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  1. #31
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    PART II: THE REMAKES - A4

    The sun has come an end today; dusk is giving way to the evening. The sight is beautiful on the beach and weather is California classic. The added bonus is the roar of the waves mask any noise you create. The view is unobstructed - empty miles to your right and left. For this moment, you're safe and have this time to reminisce and collect your thoughts as you sit with infinity before you.

    As the light fades away, you start to notice a dark shape bobbing in the surf. Not quite heading towards you as it is trying to stumble onto land. You stare at the sight for a minute or two then become aware that it has turned it head to your direction. It has seen you. Time to leave once more.

    Never enough time for yourself - even at the end of the world.

    This entry turned so different than when I started. My intent was to do a write-up on a DVD entry on the '68 film that was mentioned briefly in PART III: ANTIPATHY - B. I bought it (new) off Ebay for the Retrospective, then started my research for it. And that set off a series of finds - got more and more deeper this rabbit hole.

    Thought I reached bottom, nope. Discovered the hole went down a bit more. So next month I'll cover that other find and the following month the other (a parallel release, a documentary). In October you'll get that July post. No big loss, it was a warning over a public domain copy from 2005; washed out and too dark. Did some early image work and a comparison on an exact frame.

    So what is this month?

    The new remastered Blu-Ray release of the 1990 remake with the correct image/color. I do not own this, but feel confidant that my data is sound. I'm quite anal. Okay, lets dig in...



    Released on April 6th, 2016 from Umbrella Entertainment in Australia for $24.99. It's SKU is 936252. Catalog number is DAVID3460. The region B/4 (1080p) came in a common BD case. It came with a reversible wraparound, seen above right. While it is region B, it is in fact not locked, making this effectively region 0 disc. So "A" players can play it.

    As far as my research has found, there was no booklet/insert included nor slipcase issued.

    The motion picture is eighty-eight minutes long.

    - - -

    Extras:

    * Newly remastered print
    * Commentary: director Tom Savini
    * "The Dead Walk: Remaking A Classic" making-of featurette (full screen, 24:52 minutes)
    * Interview with Savini (widescreen, 28 minutes approximately)
    * Interview with actress Patricia Tallman (widescreen, 16:30 minutes approximately)
    * Interview with special effects men John Vulich & Everrett Burrell (widescreen, 21 minutes approximately)
    * Behind-the-scenes video tape footage (full screen, 8 minutes approximately)
    * Theatrical Trailer (in HD, widescreen)

    - - -

    Audio:

    * 5.1 DTS-HD MA

    - - -

    NOTES/RANT

    There are subtitles in English.

    The BD is not dubbed in any language(s).

    It is presented in anamorphic widescreen.



    This BD does not carry over Paul McCollough's isolated score from the Twilight Time release. And should be noted that the new extras (minus the making of featurette) were mastered in PAL, not NTSC. So this may be a problem us Yanks to view.

    Should also be noted, the sound mix here is different from TT, not that 5.1 audio. The remastered was done by Sony. This is also NOT the HD copy that was on Vudu streaming service (which is cropped).

    The movie is framed at 1.77:1, if curious.

    When was the new transfer made? Don't know, just that it's a massive improvement over the last.

    At first, thought these were the fabled extras Sony made for their aborted 20th Anniversary special edition (from 2010). Nope. These were recorded in 2016 by Michael "Slipcase" Felsher for Red Shirt Pictures; his company produces DVD/BD special content.

    Still leaves me wondering how much - if anything was done extra wise for that '10 non-release.

    Should you care, that notice "rating" on the case is a sticker, not printed on the wraparound. Can be removed or simply moved into another case, your prerogative.

    By the way, the extra features - run times comes from a YouTuber, Pizowell - his video "NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1990) - Movie-Blu-ray Review (Umbrella Entertainment)".

    The alternate cover is artwork by Simon Sherry. He's a polarizing, some are not fans of his art. I am in that camp - this should've been much better.

    This came in three editions, the first version just mentioned.

    The Blu-Ray was also released as an exclusive, limited edition two disc set from the Australian electronics store chain, JP Hi-Fi.



    Sold for $39.99. SKU is 889426. Catalog number is DAVID3487. The second disc (NOTLD '68) is region free (1080p). The set came in a common two disc BD case.

    They took the 1990 movie and paired it with the 1968 film; limited to 2,300 copies and quickly sold out. And like the regular edition comes with reversible wraparound (as seen above). The front (alternate) features the same art as the regular edition. The back as the '68 artwork.

    The '90 movie is the same as the regular Blu-Ray release.



    The 1968 movie is a previous Umbrella Entertainment BD release (from September 8th, 2010; sold for $39.95; no slipcover nor insert) - didn't know about it until researching this entry.

    - - -

    Extras:

    * "Reflections On The Living Dead" making-of documentary (remastered with new interviews; full screen 80:00 minutes)
    * TV spot (full screen, not HD)
    * Theatrical Trailer (full screen, not HD)
    * Home Video Ads: Umbrella Entertainment trailers for their releases of "The Dawn of the Dead" (full screen, 1978) and "Day Of The Dead" (non-anamorphic, 1986).

    - - -

    Audio:

    * 2.0 DTS-HD MA

    - - -

    The motion picture is ninety-six minutes long and in full screen (1080p).

    The 1968 movie has no subtitles. The picture has been cropped, slightly.

    The BD is not dubbed in any language(s).

    The same remastered transfer used for the 2008, 40th Anniversary Edition (written about in PART I: THE 1968 CLASSIC - C).

    As with the 1990 extras, some bonus features here were also mastered in PAL; I suspect these are the ads and documentary.

    BUT - this Blu-Ray features an alternate music by Scott Vladimir Licina who wrote a new score for the movie; used in "Night Of The Living Dead: 30th Anniversary" (1999) as written about in PART III: ANTIPATHY - A.

    Man, this is an odd extra; "Reflections On The Living Dead" was originally released in 1993 on VHS as "Night Of The Living Dead: 25th Anniversary Documentary". It features interviews with George A. Romero, John A. Russo, Russell W. Streiner and Karl Hardman. Along with filmmakers Wes Craven, Sam Raimi, Tobe Hooper and John Landis.

    Written and directed by Thomas Brown.



    Apologize for the poor image; was the best I could find - took far too long to make presentable.

    The original had a run time of 55:42 minutes in hi-fi mono (VHS UPC# 0-82551-3193-2). Released by Simitar Entertainment Inc.; a two cassette box set (catalog number 3159) with an embossed foil slipcase. The first tape is the movie with an introduction by actor John Carradine (that's random). The second tape is the doc.

    It was also released separately too.

    The documentary was remastered in 2005, recut with new interviews with Hardman, Marilyn Eastman and Judith O’Dea. Recut since so many moaned about how dull the original was.

    Made me search, discovered that "Reflections" is available here, but as a MOD, official DVD-R release from Tempe Entertainment. I will be buying this soon enough; future write up.

    - - -



    Anyhow, the 1990 remaster was also released on DVD by them, same day. SKU is 936256. Catalog number is DAVID3461.

    Sold for $14.99, but only came with one extra, Savini commentary. Which sucks for DVD owners, there is no reason why this couldn't be a two disc set. It's a classic horror movie, folks would buy.

    The DVD has no reversible cover.

    *sigh*

    Since this came from Sony (new transfer), I can only hope there will be a region 1 DVD release in the near future. NOT like what happened in Australia; a two disc set with extras (the same). I would buy that on street. Have it come out on Blu-Ray too, just have the same bonuses.



    A mad dash. This all came about last Saturday (July 9th) when that other DVD arrived. The above got written up/finished on the 13th. Man, I must be a fan. Come back here on August 18th, 2016 for another 1990 entry, the bootleg kind.
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 10-30-2018 at 04:56 AM.

  2. #32
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    PART II: THE REMAKES - A5

    All that can be said is that this is a double edge sword, so much a net neutral.

    When you went into town searching for supplies, the plan was to get in, get out - not be seen. Nope. That was a massive failure. Almost like they were congregated in one area, the same spot where you dropped an empty tin gasoline canister which proceeded to ricochet from rack to rack - knocking other objects which in turn repeat. The only good thing to come of this debacle is you found eight can of Spam and three unopened bottles of Sprite all of which you stuffed into your backpack.

    They're coming to get you.

    Good news? Nope. You found under a tarp in an open parking lot, a pink scooter. And some minor luck, keys to it on the floor a few feet away next to a brown spot, no body. He/she must've gotten back up. And that's now. The damn thing is going as fast as it can go which can only be surmised this thing needed a mechanic. Moving faster than speed walking, but making so much racket as to draw everyone to your location.

    All of them moving in your direction, arms and mouth open for business. Even if there was a switch to lower the motor's volume - the roar from the dead behind is attracting even more to join their famished precession.

    Stupid scooter - this is why, you were never a fan of the "Go-Bots".



    Man, I can't tell you when this streeted other than sometime in 2016. Hell, I can't even tell you the name of folks who released it, other than "RQ Hacken Backer"; Ebay seller's name (in Alabama). The back cover has no catalog number nor bar UPC bar code. This is a region A, B and C (1080p) bootleg (fan edition) which comes in a common BD case as you can see above. It sell for $50.00 (with free shipping). But that price can vary.

    No booklet/insert included nor slipcase issued. Some of the extras, I have zero information on. This is best I could muster, I apologize.

    The motion picture is eighty-eight minutes long.

    - - -

    Extras:

    * Newly re-remastered print from Twilight Time's 2012 BD
    * Commentary: director Tom Savini
    * Isolated Score: composer Paul McCollough
    * "The Dead Walk: Remaking A Classic" making-of featurette (full screen, 24:52 minutes)
    * Restoration Comparison video (widescreen, time unknown [roughly ten minutes])
    * "Night Of The Living Dead" work print (full screen, time unknown)
    * "Night Of The Living Dead" Vudu HDX version (widescreen)
    * Savini's behind-the-scenes camcorder footage (full screen, time unknown)
    * "At The Movies" (Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert) review of the film (full screen, time unknown)
    * Joe Bob Briggs' "Drive-In Theater" - NOTLD 1968, 25th anniversary cast reunion episode (full screen, time unknown [roughly 26:35 minutes], December 19th, 1992)
    * "Night of The Living Dead" screenwriter George Romero interview (unknown)
    * Tom Savini Q&A (unknown)
    * Fangoria issue ninety-seven (October 1990), "The Return Of The Classic Dead" remake article (PDF)
    * Twilight Time booklet (PDF)
    * Ain't It Cool News - "Night Of The Living Dead" 1990 review (unknown)
    * Production Notes
    * Talent Files
    * Theatrical Trailer (in HD and SD)

    - - -

    Audio:

    * 5.1 DTS-HD MA (re-remastered and Vudu copies)
    * Dolby Digital 2.0 (workprint/various other extras)

    - - -

    NOTES/RANT

    There are subtitles in English.

    The BD is not dubbed in any language(s).

    It is presented in anamorphic widescreen.



    Some of the extra features info came from a YouTuber, Hermie - his video "Night of the Living Dead (1990) Blu-ray". He didn't go into enough real details though.

    This is a BD-R, not pressed. It is a dual layer 50GB. In fact, no disc art.

    The work print is rough looking - taken from an old VHS copy; watchable, but not much else.

    The movie is framed at 1.85:1. But the Vudu presentation is 1.78:1. You're getting three versions of the movie, just to be clear.

    As explained from the Ebay listing - allegedly "RQ Hacken Backer" has the rights from the studio for this MOD. But if that were the case - why no UPC numbers or catalog ID? *shakes head*

    Most of the extras minus the ones which were released on DVD/BD previously are from YouTube. So as you can imagine the picture quality varies from decent to okay. These include "At The Movies" review and Joe Bob Briggs' "Drive-In Theater" interview footage (edited as one piece) and others.



    Speaking of which (Briggs), the '68 actors present were Judith O'Dea, Karl Hardman, Marilyn Eastman, Keith Wayne and Savini. The broadcast was for the 1990 motion picture with the cast and Savini talking about the remake and the original; quite entertaining, it can be found on YouTube (pix from vid). You can see all the delight in Joe Bob Briggs' face.

    Some might be in the dark...

    The show, "Drive-In Theater" was on TMC; presented various (horror/sci-fi/fantasy) movies, edited for television - the commercial breaks has commentary by the host and mail lady, Honey Gregory. They chat about the making and various light high jinks. This was the male equivalent of Elvira's "Movie Macabre" from the 1980s. It was a hit while it lasted. Later when the basic cable channel changed formats, it moved to TNT, renamed "MonsterVision". All in all, Briggs' program ran for fourteen years from 1986 to 2000.

