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FunHouse the cyberzine of degenerate pop culture vol. 1 no. 1
FUNHOUSE!
The cyberzine of degenerate pop culture
vol. 1 - no. 1; March 22, 1993
editor: Jeff Dove (jeffdove@well.sf.ca.us)
<Note: written on a Macintosh text editor, line feeds are on. Display in
nine point font.>
This issue of FUNHOUSE! was released on the day of Russ Meyer's 70th
birthday!
FUNHOUSE! is dedicated to whatever happens to be on my mind at the time
I'm writing. The focus will tend to be on those aspects of our fun-filled
world which aren't given the attention of the bland traditional media, or
which have been woefully misinterpreted or misdiagnosed by the same.
FUNHOUSE! is basically a happy place, and thus the only real criteria I
will try to meet is to refrain from rants, personal attacks, and flames -
and thus FUNHOUSE! is an apolitical place. Offbeat films, music,
literature, and experiences are largely covered, with the one stipulation
that articles are attempted to be detailed and well documemnted, although
this is no guarantee of completeness or correctness, so that the
interested reader may further pursue something which may spark her
interest. Correspondance and contributions are thus encouraged, and any
letters will by printed in future issues. Please send a short message to
the above address, and arrangements will be made for the submission of
larger items. The only other item is that FUNHOUSE! is Free-Free-
Freeware! PLEASE copy and distribute as you wish, however please do
not alter any text.
Table Of Contents:
* Confessions Of A Meyerologist - One perspective on the films of
Russ Meyer
* The Punk Who Finally Died - A FUNHOUSE! evaluation of the Lou Reed
catalog
* Pezography - An (almost?) complete listing of Pez dispensers
* The Greatest Philosophical Question Answered - What REALLY happens
when a tree falls in the forest and no one is there
* Fanzine Forum - Some recommended literature for your further education
* Reviews - Comments on selected books, records, periodicals, etc. etc.
etc.
Confessions Of A Meyerologist - One Perspective On The Films Of Russ Meyer
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
When one is watching a film of Russ Meyer's, there can be no question as
to the source. Russ' style is one of the most uniquely recognizable of
all filmmakers, and as director, producer, cinematographer, editor, and
co-writer on the preponderance of his films, he is someone who deserves
the title auteur. Initially a purveyor of the "nudie-cutie" style, Russ
brought a degree of quality of production, and elements of plot, that were
largely missing in that usually pretty bleak niche of cinema. His initial
effort, the groundbreaking THE IMMORAL MR. TEAS (1959), was a major
financial success on the nudie circuit, and for better or worse sparked a
great degree of mostly inferior imitations. Commonly the first aspect of
Russ' work which is mentioned is the mammary excesses of the female stars
he employs. While this is a definite aspect, his photography, editing,
and sound also stand out as trademarks. Fast paced editing is
omnipresent, with the average shot seeming to be around five seconds.
Camera angles are often times extreme, with much use of tracks, pans, etc.
to add to the feel of a scene, and many times to inject humor, angst, or
other emotions. Great use is made of colors in the set designs of his
films (four are in black and white), and the soundtrack is almost non-stop
with nondiegetic blips of music and sound effects meant to highlight and
emphasize the action on the screen. Bridges between scenes frequently use
exaggerated matches on action, sound matches, and effects like fast pans
or wipes, to keep things at a frenetic pace. It would be a good bet to
say that the makers of the Batman TV show learned some tricks from Meyer's
work. Every aspect of a Meyer narrative is amplified and extreme; there
are no mild characters or scenes, everything is played to the nth degree.
The world of a Meyer film is one of super-realistic fantasy, and one
should not try to impose the normal rules of society or behavior to his
situations. While females are undeniably played as ultra-sexual
superwomen, they are also always the strong characters, largely in control
of their situations, for good or evil, better or worse. An argument for
Russ' having feminist credentials can be made, however I doubt that the
more vocal activist would agree, at least on initial viewing. These women
spend a good portion of the film manipulating weak men of both positive
and negative bents. The stories are frequently melodramas, framed by
tongue-in-cheek speeches, defining and resolving some amplified moral
dilemma. This is often to the backdrop of a highly exploitable, and often
lurid, plot. As Russ' selected his female stars more for their appearance
and "stature", many times picking them out in topless bars, his editing
techniques probably originated out of necessity due to the lack of acting
skills. He was able to hone this necessity to a finely mastered craft.
The large breasts of the heroines become symbolic of their fantastic
status, and the fantasy world through which they move. Meyer's career
stretched from 1959 to 1979, frequently setting standards in the
sexploitation genre, and always producing superior product over his
competitors. He made films which easily transcended the limits of that
genre, and stand on there own as unique and entertaining films of quality
and style.
Phase One: The Early Color "Nudies" -
Russ Meyer's film THE IMMORAL MR. TEAS was a breakthrough film in the
realm of on screen nudity. Up until the time in which it was released in
1959, nudies were still largely relegated to the under-ground sleaze
circuit, or to venues such as the traveling tent shows perpetuated by the
disciples of Kroger Babb. TEAS is a color film without synch-sound,
containing voiced over narration. While the film was not an expensive
endeavor, it's production values were much improved over what was typical
of the genre at the time. The women are actually somewhat attractive to
boot! The film was quite successful, and enjoyed play dates at many
theaters which were not of the "Times Square" variety. TEAS thus launched
an avalanche of films which would come to make up what would be called the
"nudie-cutie" genre. These were silly and irreverent stories, which
usually involved some comically oafish male stumbling across naked women
in his everyday life (no frontal below the waist shots). TEAS is the
story of Bill Teas, played by Meyer's army buddy Sgt. Bill Teas, who wakes
up one day to find that he sees women through their clothes. He then
proceeds to adjust to his situation while riding around on his bicycle.
The film isn't actually all that particularly entertaining, however the
editing makes sense, the camera is in focus, there is correct continuity,
and the acting isn't horrible. As TEAS was the first of it's type to
actually make some sense as a film, it brought a new sort of
"respectability" to the style, and was quite influential, inspiring many
imitators. H.G. Lewis' and David Friedman's ADVENTURES OF LUCKY PIERRE
borrows heavily from it. As a Meyer work it is principally a curiosity,
and Russ probably included it with his initial group of video releases for
historical purposes. Early signs of the Meyerian humor, especially in
regards to the use of editing, are apparent.
EROTICA and EUROPE IN THE RAW remain largely unavailable, however
according to press at the time they seem to follow the same basic
nudie-cutie format. In EROTICA a filmmaker editing his work is the
framework for viewing six different nudie shorts through the moviola.
EUROPE IN THE RAW is a mondo style travelogue, showing strip clubs and
sex shops in various European cities. MONDO TOPLESS is said to contain
some of this footage recycled.
The recently released on video EVE AND THE HANDYMAN is however a bit more
adventurous. The film stars Meyer's wife Eve as a trench-coated spy type
on the trail of a bumbling handyman, as he pursues his trade in and around
San Francisco. There is actually no nudity in the movie, however plenty
of ample cleavage abounds. The evolution of his style can be seen here,
with excellent cinematography and some good slapstick humor. It's
certainly not a bad film, but it isn't the stuff that made Russ a legend
either. The early color nudie period is rounded out by HEAVENLY BODIES,
also not now available, and WILD GALS OF THE NAKED WEST. WILD GALS was
one of a troika of films that Meyer put out on video last year, a number
of years after his initial set of video releases (EVE and MOTOR PSYCHO are
the other two). It is easily the best of this early period. Also with no
nudity beyond pasties, it's a crazily shot slapstick filled joke-fest.
There's hardly a plot, but basically it portrays risqu high jinx in an
old west town setting. This is a good place to get started on your
enjoyment of the early period, as it is definitely the cream of the
(available) crop. HEAVENLY BODIES is described as a pseudo-documentary of
the world of fashion photography, where we see a series a shorts depicting
"glamour" photographers at work with their nude models. Russ appears as
"Russ Meyer, one of Hollywood's best known glamour photographers". These
works are all a bit removed from much of what was to come, and apparently
Russ feels they are dated now, as he only initially released TEAS to video,
and this, as said before, probably had some historical extenuating
circumstances backing it. All are in color, and I believe that all have
narration over silent footage, rather than synched dialog. They do
however contain early experiments with the style that would become his
trademark, most noticeably in the areas of editing, sound (especially
non-diegetic music), and breasts. Along with the humorous elements that
abound, these traits put Meyer's early works well ahead of those of his
contemporaries.
Phase Two: The Violent Melodramas -
One should not forget that above all else, Russ was in it for the money.
He by no means intended to be a starving artist trying to get his message
out, but lucky for him (and for us!) his particular vision was salable to
the masses. This is mentioned in the context of the state of the nudie in
1964. At this point, any fool with a camera could turn it on and shoot
some women willing to drop their drawers, and many a fool did just that.
With the trail blazed by Meyer, the flood of imitators that followed were
fast making the style blas. Russ thus cast an eye away from the art house
circuit and toward the drive-in circuit. The emphasis became on action,
violence, and lurid tales of good verses evil. The production values went
up, with larger casts and crews. Synch-sound was now utilized, and Meyer
employed varying levels of assistance with directing, cinematography,
editing, sound, and music. To offset these costs, the subsequent four
films were shot in black and white, which was a perfect vehicle for their
genre anyhow. The works that emerged, LORNA, MOTOR PSYCHO, MUDHONEY, and
FASTER PUSSYCAT KILL! KILL! are arguably the best that he produced.
A note concerning FANNY HILL should be made. This movie was shot in
Germany and was produced by Albert Zugsmith (HIGH SCHOOL CONFIDENTIAL
(1958), SEX KITTENS GO TO COLLEGE (1960), COLLEGE CONFIDENTIAL (1960)).
Meyer had little artistic control over it, and thus this rather mundane
film reflects little of the style one looks for in a Meyer film. He never
made another movie which he didn't hold absolute creative control over.
The black and white films all contain elements of exaggerated good verses
evil, with characters moving through worlds of confrontation involving
overblown elements of good, evil, ignorance, victimization, and of course,
sexuality. The presence of an opening narrative defining the terms of the
story is utilized in LORNA. This is a technique that would frequently be
used in later films, almost always extremely tongue in cheek. LORNA is
framed by the sermon of Prophet, with a fire and brimstone speech
addressing moral shortcomings. This leads into Lorna Maitland, in the
title role, seeing her new husband off to work in the salt mines, from
their home on a swamp. He leaves in a boat with two co-workers, including
the sleazy and mean Hal Hopper. Lorna goes for a skinny-dip in the swamp.
This water setting would occur very frequently throughout subsequent films.
The cost-conscious choice of outdoor settings led to a Meyer signature
effect. Style emerging out of necessity led to many of his most
recognizable film traits. A nude Lorna is accosted by an escaped convict,
and what begins as rape turns into a mutual acquiescence. The sexually
unsatisfied Lorna moves the action back to the house. Meanwhile her
simple husband is forced to defend her honor against the sleazy comments
of Hopper. When he leaves work early to celebrate Lorna's birthday with
her, he encounters the affair. In the confrontation both Lorna and the
convict are killed. This biblical retribution is dutifully pointed out by
Prophet the narrator. The framework that emerges here, where a morality
play is defined and acted out, was a useful vehicle for displaying the
requisite sex and violence, and for allowing Meyer to also inject his
caustic humor through the vehicle of the extreme melodrama. The frame
work would serve him well over the series of films that followed.
LORNA was tame in it's action compared to the next three films. MOTOR
PSYCHO depicts a trio of cycle-thugs who travel around attacking and
molesting just about every woman they come across (they in fact ride
mopeds!). They rape the shapely, bikini-clad wife of a fisherman, and
then proceed into town where they go after the wife of the local animal
doctor, who had earlier chased them away from her. Russ appears as the
small town sheriff who responds to the crime (he is billed as "E.E.
Meyer"). While riding in the ambulance with the vet and his beaten wife,
he leers at her and suggests that she "got what she asked for". The action
really picks up when the husband chases after the hoods through the
desert, and hooks up with the amazing Haji, making her first appearance in
a Meyer flick. She plays a Cajun shrew who's traveling with her obnoxious
older husband. They have an encounter with the gang, in which the old man
is killed, before she hooks up with the vet. In the end the ringleader of
the punks starts having 'Nam flashbacks while he's got the other two
pinned down with a rifle. This gives the hero the opening to blow the nut
up with dynamite and escape. MOTOR PSYCHO is the most action packed of his
efforts to it's date, and is highly recommended. It's also got a great
guitar-jammin' rock score.
MUDHONEY takes the exploration of the backwoods "hick" culture which Meyer
had touched upon in his previous two works, and goes all out with it. In
a Steinbeck-like depression era setting, it is the story of Calif, a
reformed ex-con, now a good guy, on the road to California. On the way he
hears of work at a nearby farm, however all the locals warn him not to go
there. He's hired on by the patriarch, played by Stu Lancaster, who is a
tough, solid old guy who's now in ill health. His daughter lives with
him, as does her brutal, drunken, lecherous husband, played by Hal Hopper,
who is the reason for the warnings. Hopper is waiting around for
Lancaster to kick off so that he can sell off the farm and take off with
the cash. Meanwhile he spends allot of time at the farmhouse next door
where a crazy old lady pimps her two buxom young daughters. One is a deaf
mute, and the other is played by Lorna Maitland. The story develops as
Hopper gets meaner and crazier, and Calif and the daughter become closer.
There's another crazy fundamentalist preacher and his wife, who Hopper
kisses up to and deceives into condemning Calif, and thus turning the town
against him. A showdown is emerging between Hopper, the preacher, and the
town folks, against Calif, the daughter, and the father, when Hopper in a
drunken, delusional stupor rapes and kills the Brother's wife. Lancaster
dies, Hopper gets what he deserves, and Calif and the farmer's daughter
are able to get the proceeds from the sale of the farm with the help of
the sheriff, an old family friend, who now knows the truth. Another
melodrama ends with good triumphing over evil, as the lovers head off for
California.
All of this led up to what has to be Meyer's finest moment, his crowning
achievement, the incredible FASTER PUSSYCAT KILL! KILL!. Tura Satana,
the most unforgettable of all his starlets, is featured along with the
return of Haji, and Lori Williams. They're a trio of reckless go-go
dancers by night, who race around the desert in souped up hot rods by day.
