Pop Culture Tonight with Patrick Phillips

Patrick interviews Victoria Price & Sara Karloff about growing up with their famous fathers and their lasting legacy.

About The Guests:

Victoria Price is a designer, art consultant, author, and public speaker. Growing up in Hollywood as the daughter of actor and art collector Vincent Price and designer Mary Grant Price, Victoria developed her own vibrant contemporary design aesthetic, which she fuses with her extensive knowledge of the visual arts–seamlessly blending modern and historic, regional and international, ethnographic and urban styles to create unique living and working environments.

Price is also a popular public speaker on topics ranging from industrial design to art collecting to making peace with our past stories in order to expand our creative futures–as well as the life of her famous father. She has been privileged to speak all over the United States and Europe–at design conferences, colleges, conventions, and on behalf of private companies.

Her critically acclaimed biography of her father, Vincent Price: A Daughter’s Biography, was published in 1999 by St Martin’s Press. She has also written for the New York Times, A&E’s Biography, and many other national, regional, and local magazines, newspapers, and television programs. Price has also appeared on Good Morning America, A&E’s Biography, NPR’s Fresh Air, and many other national, regional, and local TV and radio programs. Articles about Price and her work have appeared in such national and international publications as USA Today, People, Travel & Leisure, Art & Auction, Sunset, Western Interiors, Santa Fean Magazine, and Santa Fe Trend.

She has taught at the University of New Mexico, New Mexico Highlands University, and the Philos School–an alternative arts-and-humanities school in Santa Fe that she helped to found. Price earned a bachelor’s degree in art history and theatre from Williams College, which has one of the most prestigious art history programs in the country. And she has completed the doctoral program in American Studies at the University of New Mexico. Price also serves on museum boards in New Mexico and California.

Learn More about Victoria on her website!

Sara Jane Karloff is the only child of  Hollywood horror legend, Boris Karloff, and was born while he was working on “Son of Frankenstein”. Surprisingly, he was not an overnight success with “Frankenstein” coming in as his 81st film. Sara quickly reminded me with a laugh “…and nobody saw the first 80.”

So what was this master of horror like as a husband and father out of the makeup and away from the lights of Hollywood? According to Sara, he “was quite literally the antithesis of the roles he played.” Karloff admits she didn’t actually see her father’s most popular film until she was 19, where she saw it in her living room on television for the first time.

While many still fondly call Karloff’s monster “Frankenstein”, it was actually the name of the doctor, “Victor Frankenstein” and when asked why Boris didn’t continue to portray the creature after the third film…  Sara recalls “My father made the decision himself, that after the third Frankenstein film, which was “Son of Frankenstein”, he wouldn’t play the role anymore… He felt that the scripts had gone as far as they could without making the creature the brunt of bad scripts and bad jokes…”

For more information and a brief biography of Boris Karloff visit the official website!

They’re creepy and they’re kooky, Mysterious and spooky, They’re all together ooky, The Addams Family!

This week on MONSTERS OF POP CULTURE Patrick welcomes the actor inside the legendary costumed character “Cousin Itt” from The Addams Family… Felix Silla!

Halloween News Segment: 

Halloween myths and urban legends, debunked

About Felix:

Felix Silla trained as a circus performer and toured with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. His many talents took him to Hollywood where he became a stuntman. He has portrayed dozens of iconic characters in popular franchises like Star Trek, Star Wars, Batman and Buck Rogers, but is perhaps best known from his role as “Cousin Itt” on the long-running TV series, The Addams Family (1964).

Visit Felix’s website!

Actress Caroline Williams (Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2) joins Patrick to discuss her role in Sharknado: The 4th Awakens.

Sharknado: The 4th Awakens, the latest exciting project for Caroline Williams, is set to premiere 31 July 2016 on SyFy. In this highly anticipated 4th installation of the Sharknado franchise, Caroline performs a pivotal cameo of her most famous character from “Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2” with a compelling scene that drives the story arc forward and leaves the audience breathless. 

Caroline’s diverse acting background includes the Texas based movie Alamo Bay, The Legend of Billie Jean and Getting Even. After moving to Hollywood, Caroline starred in Ron Howard’s iconic movie How the Grinch Stole Christmas. On top of that, Caroline has also made guest appearances in famous TV shows such as Grey’s Anatomy and The Mentalist.