    Back on topic, the main selling point here is the picture quality. As I understand, their re-remastering of Twilight Time's release is slightly better than the newly 2016, Umbrella Entertainment Blu-Ray. That's impressive. A lot of love was put into this.



    Originally, NOTLD 90 was colorful and bright, but the Twilight Time Blu-Ray was color timed to be dark and blue-tinted, also crushing the shadow detail in the process and even clipping some whites too. The clipping resulted in a loss of the grain that is present throughout the whole movie in the original, which we have restored by sampling grain from scenes where it wasn't destroyed. This is a color correction to make the film much more balanced. The new color timing had set the white and black levels differently for each scene, so we first first had to get the whole movie back to a more constant balanced look, and then color correct it. The result is a more true representation of this new color timing and creates the truest possible representation of the image as it was originally presented on film.

    The Twilight Time video was way to dark, but the original Theatrical is way to bright, so what we did was balance it out and we believe this new Special Edition video is the best version to watch. The original untouched theatrical edition of the film [Vudu] is also included as well as a comparison between the Twilight Time "blue" edition and this corrected and enhanced Special Edition.
    - Ebay description



    The camcorder footage is a copy of a copy of a copy and could be a fourth gen. The focus is muted as is the colors. Above is George A. Romero visiting the set that evening (white coat). But is that included? Don't know.

    Pardon?

    There are two (main) behind-the-scenes video; one is 34:52 minutes (roughly) - which I suspect is on this BD. The other is 1:07:23 minutes, which is where the above still originated. They could've edited both videos together. Don't know. One covers day shooting, the other night.

    And that's where I stop. I don't own this BD and only got the details from doing research for last month's retrospective entry. As far as I got, many unknowns. But you get the general idea. Sway.



    Before I close, I want to cover another - the Japanese laser disc. This is a single disc release (CLV only). Streeted on March 26th, 1992 for 7000 JPY (#NDH-119) from Nikkatsu. Unlike the American LD which has none, this has twenty chapters total.

    This to is also presented in full screen - with Japanese subtitles which are a part of the movie, can't turn off. The only extra is the same U.S. theatrical trailer. Before you ask - I don't own it.

    The reason I mention is because of the cover artwork. So very different from anything I've seen and a discontinuity. Why are the ghouls with heads shots there? They're dead-dead, no longer undead. Perhaps I'm nitpicking.

    But it kinda bugs me.



    There you go. Another trek into the zed lands comes to a close. Not my best entry; far too many blank spots. Come back here on September 15th, 2016 for another version of the 1968 classic. Sounded good on paper, but whoever did the DVD authoring should be ashamed, I've seen YouTube videos with better picture; craptacular bit rate.

    If there are people who own this BD-R; feel free to send data/info my way. I'll update the specs.
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 10-30-2018 at 04:57 AM.

  3. #33
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    PART I: THE 1968 CLASSIC - G P1

    Rain.

    It has poured hard these past three days. Something like this should be soothing. The loud ambient noise covering up any sounds you could make. And hassle free access to clean water, just have bucket.

    A time to take a shower, outside - the temperature is warm enough and you have a bar of soap you've been waiting to break in.

    But all of these things are inconsequential at the moment.

    You've been seen in the worst possible way.

    Living in the sticks has served you well since they rose; keeping away from the death traps that the cities have become. But right now that lack of urbanization is just as bad of an enemy as THEM. Your feet frantically move through the muddy earth, fighting to keep both your balance and traction.

    You hope for escape by rushing up a hill, perhaps loosing them... somewhere - anywhere, but here. A quick glance behind reveals the horde, dozens of them, arms outstretched with mouths agape - loudly moaning. You are truly living in a horror movie.

    There is a small consolation, unlike yourself they are not coordinated; they fall and rise up to resume comical pursuit. A few might give you pause to catch your breath and watch the spectacle, have a good laugh. But their number are too great. And some of them have begun walking atop the fallen masses - giving their feet hard grips.

    Scream?

    Would it help?

    No.

    But such a thing might expend valuable energy you need for flight.

    You inch your way to the summit and a distrubing thought surfaces - what if there are more of them on top? Has the rain covered the undead rousing and sloshings behind you???

    You will find in a moment...

    And then, if you need - you'll scream.



    This retrospective offers an oddity; call it inventive or just unnecessary - "Night Of The Living Dead: Reanimated".

    There was a very limited theatrical screening on September 1st, 2009. So limited I can not give you any box office stats. I can't even give you the budget on this flick or how much it made domestically, which wasn't much.

    The feature opened against "The Final Destination", "Inglourious Basterds", "Gamer", "District 9" and "Halloween II".

    So for the most part; this was a direct to video feature. So I'll include stats for that as well.



    Released on September 21st, 2010 from MVD Visual (UPC# 7 60137 50159 6) for $17.99.

    The DVD streeted against "Community: The Complete First Season", "Alien Autopsy" (British movie, not Fox TV special) and "Falcon Crest: The Complete Second Season".

    The release came with no slipcover. It did come with a two page insert; an essay "They're Still Coming To Get Us!: Reanimation, Media, And Horror Fandom" by Peter Gutiérrez.

    The DVD has six chapters.

    The motion picture is a hundred and two minutes long.

    - - -

    Extras:

    * Introduction and outro by Count Gore De Vol from www.countgore.com
    * Commentary 1: Project coordinator Mike Schneider, author Jonathan Maberry, journalist Peter Gutierrez, moderated by Wild Eye's Rob Hauschild
    * Commentary 2: Schneider, Corpse S. Chris from Horror Host Graveyard and Hauschild, moderated by filmmaker Keith Crocker
    * Artist Call-In Commentary
    * Extended/deleted scenes
    * Behind-the-scenes video, Ryan Siggs his stop-motion contribution (full screen, 5:07 minutes)
    * Behind-the-scenes video, Calum MacAskill his abstract animation contribution (full screen, 5:02 minutes)
    * Behind-the-scenes video, Mike Boas his rotoscoping contribution (full screen, 5:46 minutes)
    * "The Zombie Encounter Panel" from "Zombie Encounter & Film Festival", a live New Jersey panel discussion from October 10th, 2009 featuring Schneider, Maberry, Hauschild, Gutierrez, doctor/author Kim Paffenroth, author John Joseph Adams and moderated by author David Barr Kirtley (anamorphic, 79:12 minutes)
    * FearWerx retro action figure promo (full screen, 1:22 minutes)
    * "Night Of The Living Box Art" featurette (non-anamorphic, 32:03 minutes)
    * "Night Of The Gaming Dead" fake video game (full screen, 1:18 minutes)
    * "Silo" short film by Anthony Amos (full screen, 4:49 minutes)
    * "Dawn Of The Ape" short film by Andres Silva (full screen, 3:13 minutes)
    * "NOTLD: R Coloring Book Contest Winners" (slide show gallery, full screen, six images)
    * "NOLD-R Artist Gallery" (slide show, full screen, 109 images)
    * Trailers (full screen)
    * Additional Trailers: "Every Other Day Is Halloween" (non-anamorphic, 2009), "Gold" (full screen, 1968), "Blitzkrieg: Escape From Stalag 69" (non-anamorphic, 2008), "The Bloody Ape" (full screen, 1997), "The Electric Chair" (non-anamorphic, 1976), "Gothkill" (non-anamorphic, 2009) and "Horror Host Graveyard" website promo (full screen)
    * DVD-ROM: "Zombie And Horror Comics By NOLD: R Artists" (PDF)
    * DVD-ROM:"1968 The Year That Changed Horror" article by Peter Gutierrez (PDF)
    * DVD-ROM:"NOLD: R Liner Notes (PDF)

    - - -

    Audio:

    * Dolby Digital 2.0

    - - -

    NOTES/REVIEW

    There are no subtitles

    The DVD is not dubbed in any language(s).

    Now I'm running in times that are frighting. But I won't let that break me.
    - Billy Idol

    So what is this?

    Homage. I suppose. *shrugs*



    Mike Schneider had the idea; take the audio from the classic and recreate the film from that framework, the visuals. Roughly a hundred-fifty artists from around the globe contributed elements or rather scenes making a whole. There were 500 submissions made for the project. And took eighteen months to complete.

    We get a collage of moments, ranging from sock puppets, toys, acrylics, crude stop-motion animation, video game graphics, sketches, motion comics, rotoscope and everything in between. Including panning on still images. The constant is the audio from the film.

    As you can imagine the end result is... different.



    The biggest problem I had here was the mixed media presentation. Some were actually quite good and rest looked amateurish. I did like the quick shot of three Furbies munching on a dead one, this happens after the gas pump explosion.

    I speak for myself - it was a major chore to finish. Not helping was the poor video quality; whoever mastered the DVD set the bit rate far too low (like watching a poor YouTube video). Anyhow, the idea was a solid notion. It's been done before and done quite well, as in Oscar winning well. Yeah.

    I'm speaking of the five minute, 1989 United Kingdom short, "Creature Comforts". It won the 1991 "Best Short Film - Animated" Academy Award. This was directed by Nick Park. Simple concept. Interview a bunch of folks, kids included from a housing development on various topics; build animation around that audio. In this case, all the people interviewed were turned into claymation animals. It's damn cute and funny - bizarre stuff happening in the background.

    This took a life of it's own in 2003 when the idea was relauched as "Creature Comforts", a TV series in the U.K.; it lasted two seasons. A total of twenty-six, nine/twelve minute episodes were made. But it didn't end there. In 2007 it was re-re-launched in the States as "Creature Comforts America" on CBS (premiered on June 4th); it lasted one short season - it bombed. The network pulled the show after five episodes. A total of seven half hour programs were made.

    These were all made by Aardman Animation, the company responsible for the "Wallace & Gromit" shorts and movies (along with "Chicken Run" [2000], "Flushed Away" [2006] and "Pirates! Band Of Misfits" [2012]).

    What I would love to see is Nick Park, animating NOTLD as a full length claymation (you know what I mean) feature with that brand of off-kilter humor. That would be excellent and a step up from Reanimated. I would totally buy that on release day.



    Season one of the U.K. series came out in the States (region 1) on September 27th, 2005 (for $19.94). Season two came out on October 24th, 2006 ($24.96). And the America version was released on October 9th, 2007 ($29.95). I own all three titles which were bought years ago at Big Lots! for three bucks each, a great deal for a grand show, very recommended. There is a Christmas Special, don't bother with it; that DVD is a repackage of an extra from the season two.

    Sorry, got off topic.
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 09-27-2018 at 08:07 AM.

  4. #34
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    PART I: THE 1968 CLASSIC - G P2

    Lets cover some of the extras in better detail.

    Someone once told me - art is dead. But if that's the case, what does that make artists? Zombies?
    - De Vol



    The intro by Count Gore De Vol. It start in color that slowly desaturate until it's black and white. That was a nice touch.

    Who?

    The Count was or rather is a horror movie host, much like Elvira: Mistress Of The Dark. Anyhow, the Count had a show on WDCA in Washington, DC ("Creature Features") that ran for over a decade from 1973 to 1987. Then returned in 1998 as a internet program, streaming movies and shorts. By the way, that's a print of comic book character Vampirella (created by Forrest J Ackerman and comic artist Trina Robbins) on the inside of his coffin.

    Anyhow, let's just say the Count was East Coast as Elvira was West Coast. Yeah, I never heard of him until this release.

    But there's more; Dick Dyszel who played the Count was also the guy behind the make-up on the kid's show, "Bozo The Clown" - well one of they guys who played the clown. I saw reruns when I was real little in the 70s. He was also "Captain 20", another kids program, never saw this.

    There is a trailer on the disc for a documentary, "Every Other Day Is Halloween" on Dyszel's colorful life. Man, that looks quite fascinating. I need to pick that up.



    From left to right; Maberry, Paffenroth, Kirtley (moderator), Adams, Hauschild and Gutierrez.

    The "Zombie Encounter" panel was cool and would've been way better if it weren't for the piss poor audio and amateur camera work. The guests were handed a microphone, but whoever was working the sound board was not doing their job. The audio hadn't changed (much). You could hear them before the mic was used. I don't understand. And you have to crank up the sound to hear them.

    As for the camera, it's on a tripod, I'll give them that. But it's not filmed centered, but rather far on the side (there are zooms as needed). This could've been, way better. On top of that, the audio is somewhat muted.

    Putting those woes aside, the discussion was fascinating. Intelligent Zed talk with published authors on the legacy and continued contribution of the Romero classic. Z Fanboys like myself crave stuff like this. Here's something also interesting; the location. It was held at Lutheran Church Of The Redeemer (8PM that October with the event starting at six in the evening) on 55 Wyckoff Avenue in Ramsey, NJ. It began with a screening of NOTLD: R, then the discussion. That's a progressive church.

