Tag Archives: Balladeer’s Blog

WAYNE ROGERS R.I.P – DR SEX AND ASTRO-ZOMBIES

Wayne RogersThe one and only Wayne Rogers passed away recently and since everyone else will be covering his time on M*A*S*H, House Calls, Stagecoach West, City of Angels and more, Balladeer’s Blog will do its usual oddball salute. Here’s a look at Doctor Sex (1964) and The Astro-Zombies (1968), two of the films Rogers co-wrote and co-produced with bad movie legend Ted V Mikels. Wayne even has a tiny role in Doctor Sex!   

Doctor SexDOCTOR SEX (1964) – Like Doris Wishman, Russ Meyer, Herschel Gordon Lewis and so many others, Ted V Mikels got his start as a director doing Nudie Cuties. For newbies to the realm of Psychotronic Psynema, Nudie Cuties were big in the 1950s and 1960s and despite their name NEVER featured nudity.

Toplessness and some butt-shots were all you got, with strategically and/or improbably placed branches, shrubs or rail fences covering pubic regions. Fans of Peter Sellers will remember the classic sendup of those nudie cuties that he worked into one of his Inspector Clouseau films.   

The appeal of these movies is barely understood today, when you can find any visual stimulation you want with just a few clicks on your keyboard but decades ago Nudie Cuties really packed ’em in. Enter Doctor Sex.

The titular doctor is holding a brainstorming session with his fellow psychiatrists Dr Schmutz and the gorgeous Dr Lovejoy. They plan on co-authoring a book to put the recently released Kinsey Report to shame.

To that end they share stories about some patients of theirs who suffered exceptionally peculiar sexual fixations. The tales are told through flashbacks and feature:

Dr Sex drawinga) A patient who fixates on having a dog’s-eye view to watching the sexy female owner of a pooch take her bath and other activities.

b) A patient whose work at a department store includes dressing and undressing mannequins and holding make-believe tea parties with them and otherwise treating them like they’re real women. In a horror film they would come to life and tear the man limb from limb or something but in this movie the patient just imagines that the mannequins come to life as incredibly beautiful women who want to hang around with him.

c) A female patient who loves taking her clothes off and, in a rags to even fewer rags story she becomes first a nude model and then a stripper.

And d) A patient who – in another idea torn straight from a horror anthology instead of a Nudie Cutie – lives in a house haunted by beautiful nude female ghosts. The ghosts do housework for the guy. No, I’m not kidding.  

To wrap up their presumably successful venture Dr Sex and his colleagues cut loose with some lascivious behavior of their own. In the wildest moment Dr Schmutz turns into a dog and plans to use this canine form to land a sexy female owner so he can watch her bathing and in various stages of undress. Continue reading →

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COLLEGE BASKETBALL TOURNAMENTS STILL GOING STRONG

*** NJCAA ***

Gillette College PronghornsREGION NINE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME – The last two teams standing in this Regional Tourney were the GILLETTE COLLEGE PRONGHORNS and the LARAMIE COUNTY COLLEGE GOLDEN EAGLES.

The Pronghorns built up a 47-38 lead by Halftime and from there both teams intensified their offensive efforts. In the end Gillette College won this game for the ages by a Century Club-level score of 101-97. Ted McCree tossed in 25 points to lead the Pronghorns.     Continue reading →

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NCCAA CHAMPION CROWNED PLUS MORE COLLEGE BASKETBALL ACTION

*** NCCAA2 ***

Randall University Saints NEWCHAMPIONSHIP GAME – The 4th seeded RANDALL UNIVERSITY SAINTS – the defending National Champions – faced the 7th seeded KENTUCKY CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY KNIGHTS for the 2017 title.

The Saints had eked out a slender 39-36 edge over the Knights by Halftime. After the break they managed more and more separation from their opponents, ultimately defeating them by a final score of 90-76. Xavier Hunter’s 22 points led Randall University to their 2nd straight crown.  * THE SAINTS ARE CHAMPIONS OF NCCAA DIVISION TWO *  

*** NAIA2 ***

Bellevue BruinsFINAL FOUR, FIRST BERTH – The (6) BELLEVUE UNIVERSITY BRUINS battled the (1) BETHEL (IN) COLLEGE PILOTS (Riverboat Pilots) for a berth in the 2017 Final Four.

At the break the Pilots were on top of the Bruins by a count of 38-32 but Bellevue University came out for the 2nd Half primed for a comeback. Regulation ended in a 70-70 tie and in the Overtime session the Bruins emerged with a 77-75 upset triumph. Twenty-six points from Nick Hilton led Bellevue. Continue reading →

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NAIA ELITE EIGHT SET AND MORE …

*** NAIA ***

TABORBluejayBlue-webELITE EIGHT, FIRST BERTH – This was a 6 seed over a 2 seed upset which saw 7 ties and 5 lead changes. The (6) TABOR COLLEGE BLUEJAYS kept their Upset Mojo going against the (2) ROBERT MORRIS UNIVERSITY (IL) EAGLES (Should be the Wind Eagles).

The Bluejays had seized a 47-39 lead by Halftime, then made good on that with an 88-82 win to send the Eagles home. Lance Carter led the upstart Tabor College team with his Double Double of 24 points and 10 rebounds.

bethel pilots NEWELITE EIGHT, SECOND BERTH – The (1) BETHEL COLLEGE (IN) PILOTS (Riverboat Pilots) took the court against the (4) EASTERN OREGON UNIVERSITY MOUNTAINEERS in this game.

