FOR THE FUN OF IT:

 

WELCOME WINTER 2024/2025 (12/21)

 

SO LONG, JILL JACOBSON

To Al Adamson fans, you're the possessed and murderous Nurse Sherri, and among related, horror/thriller/fantasy entries, you're noted for Restless Souls, Excess Flesh, Perfect Victims, The Jigsaw Murders, Visage, Last Look, House of Usher (2008), Freddy's Nightmares, Ghost Whisperer, Splash, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Fox's War of the Worlds and the original Quantum Leap.  

Fans also relish your long stint on Falcon Crest (as Erin Jones), as well as your appearances on The New Gidget (as Larue Wilson), Who's the Boss?, Party Down, Sledge Hammer!, Arliss, Castle, Newhart, Hung, Strong Medicine, Crazy Like a Fox, Uncle Buck, My Sister Sam, Murphy Brown, The Devlin Connection, The Circle (which you not only starred in, but produced), The Fix and Days of Our Lives.  

For your cinematic stretch, you complemented Nurse Sherri with roles in Mic Whore (a short, which you wrote and produced), Harper Valley PTA, Policewoman Centerfold, Bad Georgia Road, Up Yours, Watch Out for Slick, Instinct to Kill, After the Storm, Leo and Laurie, Baby Sitter, Obsessive Love, An Uncommon Love and Forbidden Love. 

You were a multifarious actress, Ms. Jacobson, a unfeigned beauty and queen of disarming command, and because of such, you'll be remembered and missed with unbending fondness, uncommon reverence and most importantly, unabating bliss. 

SCARY MONSTERS #137: MAMMOTH TO MINATURE, CHRISTMAS SPECIAL

Scary Monsters #137 is a marvelous submission of colossal scale, matched by tiny (but no less impactful) terrors, packaged in warm, Christmas cheer, thanks to Scott Jackson's colorful, Gremlins-meets-Gorgo front cover, which is joined by an adoring, big-and-small, back collage.  

To commemorate the colorful cloaking, the "Mammoth to Miniature" submits (along with the aforementioned classics) such contrasting entries as King Kong 1976, The Amazing Colossal Man, War of the Colossal Beast, The Cyclops, Dr. Cyclops, Frankenstein Conquers the World, Attack of the Crab Monsters, Attack of the Puppet People, The Devil-Doll, Killer Crocodile, Alligator, Grizzly, The Black Scorpion and Empire of the Ants.

There's also a dandy article on the suave and sinister Vincent Price, plus those favorite, publication staples, "Kaiju Corner," "Trilogy of Terrors," "Strange Days" and the guffaw-bound Roomies from the Tomb. 

Don't miss out on this astounding, nostalgic, holiday compilation. Order at ...

https://www.mymoviemonsters.com/store.php/mymoviemonsters/pd10835043/_scary_monsters_137__mammoth_to_miniature_movie_monsters__preorder

WISE WORDS:

 

LARRY JOHNSON'S TALES OF THE BROKEN B #6: ENTER THE GYPSIES!

Writer/illustrator Larry (Horseman) Johnson's all-color Tales from the Broken B #6 hits the scene, and the otherworldly intrigue is at an all-time high for our amiable, investigative protagonists, Clyde Brittle and Ernie Malone, as well as big-hearted foreman, Sam Gladstone.

In "The Gypsies," the Broken B receives a visit from Vorko and his auspicious band, in hopes of securing a business deal, but the nomads hold a secret, which lies with a medicinal lady named Mariska and her beautiful granddaughter, Delilah, whose husband was recently murdered.   

At its start, the tale captures the essence of an episode of The Waltons that I fancy, which sports the same name as Johnson's yarn, but in the case of Tales from Broken B, the gypsies are motivated by vengeance, relegating the story to the sort of rough-and-tumble yarns one might find on Bonanza, The Rifleman and Gunsmoke, though with a ghostly twist that matches the culminating impact of The Man-Thing's "Night of the Laughing Dead." To say the least, this one pulled me in and wouldn't let go. In fact, its plaintive aura still surrounds me. 

Trust me, folks, this is one to possess!

