Television personality Lloyd Thaxton passed away last Sunday. He was 81.
Thaxton was a regular fixture on television in Los Angeles in the 1960's as host to a musical 'dance party' show along the lines of 'American Bandstand'.
'Lloyd Thaxton’s Record Shop' began airing on L.A.'s KCOP in 1959, evolving eventually into 'The Lloyd Thaxton Show'.
The hour-long program hit national syndication in 1964 and ran until 1968, featuring guest appearances by top rock & pop acts of the day.
(Below, ▼ with Solomon Burke, James Brown and The Shangri-Las)
What set Thaxton's show apart from others was his wacky and irreverent onstage antics, typified by his customary sign-off; "The name of the show is 'The Lloyd Thaxton Show,' and my name is Lloyd Thaxton."
- - Which would receive an immediate and loud response from his teen-age studio audience - - "SO WHAT!"
"...A favorite quote of his was from a fan who wrote one time and said, 'When I first saw your show, I thought you were making fun of rock 'n' roll. And the more I watched, I realized you were making rock 'n' roll fun.' "
Following the end of 'The Lloyd Thaxton Show', Thaxton went on to host game shows, and eventually moved into producing and directing for television, winning five emmy awards for his work on 'Fight Back! With David Horowitz'.
In recent years, Lloyd Thaxton's blog included news about his current doings as well as reminiscences about his show, his career, and his life.
A blog post he wrote this past May, 'The Do-It-Yourself Obit', is surprisingly upbeat, despite its current layer of poignancy...
Illustrator Alex Schomburg, 'the Norman Rockwell of Comic Book covers and Sci-Fi art' created it in the early 1950's to be used as endpapers for the Winston Science Fiction Series of juvenile-lit novels.
Due to a wacky printing error, DC Comics announced that the entire run of Frank Miller's 'All-Star Batman & Robin The Boy Wonder' #10 they'd just shipped out to retailers last week should all be destroyed.
Follow the link to 'Wash Your Mouth Out With Batsoap' at Comic Book Resources for details on how obscenities in word balloons that were meant to be blacked out remained more-or-less visible.
Oh, Frank Miller, what ever shall we do with you?
So I wonder just how many of the 'offending' misprint books will actually be destroyed, and how many will sell for big bucks in a mad rush?
- - And how will it 'conveniently' affect the overall sales of the title in the future?
UPDATE, 9.15.08: At his blog, The Savage Critics, Brian Hibbs, owner of San Francisco's Comix Experience, explains a few ways in which this Bat-mess hurts comics retailers. (Via Journalista)
3. A couple of notable DVD releases, as some classic exotic foreign cinema is made available here in the states - -
- Aki Kaurismäki's 'Proletariat Trilogy'
Being ever-watchful for impending coolness, I was very pleased to see that there's a new US-Region 1 DVD release coming that features several films by Finnish director Aki Kaurismäki.
'Aki Kaurismäki's Proletariat Trilogy' box set will be released in September by Criterion's Eclipse imprint (their equivalent of an affordable 'budget' label) and will feature 3 films from 1986 - '90; 'Ariel', 'The Match Factory Girl ', and 'Shadows in Paradise'.
Like many folks here in the U.S., I discovered Kaurismäki's films back in 1989 when his first international 'hit', 'Leningrad Cowboys Go America' played here.
That rock & roll road trip comedy was aptly compared to the movies of American director Jim Jarmusch, and it opened the doors for more Kaurismäki films to be shown in American art house theaters.
Over the years I've caught as many as I could, and have loved every one of his beautifully deadpan masterpieces that I've seen.
Kaurismaki releases to DVD in the U.S. have been shamefully spotty however, so it's nice to see something emerge that can eliminate (or forestall) the search for exotic and pricey imported DVDs and a suitable all-region DVD player.
(America can be so backward sometimes)
2002's 'The Man Without a Past' did decent business in this country and is available (and recommended), and his more recent chilled neo-noir 'Lights in the Dusk' can be found on disc here too, so maybe the situation is slowly changing, Kaurismaki-wise...
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'War Of The Gargantuas' & 'Rodan'
Finally, 'War Of The Gargantuas' is available on DVD in the U.S.!
This excites me! I may not be able to quote chapter and verse on the Toho Studios kaiju eiga oeuvre like some people I know, but I did grow up watching all the Japanese monster flicks, and 'Gargantuas' was always my favorite.
It looks like the folks at Classic Media are continuing their streak of 'getting it right' in these latest releases.
