I don't know if THE YOUNG RUNAWAYS (MGM, 1968) with Richard Dreyfuss has been mentioned. I saw the film shortly after it opened. I didn't like it much. Naturally I want to see it again.
I don't know if THE YOUNG RUNAWAYS (MGM, 1968) with Richard Dreyfuss has been mentioned. I saw the film shortly after it opened. I didn't like it much. Naturally I want to see it again.
THE YOUNG RUNAWAYS was a Sam Katzman production. Although it hasn't made it into the Warner Archive yet, I'm fairly certain that I saw s showing of it on Turner Classic Movies (or maybe it was Turner Network Television) about 15 years ago.
Arrow Video in Britain has released a two-disc package containing Russ Meyer's two Hollywood studio films: BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS on Blu-ray and THE SEVEN MINUTES on DVD. This marks the first-ever video release of THE SEVEN MINUTES, which was discussed in a June 22, 2012 posting in this thread. Apparently Arrow has located the complete R-rated 115-minute version of THE SEVEN MINUTES. Even the American Film Institute was unable to uncover an original print, and had to view a 103-minute PG-rated version for their cataloging project. Hopefully, Arrow can make this package available in a Region A / Region 1 format for U.S. audiences.
This film dogged me for YEARS! I remember seeing it as part of a double-bill with PUFINSTUF when I was a kid, but could not remember the title or who starred in it. I only remembered it being a family-friendly western with a saloon gal as part of the plot. Thanks to the Chicago Tribune Archives, I did a search of movie listings and finally found this playing at the Ramova the week of July 31, 1970 (I actually started my search with January of 1971 and went about a year and a half in the wrong direction before finally backing up into 1970). Someone posted this on YouTube and it's definitely the movie I had remembered. Lots of veteran actors in this (Dan Blocker, Nanette Fabray, Mickey Rooney, Wally Cox, Jack Elam, Jack Cassidy, Henry Jones, Jim Backus, and many more). Wouldn't mind seeing Universal dust this one off and give this its first-ever home video release... DVD or Blu-Ray would be most welcome!
This Universal film was originally intended, but never shown, as an NBC-TV feature entitled "A Woman for Charlie." Reportedly, it was slightly revised for theatrical release. Lyn Murray scored the film.
What can you dig up on THE LEGEND OF HILLBILLY JOHN (1973)?
Den
THE LEGEND OF HILLBILLY JOHN was a film that played in most of the U.S. in 1973. The film's semi-allegorical stories were based on Manley Wade Wellman's 1963 short story collection, Who Fears the Devil?, which was a compilation of Appalachian folklore featuring Wellman’s most familiar character, “Silver John” or “John the Balladeer.” Indeed, the film was produced and originally exhibited under the title of WHO FEARS THE DEVIL. For 30 years beginning in the 1950s, Wellman mystified readers with his spooky backwoods horror tales that were intuitively drawn from real-life mountain legends. The film’s screenplay, by newcomer Melvin P. Levy, was based upon two of Wellman’s stories: “The Desrick on Yandro” and “O Ugly Bird.”
THE LEGEND OF HILLBILLY JOHN was the final feature film production of Barney Rosenzweig, who had been an associate producer on Marlon Brando’s MORITURI (1965) and Doris Day’s CAPRICE (1967). Rosenzweig had also produced several seasons of the TV series “Daniel Boone.” The film was directed by John Newland. Newland had started as an actor in the late 1940s, first in features and then in television. He began television directing in 1953, and was most famous for directing and hosting the entire 3-year run of the series “One Step Beyond” (1959-61). He was in constant demand as a director during the 1960s, directing for such series as “Dr. Kildare,” “Peyton Place,” and “Daniel Boone.” Newland also had directed one of “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.” two-part episodes that had been released theatrically in the U.S.: THE SPY WITH MY FACE.
Starring in THE LEGEND OF HILLBILLY JOHN was folk singer Hedges Capers, his only feature film appearance. Although Mickey Rooney was originally set to co-star in the picture, Capers was ultimately supported by an array of other name character actors, including Percy Rodriques, Susan Strasberg, Denver Pyle, Severn Darden, Harris Yulin, Val Avery, and R.G. Armstrong. In the film, Capers played a folk singer and the grandson of Pyle, both of whom set out to do battle with the Devil. Most of the songs in the film were written by Hedges Capers, with the credits song--"The Devil (Song of the Defy)"--written and sung by Hoyt Axton. Roger Kellaway did the background score, only his second feature score after 1968’s PAPER LION.
Here’s a scene from the film in which Hedges Capers sings a folk song while walking through the countryside.
