Session: Krazy Krimis -- Get Your Krimi On, Week 3 Movie 1: The Hand of Power (1968) Directed by Alfred Vohrer As always, there may be spoilers here. And the trailer may be NSFW and/or NSFL
Plot:
Some loon in a skeleton costume is killing with a scorpion ring. Hilarity ensues.
Reaction:
Well, this is kind of embarrassing, and I should probably just kind of skip the blogpost about this movie. This was a Thursday night that I was just way too tired to be in class, and I ended up sleeping through most of the movie.
I remember the really cool skeleton costume that the killer wore, the spring-mounted venomous scorpion-tail ring that the killer employed, and the green-hued guy with the backstory. I also remember some really cool music -- these late-60's krimis seem to have the best music. I also remember the discussion about how the skeleton costume made this seem like something right out of Scooby Doo. Oh, also that this was a pretty good revenge story.
But for the life of me I can't remember the movie. As such, I couldn't rate it -- that much I could remember. But I can't even find my notes, so I can't tell you what the others rated it.
Sorry.
PS: In case you're looking for it, this is also known as The Zombie Walks.
Googling myself, I came across this on "Sproutology," a website devoted to the British band, Prefab Sprout.*
Back in 1985, working for a campus newspaper at Queens College, I attended a college press conference for Prefab Sprout -- or, more accurately, for their lead singer, Paddy McAloon. The band had just released Two Wheels Good, and Columbia Records was making a big push.
It was pretty standard as these events went, and I remember very little about what was said during the conference. My most vivid memory is from before the conference actually began. It was a faux pas I committed -- a completely unforced error. At least I learned to keep my mouth shut.**
But before I get into describing the error, let me tangent.*** As I was supposed to, I wrote up the press conference for Skyline (the paper I was writing for, then. I also sent information to Alternative Rhythms, which was a music 'zine I had done a little writing for. I don't recall what I sent them -- most likely the Skyline article, which was poorly written, but full of direct quotes. Sam Rosenthal, who was publishing AR, took quotes from what I sent, and wrote a coherent article.
Anyway, I had gotten to the conference early -- as I usually did for these things. There were two people there before me. A young man and woman who obviously knew each other quite well. They looked a little bit older than me, but I immediately assumed that they were also there representing a college newspaper. I went to another table to grab a press packet and mumbled something about how I should probably read up so I'll know who "these clowns" are. The two of them chuckled and resumed their private conversation. I sat in the front row with the press packet and a notebook.
A while later, after other student journalists entered the room and as the press conference started, I learned that the man at the table was Paddy McAloon himself. He was incredibly graceful about the faux pas, and conducted the interview as if I hadn't just insulted him.
As a PS, I'll note that I wasn't enamored ofPS' music. Stylistically, it never interested me. Except for "Faron" (which was listed as "Faron Young" on the British version of the album, which was titledSteve McQueen. I don't know why record labels do this. At any rate that one song sounded enough like cowpunk (which was just starting to interest me) to attract me. I still like it.Here's a liver version:
*I am not sure whether Sproutology is affiliated with the band, and I don't have enough interest to investigate.
**People who have known me since 1985 may question whether I actually did learn to keep my mouth shut.
***Yes, I know that tangent is not a proper verb. I don't care.
Session: Krazy Krimis -- Get Your Krimi On, Week 2 Movie 1: The Hunchback of Soho (1966) Directed by ALfred Vohrer As always, there may be spoilers here. And the trailer may be NSFW and/or NSFL
Plot:
An heiress is kidnapped and imprisoned in a plot to steal her inheritence. Hilarity ensues.
Reaction:
As much as I enjoyed last week's introduction to krimis, I enjoyed this week's installment even more. Gone were the sober grays -- replaced by the garish colors of the late 1960s. And it wasn't just the color. This was a more exciting film from start to finish.
The Mad Executioners from last week started with a sober show trial (of sorts) underground. This began with a partially undressed woman running from a killer. And we're off to the races. It's not as if the excitement came at the cost narrative. The story here was every bit as strong as that of tME.
What I found fascinating was how much this movie reminded me of other things. The early scene in the police station reminded me of the Batman TV show. And the heiress sounded just like Barbara Feldon.
Of course, I took particular pride in a certain observation I made early on about the titular hunchback's hunch. But let's not go there...
This morning was spent at the funeral of a war hero.
I never had the honor of meeting Rocco Moretto. But, through some volunteer work I did with a couple of military charities (notably The Mission Continues) I've been at a couple of events at the Long Island City VFW Post 2348, which was named after Moretto in 2013. From the post's website:
Rocco Moretto is a U.S. Army veteran, who was drafted in February 1943 and served in Europe as a combat infantryman with Co. C, 26th Regiment, 1st Infantry Division. He landed with his unit on Omaha Beach in Normandy June 6, 1944, and fought with his unit in every major engagement for the rest of World War II, including the Battle of the Bulge and the Battle of the Huertgen Forest. He remained in combat for 11 months until May 8, 1945, known as Victory in Europe Day.
During that period, Moretto was one of only two men from his original company of 219 who survived without being captured or wounded. He was discharged as a staff sergeant and returned home in 1945.
Following the war, Moretto worked for the Pennsylvania Railroad, later Amtrak, until he retired in 1985. He has received a number of honors, including in 2004 when he was presented the Legion of Honor Award from the government of France, the country’s highest military honor. Moretto is a longtime member of the United War Veterans Council of New York, post commander of American Legion Post 6 in Manhattan and has been affiliated with VFW Post 2348 for more than 45 years.