In this 2-disc set they've included the complete U.S. release and original Japanese versions of both 'War Of The Gargantuas' and 'Rodan', and have also included a new full-length behind-the-scenes documentary, 'Bringing Godzilla Down To Size'.
You can click over to SciFi Japan for more info and LOTS of great photos.
For me, the Gargantuas movie always stood out. It had action, it had pathos, and for a change it had monsters that weren't reptiles or amphibians.
It also had Russ Tamblyn, a few years after he'd been in 'West Side Story' and had played 'Tom Thumb' for George Pal.
Watching the film as an adult, I can't watch Tamblyn's performance without wondering if he was attempting to bring subtle nuances to the scientist character he played, or whether he was under the influence of something during production, or both.
'War Of The Gargantuas' also has a great musical score, and includes the infamous nightclub scene with a cameo from American actress Kipp Hamilton singing 'The Words Get Stuck In My Throat' (a song later to be covered by DEVO, in their early days).
Below, ▼ a 'music video' constructed from that scene and other clips from the movie...
I'm also happy to see that Rodan is finally getting some love with regard to a definitive DVD reissue as well. It's long overdue.
I know as a kid, I could never quite get as excited by Rodan as the other Toho monsters. Just not as threatening, or something - - ? - - But in later films it was always nice to see him join in on the big smackdown team-ups.
Country singer-songwriter-musician and actor Jerry Reed died of complications from emphysema on Monday the first in Nashville, Tennessee, at the age of 71.
- A great profile page at The Rockabilly Hall of Fame details Reed's earliest ventures in the music industry in the latter half of the 1950's.
His efforts as a recording artist at that time were somewhat abortive, though he had a bit more luck as a songwriter.
Reed's early career was put on hold in '58 for a two-year stint in the military. In the early '60's he began to get back on track selling songs and playing session gigs in Nashville. Things really started to take off around 1965 under the mentorship of producer Chet Atkins, and under contract as a solo recording artist with RCA records.
See also: "Jerry Reed Brought Country Music to a Wider Audience", an obituary at CMT News.
Below: ▼ A guest appearance on The Porter Wagoner Show, performing 'Wabash Cannonball'. Looks like late '60's-early '70's-?
Below: ▼ Circa 1982, performing 'She Got The Goldmine (I Got the Shaft)'
- A memorable moment below:▼ A video clip of Hayes (as introduced Rev. Jesse Jackson) making his entrance on August 20, 1972 at the Los Angeles Coliseum in Watts, at a concert filmed for the 1973-released movie 'Wattstax'.
He kicks off with his big hit...
- Below:▼ Also from 'Wattstax', performing 'Rolling Down A Mountain'.
- Below:▼ From 1974, a trailer for the 'blaxploitation' film, 'Truck Turner' in which Hayes played the title role. Also keep an eye out for Nichelle Nichols and Yaphet Kotto.
A swingin' instrumental version this month, from a giant of the big band era with his 1960's 'New Swingin' Band' lineup, featuring Buddy Rich on drums.
Musician and band leader Harry James (1916 -1983) began playing trumpet as a child, and was performing with local bands in and around Beaumont, Texas in his teens.
He joined Ben Pollack's Dance Band in 1935, and moved over to Benny Goodman's orchestra in 1937 and '38.
James began leading his own band in 1939, and was hugely popular during the war years and beyond.
He led his orchestra for over forty years. In 1983, diagnosed with cancer, he continued performing up until 9 days before his death, in Las Vegas.
From the LP 'The Ballads and The Beat' (Dot Records, 1966), listen to:
- An album cover FYI: ▶ The cover photo of Harry James with trumpet on the right side of the LP cover was taken by legendary music photographer Jim Marshall.
In the video clip below from 1965, ▼ James performs 'Green Onions' with his New Swingin' Band, featuring Buddy Rich on drums.
See also: - More Harry James video clips gathered at the Trumpet Kings blog.
Tenor saxophonist Johnny Griffin passed away last Friday at his home in Mauprevoir, France, a few hours before a scheduled concert.
A pioneer of 'hard bop', the high-speed precision of his playing served him throughout his long career, performing with all the top names in jazz.
"I like to play fast. I get excited, and I have to sort of control myself, restrain myself. But when the rhythm section gets cooking, I want to explode." --Johnny Griffin (quote via The Hard Bop Homepage)
I first became aware of Griffin several years back, after stumbling across his 'Little Giant' LP, from 1959. ('Little Giant' was his nickname)
I immediately fell in love with his sound, especially on the album's opening track, 'Olive Refractions'.
