#1974 Countdown

[vinyl-connection]

1974 COUNTDOWN | #20 — #16

#20 STEELEYE SPAN — NOW WE ARE SIX This is the LP where the British folk-rockers really emphasised the latter. Now We Are Six rocks! “Thomas the Rhymer” bolts out of the gate at a gallop, and the pace and energy are maintained through the hilarious “Two Magicians” and mythic “Seven Hundred Elves”. Indeed, common wisdom has it that, but for the dreadful “Twinkle Twinkle” (yes, that one) and lame…

[crazyworldofemmamarie]

Dr. Rammstein's Countdown to Halloween:

Day #30: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, 1974 (dir. Tobe Hooper): Chainsaws, Hippies, Hot Summer Days and Mayhem: ‎‘The Texas Chain Saw Massacre’ review by BIRDBRAIN_1974 • Letterboxd

Well, we all knew this was coming. Come on, it's the greatest horror flick of all time that is undisputed for sure!

[radiomaxmusic]

Classic Countdown Top 40 Hits September 21, 1974, with Ron Kovacs / 12pm ET

[radiomax]

Thursday, July 6, 2023 12pm ET: Classic Countdown: Top 50 Hits July 6, 1974 with Ron Kovacs

[mydaddywiki]

Carroll O'Connor

Physique: Average/Husky Build Height: 5′ 10½″ (1.79 m)

John Carroll O'Connor (August 2, 1924 – June 21, 2001; aged 76) was an American actor whose television career spanned over four decades. O'Connor found widespread fame as Archie Bunker (for which he won four Emmy Awards), the main character in the CBS television sitcoms All in the Family (1971–1979) and its continuation, Archie Bunker's Place (1979–1983). O'Connor later starred in the NBC/CBS television crime drama In the Heat of the Night (1988–1995), where he played the role of police chief William "Bill" Gillespie. In the late 1990s, he played Gus Stemple, the father of Jamie Buchman (Helen Hunt) on Mad About You. In 1996, O'Connor was ranked number 38 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Stars of All Time. He won five Emmys and one Golden Globe Award.

Carroll was born in Manhattan and raised in Forest Hills, a borough of Queens, New York. After graduating from high school in 1942, O'Connor joined the Merchant Marines and worked on ships in the Atlantic. In 1946, he enrolled at the University of Montana to study English. While there, he became interested in theater. During one of the amateur productions, he met his future wife, Nancy Fields, whom he married in 1951. They would later adopted their only child while in Rome, Italy in 1962 while he filmed Joseph L. Mankiewicz’s Cleopatra.

I first fell in lust with O'Connor for his role as crusty police chief William 'Bill' Gillespie on the crime drama "In the Heat of the Night." O'Connor captured my imagination so much that he still remains one of the key templates of what a daddy should be like to me. Chubby, grey hair, gentle features but with a hint 'I'll fuck you up if you cross me' added for good measure. But as hot as he looked on the show, he looked insanely gorgeous as Archie on reruns of "All in the Family." Yes a rarity for me. Liking a man when they were younger.

Even though O'Connor was nothing like his alter ego, Archie. Being shy, soft-spoken, introverted, intellectual and liberal. He had a charm that would have had me on my knees in minutes of speaking with him. Just sheer daddy perfection. He may not have been traditional-leading-man handsome, but I’ve always found Mr. O'Connor as nice looking. Listed as #20 on TV Land’s Top 50 TV Icons Countdown, but in the top five on my all time actors that I’d like to fuck senseless. O'Connor died at the age of 76 on June 21, 2001, in Culver City, California, from a heart attack brought on by complications from diabetes.

RECOMMENDATIONS: Return to Me (2000) In the Heat of the Night (TV Series 1988–1995) Archie Bunker's Place (TV Series 1979–1983) All in the Family (TV Series 1971–1979) Law and Disorder (1974) Kelly's Heroes (1970) Waterhole #3 (1967)

[wheels-of-despair]

Evil Woman, Don't You Play Your Games With Me (Same fics as the other list, but in chronological order.)

If you are a blank or ageless blog who interacts with a fic that contains as Do Not Interact (DNI) warning, you will be blocked.

🧡 - Regularly scheduled light-hearted fun. 🖤 - Shit just got real. 💛 - IDK man, this one just kind of wrote itself. 💖 - Wait, there's romance now?

1984 Three Days 🖤🧡 Evil Woman, Don't You Play Your Games With Me 🧡 The Ups and Downs of Dating a Trash Panda 🧡 I Hate Mondays 🧡 Go Get 'Em, Tiger 🧡 The Nerd King Cops a Feel 🧡 Flying Monkeys Couldn't Drag Me Away 🍂🧡 Best Seat in the House 🧡 The Best $7 Eddie Munson Ever Spent 🧡 The Long Con 🧡 It's Okay If You Are 🧡 Wrapping Paper 🎅🧡 The First and Last Breakup of Eddie Munson and Evil Woman 🖤

