Short: (1951) After Cody and his team escape, Retik sends his hired thugs on Earth to set up an ambush.
Movie: (1942) A series of brides die on their wedding days, then their bodies are stolen. A feisty lady reporter investigates.
First shown: 12/9/89 (unconfirmed)
Opening: None
Invention exchange: Dr. F has a gift for Larry, Joel demonstrates the chiro-gyro, the Mads show off the flame-throwing flower
Host segment 1: Crow and Tom are reading “Tiger Bot” magazine
Host segment 2: J&tB play tag
Host segment 3: Joel gets a haircut
End: Good thing/bad thing (Tom’s head explodes).
(152 votes, average: 4.02 out of 5)
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• The best way to describe this one is: They’re getting better. The presence of Bela saves this otherwise dopey movie, the riffing is getting stronger each week and the host segments are really coming along. Nowhere near where it’s going to be, but showing improvement.
• And we’re back to the early days, after last week’s flash-forward to the end of the season: There’s no opening segment after the theme song, no Bots are present during the invention exchange and possibly no buttons on the table (the table is not visible during movie sign, so we can’t be sure, but Joel slaps the right side [his left] of the table top, which is not the spot where the buttons eventually would be).
• Both this movie and “Mad Monster” were released in 1942, but this movie beat that one by a week–it opened in theaters a week before “Mad Monster.” But in any case, as mentioned already, “Undersea Kingdom,” made in 1936, beats them all.
• Shadowrama is green this week.
• References.
• This movie is part of the Mystery Science Theater 3000 Collection: Vol. XVI.
• More Asimov references in the sketches, although technically the two shows where he’s mentioned were made seven episodes apart, so it’s not like they were intentionally piling on.
• The “chiro-gyro” and the “flame-throwing flower” were props from Joel’s standup act.
• Joel calls the Mads “The professors” as he walks in to the theater after the opening. Huh?
• Servo and Crow are in place in the theater when Joel arrives.
• Servo’s has had some alterations and is slowly evolving into the Servo we know: his weird fat white beak has changed to the familiar silver one. Also: Servo’s arms are working in segment 1.
• There are two mentions of driver’s ed jargon (“hands at 10 and 2 on the wheel, signal your intentions…” ) in this one. That’s what happens when you have a 17-year-old writer.
• Gypsy’s light is still off during segment 2 (which is a do-over of a segment from K11- HUMANOID WOMAN).
• At the end of segment 2, Joel runs down the doorway sequence and is run over by Cambot. This is the first time he’s done it in the national series, but he did it at least twice in KTMA episodes.
• The third host segment is another classic moment from season one, a re-think of a sketch originally done for episode K10- COSMIC PRINCESS. Great line: “They’re STILL pickin’ up clown noses!”
• In the theater, Joel produces a broom and proceeds to “clean up” the screen.
• Tom Servo’s head blows up for the first time in the final segment. It won’t be the last.
• Cast and crew roundup: producer Sam Katzman also did “Teen-Age Crime Wave.” Producer Jack Dietz also did “The Black Scorpion.” Associate producer Barney A. Sarecky produced “Radar Secret Service” and was production supervisor for “Undersea Kingdom.” Art director David Milton also worked on “The Rebel Set. Sound guy Glen Glenn also worked on “Hangar 18” and “Master Ninjas I and II. In front of the camera, Luana Walters also appeared in “The She-Creature.” Tristram Coffin also appeared in “Radar Secret Service;” “The Crawling Hand and “The Brute Man.” Angelo Rossitto also appeared in “The Magic Sword.” And, of course, Bela Lugosi also appeared in “The Phantom Creeps” and “Bride Of The Monster.”
• CreditsWatch: Melanie Hartley was an additional production assistant and Jim Erickson was additional production staff. Post production audio was handled by Rich Cook and (or of) Teleedit in Minneapolis.
• Stinger suggestion (by commenter CJBeiting): “The moment where the reporter is suddenly slapped in the face by Bela’s wife.”
• Fave riff from the short: “Nipple, nipple, tweak, tweak, fly! fly! fly!” Honorable mention: “Nice shot of me!”
• Fave riff from the movie: “Hey, lady, art exhibit in my nose!” Honorable mention: “Audience baffled by free-floating headlines.”