The film began production in early October 1971. Filming was conducted primarily in North Carolina’s mountainous Madison County, but also in Arkansas and Washington, D.C. Under the title of WHO FEARS THE DEVIL, the PG-rated film had its world premiere at the Carolina Theater in Chapel Hill, NC, on 20 July 1972. The film next played in Raleigh and Durham, NC, and was shown at the 1972 Atlanta Film Festival, where it won a Gold Medal. When Jack H. Harris Enterprises picked up the film for national distribution in 1973, it was re-edited from 89 to 86 minutes, re-titled THE LEGEND OF HILLBILLY JOHN, and re-rated as G by the MPAA.
Boxoffice magazine found the film to be “refreshingly simple and entertaining” while noting that Hedges Capers “plays John as a likeable enough lad, though coming across as perhaps a bit too simple-minded for what he has to do.” The reviewer found the special effects for the “Ugly Bird” sequence “blurry, but gripping.” (Special effects in the film were by Gene Warren, who had done the effects for M-G-M’s THE TIME MACHINE and THE POWER.) Modern reviewers also find merit in the film. Leonard Maltin gives it three stars, calling it an “odd, intriguing, surprise” that is “most deserving of its cult status.” The Motion Picture Guide gives the “interesting and novel film” three stars , adding that “There’s some real imagination in this independent production, well cast with some talented character actors. The direction is a little slow to start, but once the unusual story and characters hit their stride, the film picks up and becomes most enjoyable.”
Although there is an illegible copyright statement in the onscreen credits, the picture was not registered for copyright. THE LEGEND OF HILLBILLY JOHN was issued on a now-rare 1991 cassette by New World and laserdisc by R&G/Image Entertainment. It has never been released on DVD, but is available from some gray market retailers, no doubt sourced from that laserdisc.
Barney Rosenzweig would continue producing for television through 2000, with his most famous work coming as executive producer of the long-running series “Cagney and Lacey.” John Newland directed in television until he retired in 1983, doing such series as “Harry O” and “Police Woman.” He died in 2000 at age 82. Roger Kellaway continued composing for films, and in 1976 was nominated for an Academy Award for his score for Barbra Streisand’s A STAR IS BORN. He also composed scores for LEGACY (1975), RUNNING SCARED (1981), and THE DARK (1979). Although Kellaway has retired from composing music for films, he still records jazz records and owns his own music company.
Kino Lorber has been working on a Blu/DVD release of this and other JHE-owned titles.
This film dogged me for YEARS! I remember seeing it as part of a double-bill with PUFINSTUF when I was a kid, but could not remember the title or who starred in it. I only remembered it being a family-friendly western with a saloon gal as part of the plot. Thanks to the Chicago Tribune Archives, I did a search of movie listings and finally found this playing at the Ramova the week of July 31, 1970 (I actually started my search with January of 1971 and went about a year and a half in the wrong direction before finally backing up into 1970). Someone posted this on YouTube and it's definitely the movie I had remembered. Lots of veteran actors in this (Dan Blocker, Nanette Fabray, Mickey Rooney, Wally Cox, Jack Elam, Jack Cassidy, Henry Jones, Jim Backus, and many more). Wouldn't mind seeing Universal dust this one off and give this its first-ever home video release... DVD or Blu-Ray would be most welcome!
Kino Lorber has been working on a Blu/DVD release of [THE LEGEND OF HILLBILLY JOHN] and other JHE-owned titles.
Kino Lorber already issued Blu-rays of JHE's (Jack Harris Enterprises') THE ASTRO-ZOMBIES and BEWARE! THE BLOB last year, and A*P*E last month. In 2014, Criterion issued Blu-rays of THE SHOOTING and RIDE IN THE WHIRLWIND, which JHE had issued theatrically in 1971. I wonder if Criterion still has rights to 1970's EQUINOX, which they issued on DVD in 2006. Aside from HILLBILLY JOHN, the only other JHE film that I'd be interested in is 1971's HONKY, which has only had a VHS release.
This film dogged me for YEARS! I remember seeing it as part of a double-bill with PUFINSTUF when I was a kid, but could not remember the title or who starred in it. I only remembered it being a family-friendly western with a saloon gal as part of the plot. Thanks to the Chicago Tribune Archives, I did a search of movie listings and finally found this playing at the Ramova the week of July 31, 1970 (I actually started my search with January of 1971 and went about a year and a half in the wrong direction before finally backing up into 1970). Someone posted this on YouTube and it's definitely the movie I had remembered. Lots of veteran actors in this (Dan Blocker, Nanette Fabray, Mickey Rooney, Wally Cox, Jack Elam, Jack Cassidy, Henry Jones, Jim Backus, and many more). Wouldn't mind seeing Universal dust this one off and give this its first-ever home video release... DVD or Blu-Ray would be most welcome!
