Sunday, June 30, 2013

RIP Jim Kelly


American actor Jim Kelly died June 29th in San Diego, California of cancer. A pioneer figure of Blaxploitation films and specializing in martial arts cinema, Jim Kelly's film debut was in 1972 with “Melinda”. He’s probably best remembered for his role with Bruce Lee in 1973’s “Enter the Dragon”. He also appeared in one Euro-western “Take a Hard Ride” (1975) with Jim Brown, Lee Van Cleef and Fred Williamson.
 
Kelly retired from films in the late 1970s to devote time to playing tennis and later became a tennis instructor. Jim Kelly was 67 years old.
 

THE SCOUT


Der Scout – German title
Fehér Toll - Hungary
Tropiciel – Polish title
Zved – Russian title
Skavt – Yugoslavian title
The Scout – English title
 
A 1982 East German, Mongolian co-production [DEFA (Potsdam-Babelsburg), Mongolkino (Ulan Bator)]
Producer: Rolf Martius
Directors: Konrad Petzold, Dshamjangijn Buntar
Story: Gottfried Kolditz, Konrad Petzold
Screenplay: Gottfried Kolditz, Konrad Petzold
Cinematography: Otto Hanisch [Orwocolor]
Music: Karl-Ernest Sasse
Running time: 102 minutes
 
Cast:
White Feather – Gojko Mitic
Sergeant Anderson – Klaus Manchen
Major Brannigan – Milan Beli
Lieutenant Brooks – Giso Weißbach
Private Hunter – Uwe Jellinek
Private Hicks – Jurgen Heinrich
McGoun – Roland Seidler
Private Randall – Hartmut Beer
Colonel Howard – Manfred Zetsche
Staff Sergeant – Werner Kanitz
Soames Parker – Helmut Schreiber
Dying Indian warrior – Budragtschagijn Tschimiddordsh
Dying soldier – Konrad Petzold
Caroline – Erdmute Schmidt-Christian
Jane – Heidrun Welskop
Cayuse girl – Nazagdorshijn Batzezeg
Indian chief – Luwsan-Osorijin Njamsiire
Indian warrior – Dalchsürengijn Gürsed
Young Indian warrior – Bobijn Rawdan
With: Zerendulamijn Rudna


The Far West 1877. After the U.S. Army has eradicated many Indian tribes or driven them into reservations, they turn to the area west of the Rocky Mountains where, among other things, the peaceful tribe of the Nez Perce Indians is located. A cavalry division under Colonel William Howard robs the Indian tribe of a considerable herd of horses to prevent them escaping and can be easily driven into the reserve later. Unlike the neighboring warlike tribe of the Cayuse, the Nez Perce led by their chief oppose force and will later move to Canada.
 
When the U.S. Army, along with the nine hundred horses requisitioned stops to rest, they are attacked by Cayuse Indians. Colonel Howard takes the opportunity for a treacherous attack and the pursuit of the fugitive Indians. Howard overruns an Indian camp inhabited by the Cayuse and kill the inhabitants and destroy everything. Meanwhile, he leaves Major Bannigan together with six other soldiers with the herd to return alone. The men have much trouble controlling the huge herd and decide to drive them to Fort Lapwei.
 
Under chief "White Feather", who decides to get the horses back on his own. Disguised as a harmless brave, found fishing with the women, he allows himself to be captured by the young soldier Hunter. His plan is used by whites as a knowledgeable local scout. Together with the remaining soldiers, he drives the herd towards the fort, but separates himself from them and warns a nearby Cayuse settlement of an impending attack. But he is too late. Almost all the women and children are the murdered. The only survivor is a young injured Cayuse maiden.
 
Upon his re-arrival, he reaps suspicion by the soldiers, but since his services are needed by the whites, they allow him and the squaw to accompany them. However, Sergeant Anderson soon sees through White Feather, and unmasks him as a chief of the Nez Perce. Major Bannigan’s accidental death, make the troop again dependent on the knowledge of the scout. This ultimately leads them to the ruins of Fort Lapwai, which was destroyed and burnt down by the Cayuse. In the ruins, he meets Colonel William Howard, who have withstood  theconstant attacks of the Indians.
 
However, White Feather takes charge of the situation and finds a weapon to defend himself against the commanding officer. He kills Colonel Howard, while his men are exposed to a renewed attack by the Indians, they become disillusioned and desert in droves. Those who do not flee die in the fort, including Sergeant Anderson. At the end of the film White Feather says goodbye to the squaw, and with the herd snatched his enemies leads them back to his tribe.

YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEVwenxH7EQ

Happy 80th Birthday Lea Massari

Anna Maria Massetani was born in Rome, Italy on June 30, 1933. She changed her name to Lea Massari when she was 22, after the death of her fiancé Leo. She studied architecture in Switzerland.
 
Massari become known in the world of cinema for two roles, the missing girl Anna in Michelangelo Antonioni's “L'avventura” (1960), and as Clara, the mother of a sexually precocious 14 year old boy named Laurent (Benoît Ferreux) in Louis Malle's “Murmur of the Heart” (1971). But for Spaghetti western fans she’ll always be remembered for her appearance in her only Euro-western as Aloma in “I Want Him Dead” staring Craig Hill.
 
She worked both in Italian and French Cinema and her career includes Sergio Leone's debut “The Colossus of Rhodes” (1961) and international commercial films such as “The Things of Life” (1970).
 
After appearing in Francesco Rosi's “Christ Stopped at Eboli” she won the Nastro d'Argento Best supporting Actress award.
 
Today we celebrate Lea Massari’s 80th birthday.