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Well this is the second time we’ve heard the Mad Scientists convention mentioned. So why does Clayton go alone every year? I can understand why TV’s Frank never got to go. After all he was only a lab assistant. But Larry is a full-fledged Mad Scientist yet he gets left behind anyway.
I for one always thought the chiro-gyro would have been better as a Mad Scientist invention instead of a Joel invention. The evil applications of it are obvious.
The green theater seats would have taken some getting used to and I don’t think the term Shadowrama would have fit them quite as well. It’s a good thing they found a better way to restore the black silhouettes.
Here we are in experiment 105 and it’s Bela’s first appearance. What took so long?
KTMA callback “Daddy, what’s Vietnam?”
During the brief in theater discussion of the scary henchman name of Mike I found myself thinking of what makes a monster host segment from Manos.
All in all (if we set the out of sequence #104 aside) this was easily the best episode of the still young Comedy Channel run. A big part of that is what is probably the best movie of the run. Don’t get me wrong; I’m not saying it is a great movie. But if I was bored I could watch it unriffed and not fall asleep. Yet the riffing was the best so far as well. The quantity of state park jokes is going down and that (like in the KTMA season) is the first sign of the show quickly maturing. All in all a great episode.
Favorite Riffs:
Commander Cody shipmate: “Things are sort of messed up in there but nothing serious.”
Crow: “Just everything’s broken”
Crow sings: “I’m getting buried in the morning.”
Knock at door: Joel: “Candygram.” I love that Saturday Night Live bit.
Car on fire: Crow: “Hey it’s a hot rod.”
About to give an injection: Crow: “Now you might feel a little sting.” And a big scream.
Always thought this movie was just goofy enough to stand up on its own, as far as sub-par Bela Lugosi movies go, what with that motley crew Bela has living in his house. My own favorite moment (and I think Joel points it out) is the guy at the wedding looking right into the camera. OOPS.
And I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again, what an innocent time it was when Commando Cody could simulate tweaking his nipples to get his suit to start up.
There are two mentions of driver’s ed jargon (“hands at 10 and 2 on the wheel, signal your intentions…” ) in this one. That’s what happens when you have a 17-year-old writer.
Driver’s ed jargon has been used in the riffing long after Josh left. For instance, when Crow is being critical of Marty’s bad driving in the swamp in Bride of the Monster.
All I can say about this episode: Cock-A-Doodie Car, away!!!
(this comment is understandable if you’re familiar with Misery)
Crow: He’s trying to commit an inconspicuous murder on the most conspicuous day of a woman’s life.
Another murky B&W thriller, but at least this one moves at a brisk pace and is livened up by Bela, a dwarf, and a spunky heroine. Again, as in Mad Monster, it’s our intrepid reporter who cracks the case, but here it’s a woman who puts her own life in danger for a story, and ends up finding love in the bargain. (And like the female photographer at the end of The Deadly Mantis, is forced to retire from her profession upon marriage…)
The riffing was pleasant enough but none of the jokes really stood out to me on this viewing. I actually enjoyed the movie more that I remembered, probably due to the recent DVD release (Vol. XVI). For all my griping about the over-abundance of Season One episodes since Shout Factory took over, the upgrade in quality makes watching them less of a chore. 2 stars.
Recommended for MSTies: I mentioned it previously in the Mad Monster review, but Voodoo Man is a Rifftrax offering with a similar plot to this film, also starring Bela.
During the Tiger-Bot/Data host segment (around minute 18):
Crow (re. Twiki): That guy couldn’t interface without a load-pan adapter.
Heheh. In Wikipedia’s entry on Buck Rogers’ robot pal, listed first under “Cultural references” is:
Trivia question: In what other episode(s) do they mention him?
#3: Also… “Hey, keep those hands of fate at ten o’clock and two o’clock!”
#5: “Trivia question: In what other episode(s) do they mention him?”
Fugitive Alien, at least:
Tom: It’s a planet of Twikis.
Crow: What could be worse?
“The presence of Bela saves this otherwise dopey movie” Could not agree more! You have to love Bela who goes at this part with incredible professional zeal! Just love how matter-of-factly he proceeds to whip Angel and has that nasty looking whip hanging on his coat rack for easy access. He tops this off by murdering Angel and then, when questioned by Angel’s mother, proceeds to bitch slap her. He didn’t even give her the day off!?
