Part Two of Father Geek's Cool Film Experiences...
Above: Bob Burns resting in his 'Chainsaw' living room. Autographed by Tobe Hooper and Bob Burns.
23. Watching TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE at the Alamo Oct. 30th with the AICN gang and Director Tobe Hooper & Art Director Robert Burns from 2nd row center. I had seen this genre changing, landmark horror film dozens of times prior to this screening and I've known Tobe & Bob for years stretching back to my years in film school, but this was the time I will always keep in mind, everything just clicked.
"Chainsaw's" editing and sound forever changed the way Horror films are made. The flash cuts and Marilyn's screams had viewers everywhere thinking that they saw things that weren't even on the film. To her dying day Harry's Mom thought the film was full of shots of victims being sawed into pieces. This copy was a funky drive-in quality print, bleached out, pinkish, and scratched to Hell, there were a number of jump cuts scattered throughout, (totally appropriate to the atmosphere) and Hooper & Burns talked on forever. Tobe also signed a poster for us.
22. Harry & I gorging ourselves at 2nd row center on all-you-can-eat Spaghetti, 2 different hearty sauces, bottles of imported Merlot wine, crispy tart Caesar salad, and piping hot Focaccia at the Alamo July 30th. Oh yeah, and we saw a beautiful wide screen restored master print of Sergio Leone's great exemplar Spaghetti Western ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST to go along with all that wonderful food and drink.
21. Viewing a totally restored, Mint condition, full length print of the silent classic NOSFERATU by Murnau at the Alamo Cinema on Oct. 29th with an original live score performed by Brown Whornet. This is the one true Great Grand Daddy of all Vampire flicks folks and seeing it in all it's primal glory, well it was just awe inspiring.
The film was projected in it's primary aspect ratio and at it's original silent era speed (something most theaters cannot do) which was a real treat and absolutely necessary to prevent those comical, jerky, speeded up movements and cut off heads many people associate with silent movies. Harry, Dannie, the AICN gang and I had our usual 2nd row center seats, the show rocked and scalpers hawked tickets to the event for $100+ on the street outside.
20. Attending the World Premiere of RUSH HOUR at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood with Harry in September of last year. The "Chinese" was the home of so many of the classic World Premieres including KING KONG. As a kid watching premiere coverage on TV I often dreamed of attending one here. Now was my chanch.
Our limo dropped us on the red carpet with KUNG FU's Kane right beside us and we attended the after-party at Yamashiro's high in the hills overlooking L.A. with a pajama clad Hugh Hefner wandering about pipe in hand, and in the wee morning hours when we got back to our suite at the Mondrian there was a message from John Carpenter asking us to come by his home for coffee, which we did. Toooo Coooool!!!,
19. Going to an all night 5 feature "BLOOD-O-RAMA" at the Kelly Drive-in in San Antonio with 3 carloads of Frat brothers in 1965. By-the-way this was an outrageous $1.50 a carload event. We unloaded our coolers and lawn chairs at 2nd row center and the 15 of us saw 2000 MANIACS, BLOOD FEAST, 10,000 FEET OF BLOODY GUTS, and 2 more I can't think of right now. 1963's "Feast" is one of those genre changing milestone films whose impact you may not like ,but can't deny. "Maniacs" is a cartoonishly gruesome, culty trip through a series of babes being crushed, chopped, and ripped apart. "Guts" offers up the same sort of stomach wrenching fare and appears to currently be "lost", being not available on any video, laser, or dvd lists, no great lost as I remember it.
I was totally unprepared for these films, as were my buds. None of us had ever seen anything like them before. Connie Mason, the Playboy playmate of the year, was why we were there, we thought. Boy were we in for a major mood change!
After the 3rd flick my trusty 4 door, Turquoise '58 Chevy Impala and it's inhabitants were all that remained of our original group. We lived on Lone Star and jelly-filled donuts till dawn's early light. I just now remembered I EAT YOUR SKIN from '64 was one of the others. It's a great little cult number about cannibalistic zombies, guts and blood.
Part One of An Exploration of the Greatest Film Experiences Known In Father Geek’s Life Span!!!
Part Three of An Exploration of the Greatest Film Experiences Known In Father Geek’s Life Span!!!
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