Phil Brown, who played Luke Skywalker's uncle in Star Wars, said, "In my long life in films, there are ones I'm proud of and those I'm not proud of. The Jungle Captive and Weird Woman fall into the latter category." House of Wax co-star Paul Picerni was fired by the film's director when he refused to put his head in a working guillotine during a climactic fight scene. Packed with wonderful tidbits, this volume collects 22 interviews with the moviemakers responsible for bringing such films as This Island Earth, The Haunting, Carnival of Souls, Pit and the Pendulum, House of Wax, Tarzan the Ape Man, The Black Cat, Them! and Invasion of the Body Snatchers to the movie screen. Faith Domergue, Michael Forest, Anne Helm, Candace Hilligoss, Suzanna Leigh, Norman Lloyd, Maureen O'Sullivan, Shirley Ulmer, Dana Wynter and many more are interviewed.

For fans of SF and horror films, will there ever be a decade to compare with the 1950s? Actors, directors, producers, and crews prevailed over microbudgets and four-day shooting schedules to create enduring films. This book turns a long-overdue spotlight on many who made memorable contributions to that crowded, exhilarating filmmaking scene. John Agar, Beverly Garland, Samuel Z. Arkoff, Gene Corman, and two dozen more reminisce about the most popular genre titles of the era. Lengthy, in-depth interviews feature canny questions, pointed observations, rare photos, and good fun.

In 1953, a nine-year-old boy watched a prehistoric film called Beast From 20,000 Fathoms featuring the special effect magic of Ray Harryhausen. Enthralled by the movie but unsatisfied with what was available for at-home movie consumption, he decided to make his own science fiction thriller from dinosaurs to superheroes. This volume takes a firsthand look at the movie-making career of Don Glut. Beginning with his first movie, Diplodocus At Large, at age nine, it explores Glut's various attempts and the increasingly creative processes he used to bring his vision to life. Through the course of the work, Glut discusses his filmmaking experiences at the University of Southern California; the inspiration he received (and gave) through fanzines such as Famous Monsters of Filmland and Castle of Frankenstein; and the interest which his movies still generate. Films discussed include The Earth Before Man, Spy Smasher vs. the Purple Monster, Dinosaur Valley Girls, and Frankenstein Meets Dracula. A chronological filmography lists each of Glut's 41 films with notes regarding cast and a brief synopsis.

Paul Blaisdell was the man behind the monsters in such movies as The She Creature, Invasion of the Saucer Men, Not of This Earth, It! Terror from Beyond Space and many others. Working in primarily low-budget films, Blaisdell was forced to rely on greasepaint, guts and, most importantly, an unbounded imagination for his creations. From his inauspicious beginning through The Ghost of Dragstrip Hollow (1959), the construction of Blaisdell’s monsters and the making of the movies in which they appeared are fully detailed here. Blaisdell’s work in the early monster magazines of the 1960s is also covered.

Twenty horror and science fiction moviemakers--both in front of and behind the camera--reminisce about some of their great (and not so great!) films. Merry Anders, Charles Bennett, Ben Chapman, Herman Cohen, Robert Day, Val Guest, Susan Hart, Candace Hilligoss, Rose Hobart, Betsy Jones-Moreland, Jacques Marquette, Cameron Mitchell, Ed Nelson, William Phipps, Vincent Price, Ann Robinson, Herbert Rudley, Harry Spalding, Kenneth Tobey, and Lupita Tovar reflect on their work in such movies as Berserk, I Was a Teenage Werewolf, Cat-Women of the Moon and many other movies. Some interviews were previously published.

A revealing look at the influences and aspirations of today’s hottest filmmakers A new era has dawned in Hollywood, with a wave of innovative filmmakers redefining the art of big-screen entertainment for modern audiences. Entertainment journalist Josh Horowitz provides an in-depth look at twenty directors on the leading edge through a series of candid interviews. Horowitz covers a full range of styles and sensibilities—revealing both the points of agreement and the sharp distinctions among this eclectic group: * Kevin Smith’s do-it-yourself aesthetics in Clerks and Chasing Amy * Michel Gondry’s surreal dreamscapes in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind * Trey Parker’s love of fart jokes in South Park * How Jon Favreau’s teenage obsession with Dungeons & Dragons helped make Swingers * Todd Philips’ journey from documentary filmmaker to box-office success with Old School

Universal Studios created the first cinematic universe of monsters--Dracula, Frankenstein, the Mummy and others became household names during the 1930s and 1940s. During the 1950s, more modern monsters were created for the Atomic Age, including one-eyed globs from outer space, mutants from the planet Metaluna, the Creature from the Black Lagoon, and the 100-foot high horror known as Tarantula. This over-the-top history is the definitive retrospective on Universal's horror and science fiction movies of 1951-1955. Standing as a sequel to Tom Weaver, Michael Brunas and John Brunas's Universal Horrors (Second Edition, 2007), it covers eight films: The Strange Door, The Black Castle, It Came from Outer Space, Creature from the Black Lagoon, This Island Earth, Revenge of the Creature, Cult of the Cobra and Tarantula. Each receives a richly detailed critical analysis, day-by-day production history, interviews with filmmakers, release information, an essay on the score, and many photographs, including rare behind-the-scenes shots.