B-MOVIE HOSTS OF “SCREAM-IN” (1969-1971)

SCREAM-IN (June 20th, 1969 to August ?, 1971) – Love-Ins begat Laugh-In which begat Scream-In, a Bad Movie Show that went off the air when the station broadcasting it went bankrupt. Scream-In was previously titled Shock it to Me, a clever combination of the old Shock syndicated horror film package and the Laugh-In catch-phrase “Sock it to me!”

This Movie Host Show aired on Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania’s WPGH Saturday nights at 7:00pm and sometimes 6:30pm to avoid having to go head-to-head with Pittsburgh’s iconic Movie Host Chilly Billy Cardilly (Bill Cardille) on Chiller Theater. Here are Scream-In‘s three hosts – Coagulus, Count Von Thirstenburg and Tarantula, who had a ghoulish sidekick called Hugo. 

COAGULUS – The name of the actor playing this vampire character has not come down to us. Some sources state that Coagulus hosted WPGH’s original version of Scream-In titled just Supernatural Movie beginning in February 1969 – the same month the station started broadcasting.

This figure has been described by those who remember him as very much in the sarcastic style of Ghoulardi (Cleveland) and Sinister Seymour (Los Angeles). Coagulus leaned heavily into the So Bad They’re Good spirit that so many of us love about these old shows.

In late July, 1969 this host was fired, supposedly for wanting a raise. He was immediately replaced by another Movie Host character. See below. Continue reading

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AUGUST TWELFTH NEWS ROUNDUP

Independent Voter Site Balladeer’s Blog presents a Wednesday current events roundup.

EVEN MORE OF CORRUPT ANTHONY FAUCI’S LIES CONTINUE TO BE REVEALED.

ANOTHER FAUCI BOMBSHELL: HE LIED TO PREGNANT WOMEN ABOUT THE RISK FOR MISCARRIAGES IF GETTING VACCINATED BY HIS BIG PHARMA ACCOMPLICES.

MARGOLIS: “THESE NEWLY RELEASED TEXTS PROVE WHAT A MONSTER FAUCI REALLY IS.” Never let him forget.

ANTI-TRUMP DEMOCRATS: A HATE GROUP WARRING ON A CREATION OF THEIR OWN PSYCHOSES.

PRESIDENT TRUMP’S POLICIES CREDITED WITH RECORD LOW CRIME RATES IN AMERICAN CITIES. The working class and the poor support Trump, but privileged one-percenter entertainers and privileged one-percenter Democrat media outlet employees hate him.

ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS ARRESTED FOR PRODUCING CHILD PORN, FOR KILLING A FOURTEEN-MONTH OLD, AND FOR TRAFFICKING WEAPONS. ICE and DHS arrest them, Democrats adore them.

FLASHBACK FROM AUGUST EIGHTEENTH, 2014: NEW YORK TIMES WRITER CALLS OBAMA THE GREATEST THREAT TO PRESS FREEDOM IN A GENERATION. Continue reading

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SWASHBUCKLER MOVIES OF CORNEL WILDE

Cornel Wilde was born in 1912 and during his lengthy career he appeared in several swashbuckler films.

TREASURE OF THE GOLDEN CONDOR (1953) – Cornel Wilde stars as the swordsman Jean-Paul, a Frenchman whose evil uncle the Marquis de St. Malo (George Macready) robs of his royal title and his inherited lands. He flees France and sails for Guatemala.

Once there he falls in with fellow adventurers MacDougal (Finlay Currie) and his daughter Clara (Constance Smith), who are on a quest to find the lost Mayan Treasure of the Golden Condor somewhere in the jungle. After surviving jungle beasts, hostile Guatemalans and rival treasure hunters, our heroes obtain the fabulous treasure.

Using this fortune to finance his revenge quest, Jean-Paul returns to France with Clara . Once there, he engages in much derring-do and legal warfare masterminded by lawyer Raoul Dondel (Leo G. Caroll) to defeat his evil uncle and regain his title and estates. Nice blend of traditional swashbuckling with a quasi-Indiana Jones quest and a little Count of Monte Cristo at the end.

The guest cast included Anne Bancroft, Fay Wray and a young Robert Blake as a stable boy. 93 minutes. Continue reading

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FOOL KILLER PART SEVENTY-TWO: JUNE 1914

Balladeer’s Blog continues its examination of the many facets of Fool Killer lore. FOR PART ONE, INCLUDING THE HISTORICAL CONTEXT IN THE 1850s, CLICK HERE.

