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Monday, April 30, 2012

Beyond the Valley of the Grab Bag! Mystery Photos #51-55!

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Welcome back to the ol' Arcana for another round of Grab Bag Goodies!

As outlined in previous installments, I purchased a few hundred promotional stills that have had their title captions trimmed off. Some I recognize, most I don't. It's up to my faithful readership to help me decipher what they're promoting. Hell, solve enough of 'em and maybe I'll send you some of the duplicates I received!

For those not familiar with promo stills, they occasionally carry a helpful hint or two. Some are branded with a cataloging code of letters and numbers which usually signify an abbreviation of the title (sometimes a retitling) and, if you're especially lucky, maybe the year of release (not to be confused with year of production). And that's pretty much all we have to go on...

The eleventh batch is below; let's see what you've got!

 #51: LIfO-51C

 #52: VF(21-8)-29

 #53: FC-20

 #54: R-12
Temple of Schlock's Chris Poggiali recognized this still as belonging to Bickford Webber's The Runaway aka Runaway, Runaway (1971). The film stars William Smith as a detective trying to track down an AWOL teen who's been shacking up in a commune; naturally, LSD freak-outs and nude beach runs follow. It doesn't appear to have gotten a VHS or DVD release Stateside, though boots seem to be available. (See also: #109.)

#55: 67-26A

Like what you see? Be sure and check out our previous Grab Bag Photos, some of which are still unidentified. Speaking of which, Name that Movie Monday Challenge #24 is still open; I've since added a few worthless hints for frustration's sake. (Challenges #27 & #28 have been solved, but real life keeps interfering with real blog updates! Damn the Man!)

And don't forget, our Upcoming Releases List (the best on the 'net) is constantly updated, so stop by and pre-order some cool stuff!

© 2012 -- Bruce Holecheck. All Rights Reserved.

Saturday, April 28, 2012

The VHS Archives: Carlo Ausino's DON'T LOOK IN THE ATTIC (1982)

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DON'T LOOK IN THE ATTIC
Carlo Ausino's La villa delle anime maledette (1982)

The VHS Archives Factsheet
Label: Mogul Communications, Inc.
Catalog: MOG1017
Box Type: Clamshell
Year of Release: 1987
Runtime: 77:55
Print: 1.85:1 / English / No subs
Extras: None

About the Film
Director: Carlo Ausino
Year of Release: 1982
Country of Origin: Italy
Stars: Annarita Grapputo, Beba Loncar, Jean-Pierre Aumont, George Ardisson,
AKAs: The House of the Damned, House of Cursed Spirits, The Evil Touch

Verbatim Box Synopsis
One day Elisa hears her dead mother's voice calling her to the attic.
She finds her mother's diary in which the terrible events that had occured in the house are explained...
... years pass and Elisa is still there, keeping watch over the house, making sure its tormented spirit sleeps in peace.

 U.S. Mogul Communications sleeve!

U.S. Mogul Communications sales sheet, courtesy of Bill Knight! Check out his rare VHS auctions!

Dutch CVD 16JAAR sleeve, also courtesy of Bill Knight! 

 Italian General Video sleeve!

Spanish A.L. Distribuciones sleeve, courtesy of Marito Almada!

French Horizon Home Video sleeve, originally scanned by "Remirador"!

Behind-the-scenes photo, originally scanned by co-producer Michele Peyretti!

Director Carlo Ausino, star Annarita Grapputo, and co-producer Michele Peyretti! 

Promo photo of actress Ileana Fraja, again scanned by Michele Peyretti! 

Against the title's wishes, are you looking for Don't Look in the Attic? The VHS is available on Amazon here. There's also a bootleg DVD from the hucksters at Televista if that's the way you want to go.

Investigate more titles with Project: MOGUL!

For a look at other labels, check out The VHS Archives!

© 2012 -- Bruce Holecheck. All Rights Reserved.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

The VHS Archives: Carlos Puerto's DON'T PANIC (1978)

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DON'T PANIC
Carlos Puerto's Escalofrio (1978)
 
The VHS Archives Factsheet
Label: Mogul Communications, Inc.
Catalog: MOG1039
Box Type: Clamshell
Year of Release: 1987
Runtime: 79:31
Print: 1.44:1 / English / No subs
Extras: None
 
About the Film
Director: Carlos Puerto
Year of Release: 1978
Country of Origin: Spain
Stars: Angel Aranda, Sandra Alberti, Marianna Karr, Jose Maria Guillen, Luis Barboo
AKAs: Satan's Blood
 
Verbatim Box Synopsis
Don't PANIC ... a terrifying journey into a forbidden world.
And for two young people it is a journey that will twist and scar their minds forever.
The powers of darkness gather, and nothing can stop the orgy of devastation they will unleash.
Evil satanic rites. Human sacrifice. The ancient secrets of the occult.
And as their fear reaches its shattering climax, the horrifying final blow is delivered.
Don't PANIC ... pure evil.
 
 U.S. Mogul Communications sleeve!
 