Tura is Varla, the ringleader with a Porsche, dressed entirely in tight
black clothes right down to her leather gloves. She's a kung-fu kicking,
bisexual, super-bitch, who reels off some of the funniest one liners in
the history of cinema. Haji is Rosy, her jealous lover, while Williams is
Billy Boom-Boom, who's more or less along for the ride. After a wet cat
fight between Rosy and Billy, a clean cut high school type and his
cheerleader girlfriend show up to time his laps around a car track. After
some rousting, Varla goads the guy into racing her around the oval. The
girlfriend is played by Playmate Sue Bernard, who looks like a skinny kid
next to the overwhelming figures of the anti-heroines. After a near crash
on the track, a fight between Varla and the kid ensues, in which after
some well placed fu, Varla breaks his neck. The girlfriend is then doped
to sleep while they figure out how to handle the situation. While gassing
up their "bombers", the go-go chicks hear about a father (Stu Lancaster),
and his two grown sons who live out on a nearby road. Lancaster is in a
wheelchair, and was injured as he helped a girl climb up on a train. One
son is studying so as to get out and make something of himself, while the
other is a huge, super-strong, mentally deficient hulk. The mother was
killed during his birth due to his size. Old Stu has consequently got a
messed up head, and some bad attitudes toward women and trains. Varla
hears about the large amount of money he's got stashed from the accident
settlement, and decides to try to get her hands on this "long green".
They thus head out to his house with bikini clad Sue Bernard in tow.
Billy seduces the hulk son, while the father makes plans to capture the
young girl for his own perverted purposes. Varla seduces the straight son
in an attempt to get at the money while Rosy fumes jealously. When it
eventually hits the fan, Varla throws a knife in Billy's back when she
tries to leave. She has a strength duel between her Porsche and the strong
son, and she runs over Stu in his wheelchair. Rosy is stabbed by the hulk
son before he dies, when he has pulled the knife from Billy's back. It
eventually ends with a duel in the desert between Varla, the good son, and
good girl Sue. As Varla and the son grapple, Sue runs her over with the
truck. Good has again triumphed over evil. What makes this film a step
above the previous ones is the fantastic dialog, and the figure of the
incredible Tura Satana. She's an overwhelming presence, and her character
alone makes this a must see. The intro sequence is classic Russ. His
extra-dramatic narration (the opening line is, "Ladies and gentlemen,
welcome to violence..."), leads into the great theme song by The
Bostweeds, as the girls are shown dancing in their club. Meanwhile the
drunken patrons leer and yell at them with contorted faces - "Go baby go!,
Come on let's go!!!". Look for The Cramps cover of the theme.
MONDO TOPLESS, a departure of form, doesn't fit well into any of these
categories. Apparently a sort of updated EUROPE IN THE RAW, it's a series
of nude dances by women in a variety of surroundings, from the stage of a
club to rolling in the mud. Intermingled between these strips is Russ'
trademark crazy narration, and short travelogue type pieces on the cities
in which the women perform. The opening extended segment on San
Francisco, leading to the then burgeoning Broadway strip club scene, is
interesting for checking out the town in 1966. Actresses Lorna Maitland
and Babette Bardot, who starred in some of his films, are among the
featured performers. The music is great guitar rock.
The melodrama format was used as a vehicle for displaying all sorts of
highly exploitable elements of sex and violence, while incorporating the
excuse of delivering a message on good vs. evil - a kind of a built-in
"square-up reel". The format also gave Meyer the ability to use the
introductory and ending narration as a vehicle for his extremely
sarcastic, over-exaggerated, comical diatribes.
Phase Three - The golden period and the emergence of the Meyer signature
style
The films of this period take place in worlds where the narrative is
basically out of the realm of reality. In phase two the characters were
exaggerated, while here reality is exaggerated. There is a cohesion of
all styles he utilized up to this point. The fantasy of the narrative was
emphasized by the filmmaking style, making full use of quick edits, wild
sounds, ultra-fast pacing, and unique camera angles.
COMMON LAW CABIN is a transition between these two film styles, and is
close to a color version of the melodrama era efforts. Jack Moran lives
out on a broken down resort island in the middle of the Colorado river.
He's out there with his chick Babette Bardot, and his (fully) grown
daughter, Adele Rein. It seems papa is having unnatural desires at the
sight of the buxom young girl. Frank Bolger is a drunken old boat driver
who rounds up suckers on the mainland for a trip out to the island for
lunch, a drink, and show of Babette leaping topless off a cliff into the
water as a screaming "native". Here he rounds up superbitch Alaina Capri,
her fed-up, uptight husband, and Ken Swafford as a violent felon on the
run posing as a cop. Alaina's got nothing but insults for her husband,
and come-on's for all of the other men. Things get violent when Moran
refuses to sell the place to Swafford, who wants to use it as a hideout.
He eventually seduces, and finally kills, Alaina, and attacks Babette.
Alaina's husband dies from stress and a bum ticker, and Swafford sets his
sites on the young daughter. She's rescued by a young heir on the run who
motors on the scene. Swafford's head is smashed to a pulp in the final
confrontation, and the young couple fall in love, leaving the family
happier (and richer). CLC has more of a violent bent then a sexual one,
without even any actual nudity (but they come close). While the narrative
is much in the mode of the black and whites, the use of color and the
styling definitely show the first sign of things to come. GOODMORNING AND
GOODBYE takes the first big step into the new era. The script abandons
the violent elements of it's immediate predecessors, and greatly picks up
on the elements of sex and nudity. There is a major leap from the earlier
nudies. Here the creative elements and character development from the
violent melodramas led to a much greater emphasis on a defined plot line
and conflict examinations between characters. In GAG, Alaina Capri
revives her caustic wife role, this time antagonizing her older, impotent
husband, Stu Lancaster. Meanwhile Karen Ciral, as the daughter from his
first marriage, is tooling around in her Khaman Ghia, sunbathing and go-
going, while filling out nicely. She contemplates taking the big step with
her new surfer-dude, Don Johnson. When Alaina isn't berating her husband,
she's cheating on him with construction stud Pat Wright. Russ utilizes
old fave Haji as a naked nymph running through the woods, who
"revitalizes" Stu so that he is able to pummel Wright, and keep his wife
in line with his new found prowess in bed. Always one with an eye on the
bottom line, Russ saw the over saturation of the "roughies", and decided a
return to a direction with a more sexual content was the way to go. When
he applied his recently developed techniques to the new more allowable
sexual contents, his fans learned that they could count on Russ' flicks to
deliver quality with the kicks.
FINDERS KEEPERS, LOVERS WEEPERS has the most fully developed script of
Meyer's more sexual films. The action takes place here in a bar run by
Paul Lockwood. He neglects his wife at home, played by Anne Chapman, and
instead is called away to the local bordello for some action, where his
buddy Lavelle Roby thinks that the new girl, played by Jan Sinclair, would
be much to his liking. In a drunken stupor, he agrees to some fun and
games in which is stomach is shaved clean, something which tips his wife
off that he's been up to no good when he finally stumbles home. Great
tension develops in the household, which eventually forces the abused wife
into a wild encounter with the bartender in the bar's back room hot tub.
Meyer plays this seen to the hilt, as shots of their naked bodies wildly
slamming into each other under water are intercut with stock cars crashing
together. It turns out that the Madame is luring Lockwood away from his
bar in order to set it up for a rip-off by her cohorts, Duncan Mcleod and
Robert Rudelson. These guys are great as a couple cartoonish louts
hanging out in the bathroom waiting for the time to make their hit. The
film reaches a violent climax as the crooks make their move, and Chapman
and the bartender, Gordon Wescourt, are still in the bar after their romp.
They're bound while the crooks attempt to blow the safe. Owner Lockwood
walks in on the scene and is captured. His wife is threatened with rape
on the pool table unless Lockwood reveals the safe combination, something
which he is tempted to let happen as he has just become aware of the hot
tub episode. Eventually, of course, the bad guys get theirs, and the path
to reconciliation is set. While most directors working in the
sexploitation genre at the time were content to allow the sex on the
screen to sell the tickets, Russ produced a movie with genuine plot twists
and tension to boot. The presence of Lavelle Roby as a strong black
character, who is also presented as sexually exciting, was a development
that Russ would incorporate into every one of his films henceforth. The
follow up is arguably the most influential film of the whole lot. VIXEN
not only was a landmark in it's use of on screen sex, it also helped to
free up the market from censorship by surviving obscenity charges in
court. The film's great success and repeat business helped to move the
genre into the more mainstream theaters, and the profits also got the
attention of the studios, leading to Russ getting a deal with Twentieth
Century Fox. Erica Gavin in the title role is absolutely unforgettable.
She one-ups the Alaina Capri character and gives the best performance of
any Meyer starlet. In playing the title character, named so due to her
sharp tongued attitude reflecting the true meaning of that word, her
sexual escapades have given a new interpretation of the term in the
vernacular as a woman with an overactive libido. The film is loaded with
softcore action, but the violent elements usually present are replaced
with both political platitudes and humor. Vixen lives in a Canadian
mountain resort with her pilot husband. He's a naive guy who flies
vacationers in for a visit, which allows Vixen to take a roll on the
ground with a mountie while he's gone. Also hanging out are her motorcycle
riding brother and his friend. The friend is a black man, played by
Harrison Page, who is a US draft dodger, and who feels that due to the
way he's been treated in his country, he shouldn't be compelled to go to
war. Vixen makes her way through both the husband and wife who come to
visit, her husband, and even her brother, through the course of the film.
The only problem with Vixen is that she's got a real racist streak, which
leads to some heated exchanges with Page. The (non-sexual) action picks
up when a left wing agitator shows up on the scene and convinces Page that
he should participate in a highjacking of the plane to Cuba. After some
coercion, Page agrees to participate, and a scene with Vixen and husband
being held at gunpoint by these two on the plane ensues. Political
discussions follow in which it develops that Page eventually helps capture
the gunman. The closing shot is of a smiling Vixen who is beginning to
see a new side to Page. Meyer has described the sex depicted in this film
as the way he likes to have it. Hard, heavy, and right to the point,
getting straight to it with no foreplay. This film makes great use of the
opening monologue, recited by Russ himself, which would be extensively
used from this point out. This lead-in technique would develop into a
distinct trademark
The wildest of all Meyer's films has got to be CHERRY, HARRY, AND RAQUEL.
All of the expected, previously mentioned, stylistic effects show up here
in spades. There's plenty of sex, plenty of violence, rapid fire editing,
a pseudo moralistic intro spiel, and the presence on many inserts not
related directly to the main narrative that keep it moving along. Cherry
is a nurse played by Linda Ashton who is the girlfriend of sheriff Harry,
played by Charles Napier. Larissa Ely is Raquel, currently shacking up
with Bert Santos, but she's not adverse to hitting the sack with many she
encounters. Santos, Napier, and ringleader Frank Bolger are running a pot
smuggling ring, and have problems with the double crossing gang member
Apache. Bolger meets a violent demise in a shocking scene that is hard to
forget. There's a dual finale of sex and violence that ends the story.
As Napier and Santos engage in a bloody shootout in the desert with The
Apache, Cherry and Raquel finally get together, and over a couple of tokes
discover the joys of sex-de-lesbo. Meyer ends as he begins, with a
moralistic speech concerning the frailties of mankind and the evils of
wacky weed. The string which runs through the film is the character of
Soul, played by Uschi Digard, who amplifies on the Haji wood nymph from
GOODMORNING AND GOODBYE. Soul appears intermittently throughout the
story, acting out some sort of nudist symbolism regarding the development
of the narrative. Tom Wolfe wrote this story with Meyer. To really get a
taste of the complete level of wildness that Russ can achieve, this film
can deliver most of his trademark stylings all in one place.
Phase four - The Seventies -
This period can actually be divided into two subgroups. The decade begins
with Meyer being hired by Twentieth Century Fox, and given the ability to
spend allot of other peoples money in the production of his vision. After
two works that met with a moderate degree of success, the big studio and
Russ mutually decided to go their separate ways. When he returned to
working independently, Russ initially had some hits and misses, involving
difficulties with completing productions due to censorship worries, and
a questionable choice of material. After getting past these rougher
times, Russ' final three projects emerged as almost conscious parodies of
himself. By the mid-seventies, the section of his audience which he could
count on coming out to the theater purely for the titillation were less
impressed by softcore features in a world of hardcore. Russ pushed his
material closer to the porno edge in these movies, without actually
crossing the line. While not explicit in the fashion of hardcore films,
these final three nevertheless are the only among all his works which
almost certainly would be rated X by today's standards. An interesting
note on these three is that Russ gives attention to the over-sized bodily
features of his actors as well as his actresses. This is accomplished
with the help of a few quick edits and the aid of size XXL rubber
prosthetics.
BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS was the first of the Fox features. The Fox
execs, being impressed with the quality of product and return on
investment of Meyer's late sixties works, felt he would be a good addition
at a time when the studio was looking to expand beyond the constraints
they'd been under before the newly found freedoms. At the same time they
were looking to develop a sequel to their trash hit version of the Jackie
Susann novel VALLEY OF THE DOLLS, and they felt that Russ would be a
perfect match. Film critic Roger Ebert had been giving the thumbs up to
Russ in print for a few years, giving particular praise to both VIXEN and
CHERRY, HARRY, AND RAQUEL in the mainstream press. Roger and Russ became
friends, and Ebert was brought on board by Russ to write his first
screenplay. (Russ has said of Ebert that they have allot in common,
stating that "He's a tit man"). They basically chucked out any pretense
of a real sequel to VALLEY OF THE DOLLS, instead going "beyond" that
story, and largely relating to it in name only. Susann would contest an
unsuccessful lawsuit with Fox after the film's release, attempting to have
it's name changed. The premise of the story is of an all-girl rock trio
who head out to Hollywood to make it big. The line-up has playmate Dolly
Read as Kelly, the singer and guitar player, Cynthia Meyers as Casey, the
bassist and daughter of a US Senator, and Marcia McBroom as the drummer,
Pet. The group, originally dubbed "The Kelly Affair" is re-christened
"The Carrie Nations" by rock impresario Ronnie "Z-Man" Barzell. Z-Man is
an effeminate take-off on Phil Spector, who takes the girls under his
(her?) wing after they jam at his party using the equipment of The
Strawberry Alarm Clock. As they rise up the ladder of success, they sink
into the cesspool of Hollywood. Kelly drops her faithful boyfriend/band
manager for and egomaniacal face-man actor, played by Michael Blodgett,
Pet cheats on her good-guy law school student dude (Harrison Page, from
VIXEN) with the heavyweight champ, and Casey falls for lesbian Erica
Gavin. Other characters moving throughout their world of decadence are
Edy Williams (the then Mrs. Meyer) as a presently in vogue sex actress,
Phyllis Davis and Charles Napier as Kelly's high society aunt and her
lover, Duncan McLeod as sleazy lawyer Porter Hall, and Henry Rowland as a
Nazi. When the hi-jinx really kicks into gear, Kelly's jilted boyfriend
jumps from the rafters of a TV show that The Carrie Nations just performed
on, in a suicide attempt. In the grand finale, at a sleazy party, Z-Man
ties up Blodgett while trying to have his way with him, and pulls off HER
shirt revealing HER breasts. Yes, Barzell was not effeminate, but female -
The 'Whining' Game has nothing on Meyer. The scene ends with Blodgett's
head being lopped of by Z-Man to the tune of the Fox theme. The most
bizarre scene has Erica Gavin asleep, when a 45 is stuck into her mouth.
