PENNY DREADFUL – Rose Marie Earp starred as Penny Dreadful on KMBC in Kansas City, MO. In the 1960s, KMBC aired two Movie Host shows on Saturdays. Chiller was broadcast at 10:30pm and Son of Chiller at 6:00pm. Son of Chiller was hosted by Penny Dreadful from the tower room of her creepy castle. Chiller was hosted by Gregory Grave, whom I’ll cover at another time.
Rose Marie Earp is the earliest Movie Hostess I’ve found using the name Penny Dreadful, but there have been others since her 1960s run. Though Penny aka the Dreadful One did schtick typical of regular horror hosts her costume looked more like the outfit worn by the female alien in the bad movie Devil-Girl from Mars (1954).
Penny Dreadful would welcome viewers from the window of her tower room to discuss the evening’s film. That was after opening tracking shots along a path leading to her foreboding castle atop a hill. Continue reading
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