For episode 261 of Decades of Horror 1970s, Chad picks the troubled Seventies disaster sci-fi flick, DAMNATION ALLEY (1977), featuring Jan-Michael Vincent and George Peppard. The Grue-Crew somehow find the fun and adventure in this awkward train-wreck dud. The film was doomed from the start: bad special effects, botched adaptation of a popular novel, and a race to the finished line against the film that would change how Sci-Fi movies look and feel forever. That film, of course, was Star Wars. Will the Grue-Crew find any rewarding and memorable moments to discuss? Oh, yeah, but not for the reasons Damnation Alley would like. D'oh!

DAMNATION ALLEY (1977)
DECADES OF HORROR 1970s Episode 261

"All the dead are dead - and the living are dying." - Mountain Men to Denton and Tanner

The Landmaster, a unique 12-wheeled amphibious articulated vehicle, created by Dean Jeffries

Director: Jack Smight
Writer: Alan Sharp and Lucas Heller, based on the novel by Robert Zelazny
Composer: Jerry Goldsmith
Cinematographer: Harry Stradling Jr.
Cast: Jan-Michael Vincent, George Peppard, Dominique Sanda, Paul Winfield, Jackie Earl Haley, Kip Niven, Robert Donner, Murray Hamiltion (uncredited)

Synopsis: "In a post-apocalyptic world, a group of survivors travel and find other settlements in huge custom designed all terrain vehicles." - IMDb

For this episode, Doc decided it was time to dive into Roger Corman's Edgar Allan Poe films with the lush, chilling classic, THE MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH (1964). The film's cast includes Vincent Price, Hazel Court, and Jane Asher. The cinematography from Nicolas Roeg is exquisite. Revisiting this film illustrates Roger Corman's talent at its best. A must-see for horror fans, Roger Corman fans, Vincent Price fans, and Edgar Allan Poe fans alike.

Enjoy! - The Grue-Crew

The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
Decades of Horror The Classic Era - Episode 223

Synopsis: "A European prince terrorizes the local peasantry while using his castle as a refuge against the Red Death plague that stalks the land." - IMDb

Quote: "Forgive them? If my hound bites my hand after I have fed and caressed him, should I allow him to go undisciplined?" - Prince Prospero

Director: Roger Corman
Writer: Charles Beaumont & R. Wright Campbell, from a story by Edgar Allan Poe
Cinematographer: Nicolas Roeg (Don't Look Now, Witches)
Selected Cast: Vincent Price, Hazel Court, Jane Asher, David Weston, Nigel Green, Patrick Magee, Skip Martin

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Next up for Decades of Horror The Classic Era is a wonderful pick from Daphne: Vincent Price, Roger Corman, Edgar Allan Poe... THE TOMB O LIGEIA (1964)! See you there!

We want to hear from you – the coolest, grooviest fans: leave them a message or leave a comment on the Gruesome Magazine YouTube channel, the website, or email the Decades of Horror: The Classic Era podcast hosts at feedback@gruesomemagazine.com To each of you from each of us, "Thank you so much for watching and listening!"

The Grue-Crew line up for Bill's pick, EXCALIBUR (1981), a fantasy horror-adjacent epic featuring an amazing cast and stunning visuals. This take on the Arthurian legend is a must watch and deserves attention and discussion.

EXCALIBUR (1981)
Decades of Horror 1980s - Episode 304

Quote: "A dream to some, a nightmare to others!" - Merlin

Synopsis: "Merlin the magician helps Arthur Pendragon unite the Britons around the Round Table of Camelot, even as dark forces conspire to tear it apart." - IMDb

Director: John Boorman
Writer: John Boorman, Thomas Malory, Rospo Pallenberg
Cast: Nigel Terry, Helen Mirren, Nicolas Clay, Cherie Lunghi, Paul Geoffrey, Nicol Williamson, Robert Addie, Gabriel Byrne, Liam Neeson, Patrick Stewart, Ciaran Hinds, Clive Swift

Join the Crew on the Gruesome Magazine YouTube channel! Subscribe today! And click the alert to get notified of new content!

