Brett Halsey Book Review

“A GRAVE MISUNDERSTANDING”

By Brett Halsey

Abuzz Press – 2014

 

Promoted as a fast-paced, bloody, sexy-thriller…

All true to be sure!

 

As Halsey begins to set the pace, I get the distinct feeling I’ve seen something similar unfold in yet other surroundings, perhaps an inkling of life itself without the blood 'n gore of course. His main character is Ana, a hot-blooded Honduran who through no fault of her own winds up married to an A#1 asshole living in a Stateside hole in the wall called The Chalet-Highlife, a rundown motel/diner/gas establishment near an equally unforgiving swamp. This story could have taken place in lots of areas along the southern Gulf States, but it doesn’t really matter as the people here are the mainstream plot in themselves and keep us on our toes as the hook is sunk and we read on, turning pages as fast as we can.

 

Ana, is indeed both sexy and beautiful in that Latin way, but damn well full of her own agenda, (dreaming of someday living in Paris, France with lots of money as a renowned hair stylist). This of course is when she’s not throwing back a rum and cooking up more ungodly, bloody duties for her man ‘Dick’ to handle, this among his other duties, around a place that is falling down around him. She’s a lover who just can't seem to say no, or to leave.

 

Alas, the ending comes too soon for some of us die hard readers and leaves us wanting more from this bloody trail left by Ana. Unfortunately, there is no more! Perhaps, a sequel might be down the pike if she can somehow elude capture, we can hope can’t we?

 

Personally I liked the book very much, but there again I’m a fan of thrillers anyway in any form, be they novels or films. I am also a personal fan of Brett Halsey’s work on and off the big screen ever since seeing him in his JD/Hot Rod films of the late 1950's. Later I obtained his first literary work called The Magnificent Strangers a great 1978 paperback novel about the actors and the times they had while making films during the 1960's in Italy (A fast-paced, sexy read which I highly recommend). Now out in a new paperback edition from iUniverse, get it while you can!

 

Heck, I even still have one of Halsey's early starring film roles called The Girl in Lovers Lane (1959). So yes, I am a fan and continue to be even now in my 70’s. Keep up the good work Brett, man when you have it, you got it, so keep using it buddy.

 

Reviewed by James T. Prickette

 

[James T. Prickette is the author of Actors of the Spaghetti Westerns” 2012 Xlibris]

Who Are Those Guys? - John Bluthal

 

John Bluthal was born on September 2, 1929 in Jezerzany, Galicia, Poland. He immigrated to Australia with his family in 1938 at the age of nine. Bluthal was educated at Princes Hill State School in Carlton North and subsequently studied drama at the University of Melbourne, and visited England, during which time he appeared in pantomime. He worked in repertory theatre in Melbourne and was also involved in broadcasting. Bluthal appeared in drama and variety on ABC radio, including ‘The Shell Hour’ and ‘Gaslight Music Hall’ (which he devised, produced, and starred in).

 

He moved to England in 1959 where he appeared in ‘Citizen James’ for BBC television, and in the long-running UK TV series ‘Never Mind the Quality, Feel the Width’ in which he played Manny Cohen, a Jewish tailor in business with an Irishman in London. Also in the early 1960s, he provided the voice for Commander Zero in the television puppet series ‘Fireball XL5’. He appeared in the role of Fagin in the musical “Oliver!” at New Theatre, London.

 

Bluthal also worked with Spike Milligan over several years, appearing with him in a 1958 Australian television special, ‘The Gladys Half-Hour’. He appeared as several characters in Milligan and John Antrobus' stage play “The Bed-Sitting Room”, which opened at the Mermaid Theatre in 1963. He also worked with Milligan on the television series ‘Q’ and its radio counterpart ‘The Milligna Show’. He previously worked with Milligan in the radio comedy series ‘The Idiot Weekly’ and ‘The Omar Khayyam Show’. Bluthal is a man of many voices, like Milligan's former radio colleague Peter Sellers, and he was used somewhat like Sellers in Milligan's later work. Bluthal also appeared in episodes of the Thames TV series ‘Reilly, Ace of Spies’.

 

In 1975, Bluthal took the part of Richard Armitage, in ‘The Melting Pot’. This was a sitcom written by Spike Milligan and Neil Shand, which was cancelled by the BBC after just one episode had been broadcast. Bluthal the appeared as "Chalky", a hospital patient, in the episode ‘I Gotta Horse’ of the comedy television series ‘Doctor Down Under’.

 

His films appearances include: “The Knack ...and How to Get It” (1965), three Carry On films, two of the Doctor films, and also “The Beatles' films A Hard Day's Night” (1964) and “Help!” (1965), three roles in “Casino Royale” (1967), and two of the Pink Panther films. Bluthal also played several characters in “The Great McGonagall” (1974), by Spike Milligan and Joseph McGrath, based on the life of William McGonagall. He portrayed an Egyptologist in the year 1914 for the first part of the film “The Fifth Element” (1997), Uncle Karl in “Dark City” (1998), and in the comedy “Beware of Greeks Bearing Guns” (2000).

 

His work with the National Theatre London included roles in, “Tales from Hollywood”, “Entertaining Strangers”, “Antony and Cleopatra”, “Yonaadab”, “The Tempest”, “Winters Tale”, and “Cymbeline”.

 

His latest appearances in TV have been in the sitcom ‘The Vicar of Dibley’ as the fastidious minutes-taker Frank Pickle and as the caretaker Rocko in ‘Spirited’. He also appeared in the 2004 film “Love's Brother”.