Just in time for Halloween, actor/stuntman Kane Hodder (“Jason”) joins Patrick to discuss the iconic role, his book and more! Pop Culture expert & author Leonard Pierce stops by to chat about HBO’s ‘The Sopranos’ and its effect on today’s crime dramas like “Gotham” and “House of Cards”.

Kane Hodder.  To fans, this name is synonymous with horror, an icon on the level of Bela Legosi, Boris Karloff and Vincent Price. Kane has appeared as a stunt man and actor in more than two hundred television shows and movies in a career spanning over thirty years. His role as Jason Voorhees in four consecutive films of the Friday the 13th series came to define the character feared by millions of fans the world over. The man behind the hockey mask would seal his fate as horror royalty years later by starring as the monster Victor Crowley in the Hatchet series.

“If You Like The Sopranos…“ The best-loved crime family in America is just part of a grand tradition of mob movies, gangster flicks, great television dramas, and a sensibility that is part Sicily and part New Jersey. If You Like the Sopranos… is the first book that starts with Tony and the gang in their humble homes in the Garden State and explores the astonishing amount of great films, TV shows, and other pop-culture wonders that any fan of the Sopranos will love.

From The Godfather and Bonnie and Clyde to The Wire , to lesser-known noirs, Jimmy Cagney classics, contemporary HBO dramas, Martin Scorsese’s best work, and even the rock’n’roll that inspired the classic Sopranos soundtrack, this is the one book that every fan needs if he or she ever has to go on the lam. If you’re a newbie…

Check out Leonard’s list of five classic-era gangster movies:

1.  Underworld (1927, directed by Josef von Sternberg, starring George Bancroft)

2.  Little Caesar (1931, directed by Mervyn LeRoy, starring Edward G. Robinson)

3.  The Public Enemy (1931, directed by William Wellman, starring James Cagney)

4.  Scarface (1932, directed by Howard Hawks, starring Paul Muni)

5.  I am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932, directed by Mervyn LeRoy, starring Paul Muni)

Interesting Fact: Raoul Walsh, directed one of the first gangster movies ever (Regeneration, in 1915), one of the last gangster movies of the classic era (The Roaring Twenties, in 1939), and one of the last old-school gangster pictures made during the noir era (White Heat, in 1949).

This week Patrick chats with authors David J. Hogan and Linda S. Godfrey about UFO’s and other unexplained phenomena.

Linda S. Godfrey’s new book “Monsters Among Us” is a meticulously researched and thrilling exploration of the otherworldly will challenge your idea of reality. Mysterious wolf-people, sentient mists, and UFOs…if you’ve ever heard a curious bump in the night, caught a glimpse of a strange-looking someone (or something) out of the corner of your eye, or seen an unusual craft dart across the sky before it vanishes without a trace, there’s only one person to call: Linda S. Godfrey. An expert in strange creatures and lore, she has offered reporting on bigfoots, werewolves, strange energy forms, and other bizarre beings for years.

David J. Hogan’s new book “UFO FAQ” features material from a treasure trove of UFO/Project Blue Book archives declassified in 2015. UFO FAQ is an all-inclusive guide to UFO lore – hard science and hoaxes, sightings and abductions, noted UFO proponents and skeptics, and sanctioned research and purported government cover-ups. Readers will meet cultists and explore worldwide UFO “hot spots.” They’ll learn about UFOs in World War II, the Cold War, and the age of terrorism. And they’ll zip along with UFOs in movies, comics, TV, and other popular media.

This week Patrick welcomes legendary composer Bruce Broughton to Pop Culture Tonight to discuss his career and new theme for “The Orville”!

About Bruce Broughton:

Bruce Broughton is best known for his many film scores, which include Silverado, Tombstone, The Rescuers Down Under, The Presidio, Miracle on 34th Street, the Homeward Bound adventures and Harry and the Hendersons. His television themes include JAG, Steven Spielberg’s Tiny Toon Adventures and Dinosaurs. His scores for television range from mini-series like Roughing It and The Blue and Gray to TV movies (Warm Springs, O Pioneers!) and countless episodes of television series such as Dallas, Quincy, Hawaii Five-O and How the West Was Won this fall, his new theme for Seth MacFarlane’s “The Orville” debuts on FOX!