Next up for Decades of Horror 1980s is a pick from Crystal, PREDATOR (1987)! See you there!

We want to hear from you – the coolest, grooviest fans: leave a message or leave a comment on the Gruesome Magazine YouTube channel, the website, or email the Decades of Horror: The Classic Era podcast hosts at feedback@gruesomemagazine.com To each of you from each of us, "Thank you so much for watching and listening!"

Horror Comedies from the1970s, Doc selects the often overlooked or outright forgotten horror comedy from the Seventies, ARNOLD (1973), from director Georg Fenady (Terror in the Wax Museum), featuring Stella Stevens and Roddy McDowall.

ARNOLD (1973)
Episode 260 - Decades of Horror 1970s

The various murders are set up in a way The Abominable Dr. Phibes would relish and in the fashion of an imaginative whodunit or Giallo film. The humor is old-fashioned and more suitable for TV than the cinema. The cast - Stella Stevens, Roddy McDowall, Ella Lanchester - are quite a joy to watch. Some of the humor lands but most of it falls a bit flat. Mileage varies. D'oh!

Regardless, the Grue-Crew weigh in on the film and discuss the merits of the script, the positives of the direction, the fun interactions with the cast, and the often laughable demises...

Synopsis: "After his death, a wealthy man starts killing his greedy and selfish family members, accompanied by audiotapes explaining how and why, but who's actually doing all the killing?" - IMDb

"Arnold is dead. And a newlywed. Don't miss his honeymoon!?" - tagline

Every two weeks, Gruesome Magazine's Decades of Horror 1970s podcast will cover another horror film from the 1970s. The next episode's film, chosen by Chad, is the EPIC disaster from director Jack Smight, Damnation Alley (1977)

Please let them know how they're doing! They want to hear from you – the coolest, grooviest fans – so leave them a message or comment on the Gruesome Magazine Youtube channel, on the Gruesome Magazine website, or email the Decades of Horror 1970s

For episode 222, Chad chooses the often overlooked spectacle from Toho and Ishiro Honda, THE MYSTERIANS (1957). The movie begins with an entertaining, albeit goofy-looking, pointy-nosed kaiju Moguera. Somehow this robot giant monster still works in its own way and the Grue-Crew have their fun with all the shenanigans. Then the actual alien race of Mysterians ghost-light the cast as they plan their invasion. Earth is prepared to battle, however. Check out the review of THE MYSTERIANS and share your thoughts.

"The tragedy of the Mysterians is a good example for us! Don't use science in the wrong way!" – Ryoichi Shiraishi

Director: Ishiro Honda
Writers: Takeshi Kimura; Story by: Jojiro Okami, Shigeru Kayama
Cast: Kenji Sahara, Yumi Shirakawa, Momoko Kochi, Akihiko Hirata, Takashi Shimura, Susumu Fujita, Hisaya Ito

Synapsis: "Shortly after a giant robot destroys a village, aliens from outer space arrive offering friendship. Will the people of Earth tie these two events together?" – IMDb

Join the Crew on the Gruesome Magazine YouTube channel! Subscribe today! And click the alert to get notified of new content!

Next up for Decades of Horror The Classic Era is a wonderful pick from Doc: Vincent Price, Roger Corman, Edgar Allan Poe… THE MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH (1964)! See you there!

They want to hear from you – the coolest, grooviest fans: leave them a message or leave a comment on the Gruesome Magazine YouTube channel, the website, or email the Decades of Horror: The Classic Era podcast hosts at feedback@gruesomemagazine.com To each of you from each of them, "Thank you so much for watching and listening!"

Exploring 80s Slashers - HELL NIGHT (1981)
Decades of Horror - Episode 303

Doc Rotten selects a little known, often overlooked slasher from the early 1980s featuring Linda Blair, Peter Barton, and Vincent Van Patton. HELL NIGHT (1981) sends four college fraternity and sorority pledges to Garth Manor to stay the night in the haunted mansion. Fake Scooby-Doo scares throughout... until the actual monster shows up to pick the cast off... one by one. Sounds like a great premise, right?! Gory, gruesome fun certainly, Eh?! Sigh, only 25% of the Grue-Crew champion the results while the others are less enthusiastic. Check out the podcast to found out who and why?