In a half sleep, she starts "performing" on the gun with her mouth. She
then wakes into consciousness, is shocked at what she sees, and then
Blaaaaam! (off camera). Russ was able to utilize a large cast and
elaborate indoor sets for the first time, and the results are something to
see. He does manage to fit in a couple of outdoor sex scenes, including
Edy Williams on the beach, just to maintain the streak. The industry
reaction to BVD was extremely negative. Fox initially shelved the film,
and the critic community closed ranks around them. Even "Murf", the long
time Russ reviewer and praiser in Variety, pans the movie, calling it
"grotesque" and "extreme". Don't believe them - this is a Meyer must see!
And if this was "extreme", well "they ain't seen nothing yet".
THE SEVEN MINUTES is the second of the Fox flicks, and is the only
post-LORNA film that I have yet to see. This is an adaptation of Irving
Wallace's best seller about censorship, and again has the benefit of
studio financing to provide a large cast, and (supposedly) elaborate
sets. Notables that appear are Edy Williams, John Carradine, Yvonne De
Carlo, and Tom Selleck. The critics were a little kinder to this film
than to BVD, giving it moderate to good reviews, but it was nevertheless
the first Meyer film to not bring in a profit. This and BVD are the only
films that Russ had artistic control over (thus excluding FANNY HILL)
which he doesn't have ownership of today. While DOLLS has been released
on video, I don't think that this one has been, however it is possible
that Fox may come around some day. Once back in the realm of independent
production, RM started working on various projects that would get back to
the more explicit content which Meyer fans had come to know and love. A
project designed to highlight Edy was shelved at the last minute due to
censorship worries possibly endangering some of his investor's money.
Eventually Meyer decided to produce his next film entirely with his own
funds, and opted for a story which went back to relying on action and
violence over sexual content. BLACKSNAKE emerged, and it is a mistake.
Moving on the edges of the blaxploitation genre, it's the tale of a
Caribbean slave colony in the mid-19th century, run by a sadistic blonde
plantation boss-bitch (Anouska Hempel). The film is loosely constructed
around the story of a man traveling from Britain to go undercover in
looking for his brother, who was married to Hempel. The husband appears
as a castrated zombie, who Hempel had disposed of, played by David "Darth
Vader" Prowse. Everything you'd expect from a slave colony film is here,
including a murderous male overseer, rebellious slaves, a turncoat black
security chief (who's also gay), and a female love slave. The final
take-over by the slaves has some rather effective violent scenes,
including a shot of the murdered traitor immersed in a bathtub filled with
his own blood. The film has very little sex, and virtually no nudity. It
resembles a Meyer film in it's styling, especially in sound and editing,
but hardly at at all in the storyline and message. BLACKSNAKE also didn't
turn a profit, however this and THE SEVEN MINUTES were the only two not to
do so.
After a couple of years off, Russ came back with what serves as his
ultimate statement on his career, his de facto swan song, SUPERVIXENS.
This film is the longest independent he made (105 minutes!), and presents
a wild overview of his works up to that point. SUPERVIXENS is also the
most explicit film of his up to this time. In the movie's set-up, Shari
Eubanks does her best Alaina Capri imitation as SuperAngel (Capri was
"Angel" in GOODMORNING AND GOODBYE) a demanding, insulting, insatiable,
obnoxious woman, who insists that Clint (Charles Pitts), her gas station
attendant boyfriend, leave his job to come home and satisfy her urges.
Clint works at "Martin Boorman's Super Service", where Henry Rowland plays
the Nazi, as he did as "Otto" in BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS. Before
heading home, Clint is enticed by customer SuperLorna. When Clint gets
home he can't perform, and that leads to a wild fight between Clint and
SuperAngel, witnessed by a neighbor, in which SuperAngel takes an axe to
Clint's truck. This causes Charles Napier to show up as Harry the cop, in
a reprise of his character from CHERRY, HARRY, AND RAQUEL. What comes of
it is a planned liaison between Harry and SuperAngel. When Harry can't
"get in the mood", SuperAngel throws down Harry's 15" rubber prosthetic
stand-in in disgust. This sends Harry into a rage, leading to an
incredibly violent rampage in which SuperAngel is murdered in a bathtub.
With this film Russ began giving equal time to his male actors in the
enlarged body part department, with quick shots of jumbo imitation members
between their legs. Clint is framed for the murder, and is forced to take
it on the lamb. From here the movie shifts into it's much lighter middle
section, and becomes a sort of wacky road picture. Clint has a series of
run-ins with the SuperWomen as he thumbs across the country, each one more
hot to seduce him than the last. He first encounters SuperHaji (Haji
herself) tending bar in her pastie tops and bottoms. When he refuses her
come-on's, she refuses to provide his alibi. Clint is picked up
hitchhiking by Calif McKinney (from MUDHONEY), and his partner
SuperCherry. SuperCherry tries to entice Clint to help her with her
desires right there in the cab of the truck, while Calif drives. When he
rejects her, the two of them kick his butt and mug him. While Clint lays
out on the ground, a direct scene lift from MOTOR PSYCHO occurs. Calif is
bitten by a snake, and while SuperCherry is siphoning the venom with her
mouth, his hand is on the back of her neck, while her head bobs up and
down, and he yells, "Suck it! Suck it!". Clint is next picked up by Stu
Lancaster, as Lute, the farmer in overalls from MUDHONEY. At his farm we
meet Uschi as SuperSoul (CHERRY, HARRY, AND RAQUEL), his Austrian mail
order bride. When SuperSoul traps Clint and gets his pants down in the
hay loft, Lute catches them and chases Clint away by javelin throwing a
pitch fork at him. Next on the escapades is the deaf SuperEula, who is
derivative of the deaf prostitute Eula in MUDHONEY. Clint's escapade with
her is after a dune buggy ride in the desert, where they are discovered by
her overprotective father and the sheriff. From there Clint is picked up
by Garth Pillsbury, who is Tom the pilot from VIXEN. Before dropping
Clint off, Tom invites him to come out to their fishing lodge for a
vacation. With this we see a quick cut to a mimic of the wire bed scene
between Vixen and her brother from VIXEN. At this point the film comes
full circle, when Tom drops Clint off at SuperVixen's Oasis, a diner/gas
station run by SuperVixen, a woman with a striking resemblance to
SuperAngel. This may have something to do with the fact that she is also
played by Shari Eubanks. This whole affair is overseen by a spiritual
SuperAngel, who is perched up on top of a hill amongst bursts of fire, in
an imitation of the Haji wood nymph spirit from GOODMORNING AND GOODBYE.
Clint's back to happiness pumping gas and sleeping with Shari, until a
vacationing Harry roles through one day. Harry stays in a motel were the
proprietor is played by "E.E." Meyer, as Russ also billed himself for his
cameo in MOTOR PSYCHO. When he calls the operator, he is connected to a
naked Indian woman straddling train tracks, in a flashback to CHERRY,
HARRY, AND RAQUEL. When SuperVixen, Clint, and Harry go out for drinks,
the bar is a close match to the watering hole from FINDERS KEEPERS, LOVERS
WEEPERS. All this time Harry is laying low, waiting for the right time to
eliminate Clint once and for all. He gets his chance when he tricks Clint
into leaving town, while he nabs SuperVixen. Harry calls on the cb to
alert Clint of his identity and of SuperVixen's predicament. When Clint
rushes back, what he is met with is Harry slingshotting lit sticks of
dynamite at him from atop a hill. SuperVixen is then bound to the ground,
and a lit stick of dynamite with a long fuse is stuck into the dirt
between her legs. While Clint tries to rescue her, Harry takes shots at
him from above. SuperVixen is eventually rescued, and Harry blown up, in
an unlikely manner, but this is entirely beside the point. SUPERVIXENS is
one of Russ' better films, and is greatly entertaining in itself. However
for maximal enjoyment, it is recommended that the hardcore Meyer fans
become familiar with the body of his previous work, to get the most
appreciation to the humorously reflective elements of this movie. The
film was eliminated of roughly 30 min. of it's running length in Britain,
where the opening brutal murder was snipped, leaving an indecipherable
story.
Russ might have been wise to end his film career here, having basically
achieved cloture with the previous film. He instead produced two more
movies, which are both hit and miss affairs. UP! has even more sexual
activity and violence than the previous film, however as is Meyer's style,
the violence is so cartoonish that it's hardly offensive as it's so
unbelievable. UP! returns to the cabin in which VIXEN was filmed, and is
set up as a murder mystery with a sort of Shakespearean format.
Girlfriend Kitten Natividad appears as the "Greek Chorus", where she
appears intermittently frolicking nude in the forest, and giving updates
and commentary concerning the story so far. (Her dialog is overdubbed by
another actress). The murder victim here is "Adolph Schwartz" who appears
to be Der Fuhrer living in America under an assumed name. After being
homosexually sodomized, Adolph is killed when a piranha is tossed in his
bath. As the investigation develops, Raven De La Croix, as Margo, is
accosted while out for a rather bouncy jog. When she is raped, and
subsequently kills her attacker, she is forced to succumb to the whims of
the local hick Sheriff, Homer. In Russ Meyer's fantasyland, they become
just a normal, loving couple, without regard to how they were forced
together. As the investigation continues, married couple Alice and Paul,
who was also Adolph's secret sodomizer, run a diner where Margo starts
working. From there we go through various sexual romps and we are
periodically interrupted by Kitten presenting the evidence to that point,
to a montage of clips from the film so far. It reaches a climax when a
huge, dumb, lumberjack named Rafe takes a liking to Margo. When she's
performing in the diner one night, Rafe has too many drinks and tosses her
on the floor to have his way with her. When Alice attempts to stop him,
Rafe throws her on top and starts in on her too. When Homer shows up to
handle the situation, the ensuing battle involves a chainsaw being thrust
into an abdomen, which is then pulled from it's bloody receptacle and
thrust back. This type of unreal activity takes place throughout, and
thus is more ridiculous than offensive. After a few more sexual romps we
learn who the killer was, but we also learn that we don't really care as
there was never any real suspense developed around this story line. As
hard as this film tries, it really isn't much fun. The violence and
sexual content are greater even than in SUPERVIXENS, but it's starting to
appear that with the new extremes in general that film had gone to, and
with Russ already having parodied himself, he really doesn't have much
left to say. UP! is a disappointment. With BENEATH THE VALLEY OF THE
ULTRAVIXENS Russ began to parody himself in the title of his film. The
stamp of Kitten Natividad is all over this one, where not only is the most
explicit sex of any Meyer films shown, but it is also of a much kinkier
variety. Russ had been heard to pronounce that the way he likes to do it
is to get right in there fast, hard, and without delay. When interviewed
together, Russ and Kitten tell of how his living with her got him to
expand his horizons a bit, and he expanded his cinematic horizons as well.
The story is completely comedic and often borders on the silly. It also
depicts virtually no violence. The format is basically "Our Town", where
narrator Stu Lancaster takes us through the story of the insatiable
Lavonia (Kitten) and her dimwitted husband Lamar, who is only able to work
up a good carnal urge when he can engage in intercourse of an unnatural
sort. Russ employs a boinging-spring sound effect while this act is
depicted. The story takes us through Lavonia's efforts to cure him of his
peculiarity. She traps him and attempts to seduce him in the guise of
stripper "Lola Langusta". They go for counseling to a Psychiatrist/
Dentist, who turns out to be gay and goes after him while Lavonia gets it
on with his female assistant. And eventually he is healed by radio
evangelist Eufaula Loop in her "tub of joy", in a ceremony broadcast over
the air. Lavonia intermittently satisfies her needs with various denizens
of the town. Narrator Lancaster returns home to his Austrian mail order
bride SuperSoul, again played by Uschi Digard, Henry Rowland returns as
Martin Boorman, and Russ himself comes out from behind the camera for an
extended cameo at the end of the film. There's a definite shift from the
intense action that was dominant in Russ' films since the black and
whites, toward a sort of zany comedy. If Meyer wasn't shacked up with
Kitten, I believe that this film would have taken a different angle.
While not a terrible movie, it doesn't present the elements of his style
that have created the aura around his cinema that came to exist, and as
his last true film, it isn't representative of the best of his work.
filmography:
THE IMMORAL MR. TEAS (1959); A Pad-Ram Enterprises release, Pr: P.A.
De Cenzie, Dr/Wr/C/Ed: Russ Meyer, Cast: W. Ellis (Bill) Teas, Marilyn
Wesley, Ann Peters, Michele Roberis, Dawn Dinielle, Narration and music:
Edward Lasko, 63 min.
EVE AND THE HANDYMAN (1960); A Pad-Ram Enterprises release, Pr: Russ
Meyer, Dr/Wr/C/Ed: Russ Meyer, Cast: Eve Meyer, Anthony-James Ryan,
64 min.
EROTICA aka EROTICON (1961); A Pad-Ram Enterprises release, Pr: P.A.
De Cenzie and Russ Meyer, Dr/Wr/C/Ed: Russ Meyer, Cast: Donna Townsend,
Peggy Martin, 68 min.
WILD GALS OF THE NAKED WEST aka THE IMMORAL WEST-AND HOW IT WAS LOST aka
THE NAKED WEST-AND HOW IT WAS LOST, aka THE IMMORAL WEST, aka THE IMMORAL
GIRLS OF THE NAKED WEST (1962); A Pad-Ram Enterprises release, distributed
by Pacifica Productions, Pr: P.A. De Cenzie and Russ Meyer, Dr/Wr/C/Ed:
Russ Meyer, Music: Marlin Skiles, Cast: Julie Williams aka Goldie Nuggets,
Jack Moran, Teri Taylor, Sammy Gilbert, Frank Bolger, Topanga Gulch
Players, 62 min.
