Blu ray

Kino Lorber

1940 / 62 min. / 1:33:1

Starring Boris Karloff, Maris Wrixon

Cinematography by Harry Neumann

Directed by William Nigh

William Nigh directed over 40 silent films before he signed on for The Ape, which might account for this 1940 film looking far older than its release date—the staging is rudimentary and the dialog so simple that intertitles would convey the action with all its meaning intact. Curt Siodmak’s storyline could have been plucked from a different era too—in particular 1931’s City Lights in which a flower girl regains her sight thanks to Chaplin’s perennial outcast, the little tramp. In The Ape the misfit is Boris Karloff as a scientist who helps a lame girl to walk—and though this low budget melodrama can’t compete with Chaplin’s sentimental masterpiece, like many silent era films, it has its own unvarnished appeal.

Karloff plays Dr. Adrian,...

Film producer Gene Corman, who frequently collaborated with his older brother Roger Corman, died at his home on Sept. 28. He was 93.

Roger Corman confirmed Gene Corman’s passing and said, “My brother was a great man, both as a producer and as a family man.”

Gene Corman was born in Detroit in 1927, 17 months after his brother. In 1940, the family moved from Detroit to Beverly Hills and both attended Beverly Hills High School and Stanford University.

Gene Corman broke into the entertainment business as an agent at McA, where his clients included Joan Crawford, Fred MacMurray, Ray Milland, Harry Belafonte, Richard Conte and Nicholas Ray. He also arranged the distribution deal for Roger Corman’s first film, “Monster From the Ocean Floor,” in 1954.

The brothers first collaborated on the 1958 film “Hot Car Girl,” followed by “Night of the Blood Beast,” “Beast From Haunted Cave,” “Premature Burial,” and “Tower of London.” The...

Now that October is officially underway, we have a brand new batch of Blu-rays and DVDs coming out tomorrow that would be perfect to add to your Halloween season viewing plans in the coming weeks. Rlje Films is keeping busy this Tuesday with The Pale Door and Yummy, and Arrow Video is showing some love to The Deeper You Dig this week as well. Tales from the Hood 3 is also headed to both Blu and DVD tomorrow, and for those of you who missed the fancier version this summer, there’s a new 4K release of Jaws coming our way, too.

Other home media releases for October 6th include Curse of the Undead, They Live Inside Us, The Face at the Window, The World is Full of Secrets, and Snow White: A Tale of Terror.

Curse of the Undead

Vampiric gunfighter Drake Robey goes West and terrorizes a small town.

Cinema Retro has received the following press release from Shout! Factory's Scream Factory unit:

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Los Angeles, CA – Scream Factory™ has announced the release of more classic horror films, with the August 25 drop of Volume 6 of the incredibly popular Universal Horror Collection. The set contains 4 films on Blu-ray™, and is packed with new bonus features and new 2K scans of the films.

Universal Horror Collection Vol. 6 includes four tales of terror from the archives of Universal Pictures, the true home of classic horror. Boris Karloff stars as a doctor who risks his own life to save the captives of a mad count in The Black Castle. Vengeance is sworn against six men who witness a ceremony where beautiful women turn into serpents in Cult Of The Cobra. In The Thing That Couldn’t Die, when a young psychic discovers a box that contains...

Lori Nelson, the 1950s starlet who was kidnapped by an amphibious monster in Revenge of the Creature and portrayed Barbara Stanwyck’s younger daughter in Douglas Sirk’s All I Desire, has died. She was 87.

Nelson had been suffering from Alzheimer’s disease for several years and died Sunday at her home in the Porter Ranch section of Los Angeles, her daughter Jennifer Mann said.

In Ma and Pa Kettle at the Fair (1952) and Ma and Pa Kettle at Waikiki (1955), Nelson played Rosie Kettle, one of the daughters of the characters played by Marjorie Main and Percy Kilbride in the Universal series of films.

Nelson also made her mark in I Died a Thousand Times (1955), a remake of the Humphrey Bogart classic High Sierra in which she portrayed the club-footed love interest of Jack Palance’s crook; Pardners (1956), working opposite Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis in their penultimate film together...