Saturday, June 29, 2013

Spaghetti Wesern Locations


 
Continuing our search for film locations for “Death Rides a Horse”. Ryan rides into Holly Spring and walks into a saloon and asks for Burt Cavanaugh. He’s given the cold shoulder by the barman and two henchmen block his way on the staircase leading upstairs to Cavanaughs room. Ryan makes short work of the pair and enters Burt’s room. Cavanaugh tries to pull a derringer from his desk but Ryan slams the drawer on his hand and takes the gun away from him. Now Ryan controls the situation and demands Cavanaugh pay him $15,000 one thousand for every year he was in prison.
 
This scene uses the same saloon and rooms used later in “Sabata”. The set is a full scale saloon at Elios Studios outside of Rome.


For a more detailed view of this site and other Spaghetti Western locations please visit my friend Captain Douglas’ excellent website: http://www.western-locations-spain.co           
and Yoshi Yasuda’s location site: http://y-yasuda.net/film-location.htm

Happy 70th Birthday Fred Rosahm


Fredrik Otto Robsahm was born on June 29, 1943 in Lillesand, Norway. He is the brother of model, director and film editor Margarete Robsahm [1942- ].
 
Fred worked on several films including at least three Euro- westerns in the 1960s and 70s: “Bandidos” (1967), “No Room to Die (1969) and “Black Killer” (1971). 
 
He was married to Italian film diva Agostina Belli for 15 years. The story of Robsahm's life was told by Even Benestad in the documentary "Natural Born Star", which premiered in 2007. Robsahm contracted HIV at the end of the 1980s and today lives off welfare and residuals from his film days.
 
Today we celebrate Fred Robsahm’s 70th birthday

Remembering Ian Bannen


Ian Bannen was born on June 29, 1928 in Airdrie, Lankashire, Scotland. He was the son of Clare (née Galloway) and John James Bannen, a lawyer. Bannen served in the British Army after attending St Aloysius' College, Glasgow and Ratcliffe College, Leicestershire. His first acting role came in a 1947 Dublin stage production of Armlet of Jade. He became a successful figure on the London stage, making a name for himself in the plays of both Shakespeare and Eugene O'Neill. He was an original member of the Royal Shakespeare Company and appeared on Broadway as well.
 
His film debut occurred in the early 1950s with a small role in “Pool of London” (1951), and he quickly rose to prominence, primarily in a wide range of supporting roles. During the early stages of his career he worked with the Boulting Brothers on Private's Progress and Carlton-Browne of the F.O.. His performance as Crow in “The Flight of the Phoenix” (1965) earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor, making him the first Scottish actor to receive this honor; he also received a Golden Globe nomination for New Star of the Year - Actor. That same year, he starred alongside Sean Connery in the WW2 prison drama, “The Hill”.
 
Bannen turned down lead roles in ‘Hawaii Five-O’, ‘Van der Valk’ and ‘The Love Boat’. His notable television appearances include parts in ‘Doctor Finlay’, ‘Thriller’, and as a school teacher and ex-spy in ‘Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy’.
 
Director John Schlesinger cast him as a replacement for Alan Bates in the part of well-off homosexual doctor Daniel Hirsh in his controversial film “Sunday Bloody Sunday” (1971), after Bates was deemed unavailable to shoot. According to screenwriter Penelope Gilliatt, Bannen never felt comfortable with the part. The anxiety adversely affected his performance during the early filming. Schlesinger replaced Bannen with Peter Finch, who received an Oscar nomination for the role. His lone Euro-western appearance was in 1971’s “The Deserter”  as Captain Crawford.
 
He received a BAFTA Award nomination for "Best Supporting Actor" for his performance as suspected child molester Kenneth Baxter in “The Offence” (1972). He also won acclaim for his roles as Brother Benedict in “Lamb” (1986), Grandfather George in John Boorman's “Hope and Glory” (1987) (for which he received a second "Best Supporting Actor" BAFTA nomination), the elder Robert de Brus in “Braveheart” (1995), and as the touchingly crafty villager in “Waking Ned Devine” (1998).
 
In 1996, he was honored with the BAFTA Lifetime Achievement Award.
  
On November 3, 199, Bannen suffered massive injuries in a car accident and died at Knockies Straight, near Loch Ness. He was a passenger in a car driven by his wife, Marilyn Salisbury. He was 71 years old, and was survived by his wife, to whom he had been married since 1976. They had no children.
 
Today we remember Ian Bannen on what would have been his 85th birthday

Friday, June 28, 2013

Guess Who I Am


 
I’m an Italian actor born in Corbola in 1927.
 
I’ve appeared in over 100 films.
 
I appeared in both Italian and German westerns from 1964-1991.
 
Guess who I am.

Fatman correctly identified this week's photo as that of Rik Battaglia.

New CD Release


TESTA O CROCE
(Heads or Tails)
(1969)
 
Composer: Carlo Savina
Director: Piero Pierotti
Starring: John Ericson, Sheyla Rosin
 
Label: Saimel
# ?
Tracks: 20
Total time: 43:07
Extras: ?
Limited edition: 500 copies
Available: June 28, 2013
 
Track Listing:
1. Seq. 1 - 1:15
2. Arizona is Waiting (vocal by Don Powell) - 2:20
3. Seq. 2 - 1:44
4. Seq. 3 - 2:57
5. Seq. 4 - 1:59
6. Seq. 5 - 1:45
7. Seq. 6 - 3:05
8. Seq. 7 - 2:24
9. Seq. 8 - 2:39
10. Seq. 9 - 1:51
11. Seq. 10 - 1:51
12. Seq. 11 - 2:24
13. Seq. 12 - 2:16
14. Seq. 13 - 2:07
15. Seq. 14 - 2:28
16. Seq. 15 - 2:07
17. Seq. 16 - 2:33
18. Seq. 17 - 2:10
19. Seq. 18 - 2:23
20. Seq. 19 - 0:49

SCOTTY & CO.

