Zombie Strains

What was the scariest part of living in the 1960s? We'd like to think it was all the zombies, but other little factors like massive societal transformation and the threat of atomic annihilation might be contenders too! Like all good horror monsters, zombies work best when they're exploiting the fears and anxieties of viewers. As the Zombie Strains team ventures into a new decade of zombie film, John and Andy take a special side trek to find out what real-life terrors 1960s zombie films were drawing on, reacting to, critiquing, and amplifying.

Theme music composed by Neil Dube.

www.pond5.com

Contact:

[email protected]

www.zombiestrainspodcast.com

Follow us on

Andy's Substack "Fortress of Regret"

Instagram

Facebook

A living decapitated head, a knife-wielding Aztec mummy, and something called the Ring of Death. That's a lot of scary stuff to store in your basement all at once, as a group of gentleman explorers in 1963 Mexico discovers to their peril. How many will die in gruesome Aztec rituals before the curse is ended? Will reincarnated Aztec lovers romantically reunite amidst all these bloody hearts and murdered archaeologists? Do mummies even count as zombies? John, Andy, and Producer Brad return to Mexico to ask the important questions.

SHOW NOTES:

Theatrical Release Date: March 3, 1963

The Golden Age of Mexican Horror Cinema by Paul A J Lewis

Theme music composed by Neil Dube.

www.pond5.com

Contact:

[email protected]

www.zombiestrainspodcast.com

Follow us on

Andy's Substack "Fortress of Regret"

Instagram

Facebook

A Criterion Collection film? Fantastic editing, camerawork, and direction? Are we sure Carnival of Souls is in the right podcast? After narrowly surviving a car accident, Mary uproots her life to become a church organist in Utah... but death isn't quite done with her. Her mind begins to unravel, and soon she cannot tell reality from her escalating nightmares. Join John, Andy, and Producer Brad as they scramble to declutter the Zombie Strains lab and break out the fine china for a true rarity: a great zombie film.

Show Notes:

Premiere date: September 26, 1962

AFI Catalog entry for Carnival of Souls.

Los Angeles Times 1990 appreciation of Carnival of Souls.

Roger Ebert's review of Carnival of Souls.

Candace Hilligoss' YouTube channel with several videos about Carnival of Souls.

Interview with Candace Hilligoss about sequel efforts.

Interviews with director Herk Harvey and writer John Clifford.

Video highlights of 1989 cast and crew reunion.

"Rembering Sidney Berger" from the University of Houston.

History of Saltair from the official state of Utah website.

theSaltair.com

Robert Altman's first directing credit, "Modern Football."

Mike Patton/Jean-Claude Vannier's music video for "A Schoolgirl's Day."

Television Academy announcement of Reza Badiyi's death.

Theme music composed by Neil Dube.

www.pond5.com

Contact:

[email protected]

www.zombiestrainspodcast.com

Follow us on

"Before the Bite: Ten Things You Didn't Know About Zombies"

Instagram

Facebook

What happens when film's most legendary B-horror director turns his unsubtle eye to the zombie genre? You get Tales of Terror, one of many Roger Corman films loosely based on Edgar Allan Poe stories. This anthology film (written by the iconic horror and scifi writer Richard Matheson) is packed with three separate creepy stories, and one of them features a gruesome strain of zombie that doesn't easily fit into our zombie categories! Join John, Andy, and Producer Brad as they dissect their first, but probably not last, Corman zombie film.

Show Notes:

AFI Catalog entry for Tales of Terror.

New York Times review of Tales of Terror and Burn, Witch, Burn double bill.

Entertainment Weekly interview with Neal Moritz about dealing with Roger Corman to get permission for the title The Fast and the Furious.

Film Snob short on American International Pictures from Vanity Fair.

Library of Congress bulletin on Confucius with mention of his family tree.

Debra Paget's Snake Dance from The Indian Tomb (1959).

Theme music composed by Neil Dube.

www.pond5.com

Contact:

[email protected]

www.zombiestrainspodcast.com

Follow us on

Instagram

Facebook

When zombies are after you, only the world's greatest hero can save you. And who is that? It's El Santo, elite luchador and Mexican cultural phenomenon! After a professor vanishes and a sinister masked man unleashes a horde of zombies on a local orphanage, the police know that only the legendary luchador Santo can save the city. John, Andy, and Producer Brad watch in awe as Santo takes on the undead both within and outside the wrestling ring--and they wrestle with a few of their preconceived notions about zombie films.

Show Notes:

Newspaper clipping detaling Armando Silvestre's attempt at a bullfighting career.

The cars seen in Santo vs the Zombies.