1985 Boys Are Idiots 🖤 (Alternate Version) Classy Girl and the Scruffy Boy 🧡 Have You Ever Choked a Chicken? 🧡 Werewolf Children 🧡 Eddie Munson and the Best Anti-Valentine's Day Ever 💝🧡 Pinch Proof 🍀🧡 The Breakfast Club 🧡 This Is Better 🧡 It's the Easter Dragon, Eddie Munson 🐣🧡 A Situation 🍍🧡 Eddie Munson Is My Babydaddy 🧡 Smoke Break 🧡 The Case of the Missing Eddie 🖤🧡 Look At Him Now 🧡 A Very Important Date 🎂🧡 Evil Woman and Baby Bro vs. The Worst Summer Vacation Ever 💛 The Little Air Conditioner That Could 🔥🧡 Secret Weapons 🧡 Can't Take You Anywhere 🧡 The Fuck Did You Just Say to Me? 💛💖 Who's Your Fucking Daddy? 💛💖 You're the Fucking Worst 💛💖 Fangs for the Mammaries 💖🧡 Don't Move 💖 Late 🖤 The Last First Day 🧡 The First Lazy Thanksgiving 🦃🧡 The Family Holiday 🎅🖤 I Promise 🎅🧡 A Slightly Late Munson Christmas 🎅🧡 The First Countdown 🎇🧡

1986 Did I Forget to Mention That? 🖤🧡 The Freak and His Evil Woman Do Valentine's Day 🧡💘 I Touched Banana Bubblicious For You 🖤 Evil Woman's Tit-Warming Service 🧡 Revenge of the Freaks 🧡 Evil Woman Sees (Big) Red 👊🖤 Taking Matters Into Your Own Hands 🧡 The Fastest Fix-It 🧡 The Devil's Trip 🧡 What If Real Life Is the Nightmare? 🖤 What If Real Life Is Good? 🧡 The Letter 🖤🧡 Heaven and Hell (Or: Eddie and Evil Woman Do… Prom?!) 🧡 How to Get a Hot Date 🖤🧡 Brawl in Hallway B 👊 Gonna Need A Bigger Bathtub 🧡🐠 Munson v. O'Donnell 🖤🧡 Wake-Up Call 🧡 Involuntary Secretary and the Dream Escape 💛 Corroded Coffin v. Slip 'n Slide 🧡 The Legend of Lobster-Dick 🧡 Sweet New Tatty 🧡 Ghost-Fuckers 🧡👻 The Sacrifice 🧡🦇

AUs, Not the 80s, Misc. Eddie Munson and the Worst Valentine's Day Ever (1974) 💝🖤 Fucking Fireworks (1987 AU) 🖤🎇 Clown Around and Find Out (1990) 🤡💛 Draw Me Like One of Your Dwarf Girls, Eddie (1998) 🧡

[frankendykes-monster]

Countdown to Halloween 2024 ranked

54. The Willies (1990)

53. Hell High (1987)

52. Face of The Screaming Werewolf (1964)

51. Terrifier (2016)

50. The Last Halloween (1991)

49. Cathy's Curse (1977)

48. The Last Shark (1981)

47. Godzilla × Kong: The New Empire (2024)

46. Creepozoids (1987)

45. The Horror of Frankenstein (1970)

44. Frankenstein's Castle of Freaks (1974)

43. Man Beast (1956)

42. Tourist Trap (1979)

41. Daughter of Dr. Jekyll (1957)

40. Fiend (1980)

39. Vampyros Lesbos (1971)

38. Devil Girl From Mars (1954)

37. Halloween Hall o' Fame (1977)

36. Nightmare (1981)

35. The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra (2001)

34. Peeping Tom (1960)

33. Violent Shit (1989)

32. Invaders From Mars (1986)

31. Eggshells (1969)

30. Night of The Ghouls (1959)

29. Scream, Blacula, Scream (1973)

28. The Strange World of Planet X (1958)

27. The Colossus of New York (1958)

26. The Scooby-Doo Project (1999)

25. Night of The Living Doo (2001)

24. Scooby-Doo! and The Reluctant Werewolf (1988)

23. The Great Bear Scare (1983)

22. The Wasp Woman (1995)

21. The Cyclops (1957)

20. Frankenstein and The Monster from Hell (1974)

19. The Tingler (1959)

18. The Boogey Man (1980)

17. The Dragon Lives Again (1977)

16. Quatermass and The Pit (1967)

15. The Brain That Wouldn't Die (1962)

14. Mad Love (1935)

13. The Alien Factor (1978)

12. The Walking Dead (1935)

11. Dr. Caligari (1989)

10. The Deadly Spawn (1983)

9. Invaders From Mars (1953)

8. Alucarda (1977)

7. Uzumaki (2024)

6. Sole Survivor (1984)

5. Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979)

4. Shock Waves (1977)

3. Frankenhooker (1990)

2. Invasion of The Body Snatchers (1978)

1. Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974)

What a productive year. October lasts all of 30 seconds which is why I have to start watching these in July if I want to make any decent headway (31 films is not enough). I desperately tried to make this a year of "have not seens" after last year's top spots being flooded with films I already loved; we mostly did it, mostly. Another top heavy year with relatively few abysmal entries, let's get started.

