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“Creature from the Black Lagoon” Trivia!

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Christopher Fudiccia and ScreenRant posted 10 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Creature from the Black Lagoon.

The Creature from the Black Lagoon is one of my favorite horror films and perhaps the one that is most deserving of an new movie. Fudiccia presents ten fun and informative facts.  Below are three of my favs and my thoughts on each.  Click over the article for all the facts and the full details.

The Film Was Originally Presented In 3D. (I’ve seen Creature from the Black Lagoon many times, but never in a theater and never in 3D.  There’s money to be made if Universal ever decides to do a 3D re-release! – Craig)

Glenn Strange Almost Played The Creature (I did not know this.  Given the fact that Strange played Frankenstein in several movies, he seems like a natural choice… if he was a better swimmer.  Ha! – Craig)

The Gill-Man Wasn’t Really A Monster (This is an argument I’ve heard from fans.  See the rationale Fudiccia presents.  I’d agree except for the fact that the Creature kills two native workers at the start of the film.  – Craig)

Did You Know John Carpenter Was Set to Direct “Creature from the Black Lagoon” Remake?

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At one point a few years ago, John Carpenter was scheduled to direct a remake of The Creature from the Black Lagoon.  In preparation for the film, Rick Baker was brought on board to re-design the Creature based on Milicent Patrick’s original work for the 1954 film.  Although Carpenter’s update was never made, he does have several of the models on display in his home.   

SHOT BY SHOT: MEETING GILL-MAN IN ‘CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON’

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Will Digravio and Film School Rejects present SHOT BY SHOT: MEETING GILL-MAN IN CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON.   If you’re a fan of The Creature of the Black Lagoon, then you know the scene.  Kay Lawrence (Julie Adams) is taking a swim while unknown to her, the Creature is right below her.  It’s a tense, exciting scene and Digravio does a fine job of taking us through it.

I do have one nit to pick though.  Digravio wrote…

By all accounts, Creature from the Black Lagoon is not a great film. It’s a classic and loved by those (like me) who think that Gill-man is one of the coolest monsters.

I beg to differ.  Creature from the Black Lagoon is a great film.  It is a classic and loved by those who think the Creature is one of the coolest monsters, and by those who love classic (monster) films!

 

10 Aquatic Facts About “Creature from the Black Lagoon”

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Mark Mancini and Mental_Floss present 10 Aquatic Facts About Creature from the Black Lagoon.  Here are three of my favorites…

1. THE MOVIE’S CONCEPT WAS CONCEIVED AT A CITIZEN KANE DINNER PARTY.
One night during filming of Citizen Kane, Orson Welles invited one of the movie’s actors, William Alland, over for dinner along with a cinematographer named Gabriel Figueroa. While there, Figueroa shared a story he had heard during his travels of a race of amphibious beasts—half man, half reptile—that stalked the Amazon River. More than a decade later, still intrigued by the concept, Alland dramatized it by producing Creature from the Black Lagoon.

4. A FORMER FRANKENSTEIN ACTOR TURNED DOWN THE MAIN ROLE.
When Boris Karloff retired from playing Mary Shelley’s reanimated monster, Glenn Strange took over. From 1944 to 1948, Strange terrified audiences in Universal’s House of Frankenstein, House of Dracula, and Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein. Years later, the studio tapped him to play their web-footed “Gillman” in Creature from the Black Lagoon, but because swimming wasn’t his forte, Strange declined the part.

9. ITS 1955 SEQUEL WAS CLINT EASTWOOD’S FIRST MOVIE.  
Pleased by the box office success of the original film, Universal rushed a sequel production.  Revenge of the Creature premiered in Denver on March 23, 1955. At one point, audiences got to see future star Clint Eastwood portraying a lab assistant. Though his appearance was uncredited, it hardly went unnoticed when the cast of Mystery Science Theater 3000 riffed  Revenge of the Creature in a 1997 episode:

For Revenge of the Creature, Arnold resumed directing duties and he didn’t care for the young Eastwood’s bit, telling Alland, “I told you I don’t want to do that ******* scene!” Eventually, he relented and the footage stayed in. Eastwood never forgot the experience. As he told The Telegraph, “It was a hell of a way to start your acting career: walk on a set and you know that the director hates the scene. Therefore you know he hates you.”

Z-View – Criminal Macabre / The Goon: When Freaks Collide by Niles, Powell and Mitten

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Criminal Macabre / The Goon: When Freaks Collide is a one-shot published by Dark Horse Comics.

Writers: Steve Niles, Eric Powell
Artist: Christopher Mitten
Colorist: Michelle Madsen
Cover Artist: Fiona Staple

Cal McDonald, the drug-fueled paranormal private dick, goes head to head with Lonely Street’s zombie-pulverizing Goon, in a weird in-between world full of monsters, horror, and humor!

*** Beware – spoilers may be found below ***

The Good:

  • Nice cover by Fiona Staple.
  • Chris Mitten‘s art is a treat.
  • Having Steve Niles and Eric Powell co-write their creations is a plus.
  • “Talking like that just makes me want to kill you twice.”
  • “Don’t touch me. Seriously.”
  • The guest appearance on the last page.
  • Bonus pinup by Ben Templesmith.

The Bad:

  • When you say, “Hey Mo, Check it, The Little Rascals did steroids like Carrot Top” to the Goon and Frankie.
  • “This is a LOT more than I expected.”  “Yep. Me too.”

The Ugly:

  • Wooden stake to the eye.

Criminal Macabre / The Goon: When Freaks Collide

Rating: 5 out of 5

“The Goon” Movie… Let’s Kickstart This Sucker!

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Ten years ago I wrote a post talking about an awesome new comic series called The Goon.  For more than a decade,  Eric Powell [who created, writes and draws] The Goon has continued to produce a comic loved by fans of all ages.

So it was no surprise when, four years ago, The Goon was optioned to become a feature film. 

About a year later we got to see a couple of production images showing how The Goon movie would look. 

Two years ago we were treated to a movie poster for The Goon which was listed as “Coming Soon to a Theater Near You.” 

A year ago we got to glimpse test footage from The Goon.   Each step of the way, the hope for an actual full length feature length Goon film seemed closer to becoming a reality.  Unfortunately, even with David [Se7en] Fincher on board, the financing wasn’t there.

Now thanks to Kickstarter, all that can change.  I’m in.  Will you join me?  The Goon movie… Let’s Kickstart this sucker!