Okay. I remembered who's running it. Movieplex currently has this and the other Dan Blocker film, Something For The Lonely Man. If your cable provider has Movieplex, (Comcast?) it's in the "on-demand" section for viewing.
Long thread so I don't know if these have been mentioned.
Twice Upon A Time Animalympics Metamorphoses/Winds Of Change Sweet Liberty
ANIMALYMPICS was conceived in 1976 to parody the hype surrounding the Olympic Games. Creator Steven Lisberger made a 7-minute short for the film with a $10,000 grant from the American Film Institute. He decided the idea could be expanded, so he got backing from NBC to produce the film, and, obtaining a 7-figure budget, moved his studio from his Boston loft to California.
Lisberger and NBC produced two 30-minute parts: "Animalympics: Winter Games" and "Animalympics: Summer Games." Brad Bird, now famous for his work on several great Pixar films, was one of the animators for Animalympics. Only "Winter Games" aired on NBC, in 1979, but "Summer Games" never aired, due to the United States boycotting the Olympics when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. The next year, both parts were edited together with new footage. The resulting 79-minute film, known simply as "Animalympics," aired only on HBO for years, where it enjoyed a cult following. More recently, an edited version of the film ran on the Disney Channel.
No DVD of the film has been released, but a VHS version was issued in 1996. The film is currently available on YouTube:
Long thread so I don't know if these have been mentioned.
Twice Upon A Time Animalympics Metamorphoses/Winds Of Change Sweet Liberty
WINDS OF CHANGE or "Hoshi no Orpheus" (Orpheus of the Stars) was a co-production between Japan and America. It was conceived by "Hello Kitty" creators Sanrio Films as a contemporary FANTASIA, and they were keen for it to be the first Japanese animated movie to use 70mm film.
The film is based on the Roman poet Ovid's work entitled "Metamorphosis" which was his take on a number of Greek myths. The stories chosen for adaptation were "Actaeon;" "Orpheus and Eurydice;" "House of Envy;" "Perseus;" and "Phaeton." Over 170 U.S. and Japanese staff worked for years in Sanrio's Hollywood studio to create the film. The picture took four and half years and $6 million to make.
On 7 June 1977, Daily Variety announced a “mass invitational screening” for potential distributors at the Plitt Century Plaza theater on 14 June 1977. However, after nearly a year, no distributors could be found for the film, so the finished movie was self-distributed by Sanrio, who released the film to selected theaters on 3 May 1978 under the title METAMORPHOSES. It boasted a soundtrack featuring many of the big name rock acts of the period including the Rolling Stones, Joan Baez, and the Pointer Sisters accompanying the narrative-less animated spectacle. All five of the stories are acted out by the same characters in the main roles.
The release of METAMORPHOSES was not a success. The film was panned by critics, and audiences were confused by the same characters playing all the roles in each tale. It became unclear as to whether it was a anthology or one, full length tale that made little sense. It was also felt that the modern soundtrack had simply been added on to the finished movie as it seemed that little consideration had been made to how the lyrics in the songs would match the on-screen action.
After a trial run in Los Angeles and other cities, in August 1978 Sanrio pulled the film from release due to poor box office returns. Sanrio announced plans to re-structure the picture through editing and to add “voice-over and subtitled narration.” Walt deFaria was brought on to direct and produce the updated version. Jack Woods was hired as supervising editor and Norman Corwin was set to write the English language narration. The running order of the stories was altered, moving the opener "Actaeon" to second place. It was bumped in favor of the tale of "Perseus," originally second from last. "Orpheus and Eurydice" filled its gap in fourth place.
The original soundtrack was discarded, and John Caper, Jr. was hired as music supervisor. The ill-fitting rock tracks were replaced by a brand new score especially written for the movie by underground disco pioneer Alec R. Costandinos. The Rolling Stones were replaced with Pattie Brooks and Arthur Simms, hoping to attract a new audience of disco fans.
Finally, to help the audience follow the stories, the well-known actor, writer and raconteur Peter Ustinov was hired to narrate the adventures as "Wondermaker," as the main character was now referred. As a multi-Oscar winner, he brought some integrity and class to the project. He had also worked with Disney a few years earlier providing the voice of "Prince John" in the animated re-telling of ROBIN HOOD.
1979 saw the re-release of the new version of METAMORPHOSES, now titled WINDS OF CHANGE. Sanrio handled the West Coast distribution and hired “subdistributors” for other parts of the country. The film was accompanied by an LP of the disco soundtrack, released by Casablanca. This seven-minute-shorter release was also the first time it was shown in Japan, on the 27th of October. The Japanese version followed the same pattern as the U.S. cut, using a narrator to describe the events.