Bert I. Gordon rides again, with an excellent encoding of one of his more popular sci-fi monster-ramas. Pert ‘n’ perky June Kenney is so brave that she keeps going back to ‘that old cave outside of town,’ despite not knowing how many giant spiders are on the loose. Teenagers in their thirties and their bebop-crazy rock ‘n’ roll are no match for Gordon’s titanic, screaming arachnid. This spidey is just plain shifty, the kind of unscrupulous fiend that colors his crayons outside the (matte) lines … in crimson B&w blood! June Kenney’s mom knows her girl only two well: “… I hope she hasn’t gone back to that cave.” With some excellent extras, namely about a million rare behind-the-scenes stills from Tom Weaver.

The Spider

Blu-ray

Scream Factory

1958 / B&w / 1:85 widescreen / 73 min. / Earth vs. The Spider / Street Date June 23, 2020

Starring: Ed Kemmer, June Kenney, Gene Persson, Gene Roth,...

Cinema Retro has received the following press release:

Universal Horror Collection Vol. 5 will scream to life on Blu-ray on June 16 from Scream Factory.

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The collection includes four tales of terror from the archives of Universal Pictures, the true home of classic horror. A mobster's brain is transplanted into an ape who carries out his revenge in The Monster And The Girl. A mad scientist turns an ape into a beautiful, but deadly woman in Captive Wild Woman. Jungle Woman, the sequel to Captive Wild Woman, is an eerie thriller with all the danger of wild animals on the loose and a sexy killer on the prowl! And in The Jungle Captive, a scientist has experimented on re-animating animals ... but now he has decided to go one step further and re-animate a human!

Universal Horror Collection Vol. 5 Includes:

The Monster And The Girl

Special...

Following the March release of Universal Horror Collection Volume 4, Scream Factory will release the fifth volume of their Universal Blu-ray sets this June, and we've been provided with the full list of special features.

Coming out on June 16th, the Universal Horror Collection Volume 5 is wilderness-themed and includes The Monster and the Girl, Captive Wild Woman, Jungle Woman, and The Jungle Captive. For more information, we have a look at the cover art and full release details in the press release below:

Press Release: Universal Horror Collection Vol. 5 will scream to life on Blu-ray™ on June 16 from Scream Factory.

The collection includes four tales of terror from the archives of Universal Pictures, the true home of classic horror. A mobster's brain is transplanted into an ape who carries out his revenge in The Monster And The Girl. A mad scientist turns an ape into a beautiful, but deadly woman in Captive Wild Woman.

A CineSavant Article A mention in a book by Tom Weaver of an odd shared visual in two Universal-International movies of the 1950s prompts a quick frame-grab comparison, and also some thoughts about how movies were really made back when twenty dollars was probably considered a big budget expenditure. Some savant I am … I simply didn’t see what was in front of my eyes! A contributor (and friend) had to hold me by the neck to see what a few others have figured out before. Bud and Lou are involved, so who can complain?

Now for some fun, the man said. This one gets filed in the In Box for ‘Odd Mysteries.’ Friend and advisor Craig Reardon has been enduring the world’s forced isolation (cough) by doing what we all do when the going gets tough, watching TV.

Craig found something while doing a feature-by-feature survey of...

Last year Scream Factory gave classic horror fans the gift of three volumes (featuring 12 films overall) of their Universal Horror Collection, and they're extending that collection into the new year with the Universal Horror Collection Volume 4.

Coming out on March 17th from Scream Factory, the Universal Horror Collection Volume 4 features Night Key (1937), Night Monster (1942), The Climax (1944), and House of Horrors (1946).

We have a look at the cover art and the full release details below, including the complete list of special features for the new release:

Press Release: Universal Horror Collection Volume 4 screams to life on March 17 from Scream Factory! Special features include new 2K scans, new audio commentaries, a new featurette, and much more.

Volume 4 includes four tales of terror from the archives of Universal Pictures, the true home of classic horror. This collection includes such horror stars as Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Lionel Atwill, and Rondo Hatton. Boris...