Synopsis: "Four college fraternity and sorority pledges spend the night in a deserted old mansion as part of a hazing ritual during hell night, where they are stalked by the only survivor of a family massacre from the mansion's sordid past." - IMDb

Director: Tom DiSimone
Writer: Randy Feldman
Cast: Linda Blair, Vincent Van Patten, Peter Barton, Kevin Brophy, Jenny Neumann, Suki Goodwin, Jimmy Sturtevant

Every two weeks, Gruesome Magazine's Decades of Horror 1980s podcast will cover another horror film from the 1980s. The next episode's film, chosen by Bill, is the fantasy EPIC from director John Boorman, EXCALIBUR (1981)

Please let them know how they're doing! They want to hear from you – the coolest, grooviest fans – so leave them a message or comment on the Gruesome Magazine Youtube channel, on the Gruesome Magazine website, or email the Decades of Horror 1980s podcast hosts at feedback@gruesomemagazine.com.

Join The Grue-Crew as they take a look back at the original The Town That Dreaded Sundown from 1976. The blueprint for slasher films of the 80s is clearly drawn in the film's plot including inventive kills, borrowed heavily from the Italian Giallo genre. Ben Johnson, Andrew Prine, and Gilligan's Island star Dawn Well head up the cast. Check out what the crew think of Charles B. Pierce's Seventies horror film. Enjoy!

Decades of Horror 1970s
Episode 259 - The Town That Dreaded Sundown (1976)

Director: Charles B. Pierce

Writer: Earl E. Smith

Cast: Ben Johnson, Andrew Prine, Dawn Wells, Jimmy Clem, Jim Citty, Charles B. Pierce, Cindy Butler, Earl E. Smith

Synopsis: The story of a berserk, hooded killer who terrorized the border town of Texarkana, Arkansas in 1946--leaving no fewer than five murder victims in his wake. He was never caught. Based on one of America's most baffling murder cases.

The Grue-Crew settle in to review the early Sixties fantasy film THE MAGIC SWORD (1962) from director Bert I. Gordon. To the Crew's surprise the film balances it's fantasy with some bonified creepy horror elements with monsters at each curse Sir George, Sir Branton, and the six Knights encounter. For a Mr. B.I.G. feature, the effects, cinematography, acting, and sets are above expectations with Basil Rathbone and Estelle Winwood hamming it up with delicious relish. Also, keep your eyes open for a fun performance from Maila Nurmi... "Vampira" herself!

Decades of Horror: The Classic Era
Episode 221 – The Magic Sword (1962)

Synopsis. The son of a sorceress, armed with weapons, armor and six magically summoned knights, embarks on a quest to save a princess from a vengeful wizard. - IMDb

Writer/Director: Bert I. Gordon
Selected cast: Basil Rathbone as Lodac, Estelle Winwood as Sybil, Gary Lockwood as Sir George, Anne Helm as Princess Helene, Liam Sullivan as Sir Branton, Danielle De Metz as Mignonette, Merritt Stone as King, Paul Frees as Sir Ulrich of Germany (voice), and Maila Nurmi as the hag.

Join the Crew on the Gruesome Magazine YouTube channel!
Subscribe today! And click the alert to get notified of new content!

Gruesome Magazine's Decades of Horror: The Classic Era records a new episode every two weeks. Next in their very flexible schedule – this one chosen by Chad – is THE MYSTERIANS (1957).

They want to hear from you – the coolest, grooviest fans: leave them a message or leave a comment on the Gruesome Magazine YouTube channel, the website, or email the Decades of Horror: The Classic Era podcast hosts at feedback@gruesomemagazine.com

To each of you from each of them, "Thank you so much for watching and listening!"