    I liked Peter Gutierrez comment about how the Zed problem could've been manageable - just have Ben (Duane Jones) go out every half hour and wack a few zombies to death; he's good at that. It wouldn't have gotten so out of hand. Also have Tom (Keith Wayne) go out too, wack-a-zed.



    The action figure ad is for Mego-like toys of Cemetery Ghoul and Ben. If you're into collecting toys or were old enough to be a kid in the 1970s then you know all about Mego. If not... they made large action figures (roughly eight inches tall), not just pure plastic - they came with cloth clothes. I would love to own those Emce figures, they cool damn sway. They come in Mego-like retro packaging. The single series also includes Barbara and undead Karen.

    "Night Of The Living Box Art" is all about Rob Hauschild's hobby; collection VHS cover art from various home video releases of NOTLD. Man, that is quite the nitché and fascinating. Some of the covers shown were impressive, others were just an embarrassment. *shakes head* Some of the video descriptions were so off - like the distributor didn't know what they were selling. Others had the finale image right on the cover.

    "Night Of The Gaming Dead" is just lame as hell. It imagines the movie if it were turned into a 1980s video game, "Pac-Man". This was made by Voodoo Velvet, just avoid it. The same with the two shorts, both are bad filler - no ALL THREE are bad fillers.

    The "Artist Call-In Commentary" is exactly as you guessed, the DVD producers called the artists to give their thoughts on their contributions. You get to chose from twenty-eight artists. The full run time is 29:04 minutes, but you can't view them all together just as single entries.

    I could not access any of the DVD-ROM features. As in...

    Can't find them on the disc.

    This came in a white DVD case. The disc art shows multiple side profiles of a zombie, skull exposed around the hub. Turn the disc and see the skull open up and his brain popping out to be consumed by the mouth and shoot out of his head, a forever loop.

    The menus are in anamorphic widescreen, if your curious. And the function highlighter is a red hammer and a red trowel, cute.

    - - -

    This is one of those odd bits. I don't really care for this interpretation, BUT I do love some of the extras on DVD. It's is very apparent that a lot of affection and appreciation was put into the production. I give no ill towards that - overall, it's an impressive labor of love. And the commentaries were fascinating too (too bad the audio was poor). This release turned out far better than it should.

    This is not part of my library. It goes in a special spot for DVDs that I won't discard for unique reasons. That is, they have an element or moments that rise it above crap. Not good enough to be part of my official collection, but not poor enough to be sold off.

    If you're curious, the reason it's longer than the regular film is because of the protracted animator credits.

    And there's a stinger at the end, a skinless Furby saying "Need food; me hiding, need food". Then laughs and gives a kiss.

    - - -

    Looking about online, I find stuff.

    George A. Romero was interviewed by Nelson Wyatt which appeared in The Gazette, a Canadian newspaper (on September 11th, 2014. The interview happened on October 21st, 2011 in Mexico City. This and that. But something was dropped that I didn't know.

    You might recall in the entry for "Birth Of The Living Dead" part 1 (May 19th, 2016); I wrote about Romero's "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" connection. What I didn't know was how much influence it had on him.



    The director wanted Betty Aberlin in his horror flick. Aberlin played Lady Aberlin on the kid's show. One of the human characters in Neighborhood Of Make-Believe. This did not sit well with the gentle, sweater wearing TV personality...

    He wouldn't allow that. I originally wanted to use her in the role of Barbra and Fred put his foot down and said no.
    Romero continues...

    He loved the film. He came and loved it. He was always a huge supporter over the years.
    That's kinda charming, would Aberlin have played her different? Could this Barbara be more normal and less catatonic? We'll never know.

    Here's a good quote from that panel. The question was whether the zombie genre has topped off; become over-saturated...

    For the most part zombies don't have personalities in the story - they simply represents that threat. And it allows the characters then to be in a story where there is a constant threat; constant stress and pressure which warps normal behavior. And it's the warped normal behavior that forms the basis of most story telling. We don't tell stories about people living ordinary lives and doing ordinary things with nothing happening because that would be boring. We write stories in almost any genre about some crisis, some event that comes along that forces the characters out of normal being. And that is true with "The Wizard Of Oz" [1939] as it is with "Night Of The Living Dead" [1968]. Characters taken out of normal behavior by a crisis - well the zombies allow for that without intruding into the story because we don't have to give them, pages so to speak. We don't have to define their characters, tell their histories. We don't even necessarily need to tell how they became zombies, you know? Romero didn't waste a whole lot of time on it. They're there! And then we see how that warps the characters, warps their interactions - and we get to tell endlessly creative stories about people in pressure, people under stress. It's not going to get old.
    - Jonathan Maberry



    There you go folks. The cinema infection can not be halted, Ben would attest to that and hillbilly grievance. See you back here on October 20th, 2016 for a vintage documentary.
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 09-27-2018 at 08:07 AM.

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    PART I: THE 1968 CLASSIC - H P1

    Darkness. This Fall evening is ready to rain; thick clouds cover the moon, but rather than free water from above - it denies you. The canteen has less than a mouthful. And without that precipitation you've opted to save those precious drops. Instead you drank the syrup that came from a can of peaches. Not quite the meal you wanted, but it serves its purpose, though it was generic.

    There is a knock in the distance or rather below, muffled, but somewhat regular. Not much noise and more of a nuisance than a concern. With all you've seen and survived, you thought it was safer to take retreat at a cemetery - all of the fresh tenants have left months ago for... comfort food. Well - minus that undead fellow who was buried before the event hit; too weak to dig himself out.

    So you have the place to yourself and the nearby mausoleum has stone walls and roof which is under serious consideration for a base of operation for the next few weeks. It has a gated door which you can shut and lock. And with some effort can be made quite homey. An inflatable bed and perhaps if you're lucky some decent solar panels, plus add some of those rechargeable walk way path lights - you got a swanky pad. Twenty of them will decently light up the tomb. And add a black blanket to cover the light from the gated door. All of which is doable.

    But like so many of your plans, it comes to a halt - just like that. Those muffled knock has turned into an audible break of wood. Where was it coming from? This is your place, no room for lookie loos. And you certainly don't want his moans to become a becon. But things are gonna get real dangerous from this pitch black evening. And now there's lightning. WTF? It's gonna be one of those days.



    Back in the July 14th, 2016 entry for the 1990 remake, I wrote about a 1993 documentary on the original which was released on VHS back in the day; the bonus feature for the 25th Anniversary set. Shortly after posting, I bought it - "Reflections On The Living Dead: Limited Edition".

    This is an official DVD-R (manufactured on demand) titled. It was released on November 24th, 2015 from Tempe Entertainment for $14.99. Catalog number is TD-1130. UPC# is 8-22928-11309-5. The region 0 came in a common DVD case with a printed wrapaound (not an ink jet print out), looks nice. It does come with a printed disc label which does look ink jet.

    The wrapaound is double printed; on the other side is a different title - "Robot Ninja: Limited Edition". Also region 0. The movie is from 1989 and from the images on that back, looks like crap. This too is an official DVD-R.

    The DVD streeted against "American Ultra", "Shawn The Sheep: Movie" and "No Escape" (which is practically a zombie flick).

    The release came with no slipcover, nor slipcover.

    The DVD-R has fourteen chapters.

    The documentary is seventy-nine minutes long.

    - - -

    Extras:

    * Newly remastered print
    * New introduction by writer/director Thomas Brown
    * New interivews with Karl Hardman and Marilyn Eastman
    * New interview with actress Judith O'Dea
    * Additional Trailer: "The Dead Next Door [remastered] (anamorphic, 1989)

    - - -

    Audio:

    * Dolby Digital 2.0 (stereo)

    - - -

    NOTES/RANT

    There are no subtitles.

    The DVD-R is not dubbed in any language(s).

    It is presented in full screen as was the original '93 release. I have no idea how limited this re-release is.



    Above is the source, Simitar Entertainment Inc.'s two VHS box set (UPC# 0-82551-3193-2). The two tapes were housed in an embossed foil slipcase (catalog number 3159).

    Cassette one had a movie introduction by actor John Carradine (who was not in the film).

    *shakes head*



    The menu is no frills. No sub-menu for chapters or audio selection. Just one button 'Play'. Why even have this screen if you offer zero options?

    When heard about this doc (this past July) I did a search and discovered that it was released as an MOD by itself; remastered and recut. The new editing fixed pacing issues which was a problem the first time around - dull. And added a new interview footage with O'Dea along with new interviews with Hardman and Eastman. That VHS run time was 55:42 minutes (presented in hi-fi mono). What was that box set's price?

    I am unable to tell you. Not gonna try, that info was lost to time.

    Let me address this first before I continue. This was the source. For the January 14th, 2016 post, I wrote about another NOTLD documentary, "Chronicles Of The Living Dead!". That doc had archival footage of George A. Romero, Karl Hardman, John A. Russo and Russell W. Streiner; the roundtable interview is brief there, more like snippets.



    But here we get the whole package. The video looks decent, not great, but not terrible. And considering the re-master came from an old VHS tape, I can't say anything too bad about it.

    Just so you know, that statue on the coffee table is a Grim Reaper (designed by Kevin Yagher). "Horror Hall Of Fame" aired in syndication on October 27th, 1990; Night '68 won a lifetime achievement award. This was suppose to be an annual event, but only one was made. Shame.

    Back on topic; it also has interviews with celebrity filmmakers; Wes Craven, Sam Raimi, Tobe Hooper, John Landis - horror icons in their own right.

    And additional interviews with other filmmakers such as Fred Olen Ray, David DeCoteau and Scott Spiegel. Plus interviews with the editor of "Film Threat" magazine, Chris Gore and the editor of "Cinefantastique" magazine, David E. Williams.

    Anyhow, you can tell that Landis was excited about the topic. He was happy. The rest of the filmmakers were subdued about it.



    The interviews with Karl Hardman and Marilyn Eastman; they talk about creating the ghoul effects and the film's library music. Along with reminiscing on the production was entertaining with scrapbook photos.

    By the way, footage with Spiegel and Hooper looks the worst, it was shot outdoors at dusk. The light was fading.

    The magazine interviews were fine.

    One other thing; the audio - the hiss associated with camcorders is present here. Not terrible, but you can miss it, it's prominent.

    This video starts with the usually FBI warning on pirating, but has text on the bottom which reads, "Blah freakin' blah, make all the copies you want but don't sell them, ya jerks!"



    The program begins with footage shot at "Evans City Cemetery" (Franklin Road, Evans City, PA) with Thomas Brown. Shot for the remastered re-release, new. But it starts with still frames from the beginning of NOTLD, snap shots if you will.

    It made my ass tight. It keeps going on and on and on. "This is filler" I said to myself. The introduction could've been done as a voice over. Man, the way it's presented screams amateur, complete with a zombie walking in the background (Rod Dysinger). It looks so cheap.
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 09-28-2018 at 07:00 AM.

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    PART I: THE 1968 CLASSIC - H P2

    The next issue I have is with the music which was crap on a cracker; poor, poor synth score by Matthew Jason Walsh. Folks who moan about the music by Scott Vladimir Licina for "Night Of The Living Dead: 30th Anniversary" (1999) should know that score is so superior to Walsh's balderdash. It's embarrassing.

    On the topic of the 1990 remake...



    The remake suprised me. Barbra ends up with an uzi and fatigues, mowing 'em all down. In a way, I'm sorry, that they did that. To me it wasn't a remake, then. Even though it was in the 1990s; yes women were gonna control the world or they kick started their Harleys and roared down the freeway. But I was sorry to see that we changed it it that much.
    - Judith O'Dea

    The O'Dea interview wasn't filmed for this documentary. It was footage from "Something To Scream About" (2004). A doc covering nine actresses (scream queens) who have made a name for themselves in horror; Ariauna Albright, Brandi Burkett, Debra DeLiso, Denice Duff, Judith O'Dea, Debbie Rochon, Felissa Rose, Lilith Stabs, Brinke Stevens and Julie Strain. The sixty five minute program is hosted by Brinke Stevens. This is also from Tempe Entertainment for $14.99, a real DVD though.

    "Reflections" by the way is dedicated to the memory of Duane Jones.

    - - -



    A couple weeks ago the first trailer for "Night of the Living Dead: Genesis" (2016) hit the webs. [long pause] It looks terrible. Bad acting and it appears to have been shot on video as if it was a student film.

    I had hope for this, honestly did.