Scotty & Co. – German title
Scotty Smith – South African title
Scotty & Co. – English title
 
A 1969 German, South African co-production [Lord Film Production (Berlin), Icarus Film (Johannesburg)]
Producer: Ramsay Joynt
Director: Peter Henkel
Story: Jack London (John Chaney)
Screenplay: David Burman
Cinematography: Vincent G. Cox [color]
Music: Roy Martin
Running time: 89 minutes
 
Cast:
Scotty Smith – Joe Stewardson (Joseph Stewardson)
Jetty Black - Adrian Steed
Sarah Lloyd - Diane Wilson
Snowy - Ian Yule
Court interpreter – Don Leonard (William Arthur)
Ginger Sid – Tony Jay
Jailer – Ronnie Wallace (Ronald Wallace)
Ramsey – Frank Douglass (Frank Douglas)
Sergeant von Rensburg – Tromp Terre’blanche
Mrs. van Niekerk – Molly Seftel
Ricky Lloyd – Dirkie van den Bergh
Colonel Appleby – Bob Dresser (Robert Dresser)
Ria van Niekerk – Cheryl Stewardson
General dealer – Max Angorn
Landdrost de Jager – Patrick Mynhardt
Jock – George Korelin
Wagon guard – Don McCorkindale (Donald McCorkindale)
Judge – Lourens Schultz
du Toit – Josh du Toit
Court clerk – Heinrich Marnitz
Prosecutor – Vincent Hesse


Scotty Smith was not real. Some of the time he was a hoax. At other times he was a dangerous robber. But most of the time he was a romantic highwayman whose real name was George Lennox, a former cavalry officer of the British Indian Army.

Remembering Franz Antel


Franz Josef Antel was born on  June 28, 1913 in Vienna, Austria-Hungary. Antel worked mainly as a film producer in the interwar years. After World War II, he began writing and directing films on a large scale. In the late 1940s, 1950s and 1960s these were mainly comedies for Austrian and German audiences. In between there is quite a sober film about the Oberst (Colonel) Redl affair that shook the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy on the eve of World War I.
 
From the late 1960s, encouraged by the new opportunities in the film industry brought about by the sexual revolution, Antel gradually switched his main interest to soft porn and ribaldry. It was in particular his series of Wirtin ("hostess") films, directed under the pseudonym François Legrand, with which he tried to win international recognition. Titles included “The Sweet Sins of Sexy Susan” (1967), “Sexy Susan Sins Again” (1969), “Wild, Willing & Sexy” (1969) and “Don't Tell Daddy” (aka “Naughty Nymphs” in the U.S.A.) (1972).
 
Antel directed one Euro-western: “Trinity, the Clown, the Guitar” (1975) [as François Legrand].

1981 was a turning point in Antel's career when he adapted for the big screen a stage play by Ulrich Becher and Peter Preses. Set from the days of the Anschluss of 1938 until after the end of the war, “Der Bockerer” is about a Viennese butcher named Karl Bockerer (Karl Merkatz) whose common sense rather than intellect tells him to oppose the Nazis and who dares to show resistance just because he is never fully aware of the possible fateful consequences of his actions. While Bockerer and his wife survive the war unscathed, their son joins the SA but, after some internal intrigue, is sent to the front and killed. The film was entered into the 12th Moscow International Film Festival.
 
Antel died in Vienna, Austria on August 11, 2007.
 
Today we remember Franz Antel on what would have been his 100th birthday

Thursday, June 27, 2013


DVD Review by Lee Broughton
 
El Rojo.  Widescreen (1.85:1). Directed by Leopoldo Savona. 82 minutes.  1967.  Wild East, USA.  Format: NTSC Region 0.
 
When the expectant Sorensen family are cut down by arrows as they travel to their gold mine near the town of Gold Hill in New Mexico it appears as though they've fallen victim to a random Indian attack.  However, when the family's eldest son Donald (Richard Harrison) returns from the Civil War he immediately suspects foul play.  After teaming up with an embittered ex-Reb turned medicine show man called Hank,  Donald soon discovers that all is not what it seems to be in Gold Hill.  Four supposedly upstanding men - Lasky (Piero Lulli), Wallace (Franco Ressel), Navarro and Ortega - have ingratiated themselves with the town's fearful citizens by overseeing the extermination of local Indians.  In return, the four partners have been allowed to take control of the town's saloon and bank.  Furthermore, they've been secretly using nefarious means to grab nearby settlers' land and the Sorensens' gold mine is also now part of their property portfolio.  With both Donald and a rogue Indian (Mirko Ellis) seeking revenge, the four partners go to ground and surround themselves with an army of protective henchmen.
 
This is a low budget show that is built around a fairly generic revenge storyline but it remains a really fun little film.  Richard Harrison's Donald cooks up some ingenious and entertaining ruses that allow him to get close to his intended targets and these inventive narrative flourishes help the show to stand out from the crowd and establish something of an identity of its own.  And the film's novel frills don't end with Donald's clever ruses.  Donald himself is actually quite an usual genre hero (he charms the local ladies by giving them sugar cubes and sketching their portraits!) while the embittered ex-Reb Hank supplies some interesting weaponry (a super pistol with a silencer attached and a special rig that allows him to fire several rifles at once).  And watch out for the sudden, machismo-fuelled appearance of the mysterious gun-for-hire Black Bart who is able to silence cocky tough guys by simply removing the mask that obscures the lower portion of his face.  In fact there's enough macabre oddness and intrigue woven into this show for it to acquire some kind of serious cult status somewhere down the line.    
 