The Willies is the grand shitshow for this year. It feels like it's an evolutionary precursor to something like Goosebumps or Are You Afraid of The Dark?, but it mostly plays to gross out rather than scares. I don't normally care for anthology horror films to begin so to start off a film with brief segments like a woman eating a deep fried rat or a little white dog being microwave exploded and then doing extended stories on monsters hiding in the school bathroom does not do it for me. The most minimal points possible for some decent lighting and special effects but they are not enough by any means to make this worth watching. Stay away.

Onto the 1980's horror: Hell High is what happens when a film crew asks "what if we put a woman into a situation and didn't stop". I want to call it misogynistic torture porn, but I don't want to devalue that phrase for when I use it for a film later on here, but suffice to say a woman is tortured. Emotionally. For very little reason. Universal was right to block The Last Shark from US theatrical distribution. Not because it's a very blatant Jaws ripoff and they wanted to protect their copyright, but because it's abysmal and nobody should have to pay money to see this. I think the stock footage of sharks juxtaposed with the unmoving props between shots is funny, and some of the soundtrack elevates the experience, like the high shrill drones when the shark attacks a helicopter. Creepozoids is an odd one because 1987 was a bit late for a Mad Max/Escape from New York/Alien knockoff but also too early for some Full Moon tier/softcore porn adjacent 1990's production, so it loses out on both fronts. Fiend I'm struggling to even recall, I feel like Don Dohler had one movie in him (see: his plethora of alien invasion films) and him trying to branch out did him no favors. Nightmare is one I want to enjoy because it's beautifully shot but I feel like I've seen one too many slasher adjacent films at this point that include plot points like the killer having a troubled relationship with his mother or him moonlighting as a regular guy (still better than Pieces mind you). Same with Violent Shit. I feel like my tastes are pretty attuned to films that are just gore effects showcases but this one doesn't have any zany concepts to justify or compliment it, so it just falls flat.

The Boogey Man belongs to that tirade of Halloween knockoffs that flooded theaters up till about 1984 or so, but it puts in some extra effort like having a ghost be the main antagonist and a symbolic interest in mirrors, which is much more than could be asked of films like Terror Train which came out the same year. Dr. Caligari is the obligatory "this is what Tim Burton thinks he's doing" film of this year; its sets and its performances are perfectly otherworldly to a humorous degree. It's something of a quasi-sequel to the 1920 film but its relationship with logic is attuned to such a frequency that it's not a hindrance. Very hard to objectively quantify, you're either in the target audience or you aren't, so of all films here take its tier placement the least seriously. The Deadly Spawn is such a gloriously gross film. The house it's shot in isn't supposed to be disgusting on purpose, it's just one of those century's old buildings where I feel like I'd revulse if I had to touch any surface, and that's before fleshy alien monsters break in and start shredding people to bits. Sole Survivor is one of those magical "missing link" horror films, we've finally found what comes between Carnival of Souls and Final Destination. The actual scares in this film are incredibly minimal as it prioritizes atmosphere that balances between comfort and unease, something incredibly rare for films of virtually any genre. Don't go in expecting ghosts and you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Taking a brief-ish detour to the 1960's, Face of The Screaming Werewolf is one of those films I'm more angry at than anything because it's one of those films that's just the combined stray footage of multiple previous films. Rare for these to be produced in the western market (most of the examples I think of are from (south)east Asia) but it's infuriating nonetheless to see something only to discover it's a worse version of multiple better things you could be seeing. Peeping Tom is our "most overrated" entry winner, I don't know why so many people applaud this one, I feel like barely anything of substance happens to such a degree that any ounce of suspense you could draw from this just disappears, and what a shame with the concept at play here that feels as if it would take another decade for everyone else to catch up. Eggshells is the directorial debut of Tobe Hooper and while cohesive narrative is virtually nonexistent here, the amount of experimental editing keeps this going throughout the entire runtime, you can definitely see where The Texas Chainsaw Massacre came from down the line. I feel like I'm somewhat disappointed with Quatermass and The Pit (not sure what "The Pit" refers to now that I think of it) mostly becasue the first two Quatermass films are among the best 1950's science fiction films. All three are theatrical remakes of television mini-series and that's most felt here with how so much of the film takes place in the single location of an unearthed Martian ship in the heart of London. I do love that we have a science fiction film positing that humans are partly the genetic ancestors of aliens prior to people taking that seriously with books like Chariot of The Gods. The Brain That Wouldn't Die is magical, sometimes those oft hated 1950's/1960's science fiction films have something to give back to the rest of us. Here it's a man so obsessed with his own work that he sees his wife's death as an opportunity to try and kill other women so that he can use their bodies as grounds to bring her back. Which sounds like something else I watched...

...said film being Frankenhooker, which has largely the same plot but now functions as a dark comedy. God. I hate so much that the capitalist enclosure on the production and distribution of film prevented us from getting so much more from Frank Henenlotter. The man is one of the best to ever direct horror, and anyone who thinks this film or any of his other work are "bad movies" just flat out do not know what they're talking about. I think compared to Basket Case and Brain Damage however, Frankenhooker is the one that "keeps giving". You think you've seen everything the film has to offer and then something like a hotel room full of women combusts as they succumb to the effects of exploding crack or Elizabeth (the titular character) has her head punched back and starts spewing smoke and electricity everywhere. Film is a magical medium of art.