For alternate VHS covers, check out our Satans Blood listing!
 
(Above cover courtesy of VHS Wasteland.)
In one of their more outrageous bait and switch jobs, Mogul appropriated their entire ad campaign from Ruben Galindo, Jr's ouija board possession slasher Don't Panic (1987)!  I imagine they must've thought they had a deal set for the film, promoted and solicited it, and then run into a snag on the home stretch.  Rather than cancel the title, they simply dusted off their Satan's Blood master and video-burned a new title card.  Viola!  New product!  The real version of Don't Panic can be found on BCI Eclipse's great Mexploitation set, Crypt of Terror: Horror from South of the Border, Vol. 1

While not readily available on VHS, Puerto's Don't Panic has been issued on DVD twice as Satan's Blood, once by Mondo Macabro and later by Scorpion Releasing. Both use the same master, but the Mondo Macabro release has more supplements.
 
Investigate more titles with Project: MOGUL!
 
For a look at other labels, check out The VHS Archives!
 
© 2012 -- Bruce Holecheck. All Rights Reserved.

Sunday, April 22, 2012

The VHS Archives: Michele Massimo Tarantini's CRIMEBUSTERS (1976)

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CRIMEBUSTERS
Michele Massimo Tarantini's Poliziotti violenti (1976)

The VHS Archives Factsheet
Label: Mogul Communications, Inc.
Catalog: MOG1025
Box Type: Clamshell
Year of Release: 1987
Runtime: 87:06
Print: 1.33:1 / English / No subs
Extras: None

About the Film
Director: Michele Massimo Tarantini
Year of Release: 1976
Country of Origin: Italy
Stars: Antonio Sabato, Henry Silva, Ettore Manni, Silvia Dionisio
AKAs: Crime Busters, MKS 118

Verbatim Box Synopsis
CRIMEBUSTERS ... a movie packed with non-stop action, political intrigue and horrific violence.

Set in a terrorist torn Latin country, the head of a paratroop training team wages a one man battle to unravel the illegal activities of a multi-national armaments company. 

Is the company supplying terrorist squads?  As the investigation evolves blackmail, political manipulation and murder emerge as the film builds towards its stunning climax.  A story of kidnapping, espionage and government deceit. 

 U.S. Mogul Communications sleeve!

Norwegian Video Huset sleeve, courtesy of Dag-Johnny Elnes! 

Danish Dansk Video Film sleeve, courtesy of Hans-Jorn Reimer and his Danish Ex-Rental VHS Appreciation Group!

 Swedish VideoTapeCenter (VTC) sleeve, courtesy of Rolfens DVD!

 Spanish Video Distribuciones Valfer sleeve, courtesy of Exhumed Movies' Jose Antonio Diego Bogajo!

German Arcade Video sleeve! 

 UK VTC sleeve, originally scanned by "Inspector Tanzi"!

Greek MV sleeve, originally scanned by "monezza"!

Italian trailer, uploaded by "neverlando74"!

Looking for Crimebusters on VHS?  It's not readily available, but you can get the Italian-language import DVD here. (Warning: no English subtitles!) 

Investigate more titles with Project: MOGUL!

For a look at other labels, check out The VHS Archives!

© 2012 -- Bruce Holecheck. All Rights Reserved.

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Daughter of Grab Bag! Mystery Photos #46-50!

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Welcome back to the ol' Arcana for another round of Grab Bag Goodies!

As outlined in previous installments, I purchased a few hundred promotional stills that have had their title captions trimmed off. Some I recognize, most I don't. It's up to my faithful readership to help me decipher what they're promoting. Hell, solve enough of 'em and maybe I'll send you some of the duplicates I received!

For those not familiar with promo stills, they occasionally carry a helpful hint or two. Some are branded with a cataloging code of letters and numbers which usually signify an abbreviation of the title (sometimes a retitling) and, if you're especially lucky, maybe the year of release (not to be confused with year of production). And that's pretty much all we have to go on...

The tenth batch is below; let's see what you've got!

 #46: 7007-44

 #47: No Markings!

 #48: DC-X-22

 #49: TM-35
I found this still belongs to Raymond Jacobs' The Minx (1969), a corporate espionage sexploiter probably best known today for its soundtrack by '60s U.S. psych-rock outfit The Cyrkle. Dark Shadows actor Robert Rodan mixes things up as a business tycoon preparing a not-so-hostile takeover the way they used to do things: he hires a trio of hookers to hump the signatures out of his competitors! His wife (B-movie starlet Jan Sterling) doesn't approve. Naturally, this one was rescued from oblivion by Something Weird Video, who offer it on DVD-R. (Incidentally, I have a negative set for this film, but it's the "hot" set including all the nude shots. This photo must've originated from the "cool" pics.)

#50: No Markings!

Like what you see? Be sure and check out our previous Grab Bag Photos, some of which are still unidentified. Speaking of which, Name that Movie Monday Challenge #24 is still open; I've since added a few worthless hints for frustration's sake. (Challenges #27 & #28 have been solved, but real life keeps interfering with real blog updates! Damn the Man!)

