Reading Room: NOT BRAND ECHH "Original Origin of Charlie America"

With the NEW Captain America movie opening this week, we thought we'd present...

...to prepare those of you unfamiliar with the character ('cause we're really nice guys)!

Admittedly, this ain't exactly how they're gonna portray his origin in the movie.

But hey, this classic from Not Brand Echh #3 (1967) is a lotta fun anyway!

 Check out the

Movie Serial Captain America Shirt

or these kool dvds and video cassettes from Amazon...

Classic 1940s Captain America Movie Poster!

Available NOW is a digitally-remastered, magnificent reproduction of the poster announcing the Star Spangled Avenger's FIRST cinematic appearance in the most expensive Republic super-hero serial ever!
He doesn't have a shield.
Or a kid sidekick named Bucky!
In fact he wasn't even scrawny recruit Steve Rogers!
He was "two-fisted District Attorney Grant Gardner"!
(The actor, Dick Purcell, died from the strain of performing the role! No lie!)
There was no Red Skull!
(But the created-for-the-serial villain, The Scarab, was played by classic b-movie baddie Lionel Atwill at his snarling, sneering, smarmy best!)
The heroine, Gail Richards, was played by one of b-movies hottest ladies, Lorna Gray (who usually played villainesses)!
For more info about the 1944 serial, we presented a classic behind-the-scenes article about it HERE!
Makes a great gift for the Captain America fan in your life (or yourself, as long as you're not The Red Skull)!

Fantastic Femmes: Dorothy Dandridge in Tarzan's Peril...UNCUT on TCM!

Saturday morning, 12:00pm (EST)
Right after two chapters of Ace Drummond (A pretty entertaining 1930s serial)

Dorothy Dandridge in her only genre role as Melmendi, Queen of the Ashuba.

The working title of this film was Tarzan's Mate in Peril.
It's an original story, not based on a Tarzan novel or short story.
The first Tarzan picture to have new footage featuring the cast shot in Africa, instead of Hollywood with Africa stock footage.
According to various Hollywood Reporter news items, exterior filming took place from July to September 1950 in Kenya (which was then British East Africa), including Meru National Park, as well as Uganda and Tanganyika.
After eight weeks of interior shooting at the RKO-Path Studios in Culver City, CA, the production finshed filming in Chapultepec Park in Mexico City.
Here's the trailer (in French)...

The shooting of one of the scenes in Tarzan's Peril is featured in the bioflick Introducing Dorothy Dandridge starring Halle Berry as Dorothy...

Reading Room: RACE FOR THE MOON "Thing on Sputnik 4"

As the Space Shuttle makes it's final journey...

...let's look at a tale created during early days of space travel, before Man had made it beyond the stratosphere, when we had NO idea of what awaited us "out there", but it was so kool to speculate...

From Race for the Moon #2 (1958).
Beautifully-rendered by Jack Kirby and Marvin Stein.
It's both amazing and depressing to see what we hoped to achieve in the (then) near-future, and to then see what we actually did...

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The Future WAS Fantastic!

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YouTube Wednesday: Sherlock Holmes!

Here's the trailer for the upcoming flix with Jared Harris as Professor Moriarty.

Note the Mauser in Downey's hand. In 1896, this was THE state-of-the-art pistol.

Now a look at another Holmes and Moriarty...Basil Rathbone and Lionel Atwill!

Sherlock Holmes & the Secret Weapon

Peter Cushing's Sherlock...

Hound of the Baskervilles (1959)

Chistopher Plummer as Holmes vs Jack the Ripper...

Murder by Decree

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