In spite of its low budget the film manages to perform well enough at a technical level. Harrison's overly impassive turn here probably isn't his best Spaghetti Western performance but he remains effective enough to get the job done.  The supporting cast - which is chock full of familiar faces - contribute much to this show's fun factor.  Predictably cast as villains, genre stalwarts Piero Lulli and Franco Ressel are on good form here but the show is almost stolen by Raf Baldassarre who plays their chief henchman Ramon.  Fan-favourite Nieves Navarro pops up intermittently as Lasky's saloon singer girlfriend.  There's none of the style or panache associated with the likes of Sergio Leone to be found here but 'El Rojo' is a quite competently assembled affair: the show's camera work is basic but solid and it is edited in a logical and coherent manner.  And Benedetto Ghiglia's lively soundtrack score occasionally rises above the level of standard generic fare. 
 
Picture quality here is reasonably good given that 'El Rojo' is a particularly obscure genre entry.  There's a touch of mild motion blur present in a couple of scenes and one or two nighttime sequences play a little on the dark side but there's very little in the way of print damage here.  The presentation's sound quality is very good.     
 
Extras: Image galleries, six Richard Harrison Spaghetti Western trailers and the '2011 L.A. Spaghetti Western Film Festival'.  Shot at the film festival held at the Los Angeles El Portal Theatre on the 19th of March 2011 and clocking in at one and a half hours in length, this final extra feature alone is worth the asking price of this DVD.  Here we find our very own Tom Betts interviewing Robert Woods, Mark Damon, Richard Harrison, Jack Betts (Hunt Powers), Brett Halsey (Montgomery Ford), Michael Forest and Dan Van Husen live on stage.  Everybody present is generally good-humoured and the gathered genre stars each recount some great anecdotes.

 
© 2013 Copyright Lee Broughton.     

Who Are Those Gals? - Martine Beswick



Martine Beswick was born to British parents in Port Antonio, Jamaica on September 26, 1941.
 
Beswick is best known for her two appearances in the James Bond film series. Although she auditioned for the first Bond film “Dr. No” (1962), she was cast in the second film “From Russia with Love” (1963) as the fiery gypsy girl, Zara. She engaged in the famous "catfight" scene with her rival Vida (played by former Miss Israel Aliza Gur). She was incorrectly billed as "Martin Beswick" in the title sequence. Beswick then appeared as the ill-fated Paula Caplan in “Thunderball” (1965). She had been away from the Caribbean so long that she was required to sunbathe constantly for two weeks before filming, in order to look like a local.
 
Martine went on to appear in “One Million Years B.C.” (1966) opposite Raquel Welch, with whom she also engaged in a catfight. She then appeared in various Hammer Studio low-budget films, most notably Prehistoric Women and the gender-bending “Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde” (1971). She played Adelita in the well-regarded Spaghetti Western “A Bullet for the General” in 1967 opposite Klaus Kinski and Gian Maria Volonté. She starred as the Queen of Evil in Oliver Stone's 1974 directorial debut “Seizure”, aka "Queen of Evil" (1974). In the 1970s, Beswick moved to Hollywood and regularly appeared on both the big screen and small screen. She made numerous guest appearances in television series including ‘Sledge Hammer!’, ‘Fantasy Island’, ‘The Fall Guy’, ‘Mannix’, ‘The Six Million Dollar Man’ and ‘Falcon Crest’. In 1980, she played the lead role in the comedy film ‘The Happy Hooker Goes Hollywood’.
 
Beswick's career was active well into the 1990s. In recent years, she has mainly participated in film documentaries, providing commentary and relating her experiences on the many films she has appeared in. She owned a removals business in London, but is now semi-retired except for her guest appearances at international Bond conventions.
 
Beginning with Melvin and Howard in 1980, she changed the spelling of her last name to "Beswicke," but reverted to her original name in the mid-'90s; her last credit with the longer spelling is ‘Wide Sargasso Sea’ in 1993.


BESWICK, Martine (aka Martin Beswick Martine Beswicke) [9/26/1941, Port Antonio, Jamaica -     ] - TV actress.
A Bullet for the General - 1966 (Adelita)
John the Bastard - 1967 (Dona Antonia Terecico/Tenorio)

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Cowboys leave the South



The economic infeasibility of Sioux City causes the park to soon close its doors
 
Grand Canary Islands - Sioux City Socorro is set 200 years back in history and a time to remember when U.S. troops fought to expand the frontier of their country and colonize the lands to reach the Pacific coast. Each day, for 42 years, time stops in the nineteenth century at this theme park and visitors experience life in the Far West.
 
In this parallel universe, cowboys ride their horses, Indians throw knives and ladies dance can-cans. A fictional world which, however, is approached by a very real end. Closure of Sioux City hangs in the balance, waiting for an investor to save the most delicate economic situation.
 
Workers and owners of the facility, the Castle family, are negotiating a deal these days while consuming the extended deadline of a Redundancy Employment (ERE) discontinuance affecting twenty employees. However, this is not the first SRE facing the park.
 
"Four years ago there was a partial suspension ERE working day, which became a discontinuance ERE for 13 workers, then objective dismissals were made for economic reasons and finally a salary cut between 10 and 20% "explains Antonio Gopar, director of Sioux City and the town sheriff. Gopar says: "We have done everything possible to avoid this situation" and that even the owners "have put money in our pocket to keep the park going." However, both he and the rest of the staff recognize that the likely closure of this village in the West "is the chronicle of a death foretold".
 