Theme music composed by Neil Dube.

www.pond5.com

Contact:

[email protected]

www.zombiestrainspodcast.com

Follow us on

Instagram

Facebook

What's scarier than a zombie trying to kill you? A zombie teaming up with possessed dolls to kill you! In the Mexican zombie flick The Curse of the Doll People (Muñecos infernales), foolish adventurers steal a voodoo idol and face a fate is worse than death--unless the courageous Karina (Elvira Quintana) can stop a sinister voodoo master, his zombie assistant, and his horde of murderous dolls. Andy, John, and Producer Brad head to Mexico to investigate the many questions this film raises, such as whether dolls invested with the spirits of their own victims count as zombies.

Show Notes:

Zombie Movies: The Ultimate Guide by Glenn Kay

Marilyn Monroe visits Xavier Loyá in Mexico.

Mexican Film Bulletin listing Alfredo Salazar's Frankenstein, el vampiro y compañía

Trailer for The Bat Woman (1968)

MPAA article on Gaz Alazraki's Father of the Bride

Theme music composed by Neil Dube.

www.pond5.com

Contact:

[email protected]

www.zombiestrainspodcast.com

Follow us on

Instagram

Facebook

This week, our bold Zombie Strains investigators chart a course for rural England, where the sinister Dr. Blood (Keiron Moore) is harvesting the still-beating hearts of his victims to empower his insane medical "research." Join John, Andy, and Producer Brad as they brave the dangers of the Cornish Tin Mines, meet scream-queen legend Hazel Court, face their most gnarly zombie yet... and unravel the mystery Doctor Blood's Coffin.

Show Notes:

Still of blood donor poster seen in Doctor Blood's Coffin.

The Zombie Encyclopedia by Peter Dengle

Zombie Movies: The Ultimate Guide by Glenn Kay

Hazel Court, 82, Screaming Horror-Film Star, Dies - The New York Times

Review of Hazel Court's autobiography, Horror Queen.

Blog post on the matte paintings of Hammer films.

Bio for famed matte painter Lew Bowie.

Theme music composed by Neil Dube.

Additional music by Elarasound.

www.pond5.com

Additional voice work by Russell Bentley.

www.pond5.com

Contact:

[email protected]

www.zombiestrainspodcast.com

Follow us on

Instagram

Facebook

Everybody's talking about Weapons, an unsettling 2025 horror film about a community in shock after a classroom of grade-school children vanishes overnight. Always on the hunt for modern films with connections to their favorite horror genre, John and Andy take a road trip to American suburbia to investigate for themselves. Don't tell Producer Brad that they recorded this without him. Please note that this is a spoiler-heavy discussion of Weapons.

Our first color zombie films is also a throwback to the 1930s! Newlyweds John and Linda (John McKay and Linda Ormond) inherit an old plantation outside of New Orleans, only to discover that their bitter cousin Monica (Monica Davis) has angry, zombie-related plans for them. Will Monica's voodoo magic spell a gruesome end to their honeymoon bliss? John, Andy, and Producer Brad venture into the swamps to find out--and to learn why this is the first zombie movie to be set in New Orleans.

Show Notes:

Movie poster

AFI Catalog entry for The Dead One.

Barry Mahon paid death notice in the New York Times.

Zombie Movies: The Ultimate Guide by Glenn Kay

Santa's Christmas Elf Named Calvin directed by Barry Mahon

The Wonderful Land of Oz directed by Barry Mahon

Theme music composed by Neil Dube.

Additional music by Elarasound.

www.pond5.com

Additional voice work by Russell Bentley.

Contact:

[email protected]

www.zombiestrainspodcast.com

Follow us on

Instagram

Facebook

We've been dreading their appearance ever since we started watching 1950s zombie films, and they're finally here: teenagers! That's right, 1959's Teenage Zombies is not only our first zombie film starring teenagers, but it's also a clear forerunner of the modern teenage-slasher flick. Can this crew of plucky '50s teens foil a foreign plot to turn the entire population of the U.S. into mindless, docile zombies? And more importantly, can Teenage Zombies make Plan 9 from Outer Space look like a masterpiece of cinema? Andy, John, and Producer Brad descent into a terrifying world of poodle skirts, malt shakes, and zombie gorillas in Teenage Zombies.

Show Notes:

Teenage Zombies Movie Poster

Jerry Warren's Mystery Science Theater 3000 riffed movies.

Brianne Murphy obituary

American Society of Cinematographer profile on Brianne Murphy.

Chuck Nile's obituary.

Theme music composed by Neil Dube.

www.pond5.com

Contact:

[email protected]

www.zombiestrainspodcast.com

Follow us on

Instagram

Facebook