In Japan the movie's life continued on home video, with VHS from Sanrio and laserdisc from Toshiba during the eighties. It took WINDS OF CHANGE six years to reach VHS in America, released through Columbia's children's label Magic Window in 1985. It was later re-released by Columbia themselves in 1992. "Hoshi No Orpheus" was released on DVD in Japan in 2006 under the Classics of Sanrio label.
The original METAMORPHOSES was never seen again after its brief cinema run in 1978. Neither version of the animated movie has ever been available in the UK. And no DVD versions of the film have been released.
Okay, time to get real obscure. Here's a film from the 1980s that isn't available anywhere, even though it has an exploitable element. It's called Rent Control and stars Brent Spiner. IMDB gives the release year as 1984, although it was reviewed in Variety in 1981. The plot, as far as I can recall, has Spiner using information given to him by his journalist friend about the murder of a politician's wife to try to manipulate the journalist's sources into believing they are not safe and have to leave the city so Spiner can get their rent controlled apartment. I was able to get a VHS copy from a die-hard "Data" fan (though really, is there any other kind?) that was taped off an independent TV station in Denver several years ago. It's several minutes shorter than the listed running time, but appears to be the only copy of this film floating around. If Bob can come up with artwork on this one I will be very impressed. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There is indeed no artwork for RENT CONTROL. I wonder if its distributor, Group S Films, even prepared a poster for the one theater in Manhattan where it played (the Waverly). Someone should check the New York papers for the week of 4 May 1984 to see if there is an ad for the film.
Although completed in 1981 (and reviewed by Variety at that time), it took until 1984 to find a distributor for RENT CONTROL. The film was directed by veteran Italian film director Gian Polidoro, who had been a part-time New Yorker since about 1974. Polidoro wrote the screenplay under the name John Menegold, working with a young newcomer from Texas, Sherill Tippins. The film’s producer, Benni Korzen was a Dane who had been a producer on such films as SWEDISH FLY GIRLS. He emigrated to the U.S. and continued producing low-budget films such as 1991’s AND YOU THOUGHT YOUR PARENTS WERE WEIRD. His last production was taping the Off-Broadway musical “Forever Plaid” for presentation in theaters in 2009 (by Fathom Events) and on video.
RENT CONTROL follows small-time writer Leonard Junger (Brent Spiner) as he desperately seeks an apartment as means of luring his departed wife (Jeanne Ruskin) and child back to the city. She’s off in Canadian ski country with a cosmetician boyfriend. When she does return, in a mobile home, Leonard is still trying to find that elusive apartment as well as the girlfriend his wife has asked him to substitute for her (Elizabeth Stack). Then the plot really gets crazy.
At the time of the production, Gian Polidoro told the press that he was making the film to prove to Dino De Laurentiis that he was capable of making an American comedy. Apparently it didn’t work, because there is no record that Polidoro ever directed a film for De Laurentiis. As an actor, Polidoro had appeared in three films produced by De Laurentiis in the early 1960s. Polidoro only directed three films after RENT CONTROL. He died in 2000, at age 73.
RENT CONTROL was only reviewed by a few critics. Archer Winsten of the New York Post said that Polidoro “mistakes a feverish pace as the be-all and end-all of American comedy, failing to dig deep enough into the rent inequities of the city, but the picture does touch two universal chords, the ravaged pocketbook and families doubling up in narrow quarters.” Winsten concluded that the film “is funny if you too can laugh at it.”
The Village Voice’s Michael Musto claimed that “RENT CONTROL is too low-rent to be high comedy,” noting that it “mixes the obnoxious with the sour, then waits for you to smile.” “Not since STARDUST MEMORIES has there been such a distasteful parade of freaks, caricatures, and trolls (but here they’re in leading roles, and are supposed to be sympathetic).” Musto went on to criticize the “bargain basement cast.” “Playwright Leonard Melfi is charmless as [a] journalist, Elizabeth Stack is lifeless as Leonard’s new love interest, and as Leonard, Brent Spiner is winningly ordinary, but lacks the nobility that would make his plight heroic.” Musto concluded that “the film’s occasional charms are offset by a general smarminess that has one expecting Bette Davis to turn up at each overpriced apartment and intone ‘What a dump!’.”
RENT CONTROL has never been issued on home video and has had only rare television showings. The production company, Fisocon, stills holds the film’s copyright. (RENT CONTROL was the company’s only production.) There was an on-line petition set up in 2007 to urge that the film be released for broadcast or video:
Don Siegel's film BABY FACE NELSON (1957) starring Mickey Rooney was discussed in a June 1, 2012 posting in this thread. The film is currently available on YouTube.
The George Peppard western ONE MORE TRAIN TO ROB (1971), which was discussed in a June 8, 2012 posting in this thread, is currently available on YouTube.