The Pilots ensured that the Mountaineers never knew what hit them, clobbering them so thoroughly that by the break Bethel College led the game 60-31!! From there the Pilots coasted to a Century Club-level 104-71 triumph and a berth in the Elite Eight. Clay Yeo and Caleb Oetjen tossed in 16 points each to lead Bethel College, while posting 9 and 4 rebounds, respectively. Continue reading →

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THE ULTIMATE INHERITORS (1914): VINTAGE SCIENCE FICTION

Giant spiderTHE ULTIMATE INHERITORS (1914) – Written by Berg Bellair. This is a very entertaining work of vintage or “ancient” science fiction and is especially noteworthy for the way it anticipates the many “big bug” movies of the 1950s and later.  

In the California desert, where the Golden State borders Arizona and Mexico, a pair of investment miners named Big Ike Pemberton and Joe Kinzie save an older man from dying of exposure. The man turns out to be Doctor Bauer, a scientist who was investigating uranium deposits in the vicinity.  

Dr Bauer is the sole survivor of an expedition whose exploratory blasting work accidentally freed dozens of giant, horse-sized spiders from subterranean caverns. Bauer has photographic proof of this claim and theorizes that radiation from the uranium deposits mutated the spiders into their current enormous state. Continue reading →

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COLLEGE BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT ACTION

*** NAIA2 NATIONAL TOURNAMENT ***

Northwestern (IA) Red Raiders logoDAY TWO, GAME ONE – One of the 4 seeds – the NORTHWESTERN (IA) COLLEGE RED RAIDERS – played an Instant Classic against the 5th seeded WASHINGTON ADVENTIST UNIVERSITY SHOCK.

The opening Half ended with the Red Raiders leading the Shock by a count of 43-37. From there it was all that Northwestern College could do to keep the hard-fighting Washington Adventist University at bay. In the end the Red Raiders won the game 78-76. Colton Kooima put up 22 points to lead the victors.   Continue reading →

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NAIA NATIONAL TOURNAMENT UNDERWAY PLUS MORE

*** NAIA ***

Northwest Christian University BeaconsDAY ONE, GAME ONE – The (3) NORTHWEST CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY BEACONS took the court against the (6) MIDLAND UNIVERSITY WARRIORS to start things rolling.

The 1st Half ended with the Beacons on top of the Warriors by a count of 44-40. Following the break Northwest Christian University managed some more elbow room for a 91-78 victory. Kenny Blackwell put up 20 points to lead the Beacons while his teammate Michael Loomis logged a Double Double of 15 points and 13 rebounds.

Indiana East Red WolvesDAY ONE, GAME TWO – The (2) INDIANA UNIVERSITY RED WOLVES clashed with the (7) REINHARDT UNIVERSITY EAGLES (Should be the Rottweilers).

The Red Wolves had their hands full in the opening Half but eked out a 41-38 edge over the Eagles by the break. From there Indiana University East put together enough runs for an 84-74 victory. Kyle Pipenger’s 23 points led the Red Wolves with Aaron Thomas contributing 12 points and 12 rebounds for a Double Double.     Continue reading →

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THE PSYCHOPATH (1975)

The_Psychopath_RMCjpgTHE PSYCHOPATH (1975) – Category: The 70s version of camp, with a premise and plot elements that would have been banned in previous decades  

If you’ve ever wanted to see Mr Rogers and/or Pee Wee Herman and/or Barney The Purple Dinosaur go on a killing spree this is the movie for you! Tom Basham plays Mr Rabbey, the host of a popular kiddie show. The key to Mr Rabbey’s success – his knack for knowing what children want to see – is no accident, since Rabbey himself is soon revealed to be a crazed, child-minded nutcase. Picture how much creepier Paul Reubens’ Pee Wee Herman character would be if it was no act and he really, honestly behaved that way 24/7. That’s Mr Rabbey.

The victims of Rabbey’s murder spree are people who beat and otherwise abuse their children, so it’s not all that hard to take the death scenes. You see, it turns out Mr Rabbey himself was the victim of an abusive parent, and when he realizes some of the children he visits on a charitable trip to the hospital have been beaten by their parents he sets out to kill those parents. (The original title of this movie was Eye For An Eye, which is why the film opens up with an extreme closeup of one of Mr Rabbey’s eyeballs) Continue reading →

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LATEST COLLEGE BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT ACTION

AMERICAN MIDWEST CONFERENCE

Harris Stowe State HornetsCHAMPIONSHIP GAME – This Conference’s tourney became a War of Underdogs. The 6th seeded HARRIS-STOWE STATE HORNETS battled the 5 seeds – the WILLIAM WOODS UNIVERSITY OWLS – for the crown. There was one more upset in store for this league.

The clashing Cinderellas danced themselves to a 28-28 tie to end the 1st Half. After the break the Hornets took control of the game, clobbering the Owls by a final count of 80-56. Craig Davila, Jr and Jalen Fletcher led Harris-Stowe State with 16 points each. * THE HORNETS ARE CHAMPIONS OF THE AMC TOURNAMENT * Continue reading →

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SONGS OF MALDOROR: CANTO SIX GUIDE

This completes Balladeer’s Blog’s chapter guide to my examination of Isidore Ducasse’s 1868 work of surreal horror The Songs of Maldoror.

SIXTH CANTO

Maldoror and Mervyn by Monsieur Le Six

Maldoror and Mervyn, drawn by Monsieur Le Six.

Sixth Canto, Stanza 1: The author Isidore Ducasse predicts that his work The Songs of Maldoror will revolutionize literature and foresees a career for himself as a major force in the creative arts. Unfortunately his death in 1870 at the age of 24 prevented that from happening. CLICK HERE 

Sixth Canto, Stanza 2: After terrorizing Madrid, Saint Petersburg and Peking through a series of brutal murders, Maldoror begins subjecting Paris to similar treatment. CLICK HERE Continue reading →

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