Friday, May 25, 2007

The House Between Season Two: It Begins

Well, it's about thirty minutes after midnight as I begin this post, and now I can say that the pre-production stage of The House Between Season Two is officially over. Now...we're into the actual production!!!! Yay!

In minutes (maybe hours...) I'm expecting the first round of my team to arrive. This includes stars Kim Breeding (Astrid), Jim Blanton (Arlo) and Tony Mercer (Bill Clark) as well as my special effects wizards, Rob and Phyllis Floyd. I'm excited to see all of them again. The remainder of the cast and crew will be arriving sometime during the daytime hours on Friday.

Tomorrow (Friday), I'll also be "staging" the house at the end of the universe, the central location of the series: hanging black curtains to again simulate the "null" zone around the house. My foyer is filled with props, costumes, a green screen, Arlo's tin cans and more.

We have an eight day shoot ahead of us, and it looks grueling. The scripts are more complex than they were last year, in terms of performance, storyline and special effects. We'll also be shooting some special features (like interviews and commentaries) for the impending DVD release of Season One.

So the blog will be sporadic or posted at odd hours in the next 8 days, but I do hope to get many photographs from production posted up here during that span.

After that, it's back to old-school blogging, with features on some 1970s favorites like Jason of Star Command, Korg 70,000 BC, and the animated series, Valley of the Dinosaurs.

Lots of goodness to come. Meanwhile, our production slate includes the following season two episodes: "Returned," "Separated," "Reunited," "Estranged," "Populated," "Caged" and "Ruined." I'd like to have time for another show "Distressed,' but it's an alternate, depending on fast we go, how far we fall behind, and how dang tired everybody is...

Thursday, May 24, 2007

Notes on Culture Reviews Horror Films of the 1980s

Film historian, scholar and Ken Russell expert Kevin Flanagan has posted a fascinating review of my Horror Films of the 1980s on his blog, Notes on Culture. Check it out!

Here's an excerpt:

Muir is at his best when he contextualizes films and their creators. Parts I and II are the most important of the book, as they provide a substantial narrative history of the genre and show how it interacted with various historical junctures. These 300+ horror films all wrestle, in some way, with the economic, cultural, and political shifts of the age of Reagan. Ronald Reagan looms like a grim pantocrator over the proceedings in much the same way that Nixon and his scandals did over zeitgeist of the 1970s. As Muir notes throughout, Reagan's Janus-like fluidity, militarism, and leadership of a nation on the brink color the films in question.

But the cultural history presented in the remaining 700 pages weaves a subtler tale for the patient. Muir's total presentation of the horror movies of the age is, on a deeper level, a phenomenology of the historical process of the horror films of the 1980s.

Tucson Citizen Reviews Rock and Roll Film Encyclopedia

The Tucson Citizen's Chuck Graham just reviewed The Rock & Roll Film Encyclopedia. Here's an excerpt:

Trust me, "The Rock & Roll Film Encyclopedia" is no ordinary compendium of cheesy movies with really loud soundtracks. For one thing, the compiler, John Kenneth Muir, takes his inspiration from that famous line Jack Black hurled at the audience in "School of Rock," where he says with complete defiance, "One great rock show can change the world."

Of course Muir changes that to "one great rock movie" and as proof offers the 1970 documentary "Woodstock." That film did indeed prove to Hollywood that rock 'n' roll would insist on being taken seriously as a opinion-shaping social force.

...More than 200 films are catalogued and there is a handy index in the back. Garage bands everywhere will want to get a copy of this encyclopedia, to stack right alongside the fake books, guitar chord charts and restaurants delivering take-out. After all, what's better after a vigorous band practice than to kick back with your band mates, enjoying some pizza and a good ol' rock 'n' roll movie.

Monday, May 21, 2007

The American Library Association likes Horror Films of the 1980s!

Another good review for Horror Films of the 1980s just rolled in.

The ALA (American Library Association) writes:


Horror Films of the 1980s, by John Kenneth Muir (829 pages, March 2007), tackles the “dead teenager decade” of horror cinema with his characteristic comprehensiveness, insightful commentary, and trenchant wit.

A sequel to his 2002 Horror Films of the 1970s (the “disco decade”), this volume contains two introductory chapters that offer a sociopolitical context for horror (“Which towering figure dominated the ‘greed is good’ decade? Freddy Krueger or Ronald Reagan?”) and an analysis of 1980s horror conventions and subgenres. Films are arranged by year, rated on the traditional 1 to 4 star system, and accompanied by quotes from critics, cast and crew, synopsis, commentary, memorable lines, an occasional interview extract, and legacy. Muir concludes that 1970s horror films were more creative and did more with less funding and effects, but in the 1980s they reached a glut of repetition and sequels and adaptations; nonetheless, the genre saved itself by transcending the slasher paradigm and interjecting supernatural elements and rubber-reality scenarios. $59.95. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-2821-2.

