Mid-Valley Mutations

HORROR DOUBLE FEATURE!

A Night On Horror Island

Somehow I have would up in Florida, but my good friend Bill Martin happens to own a boat there. Maybe he can help me get home, somehow, on his way to Horror Island?

b/w

The Creeping Terror!

Here’s everything you need to know about this movie from 1964: there is no documented evidence that the film was ever shown to anyone – anywhere – until it first appeared on Television some time in 1976.  Even then, 12 years later, the film was mocked and panned relentlessly, as anyone who came into contact with the film could only speak of its shortcomings.  Something that bad begins to attract a certain kind of reputation with a certain kind of movie fan, and in spite of the terrible reviews, the inexcusable acting, the cheapness of the monster(s), and the spareness and near-incoherence of the plot (even without the long musical interludes where nothing happens, the film clocks in at 75 minutes), it would not die!  Rather, The Creeping Terror – miraculously! – accrued a reputation that could not be forgotten, canonized as being so bad it must be seen to be believed.  As tapes of The Creeping Terror circulated to TV stations running Shock Theater! type fare, this piece of cinematic trash not only found an audience among those dedicated to the rejects of film culture, but eventually found its way to the hallowed halls of Mystery Science Theater 3000, not only keeping it forever in the public’s mind, but forever preserving it for future generations to look at and puzzle through.

Just what did they have in mind when they made this thing?

You can thank the twisted mind of Vic Savage for that.  “Director” does fully cover Vic’s role in this film, who also starred in, produced, edited, paid for, scammed other’s to participate in, and – essentially – made the movie what it is, in every sense of the word, at the age of 28.  As the story goes, Vic paid Allan Silliphant to be the writer for the film, but it was clear once production began that Vic was in over his head, and had a “unique” vision for the film that was not what Allan was prepared for.  Vic had a number of excuses time and again: the location “fell through” at the last minute, most likely something that was never secure in the first place.  An impressive monster had been made for the production, so Vic claimed, but “disappeared” before filming could take place, so Vic and a few others created the “carpet remnants” monster you see in the picture.  Supposedly the film was going to be a well-funded horror film, as Vic had sold it to everyone, but as the filming date got closer, more and more of the cast were made up of people who paid to be in the film, “funding” the production from within.  Vic’s sound crew “never showed up,” so the majority of the audio was to be recorded in post-production.  As the production went on, more and more people backed out, delaying time it was taking Vic to put the thing together.

The stories about this film don’t end there.  Vic had to use another name (for “Union Purposes,”) and “Directed” (among other things) under the name “A.J. Nelson,” which led to some confusion moments on set when a financial backer was trying to figure out who had just ripped him off.  (A mystique that Vic was hoping to maintain.)  Vic had secured a location for the film eventually – a pond that a friend of his by the name of Randy Starr – yes, THE Randy Starr that provided Charles Manson with the gun used in the Tate-LaBianca murders – had found, which stood in for Lake Tahoe in the film, and was near where the Manson Family lived at the time.  When all the footage was shot, Vic rented a motel room, “borrowed” a 30 year old movola to cut the film.  As the movola was from the silent era, the soundtrack was essentially destroyed by this move, something that Vic had not anticipated.  Some of it could be made out, but large chunks were gone now, and the edits were noticeable.  To help cover for this, Vic turned to his friend Frederick Kopp, a teacher at Los Angeles State College, who taught music composition and worked occasionally in television, though not in a “credited” capacity.  Kopp scored the entire film, his first and only composition where he was credited, and was even conned into dropping a few dollars to help the production, on the promise that his son, Pierre, could get a role in the picture.  Vic then asked Larry Burrell, then working as voice talent in radio, to narrate the film.  (Larry might be the most famous person associated with the film outside of Randy Starr, who worked on Batman, Columbo and the amazing TV movie, They Saved Hitler’s Brain.)  When Vic mixed these with what remained of the original audio bits that were worth saving, and added a few stock sound effects to pad out the sound of the monster and other bits here and there.  (Sound effects that also appeared in in Battle Beyond the Sun and Jack the Giant Killer, as well as Rosemary’s Baby, though it should be added, not intentionally.)

Vic “completed” (or, as some would say, “stopped adding to”) the film in 1964, but before he could try do anything with The Creeping Terror, everything began to fall apart.  True, Vic had a working “print” to try and sell, but actors began to demand compensation for the money they had put into the picture.  Allan Siilliphant, angry over the changes Vic made to the story, sued Vic successfully, over clear breach of contract.  Vic actually disappeared completely rather than face the financial consequences of the lawsuit, and Allan was awarded the rights to do with the film as he wished.  Allan washed his hands of it, giving it to his agent, and through a series of hand-offs that have yet to be tracked down, was eventually shelved by a TV exec who pawned the problem off on the future.  Vic spent the rest of his live in a drunken stupor, and died of liver failure in 1975.  He never attempted to return to film in the time since the disaster that was The Creeping Terror, and he died knowing that he was the only person who had seen it, and thus, know the vision he had for the film.

