THE BRAIN (1962) – Freddie Francis directed this black & white film, which was the third movie adaptation of Curt Siodmak’s science fiction novel Donovan’s Brain. The characters’ names were changed and the sci fi elements were mixed with detective story elements this time around.
Max Holt, a callous, bloated rich pig of the George Soros/ Koch Family type, is one of the passengers on an airplane which crashes near the laboratory of Dr Peter Corrie (Peter van Eyck). That reclusive doctor and his colleague Dr Frank Shears (played by Bernard Lee himself) have been conducting experiments to see how long they can keep monkey brains alive once removing them from their host body.
Corrie and Shears discover that Max Holt is the only one of the airplane passengers still clinging to life, but just barely, and has no hope of survival. Corrie browbeats Shears into helping him get Holt’s body back to their lab, where they remove his brain to see how long they can keep it alive in one of their fish aquarium containers filled with life-preserving fluids and equipment.
The pair of unethical physicians turn over the rest of Holt’s body for burial while continuing to monitor the preserved brain of Max Holt. Instrument readings indicate there is still thought wave activity in the disembodied organ. Continue reading
THE FOURTEEN-YEAR POKER GAME – This legendary poker game in all likelihood never really happened but has come to embody the early 20th Century wildness of Thurmond, WV. During America’s coal boom Thurmond attracted the wealthy including mine and railroad tycoons. It became such a hub of gambling, drinking, prostitution and partying that it’s been called the Las Vegas of its era.
A RECIPE FOR SEDUCTION (2020) – This 15-minute short was put together by KFC and Lifetime Television in what deserves to be recognized for the intentional comedy that it is! Yes, it would be even funnier if it wasn’t trying to be, but too many reviewers apparently miss the point.
MARIO LOPEZ plays a hunkified COLONEL HARLAN SANDERS of KFC fame. One look at the way he’s made up should have alerted grumpy critics to the fact that this thing is not to be taken seriously! Hell, his makeup is just a few adjustments away from making him a hunkified Orville Redenbacher, but we’ll never get to see THAT parody because of how badly misunderstood A Recipe for Seduction was.
COMMAND aka CAVALRY COMMAND – In the post-Civil War American southwest a cavalry captain and his young lieutenant clash over issues of command. Meanwhile, a conflict with Native Americans rages. Starring Everett Sloane and Ben Cooper.
THE FEAST OF BRICRIU (Fled Bricrenn) – The Book of the Dun Cow version of this tale is dated to around the 700s A.D. and is considered the forerunner of the story of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight in British legends.
THE FACE OF MARBLE (1946) – John “He’s probably even in the Zapruder Film if you look hard enough” Carradine stars as a mad scientist who is trying to use electrical and chemical treatments to revive the recently deceased. Human and animal test subjects come back to life able to walk through solid objects and are controlled by John’s voodoo-practicing maid. William “One-Shot” Beaudine directed and Willie Best was on hand as the butler.
ACCOUNT OF AN EXPEDITION TO THE INTERIOR OF NEW HOLLAND (1837) – Written by multiple parties, with Lady Mary Fox, Richard Whateley and Lord Holland the likeliest authors. “New Holland” was an old name for Australia. In 1860 the novel was reissued under the title preface The Southlanders.
Southland boasts a population of roughly four million and is divided into eleven distinct regions which, though under one overall parliamentary government, enjoy a large amount of internal sovereignty. Some regions are republics and others live under a hereditary monarchy. In several of the republics, however, their chief executive figure is still called a king despite being elected.
U.S. President: Ulysses S. Grant Vice President: Vacant. Henry Wilson had died on Nov 22nd, 1875 and the 25th Amendment requiring a new Vice President to fill any such vacancy would not be passed until 1967. Speaker of the House: Michael C. Kerr Chief Justice: Morrison R. Waite
CAPTAIN VICTORY
Powers: Captain Victory (No relation to the Jack Kirby character of that name) could fly and had massive super strength. The upper limits of his flying abilities and his strength were never established before the character disappeared.
LIGHTNING GIRL