    The concept was good; a remake of "Night" done as flashbacks with O'Dea reprising her role of Barbra in a rest home, talking about her undead experience. That sounds awesome, but the end result isn't.

    Addy Miller plays the younger Barbra and she looks poorly cast.

    The release date is in flux. I'll keep you posted. Now I'm somewhat curious - in a train wreck kinda of way.

    - - -

    Something that I ran into recently.

    Music from the TV show, "The Rebel", the 1959 black and white ABC western series.

    The episode "Land" (aired February 21st, 1960) has library music which was used in NOTLD '68. Music when Barbra fled from the cemetary ghoul on foot - finding the farm house.



    On the Varése Sarabande 1982 vinyl soundtrack, it is track two: "At The Gravesite/Flight/Refuge".

    The basic plot of "Land" is a famer gives up his land next to a stream (prime real estate) for a chance at bigger propery. All he has to do is walk the distance he wants of this land on a hot summer day, pinning stakes.

    The elderly man dies from exposure and exhaustion, but not before completing his goal, much to the chagrin of the non-water land owner.

    He fully expected the man to die before reaching the finish; after all, the fellow had a heart problem.



    The music plays as a single man (the farmer) rising up a hill top, staggering like a zombie towards the finish.

    Let me take a step back.

    "The Rebel" was a two season show that had seventy-six half hour episodes. It told the story a post Civil War veteran, Johnny Yuma (Nick Adams). Once conflicts ended he was lost and disenfranchised. Yuma decided to find himself by roaming the united country. Never ashamed, he was a Confederate soldier. He kept a journal of his adventures. His main gun is a sawed-off double-barreled shotgun.

    While being only half an hour it was densly written with good characters and stories which were not the norm. You see, this was about moral ambiguity - shades of grey. Quite a few episodes did not have a clear White Hat; even when you won, you still lost. Which may have lead to its cancelation.

    Bought season one a few months ago.

    I'm enjoying it, but wish the episodes were remastered. Some are no better than YouTube videos. And this is an official series release from Timeless Media Group.

    The episodes of The Rebel included in this set were mastered directly from 16mm prints. Due to the age and condition of the prints, some image and audio artifacts are present.
    That's kinda an understatement.

    - - -



    Here's a behind-the-scenes pix - who's that fellow in the doorway?

    It's sound engineer, Gary Streiner watching the blaze.

    Want another? Here's one from Eastman's scrapbook.



    One of the make-up jobs for a ghoul extra, Ella Mae Smith.

    Do I have buyer's remorse? Nope. The roundtable interview makes it worth the dollar with added bonus - Hardman and Eastman and O'Dea.

    It's not fantastic. Nope. Parts of this production felt so amateurish. But the good spots outshine the bad. So I'm glad I picked this up. Though I am upset this is not a real DVD. The back of my mind is how long will this last before it fades? The price was a bit much for fifteen dollars. I would be more comfortable at ten.

    Something I've taken notice. Many low rated TV shows are coming out as MODs. But they're still asking for full price - as if it is a pressed release, which it isn't. I don't like this trend.

    Hope you have a grand and entertaining Halloween. Come back here on November 17th, 2016 for another entry on the 1968 motion picture.

    - - -

    Update...

    Something I discovered an hour ago after posting...

    Ogre (Robin Ogden) and Dallas Campbell have digitally released an alternate synthwave soundtrack the 1968 movie with cover art by John Bergin - "Night Of The Living Dead: Original Motion Picture Rescore".



    As it stands, it is exclusively available from Bandcamp, released on October 14th, 2016 and sells for $10.00 (downloadable MP3s). I've been sampling the tracks. It's a decent re-imagining. If you're into synthwave, you'll probably like it. I'm a fan.

    If not, you won't enjoy the synth score.

    What's surprising is where it's from - Lakeshore Records; "The Official Bandcamp of Lakeshore Records, the independent music division". They release movie soundtracks and others on CD. Lakeshore Entertainment has made "Underworld" (2003; and all the sequels), "The Cave" (2005), "Crank" (2006 and its sequel) and "Million Dollar Baby" (2004) among others.

    Rescore is a thirty-one track soundtrack; featuring alternate cues.

    The collaborative effort was done across the planet; Ogden lives in United Kingdom and Campbell is in West Virginia. In fact both artists have never meet in person, all done online.

    On other thing - On October 28th, 2016 on their Youtube channel (https://www.youtube.com/user/LakeshoreRecords), they will be streaming the movie with the new soundtrack attached.
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 09-28-2018 at 07:05 AM.

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    PART I: THE 1968 CLASSIC - I P1

    Today was the same as yesterday - foraging for your meal, perhaps not for tonight. But just the same.

    The open country road had seen better days. We can blame state officials who were more concern with drama that fixing their infrastructure. But all moot right now. As you walk with your tattered backpack, you pass a gopher who's head popped up as you walked by.

    You pause looking down at the hole; the creature comes up once more and sees you. Eyes locked for a moment. "Yeah buddy, me too." It drops down and you release for him, a Ritz cracker. At least one of us will have a good day. And continue on your journey.

    Today would've been Thanksgiving, not that it's your holiday. The family was a mess, mix in alcohol - ended with a brawl of some sort. The only good part was the turkey and meal. The rest can be discarded.

    But a new kind of drama is happening. Just within ear shoot. Hard to pinpoint, it's just near. You decide to play it safe and quietly climb up a tree until...

    Whatever this is has passed.

    Faded fluorescent pink tee with blue trims on the sleeves and torn, cut-off jeans. She must have been in her late teens when she died. Not sure if this thing had been following you or was a random event. Like finding those unopen bags of mint flavored Oreos by the stream a few days back. How did this get here? A life mystery.

    You quietly dig though your backpack, pulling out a hammer. The plan is simple - drop on her and smash the head.

    But then your Ritz come into play. All this time that gopher didn't grab that cracker. And now it did - taking the attention of the dead girl. Just frackin' great.

    Now she's digging into the ground, trying to get that rodent, probably pulling off her finger nails in the pursuit.

    So that to do? Wait till she's done and walks under or jump down and sneak behind, whacking her.

    The movie "Lethal Weapon" pops to mind; 'I'm too old for this sh!t'. *sigh*

    This is different.

    A first for this locale - an entry for a mostly streaming only edition. As to be expected much of the usual data is 'blank'. This is not on home video in any format - well, not officially available.

    Okay.



    Last month's post had a postscript, the discovery that '68 classic was going to be re-re-re-release (you get the idea) with a brand new synthwave score in time for Halloween. "Night Of The Living Dead: Original Motion Picture Rescore", digital only, streeted on October 14th, 2016.

    The movie was released on the internet through YouTube, from the Lakeshore Records' channel; "The Official Bandcamp of Lakeshore Records.

    As you can see above, the music is available by itself. The price is $10.00 for a thirty-one track soundtrack; featuring alternate cues. And is exclusive to Bandcamp dot com. Cover art by John Bergin. I'll go into detail about those tracks in a few.

    Right now I want to talk about the movie.



    On October 28th, 2016 - their YouTube channel, Lakeshore Records released the feature (in its entirety) with the new score added. It was free, no fee.

    The presentation is ninety-six minutes long.

    - - -

    Extras:

    -none-

    - - -

    Audio:

    * Digital 2.0 Stereo

    - - -

    NOTES/REVIEW

    First off, I'm a huge fan of synthwave. It's a form of electronics which was popular in the 1980s that is making a serious resurgence. Recent good examples is music from the movies "Drive" (2011), "It Follows" (2014) and "Turbo Kid" (2015). Think of it like symphonic electronica, (no singing) strong beats. Good stuff.

    If you want examples, YouTube the artists, Absolute Valentine, Betamaxx, Le Matos, Maethelvin, Midnight Syndicate, Mitch Murder, Nox Arcana, Perturbator, Timecop1983, VHS Glitch and Waveshaper to name just a few. You'll get the idea.

    Let me give you some background.

    The new score was done by Ogden who is the moniker of Robin Ogden with Dallas Campbell, a collaborative effort. Ogden lives in England and Campbell resides in West Virginia. This project exist because of the internet; separated by 3,594 miles - nether person met in person. The soundtrack pieces were sent back and forth online until refined to satisfaction by both. This project was their third transatlantic endeavor.

    *long pause*



    I'm not sure where it went wrong, the notion is sound and is a great idea. First done for "Night Of The Living Dead: 30th Anniversary" (1999) with a new score by Scott Vladimir Licina - written about in PART III: ANTIPATHY - A2.

    While most hated that new music, I liked it. It was subdue when it needed and loud when the occasion called for it.

    I'll admit, it wasn't for everybody.

    This newer score is out of place. Far too loud and I'm not speaking about volume. In many ways, it sounds like music that should accompany a video game - bombastic electronica for action moments. The problem...

    It plays all the time when things should be somber and quiet - trying to convert a hushed scene into action. Wow, it fails. I understand to punctuate moments - that's what all scores do. But it is so damn artificial here. It should help a movie, craft a mood - heighten the atmosphere. This did not happen.

    The music that played during the opening credits felt like Johnny and Barbara were going to rave than a cemetery. WTF? I'm not joking. The start of a trance tune. The same when the ghoul attacks Barbara in the car - no.

    The more I think about it, the opening music sounds like a super generic version of "Phantasm" theme by Fred Myrow and Malcolm Seagrave (from the 1979 movie of the same name). *nods* The end tune for the credits is rubbish.

    I wanted to like this redo. And some moments do work with the new music. Like the farm house attack and the siblings at the graveyard, but that's weak when what came before is not memorable AND feels too modern!

    You can judge for yourself. The video still up as of writing; easy enough to search.

    Give it a watch and decided.

    The movie has new sound design by Ogden; mastering by David Klung. The artificial stereo was okay, not intrusive. I can recall watching old episodes of "M*A*S*H*" where the mock stereo had a metallic ting to it. The sound effects were good, the squishing sounds of the undead getting hit in the head. But note - some of the sound effects are quite muted.

    When I wrote, "mostly streaming only", there are ways to download YT videos, which is what I did and how I watched. And this is available for HD viewing.

    How is the image quality?



    I would say it's pretty good, not a poor public domain print; samples above. Though there are some moment of artifacts, huge ones, but they last a second. It is what it is.

    - - - - - - - - - -

    SOUNDTRACKS PART VIII

    The thing isn't bad by itself. It's okay, nothing rather special. There are so many artists (synthwave) who's work is background noise, simply generic. The new score is in that tribe. Not offensive, but not great either by itself - NOT attached to the movie. Added to the film it's crap on a cracker. Especially when you know it could've been so much better.

    The concept is 100% right. Take the score by Sisyphus for "The Blair Witch Project" (1999). The CD, "Greetings From Burkittsville" was designed to be played with the movie; after our ill fated college kids reach Coffin Rock. This added so much to the film, a concept score done right.

    Why yes, I own that album. *wink* Long out of print.

    - - -

    Tracks

    1. Opening Credits
    2. Cemetery
    3. Graveside
    4. The House
    5. Ben
    6. Don't Look At It
    7. Music Box
    8. There Were No More Screams
    9. Murder Happy Characters
    10. Dwellers
    11. Windows
    12. The Boss Up Here
    13. Barbara
    14. High Levels Of Radiation
    15. Dubious Comforts
    16. We've Got To Do Something
    17. The Truck
    18. Those Things
    19. Johnny Has The Keys
    20. Kill The Brain
    21. Haven't You Had Enough
    22. The Basement
    23. Morning
    24. End Credits
    25. Opening Credits - Alternate Cue
    26. Cemetery A - Alternate Cue
    27. Cemetery B - Alternate Cue
    28. House - Alternate Cue
    29. Don't Look At It - Alternate Cue
    30. Windows - Alternate Cue
    31. We've Got To Do Something - Alternate Cue



    To be honest, if I saw the movie for the first time with this score, it would ruin the film for me - it's a big sore thumb. So yeah, my expression is like Tom's.
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 10-15-2018 at 04:25 AM.

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    PART I: THE 1968 CLASSIC - I P2

    Tangent.

    Since this entry is kinda short, I want to cover another mostly digital only movie, the sequel, "Dawn Of The Dead" (1978).

    This past Halloween I rewatched the movie with new eyes. Indeed.



    Posted on YouTube is a recut titled, "Extended Mall Hours" (in HD if you want).

    It is a fan edit, produced by a fellow named OfficiallyUnofficial. Carved from the 139 minute version which was shown at the Cannes Film Festival in 1978; often called "Cannes Cut" and mistakenly labeled, 'Director's Cut'.