Terrifier is what I held onto "misogynistic torture porn" for. No narrative, no character work, just opportunities to show Art the Clown dismember and murder women in revolting ways. It's one of those films that vindicates everyone that doesn't like this genre and makes me wonder what I'm doing sitting side by side with people that like this shit. I think Art cutting off a woman's breasts and scalp and attaching them to his nude body to disguise himself as another prior female victim of his is when my mouth went agape and audibly asked what the fuck am I watching, cannot stress enough how much it takes to get that reaction out of me. There's an upfront showcase that Terrifier knows that it's trash and revels in it, I mean there's an early scene where we see Art has spelled out his name in his own shit, and I'm not sure how to interpret that other than I feel like I might be landing in a Duchamp's Urinal trap. For reasons that allude even me I am still eyeing the prospect of watching both sequels.

I think my overall reaction to Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is one of "whatever". A passably bad film is a definite improvement from the abomination that was Godzilla vs. Kong but it's admittedly easy to rise up when you start from the bottom. Adam Wingard more or less sucked all the joy I could muster out of the Monsterverse, I truly do not care anymore. If anything can be gleaned from this film it's that this is a film made to reconfirm people's existing biases of "I hate the boring human scenes, I'm only watching this for the monsters." Kong is the best actor in this film because the special effects team have to have him actually emote in response to a given situation, which is more than could be asked of anyone actually on the set, apparently. It's a miracle that this came out in the shadow of Godzilla Minus One than on its own terms.

The glut of 1950's science fiction films are a perennial staple of the Halloween countdown but they don't have a huge showing this year. Man Beast is one I'm going to confuse with all the other yeti movies of the decade though having a main antagonist that's actually a human hybrid gets it some points for originality. Daughter of Dr. Jekyll infuriates me because women who become monsters in film never get to be "hideous" and "scary" like their male counterparts, I'm throwing tomatoes at this one. Devil Girl From Mars is mostly memorable for having a giant clunky robot a la Gort, but the actual titular antagonist doesn't "serve cunt" enough to warrant interest, she should have taken notes from The Astounding She-Monster. The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra is an honorable mention because it's a feature-length pastiche of the z-grade films of this era. I don't think it's particularly funny and I kind of wish they lampooned a "good" film of this type rather than make something that fits in line with the middling genre efforts. Night of The Ghouls is the last horror film directed by Ed Wood and I feel like I enjoy it slightly more than Plan 9 From Outer Space. It's far more competent in producing that lulling insomniac reaction than Wood's prior efforts but I still don't "get" the attention his work consistently gets. The Strange World of Planet X gets a special pass from me just because the finale has a bunch of giant bugs attacking stuff. Moving on.

The Colossus of New York is an oddball modern Frankenstein of sorts with a guy being transformed into a giant robot and struggling to maintain some attachment to his former life. It doesn't always work but once again giant clunky robots are giant clunky robots. I'm something of a Bert I. Gordon apologist so something like The Cyclops is going to hit harder for me than it does for most people. I just like people wandering around Bronson Cave and poor matte shots of giant animals moving in and out of frame, okay? The Tingler was the oddest revisit I've had in a while. I don't think I fully "get" William Castle's approach to film but what stuck out to me is how this one takes place in largely two locations and how Vincent Price's character is kind of the antagonist, experimenting on animals, himself, and other people (resulting in a murder) to get at the Tingler. Much like in House on Haunted Hill I'm not wholly sure how some of the spooky things in this film actually work and I don't think I'm meant to, adding to the bizarre nature of the entire series of affairs here.

Invaders From Mars...oh yes. One of the absolute best 1950's science fiction films is also the most lyrical and dreamlike. It reads at times like a Soviet parody of an American child's story would be like; a boy sees every institution designed to protect him as a child and as an American turn against him on account of some nefarious foreign invader, so his only course of action is to get the US military involved. It plays out so well because it's a POV piece from a young boy, which eases over any leaps in logic both in terms of form and content of this film. Which is more than can be said of the remake, part of the diminishing returns of Tobe Hooper's then contract with Cannon. The film largely follows the same plot structure but decenters the frame through which we see it unfold giving it a "the military is legit" vibe. It also is just a bit more mean-spirited in ways that are designed to taunt the audience versus the original film's more hardened edge to it. I think a great summation of the difference between the two is that the 1953 film had Martian bodyguards that are clearly guys in fuzzy green pajama suits, but they're more threatening than the ones in the 1986 film which are giant quadruped Stan Winston monsters. I digress. Had this come out 20 years later it would be classified as part of the wave of "why are they remaking everything?"

Speaking of remakes, briefly want to mention the 1995 Wasp Woman. It's The Wasp Woman for the 1990's, now with explosions and softcore sex scenes. I can't wholly defend the original 1959 film despite my affinity for it, so let's just say this one is of comparable quality.