HEAVENLY BODIES aka HEAVENLY ASSIGNMENT; (1963); An Eve Productions
release, Pr: Russ Meyer, Dr/Wr/C/Ed: Russ Meyer, Cast: Ken Parker, Gaby
Martine, Marian Milford, Russ Meyer, Don Cochran, Werner Kirsch, Fred
Owens, Billy Newhouse, Orville Hallberg, Bill Cummings, Althea, Monica,
Rochelle Kennedy, Charles Schelling, Nancy Andre, Don Goodwin, Ivana
Nolte, 60 min.
EUROPE IN THE RAW (1963); An Eve Productions release, Pr: Russ Meyer,
Dr/Wr/C/Ed: Russ Meyer, Narrator: Franklin L. Thistle, Cast: Denise
Duval, Heidi Richter, Yvette Le Grand, Greta Thorwald, Abundavita, Gigi La
Touche, Veronique Gabriel, Fred Owens, 70 min.
LORNA (1964); An Eve Productions release, Pr: Russ Meyer, Dr/C/Ed: Russ
Meyer, Wr: James Griffith and Russ Meyer, Sound: Charles G. Schelling,
Music: Hal Hopper and James Griffith, Cast: Lorna Maitland, Mark Bradley,
James Rucker, Hal Hopper, Doc Scortt, James Griffith, 78 min.
FANNY HILL: MEMORIES OF A WOMAN OF PLEASURE (1964); A Favorite Films
release of Famous Players Corporation production, Pr: Albert Zugsmith, Dr:
Russ Meyer, Wr: Robert Hill from John Cleland, C: Heinz Hilscher, Ed:
Alfred Srp, Music: Erwin Halletz, Cast: Miriam Hopkins, Letitia Roman,
Walter Giller, Alex D'Arcy, Helmut Weiss, Chris Howland, Ulli Lommel, Cara
Garnett, Karin Evans, Syra Marty, Albert Zugsmith, Christiane Schmidtmer,
Heide Hansen, Erica Ericson, Patricia Houstoun, Marshall Raynor, Hilda
Sessack, Billy Frick, Jurgen Nesbach, Herbert Knippenberg, Susanne Hsiao,
Renate Hutte, Ellen Velero, 134 min.
MOTOR PSYCHO (1965); An Eve Productions release, Pr: Russ Meyer, Dr/C/:
Russ Meyer, Wr: W.E. Sprague and Russ Meyer, A.Dr: George Costello, Ed:
Charles G. Schelling, Music: Igo Kantor, Sound: Carl G. Sheldon Cast:
Stephen Oliver, Haji, Alex Rocco, Holle K. Winters, Joseph Cellini, Thomas
Scott, Coleman Francis, Sharon Lee, Steve Masters, Arshalouls Aivasian, F.
Rufus Owens, E.E. Meyer, George Costello, Richard Brummer, 73 min.
MUDHONEY aka ROPE OF FLESH (1965); An Eve Productions release, Pr: Russ
Meyer and George Costello, Dr: Russ Meyer, Wr: Raymond Friday Locke and
William E. Sprague, C: Walter Schenk, Ed/Sound: Charles G. Schelling,
Music: Henri Price, Cast: Hal Hopper, Lorna Maitland, Antoinette
Cristiani, John Furlong, Stu Lancaster, Rena Horten, Princess Livingston,
Sam Hanna, Nick Wolcuff, Frank Bolger, Lee Ballard, Mickey Foxx, F. Rufus
Owens, 92 min.
FASTER, PUSSYCAT, KILL! KILL! aka LEATHER GIRLS, aka MANKILLERS, aka
PUSSYCAT (1966); An Eve Productions release, Pr: Russ Meyer and Eve Meyer,
Dr/Ed: Russ Meyer, A.Dr: George Costello, Wr: Jack Moran, C: Walter
Schenk, Music: Paul Sawtelle and Bert Shefter, Cast: Tura Satana, Haji,
Lori Williams, Susan Bernard, Stuart Lancaster, Paul Trinka, Dennis Busch,
Ray Barlow, Mickey Foxx, 84 min.
MONDO TOPLESS aka MONDO GIRLS aka MONDO TOP (1966); An Eve Productions
release, Pr: Russ Meyer, Dr/C/Ed: Russ Meyer, Cast: Babette Bardot, Sin
Lenee, Diane Young, Donna X, Pat Barringer, Darla Paris, Darlene Grey,
Lorna Maitland, Veronique Gabriel, Greta Thorwald, Denise Duval, Gigi La
Touche, Abundavita, Heidi Richter, Yvette Le Grand, 61 min.
GOOD MORNING AND GOODBYE (1967); An Eve Productions release; Pr: Russ
Meyer, Dr/C: Russ Meyer, A.Dr: George Costello, Wr: John E. Moran and
Russ Meyer, Ed: Russ Meyer and Richard Brummer, Sound: Richard Brummer and
John E. Moran, Music: Igo Kantor, Cast: Alaina Capri, Stuart Lancaster,
Pat Wright, Haji, Karen Ciral, Don Johnson, Tom Howland, Megan Timothy,
Toby Adler, Sylvia Tedemar, Carol Peters, 78min.
COMMON-LAW CABIN! aka HOW MUCH LOVING DOES A NORMAL COUPLE NEED aka
CONJUGAL CABIN (1967); An Eve Productions release; Pr: Russ Meyer and Eve
Meyer, Dr/E: Russ Meyer, Wr: Jack Moran and Russ Meyer, C: Wady Medawar,
Jack Lucas, Sound: Richard Brummer and Irwin Cadden, Music: Igor Kantor,
Pr. mngr: George Costello, Cast: Ken Swofford, Alaina Capri, Jack Moran,
Adele Rein, Andrew Hagara, Frank Bolger, Babette Bardot, John Furlong,
70 min.
FINDER KEEPERS, LOVERS WEEPERS (1968); An Eve Productions release, Pr:
Russ Meyer, Ex.Pr: Eve Meyer, Dr/C: Russ Meyer, A.Dr: George Costello, Wr:
Richard Zachary and Russ Meyer, Ed: Russ Meyer and Richard Brummer, Sound:
Richard Brummer, Music: Igo Kantor, Cast: Anne Chapman, Paul Lockwood,
Gordon Wescourt, Duncan McLeod, Robert Rudelson, Lavelle Roby, Jan
Sinclair, Joey Duprez, Nick Wolcuff, 71 min.
VIXEN (1968); An Eve Productions release; Pr: Russ Meyer, D/C/Ed: Russ
Meyer, A.Dr: George Costello, Wr: Robert Rudelson, Russ Meyer, and Anthony
James Ryan, Sound: Richard Brummer and John Koester. Music: Igo Kantor and
William Loose, Cast: Erica Gavin, Harrison Page, Garth Pillsbury, Michael
O'Donnell, Vincene Wallace, Robert Aiken, Jon Evans, Peter Carpenter,
Jackie Illman, John Furlong, 71 min. Soundtrack on Beverly Hills Records.
CHERRY, HARRY, AND RAQUEL (1969); An Eve release of a Panamint Film
production; Pr: Russ Meyer, D/C: Russ Meyer, Wr: Tom Wolfe and Russ Meyer,
Ed: Russ Meyer and Richard Brummer, Sound: Richard Brummer, Music: Igo
Kantor and William Loose, Cast: Larissa Ely, Linda Ashton, Charles Napier,
Bert Santos, Franklin H. Bolger, Astrid Lillimor, Michele Grand, John
Milo, Robert Aiken, Michaelani, John Koester, Daniel Roberts, 71 min.
Soundtrack on Beverly Hills Records.
BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS (1970); A Twentieth Century-Fox release,
Pr: Russ Meyer, Dr: Russ Meyer, A.Dr: David Hall, Wr: Roger Ebert and Russ
Meyer, C: Fred J. Koenekamp, Ed: Dann Cahn and Dick Wormel, Sound: Richard
Overton and Don Minkler, Music: Stu Phillips, Art Dr: Jack Martin Smith
and Arthur Lonergan, Set Dr: Walter M. Scott and Stuart A. Reiss, Cast:
Dolly Read, Cynthia Meyers, Marcia McBroom, John LaZar, Michael Blodgett,
David Gurian, Edy Williams, Erica Gavin, Phyllis Davis, Harrison Page,
Duncan McLeod, Jim Iglehart, Charles Napier, Henry Rowland, 109 min.
Soundtrack on Twentieth Century-Fox.
THE SEVEN MINUTES (1971); A Twentieth Century-Fox release, Pr: Russ Meyer,
Dr: Russ Meyer, A.Dr: David Hall, Wr: Richard Warren Lewis from Irving
Wallace, C: Fred Mandi, Ed: Dick Wormel, Sound: Don J. Bassman and
Theodore Soderberg, Music: Stu Phillips, Art Dr: Rodger Maus, Set Dr:
Walter M. Scott and Raphael Bretton, Cast: Wayne Maunder, Marianne
McAndrew, Philip Carey, J.C. Flippen, Edy Williams, Lyle Bettger, Jackie
Gayle, Ron Randell, Charles Drake, John Carradine, Harold J. Stone, John
Sarno, Billy Durkin, Robert Moloney, Berry Kroeger, Olan Soule, Stanley
Adams, Tom Selleck, Alex D'Arcy, David Brian, Yvonne De Carlo, 115 min.
Soundtrack on Twentieth Century-Fox.
BLACKSNAKE aka SWEET SUZY aka SLAVES (1972); A Signal 166 Inc. release,
Pr: Russ Meyer, Dr: Russ Meyer, Wr: Russ Meyer, Len Neubauer, and Anthony
James Ryan, C: Arthur Ornitz and Russ Meyer, Ed: Fred Baratta, Art Dr:
Rick Heatherly, Sound: Richard Serly Brummer and Producers Sound Service,
Music: Bill Loose and Al Teeter, Cast: Anouska Hempel, David Warbeck,
Percy Herbert, Milton McCollin, Thomas Baptiste, Bernard Boston, Vikki
Richards, Dave Prowse, 82 min.
SUPERVIXENS (1975); A Semptember 19 production presented by R M Films
International Inc., Pr: Russ Meyer, Dr/C/Ed/Wr: Russ Meyer, Cast: Shari
Eubanks, Charles Napier, Uschi Digard, Charles Pitts, Henry Rowland,
Christy Hartburg, Sharon Kelly, Deborah McGuire, Glenn Dixon, John LaZar,
105 min.
UP! (1976); An R H M Distributors release of a Russ Meyer production; Pr:
Russ Meyer, Dr/C/Ed: Russ Meyer, Wr: B. Callum, Art Dr: Michele Levesque,
Sound: Dan Holland, Richard Anderson, and Fred Owens, Muisc: William Loose
and Paul Ruhland, Cast: Robert McLane, Edward Schaaf, Mary Gavin, Elaine
Collins, Su Ling, Janet Wood, Linda Sue Ragsdale, Harry, Monte Bane, Raven
De La Croix, Larry Dean, Marianne Marks, Bob Schott, Foxy Lae, Fred Owens,
Wilburn Kluck, Ray Reinhardt, Francesca "Kitten" Natividad, 80 min.
BENEATH THE VALLEY OF THE ULTRAVIXENS (1979); An R M Films International
Inc. release of a Russ Meyer production; Pr: Russ Meyer, Dr/C/Ed: Russ
Meyer, Wr: R. Hyde, B. Callum and Russ Meyer, Cast: Francesca "Kitten"
Natividad, Anne Marie, Ken Kerr, June Mack, Lola Langusta, Pat Wright,
Michael Finn, Steve Tracy, Sharon Hill, Henry Rowland, Robert E. Pearson,
De Forest Covan, Don Scarbrough, Aram Katcher, Uschi Digard, Mary Gavin,
Stuart Lancaster, 93 min.
Meyer has alluded to other projects throughout his career which were
halted at various levels of completion. Those I'm aware of are listed
below:
CHOICE CUTS - For Darryl Zanuck at Warner Brothers circa 1971.
ELEVEN - A horror project for Tempo productions, that was to be filmed in
the south circa 1972.
BEYOND...BEYOND - Russ was talking of this BVD "non-sequel" around 1972.
FOXY - To feature then wife Edy Williams. In 1973 some censorship
decisions from courts caused Russ to drop production for fear of losing
his investors money. Russ produced BLACKSNAKE that year completely with
his own funding.
UP THE VALLEY OF THE BEYOND - A project co-written with Roger Ebert, which
was being planned around the time of UP! and BENEATH THE VALLEY OF THE
ULTRAVIXENS (also co-written by Ebert using a pseudonym).
WHO KILLED BAMBI? - Another project to be co-written by Ebert, in 1980.
This was a planned feature on the Sex Pistols. Meyer quit after some
early shooting over disagreements with Malcom McLaren. The film
eventually emerged as THE GREAT ROCK AND ROLL SWINDLE.
THE JAWS OF VIXEN and THE JAWS OF LORNA - Projects sometimes alluded to in
the post-BTVOTUV period. THE JAWS OF VIXEN was promoted at the end of
that film.
MONDO TOPLESS II - A sequel spoken of in the mid-80's which is still
being listed as available "someday". According to Russ' current
literature, some of the featured talent appears to be Eva "Tundi" Horvath,
Tami Roche, "Baby Doll" Devereaux, and Kristine Mills.
THE BREAST OF RUSS MEYER - A twelve hour videography incorporating
segments from all of his films, and newly shot footage organized into a
biographical form. This labor of love is frequently referred to in
interviews over the last ten years, but it has yet to be released.
Other 80's projects by Russ are a video for the LA metal band Faster
Pussycat, and a video feature on stripper Melissa Mounds, coming soon as
VOL. A in THE BREAST OF RUSS MEYER series. It looks as if Pandora Peaks
will be the featured performer in VOL. B. Russ also served as
photographer on a pre-IMMORAL MR. TEAS project with producer Pete De
Cenzie called THE FRENCH PEEP SHOW or FRENCH POSTCARDS, which featured
stripper Tempest Storm. He was the cinematographer on the film THE
DESPERATE WOMAN (1954), which was produced by Samuel Newman and directed
by Louis Appleton Jr. Russ was also a photographer during WWII, and
footage that he shot was later used in PATTON.
A 1954 film titled ROOGIE'S BUMB has been falsely identified as starring
Meyer. This was a movie featuring the Brooklyn Dodgers, and one of the
players was named "Russ Meyer". The "RE/SEARCH" filmography lists THIS IS
MY BODY (1959) and NAKED CAMERA (1960), which are not included in any
other filmographies, and I haven't found any other references to them.
I seem to recall having read a mention of NAKED CAMERA elsewhere, in which
I believe it was described as being made with a hidden camera in a
suitcase, but I can't now locate this reference.
