Classic Sci-Fi on TCM tonight (1 Viewer)

[dragon53]

HALLOWEEN TRIVIA---4' 2" dwarf actor Billy Curtis played a Munchkin in THE WIZARD OF OZ. His most notable role was Mordecai in Clint Eastwood's HIGH PLAINS DRIFTER. Curtis played the dying, smaller version of James Arness in THE THING.

4' 2" Billy Curtis played a Munchkin in THE WIZARD OF OZ. His behavior led to Judy Garland calling the Munchkin actors, "little drunks". After Curtis made several passes at Garland, she said to him, "Mother wouldn't approve."

Curtis played Mordecai with Clint Eastwood in HIGH PLAINS DRIFTER.

Curtis played the dying, smaller version of 6' 7" James Arness in THE THING.

 

[dragon53]

HALLOWEEN TRIVIA---character actors Les Tremayne and Jack Kruschen battled Martian monsters in two sci fi movies, THE WAR OF THE WORLDS and THE ANGRY RED PLANET.



In the classic THE WAR OF THE WORLDS, Tremayne played Gen. Mann, who led the military's effort to repulse the Martian invasion of Earth.

Kruschen played Salvatore, one of three doomed Californians who tried to welcome the first Martians.

IN THE ANGRY RED PLANET, Tremayne played Prof. Theodore Gettell and Kruschen played CWO Sam Jacobs as they battled monsters on Mars.

Kruschen's character, like in THE WAR OF THE WORLDS, is killed by a Martian as Jacobs is absorbed by a one-eyed, amoeba-like monster.

 

[theBaron]

HALLOWEEN TRIVIA---character actors Les Tremayne...

He also played Mentor, in the 1974 Saturday-morning live action series, "Shazam!": https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071050/reference

Great little series!

Prost!
Brad

 

[dragon53]

JAMES BOND AND HALLOWEEN MOVIE TRIVIA---Ricou Browning was a diver working in a Florida water show when he was hired to play the Gill-Man for underwater scenes in the classic THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON and its sequels, REVENGE OF THE CREATURE and THE CREATURE WALKS AMONG US. Browning later became the director and stunt coordinator for the underwater scenes in THUNDERBALL and NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN.

Ricou Browning played the Gill-Man in the underwater scenes in THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, REVENGE OF THE CREATURE and THE CREATURE WALKS AMONG US.

Browning was the director and stunt coordinator for underwater scenes in two James Bond movies, THUNDERBALL (Sean Connery, Claudine Auger) and NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN (Sean Connery, Kim Basinger).

THUNDERBALL.

NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN.

 

[dragon53]

HALLOWEEN TRIVIA---the hit ABC tv movie THE NIGHT STALKER was based on an unpublished novel by Las Vegas newspaper reporter Jeff Rice in which a newspaper reporter hunts down a vampire terrorizing Las Vegas. Rice was signed to play coroner Dr. Robert Makurji in the tv movie but was replaced at the last minute by Larry Linville, who later achieved stardom playing Maj. Frank Burns in the M*A*S*H tv series.
Larry Linville is only one of two actors who appeared in THE NIGHT STALKER tv movie and the KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER spinoff tv series where he played Capt. Jonas in the "Chopper" episode.

In the hit ABC tv movie THE NIGHT STALKER, Larry Linville replaced Jeff Rice, who wrote the unpublished novel about a Las Vegas vampire which inspired the tv movie, as coroner Dr. Robert Makurji.

Linville later achieved stardom as Dr. Frank Burns on the M*A*S*H tv series.

Linville was only one of two actors who appeared in THE NIGHT STALKER tv movie and the KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER spinoff tv series where he played Capt. Jonas in the "Chopper" episode. "Chopper" was written by the team of Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale, who later wrote BACK TO THE FUTURE, and David Chase, creator of THE SOPRANOS.

"Chopper" co-writers Zemeckis and Gale wrote BACK TO THE FUTURE.

"Chopper" co-writer Chase created THE SOPRANOS.

 

[theBaron]

"The Night Stalker" was a great little series. That was where I first saw Darren McGavin, and that was pretty much it for me, till he played the Old Man in "A Christmas Story". I liked Simon Oakland, too, as Kolchak's editor, Tony Vincenzo.