Another great one gone. When it comes to jazz, I'm an enthusiast, not anything close to an expert. - - So although I can't authoritatively tell you what made Johnny Griffin great, I can tell you that he's hot.
A previous post here about actress & singer Lainie Kazan continues to get a fair amount of attention - - some of it no doubt generated by her recent supporting role in another Adam Sandler film, but certainly also due to ongoing interest and curiosity about this talented and singular entertainer.
- - and then there are those who are still just now 'discovering' her.
Time for a follow-up post; Here are tracks from another classic mid-1960's Kazan album!
(Click on liner notes image ▼ to ENLARGE in a new window)
From Lainie Kazan's 'Right Now!' LP, (MGM Records, 1966), Listen to:
- - and so back to Boise. I've landed once again, after much touring and some truly great visits with friends and family.
Since this time last week, Seattle rocked again, as did Portland, 'cuz Portland Rocks.
For the next couple of weeks, 'Back in Boise' will be all about packing and boxing up and storing in preparation for moving. Not quite hauling yet, as I still don't know where I'm hauling to...
...but the archives are embarrasingly vast, and getting everything prepped and secure will be a major ongoing chore.
Boxes and tape and sharpies and heavy lifting! Oh Boy!
1. Speaking of which, looks like among the first wave of packing will be all the little tchotchkes, the 'dork decor', the tableau - -
- - Basically the outer layer of crap arranged 'just so' around all the other crap.
As I start lovingly boxing up all that essential effluvia, my mind always turns to all the old cartoons that warped me a bit when I saw them as a kid, the ones where things on the shelves come alive at night. You know the ones.
Lo, and behold, a link at STWALLSKULL led directly to one of them archived at GoogleVideo.
A classic! From 1936, one of Harman-Ising's 'Happy Harmonies' cartoons, 'Bottles'... ▼
Still great (and creepy) after all these years. My appetite whetted, I searched some more and found all 3 of the crazy 'Three Little Monkeys' cartoons at YouTube:
- And finally, leave it to Warner Brothers to so perfectly lampoon a genre they'd helped to create! Here's a link to one of the best; From 1946, "Book Review", with special appearance by Daffy Duck as Danny Kaye. ▶
Meanwhile...
2. We got letters. I had a very nice note from PhillyRadioGeek, who's been checking out ILTS for about 3 months.
(It's the 'Courtship of Eddie's Father' connection - - got it?)
While visiting, you should also check out his Incredible Hulk and Hulkapalooza posts, for lotsa links to all things large, green, and Gamma-ray irradiated.
- - And speaking of Bixby, don't miss the grainy-as-hell but still fascinating video clip of 'Mr. Rogers Neighborhood visits the set of The Incredible Hulk'! Thanks Philly!
3. Thanks too to Joe Sixpack for sending along the link to the 'Greetings From Joe Cocker' videoclip below, ▼ providing a translation to his historic Woodstock performance, entirely in the same vein as the previously posted Carmina Burana 'translation'.
4. Also this week via STWALLSKULL came a link to a post at Illutration Art about the work of Paul Coker, Jr., an artist who's work from the 1960's and '70's is familiar to many who grew up with MAD magazine, watched any Rankin-Bass Xmas Specials, or who have ever received greeting cards.
5. Yet even still more upcoming (US-Region 1) DVD releases that have got me excited, as does pretending I'll find time to enjoy them all. Nevertheless, in the coming months I'm likely to be looking for some of these:
- TV Shows on DVD.Com has some initial information on 'best of ' editions of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour coming to disc at last, via Time-Life.
Should be some great musical guest appearances and other stuff from this late-60's show.
As is their wont, the Brothers Smothers are planning to begin with material from Season 3 ('68-'69) and then work backward.
- Yes, I'm still a sucker for all things Apatow, and I still hold a soft spot for the TV show 'Freaks and Geeks'.
Increased success of that show's creators and its cast have likely led to Shout! Factory's decision to make the previously limited Freaks and Geeks - Yearbook Edition DVD set available again.
2 extra discs of extra material beyond the regular box set, packaged in a cool and detailed high-school-style 'yearbook' full of photos and notes and other junk for the truly devoted geek.
(It's the version I sought out years ago. No regrets!)