In this rare instance, time was a friend to Vic Savage.  Even when you fail at something so spectacularly, that failure can open up a whole world of possibility in the future.  Sure, the camp value of it is the only thing recommending The Creeping Terror to modern audiences, and even on MST3K, the film is hard to get through.  But I think that people see an artist trying to make their voice heard when they see a failure like this.  They see themselves, barely an adult at age 28, wanting to express themselves in film the way so many others have before.  Vic was willing to go out on a limb, and pay the price of that taken chance, to see his vision completed.  Sure, it was a dumb vision, but who hasn’t put all their eggs in a basket, if only to learn that lesson up close and personal?

To accompany the film, I’ve selected a sort of stream-of-consciousness set of tunes to complement this narrative mess.  The Creeping Terror barely makes any sense, so really, just absorb the ambience and the musical accompaniment, and try to imagine yourself watching late night TV in the mid-70’s, and then, suddenly, this comes on.

Enjoy!

The Creeping Terror!

Side A.

The Glowing Rocket / “Must Be An Accident Or Something.” / “Get In, Honey.” / At The Location Of The Crash / They Looked At The Rocket In Utter Amazement / “It’s No Airplane” / The Monster Attacks / “Car One, Calling In.” / A Temporary Military Headquarters / When, As, And If They Were Contacted / The First In A Series Of Tragedies / Maintaining Secrecy / If The Truth Were Known / “I’ve Heard A Lot About You.”  “Nothing Bad, I Hope?” / A Magnificent Opportunity For Mankind / In Advance Of Anything On Earth / Bachelor Buddies For Years / Dating All The Girls In Town / Married Life / Life Has It’s Way of Making Boys Grow Up / “Poor Baby.” / Come From Beyond Our Solar System 

01.) Crash! Crash! * The Agenda * Start The Panic

Side B.

The Trials Of Re-Entry & Impact / Failing To Establish Communication / A Frightening Theory / A Product Of Engineering / Humanity Might Be In Grave Danger / “You Stay There.  Stay Calm.” / The Remains Of A Guitar / There Must Be Another Monster / The Monster Was Moving Toward The Community Dance Hall / The Monster Next Appeared In Lover’s Lane / Enough Lives Were Being Endangered / Highly Specialized Test Animals / “Get Out Of My Way.” / The Transmitter Stopped / What Was In Store For Humanity / The Vastness of The Universe Was Incredible / Only God Knows For Sure

10.) 102 Creep [Excerpt II] * Eric Hausmann * Invisible Films

UBRadio Salon #719 – DFM netcast 24 October 2021 – SodaJerks Present: 4th Sundae w/ univac + Austin Rich

Enjoy!

Something Written This Way Comes

This week we continue our Ghost Story program with special guest, Obadiah Baird, who talks about editing The Audient Void, his favorite free horror movies, and then we read some poetry that is perfect for this time of year.

In hour two, Nathan Carson and Erin Jane Laroue provide an excellent rendition of an Ambrose Bierce short story, and so much more. This is a good one!

Enjoy!

To Haunt or To Haunt Not?

HOUR 1

01.) Introduction * Austin Rich * 11 October 2019 * Mid-Valley Mutations (2019)

02.)

03.)

04.)

HOUR 2

Part IV: 

05.)

06.)

07.)

08.)

09.)

Victrola’s Tales! (or, “Cottage Street”)

While we haven’t done all that many of these Ghost Stories shows, very few people have wanted to come into the studio and tell their stories live either. But DJ Victrola is not like other DJs, hosting her very own program – The Guitar Shop – now in its 21st year, with no signs of slowing down. When she offered to come in and tell old Philly Ghost Stories, I knew we had to do this one live. And you, dear listener, get to reap the rewards.

While I don’t want to spoil too much about her stories, I will say that you should stay tuned, as she not only features appropriate tunes to complement her stories, but sets a mood that is perfect for strange happenings in a haunted house. And: Cyclopsycho composed a bespoke Ghost Tune for this broadcast, which we get into almost immediately during the show. (You should visit cyclopsychosite.com for more music, or check out the live performance on Ricardo Wang’s What’s This Called?)   Plus: we get to hear one of the all time best Lord Buckley recordings that is not only about ghosts, but spans two holidays in one.