You can see character actor Ralph Meeker in the background of that one photo, too, and Treefroggers may remember him as the psychiatrist Capt. Kinder in "The Dirty Dozen."

Prost!
Brad

 

[dragon53]

THEBARON:

THE NIGHT STALKER and KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER were the inspiration for THE X-FILES. Darren McGavin was asked to return as Carl Kolchak for an THE X-FILES episode, but he chose to appear as a different character.

 

[dragon53]

HALLOWEEN TRIVIA---character actors David Clennon and Donald Moffat co-starred together in two classic 1980s movies, John Carpenter's THE THING and Philip Kaufman's THE RIGHT STUFF.

In THE THING, David Clennon played Palmer and Donald Moffat played Garry as they waited for the results of the alien blood tests.

In THE RIGHT STUFF, Clennon played the Liason Man with Sam Shepard as legendary test pilot Chuck Yeager.

In THE RIGHT STUFF, Moffat played Lyndon Baines Johnson as he welcomed the Mercury Seven astronauts to Houston's Astrodome.

 

[theBaron]

Another sci-fi credit for Moffat-He played Rem on the TV series of "Logan's Run".
Another Presidential credit-He played the President in "A Clear and Present Danger".
He's got a long resume, actually.

Prost!
Brad

 

[dragon53]

THE BARON:

I knew about Moffat in CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER, but confined him and Clennon to THE THING for Halloween and THE RIGHT STUFF.


I posted this trivia elsewhere, but in CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER, the actor playing the MH-60 co-pilot is the son of Jean Stapleton from ALL IN THE FAMILY.

 

[dragon53]

TRIVIA---in INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL's diner fight scene, the girl who yells, "That's my boyfriend!" and punches Shia Labeouif is Sasha Spielberg, the daughter of director Steven Spielberg.

 

[marco55]

I'm really enjoying all this trivia.I consider myself lucky to be born when I was to see all the great (and not so great) stuff made in the last 60 years.Truly the golden age.{bravo}}
Mark

 

[dragon53]

TRIVIA---British character actor Neil McCarthy, who suffered from acromegaly and the resulting facial disorders, played the mythological monster Calibos in the original CLASH OF THE TITANS, the last movie featuring Ray Harryhausen's special effects. McCarthy's other notable roles included playing a British soldier in ZULU and WHERE EAGLES DARE.

Neil McCarthy played the mythological monster Calibos in CLASH OF THE TITANS, the last movie featuring Ray Harryhausen's special effects.

McCarthy played Pvt. Thomas in ZULU which starred Michael Caine and Stanley Baker.

McCarthy played Sgt. Jock McPherson in WHERE EAGLES DARE which starred Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood. On the right of the bottom photo is Donald Houston, who appeared with McCarthy in CLASH OF THE TITANS. Also, Richard Burton was the narrator for ZULU.

 

[dragon53]

TRIVIA---THE TERMINATOR writer/director James Cameron said Orion Pictures head Mike Medavoy wanted OJ Simpson to play the deadly Terminator, “[Orion chief Mike] Medavoy came to me and [producer Gale Anne Hurd] and he said, ‘Are you sitting down? You must sit down. I want O.J. Simpson for the Terminator. Gale and I just looked at each other and thought, ‘You’ve got to be f- - -ing kidding me. How do we get out of this?” Medavoy said, “That did come out of my mouth. At the time, O.J. Simpson had one of those commercials for Hertz where he jumped over a counter and ran to get a rental car. It was all of that athletic stuff, which I thought the Terminator should have.” Medavoy was so sure that OJ was the ideal Terminator that he talked to Arnold Schwarzenegger about playing hero Kyle Reese. Schwarzenegger said, “Medavoy came up to me at a screening and told me that they already had the Terminator cast with O.J. Simpson."
Cameron said one reason he did not want OJ to play The Terminator was because OJ was too nice, “This was when everybody loved him, and ironically that was part of the problem—he was this likable, goofy, kind of innocent guy. Plus, frankly, I wasn’t interested in an African-American man chasing around a white girl with a knife.”
Cameron joked about the irony of not hiring OJ after his trial for the murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman, “We might have reconsidered after he had killed his wife.”