The 1930's are a delightful treasure trove for horror but sadly we only have two up for offer. Mad Love makes me curious as to how other adaptations of The Hands of Orlac handle the material; I was convinced a guy got his head surgically reattached and with artificial hands to boot. Always good to see Colin Clive and Peter Lorre. The Walking Dead feels like a dry run for what Boris Karloff would do later that decade in the much better The Man They Could Not Hang, just with him as the victim here and not the mastermind. Truly some of his best work as an actor as he has to float through the world not being allowed to live or die, that shit sticks with you.

We watched a scant few Halloween specials proper, I always feel like I want to watch every Halloween special possible but sometimes the enthusiasm leaves me. The Last Halloween is trash, but that's on me for thinking something made for very small children would appeal to me as an adult. It crams far too much into its brief 22 minute runtime, so the only thing that manages to escape into the zone of interest is that the CGI aliens are actually very well done for a 1991 television production, had this been all about them (voiced by Hanna Barbara stalwarts such as Frank Welker and Don Messick, along with Paul Williams), this would have been far more tolerable. Halloween Hall o' Fame is the first of apparently several Disney television specials that repackaged their theatrical shorts inside a live-action framing device. It's quaint but this format would live and die by the quality of the shorts included; I'm not intimately familiar with Disney's back catalogue solely because they've barely released anything on home media but I absolutely adore the one where Pluto goes to Hell and is put in a kangaroo court with cats on the jury. I feel like the novelty of The Scooby-Doo Project and Night of The Living Doo have carried them along further than their actual quality have, stray artifacts from when Warner Bros was briefly testing to see if Scooby could be an adult property now, doomed to the same fate as Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law. The latter of these two specials made me come to terms with the fact that David Cross was "a big deal" at some point. The Great Bear Scare is the winner here. How could you not like an animated special where bears have to stand up and be brave against an oncoming horde of Halloween monsters? What makes this an oddity (sort of an obligation for me and Halloween specials) is that this is animated 100% without in-betweens, so every character in every scene cross-dissolves in real time between their keyframes. Depending on who you are it could be ridiculously distracting or make you step back and appreciate how hard animation is.

Clearing out our remaining animated showings, I felt like I would really get back into Scooby-Doo and The Reluctant Werewolf. In the mid-late 2000's when Cartoon Network was desperately trying to excise showing anything from their backlogs, this is one of those films that was on repeat constantly as midday viewings especially over summer. It's just so far removed from what Scooby-Doo "proper" is that it's an enigma, I go to bat to defend each of the "red shirt Shaggy" movies but this is brain melting at times, there is no mystery to solve, monsters are real, Fred/Daphne/Velma are completely absent, half the film is dedicated to a drag race, it goes on and on and on that I feel numb after a bit. Uzumaki...it's good. I feel like the fact that this was in production hell for five years following the first trailer release made me stop caring so all the shenanigans regarding the reaction to the animation dropping off (the production team got screwed over, how the fuck do studios not have the money for FOUR EPISODES, David Zlasv strikes again) brushed off of me. Regardless of that I think the actual pacing would have restricted this given how much sequential material from the manga now has to occur concurrently. It gets by solely because it's Uzumaki and as such it channels such a foreboding sense of dread and despair that is unreal. This more than anything is the true epitome of cosmic horror because there is no "source" or "identity" behind the threat that is warping reality around you, there is nothing to oppose and be defiant against, which was true of the manga and it remains true here. Bravo.

The 1970's prove to be another sporadic decade for horror. Cathy's Curse proves that no matter how good technical effects are, do not watch any Carrie knockoffs. Blah. Frankenstein's Castle of Freaks...you took a movie where a Frankenstein monster fights a caveman and made it boring, congratulations. In the interim between 2021's viewing of Curse of Frankenstein and now, I've made the effort to watch the entirety of the Hammer Frankenstein series. They make for a brilliant reinterpretation of the source material with Frankenstein effectively being antagonist: he kills consistently for his experiments, which often time warp and alter people's identities along with their bodies. The "holy triumvirate" of the series as referred to by me would be The Revenge of Frankenstein, Frankenstein Created Woman, and Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed, all for showcasing new stuff that can be done with the character and any prior influences such as the Universal films being absent. Then comes The Horror of Frankenstein, a soft remake of Curse of Frankenstein, with Terence Fischer and Peter Cushing both absent. It's a dry and tedious affair that just rehashes what Curse already did, just now with a black comedic angle and no real consequences for Frankenstein himself. It's easily the worst of the series and why I'm glad Hammer backtracked for Frankenstein and The Monster From Hell. This is probably the first instance in film history where a sequel has consciously ignored a preceding remake, and while it's not wholly original either, it's comfort food for fans of this series, and now employs a darker more claustrophobic setting in an ~insane asylum~. Not the best ending for the series, but Hammer, along with Toho and Ray Harryhausen's efforts with Columbia, sort of represented the "old" styles of horror that were pretty quickly being replaced as the decade went on. This film specifically came out the same year as the likes of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, it was a transitional period where what horror once was was cast away. Still not sure why the monster in this film looks like a Neanderthal man but that's just me.