From 1962 - '64, Space Angel was a memorable-if-mediocre animated TV series. A sci-fi adventure that boaste the same static look and disturbing Synchro-Vox 'lip-synch' technique used previously in Clutch Cargo cartoons.
One extra thing that Space Angel had going for it was character designs and artwork by comics / animation artist Alex Toth.
- More more more in ongoing series of boxsets from Warner Home Video...
More singing and dancing in a particularly mannered manner to be found in The Busby Berkeley Collection, Vol. 2 , slated to include 'Gold Diggers of 1937', 'Gold Diggers in Paris', 'Hollywood Hotel' and 'Varsity Show'.
Lots of Dick Powell, plenty of vintage cheesecake in luscious black & white, and not nearly enough Joan Blondell...
... Meanwhile, another feast of the brilliant Edward G. Robinson with a side order of Bogart coming up in the Warner Gangsters Collection, Vol. 4, which will include 'The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse', 'The Little Giant', 'Larceny, Inc'., 'Invisible Stripes' and 'Kid Galahad'.
The inclusion of some of the Warner Studios' more comedic gangster flicks suits me just fine, especially in the case of 'Larceny, Inc.' from 1942.
Great fun in a caper comedy, one that would seem to be the direct inspiration for Woody Allen's 'Small Time Crooks', though Woody apparently hasn't acknowledged it as such.
Edward G. is great as usual, with great turns by Broderick Crawford, a perfectly-utilized Jack Carson, and a young Anthony Quinn.
Watch out too for a small role played by a twenty-something Jackie Gleason.
Greetings from Vancouver, Washington. The travels continue. Seeing sights, visiting my people, getting stuff done, and occasionally enjoying nice weather.
1. Last weekend's Seattle adventure included a trip to Little Red Studio for their monthly 'Psychedelic Show'. (With an emphasis on 'trip')
I'd heard about the theater group from my cousin's tales of his time performing with the troupe, so it was good to put names with faces (and other body parts).
Picture a cabaret of the 'I know, let's put on a show!' variety, but replace Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney with a large revolving crew of aerialists, poets, dancers, musicians, extroverts, exhibitionists and other 'alternative' types.
Put them in a very comfy and intimate theater space in the shadow of Seattle's Space Needle, add some yummy desserts through the course of a casually lengthy evening, hang out and enjoy the fun (and the flesh, as it turns out). A charming experience, and one you may wish to investigate sometime.
- - and don't tell anyone, but I kept that brush they handed me for the nude body-painting session as a souvenir.
2. Monday morning took me north across the border into Vancouver, B.C. for a coupla days of non-definitive happy running about in a truly beautiful and amazing city.
I didn't know about the cool show happening at the Vancouver Art Gallery ahead of time, but it was hard not to spot the ads everywhere on banners and buses, and it turned out to be walking distance from my hotel near the north end of the Granville Bridge...
"One of the largest exhibitions ever organized by the Gallery, KRAZY! occupies two entire floors of gallery space.
"Divided into seven sections defined by medium, the exhibition takes viewers through ever-changing gallery environments, which include a mini-theatre for viewing animated cartoons and anime, immersive video spaces and innovative reading environments for visitors to experience a deluge of manga, graphic novels and comics.
"Built to ensure visitors are exposed to the full breath of the media, the exhibition comprises more than 600 artworks, including original sketches, concept drawings, sketchbooks, storyboards, production drawings, films, video games, animation cels, three dimensional models, sculptures, books, manga and much more."
Highlights for me included exhibits of work by artists and comics creators Harvey Kurtzman, Linda Barry, Milt Gross, Raymond Pettibon, and Seth, original storyboard art from Disney's 'Dumbo' and UPA's 'Gerald McBoing Boing', and 'shadow puppets' from Lotte Reininger's 1926 animated feature film 'The Adventures of Prince Achmed'.
It was a wonderful and slightly odd experience to see the work of so many innovative folks given a proper museum treatment.
Harkening back to my childhood love of comics and animation, I felt a bit vindicated as I pictured the ghost of my mother rolling her eyes and scowling a bit.
3. On Wednesday they allowed me to return to the U.S., and en route back to Seattle I spent part of the foggy day in Bellingham, Washington, discovering among its many charms, within a few blocks of each other;
- A couple of top-notch used book stores - A quite decent comic book shop and a fun antique store - A massive new & used record store, with reasonable prices on some surprising vinyl scores - The unlikely-sounding Tofu Reuben sandwich at The Old Town Cafe. Sounds a bit appaling and like it shouldn't work it all, but tastes great and hangs together perfectly!