Orion Pictures head Mike Medavoy wanted James Cameron to hire OJ Simpson to play the deadly Terminator.

After OJ's trial for the murders of ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman, Cameron joked about the irony of not hiring OJ, “We might have reconsidered after he had killed his wife.”

 

[theBaron]

...Cameron said one reason he did not want OJ to play The Terminator was because OJ was too nice, “This was when everybody loved him, and ironically that was part of the problem—he was this likable, goofy, kind of innocent guy...

Yeah, I just read this over the weekend, after the movie aired again. Remember that Simpson played Nordberg in the "Naked Gun" movies. He was OJ, and everybody loved him.

In the end, I can't picture anyone other than Arnold as the Terminator. In fact, I can't picture any of the other actors considered for the main characters, in those roles. Schwarzenegger, Biehn, and Hamilton make the movie. The supporting cast, too-Paul Winfield as Lt. Traxler and Lance Henriksen as Vukovich are great in their parts. "There are no small parts, only small actors".

Prost!
Brad

 

[lancer]

TRIVIA---THE TERMINATOR writer/director James Cameron said Orion Pictures head Mike Medavoy wanted OJ Simpson to play the deadly Terminator, “[Orion chief Mike] Medavoy came to me and [producer Gale Anne Hurd] and he said, ‘Are you sitting down? You must sit down. I want O.J. Simpson for the Terminator. Gale and I just looked at each other and thought, ‘You’ve got to be f- - -ing kidding me. How do we get out of this?” Medavoy said, “That did come out of my mouth. At the time, O.J. Simpson had one of those commercials for Hertz where he jumped over a counter and ran to get a rental car. It was all of that athletic stuff, which I thought the Terminator should have.” Medavoy was so sure that OJ was the ideal Terminator that he talked to Arnold Schwarzenegger about playing hero Kyle Reese. Schwarzenegger said, “Medavoy came up to me at a screening and told me that they already had the Terminator cast with O.J. Simpson."
Cameron said one reason he did not want OJ to play The Terminator was because OJ was too nice, “This was when everybody loved him, and ironically that was part of the problem—he was this likable, goofy, kind of innocent guy. Plus, frankly, I wasn’t interested in an African-American man chasing around a white girl with a knife.”
Cameron joked about the irony of not hiring OJ after his trial for the murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman, “We might have reconsidered after he had killed his wife.”

Orion Pictures head Mike Medavoy wanted James Cameron to hire OJ Simpson to play the deadly Terminator.

After OJ's trial for the murders of ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman, Cameron joked about the irony of not hiring OJ, “We might have reconsidered after he had killed his wife.”

Dodged the bullet on this one. What a casting disaster that would have been. Instead of the iconic film it became, it would have ranked right down there with 'Attack of the Killer Tomatoes'. OJ couldn't act his way out of a wet paper bag, totally unbelievable, on film or in court. -- Al

 

[dragon53]

HAN VS GREEDO---the original 1977 STAR WARS movie aired on Disney+ and included a new version of the controversial Han Solo and Greedo cantina shootout scene. In the new version Han and Greedo appear to shoot at each other at the same time. A tweet by Lucasfilm's Pablo Hidalgo said the new version was supervised by George Lucas for a 4K remastered 3D version which was canceled.


LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxBdIwuejxE

 

[theBaron]

...In the new version Han and Greedo appear to shoot at each other at the same time...

Changing that scene is probably the dumbest idea in the whole "remastered" version. Han shoots first. It establishes him as a tough character, a questionable character, a mercenary. He's not a hero, and that's what makes it so much more significant when he comes back at the end to help save the day.

Dumb, dumb, stupid, bad idea. Absolute crap.

Prost!
Brad

 

[dragon53]

TRIVIA---character actress Susan Cabot is perhaps best known for starring in Roger Corman's B horror movie THE WASP WOMAN. Cabot, who suffered from emotional problems, was killed by her 25 year-old son, Timothy Scott Roman, in 1986. Roman claimed his mother was killed by a man wearing a ninja mask. Roman then claimed his mother attacked him, and he killed her in self defense. Roman was convicted of involuntary manslaughter.

 

[marco55]

Poor woman.
Mark