Some reference books have listed the film KISS ME QUICK aka DR. BREEDLOVE
aka HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE (1964) as a Russ Meyer film.
This is incorrect; it was a Harry Novak/Box Office International release
directed by Peter Perry using the pseudonym Seymour Tuchas. This film is
now available from Something Weird Video, and watching it leaves no doubt.
The AFI Catalog also lists a film titled STEAM HEAT (1961) as being
produced and directed by Meyer. I have never seen this mentioned in any
other source. The confusion may have stemmed from the fact that it was a
Pad Productions release starring Bill Teas (alternate title: MR. TEASE AND
HIS PLAYTHINGS).
Meyer has full ownership of all of his films as director with the
exception of FANNY HILL, BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS, and THE SEVEN
MINUTES. An interesting side note is that every film he made was
profitable with the exception of THE SEVEN MINUTES and BLACKSNAKE. Meyer
has put out the following titles on video, which are currently available
from him on his RM International label: THE IMMORAL MR. TEAS - EVE AND THE
HANDYMAN - WILD GALS OF THE NAKED WEST - LORNA - MOTOR PSYCHO - MUDHONEY -
FASTER PUSSYCAT KILL! KILL! - MONDO TOPLESS - GOODMORNING AND GOODBYE -
COMMON-LAW CABIN! - FINDERS KEEPERS LOVERS WEEPERS - VIXEN - CHERRY, HARRY
AND RAQUEL - SUPERVIXENS - UP! - BENEATH THE VALLEY OF THE ULTRAVIXENS
RM International is at: P.O. Box 3748, Hollywood, CA 90078. Word has it
that when you call to place an order, Russ himself answers the phone.
Tapes are currently $79.95 each, or $40.00 each when ordering six or more.
BLACKSNAKE can be obtained from Video Search Of Miami in a letterboxed,
French language version, with English subtitles ("SERPENT NOIR"). Video
Search is at P.O. Box 16-1917, Miami, Florida, 33116-1917.
BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS was put out by Magnetic Video in 1980, and
The Video Watchdog has recently reported that Fox video was planning a new
release. FANNY HILL has also been put out on video, but I don't have the
information as to by who and when.
Also look for Russ' cameo as the video store clerk in the late-80's AMAZON
WOMEN ON THE MOON.
some further reading:
books-
A Clean Breast-The Lives and Loves of Russ Meyer (2 vol.); by Adolph A.
Schwartz (aka Russ Meyer), 1989, Hauck, 1007 pp., ISBN: 0-96217-972-8,
$79.50
Russ Meyer-The Life and Films: A Biography and a Comprehensive,
Illustrated, and Annotated Filmography and Bibliography; by David K.
Frasier, 1990, McFarland & Co., 236 pp., ISBN: 0-89959-475-2, $39.95
For One Week Only: The World of Exploitation Films; by Richard Meyers,
1983, New Centur
y Publishers, 270 pp., ISBN: 0-83290-142-3, $12.95
Sinema: American Pornographic Films and Those Who Make Them; by Kenneth
Turan and Stephen F. Zito, 1974, Praeger, 244 pp., ISBN: 0-27550-770-X
Kings of the Bs-Working Within the Hollywood System: An Anthology of Film
History and Criticism; ed. Todd McCarthy and Charles Flynn, 1975, E. P.
Dutton, 561 pp., ISBN: 0-52514-090-5/0-52547-378-5 (paperback), $12.50
Incredibly Strange Films; Ed. V. Vale and Andrea Juno, 1986, Series:
RE/SEARCH #10, 220pp., ISBN: 0-85965-161-4, $15.00
Shock Value; by John Waters, 1981, Dell, 243 pp., ISBN: 0-44057-871-X,
$9.95
Russ Meyer, Ou Trente Ans de Cinema Erotique a Hollywood; by Jean-Pierre
Jackson, Series: Collection "Grand Ecran", Paris: PAC, 1982, 109 pp.
Russ Meyer, Der Konig des Sexfilms; by Rolf Thissen, Series: Heyne
Filmbibliothek Nr. 32/87, Munchen: W.Heyne, 1987, 252pp.
A Clean Breast is Meyer's comprehensive self-told story, with a great
collection of photos and illustrations from his personal collection, and
is the best reference above. It does however have a limited availability,
and isn't in many libraries or book stores. It can still be ordered
directly from Russ from his RM International address. The introduction is
by Roger Ebert. Russ Meyer-The Lives And Films is a collection of
references, broken down into categories, and extensively indexed, and is
also recommended. The European citations are the only other works above
devoted solely to Meyer, but they are in French and German respectively.
Both books are reportedly riddled with errors, and in fact Meyer got a
court injunction preventing the Thissen book from being distributed
outside of Germany. Frasier reports that this inspired Meyer to write his
autobiography. The other books contain chapters devoted to Meyer amongst
other material, many times with interviews.
Russ is currently advertising a new edition of A CLEAN BREAST, scheduled
for release in December 1993, which will be three volumes, in an
"over-sized, deluxe-bound set". This is to be released in a serially
numbered, autographed, 5000 copy run. The listed price is $500.00.
articles-
There have been many articles and interviews concerning Russ or particular
aspects of his work, in mainstream news sources, highbrow film journals,
and fanzines devoted to sleaze. The great majority of these are
chronicled in Frasier's excellent work cited above (over 1100 of them),
and should be consulted. It is still in print, and can probably be found
in a good sized library. There are a couple of articles which are a
little more in depth, and deserve mention:
"Sex, Violence and Drugs: All in the Name of Fun", by S. Berkowitz, FILM
COMMENT, vol. IX, no. 1, Jan-Feb 1973, pp. 47-51
"Russ Meyer: King of the Nudies", by R. Ebert, FILM COMMENT, vol. IX, no.
1, Jan-Feb 1973, pp. 34-45
"Russ Meyer: Ten Years After the 'Beyond'", by R. Ebert, FILM COMMENT,
vol. XVI, no. 4, Jul-Aug 1980, pp. 43-48
CINE-ZINE-ZONE; no. 8, 1987, 70p special Russ Meyer issue by Jean-Pierre
Jackson.
The Punk Who Finally Died - A FUNHOUSE! evaluation of the Lou Reed catalog
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
All good deviants are most likely aware of the inspired decadence that Lou
Reed was responsible for with The Velvet Underground. With the 1984
re-issue of three of their four classic studio albums (The "Velvet
Underground And Nico" [1967], "White Light/White Heat" [1967] , and "The
Velvet Underground" [1969]) the public was easily allowed to see that
pretenders like REM and Echo And The Funnymen had nothing on the original.
Since then the entire Velvet catalog has become available, including the
fourth studio album ("Loaded" [1969]), the two albums of unreleased studio
material ("VU" and "Another View"), and various live recordings. When
enjoying these albums make no mistake about one thing, Lou Reed was the
auteur - the rest of the band were guest stars in his movie. It thus goes
without saying that "Squeeze" (1972) is not considered a Velvet
Underground album by us at FUNHOUSE!, much like "Cut The Crap" is not
considered to be a Clash album. When you attempt to enter the world of
Lou's solo material things begin to get fuzzy, with a large number of
records covering more than twenty years, and multiple bands, producers,
and attitudes. FUNHOUSE! will thus attempt to evaluate this material from
a fan's perspective.
Comments are, of course, entirely subjective. I'm not trying to say that
a certain record is "good" or "bad", but rather that >I< "like" or
"dislike" it. Grading will thus be done on the one to four syringe scale:
" -[==]-I ". Officially released albums only are evaluated, and
compilations are left off.
LOU REED (1972)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: I Can't Stand It / Going Down / Walk And Talk It / Lisa Says /
Berlin / I Love You / Wild Child / Love Makes You Feel / Ride Into
The Sun / Ocean
Lou comes out of the box with his first post-Velvet's release having many
songs carried over from the previous band. I Can't Stand It, Lisa Says,
Ride Into The Sun, and Ocean would all later turn up on Velvet albums of
live and outtake material. Lou co-produced with Richard Robinson, and the
studio band includes Rick Wakeman and Steve Howe of Yes. Despite the
presence of those two, the record rocks along at a pretty good pace. It's
interesting to hear Lou play these songs with a really tight, musically
advanced band. This isn't necessarily a plus, but here it isn't a
negative.
TRANSFORMER (1972)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: Vicious / Andy's Chest / Perfect Day / Hangin' Round / Walk On
The Wild Side / Make Up / Satellite Of Love / Wagon Wheel / New York
Telephone Conversation / I'm So Free / Goodnight Ladies
Lou hooks up with Bowie, who co-produces this LP. At least Bowie didn't
do to him what he did to Iggy. This is one of Lou's more upbeat albums,
lacking allot of the desperate attitude that permeates much of his work.
Bowie side hack Mick Ronson and Sixth-Beatle Klaus Voorman are amongst the
back-up band. The production makes this tribute to NY 70's gay culture
sound allot like some of the contemporary Ziggy LP's. A good intro for
new listeners. Andy's Chest came out in a Velvet version on the VU album.
BERLIN (1973)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: Berlin / Lady Day / Men Of Good Fortune / Caroline Says I / How
Do You Think It Feels / Oh Jim / Caroline Says II / The Kids / The Bed /
Sad Song
Lou makes up for the upbeat feel of his previous release with what has
been referred to in some quarters as "The most depressing album ever
made". Bob Ezrin produces, and Lou takes us on a journey with the tortured
souls in the city with the wall. My suggestion is to get a version with
the lyrics intact, and read this thing like a book along with the songs.
Musically Lady Day and How Do You Think It Feels stick out. The sound is
very grand, with lots of piano, build-ups, and crescendos, with the
exception of the acoustical "Oh Jim". It's the story of a prostitute who
hangs out in the bars of Berlin, takes allot of drugs, gets beaten, has
her kids taken from her due to her character, and commits suicide. Fun
huh?
ROCK AND ROLL ANIMAL (1974)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: Intro / Sweet Jane / Heroin / White Light White Heat / Lady Day
/ Rock And Roll
The first live album of Lou without the Velvet's, and four of five songs
are tunes initially put out on Velvet albums. Lou's performance is not
lacking, however he should have ditched the hotshot guitar duo who attempt
to overshadows Mr. Reed with their needless six string doodling. For a
better sampling of Lou live from the period, seek out the 1972 recorded
boot "Stiff On His Legend".
SALLY CAN'T DANCE (1974)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: Ride Sally Ride / Animal Language / Baby Face / N.Y. Stars / Kill
Your Sons / Ennui / Sally Can't Dance / Billy
After the unique styles of "Transformer" and "Berlin", Lou went looking
for a follow-up, and came up with this somewhat weak attempt at
perpetuating that Reed style. The music is basically straight ahead rock,
and Lou seems less interested in that aspect of the album than the lyrics
and songwriting. A pattern will seem to develop with Lou's records in
which they are better when he gets himself involved in the playing and
arranging of the tunes. Lou sounds like he just showed up and sang here.
Ride Sally Ride and Baby Face appear to be "Berlin" leftovers/rehashes,
while "Sally Can't Dance" makes an attempt at funk; he almost pulls it
off. The standouts here are Kill Your Sons and N.Y. Stars, but the rest
don't reach their level. Lou co-produced with Steve Katz.
LOU REED LIVE (1974)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: Walk On The Wild Side / I'm Waiting For The Man / Vicious /
Satellite Of Love / Oh Jim / Sad Song
See "Rock And Roll Animal" entry. Only one song here was previously
recorded by the Velvets.
METAL MACHINE MUSIC (1975)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: Metal Machine Music A-1 / Metal Machine Music A-2 / Metal
Machine Music A-3 / Metal Machine Music A-4
Wow!, what huevos, what chutzpah, what nerve! Lou delivers a giant middle
finger to the record industry, the critics, and yes even his fans! The
album rates four syringes on shear attitude alone. The record has NO
instruments. Lou hooks up a series of amps, effects, filters, and other
electronic devices, lets the feedback roar, and records the whole thing.
The exact line-up of devices is noted in detail by Lou in the liner notes.
Each of four sides starts with the tape being turned on, and exactly 16:01
later, turned off. Proof positive that RCA, the label who released this,
didn't even listen to material before they put it out. The question is
actually how serious was Lou when he made this. Interviews with Lester
Bangs at the time, since reprinted in the book "Psychotic Reactions And
Carburetor Dung", suggest that in his drug induced state Lou might have
actually felt he was making serious art; he's not talking these days. The
big joke is that someone has actually recently re-released this on CD,
which misses the whole point completely. Easily the most audacious album
ever made.
CONEY ISLAND BABY (1976)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: Crazy Feeling / Charley's Girl / She's My Best Friend / Kicks /
A Gift / ooohhh Baby / Nobody's Business / Coney Island Baby
Most of the songs which emerged on this album were culled from a group
that Lou was working on when he conceived and executed "Metal Machine
Music". After that episode, he decided to make a record of sensitive and
introspective songs. The music here is different than on any of his other
records, being a simple guitar/bass/drums format, played in a tight and
clean manner. The music isn't boring, but it's also not too adventurous.
Lyrically however, that Lou edge is mostly missing. She's My Best Friend,
which can be heard in a Velvet Underground version on the "V.U." LP, has a
really good guitar jam, and Kicks has some of the more familiar Reed
themes. Lou even strikes a delicate and reserved pose on the cover. It's
interesting to note that this was his last album for RCA for six years.
They probably wanted to get rid of him after "MMM", but went ahead with
this mostly complete, commercial attempt first. Lou co-produced with
Godfrey Diamond.
ROCK AND ROLL HEART (1976)
rating: -[==}-I
contents: I Believe In Love / Banging On My Drum / Follow The Leader / You
Wear It So Well / Ladies Pay / Rock And Roll Heart / Chooser And The
Chosen One / Senselessly Cruel / Claim To Fame / Vicious Circle / A
Sheltered Life / Temporary Thing
This first Arista release came out the same year as "Coney Island Baby",
and the impression I have is that after being shown the door by RCA, he
wanted something out quickly on the new label. Most of this sounds
like "Coney Island Baby" leftovers, with the musical effort of "Sally
Can't Dance". The lyrical content is almost nonsensical, with themes in
line with "C.I.B." While the music isn't all that unique in it's
composition, this was Lou's first collaboration with Michael Fonfara, and
a sound begins to emerge here that would develop into some real exciting
things in the future. There's more feedback and overlaid guitars, a
denser sound, and a wider variety of instruments, including subdued horns
and keyboards. Ladies Pay and Rock And Roll Heart, with it's great
feedback guitar part, are the standouts. This is a Lou Reed solo
production.