Josh was 17 here? If that’s so, he would’ve been 16 during KTMA, then?
My review from the MST3K discussion board:
Show #105- “The Corpse Vanishes.” With short “Commando Cody pt 3”
Plot: Bela Lugosi plays a doctor who kills beautiful women and uses their blood to keep his wife from aging (jeez, talk about shallow).
Host Segments:
Invention Exchange: Joel’s Chiro-gyro; Dr. F’s Flame Throwing Flower.
Segment #1: Crow and Tom admire the models in “Tiger Bot” magazine.
#2: Joel and the Bots play a game of tag. Joel cheats by running down the theater corridor, only to get “tagged” by Cambot.
#3: Crow gives Joel a haircut.
Ending: Good things and Bad things about the movie.
Memorable riffs from short:
Joel: “And his hair was perfect.”
Servo: “Nipple-nipple, tweak-tweak, fly-fly-fly!”
Memorable riffs from movie:
Character in movie: “Look at me!”
Crow: “No thanks, I just ate.”
Joel: “Oh, great Tony, you shot a midget. Hope you sleep well tonight.”
Joel: “Hey, lady, art exhibit in my nose!”
Joel: “It’s a Wham-O-Magic Window!”
Stuff I noticed:
-The Flame-Throwing Flower is yet another prop leftover from Joel’s old stand-up act. Also the Chiro-Gyro invention was originally used in MST’s original half-hour test pilot back in 1988.
-I wonder if Trace (Dr. F) was at all nervous about the fire flame coming out of the flower in his pocket. That flame isn’t too far from his head!
-Kirk Cameron gets a major put-down in the “Tiger Bot” segment. I didn’t think anyone ever slammed him back in the late-80s.
-The “Tag” segment was originally done on one of the KTMA episodes back in 1988. Including the shot of Joel running down the theater corridor.
-The “haircut” segment was also used in one of the KTMA episodes.
-Servo’s head explodes for the first time in the closing segment.
Fav. riff from short:
Character in short:”Lets get over to the car!”
Servo: “Yeah the bullets don’t hurt over there.”
Fav. riff from movie:
Servo: “May I take your skirt?”
Best segment: The Tiger Bot segment is so nostalgic. The robots that Servo and Crow discuss bring back such TV memories. Does anybody remember “Tweaky”?
Worst segment: The Tag bit is a bit pointless. You get the idea that “The Brains” couldn’t think of new segments for this episode and decided to re-do some ones from KTMA.
Overall: The riffing is actually getting better, but still has some rough edges. The host segments are lacking, but the Invention Exchange is really good. The show is quickly evolving I’d say.
Rating: **
JLH–17, 18, something like that. :-)
This came up in the last episode discussion, but does anyone know if Josh was the big Asimov fan (or detractor)? It seems like there were a lot of Asimov jokes in season one and then virtually none afterwards…
As for the episode itself, I agree with what appears to be conventional wisdom. Getting better, but still not yet great.
Trivia question answer: I think it was Santa Claus v the Martians (I am watching it tonight so I’ll know for sure) but there was a host segment where the bots are saying their prayers before bedtime and are supposed to bless or be thankful for all other robots. I forget if it was Crow or Tom who asks “Even Twiki?”
“That’s what you get for being a sideshow pass-around.” WHOAH, Joel. Wow. Wow.
I don’t know why the Tiger Bot skit amuses me as much as it does. Maybe it’s the implication that because this publication exists, in the MST3K universe robots are commonplace to the point where they have their own magazines. And that those fictional bots are “real”. Overthinking it? Probably.
And the haircut skit. So freaking weird. But so, so low-key funny. (Or maybe I just find the notion of lots of dead clowns really amusing.)
The movie is actually kinda creepy all its own, which is impressive. And all three of them clearly relish doing Bela impressions. But still, even as someone who really enjoys season 1, this is one that’s never really held onto me.
The bedtime prayers was the opening segment of “Catalina Caper”, where they pray for every pop-culture robot from Data to R2-D2 and C-3P0 to the androids from Westworld to Cherry 2000 (rrowr) and finally, after a stern prompting from Joel, Twiki.