    This version was released as a special edition laser disc box set (3 LDs), "Widescreen Director's Cut Special CAV Collector's Edition" from Elite Entertainment, Inc. in 1996. Which features among other extras; a commentary by Romero, his wife (assistant director) Christine, special effects make-up artist Tom Savini and Buster their dog. And is exclusive to the dead format. *sad panda face*

    Anyhow, I suppose you could call the Cannes Cut more akin to a work print as it was rushed together for the festival.

    Extended Mall Hours was also sourced from the 117 minute Dario Argento version. Why not include the 127 minute theatrical cut?

    The Cannes Cut is the proto-version. That edition was cut down to create the theatrical release. So I guess in a roundabout way, all three editions were used. *shrugs*

    Some back story.

    After the success of "Night", a worldwide phenomena. He was approached by Italian filmmaker Dario Argento to make a sequel; because he heard a rumor that Romeo was toying with an idea for a new installment. Argento offered to co-produce the movie and paid for him and his wife to fly to Rome and stay at his home to write the script. There was a string, not a big one.

    Argento wanted the foreign market rights and could recut the movie to his liking. Romero had the North American rights. The deal was shook and the rest is history. Argento took out lot of the dialog scenes and replaced it with more gore and action. His cut was re-named "Zombi". He also added new music, composed by Goblin (Romero used mostly existing library music to save money).



    So in 2008 OfficiallyUnofficial released his mashup onto the webs, a fan cut that incorporated these editions as one - with more characterization and gore; a run time of nearly 155 minutes.

    The question comes up often enough; 'which version should I watch?" The three were released in an awarding winning DVD box set, "George A. Romero's Dawn Of The Dead: Ultimate Edition" from Anchor Bay Entertainment in 2004.

    My vote was theatrical for years. Argento had taken out too much for the sake of more blood.



    I no longer feel that way - it is Extended Mall Hours. It's so much richer, quite somber at times and you get to know these people better.

    This is an idea I’ve had for a fan edit for years. I first heard about the Argento cut having exclusive footage around 1999. It wasn’t until 2004 with the release of Anchor Bay's "Ultimate Edition" that I finally saw Argento’s version. I finally started working on this in fall of 2007 on a whim. Principal editing began around September/October, and was put on hiatus. Production resumed around December 2007 through January 2008. Like I’ve also said, while Romero's 126 minute cut is my preferred version, I still wanted to create this cut to piece together somewhat of a "glorified workprint".

    Countless extra snippets throughout the Argento cut were added to the 139 minutes Cannes cut. These include a few extra head shots in the mall sequences, as well as various dialogue extensions, such as the bikers in the finale planning their "attack strategy" ("One by one, they’re gonna knock you off your little bikes").

    One full scene which was previously cut and added back in is a bit of dialogue between Peter and Stephen after they return from "shopping" the first time. Stephen acts cocky while Peter wants him to realize just how lucky they were. This scene contains the line "Let's say the lady gets killed... you’d be able to chop off her head?" which was used in the English language Italian trailer.
    - OfficiallyUnofficial



    Should be noted this fan edit is on bootleg home video, a DVD-R; anamorphic widescreen, presented in 2.0 stereo with the fan edit teaser trailer. It comes with a printed wraparound, created by OfficiallyUnofficial. I want it! It's now on my radar, I hope to find it. There are three alternate wraparounds. I like the one on the far left, white text, above.

    Now this should be addressed, the aspect ratio changes with the cuts, it's small and not a nuisance.

    As for color, there is some minor hue changes as it switches, minor stuff, nothing so bad it takes you out of the movie.



    A good example is color change with the TV. This scene in particular, the scientist on screen. On the close-ups of the television; you can see some differences as it changes from cut to cut - which by the was seamless. No jumps in the cuts. The color issue is minor.

    The added visuals work great but this throws up numerous audio issues. This is mainly because of integrating the new shots with the existing score, so every so often a bar of music repeats. As a result the soundtrack has become slightly awkward with repeated musical bars, poor syncopation and at times odd audio jumps. Editing this audio must have been a major nightmare, considering the source material but at times
    - Mollo

    It's not a perfect cut; parts of it is a bit jumpy and as quoted above, there is some minor audio issues. But overall it's the better edition.

    Some of the words in the dialog is stretched to make it fit the cut. Take the word "canopy" as an example. In the recut it would be like 'ca-ca-canopy'. It happens just a few times. But I'm okay with it.

    The final product is good. You get lots of character moments and dread, plus more scenes of gore. The best of both worlds. Damn sway if you ask me.



    I'm glad I watched this and think I'm gonna make this a new Halloween tradition. Just so you know, I didn't do any image work on those pixs.

    - - -

    A question asked in a different message board; 'why did Roger get all looney?'

    Roger was a soft touch (as evinced by his attempt to stop the resident of the housing project from going out where he'd be shot). As the situation deteriorated, he just couldn't cope with what was becoming, in a wider sense, a no-win situation. No matter what they did or how many they killed, the dead were taking over the world, and Roger couldn't handle a reality where he couldn't win. As he died of his infection, he kept asking Peter, "we whipped them, didn't we?" Holing up in the mall wasn't a win, it was simply a break from the inevitable losing fight. Roger's mind snapped after his near-death fight with the blond chick zombie and he retreated into a fantasy where he was invulnerable and in control, and it proved to be fatal.
    - OsborneDFormed

    That's the best answer I've read.

    - - -



    Behind the scenes on the death blow at the cemetery; Bill Hinzman over Russell Streiner. Like he ate a browie before he died.

    Okay, that's it. Come back here on December 22nd, 2016 for yet another look at the 1968 classic. Let me make it clear - it isn't. *wink* See you then.

    One more bit...

    Something I just noticed; on the film's Wikipedia page ('68), it says that siblings last name is "Blair". This is new news to me.
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 09-28-2018 at 07:07 AM.

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    PART I: THE 1968 CLASSIC - J

    Snow and wind occupy this night so close to Christmas, bitter cold. But at this point, you're comfy. You found one of those plastic tool sheds, touted by Sears as long lasting. Turns out - they were right. The place is so big, once you took out the crap. Big enough to fit a twin sized, raised inflatable bed which was an amazing finds inside - that and a foot air pump.

    For the past two days you have put alot effort, turning the plastic shack into your Winter abode. Freezing cold has put all worries about the dead to rest; out of the equation for the season. For months you have for practical reasons, stocked up on duct tape. Now vital, as you seal the door, keeping warmth in. You have your trusty solar panel that recharges your lantern and newly added DVD player.

    And a CD wallet with various movies you put away this very occasion.

    The house in front had some canned goods in the cellar and a somewhat just expired box of Trix. All set up in a small shelf you brought in from the house.

    This is gonna be a good Winter. You have created a small fireplace inside - a ceramic bowl with some stuff to burn. Even building a tiny smoke exhaust into the wall with found metal tubing and piping (over the bowl) from the house. With a funnel on tip, former dog anti-scratching collar. But as you're getting ready to watch "Three O’Clock High" - a noise outside.

    Not the dead.

    You're glad you had just tuned off your lantern and NOT lit your makeshift fireplace.

    Are they coming to this backyard? Will they try to open the shed? You take slow breaths, trouble may be coming this Christmas; Santa isn't gonna help.

    - - -

    Welcome to Turd City! Where crap is king; bootlegs and poor public domain titles are sold on every street corner.

    This update is a craptastic PD release. Let me say, you would probably be better watching an old VHS copy.

    This copy was briefly mentioned in Part III: Antipathy - B; the entry for "Night Of The Living Dead" 1968, colorized. I had to do a composite, two images; same one, broken up to compensate for that image's distortion.



    Bought this past July.

    This came with a printed disc label - a repeat of the cover ghoul.

    Great DVD cover, I will give them that.

    It was a chore finding stats. This was released on February 22nd, 2005 (even though the back cover reads 2004) from Brentwood Home Video; distributed by BCI Eclipse (UPC# 7 87364 42299 9) for $4.98. Real cheap for a good reason. Catalog number is 44229-9. Should be noted that BCI Eclipse is no longer in business, making this out of print. Or discontinued if you wish.

    The DVD streeted against "Sport Illustrated Swimsuit 2005", "A Letter To Three Wives", "The Specials" and "Stan Lee's Stripperella: Uncensored - Season One".

    No slipcover or insert issued. And it came in a "Flexbox" DVD case.

    The DVD has fourteen chapters; the last one is devoted to DVD authoring info.

    The motion picture is ninety-six minutes long.

    - - -

    Extras:

    * "About Film"; movie trivia scroll (full screen, 3:01 minutes)

    - - -

    Audio:

    * Dolby Digital 2.0 (mono)

    - - -

    NOTES/REVIEW

    There are no subtitles

    The DVD is not dubbed in any language(s).



    Lets start with the terrible menu screen, poor craftsmanship.

    The screen appears, but you can't do anything until "Night Of The Living Dead" text twists on screen. Which takes too long, each and every time. You can't do squat until that happens, super annoying.

    What the hell?

    That blaze is coming off Ben's torch, okay that makes sense. But what's the deal with the lightning? That bolt is actually coming off that zombie's eye. Was the idea that the undead fellow had some kind of super power to spark - ignite the torch?

    - - -

    [long pause]

    Don't buy this.

    Just don't bother, this is only on my radar because of that original cover art.



    Lets begin by showing a screen snap, didn't do any work on it.

    Why should I? That's lipstick on a pig.

    Too dark and too washed out; taken from an inferior print with a ton of scratches and all the things you associate with that.

    True - it's watchable, but I've seen better Youtube videos.



    Other examples with perspective; the 2002 Elite Entertainment, "Millennium Edition" DVD.

    Why did I choose that?

    Why not take screen snaps from the better "40th Anniversary Edition"?

    Wanted to show how it could've been by taking snaps from the best available release in '04 - "Millennium Edition".

    The 40th did not come out until May 20th, 2008.

    Oh yeah, that trivia scroll is just tidbits that most fans already know. Probably notes taken from the Millennium commentaries.

    Examples in two waves. These were taken at the same frame on each release.



    Our farm gang watching TV; reports of the chaos outside.

    As you can see there is some minor differences in aspect ratio.

    You're getting more image in the width with Millennium. And more on top, but loose a small bit on the bottom part of the picture.

    Don't ask, not in the know.

    The picture quality is a night and day difference. You can actually see the stripes on Helen's blouse. You can see Tom's face clearly. And can see Ben's hands as well as his chair.

    Before you ask, no - didn't do image work with the Millennium stills.

    Wave two.



    For the second example, wanted something stark.

    Harry opening the cellar door, allowing Judy to babysit Karen while he and Helen go upstairs.

    The images speak for themselves.

    You can clearly see the planks of wood and the mason on the brick wall.

    It's no surprised that folks were highly impressed with the 2002 release. It out shined any previous release on DVD, laser disc and VHS.



    Above is the DVD advertisement for the Millennium Editions for NOTLD and "H.P. Lovecraft's Re-Animator", which I own. Bought from Circuit City over a decade ago (on a sale). I also own the "Anchor Bay Collection" special edition from 2007. Why both - not all the extras carried over.

    I suppose I'm gonna keep the BCI release just because of the art, which kinda looks like the dead guy from the cemetery, the 1990 remake. It goes into the pile of titles kept for various reasons; not officially part of my collection.

    - - -

    It's now been a year since news surfaced about those missing deleted scenes. And reveal that the movie was remastered without those scenes restored. What has happened?

    No answer to give.

    Announced last month; a screening of the 4K digital restoration of the film for November 5th (2016) at The Museum of Modern Art (8:00 pm) in New York. Tickets went on sale on October 22nd. In attendance was Romero who talked about the movie.

    The press release...

    The film was restored by The Museum of Modern Art and The Film Foundation with funding provided by the George Lucas Family Foundation. The restoration was overseen by George A. Romero and Image Ten - most especially, Gary Streiner, Russ Streiner, and John Russo—with restoration work done by Cineric Inc, NYC, and Audio Mechanics, Burbank, CA.
    Zero mention about restored footage.

    Then there's this quote, same release...

    MoMA first acquired an original print in 1970 for its collection. Now, decades later, the Museum presents this important motion picture in its best possible state after a painstaking audio and image restoration.
    This is NOT the print that was found with the deleted scenes in the collection of John Russo. A separate remastering.

    The showing is part of the museum's 14th annual "To Save And Project"...

    an international festival dedicated to celebrating newly preserved and restored films from archives, studios, distributors, foundations, and independent filmmakers.
    Indeed.



    Another behind-the-scenes pix; the posse getting ready to mow the lawn (as it were).

    Important news about these updates.