Tourist Trap desperately tries to be one part Psycho and one part Texas Chainsaw, and it admittedly starts off with a nice hook of animatronic puppets being the main focus of the film, but it falls through the cracks and just becomes another random 1970's horror film. Vampyros Lesbos makes me realize that my infatuation with Zombi 3 last year did not mean I'm suddenly infatuated with Lucio Fulci's overall filmography, exceptions are not the rule. Come to think I don't think I've seen a single lesbian vampire film that I'm smitten with, how do you make this boring and not sexy at all, fuck you. Scream, Blacula, Scream is the obligatory Blacula cash-in sequel, nothing worthwhile to see here and none of the charm and significance of the first film is carried forward here, sigh. "DEDICATED TO THE MILLIONS THAT LOVE BRUCE LEE," The Dragon Lives Again is one of the plethora of films featuring Lee impersonators following his death, showing Lee in Hell as he has to find a way back to Earth while also fighting off The Godfather, Dracula, The Man with No Name, Emanuele, Zatoichi, and James Bond while allying himself with Popeye and Dr. Who. No I am not making any of this up, yes, this film was made with very little money so it sounds far more interesting than it actually ends up being, but it's a cute film, I can't be mad at a film made for me, nor can a movie showing Popeye eat spinach to fight mummies or Bruce Lee knocking out Dracula with his "third leg" be something you don't go out of your way to watch.

The Alien Factor is Don Dohler's first and best film. I love the fact that a dozen people made a small scale alien invasion/slasher film in their backyards with actually solid special effects for something that was probably made on the weekends. You can't hate this film, it's made from pure love for what was already decades old genre material. Had some of the script and acting been tightened up this could have become one of the more widely recognized independent films of the decade. Oh...Alucarda. I hate when they make a lesbian devil worshiper film between girls coming to terms with theirs sexual orientation and then they aren't the heroes of the story. We've come a long way since then.

Given that the Eggers film is still a few months out, I'd say Nosferatu the Vampyre is my preferred interpretation of the story (not my favorite Dracula adaptation overall mind you). Let me say that I think remaking Nosferatu is ridiculous solely because you're just doing Dracula, again, just with some stylistic details brought on from a specific prior Dracula. But this film goes all out. It's one of those times where I'm reminded of why slowly paced films with shots that last minutes at a time are so great. It relies very little on narrative (the extent/nature of Dracula's power of the geographic barriers between Wismar and Transylvania go unexplained) but you get so thoroughly sucked into the setting and the characters that you can't complain. This has undeniably the best portrayal of Mina in any Dracula film, she's effectively the protagonist by the second half and each of her encounters with Dracula are on her terms, he's effectively powerless against her even if she ensures they both die in the end. Also, rats. So many rats. Everywhere. The plague is in town.

Shock Waves is just great 1970's horror. Shoot on location, hold the camera in hand the entire time, do it cheap, have a dreamy distant narrator, and make it grisly. I do find the concept of Nazis engineering platoons of super soldiers and we only seeing just the one in this film is probably the scariest thing about it, it invites you to think about what else is happening out of sight. My favorite first watch of the year.

1978's Invasion of The Body Snatchers is also a phenomenal remake. This one is difficult for me to talk about because it just pushes all my buttons, I felt like I wanted to cry throughout the duration of this viewing, it is an incredibly mean film. Someone you know just one day turns on you, and then everyone else follows suit. You think you know your surroundings and your city but everything is flipped upside down and you can't even describe why. From the very start when you see the premature pods land on Earth it's made immediately clear that no one is making it out of here, it was too late as soon as it started.

But there can only be one #1, and this year it's Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla. Another instance of "nothing is going to beat this" as soon as I rewatched it. I feel like I'm alone in considering this one of the absolute best in the series, I feel like between the espionage and exploration and blood and laser fights that this is just one of the films that reminds you of why we make and why we watch movies, you get to have some semblance of every possible human emotion watching this. There's not much more you can ask for.

[spider-season]

Halloween countdown 2023: favorite shots in horror films

September 29: Black Christmas (1974, Bob Clark)

[sir-yeehaw-paws]

You seem very knowledgeable so I'll ask you this. What's the deal with V missing the snake shaped scar that John has? Or was the scar fake? It was used to conceal a jigsaw if I recall correctly then disappeared. But how is that possible? Scars don't just disappear. I'm so confused xD Did Ocelot forget?

Hello Anon!

Yeah, that never seems to get a full explanation in game so there are a few theories going for it.

Big Boss' scar did indeed contain a jigsaw within it's stitching. Whether he put the jigsaw in later, or created the scar to be a memory of the Boss I'm not 100% certain; and I don't recall if he still has it post-Peace Walker. I believe that there could still be remnant scarring after the Jigsaw is removed, but I need someone to confirm my memory here. Edit: I've had a little look around the web again, and the consensus seems to be that because the jigsaw wasn't that deep; he didn't have much remaining of it after he removes it. Which could also be why Ocelot didn't bother putting one on Venom. If the scar wasn't present post 1974, there'd be no need to put that on Venom.

But for some other ideas, there are a few possibilities I and others have considered, and tossed around.

Venom is so full of shrapnel it wouldn't matter if he had the jigsaw scar or not. Although his chest doesn't have the brunt of the scarring from what we see, it could be one of those 'write off' things.

Ocelot didn't think it was relevant/didn't bother. This would tie better in with Big Boss not having it jigsaw removal. No point adding something that is no longer there.