STREET HASSLE (1978)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: Gimme Some Good Times / Dirt / Street Hassle / I Wanna Be Black
/ Real Good Time Together / Shooting Star / Leave Me Alone / Wait
Two years is an eternity in this guys world; his drugs of choice, relative
level of cynicism, and sexual preference can all greatly shift, and any of
these can have an impact on his work. Whatever happened, the results are
astonishing. The attitude which was missing on "Coney Island Baby" and
the sincerity that was missing from "Sally Can't Dance" turn up here in
spades. While both were present on "Metal Machine Music", not many people
were, or could be, listening; neither were present on "Rock And Roll
Heart". Gimme Some Good Time makes reference to Sweet Jane and "Rock And
Roll Heart" in it's opening lines. Real Good Time Together can be heard
in Velvet form on the "1969 Velvet Underground Live" album. Dirt, and
maybe some others, are set asides from when Lou went the direction that
resulted in "C.I.B." Street Hassle is in the form of a three part suite,
which in one section Lou gives us his interpretation of I Fought The Law.
The music is original and exciting, and for the first time in a long while
Lou sings like he means it. This was his first experiment with Stereo
Binaural Sound recording, and he co-produced with Richard Robinson, who he
had worked with on his first album.
THE BELLS (1979)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: Stupid Man / Disco Mystic / I Want To Boogie With You / With You
/ Looking For Love / City Lights / All Through The Night / Families / The
Bells
A solid follow-up to "Street Hassle" in much the same vein. Another
stereo binaural sound effort, this time produced by Lou in collaboration
with Michael Fonfara. A steady layer of feedback guitar permeates most of
the tracks, with intermittent alto sax wailing, and occasional guitar
soloing, coming up in the mix. The first side is good throughout, with
tunes incorporating bits of the new wave, disco-rock (don't worry - it
works, much like The Stones played with on parts of "Some Girls"), and
rock and roll. Almost every song is co-written with someone else,
something unusual for Reed. Stupid Man, co-written by previous Neil Young
and future Boss sidekick Nils Lofgren, carries the disco beat, followed by
the fantastic Disco Mystic, in which only that phrase is said, repeated
over a driving, wailing beat. Lofgren also co-wrote "With You" and "City
Lights", while Fanfara co-wrote "Boogie". If side two matched side one,
this would be a four-syringer. The three last tracks, co-written by Don
Cherry, Ellard Boles, and Marty Fogel respectively, try for the same
extended experimental piece effect as in Street Hassle. While interesting
in its sound, it doesn't consistently come up with solid songwriting.
GROWING UP IN PUBLIC (1980)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: How Do You Speak To An Angel / My Old Man / Keep Away / Growing
Up In Public / Standing On Ceremony / So Alone / Love Is Here To Stay /
The Power Of Positive Drinking / Smiles / Think It Over / Teach The Gifted
Children
Another good album from Lou, working with a great band and great
production. With Michael Fonfara co-producing, and with his piano and
occasional synthesizer a prominent element of the music, the record has a
real clean and uptempo rock beat throughout it. You can always count on
Lou to deliver clever, funny, and insightful lyrical quips, and they are
abundant here. "Keep Away" and "Love Is Here To Stay" are the best songs,
while in "The Power Of Positive Drinking" Lou informs us why he's a scotch
drinking man, "Teach The Gifted Children" contains the chorus from Al
Green's "Take Me To The River", and "Smiles" reprises the
dum-da-dum-da-dum chorus from "Walk On The Wild Side". "So Alone" even
slips into a disco/rap/rock mode where Lou intones, "Get up and boogie,
Get up and dance, Shake your booty mamma...". If a few of the songs went
beyond some of their somewhat formula tendencies, in music not in playing,
this may have been a four-syringer. It's still a good album worth picking
up.
THE BLUE MASK (1982)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: My House / Women / Underneath The Bottle / The Gun / The Blue
Mask / Average Guy / The Heroine / Waves Of Fear / The Day John Kennedy
Died / Heavenly Arms
The first album back with the old label, RCA, and it's a real winner. Lou
put together a quality group of musicians from working New York bands,
made up of Robert Quine on guitar (ex of Dick Hell + Voidoids), Fernando
Saunders on bass, and Doane Perry on drums. Perry would be replaced by
Fred Maher for the next couple of albums and a tour. This band would
produce the best music Lou ever had backing him. He worked with these
guys to create a unique sound which was integral to the music. The tunes
here range from the the gentle story telling of My House and John Kennedy,
to the rockers Bottle and Average Guy, to the wailers Blue Mask and Waves
Of Fear. Lou found himself a new label, a new band, and a new wife (who
he frequently references in songs over the next few years - here Heavenly
Arms is his tribute), and the result is a happy guy making some of his
best music. Co-produced with Sean Fullan.
LEGENDARY HEARTS (1983)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: Legendary Hearts / Don't Talk To Me About Work / Make Up My Mind
/ Martial Law / The Last Shot / Turn Out The Light / Pow Wow / Betrayed /
Bottoming Out / Home Of The Brave / Rooftop Garden
The continuation of "The Blue Mask", with Fred Maher now on drums. The
band creates the same tight, clean, sound, which is in itself enough to at
least warrant giving this one a listen. The songs are mostly fine,
however they lack the sort of "edge" which makes "The Blue Mask" a great
record. That leaves the impression that allot of these may have been
leftovers from the previous album. Overall however, if the previous album
was to your liking, you'll probably enjoy this one also. Legendary
Hearts, Martial Law, and Pow Wow are the highlights. The production was
by Lou Reed by himself.
LIVE IN ITALY (1984)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: Sweet Jane / I'm Waiting For My Man / Martial Law / Satellite Of
Love / Kill Your Sons / Betrayed / Sally Can't Dance / Waves Of Fear /
Average Guy / White Light White Heat / Some Kinda Love-Sister Ray / Walk
On The Wild Side / Heroin / Rock And Roll
Following the release of "Legendary Hearts", Lou takes advantage of his
working band to hit the road on the only extended tour he's done in the
last fifteen years. This is a well played and well recorded set, taped
from shows on September 7 and September 10, 1983. A nice retrospective,
with Sweet Jane, I'm Waiting For My Man, White Light White Heat, Some
Kinda Love, Sister Ray, Heroin, and Rock And Roll representing some of the
best from the Velvets, Satellite of Love, Kill Your Sons, Sally Can't
Dance, and Walk On The Wild Side representing earlier parts of his solo
career, and Martial Law, Betrayed, Waves Of Fear and Average Guy being
from the then current period. Lou has always made no distinction between
songs written early in his career from those on his current record, often
treating older songs as if the were new and fresh. This is evident from
this recording. This is a good starting point for the uninitiated,
however I don't think it ever had a US release so you might have to pay
import price.
NEW SENSATIONS (1984)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: I Love You Suzanne / Endlessly Jealous / My Red Joystick / Turn
To Me / New Sensations / Doin' The Things That We Want To / What Becomes A
Legend Most / Fly Into The Sun / My Friend George / High In The City /
Down At The Arcade
Lou must have been invigorated by his touring, and he used the opportunity
to fine tune these songs while he was at it. Fred Maher on drums, and the
amazing fretless bass of Fernando Saunders remain, but Lou takes over all
of the guitar parts himself. It's his best guitar work in a LONG time,
and along with that which he would later put down on "New York", probably
the best he's recorded. Sharp, exciting riffs abound. I Love You
Suzanne, which he once referred to as a "stupid pop song", was a minor hit
for him. This tune, coming at the same time as the re-issue of the
Velvet's catalog and Walk On The Wild Side being used in a phony-scooter
TV ad, gave a big boost to this dudes career. A good record throughout,
My Friend George, Down At The Arcade, and especially Doin' The Things That
We Want To are standouts. The production was by Reed along with John
Jansen.
MISTRIAL (1986):
rating: -[==]-I
contents: Mistrial / No Money Down / Outside / Don't Hurt A Woman / Video
Violence / Spit It Out / The Original Wrapper / Mama's Got A Lover / I
Remember You / Tell It To Your Heart
Lou tries for an '80's AOR hard rock sound, with the result sounding
musically like something hacks like Def Leppard might make. Coming in the
midst of so many quality releases, this one should be overlooked.
NEW YORK (1989)
rating: -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I, -[==]-I
contents: Romeo Had Juliette / Halloween Parade / Dirty Blvd. / Endless
Cycle / There Is No Time / Last Great American Whale / Beginning Of A
Great Adventure / Busload Of Faith / Sick Of You / Hold On / Good Evening
Mr. Waldheim / Xmas In February / Strawman / Dime Store Mystery
Reed must have spent the previous three years staring out his window, as
he came up with an incredible document of the state of that megalopolis in
the late 80's. Lou has a history of coming up with his best work when he
takes some time off after a weak effort, and this certainly follows that
pattern. The music is inspired, the production with Fred Maher is
outstanding, and every song gives graphic description of usually bleak
characters and situations. It's difficult to analyze any song or songs
individually, as they all fit together into one piece. Lou writes on the
album jacket that the record is meant to be listened to in one continuous
58 minute sitting. Right up there with the best Velvet Underground
albums, and probably the best solo record Lou made. He even had somewhat
of a rock radio/MTV hit with Dirty Blvd. A label switch to Sire started
with this release.
SONGS FOR DRELLA, BETWEEN THOUGHT AND EXPRESSION, MAGIC AND LOSS, and
various EP's etc (1990-192)
collective rating: -[==]-I
Seems like Lou shot his whole wad with "New York", as this is mostly
uninspired dreck. Punk wasn't dead until the Godfather put out these
recent works. Basically safe and middle of the road. Maybe he'll rise
from the grave, he has in the past.
Pezography - An (almost?) complete listing of Pez dispensers
------------------------------------------------------------
The following is a nearly complete listing of the Pez Candy dispensers
that have been manufactured. There are apparently some color variations
within individual items listed below. The next series is reported to be
of The Flintstones, and thus other Hannah-Barbara characters could follow.
This was received from a secondary source by me, with the primary
reference being: PEZ BOOK, by David Welch, P.O. Box 714, Murphysboro, IL,
62969, (618) 687-2282. The list price is $22.95
CHRISTMAS: Angel, Rudolph, Santa (A), Santa (B), Santa (C).
CIRCUS: Big Top Elephant, Clown with collar, Clown with chin, Gorilla,
Li'l Lion, Mama Giraffe, Mimic the Monkey, Monkey Sailor,
Pony Go Round, Roar the Lion
CRAZY FRUIT: Orange, Pear, Pineapple
DIE-CUTS: Bozo, Casper, Donald Duck, Easter Bunny, Mickey Mouse
DISNEY: Baloo, Bambi, Captain Hook, Chip, Dalmation Pup, Dewey (blue),
Donald Duck, Donald Duck (1989), Dopey, Duck Child, Dumbo,
Goofy, Goofy (Remake A), Goofy (1989), Huey (red), Jiminy
Cricket, King Louie, Li'l Bad Wolf, Louie (green), Mary
Poppins, Mickey Mouse, Mickey Mouse (remake A), Mickey Mouse
(remake B), Mickey Mouse (1989), Mowgli, Peter Pan, Pinocchio,
Pinocchio (Remake), Pluto (A), Pluto (B), Practical Pig (1),
Practical Pig (2), Scrooge McDuck (A), Scrooge McDuck (B),
Snow White, Thumper, Thinkerbell, Winnie the Pooh, Zorro,
Zorro with "Z" logo
EASTER: Bunny (A), Bunny (B), Bunny (C-fat ears), Chick in Egg
(No Hat), Chick in Egg with hat (Green nest), Chick in Egg
with Hat (Red nest), Duckie, Lamb (A), Lamb (B), Rooster
EERIE SPECTORS (ALL SOFT HEADS): Air Spirit, Diabolic, Scarewolf,
Spook Vamp, Zombie
FULL BODY: Santa Claus, Space Trooper
HALLOWEEN: Blob Octopus, Dr Daedhead, Dr Skull, Fishman, Mr Ugly,
One Eyed Monster, Pumpkin, Witch (A), Witch (B-1 piece),
Witch (C-3 piece), Witch (D)
HUMANS: Astronaut (A), Astronaut (B), Cowboy, Football Player, Pilot,
Spaceman, Stewardess
BI-CENTENNIAL: Betsy Ross, Captain, Daniel Boone, Indian Brave, Indian
Chief, Indian Squaw, Uncle Sam, Wounded Soldier
KOOKY ZOO: Cockatoo, Crocodile, Cow (A), Cow (B), Panda (A), Panda (B)
Panther, Fuzzy Cat with Derby, Raven, Yappy Dog
CHARACTERS: Annie, Asterix, Bozo, Bullwinkle, Casper, Green Hornet,
Mueslix, Peter PEZ, Flintstones: Barney, Dino, Fred,
Pebbles,
GARFIELD: Aelene, Garfield, Garfield with Green Hat, Garfield with
teeth, Nermal
MGM: Barney Bear, Droopy Dog, Jerry (A), Jerry (B), Muscle Mouse,
Spike, Tom (A), Tom (B), Tyke
MOVIE MONSTERS: Creature from the Black Lagoon, Frankenstien, Wolfman
MUPPETS: Fozzie Bear, Gonzo, Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy
PEANUTS: Charlie Brown, CB (Frowing), CB (Tongue), CB (Eye closed),
Lucy, Snoopy, Woodstock
POPEYE: Brutus, Olive Oyl, Popeye (A), Popeye (B), Popeye (C-with
pipe)
SMURFS: Papa Smurf (A-large eyes), Papa Smurf (B-small eyes), Smurf
boy (A-no tongue), Smurf Boy (B-painted tongue), Smurf boy
(C-no country on base), Smurfette
SUPERHEROS: Batgirl (soft), Batman (A-with cape), Batman (B-soft),
Batman (C-"DC Comics 1965"), Capt America, Hulk (A), Hulk
(B-1989 Marvel), Joker (soft), Penguin (soft), Spiderman
(A), Spiderman (B-1989 Marvel), Thor, Wonder Woman (A-soft),
Wonder Woman (B-"DC Comics 1979")
WARNER BROS: Bugs Bunny, Cool Cat, Daffy Duck (A), Daffy Duck (B),
Foghorn Leghorn, Henry Hawk, Merlin Mouse, Petunia Pig,
Roadrunner, Speedy Gonzales, Sylvester, Tweety (A),
Tweety (B- Warner Bros Inc 1990), Wile E. Coyote
MERRY MUSIC MAKERS: Camel, Clown, Dog, Donkey, Duck, Frog, Indian,
Koala, Lamb, Monkey, Panda, Parrot, Penguin,
Pig, Rhino, Rooster, Tiger
MISCELLANEOUS: Baseball Glove, Hippo, 1962 Lions Club Lion, Make
A Face, Personalized, Psychedelic Eye, Psychedelic
Flower, Regular, Regular with Advertising, Scarecrow,
Whistle
OLYMPICS: 1972 Alpine Man, 1976 Snowman, 1984 Wolf (Vucko),
1984 Wolf with cap, 1984 Wolf with Helmet
PEZ PALS: Boy, Boy with Cap, Bride, Doctor, Engineer, Fireman, Girl,
Groom, Knight, Maharajah, Mexican Boy, Nurse, Pirate,
Policeman, Ringmaster, Sailor, Sheik, Sheriff
PREMIUMS: Arithmetic, Candy Shooter Gun, Cocoa March, Donkey Kong Jr.,
Golden GLow, Icee Bear, Pif The Dog, Silver Glow, Stand By
Me, 1950's Space Gun, 1980's Space Gun
TRUCKS: Single Rear Axle: Cab #1, Cab #4, Cab #16
Double Axle Indented Fender: Cab #8, Cab #9, Cab #13
Double Axle No Indentions: Cab #1, Cab #2, Cab #3, Cab #4,
Cab #5, Cab #16, Cab #R1, Cab #R2, Cab #R3, Cab #R4
VALENTINE: Valentine Boy (A-Brown Hair), Valentine Boy (B-Blode hair),
Valentine Girl (Blond hair)
The Greatest Philosophical Question Answered - What REALLY Happens When a
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tree Falls In The Forest And No One Is There.