Stay tuned to the very very end, and hear a very special treat: The Professor & Miss Rikki from Closet Radio call in. Miss Rikki, DJ Victrola and I all go back to KPSU, when we were on after each other for a spell in the days when Rikki & I hosted A Momentary Lapse of Reason. We had an excellent radio reunion on the air, and Rikki spills the beans about normal childhood happenings that absolutely count as ghost stories, even though she just shook them off.

This one has a personal touch that is well worth a listen, and we’re not even finished with the holiday season. (BTW: Shoutouts to Steve & Lisa, from Vicky.) This is a Friday The 13th that you must hear to believe.

Enjoy.

Victrola’s Tales!

HOUR 1

Part I: The Ghost of Lost Mind

01.) Austin FM Theme * Paco Jones * Austin FM Theme * Self-Released (2016)

Part II: Cottage Street Parts 1 & 2.

History of The House, Disappearing Steak Sauce, The Misplaced Wallet

04.) Carol Ann’s Theme * Jerry Goldsmith * Poltergeist Original Motion Picture Soundtrack * MGM Records (1982)

Part III: Chatting With Victrola 

Part IV: Cottage Street Part 3

08.) I Do Believe It / Sheets and Chains * Alejandro Amenábar * The Others (Music From The Dimension Motion Picture) * Sony Classical (2001)

Part V: Cottage Street Part 4

10.) Laugh * Danny Elfman * Original Motion Picture Soundtrack to ‘Beetlejuice’ * Geffen Records (1988)

HOUR 2

Part VI: Chatting With Victrola Again

Part VII: The Lady in the Hatboro House & The Bucks County Hitchhiker 

12.) They Are Everywhere * Alejandro Amenábar * The Others (Music From The Dimension Motion Picture) * Sony Classical (2001)

Part VIII: Victrola’s Moving Chair & Chatting With Victrola Even Yet Still

Part IX: The Professor & Miss Rikki Call-In

The Black Cat & Other Frightening Tales

Playlist & Footnotes:

Join me for a special extended edition of Blasphuphmus Radio, just in time for the Holidays!  That’s right, tune in for a special re-telling of Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Black Cat” (read by Diamanda Galás), mixed with Ed Wood samples, Vampires, Bob & Ray, Werewolfs, Lux & Ivy’s Favorite Hits, Ghosts, a Mad Monster Party, a handful of Zombies, a trip to the Graveyard, and four hours of Halloween madness. It’s everything you need to set your mood for the Halloween soiree in your future!

That’s a Halloween Spook-tacular, only on Blasphuphmus Radio.

The Black Cat & Other Frightening Tales

001.) Halloween Hootenanny * Zacherle

UBRadio Salon #716 – DFM netcast 3 October 2021 – Highlights from Norcal Noisefest XXV

Enjoy!

Senior Citizens, Expanded Edition (KPSU Years)

This combines two broadcasts from my KPSU years, both from 2006. In the first, I join another KPSU DJ, Tim, where we read many selections from Richard Brautigan’s “Revenge of The Lawn.” In the second show, I’m joined by kiisu d’salyss, who performs a tune as “Neutered Prunes,” then together we improvise two pieces under the name “The Black Noise Orchestra.” Further shenanigans ensue. The dates: 27 March and 26 July.

Hour 1: Revenge of The Lawn

Hour 2: w/ kiisu d’salyss

01.) La Cucaracha (Long Version) * Eastside Connection * La Cucaracha 12″

03.) Hank * Neutered Prunes * Performed Live

06.) Buffalo Gas Works * The Hataway Family Plot * MySpace

Dr. Frank & Jesse Ransom, LIVE! (KPSU Years)

This combines two live performance broadcasts from my KPSU years, both from 2006. The first is when Dr. Frank hung out on May 24th, to read and play a couple songs. The other is from June 6th, when Jesse Ransom played a few tunes live, and the we DJed his favorite cuts the rest of the time. Both of these were very fun shows.

Book of Maps & The Prids, LIVE! (KPSU Years)

This combines two live performance broadcasts from my KPSU years hosting Live Friday, from 2005 and 2006. The first is Book of Maps, performing on  11 November 2005. The other is The Prids, performing on 7 July 2006. Both bands were / are Portland legends, but The Prids are the only of the two who are still together.

Krandroid The Friendly Robot AND George & Caplin, LIVE! (KPSU Years)

This combines two live performance broadcasts from my KPSU years, from 2005 and 2006. The first is Krandroid The Friendly Robot, performing on Live Friday on  1 July 2005. The other is a show where I engineered the sound for George & Caplin, perfoming on “What’s This Called?” on 5 August 2006.) Both excellent electronic / sequenced hybrid performers.