Sioux City opened its doors for the first time in August 1971. After the golden age of American westerns in the Hollywood of the 1950s, and the newly generated spaghetti western (or Euro-western), a group of American and German investors decided to look for a location to shoot these films. The barren landscape of Eagle Canyon presented the perfect opportunity in which to recreate an authentic Old West town.


After reaching an agreement with the family Del Castillo, owner of the land, construction began in 1969, representing an investment of two million dollars (1.5 million euros). Between filming in Sioux City “Take a Hard Ride” in 1975, a production of Twentieth Century Fox which starred American actor Lee Van Cleef, Jim Brown, Fred Williamson, Catherine Spaak and Dana Andrews.
 
As Western movies began losing pull with theater audiences, consequently, the number of shoots decreased, Sioux City began to strengthen its role as an entertainment park. "At first they performed a few shows that recreated pretty basic day to day in the village, but gradually those numbers were growing and 80 people came from Italy, the Ledda family which tied in shows with whips, knives ..." , relates Gopar.
 
Davide Ledda is the only one of this family still working in Sioux City and is, among other things, a knife thrower. He arrived at five years of age and now is now 38. Beside him his wife Lidia Alemán who also works in Sioux City. Both say they do not fear the future. "If the park closes we will seek work elsewhere, but remain hopeful that it will continue," they confess.
 
The 1990s was the heyday of Sioux City, sometimes counting up to 76 employees. "I remember seeing the main street of full of visitors," said Ledda. Foreign and Canaries filled the corners of the park fascinated by the details of each of the buildings that stretch for more than 280,000 square meters that make up the park. "We attended to some 300 people a day and in the night show about 1,500. Now we receive 100 visitors a day and 200 at night," says Antonio Gopar.
 
The facilities are also used for television programs, commercials and film shooting and a place of concerts for the likes of James Brown, Gloria Gaynor and Joaquín Cortés.
 
Hard times began to make an appearance in 2005. "The western fashion passed and the outbreak of all-inclusive hotels that tourists do not want to leave them and pay for a show when they can see the hotel's own show," explains Gopar.

The facilities are also used for television programs, commercials or films shooting and a place of concerts for the likes of James Brown, Gloria Gaynor and Joaquín Cortés.
 
Hard times began to make an appearance since 2005. "The western fashion passed and the outbreak of all-inclusive hotels that tourists do not want to leave them and pay for a show when they can see the hotel's own show," explains Gopar.
 
To win back tourists, Sioux City decided six years ago to open a zoo, exhibiting exotic species. "We started with a collection of venomous reptiles of the American West. With rattlesnakes, lizards scorpions, with the only white crocodile in Europe, among others," adds the director of the park. Among buffaloes, horses, goats and other animals, 180 different species are now concentrated in Eagle Canyon. Despite this attempt to respond to the new demands of the public and to adjust their expenses to the extent possible, the economic viability of Sioux City is seriously resentful. "In maintaining facilities it is more than 50,000 euros per month," said Antonio Gopar.
 
Saving the continuity of the park and the 20 families that depend on their work means having an investment of one million euros. Money that, so far, no bidder has agreed to put on the negotiating table
 
Sioux City Link: http://www.siouxcity.es/

Scavati la fossa… ora ripasso

Scavati la fossa… ora ripasso – Italian title
 
A 1968 Italian production [Clio Film (Rome)]
Producer:
Director: Luis Montes
Story:
Screenplay:
Cinematography:
Music:
Running time:
 
Cast:
 
Story:

[film was never made]

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

New DVD Release


The Sartana Box Set
(If You Meet Sartana Pray for Your Death, I Am Sartana Your Angel of Death, Have A Good Funeral My Friend Sartana Will Pay, Light the Fuse Sartana Is Coming)
 
Directors: Frank Kramer, Giuliano Carnimeo
Starring Gianni Garko
 
Label: Wild East
Region: 0
Aspect ratio: 16:9 anamorphic
Audio: English Dolby Digital 2.0
Extras: Gianni Garko interview, Garko at 2012 Almeria Film Fest, gallery, trailers
Available June 25, 2013

New CD Release


La grande note di Ringo
(Ringo’s Big Night)
(1966)
 
Director: Mario Maffei
Starring: William Berger, Eduardo Fajardo, Walter Maestos 
Composer: Carlo Rustichelli
Label: Digitmovies
#CDDM238
Tracks: 15
Total time: 32:57
Available: June 25, 2013
 
Track Listing:
01. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.1 - Titoli) 2:34
02. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.2) 1:30
03. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.3) 0:57
04. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.4) 2:17
05. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.5) 1:06
06. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.6) 1:51
07. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.7) 1:33
08. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.8) 2:27
09. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.9) 1:50
10. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.10) 3:21
11. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.11) 1:56
12. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.12) 2:40
13. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.13) 1:46
14. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.14) 3:07
15. LA GRANDE NOTTE DI RINGO (seq.15 - Finale) 4:02

Happy 75th Birthday Giampiero Littera


Giampiero Littera was born on June 25, 1938 in Rome, Italy. Called Jimmy Littera he made his film debut as a teenager while in Junior High School in 1953. He worked with some of the great Italian film directors such as Luciano Emmer, Mario Camerini, Luigi Zampa and Dino Risi and starred, among others, with Franco and Ciccio. He made his last appearance on the big screen in his only Euro-western “Death on the High Mountain, in 1969, before retiring from films to become an antique dealer.
 
Today we celebrate Giampiero Littera’s 75th birthday.