----------------------------------------------
The scenario of the tree falling in the unoccupied forest has long been
metaphorically held up as a philosophical quandary. It is the position of
FUNHOUSE! that this debate is not a valid situation to be held up as an
example of an unanswerable question. FUNHOUSE! believes that the question
of a tree making or not making a noise whilst toppling in the woods
without a living being present can be easily defined in physical terms,
and thus is not susceptible to the metaphysical debate for which it is
held up as example. It is not on the level of the merits of the
teleological argument for the existence of God.
When a tree is felled, there is the same disturbance of molecules in the
air, producing sound waves, whether or not anyone or anything is present.
When a person, or other organism with a hearing organ is present, the ear
through it's anatomical make-up (the workings of which are not the scope
of this commentary) convert the sound waves into the physiological nerve
impulses that carry the representation of the sound to the brain, where it
is "heard". The question of whether or not a noise is made is thus
explained by what one means by "noise". The sound waves, through the
displacement of air molecules, exist independent of anyone or anything
else's presence. What we are referring to as "being heard" only exists
within our brains; it is a matter of the interpretation of the waves by
our nervous systems. Therefore just as a television station is
broadcasting whether or not your set is turned on to see the image, a
falling tree produces the exact same physical changes to the environment,
or sound, whether or not your head is there to tune it in.
So there.
Fanzine Forum - Some Recommended Literature For Your Further Education
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Below is a sampling of fanzines of various topics which I can recommend as
entertaining and informative to read. As far as I know all are still
active, and have at least some back issues available. Look for them at
your local alternative newsstand, or send a self addressed stamped
envelope to the publisher, and ask for information.
ANSWER ME! - Wow!, a 'zine with ATTITUDE! A no quarter, no fears delving
into some of the most hard core social issues and news figures of the day.
100 pages with a graphic color cover. Issue number two has articles on
Jeffrey Dahmer, The Geto Boys, David Duke, Anton LaVey, El Duce, Al
Goldstein, Vietnamese gangs, and more. Not for the faint of heart. $4.50
from: 6520 Selma Ave., Suite 1171, Hollywood, CA 90028.
ASIAN TRASH CINEMA - Dedicated to the wild, and sometimes bizarre and
strange, film culture of the far east, mostly Hong Kong. Issue number
three is the latest, and has reviews of titles from Japan, Indonesia, and
India, as well as Hong Kong. There are articles on John Woo's
"Hardboiled", Japanese "Yakuza" films, "Godzilla Vs. King Ghidora", a Jade
Leung interview, laserdisc reviews, a good letters section, and more. The
back cover girl in this issue is Maggie Cheung. Sister publication to
European Trash Cinema (see below). This one is 38 pages of slick paper,
with a fantastic full-color cover of Godzilla in action. $6.00 an issue
from PO Box 5367, Kingwood, TX 77325.
BLACK TO COMM - Issue number 18 from Spring 1991, the latest that I have,
is 86 pages of densely packed text and illustrations in black and white.
The cover price is $4.50. The editors worship at the alter of The
Stooges, The MC5, and The Velvet Underground, and all things derivative of
them. Plenty of record reviews, book reviews, and commentary. Issue 18
has articles on Link Wray, Stiv Bators, Handsome Dick Manitoba, Amon Duul
I, and The Hampton Grease Band, as well as Iggy, and the Velvets. Write:
714 Shady Ave., Sharon, PA 16146.
CULT MOVIES AND VIDEO - Issue number 6 is current, and is 80 pages with
many photos and illustrations in black and white, with a color cover. A
really good effort devoted to sleazy horror and sexploitation movies,
mostly from the 50's and 60's. Subjects they have covered are Ed Wood
Jr., Tor Johnson, Dave Friedman, Harry Novak and Boxoffice International,
Bela Lugosi, and Boris Karloff, as well as many detailed looks at
individual films. Cover price is $4.95, write: 11225 Magnolia Blvd.,
Suite 200, North Hollywood, CA 91601.
ECCO - What began as a magazine devoted to the "Mondo" genre of films,
those which purport to expose the strange and weird factual wonders of the
world, has since expanded to review and chronicle weird horror and sleaze
films of all stripes. What makes Ecco unique to me is that they
consistently come up with titles that I haven't seen referenced in any
other publications. Issues aren't very large, only about 24 pages, for a
cover price of $3.50. Write: P.O. Box 65742, Washington, DC 20035.
EUROPEAN TRASH CINEMA - Concentrates on the horror and thriller films
produced in Europe, especially the unique styling that come out of Italy
and Spain. The latest issue I've seen, vol. 2 no. 6, is dedicated entirely
to reviews of the Italian "Giallo" genre. These are stylish murder
mysteries, sometimes with elements of the fantastic, that are probably
best known in the US in some of the works of Dario Argento. Regular
issues have feature articles and many reviews. This is an area of cinema
that any horror who isn't now familiar with it, should definitely
investigate. Copies are $5.00 each, from P.O. Box 5367, Kingwood, TX
77325.
FACTSHEET FIVE - Not just a 'zine, but a huge listing of 'zines.
Literally hundreds of fanzines are broken down by categories, reviewed,
and information is given regarding subscriptions, size, advertising,
trades, etc. If your interested in exploring any aspects of the world of
independent publishing, this is a must. The latest is issue #46, 96 pages
with a $3.95 cover price. A on-line version is coming, and may already
exist. For more info email at jerod23@well.sf.ca.us. Hard copy address
is: P.O. Box 170099, San Francisco, CA, 94117-0099.
FLIPSIDE - This long lasting punk and post-punk hard rock 'zine is still
going strong, and is still a good source of info on that particular aspect
of the rock underground. Starting as a fanzine for the LA punk subculture
in the late 70's, they're now approaching their 80th issue. The latest
issue is 110 pages for $2.50 - that punk idealism even keeps the price
down. Each has interviews and features on bands and the lifestyle
surrounding them, along with numerous reviews, letters, etc. Write: PO
Box 60790, Pasadena, CA 91116.
FANTASYNOPSIS - A nice, slick, well-illustrated fanzine from England
focusing primarily on the horror film. I have issue number four from
1991, which is 54 pages with a full color cover, and a price of 2.50
pounds. It also has a pull-out color poster from THE HOUSE OF WHIPCORD.
The contents of this issue include interviews with Dario Argento, David
McGillivray, and Alex Gordon, features on "Lifeforce" and Frank Langella's
"Dracula", and many reviews of videos, books, and magazines. There's even
some original fiction. Contact them at: 1 Bascraft Way, Godmanchester,
Huntingdon, Cambs, PE18 8EG, England.
HIGHBALL - A new publication focusing on the sleaze/sexploitation films of
the sixties. A heavy stock, slick, 66 page 'zine, with many fine photos
and illustrations. Issue number one is from September 1992, and has a
$6.95 cover price. Contained in the first ish are interviews with Lee
Frost and with Dave Friedman, features on Barry Mahon and Brigitte Bardot,
as well as many reviews and analysis of films and of the genre. Highly
recommended for anyone interested in this unique segment of filmdom. The
address is: MPO Box 67, Oberlin, OH 44074-0067.
KICKS - A very well produced 'zine covering wild early sixties rock and
roll and the culture surrounding it. Issue number 7 is 100 pages of dense
text and illustrations, all meticulously researched. The interior is
black and white, and the cover is heavy stock full color. Number seven
has The Trashmen, The Iguanas, Esquerita, The Del-Aires (from Horror Of
Party Beach), and the amazing tale of actor/singer/comic and sleaze
writer/horror fanzine publisher Ron Haydock. Very detailed articles.
$5.00 at: Box 646, Cooper Station, New York, NY 10003.
MONSTER! INTERNATIONAL - Issue number 2 is $3.50, and is dated October
1992. This is 42 black and white pages, with a black and white slick
cover. The focus here is obviously on (mostly old) horror movies. There
are many reproduced stills and movie ads, with the focus being on foreign
films which haven't yet been covered as well as they should. Articles are
very complete. Number two discusses Mexican monster movies, Jesus Franco,
Santo, and a special column dedicated to Asian horrors. A sister
publication to HIGHBALL; the slogan is "100% pure creature features, no
slashers allowed!" Write: MPO, Box 67, Oberlin, OH 44074-0067.
MOTORBOOTY - This 'zine mainly documents aspects of the Detroit / Ann
Arbor rock scene, with articles on places, culture, and bands past and
present. Number five is 72 pages of black and white, with heavy stock and
color cover. Inside are interviews with Rob Tyner of the MC5, and Ron
Asheton of The Stooges. There's a history of Detroit rock, a feature on
the Stooges Wax Museum, an interview with psychedelic poster artist Gary
Grimshaw, and other comics and articles. This issue is $3.00 from winter
1990, and I believe is still out on some newsstands. There is an issue
six out, which I don't own, with stories on Miles Davis and The Firesign
Theater among others. Write: P.O. Box 7944, Ann Arbor, MI 48107.
PYSCHOTRONIC VIDEO - The granddaddy of all offbeat movie fanzines.
Published by the editor of the (highly recommended) Psychotronic
Encyclopedia Of Film. The latest issue is number 14, and is 72 pages in
black and white. Every issue has a fantastic color cover, and all except
number one are available as back issues. Each issue has many reviews of
movies on video and books about films. Regular features are on
underground records, fanzines, a lengthy letters section, and obituaries
of recently deceased psychotronic personalities. In addition there are
several articles per issue on actors, producers, writers, or directors of
movies in genres such as horror, biker, drug, sexploitation, mondo, or any
other strange commodity. Write: 151 First Avenue, Department PV, New
York, NY, 10003.
VIDEO WATCHDOG - A publication absolutely obsessed with detail. This is
heavy stock, slick paper in an 8 1/4 x 5 3/4 format. It is published
regularly on a bi-monthly basis, with a $4.95 cover price. Each issue is
loaded with intricate information as to the various titles, running times,
screen dimensions, soundtracks, video releases, and just about any other
information that may pertain to films in the horror, SFX, or fantasy
genres. Each issue has complete videographies of selected artists, and
usually a feature or two on a particular actor or director. Very valuable
for learning about the re-titling of old films in new video releases.
Write: P.O. Box 5283, Cincinnati, OH 45205-0283.
WE ARE THE WEIRD - A collection of Joe-Bob Briggs rants which are too far
over the line for his weekly syndicated newspaper column. Frequently
published, and the subject matter can cover any of Joe-Bobs unique and
varied interests, not just sleaze flicks. Subscriptions are $35.00 for 52
issues, but Joe-Bob has been known to mail out free samples if you ask
him. Write: P.O. Box 2002, Dallas, TX 75221.
ZONTAR THE MAG FROM VENUS, ZONTAR'S EJECTO-POD, and ZON-TOWER - It's
difficult to describe these other than - hysterical. ZONTAR is a way of
life! The blurb on the cover states, "Dedicated to the intensive study of
the most obscure and disreputable cultural manifestations of the decaying
hu-man empire!" The main Zontar mag is into it's ninth issue, while
spin-offs Ejecto and Zon-Tower have reached issues two and four
respectively. Subjects covered have been Larry Buchanan, Bozo, Bob
Tilton, the Bakkers and other TV preacher-thieves, "Michael Medved -
Golden Turkey Or Neo-Fascist", sleazy comics, "Yellow Ribbonism: Symbol Of
Shame", "The Great Bad-Film Debate", the indispensable All-Nixon issue,
and the chronicled re-printing of Ed Wood Jr.'s sleaze/porn novel "Drag
Trade". Issue sizes vary, but the main mag is around 60 wildly
illustrated pages for $6.00, and the spin-offs about half that at
$3.50-$5.00 each. Also ask about the two hour video "Pervert Preachers,
Fascist Fundamentalists, and Kristian Kiddie Kooks". The address is: 29
Darling St. #2, Boston, MA 02120.
And while not a fanzine, I'd also like to recommend the LOOMPANICS
UNLIMITED MAIN CATALOG. This organization publishes or distributes a
large number of provocative and controversial books, without fear or
hesitation. A maverick operation from which titles covering privacy,
security, protection, fake ID, weapons, avoiding government intrusion,
dropping out, and other topics of an anarchist or libertarian bent can be
obtained. The catalog has detailed descriptions of each book that is
offered, and is interesting in itself. Ask about their "greatest hits"
book, with reprints of original articles. Their slogan states, "You are
what you know, you are what you do to help yourself. No more secrets. No
more excuses. No more limits." The catalog is over 250 pages for $3.00
from: PO Box 1197, Port Townsend, WA 98368.
Reviews - Comments on Selected Books, Records, Periodicals, Etc. Etc. Etc.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Items described below are not necessarily new, however they are new to me,
and thus the majority are relatively recent releases or publications.