    As it stand, I've gone through my materials. There is another DVD, another documentary on the side actors. Not willing to pay that much for what appears to be a fluff entry. My eyes go to Ebay regularly. So I may find it cheap enough to buy.

    There will be no Update for January. I will have something for 2017, that's for sure. Movie news for one, that train wreck reboot is coming. News when it surfaces about the expanded classic. There is stuff to report. *nods*
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 09-28-2018 at 07:08 AM.

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    2016 still had another icon to take away from us.

    His improvised line has become part the global lexicon - "Yeah, they're dead... they're all messed up".

    Sometimes actor, George Kosana passed on December 30th, 2016; died in home at Clairton, Pennsylvania. He was eighty-one and died from various illnesses which he had endured for years.



    Kosana is best known, the world over as Sheriff McClelland from the 1968 classic.

    He was one of the original ten investors which gave six hundred dollars each to make "Night" happen, their production company became Image Ten.

    Beyond his bit part, he was also a production manager.

    He has one final movie; in post-production (as of this writing) from John Russo (who wrote and co-directed with Robert Lucas) is "My Uncle John Is A Zombie!". Kosana reprised his role as Sheriff McClelland; a crowd sourced horror-comedy (Indiegogo).



    Before you ask - yes, that's the film's poster, not a junior high kid's fevored sketch. Right to that, Kosana as he was last year in the movie; a still from the teaser.

    A zombie kept in hiding by his niece and nephew for over forty years suddenly becomes famous when the world discovers he can talk and reason as though he were alive. As his popularity grows, he is discovered by zombie hunters who want to kidnap him and hunt him for sport.
    - official synopsis

    Anyhow, not the first time though.

    He also played McClelland earlier in "Living Dead" (2012), an hour long film/short.

    His death was reported through Russo's Facebook page on January 3rd, 2017.

    George Kosana, R.I.P. My close friend George Kosana, who played the sheriff in Nold, has regrettably passed away after a long battle with various illnesses. He will be greatly missed by me, by his fellow Nold cast and crew members and by his many fans. For the past few days, I have been constantly reliving my many good and often funny remembrances of him.
    Kosana did not return to his role for the 1990 remake.



    Sheriff McClelland was played by Russell Streiner with an eye patch; best known as playing Johnny in the original. The man interviewing him is Bill 'Chilly Billy' Cardille - who reprised his role from the '68 movie, a nice bit of continuity.

    The Kosana also appeared in a second Romero film, "There’s always Vanilla" which co-starred Judith Ridley (Judy from "Night"). The 1971 romcom which for various reasons has not been officially released.

    Going back to "My Uncle John Is A Zombie!".

    A book was published before the movie comes out.



    The softback was released by CreateSpace Independent Publishing in 2015. And sells for $19.95. It is eighty-six pages long. I'm guessing a novelization.
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 09-28-2018 at 07:18 AM.

  11. #41
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    PART I: THE 1968 CLASSIC - K P1

    Things are far more grim than imagined.

    You recall your days of watching horror movies on TV. Thoughts about possible escape scenarios.

    Rope to swing on?

    Nope.

    Rope bridge to another tree?

    Also no.

    The noises below you have grown; your audience gathering volume as you can see from your vantage more joining; a death jamboree. All in your honor. And no cake.

    You search your tattered backpack for something... anything, useful; a few partially eaten candy bars, a dog collar (don't ask), a disposable pen, roll of duct tape and a roll of electrical tape, matches, first aid kit, a worn Jackie Collins' novel, pieces of fish aquarium glass beads (again don't ask), a solar cell to charge your MP3 player, a dried up tube of generic Krazy Glue, three bottles of water and various cans of food, but NO can opener.

    It was on the list.

    On the surface, climbing into this old tree house was a wise choice. Eating all those found broccoli certainly canceled out any advantage - hours of loud and quite winded flatulence. You might as well had hung a lit neon sign that read 'Eat Me'.

    Well, at least they can't reach you. And if you're lucky and silent, maybe. Maybe after a day or so they'll go away. Or at least to a manageable fleeing number. You think this as you eat another handful of broccoli.

    Man, you ARE your own worst enemy.



    I have no poster art, but I do have the DVD trade advertisement. So there you go. We have yet another documentary on the 1968 motion picture. Worth the greenbacks? A good question.

    But first the stats for "Autopsy Of The Dead".

    This is a direct to video release.



    Released on September 22nd, 2009 from Zero Day Releasing (UPC# 8 84501 18135 8) for $24.95.

    The DVD streeted against "Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins", "Paul Newman: The Tribute Collection" and "Private Century".

    The release came with no slipcover nor any kind of insert(s). It has thirty-nine chapters. It came in a transparent case which has a double sided wraparound. The inside has the chapter listings. The inside image is the shadow of zombie, Karen Cooper who had just stabbed her mom, blood on the wall.

    The motion picture is one hundred forty-four minutes long.

    - - -

    Extras:

    * "Locations Of The Dead: Then & Now" (visiting original filming spots, 13:16 minutes)
    * "Behind The Scenes: 1967 Newsreel" (no audio, 2:48 minutes)
    * "Archive Of The Dead" (slideshow gallery with video of props & memorabilia [screen specific commenatry by Ella Mae Smith], 10:21 minutes)
    * Still Gallery (30 pixs)
    * "Profile: Rick Catizone" (interview with the man who did the still frame animated end credits, 6:52 minutes)
    * Bloopers (from interviews, 7:51 minutes)
    * Theatrical Trailers
    * TV Spots
    * Radio Spots (1968 and mid 1970s re-release)

    - - -

    Audio:

    * Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo

    - - -

    NOTES/REVIEW

    There are no subtitles.

    The DVD is not dubbed in any language(s).

    Everything here is presented in full screen.



    If you bought the DVD from their website - early on... The first two hundred copies came with a single limited edition 5" x 7" autographed card. There were more than twenty different signatures, which were randomly inserted. My copy did not come with any. Bought from Amazon earlier this month.

    Okay.

    This was a documentary I had heard about years ago. But didn't have much incentive or enthusiasm to acquire. From what I had read, this was interviews with the minor folks who had bit parts in the horror film - in short, a filler presentation.

    But since I no longer have NOTLD subjects to cover, thought it was time to buy. Bought it new for fifteen bucks off Amazon.

    Now that I've seen it twice; once just to watch and the second for notes and screen snaps. I really like this. This is not filler, there are some great stories by the smaller people involved. Now, not all of them are great. But each of the interviews are not that long - tied to a part of the production. So even the weaker part do not overstay their welcome.

    Before I continue an overview of who participated and what they did in the feature...

    Charles Craig - news caster/ghoul and posse extra
    Kyra Schon - Karen Cooper
    Gary R. Streiner - sound engineer/posse extra
    Charles O'Dato - prop master (animal heads in the farm house were his)
    Regis Survinsky - special effects (gun shots impacts)
    Bill Hinzman - cemetery ghoul
    Joseph Unitas - lighting supervisor
    Steve Hutsko - news camera man with the posse
    Bill "Chilly Billy" Cardille - news reporter with the posse
    Dave James - the last ghoul shot (grabs his face)
    Bob Harvey - KQV helicopter traffic reporter
    Norma Jean Gass - owner of the farm house in the movie
    Ken Gass - the son of Norma Jean and Gilbert Gass
    Ella Mae Smith - ghoul extra with her husband Phillip
    Rick Catizone - end credits still frame animator
    Bill Mogush - ghoul extra (zombie clawing at the truck window while Tom started the car) and one of the original ten investors
    Lee Hartman - ghoul extra/news room typist and posse extra
    Bill Burchinal - ghoul extra (night attack on the farm house inside)
    Herbert Summer - ghoul extra (shot by Ben at the gas pump)
    Dick Heckard - posse extra with pinned black hat
    Lee Hollihan - cricket sound effects

    The thing that stand out the most is Charles Craig, he's an old fellow now. But just as sharp as he was then. His contribution to the doc was the most fascinating.



    The famous news scene, where the newscaster is interviewing the university professor, Dr. Grimes (Frank Doak - the salesman at Hardman Associates) was mostly ad libbed based on what both men thought might be said if such a thing were to happen. It wasn't really scripted, they were given a basic outline and ran with it. It feels authentic since Craig was a radio news man for years.

    Learning that the consumed head prop was left on the top floor for pretty much the whole shoot, on the floor.

    The dangers of throwing molotov cocktails full of gasoline (yeah gasoline) out of the second story window; not really thinking how it could've gone wrong. The virtue of being really, really naive.

    Blowing up of Ben's truck; they had no idea how huge the blast was going to be. To make it more visual, various bits and pieces were dumped in the flat bed. There could've been serious injuries with flying debris. Kyra Schon talks about how that scene was a regret; she wasn't there when they blew it up. She wanted to see it.

    Joseph Unitas was with his wife on set, taking a break; sitting on the edge of a bed. The bedroom was used for mannequin storage, props for long shots (cut from the movie). Lorrane freaks out when one of the bodies sits up in bed. It was actor Duane Jones who was also taking a break. Not a prank, he was just tired. She starts freaking out, screaming.

    One of the smaller tales is something I never noticed until it was pointed out. I've seen the movie countless times. Now my eyes go to him, right away. Dick Heckard, his role as an extra.
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 09-28-2018 at 07:11 AM.

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    PART I: THE 1968 CLASSIC - K P2



    Heckard knew his tiny part was going to get lost. So he had the idea to stand out. He used a comically oversized safety pin to pin half of his hat together (as you can see in the above photo). He's only in a couple quick shots, but now I see him clearly. That was rather clever.

    The bloody zombie above is Dave James. On the far right with film canister is Gary R. Streiner.

    That still was taken in November of 1967.



    Another good one is how an off duty, Pittsburgh police officer (used for posse filming) was trying to impress one of the ladies with his dog, Bullet; that his canine was not afraid of anything. That is until one of the ghoul extras (Paula Richards, in full make-up above) in a white gown comes around the corner of the farm house - to the food table.

    Bullet sees her, yelps and runs away.

    The cop had to give chase to his K9 partner, a German shepherd.

    Another good one is from Schon; Romero was having a rough time filming one day and expressed his frustrations.



    The result was Kyra hearing the "F" word for the very first time. Made me laugh, things are so different now. But back then, yeah it would be used sparingly and only among adults. Before you ask, no. Have no idea who's dog that is in that candid snap.

    One of the largest bits of trivia is something that I didn't know. The possible cause for the undead was an actual topical subject for 1968. The space probe was a real thing, a then current event; the 1967 Mariner 5 - Venus Probe! Blew my mind, that's serious trivia.

    A side note.

    The Pittsburgh Press; October 2nd, 1968; page forty-six had tiny piece on the movie which had its premiere the night earlier (at the Fulton Theater). "Grisly Scenes: Pittsburgh's First Movie Real Shocker"; the story was written by Thomas Blakley - the Press Drama Editor who was in attendance.

    His quote is of particular interest as I've never seen it repeated/mentioned on the back text of any home video releases.

    These ghouls are the recent dead and "because of a freak molecular mutation due to man's atomic research," they have risen up by the hundreds to strike down their victims and also devour them.
    Who was Blakley quoting??? This shuts down the theory that the dead rose up because of the radiation from the probe. The piece does mention Judy O'Dea and Duane Jones. Was it one of them?

    Other bits was learning that the news helicopter took twenty minutes from shut down for the blade stop whiling. The nude ghoul's character name; the body tag is "Smythe, Carole 40916". It wasn't embers in the air during bonfire scene at the finale. It was snowing when they shot it.

    The famous music box is actually two.



    The tune playing as it open and close did not come from it. It was recorded from a separate music box. Kyra shows the source box while sitting in the basement of the former The Latent Image offices, where the farm house basement scenes were filmed. It still has the stain on the concrete where Karen ate her father - a brown mark from chocolate syrup.

    The headstone that was the fatal blow to Johnny (Russell Streiner) by the ghoul (Bill Hinzman) at the cemetery is "Clyde Lewis Myers"; 1903 - 1966. This is from "Locations Of The Dead". Interesting.

    One of the most amazing things here is something exclusive; vintage radio spots (remastered from the original vinyl for radio stations' commercials). Two from the 1968 release and two from the mid 1970 re-release. This is brand new to me. That's so sway.

    It even has a rare picture of an axed scene. Not really that impressive. The zombies horde is coming to the farm house. It was a day for night shot. After processing, it looked fake. So the scene was ditched for genuine night shooting.

    From left to right near the blazing chair...



    Charles Craig, Jack Givens (in that Thriller pose), Lee Hartman, Jeannie Anderson and Hinzman looking quite pale.

    Another good story is how one of the extras got on TV - by himself.