With 24 nominations, he has won a record 10 Emmy awards. His score to Silverado was Oscar-nominated, and his score to Young Sherlock Holmes was nominated for a Grammy. His music has accompanied many of the Disney theme park attractions throughout the world. His score for Heart of Darkness was the first recorded orchestral score for a video game.

As a concert composer, ensembles such as the Cleveland Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony, the National Symphony and the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra have performed his works. His works for wind ensembles, bands and chamber groups have been performed and recorded throughout the world.

Burt Ward who starred as ‘Robin’ on the classic TV series “Batman”, joins Patrick this week!

Ward, is stepping back into his iconic role this fall in the sequel to “Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders” and can be seen every Saturday evening on METV. He is also teaching dog owners how to double the life of dogs through his non-profit organization.

Burt and his wife Tracy for the past 23 years has saved the lives of 16,000 dogs at their “Gentle Giants Rescue“. Gentle Giants Rescue is the world’s largest big dog rescue, and many stars such as Ellen, and others adopt their dogs from Burt as do consumers. All of the sales of Gentle giant’s dog food goes to the rescue and Burt and his wife take no salary and make no money from the sales of dog food or from the rescue.

Finally a star that cares and has a heart to save dogs of all sizes. 100% of profits go to rescuing more dogs, Burt has gone from caped crusader to canine crusader!

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A longtime TV memorabilia collector is putting props and costumes from “Batman,” ″Star Trek” and other shows up for auction. 

James Comisar said 400 items from his collection will be for sale. That includes the Riddler’s green jacket from the first episode of “Batman” and a protective glass “bat shield” from the camp 1960s series. Also going on the block are the egg-shaped spaceship from “Mork & Mindy,” a bag of Walter White-concocted fake drugs from “Breaking Bad” and a stalking costume worn by the title serial killer in “Dexter.”

More than 50 lots of “Star Trek” costumes, sketches, jewelry and correspondence acquired from series costume designer William Ware Theiss will be part of the sale. Among them is the toga worn by William Shatner’s Capt. Kirk in a kissing scene with Nichelle Nichols’ Lt. Uhura.

Comisar said he has been collecting TV-related items for 30 years and hopes to see a museum built to house the items and honor television history. The memorabilia is stored in a climate-, light- and humidity-controlled warehouse. With the industry slow to support his dream, Comisar said he decided to “share amazing pieces with collectors and fans who have always valued these shows” and care for them properly.

Prop Store, a film and TV memorabilia company, is hosting the auction on Dec. 1 at its Southern California facility. Items can be viewed online and bids placed on auction day by phone or on the Prop Store website. https://propstore.com/

“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”

Just in time for Christmas, Patrick Phillips narrates the classic poem ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas which tells the story of ‘A Visit from St. Nicholas’ by Clement Clarke Moore.

 

Carl Reiner stops by Pop Culture Tonight to discuss his current projects and to reflect on his work on The Dick Van Dyke Show. Mark your calendars because CBS is airing the 3rd annual The Dick Van Dyke Show—Now In Living Color! on Friday, Dec. 14that 9/8c

The two newly colorized back-to-back episodes were selected by Carl as two of Dick Van Dyke’s best episodes. In Where Did I Come From (first presented on Jan. 3, 1961), 6-year-old Richie asks his parents the inevitable “where did I come from?” question, and they recall the days before his birth. In Never Bathe on Saturday (initially presented on March 31, 1965) the Petries’ romantic second honeymoon becomes a disaster when Laura’s toe gets caught in a bath spout.

Carl also chats about his work and Emmy nomination for the HBO documentary If You’re Not In The Obit, Eat Breakfast, now available on DVD. That nomination allowed Carl to enter the Guinness World Records as the oldest Emmy Nominee at age 96 and a half.

To be a comedy writer You have to be gifted with an innate sense of humor. – Carl Reiner

For more information visit Carl’s website at www.randomcontent.com