PART 71 – Some of the Fool Killer’s targets on both sides of the aisle in the June of 1914 edition of James Larkin Pearson’s version of the folk figure.

*** Tycoon John D. Rockefeller, Jr. for his role in the Ludlow Miner Massacre back in April. A few lines from that condemnation – “Who trains the guns on helpless ones, til precious blood in rivers runs? John D. Jr.” (also as Johndee Junior).

*** The Dick Act, which was named after Charles Dick when it passed back in 1903. It granted presidents certain powers when it came to activating militias. Some feared that President Woodrow Wilson would use the Dick Act to start drafting American men to serve in the military.

*** Tycoons (he often called them Plutocrats) who spent more money on paintings of the Madonna and Child than they ever spent feeding and clothing real, live mothers and their children. Continue reading

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FORGOTTEN TELEVISION: THE ANDY CAPP LIVE-ACTION SITCOM FROM 1988

ANDY CAPP (1988) – Okay. I’ve put this off long enough. Time to just review Andy Capp and be done with it.

Am I referring to the original Andy Capp comic strip, which premiered in the 1950s? No.

Am I referring to the line of Andy Capp snacks, like Hot Fries, Cheddar Fries, etc.? No.

Am I referring to the 1982 stage comedy starring Tom Courtenay as Andy Capp? No. 

I’m referring to the 6-episode British Television live-action sitcom Andy Capp. Each episode filled a half-hour timeslot and featured all the layabout, boozing, betting, philandering fun (?) that the comic strip did. For newbies, the comic strip character Andy Capp wallowed in never looking for a job, in sleeping all day, boozing and babe-chasing all night and losing any money he had to his bookie.

Meanwhile, his wife Flo put the bread on the table and clashed with Andy on a regular basis. 

I was actually kind of chuffed (as our British cousins say) about watching this obscure television series. The Brits are usually geniuses when it comes to making what sound like thoroughly disgusting characters into oddly charming figures who endear themselves to audiences despite themselves. Think of the brilliant Absolutely Fabulous for just one example.  Continue reading

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NEWS ROUNDUP: AUGUST TENTH

Monday is here with another current events roundup from Independent Voter Site Balladeer’s Blog.

CORRUPT ANTHONY FAUCI’S SUBPOENAED PHONE CONTAINS EVEN MORE EVIDENCE AGAINST HIM.

CNN PANEL SEEMS TO FORGET THAT FAUCI’S OWN DIARY CONFIRMS THAT HE WAS A LYING NARCISSIST AND SOCIOPATH.

ONE YEAR LATER, AZERBAIJAN’S PRESIDENT PRAISES PRESIDENT TRUMP FOR THE PEACE HE FORGED.

UNDER PRESIDENT TRUMP’S POLICIES, PRODUCTIVITY GROWTH RISES TWICE AS FAST AS EXPECTED.

GREECE’S MIGRATION MINISTER PRAISES TRUMP FOR INSPIRING SEVERAL NATIONS TO CRACK DOWN ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION. Continue reading

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THE OZIDI EPIC OF NIGERIA PART FIVE

FOR PART ONE CLICK HERE. FOR PART TWO CLICK HERE. FOR PART THREE CLICK HERE. FOR PART FOUR CLICK HERE.   

PART FIVE: At the conclusion of Part Four, the hero Ozidi, who possessed the strength of ten men, a lightning sword and the ability to pull other weapons out of his mouth/ innards, had killed yet another of his father’s murderers. That latest fallen foe was Akpobrisi, Wielder of Net Weapons as well as his troops.

Ofe, the main villain behind the slaying of our hero’s father, had hoped Akpobrisi and his soldiers would be capable of eliminating Ozidi. Ofe was expected to be the next man to face the avenging Ozidi but he was far too craven to do so. He blamed the citizens of Orua for the murder of Ozidi the Elder, lying that they pressured him to betray the dead victim even though the ambition of him and his co-conspirators was truly to blame.

Still, cowardly Ofe sought to throw another against Ozidi the Younger. He forced his right-hand man Badoba to face Ozidi in battle. Badoba tried to convince the despicable Ofe that they should both attack the hero together. Ofe refused, still hoping to avoid facing Ozidi in combat. Continue reading

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BALLADEER’S BLOG’S COLLEGE FOOTBALL PRESEASON RANKINGS

The divisions of college football covered here at Balladeer’s Blog kick off their 2026 season on Thursday, August 27th. Here are my Preseason Top Ten Rankings for each division. 

NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics)

### 1. MORNINGSIDE UNIVERSITY MUSTANGS   ###   2. GRAND VIEW UNIVERSITY VIKINGS (Defending Champs)   ###   3. KEISER UNIVERSITY SEAHAWKS   ###   4. MONTANA TECH OREDIGGERS   ###   5. BENEDICTINE COLLEGE RAVENS   ###    Continue reading

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AUGUST EIGHTH NEWS ROUNDUP

 Independent Voter Site Balladeer’s Blog is here with a very rare Saturday current events roundup.

FLASHBACK FROM 2021: REMEMBERING WHEN TRUMP-HATERS CHEERED ON NEW YORK GOVERNOR ANDREW CUOMO FOR MINDLESSLY FOLLOWING “DR. DEATH” FAUCI’S DICTUMS JUST BECAUSE CUOMO AND FAUCI ARGUED WITH TRUMP. They even gave Cuomo Emmy Awards for his Covid press conferences, then repealed them when Cuomo’s nursing home deaths and S.H. scandals came out. Just as Andrew Cuomo fell from grace years ago over the scandal regarding thousands of elderly people dying because of the Fauci-Cuomo nursing home “lockdowns”, Fauci’s own diary has now helped expose his own lies and misdeeds.

ANOTHER FLASHBACK FROM 2021: DEMOCRATS IN CONGRESS BLOCK INVESTIGATION INTO THE ORIGINS OF THE CORONAVIRUS. And here in 2026 we all know why the callous and corrupt Democrats blocked it. They wanted to protect Fauci and China. More HERE.

2021 FLASHBACK: COLORADO’S DEMOCRAT GOVERNOR NOW UNDER INVESTIGATION FOR COVID DEATHS IN NURSING HOMES, JUST LIKE ANDREW CUOMO.

PRESIDENT TRUMP’S POLICIES KEEP JOBLESS CLAIMS DOWN AT LOWS NOT REACHED IN FIFTY-SEVEN YEARS. The greatest president for the working class and the poor during my lifetime.

EVEN DEMOCRAT LUTHER CAMPBELL STATES TRUMP IS RIGHT AND DEMOCRATS IN HIS DISTRICT ARE INDEED CHEATING. He even added that he “hates to agree with Trump on anything”, but apparently the truth is the truth.

ANTHONY “CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY?” FAUCI HELD IN CONTEMPT. Continue reading

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NEGLECTED CANADIAN-MADE SUPERHEROES

This weekend’s escapist, light-hearted superhero post from Balladeer’s Blog looks at several neglected Canadian-made characters. FOR THEIR GOLDEN AGE HEROES (1941-1950) CLICK HERE.

WHITE THUNDER

Debut Year: 1982

Secret Identity: Scott Garvey

Origin: Bartender Scott Garvey was beaten nearly to death by street thugs. When his survival seemed hopeless, the hospital used experimental drugs on him. An unrelated electric shock interacted with the chemicals and healed Scott. It also granted him superpowers which he kept to himself so he could adopt the costumed identity White Thunder to get revenge on his attackers, then go on fighting crime.

Powers: This hero could fly, generate electricity and shoot electrical blasts from his hands.

CANADIANA

Debut Year: 2004

Secret Identity: Jennifer Neuwirth

Origin: Jennifer’s parents were flakey people who drifted to every cult that came along, taking their young daughter with them. The latest cult they became involved with was run by a charismatic but sinister man named Robertson. No first name was ever given.

      Robertson indulged in the grooming of the teenage daughters of his followers and Jennifer’s parents blithely let her become his latest victim. The cult leader tutored the young women, bringing out superpowers in them and using them as pawns in his villainous activities.

      Jennifer proved strong enough to rebel against Robertson and use her powers against him and against his other female acolytes. She adopted the costumed identity Canadiana.

Powers: Canadiana was strong enough to easily lift a standard 4-door car and carry it with her. She could also fly at 600 kph, generate an energy force field around herself. teleport and release energy through her hands to burn or disintegrate objects with her touch. Jennifer could transform from her street clothes into her Canadiana costume and back again at will. She calls herself “the spirit of Canada.”  Continue reading

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