And don't forget, our Upcoming Releases List (the best on the 'net) is constantly updated, so stop by and pre-order some cool stuff!

© 2012 -- Bruce Holecheck. All Rights Reserved.

Saturday, April 7, 2012

The VHS Archives: Carlos Puerto's SATANS BLOOD (1978)

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SATANS BLOOD 
Carlos Puerto's Escalofrio (1978)

The VHS Archives Factsheet
Label: All American Video
Catalog: AAV104
Box Type: Clamshell
Year of Release: ?
Runtime: 79:33
Print: 1.44:1 / English / No subs
Extras: None

About the Film
Director: Carlos Puerto
Year of Release: 1978
Country of Origin: Spain
Stars: Angel Aranda, Sandra Alberti, Marianna Karr, Jose Maria Guillen, Luis Barboo
AKAs: Satan's Blood, Don't Panic, Shivers

Verbatim Box Synopsis
Anna and Andres, a young innocent married couple are lured into the forbidden world of the occult ... without realizing it Anna and Andres find themselves participating in evil satanic rites.

The final terror awaits them just when they think they are safe.

U.S All American Video sleeve!

U.S. All American Video sales sheet, courtesy of Critical Condition!

For info on this release, check out our Don't Panic listing!

Spanish-language U.S. MGS Films, Inc. slip cover, courtesy of Mike Schack!  Be sure and check out his eBay auctions as GalleryOfTerror!

German Super Video sleeve, originally scanned by "Operazione Bianchi"!

Spanish Exclusiva 79 sleeve, originally scanned by "Tom Savini"!

Spanish RF Video sleeve (with key art cribbed from Vittorio Rambaldi's Primal Rage)!  (Does anyone have a better quality scan of this?)

French Sodisci sleeve!

Figuring no one on this side of the Atlantic would ever know, Mogul recycled the Satans Blood artwork from their 1984 UK pre-cert release of L. Scott Castillo Jr.'s Satan's Blade (1984)!  While Prism Entertainment adopted different (and pretty awful) artwork for their domestic VHS of the film, North American labels Trend and Galaxy appropriated this design, simply masking out Mogul's information and pasting in their own!  This led a lot of people to assume the companies were somehow related, but I'm pretty sure it was a simple case of theft.

While not readily available on VHS, Satan's Blood has been issued on DVD twice, once by Mondo Macabro and later by Scorpion Releasing Both use the same master, but the Mondo Macabro release has more supplements.

Investigate more titles with Project: MOGUL!

For a look at other labels, check out The VHS Archives!

© 2012 -- Bruce Holecheck. All Rights Reserved.

Monday, April 2, 2012

Grab Bag Rides! Mystery Photos #41-45!

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Welcome back to the ol' Arcana for another round of Grab Bag Goodies!

As outlined in previous installments, I purchased a few hundred promotional stills that have had their title captions trimmed off. Some I recognize, most I don't. It's up to my faithful readership to help me decipher what they're promoting. Hell, solve enough of 'em and maybe I'll send you some of the duplicates I received!

For those not familiar with promo stills, they occasionally carry a helpful hint or two. Some are branded with a cataloging code of letters and numbers which usually signify an abbreviation of the title (sometimes a retitling) and, if you're especially lucky, maybe the year of release (not to be confused with year of production). And that's pretty much all we have to go on...

The ninth batch is below; let's see what you've got!

 #41: 7007-16

 #42: 7006-FOREIGN-1 © 1970 American International Pictures
Looks like this photo is from Jules Bricken's Explosion (1969), an anti-war effort starring Gordon Thomson and Don Stroud as draft-dodgers trying to make their way North of the Border.  Ultimately, things go South instead.  I've never seen it, but it sounds pretty good and I'll definitely be keeping it on my radar!  No DVD that I know of, but there's an old TransWorld Entertainment VHS that can be picked up for a few bucks.  

 #43: CB10A

 #44: 7013-4 © 1970 American International Pictures
Thanks to an Anonymous reader for identifying Derek Ford's Groupie Girl (1970), better known Stateside under its AIP release handle, I Am a Groupie. Given its monikers, one probably knows what to expect as a girl finds herself slutting through Britain's late '60s music scene, with typically depressing consequences.  I've never seen the flick, but it sounds like a hoot!  No domestic DVD, though there is a UK disc that may be worth snapping up.  

#45: CPC-MUS-32 © 1970 Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc.

Like what you see? Be sure and check out our previous Grab Bag Photos, some of which are still unidentified. Speaking of which,Name that Movie Monday Challenge #24 is still open; I've since added a few worthless hints for frustration's sake. (Challenges #27 #28 have been solved, but real life keeps interfering with real blog updates!  Damn the Man!)

And don't forget, our Upcoming Releases List (the best on the 'net) is constantly updated, so stop by and pre-order some cool stuff!

© 2012 -- Bruce Holecheck. All Rights Reserved.