He ran out of time. Venom doesn't receive plastic surgery to alter his face in game until around 2 weeks before they escape.While they had probably been doing surgery around other periods, it's possible it was one of those things that couldn't get finished. Venom is described as being 'incomplete' due to having to be woken up before the XOF attack. Even with 9 years to work with, they didn't finish him 100%

But yeah, the most likely reason is BB not having it post '74. And just for the fun of it, some Venom and BB photo tax (including this very amusing link I found for the Venom pics with '166 days, 8 hours, 1 minute, and 59 seconds until we get Sexy Big Boss Action' in a pre-countdown before the release of Phantom Pain. I hope that OP had a great time with Phantom Pain.

I wanna devour this Venom with my bare hands.

[vinyl-connection]

1974 COUNTDOWN | #25 — #21

#25 SANTANA — LOTUS Given that they announced themselves to the world via their performance at Woodstock, it is surprising that this was Santana’s first live album. Recorded during a 1973 tour of Japan and released in May ’74, it is the pinnacle of the band’s jazz-rock phase. Musically, Lotus is a tour-de-force of mind-blowing intensity and passion. Art Direction for the amazing package was by…

[crazyworldofemmamarie]

Dr. Rammstein's Countdown to Halloween:

Day #7: Black Christmas, 1974 (dir. Bob Clark): Not Your Average Holiday Season: Not Your Average Holiday Season: ‎‘Black Christmas’ review by BIRDBRAIN_1974 • Letterboxd

This is for all you folks just waiting on the holidays! This is a personal favourite and I tend to watch during both seasons as it's not only a great Christmas film, but an awesome slasher as well.

[radiomaxmusic]

July 3, 2024: 8pm ET: Classic Countdown: Top 50 Hits July 6, 1974, with Ron Kovacs

[radiomax]

Tuesday, June 6, 2023 8am ET: Classic Countdown: Top 50 Albums of 1974

[days-until-potp-50th]

⌁⚡︎₊˚✮. 🎤 Pinned Post! 🔪 .✮˚₊⚡︎⌁

(Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with the event or its organizers. I just created this blog as a means to pass the time. Main: @weirdbird74)

On November 2nd, 2024 at the Burton Cummings Theatre, Winnipeg will be host to a 50th anniversary celebration of Brian De Palma's 1974 cult-classic-horror-comedy-rock-opera…

Paul Williams (Swan) and Peter Elbling, Archie Hahn and Jeffrey Comanor (The Juicy Fruits) will appear as special guests, "along with others" according to the official Facebook post.

The main event at 7PM will feature a screening of the film, a cast QnA session, a costume competition, and a live performance by the tribute band SWANAGE, with more fun to be announced in the future.

In addition, a screening of Malcolm Ingram's Phantom Of Winnipeg documentary will be held on the evening of November 1, hosted by Harold Oblong and featuring Kevin Smith, and a matinee showing of POTP featuring Williams and the Fruits will be held in the afternoon of November 2nd, before the main event.

Tickets to the main event are now sold out, though they are occasionally being officially resold on Ticketmaster, so keep an eye out!

⌁ ☆ Links ☆ ⌁

50th Anniversary Facebook group: Phantom of the Paradise-50th Anniversary - 1974-2024

50th Anniversary Matinee Tickets: Ticketmaster

50th Anniversary Evening Tickets (for official resale): Ticketmaster

Kevin Smith Gets Winnipegged Tickets (a screening of the Phantom of Winnipeg documentary with Kevin Smith and Harold Oblong): Ticketmaster

Tickets for meet and greet with Peter Elbling (requires a ticket to Kevin Smith Gets Winnipegged): Ticketmaster

A comprehensive history of the bizarre relationship between Winnipeg and Phantom of the Paradise: Why Winnipeg? The 1975 'Phantom of the Paradise' Phenomenon

Swan Archives FAQ (where you can read a bit about previous Phantom-related events in and outside of Winnipeg): The Swan Archives - FAQs & Links

Countdown Neocities (WIP): Days Until POTP 50th...

[lboogie1906]

Kimberly Denise Jones (July 11, 1974) known as Lil’ Kim, is a rapper. She was born and raised in New York City. She would freestyle rap, influenced by fellow female hip-hop artists like MC Lyte and the Lady of Rage. She was discovered by fellow rapper The Notorious B.I.G., who invited her to join his group Junior M.A.F.I.A.; their debut album, Conspiracy, generated two top 20 singles in the US and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.

Her debut studio album Hard Core (1996) was certified double platinum in March 2001. It has sold more than six million copies worldwide and spawned three successful singles: “No Time,” “Not Tonight (Ladies Night),” and “Crush on You.” Hard Core had the highest debut in the US for a female rap album at the time. Her following albums, The Notorious K.I.M. (2000) and La Bella Mafia (2003) were certified platinum. She reached #1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 with the single “Lady Marmalade”. Other notable singles from this period include “The Jump Off” and “Magic Stick,” the latter of which reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming her 2nd-highest-charting single as a lead artist.