    A Pittsburgh station sent their reporter and camera man to cover a movie being filmed locally for their evening news. Lee Hartman wanted to be on television that night and hatched an idea. All the posse extras were mugging for the camera. Lee decided to ignore them as he sat on the grass, smoking a cigarette holding his rife - looking real haggard. He stood out.

    It worked, that night on the news, Hartman was the only posse extra which was shown, much to his delight.

    Another Hartman story is how he helped Duane with the rife. The actor had never shot a gun before. So with Lee's help he gave some pointers to Jones and target practice on a tree. Rifles have a kick to them. Didn't say if Duane actually hit the tree. Hartman is lively guy, another favorite.



    Above is (left to right); Randy Burr, Tony Pantanella, Gary Streiner and Vince Survinski with Jones being tossed into soon to be bonfire.

    There is a huge issue for some. This did not happen with my copy which was played on both a DVD player and my laptop.

    Some people have reported audio issues with the disc. All during the interviews with the Gass family. The hum from the lighting equipment overshadows when Norma Jean talks with the audio from her son as clear - then the sound goes into black (silence) for both. When the two are seen again later, the audio is dead.

    As I wrote, this is happening with more than one person who bought the release. Zero Day Releasing gave a public response.

    A few viewers have alerted us to this issue, but I've been unable to duplicate the problem on various standalone DVD players or when viewing on a computer, regardless of the audio configuration. We thoroughly tested the master disc prior to replication, and I can only assume that it's a problem caused by a particular audio/speaker set-up that we're unaware of.
    I will say for me the hum is there and Norma Jean's voice is slightly muted, but clearly heard. And no audio drop. *shrugs* Just be aware that some copies may have an issue.

    Well, I didn't think I was going to like this, but had smiles and (slight giggles). It presents a lot of stories of people who fondly remember their time making a low-budget horror flick.



    It was nice to see that a new house was built on the old farm house spot. The stories above are a small sample of the anecdotes featured. A lot more to enjoy. Like the house paintings.

    Great stuff and so many pictures I have not seen before. "Autopsy Of The Dead" is quite the worthwhile addition to the other "Night" documentaries.

    - - - - - - - - - -

    EASTER EGGS



    There is short clip of Charles Craig looking at a caricature of himself by Judith Ridley (Judy); done at Hardman Associates in 1967.

    DVD Credits -> return to Main Menu -> Bonus Feature option now appears, highlight "Bonus Feature" - ENTER.

    If you let "Special Features" play one cycle without picking an option, the cemetery ghoul appears with a rock to smash the screen, it shatters and reforms.

    And that's it for now. I've got an idea for the next Retrospective entry, but I'm looking for a better price. So just like the subject, this is far from dead. See you then.
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 09-28-2018 at 07:12 AM.

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    PART IV: BOOKS - A4 P1

    You had no idea, had you known - you would've stayed away or at the very least, gone wide around. But the spot was covered; the forrest reclaimed the pit.

    This must've been dug by a one of those industrial hoes some time back. For the crisis or for a future septic tank for an unbuilt home? Either way moot.

    The good news, you fell in without any serious injuries, no broke bones, though the bottom is littered with them. You can see skulls with bullet holes. Grave concerns if these were fresh looking, not the case. They look old, case made stronger with the lack of odor.

    You make sure not the touch any of them in fear of infection - just in case. The immediate matter is getting out. The place is quiet, minus the sounds of nature. So for the moment, the danger is exclusively the pit itself.

    One of the best things you did a few months back; take stalk of what you would need to live in this new world. Had a pencil, paper and began brainstorming. A result of this 'what if' was making sure you have fifty feet of rope. It's should be long enough to make a simple lasso to swing at a tree branch or such.

    Ready to make a triumph exist when the woods got silent. Where? Damn good question. The pit is a parabolic dish, a faint noise is coming from all directions and getting somewhat louder. It doesn't sound like more than a two zeds. Maybe.

    Best course of action is just go against the dirt wall and not move, not make a sound. Wait for the forrest to come back alive, then climb out. That may not be an option today. Those dragging feet noise is getting much louder. You pull out a knife, hoping not to use. You were never good at close quarters combat.

    But the noise isn't the only sign; you can smell an approach. Fight the gag reflex, it could give you away. This was something you missed when you did your strategy planning. So damn simple, overlooked - the smell.

    Be still, don't cough; like your life depends on it.

    Man, this is something I wasn't sure I wanted to write. I screwed up, something so damn obvious; feel like an idiot for not noticing. Hell, I did image work on it (for that previous post).

    It isn't canon, rather only - published fan fiction.



    Last month I bought the Christopher Andrews novel of the 1968 feature. It says right there on the cover - "Based on the public domain film by John Russo and George Romero". Not an official book.

    The novel was first talked about in the December 3rd, 2015 entry on the various NOTLD books. Some stats before we continue.

    Released on October 31st, 2009 from Rising Star Visionary Press (ISBN# 978-0-9824882-1-8) for $13.95.

    The softback is two hundred and seven pages long. The dimensions are 8 x 5 inches.

    - - -

    NOTES/REVIEW

    Since this is a detailed comparision between the book and movie, it will be quite a long. The entry will be broken up into four parts. *nods*

    The book is pretty solid with lots of backstory and fixes a plot hole as well as address something in much dispute since 1968. The cause of the infection. Not like that - an elimination.

    So lets do this chronologically; differences from movie to non-official book:

    Johnny and Barbar.



    We get some back story on the bickering siblings. Their father had died with they were very little. Because of money issues; the family moved with their mother's dad. A deeply religious man; growing up he and Johnny would butt heads frequently.

    Their mother is sickly, but found work as a seamstress to make ends meet. As with the movie, mom is still alive.

    Because of their grandfather, Barbar is somewhat religious - a regular at Sunday church. But not a place of worship that speaks of hellfire and brimstone.

    she preferred a quieter church to the one her grandfather had insisted they attend as children.
    The rest follows the movie.

    - - -

    Ben.

    This is where the meat occurs. *smiles*



    "Beekman's Diner" - Ben is a high school teacher, traveling by bus; waiting for his connection for the final leg of his trip home. The bus stop is front of the infamous diner. Two hours to kill; he goes in for something to eat, a burger and fries with a slice of peach cobbler, which he never got to taste.

    He had a booth seat to himself with window to the nightmare unfolding as the sun starts setting for the evening. Ben is given the pie as the oddity happened, a woman standing in the middle of the road in a dirty nurses uniform, a red stain on her neck to her chest.

    His waitress, Claria recognizes the woman, Liza Connelly; Claria's neighbor who works at county hospital. Liza then moves from the road toward the diner.

    At this point Ben did not get involved. He just wanted to go home, tired. Two elderly diner patrons go out to see if Liza was injured.

    Why didn't they see something wrong with her right away?

    Connelly's dirty hair was covering her face (and injury). Liza then tries to bite one of the men's hands. Both are stunned, but it's sort lived - Connelly attacks the same man who trips with her landing on top of him.

    Liza Connelly bites down, chopping the man's cheek, tearing off a chunk off Joe's face. The second man screams and takes off running, away from the diner, up the road. It is now that Ben becomes proactive, enlisting the diner's janitor to help him outside. The janitor who up until the screaming had been asleep in one of the empty booths - it's a slow Sunday.

    Ben grabs his jacket to use as a hood for the girl. Wrapping her head so she would stop eating the old man. It works and he tries a choke hold on her; Liza is not blacking out. Ben has put a lot of pressure on her throat and is concerned that more pressure could kill her. At this point the janitor unscrews a mop as a weapon.

    Joe is dead from massive blood loss.

    The janitor ends up trying to knock the woman out by kicking her in the head. It breaks her neck. There is a quiet moment between the men; was it murder or self defense?

    Things get worse; from around a corner of "Beekman's" another hospital person appears, walking to them - a woman in a hospital gown. The mop is used as a bat on her, but didn't work, hit her face and it shattered, breaking her jaw. Another person with the same temperament joins in, this one is different, clean and in street clothes, a man.

    Ben calls out for the janitor to come back into the diner. Nope - he decides to leave in his pickup truck. But didn't get too far - Joe wakes up, grabs the janitor's leg, then bites into his calf; blood pumping out of the gap in Joe's face.

    Now other people descend on the janitor, eating him. Nothing to do, Ben creeps back to the diner and sees that the man had dropped his truck keys. With enough wits, Ben tells the dinner patrons and staff to get ready; turn the light off and lock all the doors.

    He's going to get help - and goes after the keys, forgetting to take his suitcase still in his booth. Which ealier he regrets not using as a weapon on Connelly, the jacket was a poor choice.

    Ben runs into the carnage grabbing the keys before they could react to him.

    Inside the Chevy, door locked, now what? No direction. Ben opts to go in the direction of the man who had fled up the road when this started. Wanting to know what was going on, he turns the ignition just enough to power the truck's radio; silence with some static. We get the same radio broadcast Barbar and Johnny heard at the cemetery. The station is back on the air (a nice touch).

    Then the woman with the broken jaw comes to Ben's driver's side window; like with the cemetary ghoul tries to pound the glass open. No more time to waste, he puts the car into drive and prepares to get out of the locale. That is when he sees the tanker on fire, weaving on the road towards him. Ben's is nearly broadsided by the gasoline truck.

    Once it passed, he saw why the tanker was weaving, ten to fifteen people include one child were chasing it; a few of them dragged by the rig. No time and loss of control, the tanker smashed across the street, causing it to create a huge bonfire - the tanker did not explode. Ben had jumped out to try to help the man without thinking he was out in the open, vulnerable.

    He hears the death screams from the driver; unsure if it was from the blaze or if one of those things had gotten inside the cab earlier. Nothing to do, the man was a goner.

    That's when Ben saw that the things were afraid of fire, keeping distance. He rushes a bit back to the diner and discovers they too can't be saved.

    From this new vantage point he could see a huge group of THEM in the field behind the restaurant, most of them in hospital gowns. Then the diner's window. They did not lock the back door, some had gotten inside. In the mess, they did not turn off the lights. All the Eats inside.

    The fire had died enough for them to refocus their attention - to Ben, alone. Scared and transfixed by the staring mob. It is the sight of the dead janitor rising that snaps him back. He runs back to the truck and drives through them trying to get away. A new problem, the thing is in need of gas, nearly empty.

    Can't get far, that's when Ben sees in what remains of the sunset, a farmhouse in the distance. And a gas pump near a barn; might be his salvation - we know better.
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 10-13-2019 at 07:46 AM.

  14. #44
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    PART IV: BOOKS - A4 P2

    Tom and Judy.



    The couple had been dating for four years since both were juniors in high school. This was their Sunday date; lunch, a movie at the local theater and making-out at Ridley Hill - if she was in the mood and a swim at the lake. Judy is saving herself for marriage, no amount of speaking from Tom will change her mind.

    Tom works at the nearby garage as a mechanic. We do not know if this is the same gas station next to the diner or it could be in town.

    They are in Judy's car, but she rarely drove it - Tom does. He's trying to save his money, not for a wedding ring, but a used, red Mustang. *smiles* Thinking it will impress her... perhaps into her pants.

    Not feeling a kissing session, the two head for the lake. It was starting to get late, but still had enough daylight for the short trip and swim.

    Tom has the radio on, no music - static and silence. Both witness a group of young people already at the lake, pulling someone out of the water. Then a voice happens, NOT the radio newsman, but the station's disc jockey.

    If you're just tuning in, it is vital that you pay close attention. According to reports from all over the county, and some are now coming in from the entire tri-state area, we are experiencing an epidemic of unexplained mass murder. What we first dismissed as hysteria can no longer be denied. We have confirmed the accuracy of many of these reports with local police and sheriff departments; the murders are real, and they're taking place as we speak.
    That's when the radio goes dead again. Tom considers it a prank, but Judy is taking seriously. But their attention is now on the shore, a man had been dragged from the water. A woman is trying to resuscitate him. They get out and walk among the watchers.

    The unconscious man is large and Tom wonder if anything was actually happening, the woman could be pushing on pure fat, not making a difference.

    The woman screams at the man, demanding Gerald to wake up. "Breathe!" A kid present relates what saw; the man Gerald Levin was in the lake screaming in the water. Saying the thought the adult was having a bad cramp, then Gerald sunk under the surface.

    Tom asks the group if anyone had gone for help. The answer is yes; pointing at the road to the lake. The thing is, Tom did not see any cars pass them by. But he might have been more occupied with the radio broadcast to have noticed. It is he that sees a wound on Levin's left calf, like a dog had taken a bite. Then Gerald started moving.