Monday, June 24, 2013

Baby & The Lovies


 
By Brian Abrams
 
Beloved homegrown soul outfit Baby and the Luvies dragged themselves out of the San Francisco bar scene long enough to finally release their self-titled EP, a sexy shindig replete with a five-piece horn section that smacks of an early Ike and Tina. According to press notes, the EP also includes a “spaghetti-western” inspired track “that is way better than that Danger Mouse/Norah Jones album.”
 
I’m pretty sure they’re referring to track two, “Bible Salesman,” a pretty good jam. Check out the EP at the link below or at their Bandcamp page.
 
Link: http://babyandtheluvies.bandcamp.com/track/bible-salesman

The Scapegrace

The Scapegrace – U.K. title
 
A 1913 British production [Cricks, Cricks & Martin (London)]
Producer: ?
Director: Edwin J. Collins
Story: Frank Dilnotte
Screenplay: Frank Dilnotte
Cinematography: ? [black & white]
Running time: 1885 feet
 
Cast:
Robert Marriott – Jack Miller
Jack Marriott – Reginald Davis
Arthur Seymour – Alfred Brandon
Manuel Garcia – J.L.V. Leigh (Jack L.V. Leigh)
Molly Summers – Una Tristram
 
Story: unknown

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Spaghetti Western Weekends in Chicago 2013


A Fistful of Spaghetti: Spaghetti Westerns
 
There will be Spaghetti Western screenings at the Music Box Theatre in Chicago this summer as a part of a Saturday Matinee Festival.

Schedule

Saturday, June 29th
  11:30am: A Fistful of Dollars

Sunday, June 30th
   11:30am: A Fistful of Dollars

Saturday, July 6th
   11:30am: The Hellbenders

Sunday, July 7th
   11:30am: The Hellbenders

Saturday, July 13th
   11:30am: The Big Gundown

Sunday, July 14th
   11:30am: The Big Gundown

Saturday, July 20th
   11:30am: Death Rides a Horse

Sunday, July 21st
   11:30am: Death Rides a Horse

Saturday, July 27th
   11:30am: The Grand Duel

Sunday, July 28th
   11:30am: The Grand Duel

Saturday, August 3rd
   11:30am: The Mercenary

Sunday, August 4th
   11:30am: The Mercenary

Saturday, August 10th
   11:30am: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

Sunday, August 11th
   11:30am: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

Saturday, August 17th
   11:30am: Sabata

Sunday, August 18th
   11:30am: Sabata

Saturday, August 24th
   11:30am: A Fistful of Dynamite, a.k.a., Duck, You Sucker!

Sunday, August 25th
   11:30am: A Fistful of Dynamite, a.k.a., Duck, You Sucker!


Special screenings of The Big Gundown and Sabata will also play on Industry Tuesdays as part of an industry appreciation showing (people in the food, beverage, entertainment industry). These showing will be preceded by free beer tastings!

Schedule 

The Big Gundown July 16, 20 2:00 pm

Sabata July 16, 20 2:00 pm
 
Music Box Teatre
3404 N Southport Ave.
Chicago, IL 60657
(773) 770-6162

Spaghetti Western Locations


 
Continuing our search for locations for “Death Rides a Horse”. After leaving Bill in the desert Ryan continues on to Holly Spring where he finds Burt Cavanaugh. Now the owner of a saloon who offers Ryan money for setting him up and spending 15 years in prison.
 
The location of Holly Spring is Elios Studios outside of Rome and a much used film set for many westerns including Lee Van Cleef in “Sabata”.


For a more detailed view of this site and other Spaghetti Western locations please visit my friend Captain Douglas’ excellent website: http://www.western-locations-spain.co          
and Yoshi Yasuda’s location site: http://y-yasuda.net/film-location.htm

Happy 75th Birthday Vicky Lagos


Aurelia Goyanes Muñoz aka Vicky Lagos was born on June 23, 1938 in Madrid, Spain. She is the Granddaughter of actor Alfonso Muñoz [1889-1957] and daughter of actress Mimi Muñoz [1914-1987] and Italian actor and director Vittorio De Sica [1901-1974]. ], sister of actresses Mara Goyanes [1942-2006], Conchita Goyanes [1946-    ], María José Goyanes [1948-    ]. Vicky began her artistic career in the world of theater, acting as a second vedette for the Society of Celia Gámez.
 
Lagos’ success in “Te espero en el Eslava” allows you to launch her film career with “Muchachas de azul”. Her career in films, although intense at first, does not extend beyond 1966 and subsequent interventions have been very sporadic. She appeared in her only Euro-western “$5.00 for Ringo” in 1965 playing the role of Sarah.
 
From the mid-sixties, she concentrates in the theater and formed her own company with her husband, actor Ismael Merlo, with whom she married in 1973, highlighting her success with her work in “El Grito”.
 
In 1998 Vicky returns to television to play Begoña in the TV series ‘El Súper, historias de todos los días’ and in 2007 she appears on the TV show ‘Como el perro y el gato’, with Arturo Fernandez.