#5: Twiki is mentioned during the prayer segment at the start of Catalina Caper, with Joel practically forcing them to include him alongside all their other robot pray-ees.
While this one isn’t as good as “Women of the Prehistoric Planet” it’s understandable because that one was the last one they actually did in the series, while this one came earlier in the season, and as Sampo noted, the good news is the riffing was getting better at this point. The feature was certainly a treasure trove of material, especially since it starred Legosi, which gave Joel and the “Bots plenty of opportunities to whip out their funny Legosi impressions for the first time, and which they’d use to better effect in “Phantom Creeps” and “Bride of the Monster”. And of course this one also comes with another episode of Commando (Pumpkin Boy) Cody, with Tom’s hilarious “nipple, nipple, tweak, tweak, fly fly fly!” whenever Cody began his jetpack takeoff.
Sure, there’s still some draggy moments and missed opportunities but they were getting better at this point and while it’s not a great episode it’s not bad either. 3.5 stars out of five. Solid outing for a group still finding their way.
You know what you really don’t see much of anymore in movies? Hypnotism. Bela hyp-mo-tises the reporter-lady into forgetting her horrible ordeal, hyp-mo-tises doctor guy into forgetting reporter lady’s horrible ordeal…
And how many movies over the course of the series have had an evil guy using hypnotism on his victims?
This is a pretty good episode. I’ve always wondered how they make Servo’s head explode.
Re oldest movie, technically speaking Radar Men isn’t a *movie* per se. So it’s a question of which 1942 movie hit the screens *earlier* in 1942.
“But Larry is a full-fledged Mad Scientist yet he gets left behind anyway.”
If he left, who’d mind the experiment? Inasmuch as Joel is probably smarter than both of the Mads put together, someone has to be there to, I don’t know, watch the consoles for any motion approaching a landing (no pun intended) OSLT.
Before anyone asks, no, I don’t know who would mind the consoles while Larry was asleep. Maybe he sleeps right next to them and the alarms are really loud?
I like this episode, but I’m a Lugosi fan. As usual, the MST3K treatment of Radar Men From The Moon is not to be missed and I think they did a rather good job of making fun of the movie too. The Tiger Bot magazine sketch and haircut sketch always make me laugh, great stuff.
Some classic work here. The movie’s good, Bela doing what he does best, tampering in God’s domain. The short is great as well, big fan of that stuff. The host segments are fun, love those.
I don’t have much to say about this one. I really enjoyed the Host Segments, the Invention Exchange, and the Commando Cody short, all of those things are good, showing vast improvement and resembling more of what to expect from Season 2, et al.
As for the movie itself, ehhhhh, some commenters above have stated their like (love?) of this movie. I can’t agree. While not the absolute pits, this one really doesn’t do much to spike the excite-o-meter. I’ve never really been a Bela Lugosi fan. Sorry. Just being honest. I always preferred Boris Karloff, always liked ‘Frankenstein’ better than ‘Dracula’, and you know, as I type that, I can hear Martin Landau’s voice (as Bela Lugosi in ‘Ed Wood’) yelling and ranting about how Karloff wasn’t fit to, um, uh. . . , you know, it’s not a clean quote, and this is an all ages site, so I’m not going to go into detail. Suffice to say, Lugosi didn’t like Karloff. I think I’ve got off subject slightly here. . .
Anyway, ‘The Corpse Vanishes’ was a crappy movie and this episode had a bit of a lull in the riffing, but despite that I still found a couple moments funny enough to write down:
Joel & The Bots interact with the screen in this one (just like in Ep.104) early on in the film, when they duck so the groom won’t see them. I love when they do stuff like this.
Joel: “Hey, it’s Lee Harvey Oswald! They nabbed him!”
…….Um, that’s all.
MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYBODY!!!!(if that’s okay…)!!!!!!!!
!
You know. . . . .
those random smiley faces in my post above there really peeve me off. They’re supposed to be parentheses, not some winking emoticon.
