Val Lewton, Russian émigré turned horror master, was a reporter, pulp novelist and MGM publicity writer before moving into film. He spent the 1930s as David O. Selznick’s story editor, directing second unit work on A Tale of Two Cities (1935) and script doctoring Gone With the Wind (1939), warning Selznick it would be “the mistake of his life.” While not Hollywood’s most prescient man, Lewton’s professionalism earned Selznick’s respect, and their collaboration led to Rko offering Lewton a producing job in 1942.
Rko was reeling from Orson Welles’ The Magnificent Ambersons, an expensive flop forcing a refocus on low budget films. Charles Koerner headed the studio’s B Unit, envisioning a horror series inspired by Universal Studio’s successful franchises. Where Universal culled from established literature (Dracula, Frankenstein), Rko worked from Koerner’s whim: he created a title and left the filmmakers to handle trivia like plot and characters.
Rko was reeling from Orson Welles’ The Magnificent Ambersons, an expensive flop forcing a refocus on low budget films. Charles Koerner headed the studio’s B Unit, envisioning a horror series inspired by Universal Studio’s successful franchises. Where Universal culled from established literature (Dracula, Frankenstein), Rko worked from Koerner’s whim: he created a title and left the filmmakers to handle trivia like plot and characters.
- 10/6/2015
- by Christopher Saunders
- SoundOnSight
The sickos behind the Saw franchise, Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan, are at it again in print form along with one of our favorite lunatics, Stephen Romano (Shock Festival), as this trio of terror have shined a Black Light on the horror scene.
We've been talking about their new book Black Light for a while now and just recently caught up with Romano, who had some choice words on the project ...
"Patrick and Marcus have created an amazing new horror character, and I was thrilled that they invited me to help flesh him out for the literary world," Romano tells DC exclusively. "But the new wrinkle this time is that we're not concentrating on a villain, like Jigsaw or Freddy or whatever. Our character is a pulp hero by way of Stephen King or Clive Barker. I don't think we get enough really awesome franchise heroes in the horror universe,...
We've been talking about their new book Black Light for a while now and just recently caught up with Romano, who had some choice words on the project ...
"Patrick and Marcus have created an amazing new horror character, and I was thrilled that they invited me to help flesh him out for the literary world," Romano tells DC exclusively. "But the new wrinkle this time is that we're not concentrating on a villain, like Jigsaw or Freddy or whatever. Our character is a pulp hero by way of Stephen King or Clive Barker. I don't think we get enough really awesome franchise heroes in the horror universe,...
- 8/17/2011
- by Uncle Creepy
- DreadCentral.com
Darby Jones, Bela Lugosi in Zombies on Broadway Karloff & Lugosi Horror Classics: Boris Karloff Disc Matters do not improve much over on Bela Lugosi’s disc. Horror enthusiasts will likely experience a gargantuan case of buyer’s remorse during the first scenes of You’ll Find Out (1940). What they’ll find out is that this movie is a vehicle not for Bela Lugosi, but for comedian/bandleader Kay Kyser and his Kollege of Musical Knowledge band, featuring Ginny Simms, Sully Mason and Ish Kabibble (who appears to have been the visual inspiration for Jim Carrey’s Lloyd character in Dumb and Dumber). Kyser and company’s style of comedy has, shall we say, not aged well, but this is [...]...
- 10/19/2009
- by Dan Erdman
- Alt Film Guide
It’s time for out Top Ten of the week and this time we’re doing things a bit differently here at Wamg. Zombies in the movies are a much-loved genre favorite of fans, held close to their hearts since George Romero first introduced us to the concept on a whole new level back in 1968. Then again, they’ve also spawned some controversy amongst some fans as the genre has split into two basic categories recently… slow-moving zombies and fast-moving, even raging psychotic zombies. Which is right? Which is best? Well, that’s for you to decide. With that in mind, we’ve decided to compile a two-part list, laying out our five favorite slow-moving and five favorite fast-moving zombie flicks. The list also embraces the new ultra-fun zombie comedy from Ruben Fleischer that opens this Friday, October 2, 2009. In addition, its rare that a film not out in theaters yet...
- 9/29/2009
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.