Saturday, June 22, 2013

SCALPS


Scalps! – Italian title
Sie kämpft wie ein Mann – German title
Es geht um deinen Skalp Amigo – German title
Venganza India – Spanish title
¡Scalps! Venganza india – Spanish title
Päänahat – Finnish title
Scalps – Greek title
Yarin, a Índia Vingadora – Portuguese title
Scalps – English title
 
A 1986 Italian, Spanish co-production [Beatrice Film (Rome), Multivideo (Madrid)]
Producer: Sergio Cortona, José M. Cunillés (José María Cunillés), Isabel Mula
Director: Werner Knox (Bruno Mattei)
Story: Richard Harrison, Italo Gasparini
Screenplay: Roberto Di Girolamo, Bruno Mattei, José M. Cunillés (José María Cunillés)
Cinematography: Julio Burgos (Julio Diaz), Luigi Ciccarese [Telecolor, widescreen]
Music: Luigi Ceccarelli
Running time: 95 minutes
 
Cast:
Matt – Vass Karys (Vassili Karis)
Yari – Karen Wood (Mapi Galán)
Texas woman – Beny Cardoso (Beni Cardosa)
Colonel Connor – Albert Farley (Alberto Farnese)
Red Eagle – Charlie Bravo (Ramon Bravo)
Indian – Pietro Ceccarelli
With: E. Linder (Emilio Linder), Ignacio M. Carreño (Ignacio Lopez), Francisco Gomez, José Canalejas


During the Civil War the commander of a Texas fort refuses to surrender to the Northerners, and tries to buy the local Indian chief's daughter. The sage man refuses, and the Southerners massacre the tribe and abduct the young squaw anyway. The noble squaw manages to escape, and hides out with a rough rancher, who dislikes Indians, but hates the Southerners more. The odd couple joins forces, and tactics, to exert ultimate vengeance on the men at the fort.
 
YouTube film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LI6Juqkc3ks

Remembering Giuseppe Moccia


Giuseppe Moccia was born on June 22, 1933 in Viterbo, Italy and was an Italian screenwriter and film director. He wrote screenplays for 96 films between 1958 and 2001. He also directed 21 films between 1964 and 1997. His 1984 film “Il ragazzo di campagna” was shown as part of a retrospective on Italian comedy at the 67th Venice International Film Festival.
 
Using the alias Pipolo he co-wrote three Euro-westerns: “Bullets Don’t Argue” (1964), “They Call Me Providence” (1972) and “Another Try, Eh Providence” (1973).
 
Moccia died in Rome on August 20, 2006.
 
Today we remember Giuseppe Moccia, alias Pipolo, on what would have been his 80th birthday.

Happy 85th Birthday Ralph Waite


Ralph Waite was born in White Plains, New York on. June 22, 1928. He was the oldest of five children and the son of Esther (née Mitchell) and Ralph H. Waite, a construction engineer. Before becoming an actor, Waite, served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1946 to 1948, graduated from Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, and briefly was a social worker. He earned a master's degree from Yale University Divinity School and was a Presbyterian minister and religious editor at Harper & Row in New York City before deciding on a career in acting.
 
He is a former member of the Peninsula Players summer theater program during the 1963 season.
 
After fifty years being away from organized religion, Waite returned in 2010 and became an active member of Spirit of the Desert Presbyterian Fellowship in Palm Desert, California.[3]
 
Waite ran unsuccessfully for Congress in California as a Democrat three times: in 1990 he challenged veteran GOP incumbent Al McCandless in the Riverside County-based 37th district, losing by five percentage points. In 1998 he ran in the special election for the then-Palm Springs-based 44th district left vacant by the death of incumbent Sonny Bono. He was defeated in that election by Mary Bono, Sonny's widow, and lost to her again that November.
 
Ralph has appeared in over 85 film and TV appearances since 1954 including two Euro-westerns: “Lawman” (1971) and “Chato’s Land” (1972).
 
Today we celebrate Ralph Waite’s 85th birthday.

Friday, June 21, 2013

Guess Who I Am



I’m a German actress born in East Berlin in 1961.
 
I’ve appeared in over 65 films and TV appearances.
 
I made only one Euro-western starring Terence Hill.
 
Guess who I am.

No one guessed Anne Kasprik as this week's photo.

First Day of Summer 2013


Happy 75th Birthday Ron Ely


Ronald Pierce Ely was born on June 21, 1938 in Hereford, Texas. Ely won the role of Tarzan in 1966 after playing various bit-parts, including an airplane navigator in the 1958 film “South Pacific” and a guest-starring role on Barbara Eden's first television series, the romantic comedy “How to Marry a Millionaire”. Ely's height (6' 4") and athletic build also won him the title role in the 1975 film “Doc Savage”, as well as various guest shots. In a 1978 ‘Fantasy Island’ episode, for example, Ely portrayed Mark Antony in a Roman military short tunic and breastplate that displayed almost as much of his physique as his Tarzan costume had. Also during the early 1970s Ely travelled to Europe appearing in two Euo-westerns: “Alleluia and Sartana, Sons of God” and “Cry of the Black Wolves” (both 1972)
 
From 1960-61, Ely starred in the TV series ‘The Aquanauts’. In the 1980s, Ely hosted the musical game show ‘Face the Music’. Additionally, Ely hosted the 1980 and 1981 ‘Miss America Pageants’, replacing longtime host Bert Parks. He replaced Lloyd Bridges as "Mike Nelson" in the last season of TV’s ‘Sea Hunt’, from 1987-1988.
 
In the 1990s, Ely’s roles included a retired Superman from an alternate reality in the 1991 two-part episode ‘The Road to Hell’ of the ‘Superboy’ syndicated TV series, and a big game hunter named Gordon Shaw in the 1992 episode ‘Tarzan the Hunted’ of the syndicated Tarzán TV series (starring Wolf Larson).
 
Until about 2001, Ely made appearances on popular TV shows, his most recent being ‘Sheena’ and ‘Renegade’. He is now retired from acting.
 
In recent years Ely has embarked on a successful writing career and has penned two mystery novels featuring private eye Jake Sands: Night Shadows (1994) and East Beach (1995).
 
Today we celebrate Ron Ely’s 75th birthday.

Thursday, June 20, 2013

RIP Miguel Morayta


Mexican filmmaker Miguel Morayta died yesterday June 19th of natural causes at age 105 of natural causes.
 