John Bluthal died on November 15, 2018 in Australia.

 

John appeared as Martinelli in the 1969 Euro-western “A Talent for Loving”.

BLUTHAL, John (aka John Bluthall) [8/12/1929, Jezerzany, Galicia, Poland - 11/15/2018, Australia] – stage, radio TV, voice actor.

A Talent for Loving – 1969 (Martinelli)

Hostal Rural Alba film showing

This Saturday, September 6, 2014 at Hostal Rural Alba in Los Albaricoques, Spain, they will celebrate the 25^th Anniversary of the passing of Sergio Leone from 6-10 p.m. with a showing of the film For a Few Dollars More which many of the scenes from the movie were filmed in the village and many of the townspeople took part as extras.

Labor Day 2014

VENGEANCE IS MINE

Per 100.000 dollari ti ammazzo – Italian title

Pistoleiros em Conflito – Brazilian title

Promessa de Sangue – Brazilian title

Kosto veressä – Finnish title

Le jour de la haine – French title

Django der Bastard – German title

Kremaste tous ektos nomou – Greek title

A vinganca a minha – Portuguese title

Tu Cabeza por Mil Dolares – Spanish title

Hämnden är ljuv – Swedish title

For One Hundred Thousand Dollars a Killing – English title

One Hundred Thousand Dollars a Killing – English title

Vengeance is Mine – English title

 

A 1967 Italian production [Zenith Cinematography, Flora Film (Rome)]

Producers: Mino Loy, Luciano Martino

Director: Sidney Lean (Giovanni Fago)

Story: Sergio Martino

Screenplay: Ernesto Gastaldi

Cinematography: Federico Zanni [Eastmancolor, Cromoscope]

Music: Nora Orlandi

Song: “Captain Brown” sung by Orlandi 4x4

Running time: 94 minutes

 

Cast:

Johnny Forest – Gary Hudson (Giovanni Garcovich)

Clint Forest – Claudio Camaso (Claudio Volonte)

Jurago – Piero Lulli (Giusva Lulli)

Annie – Claudie Lang (Claude Lange)

Mary – Susanna Martinková

Gary – Bruno Corazzari

Jack – Carlo Gaddi

Whore – Dada Gallotti (Alba Gallotti)

Padre Jurago – Piero Lulli (Giusva Lulli)

Pedro Concalves – Fernando Sancho (Fernando Lis)

Doctor Jim/James – Andrea Scotti

Mother Forest – Jole Fiero

Jurago henchman – Osiride Pevarello

With: Silvio Bagolini, Adriana Giuffrè, Gianni Di Benedetto (Giovanni Di Benedetto), Maurizio Tocchi, Rodolfo Valadier (Biagio Gambini)

 

Young Clint Forrest, after killing his father during an argument, puts the responsible for the murder on his half-brother John. After serving ten years in prison, John goes in search of Clint, who, meanwhile, has become a dangerous outlaw, over whose head hangs a sizable reward. He anages to track down Clint, but he waivers to kill him, preferring to deliver him to the sheriff in order to get the reward money. Clint escapes from jail, where Clint runs again into John. Instead of taking him back to jail, he agrees to follow him to share with him the cache of a robbery near the Mexican border. Clint, with the help of two members of his gang, draws his brother into a treacherous trap. He’s beaten by the three outlaws and left to die in the desert. Fortunately John escapes death and starts in search of his brother and his accomplices and when found is determined to kill them without mercy.
 
YouTube trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8CjPOUtb8g

Happy 55th Birthday Elena Albu

Elena Albu was born on September 1, 1949 in Iasi, Moldova, Romania. She studied at the Institute of Theatre and Cinematography, where she graduated in 1973 In 1972 she started appearing in theater and film, an actress in many of the productions of her husband, director Mircea Veroiu [1941-1997].

 

Elena Albu’s last theater role was in the show "Snowmen", directed by Louise Dănceanu, which played in the Very Small Theatre in season 1998/1999.

 

Elena’s only Euro-western appearance was in 1973’s “Ulzana” playing Ulzana’s wife.

 

She died alone in her house, the victim of a cerebral hemorrhage caused by a bout of hypertension.

Her body was found on March 16, 2003. She was only 43.

 

Today we remember Elena Albu on what would have been her 55^th birthday.

Happy 85th Birthday Kveta Fialová

Kvetoslava ‘Kveta’ Fialová was born on September 1, 1929 in Vel'ké Dravce, Czechoslovakia. Her mother was a designer and sculptor Květoslava Fialová and her father a Czech legionnaire Vlastimil Fiala. The family lived in Slovakia until 1938, when the government ousted Bohemian nationalists in Bohemia. The family moved to Zdar in Police nad Metují and later to Borohrádek .

After the war between 1946-1950, she graduated from the school of Brnenská of Music. She worked at several regional theaters in the Czech Cieszyn, Opava, Czech Budejovice in Kolín  and in Martin Slovakia. Since 1958 she was a member in Prague's Divadlo ABC, which at that time managed Werich. Following the merger with ABC Theatre City Theatre Prague operated there from 1963 until 1990 and in later years as a permanent guest performer.

 

She began her film career in the 1940s and played a range of characters. Likewise she was later seen in TV productions and series, even voice dubbing. Probably her best known role was the character bar-singer Tornado Lou in Euro-western parody “Lemonade Joe” in 1964.

 

Kveta Violet was married to director Pavel Háša  until his death in 2009. They had a daughter Zuzana. She has a granddaughter named Dominiky.