    The group applaud the woman including Judy. Then the man started hugging his wife. She tries to pull him off her, then lets out a muffled scream. Gerald Levin had bitten off her lips. The shocking sight became worse. Levin then takes another bite, now from her thigh, a greater scream.

    The teens and kids are horrified and scatter. Leaving Tom and Judy to witness the maul. It's Judy who sees the creature. A woman staggers out of the lake, bloated. The blue looking girl is coming after the couple. They run for Judy's car. But didn't get far. Another agitator in a filthy hospital gown was near the car. No way around him, it won't leave, something has caught his attention on the auto.

    They then run from the lake as fast as they can. Some time later, pausing in a field - Tom remembers the old farmhouse. The owner, an elderly woman probably has a telephone. They could call for help. But then they see another person with the same kind of lanky moment in the distance. No time to think.

    We don't have a choice, honey. We gotta go. Right now.
    Both run toward their fates.

    - - -

    The Coopers.

    Why were the Coopers still together when they did not love each other?



    Harry's parents had gotten divorced when he was a teen. The same thing happened to Helen when she was in elementary. Both had hurt childhoods from the loss. They opted not to do the same to Karen; to go their own way once she graduated from high school. A mutual agreement.

    The family was coming home from a fail attempted to gain favor from Harry's boss.

    He's in sales. His company's annual sales convention, a weekend affair. This year the amenities were not picked up the company. They had to spend their own money for attendance and food, not a lot but more than they had expected. Harry hinted that she and Karen should come along - to present a strong, successful family impression to his more conservative associates.

    It failed for him, no bonuses, no new clients and no promotion. The long trip home is where it started - Harry blamed Helen for being "too snooty and too cold"...

    she'd had the audacity to look better than his boss' wife.
    How did they get into this mess?

    Harry got an idea of getting home sooner by checking out early from the hotel and taking a short cut - bad idea; he was lost.

    Helen had left him alone for some time. Not even asking to stop at "Beekman's" to ask for directions. Her husband had taken this trip for years (alone) and assumed he knew what he was doing. Another bad idea.

    After some time, Harry had to turns the car around, this was mid-afternoon. He was fully lost. They'll have to spend a night in some motel because of his stubbornness.

    It is on the road where they witnessed a car cash, two small cars has collided. A minor fender-bender, no real damage. But what caught their attention was the amount of people who had surrounded the compact cars, at least two dozen folks; far too many to have been in the cars.

    Harry had honked his horn to get them off the road, they were blocking his way home. It wasn't working, they were occupied. No choice, he came to a full stop and honk again for a longer duration, still ignored him. Pissed off, Harry gets out to give them a piece of his mind.

    "All right, all right", he declared, just short of shouting. "There's been a little accident, what a sight, we're all impressed. Now could some of you please move, your asses out of the way?"
    Nothing, they were too engrossed with their own particulars. Harry could not see why - at first, but rather could hear it. As if the folks were engaged in gum-chewing contest. So angry he had failed to notice the group's dishevel appearance.

    Some had rural farmer's outfits, others in hospital attire - staff and patients, bloody. Helen was the first to make the connection that something was amiss.

    But at this point Harry was too ticked off to have noticed the blood, dirty and tattered clothing. He walked up to one, a woman and forcefully grabbed her arm - "Look, idiot, why don't you and your buddies..." didn't get to finish his insult, the sight snapped him to this reality.

    Like seeing a pie eating contest, but not pies - the woman's face was bloody from the nose down. She opened her mouth, bits of flesh fell out. She now had a new target - Harry Cooper. She reached to him to grab to hold. And with her actions, all of the others had stopped what they were doing to focus on the middle age man.

    He ran back to the car with the group in slow pursuit. Harry threw the car in reverse with the foot the pedal. High speed, but had not considered looking behind. The car had hit something, hard. Helen thought they had had hit someone. She was correct.

    Two men in dirty, doctor's surgical scrubs. They were missing parts of their anatomy - not from the car impact.

    One was missing his arm from the elbow down.

    The other was missing part of his cheek and one of his eyes.

    None showed pain, but tried to get back on their feet. They tried to reach for the Coopers in the car.

    Scared, Harry puts the car into drive to go around the car crash ahead of them, but now the group wasn't in one place, they were spread out on the road. But in doing so, the car had gone off the paved road into the shoulder which caused the car to loose needed traction. The strange people were now slamming into the passenger's side, what started as four quickly turned into a dozen. All trying to get inside.

    One of the things had reached into the wheel well and lost their arm as the car still tried to move forward. All the force and lost traction caused the car to turn over.

    Harry in the mess had not put on his seat belt when he tired to flee. The turnover cause him to hit his head on the roof. That's why he has that bump/bruise. Helen and Karen both were still locked in their seats, upside down.

    The car was still moving sliding down a slop, away from those maniacs. The windshield had cracked. When the car finally stopped, it was some distance away from the mob which was moving toward them, but stumbling and tripping over each other.

    Harry helps Helen out and both try to get Karen unbuckled who is "wailing at the top of her lungs" and crying. After some moments, they got their daughter free and pushed her out on Helen's side.

    "You go, Helen", he said in a moment of uncharacteristic chivalry. "Go, hurry!" Helen crawled out - grabbing her purse out of habit, the silly woman! - then reach back in to help Harry.
    There was no time.

    The scream happened so quickly - Karen's.
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 10-13-2019 at 07:46 AM.

  15. #45
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    PART IV: BOOKS - A4 P3

    Harry rushes out of the broken car to see that the person who had a limb in the wheel well was the same non-pie faced woman. The machinery had not torn off her arm, it was wrapped around the rim and got dragged with the car down the road.

    The woman had snatched the girl's right arm and bit down, drawing blood.

    Without any thought, punches the woman in the face with all his might. It worked, she let go, but her face was now a dark bloody mess, nose gone. The woman did not blink or even acknowledge her damage. Helen pulls her daughter away as the woman tries for a second bite, she got hold of the kid once more.

    Helen grabs the woman's hand and bends them backwards with an audible snap. The power of a mother bear saving her cub. No more time. The others were almost on top of them. Harry picked up his kid and they ran from the car.

    There is no real problem getting away from their attackers, but Karen is a dead weight, slowing them down. Helen wanted to go back to that diner they passed earlier, but was too far. Helen then sees a farmhouse in the distance. Harry wanted more distance from those things, but that place will have to do - shelter.

    "Fine", he said. "We'll check it out... here, help me with her, damn it - she weighs a lot more tan your purse!"
    From this point forward we are in movie territory.

    - - -

    The cause.

    This has been a topic of speculation and dispute for forty-eight years; Christopher Andrews offers his take on what it can NOT be.



    The thoughts are from Ben:

    After killing the men outside with the tire iron...

    Could any communicable disease cause such rapid degradation? Maybe it wasn't a disease at all, but something else - a toxic gas perhaps, or even some sort of chemical exposure? None of these possibilities brought Ben any comfort
    After watching the first TV report about the dead coming back to life...

    Ben, already considered this possibility, however impossible, far back in the depths of their minds? The way these things moved, the way they looked, the way they smelled, that empty, inhuman hunger in their eyes - and don't forget how difficult it was to stop them, how one of them kept coming even after being shot through the heart!
    Space experts? Ben vaguely recalled that NASA had been mentioned on the radio earlier, but he had been tuned most of it out by that point.
    "Could that radiation be somehow responsible for the wholesale murders we're now suffering".

    I doubt that, Ben mused. He was no expert, but he knew enough from teaching the odd science class that whatever the source, hard radiation would destroy flesh before doing anything so bizarre as to reanimated it. It was a ludicrous theory.
    - - -

    And now - the plot hole solved with a larger implication:



    Ben tuned that out for a moment - two things were bothering him now, but as in compliment of each other, he figured out what they each were.

    The first, the one that had bugged him from the moment they had switched to the film footage, was the time of day in which it was shot - broad daylight. When he had noticed the daylight during the earlier interviews with the military officer and his two companions, Ben had presumed that it had been filmed somewhere on the West Coast, where the sun might have not set yet. But this footage, which the anchorman claimed had "just" returned, looked like mid-afternoon, whereas it was now nighttime across the entire nation.

    They're misleading us, he thought. They're trying to prevent further panic at best, or boldface-lying to us at worst. This has been going on longer than they're willing to admit.

    The second thing was this bit about mysterious radiation having "activated" the brains of the dead; the notion had made him skeptical earlier, and it did so again. He believed the part about destroying the brain - he'd come to that conclusion on his own, seen the evidence with own eyes - but as for "mysterious radiation" being the cause, he just didn't buy it. Again, he was no expert, but to his knowledge irradiating the brain would, if anything, be a possible solution to the problem; the accelerated particles would tear the awaken synapses apart, break down the cells...

    The real problem is, he realized, that they don't have a clue why this is happening or what is causing it. But this must be their best working theory, so they're presenting it as fact. Damn, this situation wouldn't be going away anytime soon.
    Should be noted from Tom's and Judy's experience from the lake - the dead bloated woman in the water had been reanimated for some time to be in that condition; three to four days dead in the lake. The radio newsman quite earlier stated that the nightmare began two days before, the "slaying of a family of seven in their rural home near Gallpark, Louisiana". This may have begun much earlier in the sticks with little reporting.

    And keeping it a secret for as long as possible was the reason for television stations and radios to be... jammed. My speculation, not the author's. Since the detonated Venus probe had nothing to do with the broadcasts going off air.

    The view switched back to the studio, and the anchorman said, "Thank you, Bill for that report".

    Ben glanced over his shoulder at the others. Were they noticing the discontinuity between the report and the way it was being presented as though it was "current"? Should he point it out? What would that accomplish? Barbra was out of it, Helen was too exhausted, and he couldn't care less about Cooper.

    Besides, it didn't really change their situation, did it?
    From the final paragraphs of the novel...

    Ben had been skeptical of the so-called "radiation theory" before, and after witnessing this atrocious behavior, that skepticism would have to evolved.

    Maybe it wasn't radiation at all, he would have suggested, or a chemical weapon, or a germ or virus, or aliens from outer space, or any of the other popular theories.

    Maybe, Ben would have suggested, there was simply no more room in Hell.
    - - -

    Some bits and pieces.

    No scenes in the basement before Barbar and Ben arrives at the seemingly vacant farmhouse.

    Later after boarding up the home; before the basement dwellers appear - Ben is smoking a cigarette; he was trying to cut back to be a better role model for his students, but after what he saw and did, needed the nicotine.

    Because the pieces of Barbra's mind were thrown, Ben had given her an abridged version of the events at the diner.

    Later in the farmhouse to the group, Tom kept the lake story to himself because he didn't want to relive it.

    The book offers something I never considered, Tom's and Judy's death. I always assumed they died in the car blast. But consider that the ghouls only eat the living, not dead, makes perfect sense.

    The couple had survived the explosion - it came from truck's nearly empty gas tank, a concussive blast. The flames burning out most of the oxygen from the cab, taking away their breath to scream, still semi-conscious; covered in third-degree burns. They came from the open car door and tore into their living flesh. They could not fight back, dazed from the blast and pain of the burns. Eaten alive with no voice.

    Man, that's so messed up.

    By the way, the book points out something I never noticed in the decades I've seen this movie. Judy has impractical footwear - sandals. Took out the DVD for a screen snap. Yup, she has sandals on. It's nice to know, even after all these years, I'm still seeing new things.



    Vince, the deputized 'lieutenant' - the one in his posse who is a rifleman; was trying to impress Chief McClelland, hoping to make this position more than temporary after this mess was over.

    We also learn, that McClelland's first name is Conan.

    And there you have it, my... book report.

    The novel was enjoyable, but as I wrote at the beginning, published fan fiction, not an official novelization.

    My opinion hasn't changed, this has a terrible looking cover, cheap as hell. He has an injury on his collarbone, but it so poorly illustrated, it looks like an eye with lids.



    If I want that (official novel). I need to get the 1974 paperback by John Russo, Warner Paperback Library. That is, the first pressing with gallery, cause I'm anal. It's on my list.

    Before I close this update, I have some more stuff to report, all of which are book related. So this was an appropriate entry.

    While doing research for this book, I found yet another adaptation.

    This is rather new, as in last year.

    One hundred, eight-four pages long, softback.



    Released by Dark Blue Things in 2016 (October 10th) is "Night Of The Living Dead: A new Novelization By Sean Abley".

    Yet again, not an official novelization. But I am curious. This retails for $11.99. As I understand, Abley goes into the lives of what these dead people used to be.

    I would give this a read.
    Last edited by JohnIan101; 10-17-2019 at 05:03 AM.

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