They all are available at the time of this writing.
recorded music:
DINOSAUR (JR.) - WHERE YOU BEEN; The "Jr." is in parenthesis as I still
refuse to acknowledge this addition that was foisted upon this great group
by some bar band hacks. This is a fantastic album, the best I've heard
yet this year, and it will be difficult to be topped. This is the first
really good item from J. Mascis and co. since 1988's BUG. Something got
lost when he tried to play every instrument on the last record, but
there's a return to a full band here, including old drummer Murph. WHERE
YOU BEEN has all of the grinding, distorted, swirling guitar crunch that
one would expect from good Dinotunes, and some great melodies to go with
it. Heavy riffs, wild jams, and the pained and strained vocalizing of
Mascis are present amidst a batch of well crafted songs. A good Dinosaur
record is as good as anything, and this is a good Dinosaur record. News
is that drummer Lynn Perko from Sister Double Happiness is recording with
J. for the next record. The mini-hit is "Start Choppin", and it deserves
to be. If there were justice in the world, or if things were like they
were at the birth of Rock and Roll, this tune would be in the top ten.
(Sire/Warner Bro.s 9 45108-2)
FLAMING LIPS - HIT TO DEATH IN THE FUTURE HEAD; If WHERE YOU BEEN may be
the best record of this year, H.T.D.I.T.F.H. (along with The Beastie Boys
CHECK YOUR HEAD) was probably last year's best. These hyper-amplified
acid rocker Okies have put out another great collection of sounds for
trippin'. The sound is part metal, part psychedelia, part garage, and
part pop, and a great mixture of wild sounds, making full use of stereo
effects. What makes music like that put out by The Flaming Lips and
Dinosaur so great is that you get the loud, driving, guitar crunching
distortion that you need to get your ya-ya's out, without sacrificing
melodies, beats, and subtleties in the music, that are too often lost in
much of the punk, sludge, and metal that we get these days. If you're
unfamiliar, and the musical description above isn't clear enough, perhaps
song titles like "Talkin' 'Bout The Smiling Deathporn Immortality Blues",
"You Have To Be Joking (Autopsy Of The Devil's Brain)", and The Magician
Vs. The Headache" will give you an idea of where these guys are coming
from. (Warner Bro.s 9 26838-2)
SUGAR SHACK - CHARMER; This is a heavy, heavy, heavy band out of Houston,
who sound like a bunch of metal mutants weaned to the beat of early
Sabbath. 19 songs of upbeat pinhead posturing, consisting of mostly two
to three minute crankers that you can beat you head against the wall to.
The musical philosophy may be on the order of the Ramones, with the band
getting right to their riff heavy point, without messing around with allot
of guitar solo posturing. Musically they don't have the creative gonzo
pop sensibilities of that classic band, but if your full of angst, or
spend most of your time in a cave, you may get off on these guys. The
shortcoming are that there isn't enough distinction of sound between some
of the songs, but the best of them with have you jumping, and even
laughing, if your sense of humor is somewhat warped. The highlight is a
ditty called "You're A Freak And You Don't Even Know It". (Cargo Records
FIST 006)
L7 - BRICK ARE HEAVY; I used to be somewhat dubious as to the talents of
these all-female hard rock wailers, but the MTV hit "Pretend We're Dead"
caused me to give them a second look with this latest release. That track
is one kick-ass, God-jam, monster of a tune - an instant classic. While
no other tunes on the album are as good as that one, the rest are good
enough to be enjoyable to anyone who likes the post-Runaways,
hard rocking, monotone, slams that these dudettes specialize in. I'm
enjoying listening to it now, but I'm not sure of the lasting power of
anything outside of "Pretend We're Dead". (Slash/Reprise 9 26784-2)
JELLYFISH - SPILT MILK; Man these guys suck! They remind me of some of
those seventies, TV show type, bubblegum pop bands, in a mutant cross with
the kings of corporate hack rock, Journey. I don't know if the rock critic
hype I keep hearing around these guys is a local angle due to their coming
from this area (SF), or if it's a widespread effect. I suspect it's local
because there's a long history amongst some of the critics around here of
sucking up to bland commercial morons like Huey Lewis and Starship,
probably in excahnge for free tickets, or the honor of being in the
presence of such "greatness". Don't believe the hype! These wimps are
boring and trite! (if you really want this crap, I'm not going to help
you!)
BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS - SOUNDTRACK; Some outfit called Media
Archives has re-released this hard to find soundtrack from the RM classic.
To those who have seen the film, you should be happy to add the fun tunes
of The Carrie Nations to your collection. If you're a Strawberry Alarm
Clock fan, I'm not, then you get their tracks from the film, "Girl From
The City", and "I'm Comin' Home" also. The songs are written by the hard
working film composer of that era, Stu Phillips, and the non-Carrie
Nations stuff really isn't any good. But if you were pumped by the great
"Look On Up At The Bottom", "Sweet Talkin' Candy Man", and "Find It" from
watching the film, you'll want to seek this out. Six Carrie Nations songs,
the two Strawberry Alarm Clock tracks mentioned above, the title song by
The Sandpipers (done twice), and two instrumentals round out the
collection. As a bonus to the twelve BVD songs, this also has a six song
version of one of the multitude of soundtrack releases from the film
VALLEY GIRL tacked onto the end. The liner notes say "limited edition of
1000 copies", but I've seen it in just about every non-chain record shop
in my area. Look in Goldmine ads if it's not available in your locale. I
have a strong suspicion that this is in fact a bootleg release. (Media
Archive MF-9201-2)
FREEDOM OF CHOICE: YESTERDAY'S NEW WAVE HITS AS PERFORMED BY TODAY'S STARS
- COMPILATION; Well I hear we're in the midst of a "new wave" revival.
When we have nostalgia for ten years ago, you know the world's moving
fast. For that matter didn't we just get past the seventies disco
revival? What's next, a Guns And Roses flashback craze? Anyway, more to
the point of the music, what we have is 18 songs recorded by 1992 bands of
tunes ranging roughly from the years 1978-1983. Some of the bands here,
such as Sonic Youth, Redd Kross, and White Flag, were even contemporaries
of some of the groups covered. Nothing is really bad here, and some of it
is actually pretty good. The key to good cover songs is either taking a
crappy tune and turning it into something at least interesting, or in
taking a good song and giving it a radically new sounding. The problem
with some of the covers here are that they're either not very distinct
from the original, or the original is such a good song that the cover
version doesn't come close to it. The latter is the case with Mudhoney
doing Elvis' "Pump It Up", Das Damen with a version of The Pretenders "The
Wait", and Tiny Lights covering "5' 1" originally done by Iggy. I like
Sonic Youth with the Plastic Bertrand song "Ca Plane Pour Moi" and Redd
Kross' wailing on The Go-Go's "How Much More". Other items include
Erectus Monotone covering Missing Persons "Destination Unknown" (an
interesting choice as that bands "Words" is the only even semi-decent song
that they did, and would have been a better cover), Big Dipper with Pete
Shelley's "Homosapien", Polvo with Wall Of Voodoo's "Mexican Radio",
Superchunk doing Devo's "Girl U want", and Permanent Green Light with The
B-52's "Hero Worship". This record is probably better if your a fan of the
bands here, rather than if your a fan of the songs they're doing. You've
probably got the original albums anyway. (Caroline Carol 1715-2)
THE PHANTOM SURFERS - PLAY THE MUSIC FROM THE BIG-SCREEN SPECTACULARS!; A
surf rock band that draws from the likes of The Lonely Ones rather than
Jan And Dean. A three guitars/bass/drums line-up who wail away on their
Fenders like it was 1965 all over again. There isn't much new or original
here, but if you're into the REAL surf music sound of jammin' guitar
romps, you might want to play this at your next party. The premise of
this record is 14 remakes of songs which originally were heard in movie
soundtracks in the 50's and 60's. Highlights are "Bikini Drag" from
BIKINI BEACH, "Pursuit Of The Leather Girls", from BLOOD ORGY OF THE
LEATHER GIRLS, "Geronimo" from THE GHOST OF DRAGSTRIP HOLLOW, "Eaffin' And
Surfin'" from RAT PFINK A BOO BOO and a jam from the Mexi-classic THE WILD
WORLD OF BATWOMAN. Misses include "Bali Hai" from SOUTH PACIFIC and the
theme from HUSH, HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE. There's also an Ennio Morricone
song, a Frank Sinatra ditty, and even a Phantom Surfers original. (Estrus
ES125)
books:
GEEK LOVE by Katherine Dunne - One of the more bizarre novels that I've
had the pleasure of reading. It's the story of The Binewski family and
their traveling "Carnival Fabulon". Papa Al Binewski and Mama Crystal Lil
Binewski work on producing offspring that are their planned little
creations for the show. Al concocts recipes consisting of drugs,
insecticides, and radioisotopes for Lil to ingest while pregnant in order
to produce the most "special" children possible. What sounds like a
morbid and horrible plot really doesn't come off that way once the story
gets rolling. What emerges is a portrait of a loving family that revels
and rejoices in their uniqueness, and a vehicle for the reader to really
contemplate what it means to be different or atypical in the world we're
all moving through. Dunne uses the framework of the family and their
characteristics, and the carnival atmosphere, to weave in a variety of
anecdotes about how people perceive themselves and others, and the insec-
urities they have about themselves and their positions in the world. A
great deal of it is actually quite humorous as well as insightful. You'll
read about Arturo The Aqua Boy, with fins instead of arms and legs, who
callously manipulates the development of a religious cult of personality
around him as he preaches from his tank, about Electra and Iphigenia the
piano playing Siamese twins who eventually turn to prostitution for
experimental purposes, Fortunato the telekinetic boy who uses his powers
to perform surgery, and the protagonist Olympia, who only being a bald,
hunchback, albino, dwarf is considered a little to "norm" by the family to
have a major performing role in the show. If you do read it , it won't
soon leave your mind. (1983, 1990; Warner Books, 355 pp., $9.95 in
softcover, ISBN: 0-446-39130-1)
FEAR AND LOATHING: THE STRANGE AND TERRIBLE SAGA OF HUNTER S. THOMPSON by
Paul Perry - Perry, who knows Thompson personally, describes this as a
"violently unauthorized biography". As the book covers a span of roughly
thirty years in 274 pp., it is not especially dense in it's details.
There's some new material regarding Thompson's early days in Louisville
and New York which hasn't yet been covered in much detail, and which is
culled from interviews with Thompson's cohorts from the time. Details
provided from interviews with artist and sidekick Ralph Steadman, and work
that Perry himself did as editor on a Thompson piece additionally offer
some interesting insights as to the methods to his madness. Other than
that, most of this material has been covered before, and should be known
by any dedicated gonzo fanatics. One other good thing that can be said
for Perry is that he avoids the sort of "awe" or "hero worship" that some
other chroniclers of Thompson's escapades fall victim to. Some of the
truly uncomplimentary tales we are told of involve Thompson's threatening
a group of gays with Dobermans and a baseball bat, and his physical abuse
of his wife Sandy. This book in conjunction with William McKeen's HUNTER
S. THOMPSON volume of TWAYNE'S UNITED STATES AUTHORS series (Twayne,
1991), which has a detailed bibliography, and the Hunter sections of
Robert Drapers ROLLING STONE MAGAZINE: AN UNCENSORED HISTORY (Doubleday,
1990) can provide all of the hard facts regarding his life, but the best
way to enjoy this material is straight from the horses mouth, especially
in THE GREAT SHARK HUNT (1979), and SONGS OF THE DOOMED (1990). (1992,
Thunder's Mouth Press, 274 pp., $22.95 in hardback, ISBN: 1-56025-012-7)
THE VIDEO WATCHDOG BOOK by Tim Lucas - Lucas is the editor by The Video
Watchdog Magazine (see 'zine section), and this is a self-published
collection of Video Watchdog columns that were originally written between
1985 and 1992, in the magazines VIDEO TIMES and GOREZONE. The format is
similar to the magazine, in which video releases of mostly horror, science
fiction, and fantasy films are scrutinized for re-titling, screen ratios,
running lengths in comparison to the original release, edited scenes,
changed soundtracks, etc. There are additionally feature length articles
on the video releases of Dario Argento, Terence Fisher, Jess Franco, and
Edgar Wallace. Each column is followed by an update correcting anything
from the original column that needs to be, and giving more current (as of
1992) information regarding video releases of films mentioned. Where else
can you find out that there have been four different versions of EXORCIST
II - THE HERETIC on video, or that there exists a 121 minute (!) Italian
language only version of Argento's PROFONDO ROSSO, which is 16 minutes
longer than the most complete English language version, a Japanese
subtitled, letterboxed release. There's plenty of interesting reading
beyond just the raw data, and you can stumble across allot of films you'll
want to run out to see for yourself. Almost every page has a still or
some poster art from one of the movies being written about. All of the
information regarding the companies that put out the films is given, and
there is an index to both the book and the first twelve issues of the
magazine. Another valuable feature is 32 pages of retitling information
of films onto video, both by original title and by retitle. The forward
is by Joe Dante. (1992, Video Watchdog, 391 pp, $19.95 in softcover, ISBN:
0-9633756-0-1)
THE WILD WORLD OF THE CRAMPS by Ian Johnston - The only English language
bio of the seminal psycho/sleazo/fuzzo primitive rock and roll band. This
book is densely illustrated with photos, drawings, cover art, poster art,
ads, backstage passes, and a wide variety of other interesting
brick-a-brack. The story of the band is told from the beginning through
1990. The biographical track largely follows the music, with all band
member changes, recordings, and major tours documented. We learn that Lux
was hatched Erik Lee Purkhiser in Akron, Ohio, and that he is old enough
to have run around The Hashbury during The Summer O' Luv. We even get to
see his high school yearbook picture. Poison Ivy, aka Kristy Marlana
Wallace, was picked up hitchhiking by Lux in 1972, and a new form of
musical bizarreness was conceived. There's a discography with every song
they ever recorded, complete with pictures of all the LP, 12", and single
covers, and a description of some of the better bootlegs. Interviews are
utilized throughout, and we get listings of both Lux and Ivy's favorite
songs and films (at the time at least, this list is probably mutating
constantly). Topping Ivy's tune list are Wanda Jackson's "Funnel Of
Love" and Tommy Jim Beam And The 4/5ths "Golden Boy", while Lux is partial
to Alfred E. Neumann's "It's A Gas", and The Rivington's "Mama Oow Mow
Mow". Among their celluloid pleasures are THE PHANTOM OF SOHO (1964), THE
WORLD'S GREATEST SINNER (1962), and DERANGED (1974). Any Cramps fanatic
should enjoy this work. (1990, Omnibus, 128 pp, softcover, ISBN:
0-7119-2350-7)
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