Before MST3K we had The Texas 27 Film Vault. Before Joel and Mike we had Randy and Richard. Before Pearl we had Laurie Savino. Before Devil Dogs, Observers and Deep 13 we had giant rats, Cellumites and Level 31.
Balladeer’s Blog continues its look at the FORTIETH ANNIVERSARY year of this neglected cult show which debuted on Saturday February 9th, 1985.
ORIGINAL BROADCAST DATE FOR THIS EPISODE: Supposedly Saturday April 19th, 1986 from 10:30pm to 1:00am. Broadcast throughout Texas and Oklahoma.
Randy (right) and Richard way down on Level 31 hosting The Texas 27 Film Vault
EXTRAS: This episode featured footage of our Film Vault Technicians First Class (EO6) Randy and Richard’s promotional appearance at Six Flags Mall in nearby Arlington, TX.
FILM VAULT LORE: One particular Host Segment featured one of the show’s behind-the- scenes people portraying Commando Cody complete with helmet and rocket pack. He was portraying the character because the Commando Cody serial Radar Men from the Moon was the current serial being shown before the movie each week on The Texas 27 Film Vault.
Since Randy Clower still outranked his co-host Richard Malmos (until a few episodes later) in the fictional Film Vault Corps (“The few, the proud, the sarcastic”) their relationship often featured the type of abusive “Host and Second Banana” dynamic like that between Dr. Morgus and his lab assistant Chopsley or Zacherle and his wife My Dear or Dr. Forrester and TV’s Frank.
At any rate this Host Segment featured “Commando Cody” befriending Randy and setting out with him for a night of partying on the town while the two leave Richard behind to do all the grub work in their barracks.
THE MOVIE: Supernatural starred Carole Lombard and Randolph Scott in a campy and hilariously bad story of possession. When serial murderess Ruth Rogen is executed her spirit winds up inhabiting the body of Lombard’s character Roma Courtney, a wealthy socialite.
Now in charge of Roma’s body Rogen’s evil spirit seeks revenge on the criminal accomplice who betrayed her and also seeks to live high on the hog with her possessed victim’s money. Continue reading
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