*sigh*
Odd thing about the Tiger Bot sketch is that it treats Data both as if he’s real AND as if he’s a fictional character (we’ll just work around the whole “exists 400 years in the future” thing). In his remarks, William Shatner co-exists with the Holodeck. But of course, “Just Relax.” ;-)
They also imitate Twiki in First Spaceship On Venus, I think, when the crew’s ‘bot is rolling around on the Venusian surface. “Beety beety beety, wanna dance, Buck?” That joke might have been in other episodes, too, or I might be imagining things. Buck Rodgers was one weird-ass disco mess of a show, when I allow myself to think back on it.
I agree with many when I say I really liked this episode. It is true it has a bit of a MAD MONSTER vibe but still very entertaing. The hair cut segment is one of my favorites from KTMA and the re-due is much tighter and very funny.
3 stars out of 5.
Also, side note: The actor that plays Dr. Foster (Tris Coffin) actually donned the Commando Cody suit first in the Republic serial KING OF THE ROCKETMEN (1948). RADAR MEN FROM THE MOON is the second appearance of the Rocketman and was released in 1952.
@ #22: I’m a Karloff fan and a fan of Lugosi too. I’ve seen that Tim Burton movie about Ed Wood as well and I enjoyed it, but I’m not sure I’d base my opinion of Lugosi (or anyone else) on it. It’s a movie, not a documentary, and plenty of dramatic license was taken with real people portrayed as characters I’m sure. Unless there are a lot eyewitnesses to Lugosi saying some of those things about Karloff, I wouldn’t treat all the dialogue in the film as reliable history or fact. If I recall, there was quite a bit of dispute at the time the movie was released about how accurate Tim Burton’s portrayal was of Bela Lugosi.
To Mr. B(ob)and Watch-Out-For-Snakes -check out The Haunted World Of Ed Wood, a documentary featuring many who knew Ed first hand, and you’ll realize just how much of a fantasy Burton’s ED WOOD was. Don’t get me wrong, I still love the film (where else are ya gonna see George “The Animal” Steele in a movie, let alone playing Tor Johnson???), but it’s nowhere near factual, other than yes, these people really did make these movies together. As far as the Bela/Boris thing, they had a friendly rivalry when they were both working for Universal (mostly made up for PR), but loved working together. Both Sarah Karloff (Boris’s daughter) and Bela Jr. have spoken openly about how untrue Landau’s little rant was, however hilarious it came off as. Sorry, what were we talking about? Twiki?
I found this one boring despite the presence of Lugosi BUT I may watch it again soon and give it another try. The Commando Cody chapters don’t do much for me but the concept could be retooled for a remake. I also think it’s possible (maybe even likely) that both Boba Fett and The Rocketeer trace their origins to Cody, this is exactly the kind of serial George Lucas would’ve watched when he was young.
#5-I think Pod People has a Twiki reference, there’s a shot from the point of view of Trumpy’s evil counterpart and Joel says “B-D-B-D-B-D-What up, Buck?” or something similar.
I felt that the best riff-work in this episode came during the short, Radar Men From the Moon. It was representative of what they could later sustain throughout some of the later episodes, but only here for a short while.
After watching WotPP out of sequence, this one is kind of a let-down. It’s okay, but still, these old movies with mugging leads coupled with the fact that MST3K was still finding itself and moving at a slower pace, makes these early ones kind of tough to watch. I was never a fan of Legosi, even in Dracula, so that doesn’t help.
So, what’s with the reporter lady quitting her job just ’cause she’s getting married? Ah, the Forties.
The serial shorts are pretty dull, too. I liked the later, stand alone shorts that were just goofy advertisements or PSA’s.
Some good lines:
From the short:
“Oh, and the woman will clean up – how PROGRESSIVE.” – Crow
“Why does the Earth have a shadow?” “Why are there clouds in space?” “Why are we WATCHING THIS?” “Daddy, what’s Vietnam?” – Crow/Servo/Crow/Servo
From the movie:
“Candygram!” – Joel “Landshark.” – Servo
“That’s a scary name – ‘Mike’.” – Joel
“Look’s like a train, but he’ll need proof.” – Joel
“Oh, great, Tony – you shot a midget. I hope you sleep well tonight, real nice.” – Joel
“She’s the worst mother in the WORLD.” – Crow
@ lancecorbain & Mr. B(ob) – – I never really took Tim Burton’s highly stylized film ‘Ed Wood’ to ever be a factual or accurate take on Mr. Wood’s life or Lugosi’s. Very good movie, yes. Honest portrayal of history? No, not so much. My ‘Karloff over Lugosi’ opinion is based on the work I’ve seen of the two men, in general I feel that Boris is better than Bela. I guess I brought up Martin Landau and ‘Ed Wood’ because my brain always thinks of that movie when I think of Lugosi, which I guess is a testament to the strength of Landau’s (stylized) performance. Anyway, lancecorbain I will totally check out ‘The Haunted World Of Ed Wood’. Sounds rad.