She served a one-year prison sentence for lying to a jury about her friends’ involvement in a shooting. During her incarceration, her fourth album, The Naked Truth, was released to positive reviews from critics. A reality series covering her sentence, Lil’ Kim: Countdown to Lockdown, premiered on BET. She released her first mixtape, Ms. G.O.A.T. (2008), and appeared on Dancing with the Stars. She continued to release music and perform. Her fifth studio album, 9, was released in 2019.

She has been referred to as the “Queen of Rap,” as well as her alias “Queen Bee”. She has sold more than 15 million albums and 30 million singles worldwide. Her songs “No Time,” “Big Momma Thang,” and “Not Tonight (Ladies Night)” were each listed on Complex’s list of the 50 Best Rap Songs By Women. She was listed on VH1’s 100 Greatest Women in Music list at #45, the second-highest position for a solo female hip-hop artist. She has one daughter. #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence

[thisisyourdriverspeaking]

Part 6 of my 'motorsport number ones' post. This time it's the random bunch of drivers edition

Sebastien Loeb - (26th February 1974) - Suzi Quatro - Devil Gate Drive

Juan Pablo Montoya - (20th September 1975) - Rod Stewart - Sailing

Mark Webber - (27th August 1976) - Elton John & Kiki Dee - Don't Go Breaking My Heart

Jenson Button - (19th January 1980) - The Pretenders - Brass In Pocket

Felipe Massa - (25th April 1981) - Bucks Fizz - Making Your Mind Up

Heikki Kovalainen - (19th October 1981) - Dave Stewart & Barbara Gaskin - It's My Party

Pippa Mann - (11th August 1983) - KC & The Sunshine Band - Give It Up

Robert Kubica - (7th December 1984) - Frankie Goes To Hollywood - The Power Of Love

Nico Rosberg - (27th June 1985) - Sister Sledge - Frankie

Jerome D'Ambrosio - (27th December 1985) - Shakin' Stevens - Merry Christmas Everyone

James Hinchcliffe - (5th December 1986) - Europe - The Final Countdown

Oliver Turvey - (1st April 1987) - Ferry Aid - Let It Be

Sebastian Vettel - (3rd July 1987) - Pet Shop Boys - It's A Sin

Alexander Sims - (15th March 1988) - Kylie Minogue - I Should Be So Lucky

Molly Taylor - (6th May 1988) - S'Express - Theme From S'Express

James Calado - (13th June 1989) - Jason Donovan - Sealed With A Kiss

Daniel Ricciardo - (1st July 1989) - Soul II Soul & Caron Wheeler - Back To Life

Simona De Silvestro - (1st September 1988) - Yazz & Plastic Population - The Only Way Is Up

Brendon Hartley - (10th November 1989) - Lisa Stansfield - All Around The World

Cristina Gutierrez - (24th July 1991) - Bryan Adams - (Everything I Do) I Do It For You

Abbie Eaton - (2nd January 1992) - Queen - These Are The Days Of Our Lives

Reema Juffali - (18th January 1992) - Wet Wet Wet - Goodnight Girl

Timmy Hansen - (21st May 1992) - K.W.S - Please Don't Go

Daniel Abt - (3rd December 1992) & Alice Powell - (26th January 1993) - Whitney Houston - I Will Always Love You

Christine GZ - (22nd July 1993) - Take That - Pray

Alex Lynn - (17th September 1993) - Culture Beat - Mr Vain

Bubba Wallace - (8th October 1993) - Take That & Lulu - Relight My Fire

Naomi Schiff - (18th May 1994) - Manchester United Football Squad - Come On You Reds

Jessica Hawkins - (16th February 1995) & Beitske Visser - (10th March 1995) - Celine Dion - Think Twice

Nicholas Latifi - (29th June 1995) - Robson & Jerome - Unchained Melody

Jack Aitken - (23rd September 1995) - Simply Red - Fairground

Oliver Askew - (12th December 1996) - Boyzone - A Different Beat

Louis Deletraz - (22nd April 1997) - Michael Jackson - Blood On The Dance Floor

Catie Munnings - (15th November 1997) - Aqua - Barbie Girl

Cem Bolukbasi - (9th February 1998) - Aqua - Dr Jones

Jamie Chadwick - (20th May 1998) - All Saints - Under The Bridge

Kevin Hansen - (28th May 1998) - The Tamperer & Maya - Feel It

Mick Schumacher - (22nd March 1999) - B*witched - Blame It On The Weatherman

Max Fewtrell - (29th July 1999) - Ricky Martin - Livin' La Vida Loca

Robert Shwartzman - (16th September 1999) - Vengaboys - We're Going To Ibiza!

Bent Viscaal - (18th September 1999) - Eiffel 65 - Blue (Da Ba Dee)

Felipe Drugovich - (23rd May 2000) - Billie Piper - Day & Night

Marta Garcia - (9th August 2000) - Robbie Williams - Rock DJ

Liam Lawson - (11th February 2002) - Enrique Iglesias - Hero

Olli Caldwell - (11th June 2002) - Will Young - Light My Fire

Doriane Pin - (6th January 2004) - Michael Andrews & Gary Jules - Mad World

Bianca Bustamante - (19th January 2005) - Elvis Presley - One Night

All added to this playlist 😊