In an interview with Ricardo Morayta, son of the director, explained that the death of his father was because of his age, a few months shy of 106 years, "He had no disease, just his heart was very tired and stopped beating."

The filmmaker, who was born Migel Morayta Martinez on August 15, 1907 in Ciudad Real, Spain but lived the past six decades in Mexico, was director of over 70 films and a screenwriter of more than 50, among which " El médico de las locas" (1955) , ""¡Ay Jalisco no te rajes!" (1964) and "Capulina contra los monstruos" (1973), along with writing the screenplay for his only Euro-western: "Guns for San Sebastian" (1968).

His son Ricardo recalled that his father was a person very dear to the film community of the Golden Age, but unfortunately his colleagues of those years all went ahead of him, "My father was the longest-serving director in history. Besides being a prolific film director and writer, Miguel Morayta was founder of the Mexican Society of Directors-Directors of Audiovisual Works, the Union of Cinema Production Workers and the General Society of Writers in Mexico.

 

New DVD Release


La muerte tenía un precio
(For a Few Dollars More)
(1965)
 
Director: Sergio Leone
Starring: Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Gian Maria Volonte
 
Label: Divisa Home Video
Region: B (2), Blu-ray
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 - 16:9 (1080p)
Audio: Spanish, English
Subtitles: Spanish
Runtime:130 min
Extras: Gallery, filmographies
ASIN: B00D407SSU
Available: June 20, 2013

Scalpman

Scalpman – Italian title
 
A 1973 Italian production
Producer: ?
Director: Tonino Valerii (Antonio Valerii)
Story: ?
Screenplay: ?
Cinematography: ?
Music: ?
Running time: ?
 
Cast: ?
 
Story: Unknown

[film was never made]

Happy 80th Birthday Brett Halsey


Charles Oliver Hand was born on June 20, 1933 in Santa Ana, California. Known to us as Brett Halsey, he is an American film actor, sometimes credited as Montgomery Ford. He had a prolific career in B pictures and in European-made feature films. He created the role of John Abbott on the soap opera ‘The Young and the Restless’, a role he filled from May 1980 to March 1981, when he was replaced by Jerry Douglas.
 
Halsey is a great-nephew of the United States Navy Admiral William F. "Bull" Halsey; Universal Pictures selected his acting name from the admiral.
 
Brett appeared in five Euro-westerns from “Kill Johnny Ringo” (1965) to “Roy Colt and Winchester Jack” (1970).
 
Today we celebrate Brett Halsey’s 80th birthday.

Happy 85th Birthday Martin Landau


Martin Landau was born on June 20, 1928 in Brooklyn, New York. Martin is an American film and television actor who began his career in the 1950s. His early films include a supporting role in Alfred Hitchcock's “North by Northwest” (1959). He played continuing roles in the television series ‘Mission: Impossible’ (for which he received several Emmy Award nominations) and ‘Space: 1999’. He received a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture and his first nomination for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his work in “Tucker: The Man and His Dream” (1988), and was nominated for an Oscar for his role in “Crimes and Misdemeanors” (1989). His performance in the supporting role of Bela Lugosi in “Ed Wood” (1994) earned him the Academy Award, Screen Actors Guild Award and a Golden Globe Award. He continues to perform in film and television and heads the Hollywood branch of the Actors Studio. Landau appeared in only one Euro-western “A Town Called Hell” (1970). Today we celebrate Matin Landau’s 85th birthday.

Remembering Richard Wyler


Richard Stapley was born in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, England, on June 20, 1923. A writer, Stapley published his first novel when he was just 17 years old. He served in the Royal Air Force during World War II.
 
Following the end of World War II, Stapley began appearing in theater roles in London. He soon signed with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), making his film debut in the 1948 film, “The Three Musketeers”, opposite Elizabeth Taylor. He next appeared in the 1949 remake, “Little Women”, in which he played John Brooke, the love interest of Janet Leigh's character, Meg.
 
He continued to appear in a string of Hollywood films at different studios during the 1940s and 1950s, including the 1951 period drama “The Strange Door”, which co-starred Boris Karlof and Charles Laughton; 1953's “King of the Khyber Rifles”, opposite Tyrone Power; “Charge of the Lancers” with Paulette Goddard; and “The Iron Glove” with Robert Stack in 1954. In 1955 Stapley starred in “Target Zero” as a British UN tank commander serving in the Korean War.
 
Stapley returned to the United Kingdom and Europe in 1960, where he adopted the stage name, Richard Wyler. His British television credits from that era included the crime series, “Man From Interpol”. He also appeared in a series of European-made adventure and western films using the name, Richard Wyler, including “The Barbarians”, “The Rattler Kid”, “The Ugly Ones”, “Dick Smart”, and “The Girl From Rio”, which co-starred Shirley Eaton and George Sanders.
 
During the 1970s, Stapley returned to film roles under his birth name, Richard Stapley. He co-starred in the 1970 film, “Connecting Rooms”, opposite Michael Redgrave and Bette Davis. He was also cast in Alfred Hitchcock's “Frenzy”.
 
When his acting roles became fewer he became a radio announcer in Britain and also drove racing motorcycles where he was hospitalized after a crash. He had his own motor cycle courier company and wrote a regular column for Motor Cycling magazine, Richard Wyler's Coffee Bar Column
 
Stapley became a naturalized U.S. citizen during his later life. He focused on writing following his acting career. He published a novel entitled, Naked Legacy, in 2004. Stapley also completed a second novel and corresponding adapted screenplay, both called Tomorrow Will Be Cancelled. He was working on an autobiography at the time of his death of kidney failure on March 5, 2010, at Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, California.
 
Today we remember Richard Wyler on what would have been his 90th birthday.