Ah, the very first episode of MSTK I ever saw. I still remember that Saturday morning (way back in ’89)I was flipping through the channels and I landed on The Comedy Channel (as it was known back then). And there on the screen was one of those old-time serials from the 30’s and 40’s (which I kind of like). And then I noticed the silhouettes.And then I noticed the remarks. I can still remember my first riff: There was a shot of Cody in his car heading towards the Bridge of Death and Josh/Servo says “hey, another good shot of me. I kind of look like Gene Hackman”. Pretty soon after that, my wife joined me and we both watched “The Corpse Vanishes” ( a movie I seem to remember seeing when I was a kid, but not being too impressed with). By the time we got to “Nice Tag!”, two Misties were born.
and we hardly ever missed a show ever since.
All in all, a halfway decent episode from Season One, but one that holds a special place because it was the first.
Favorite Riffs:
Lugosi: “Now I’m going to jump out and scare the pants off everybody”
Lugosi: “Come, Fagah”
Servo: “What did he call her?”
Servo: “Mike. Ooooh, that’s a scary name. The evil henchman Mike”
Joel: “Hubba Hubba, What a suit!”
Being as how I’m new here, I just want to take the time to say “Kudos” to Sampo for this wonderful site and I want to wish my fellow Misties a “Happy New Year!”
Sha-La-la
I know I’ve said this a thousand times but there’s a completely unnoticed (by Joel and the Bots) indication of how miserable the lives of Bela’s sad little family of henchpersons are. Consider: We see the family asleep at one point. It’s a fairly standard night, no reason it should be any different than any other night. And the entire family is sharing one room, all of them sleeping fully clothed, the two guys in army cots, the mother sitting up in a chair.
One can only assume Bela doesn’t pay them enough so they can afford partitions and actual beds yet. Presumably, they’re saving up for that.
Not a bad episode. I’m not big on any of the host segments, except for the invention exchange. I love the look on Trace’s face as he’s demonstrating the fire flower – pride with just a hint of fear that his face will get burned off.
More Cody! The only rocket-man serial I haven’t seen all of is Zombies of the Stratosphere (with young Leonard Nimoy!). Need to hunt that one down, one of these days (last I checked, Netflix didn’t have it even on disc).
One thing that bugs me in this movie is the woman getting married at the end. She spent all of 10 minutes around this guy? Did he see a strong woman with a promising career, and had to stamp that out as quickly as possible? Ah, the 40s.
Loved the Tiger Bot sketch, one of my favorites from season 1. Data always wanting to be human annoyed the hell out of me in STNG so hearing that skewered here was awesome. And of course everyone hates Twiki.
As for the movie, I have to admit I did not find it capable of keeping me awake, I had to skip about 20 minutes of it. The night where the reporter lady stayed at Bela’s house seemed to last forever. And the kidnapping of brides on their wedding day I could see happening once, you would really think after the second time that there would be enough security and maybe the ambulance worker’s credentials would start to be checked a little more thoroughly.
The time capsule aspect of this movie is interesting, people think the world is sexist now (and it certainly is in some ways), I can’t imagine women having to retire after getting married as was apparently the norm in the ’40s. But even this movie isn’t as bad as Project Moonbase that is coming up soon.
To sum up, an OK but not great episode that I probably wouldn’t go back to except for the Tiger Bot host segment.
My mom bought me a VHS copy of this movie back in the early 90s for a birthday present. The tape sat on a shelf in my room for years. I never watched the movie.
I’ve never seen this ep.
Will I ever see it?
Do we have a regular entry for suggested stinger in these comments?
I vote for the moment where the reporter is suddenly slapped in the face by Bela’s wife. After a welcome like that, one wonders why she was surprised by what she found in the house.