To order Tales of the Broken B #6, send $6.50 (PPD) via PayPal to LewBrown1@verizon.net. You'll be more than pleased that you did! 

HAPPY FRIDAY THE 13TH (BEST OF LUCK)

 

I saw Kraven the Hunter

Kraven the Hunter is the latest, "Spider-man villain" movie from Sony, and it stars a prolific, genre favorite, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, maybe-future 007 and alternate, Avengers/X-Men Quicksilver, who was also the intrepid lieutenant of Godzilla 2014, after gaining exposure as committed Kick-Ass in two cult movies. 

For the sake of the Kraven adaptation, directed by J.C. (All Is Lost) Chandor and written by Richard (The Equalizer/Expendables 2) Wenk, Art Marcum and Matt Holloway (the latter two of Iron Man/Punisher: War Zone fame), it's more Sergei Kravinoff, the guy behind the feral myth, who's the focus. We learn that he's a Jungle Jim/Tarzan-ish, big-game hunter/hitman, who also despises poachers, and his adventure is revenge-ridden (with or without an attached vendetta, depending on the time and/or mission).  

Though Kraven faces a number of opponents throughout his violent journey, a couple spring from official, Spidey lore. One is Christopher Abbott's the Foreigner, a mysterious, time-morphing mercenary who never fails to gets the jump on his opponents. The other is Alexander Nivola's nebbish but dangerous Alexsei Sytsevich, aka the Rhino, who, once transformed, more than lives up to his old-school, comic-book image. Indeed, both adversaries give Kraven a huge run for his money, but his most dastardly opponent is none other than his dear ol' dad, Nikolai. 

Russell Crowe plays the intense patriarch, an affluent gangster pursued by affluent gangsters, who upholds a Fear Strikes Out, child-rearing adage. His ruthless actions distinguish the plot's power-grab situation, spearheading events enough to put even those close to him at death's door. 

Rounding out Kraven's inner circle is Fred Hechinger's Dmitri Smerdyakov, aka the Chameleon, Kraven's sensitive, stepbrother, who holds the amazing ability to mimic voices and (later) physical forms, in addition to Ariana DeBose's  Calypso Ezili, a priestess/attorney who keeps Kraven's lionized (pun intended) instincts in check, having played an essential part in his extraordinary development. (Levi Miller, Bill Barratt and Diaana Babnicova portray the adolescent versions of Kraven, Dmitri and Calypso during a potent flashback, which forges the story's backbone.) 

The various characters connect well, whether in camaraderie or contention, while creating a world that, though Marvel-based, could just as well stand on its own, if not for the stream of grounded and fleeting tie-ins, including a Daily Bugle headline. 

Rumor has it that Kraven is yet another link in a proposed, Sinister Six production, wherein the famed hunter would team with Eddie Brock/Venom, Max Dillion/Electro, Curtis Connors/the Lizard, Adrian Toomes/the Vulture and Michael Morbius the Living Vampire (with marginal participation from Madame Web and her girls). 

Personally, I'd like to see Spidey (perhaps all three, Peter Parker variants from No Way Home) mix it up with Kraven and his "friends," but box-office receipts will determine that. For now, Kraven works as an uncompromising, tough-guy movie, which should only further entrench the chiseled Taylor-Johnson's position in the action/adventure genre. I also think it's neat that a character I used to gaze upon during my youth, as part of my Spider-man, Aurora kit, has hit the cinematic, big time. That's no small feat, no matter how much attention, praise or (alas) rejection this adaptation draws from the viewing public. 

R.I.P. AMAZING KRESKIN (GEORGE JOSEPH KRESGE JR.)

 

You were always at the top of your game with your mentalist prowess, entertaining legions of fans for decades, which included a special stint at the company where my father worked: a moment that has become fond, family lore. 

You never pretended to be the "real" thing, but rather like Houdini, a performer of high, extraordinary skill, who cautioned against those who claimed to be genuine. 

For the many television appearances and good-natured trickery you gave us, Mr. Kreskin, you have our undying thanks, as you leave a legacy that will inspire others to razzle and dazzle--and all in the most amazing of ways.