How can a ‘Z’ horror production so completely absorb the thoughts of this ex- film student? This maladroit 1963 monster mash can’t even tell when it’s doing something good. A capable cast gives their all to a marginal production that, re-titled as The Atomic Brain, became a staple on late-nite TV, where it worked better than a sleeping pill. For extras, the quality disc production taps the one mortal willing to research this film’s murky depths: who else but Tom Weaver, whose original interview research actually makes sense of this screwy picture. Well, a little sense, at least.

Monstrosity

Blu-ray

Moth, Inc / Something Weird

1963 / Color / 1:85 widescreen + 1:33 open matte full frame / 65 min. / The Atomic Brain / Street Date 2018, 2019? / 24.99

Starring: Erika Peters, Judy Bamber, Marjorie Eaton, Frank Gerstle, Frank Fowler, Lisa Lang, Margie Fisco.

Cinematography: Alfred Taylor

Film Editor: Owen C. Gladden

Makeup: Lou Yates

Electrical effects: Kenneth Strickfaden...

Why do we like horror and monster movies that routinely get labeled as ‘bad?’ Because many of them have great story ideas and look at the world from odd, warped viewpoints. Back when ‘warped’ wasn’t a prerequisite for All filmed entertainment (my exaggeration) this murderous rejuvenation tale could be appreciated as something unusual, even quirky. Jeez, the characters are even nastier than the people I know! Lovely Coleen Gray takes a chance on a downmarket Universal programmer and proves how well she can carry a movie, even through several dubious horror make-ups.

The Leech Woman

Blu-ray

Scream Factory

1960 / B&w / 1:85 widescreen / 77 min. / Street Date August 27, 2019 / Available from Scream Factory

Starring: Coleen Gray, Grant Williams, Phillip Terry, Gloria Talbott, John Van Dreelen, Estelle Hemsley, Kim Hamilton, Arthur Batanides, Murray Alper, Paul Thompson.

Cinematography: Ellis W. Carter

Film Editor: Milton Carruth

Original Music: Irving Gertz

Written by David Duncan, story by Ben Pivar,...

Get ready for more thrills and chills as Universal Horror Collection Volume 3 is coming to Blu-ray on December 17 from Scream Factory. The collection comes packed with a wealth of special features, including new audio commentary by film historians Steve Haberman, Tom Weaver, Constantine Nasr, Gary D. Rhodes, and Ted Newsom, and a new …

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Adding to their tradition of releasing box sets of beloved horror franchises, Scream Factory's five-disc The Fly Collection comes out on December 10th, and ahead of its holiday season release, we've been provided with the massive list of full special features.

Press Release: Los Angeles, CA -- Get ready for hours of skin-crawling terror as you witness a transformation like no other – from man to fly. On December 10, 2019, Scream Factory proudly presents the insect-morphing horror set The Fly Collection in a definitive Blu-ray™ release. This massive 5-disc set consists of the chilling original trilogy, the eye-popping 80s remake and its terrifying sequel, and is packed with hours of fascinating special features.

The complete list of bonus features includes a bevy of new interviews and audio commentaries with cast and crew, including with producers Mel Brooks and Stuart Cornfeld, screenwriter Mick Garris and composer Howard Shore. The Curse of the Fly...

Following the releases of the Universal Horror Collection Volumes 1 and 2 earlier this year, Scream Factory is giving horror fans the gift of more classic genre films with the December 17th release of Universal Horror Collection Volume 3, and ahead of its release, we've been provided with the full list of special features to share with Daily Dead readers:

Press Release: Los Angeles, CA – Get ready for more thrills and chills as Universal Horror Collection Volume 3 is coming to Blu-ray on December 17 from Scream Factory. The collection comes packed with a wealth of special features, including new audio commentary by film historians Steve Haberman, Tom Weaver, Constantine Nasr, Gary D. Rhodes, and Ted Newsom, and a new 2K scan of a fine grain print.

Volume 3 of the Universal Horror Collection includes four tales of terror from the archives of Universal Pictures, the true home of classic horror. This collection includes such horror stars as Boris Karloff,...