Seems like this is one of the least commented on episodes at this site. And I see why. Not much going on, either in the host segments or the movie itself. Most of the segments are just rehashes of things we’ve already seen and the movie might be the most forgettable ever featured on MST (if not for our dear Bela). Even as Lugosi fare goes, this one is pretty unremarkable. Has anyone played more doctors, professors, and counts than Bela?
Crap, I forgot the stinger thing!!! I like your choice, CJB.
#34:
Well, remember, Bela was devoting all of his resources to curing his wife. When you’ve got your eyes on the prize, you tend to forget the incidentals. For all we know, that was deluxe accommodations compared to how the Fagah family USED to live.
Besides, “Don’t you know there’s a war on?” ;-)
#36:
Maybe it wasn’t quite the norm in the 40s so much as what Hollywood in the 40s wanted people to THINK was the norm. Who can say for sure at this late date?
The Corpse Vanishes passes the Bechdel Test. The bride and her mother at the beginning talk about the possibility of the former dying at the alter. The Countess harassing Pat. Pat explains her scheme to Peggy.
For the stinger, definitely the Countess slapping Pat.
What was Cody thinking throwing that grenade? That accomplished nothing except to let the Moon Men know that they failed to kill him and Ted.
Anyone else see a passing resemblance between Dr. Lorenz and Dr. Vornoff from Bride of the Monster?
Notice that, before his head explodes, Tom sings, “Daisy, daisy,” like Hal.
Favorite riffs
They were annihilated. the entire crew was annihilated. But they got the shot.
Spacemen just don’t look at home in a breakfast nook.
My suit’s more comfortable and I’m willing to fight about it.
Nipple, nipple, tweak, tweak, fly, fly, fly!
“Here it goes. All jets.”
Well, one jet.
Why does the Earth have a shadow? Why are there clouds in space? Why are we watching this? Daddy, what’s Vietnam?
“We want protection.”
You should have discussed that with your daughter earlier.
I’m getting buried in the morning.
Seemed like a nice enough fella. At first.
“I just got the picture of the month.”
For Dead Bride magazine.
Hey, do you think he’s a real doctor? I don’t see no diplomas on his wall.
Now we can have the rich taste of bride anytime we want it.
Now you might feel a little sting. Okay, a big sting.
“Can you bear to look at me now?”
He can even look at you bare.
“But if you wish to find out more about them…”
Read about it at your library.
“Lorenz is a doctor himself, but he has no license to practice.”
Making him a quack.
Why I happen to have a hotel right behind this curtain.
This is much better than my old passage through the sock drawer.
That’s just Stanley, the gnarled but loveable garage door opener.
Oh great, Tony. You shot a midget. I hope you sleep well tonight. Real nice.
This movie reminds me a lot of Voodoo Man from Rifftrax. Both have Bela kidnapping young women to rejuvinate a moribund wife. The movie and the episode get a bit murky at the end, but the beginning is fairly strong.
There’s practically an entire subgenre of the basic concept, although sometimes it’s a daughter or girlfriend instead of a wife. The Black Sleep (1956), She Demons (1958), Eyes Without a Face (1960), Atom Age Vampire (1960), The Awful Dr. Orlof (1962), Mansion of the Doomed (1976), and those are just the ones that I could find with relative swiftness. :-)
On another note, this film was but the start of Angelo Rossitto’s career in mad science. His work in the trade continued in Mesa of Lost Women, Brain of Blood, and Al Adamson’s Dracula vs. Frankenstein (shrug “It’s a living.”). Coincidentally (?), in the latter two films, he also had big dumb guys as co-minions (“You know, I like you. You remind me of my brother…”).
It was Billy “Imp” Barty, however, who rose far enough in the field of mad science to become all but a proto-TV’s Frank in the TV show “Dr. Shrinker.”
Yet even his achievements pale before those of Michael Dunn, who stood revealed as no less than a full-fledged mad scientist employed by the US government in “The Werewolf of Washington.” Truly, an inspiration to short mad science minions everywhere.
The short is still funny but the riffing seems a bit light this time. The movie itself is horrible. The way the reporter acts when finding out that another bride is dead is just one of crazy moments. The riffing isn’t bad and the skits tend to be pretty good in this one.