ROGER CORMAN 1926-2024

Roger Corman and Vincent Price

One of the most influential filmmakers from the 1950s onward, Roger was one of the greatest "hyphenates" (writer/director/producer/occasional actor/etc) in history.

He gave career-starting jobs to numerous future cinema icons from Francis Ford Coppola to Pam Grier to James Cameron to Jack Nicholson to Martin Scorsese to Peter Bogdanovitch.

He revived the slowing careers of numerous 1920s-1950s performers, and made some of them (like Vincent Price and Joan Crawford) pop culture icons!
Plus, Corman brought numerous foreign movies to America that no other US studio wanted to invest in, like Fantastic Planet, The Tin Drum, and Cries and Whispers.

Roger's works are a major part of the entertainment side of my life...and always will be.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go rewatch Gas-s-s-Or-It Became Necessary to Destroy the World in Order to Save It, Corman's final film for AIP!

You'd be surprised how timely it still is!

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How I Made a Hundred Movies in Hollywood and Never Lost a Dime
(Roger Corman's Autobiography)

Friday Fun: Before X-MEN '97! Before X-MEN the Animated Series! There was X-MEN "Pryde of the X-Men"!!!

When you watch X-Men '97 on Disney+...

...ask yourself what do you know about what led to it...even before the now-legendary animated TV series aired in the mid-1990s...

Did you know about the then-heavily-promoted pilot by Marvel Animation, New World Studios, and Toei Entertainment that aired in syndication during September 1989?

Marvel Comics devoted much of their monthly "prozine" Marvel Age's 63rd issue to the project (including a new cover by the pilot's primary character designer Russ Heath which was also used for the first VHS release of the cartoon)!

Here's the main article...

(Note the panels running along the bottom of the pages are actually from a storyboard used during production)

In addition, there was an animators' size-comparison chart...

...and the issues's back cover was an illustration showing the characters'...backsides!

Two special treats for you...

First, the centerfold from this issue of Marvel Age by ever-amazing fan-turned-pro writer/artist Fred Hembeck about the fan anticipation for the pilot...

...and here's the pilot itself!

Note, it's from an EP (6-hour speed) VHS release.

(The slower the speed, the poorer the quality!

But a studio could fit more shows and/or movies on a single video cassette at a bargain price!)

Note: There is an SP (2 Hour Speed) VHS from New World Video...

...released to comics stores and Tower Video (remember them)?
All the others are EP (6 Hour Speed)!

Try to find this version in used video bins!

Don't Miss X-Men '97!

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Marvel Animation Special

X-Men

(A trade paperback "photonovel" graphic novel taken from screengrabs of the "Pryde of the X-Men" pilot!)

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