Not only is it filled with beautiful old radios and phonographs and other vintage audio equipment, but much of their exhibits are hands-on and decidedly kid-friendly. The space reeks of 'labor of love' and is a treasure to behold if you have any love at all for this stuff or curiousity about the history of audio and electrical science. Affiliated with and helping to support the project is a terrific radio station, housed in the same building.
What a boon to the community! I was very impressed.
Apart from travels in the real world this past week, some other happy discoveries...
4. Below, ▼ 'Alice' - - Pogo's YouTube clip is accompanied by his electronic music piece, 90% of which is derived from the audio track of Disney's animated 'Alice In Wonderland'. Hypnotic!
5. Some impending and notable DVD releases (US Region 1):
- Arriving in September, 'The Best of... What's Left of...Not Only... But Also' will present material from Peter Cook and Dudley Moore's 1960's British TV comedy sketch show on a single disc.
Is this the first US DVD release for any of this material? Maybe more will follow, fingers crossed...
- See also: The Establishment, The Peter Cook Appreciation Society website.
- I've been wanting to see 'Ekusute' (or 'Exte-Hair Extensions') for a couple of years now, ever since catching the horrific and hysterical original Japanese movie trailer at YouTube.
Set to arrive at the end of July as 'Hair Extensions (EXTE): Special Edition', this tale of killer hair run amuck will be released on two discs in the U.S., presumably with an original Japanese version subtitled, and an english-dubbed edit included.
- Also in July, one I've been waiting for such a long time: Director John Sayles' 'Baby It's You', from 1983.
I saw it when it first came out, a couple of times I think.
I remember thinking it wasn't perfect, but it introduced Sayles to me, and it made me fall in love with Rosanna Arquette for a time, so I'm very pleased with the notion of seeing it again.
I'd like to see how the angles of the dysfunctional romance / 1960's odyssey strike me now...
- Lastly, if, like many others, you missed seeing the stellar performances of Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, and Ralph Fiennes in director / writer Martin McDonagh's completely BRILLIANT 'In Bruges' as it raced in and out of theaters like it was being chased by a bull, your opportunity to see this fine film is coming around again, beginning at the end of this month. Seize it.
Once upon a time, the stand-up comedy team of Cheech and Chong emerged as products of the drug- and counter-culture of the 1960's, and rose to great popularity in the 1970's.
Such was their acclaim (and such were the times) that they could even receive favorable press in a mainstream publication (like this one ▶) geared for teenage girls, and share print space with make-up tips and photos of Rod Stewart, Ryan O'Neal and Ali MacGraw.
The fact-filled article below ▼ appeared in the March, 1973 issue of TEEN magazine.
(click on image to ENLARGE in a new window)
Just for fun, a couple of video links...
- First, from a 1978 live stand-up appearance, performing one of their set pieces - - one that would soon show up in the first of Cheech and Chong's profitable string of movies. Click on links to view: 'The Lowrider', Part 1 'The Lowrider', Part 2
On the album, the song segues out from an interview with 'Tyrone Shoelaces' (Cheech) on 'The White World of Sports'
The backing band on the track included George Harrison on guitar, along with Carole King, Billy Preston, Tom Scott, Darlene Love and Michelle Phillips.
Producer Lou Adler was behind the creation of the animated short for 'Basketball Jones', and released it to a few theaters in late 1973 to make it eligible for Oscar consideration.
A lifetime of movies, cartoons, records, comics, bad teevee and lots of other ephemera 'n' junk has left me happily unfit for a normal life in the real world. - - And so here I am. Good to see you're here also! Welcome!
Sound files and other material you may encounter here are only made available for a limited time (as are we all), are assumed to be out of print or otherwise not readily available in these parts, and are meant for educational and entertainment purposes only - - Y'know, for FUN - - and NOT with any intent towards profit or copyright violation. However, I'm ready and eager to immediately remove any potentially infringing posting if it will avoid a hassle or hurt feelings. Please e-mail me if you feel your toes are being stepped on, and I'll happily rectify the situation.
Television personality Lloyd Thaxton passed away last Sunday. He was 81.
'Lloyd Thaxton’s Record Shop' began airing on L.A.'s KCOP in 1959, evolving eventually into 'The Lloyd Thaxton Show'.
What set Thaxton's show apart from others was his wacky and irreverent onstage antics, typified by his customary sign-off; 
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