Theme Song Flashback # 1: The Lost Saucer

Friday, May 18, 2007

RETRO TOY FLASHBACK # 62: MERLIN, "The Electronic Wizard" (Parker Brothers)



I wrote about "Blip" earlier in the week, and my renewed fascination with pre-video game era (1970s) electronic games. So today, I want to highlight what was probably my favorite of these items as a kid, a toy I remember receiving as a present for Christmas late in the disco decade. Actually, my sister and I each received one, as I recall. (And my next door neighbor and friend received its biggest competitor, a game called Computer Perfection).

The toy in question, is, of course, MERLIN. The trademark date reads 1978, on this item, and the back of the box asks: "Can you outsmart MERLIN? He's remarkably intelligent. With lights, a powerful computer brain and a vocabulary of 20 different sounds he challenges you to beat him at these six games of strategy, memory and skill:"

The box then goes on to list the games MERLIN plays, which include:

1. "TIC-TAC-TOE: MERLIN's aggressive tactics keep you on your toes in this ever popular strategy game.'

2. "MUSIC MACHINE: Here's your opportunity to compose music. Teach MERLIN a tune of up to 48 notes and rests. Then be entertained as he plays it back to you."

3. "ECHO: Test your mental agility by repeating a sequence of notes played to you by MERLIN. You can make this game easy or tough by selecting the length of the sequence."

4. "BLACKJACK 13: MERLIN deals and keeps score in this computerized version of the classic card game. The object: to acquire the higher hand of 13 or less."

5. "MAGIC SQUARE:
Form a square of 8 lights by breaking MERLIN's secret CODE. This electronic puzzle changes constantly as you play."


6. "MINDBENDER: Discover the computer's mystery number. This game of logic is the ultimate challenge - to win you'll have to read MERLIN's mind."

Merlin is a red, hand-held device, with three distinct sections. The top is the speaker for the "computer vocabulary," the middle is the keyboard, the 11 notes you can hit in each above listed game. And the bottom section is the game selection, re-start functionality board. Options here are "New Game," "Same Game" "Hit Me" and "Comp Turn." Looking at the toy, it resembles the tricorder from Star Trek: The Next Generation (which came along in 1987).

Designed for 1 or 2 players, Ages 7 to adult, MERLIN is described in his instruction manual as "a remarkably intelligent computer." The same instructions also note that "as you compete with him, you'll discover that MERLIN is very talkative." Unless you remove his batteries...


The next section of the instructions notes about how to properly care for MERLIN. These words of warning sound like the rules about Mogwai: "Take care not to get MERLIN wet" (!) and "Don't drop or jolt MERLIN." And never, ever, feed MERLIN after midnight.


Featuring 6 electronic games, his vocabulary of "space age sounds" and useful portability, MERLIN was truly the cutting edge of game technology in 1978. How many of you X'ers had one of these in your childhood? I know I spent many hours in the car (on trips and long drives...) entertaining myself with MERLIN.

Thursday, May 17, 2007

BUMMER!!!!!

The best show on television just got canceled. That's right, the CW just axed Veronica Mars after a tumultuous third season.

I have two thoughts. One is obviously, bummer. The other is that now I have no reason whatsoever to watch the CW. Methinks I need a period of mourning to get over this. And that period of mourning won't consist of any CW TV watching, that's for dang sure.


What am I going to do without my weekly fix of Veronica Mars snark?
Man, this just...blows. Oh, and CW renewed Supernatural.

Tuesday, May 15, 2007

Groovy...

Hey guys, dig this!

I found this clip on YouTube and simply couldn't resist it. Now, please - I implore you - watch the whole video. It takes a while to get good. And then it gets REALLY good. I'm posting this for my friend and DP, Rick Coulter, because I know he will appreciate it.


Monday, May 14, 2007

Maddrey Misc. Reviews Horror Films of the 1980s


Good morning, gentle (and not so gentle...) readers,

I wanted to direct your attention today to a piece amusingly entitled "Die Yuppie Scum," a review of my book Horror Films of the 1980s by TV writer/producer and fellow horror scholar, Joseph Maddrey. I hope you've been visiting Maddrey Misc. lately, because Joe's blog has been looking at a lot of interesting stuff, particularly our 21st century, "culture of fear."

Here's a clip of the critique, but please read the whole piece, because it's a great review whether it happens to be about my book or not:


The fact that the author goes to such great lengths to explain his evaluations of the films, and to remain consistent in his responses, makes it easy to gauge one’s own response to a film based on his reviews – regardless of any differences of opinion. It is never difficult to understand where Muir is coming from or why, and that allows the reader to make careful selections from among these 328 films, and avoid some of the pitfalls of the casual viewer. I, for one, am grateful to have a guide through this extremely varied lot of films – from top (The Thing, 1982) to bottom (Home Sweet Home, 1980) – since I’d rather read about some of these films than have to sit through them. I have no doubt that 2006 was a trying year at the Muir household, as John and his valiant wife Kathryn burrowed through the muck, but I’m glad they did it so that I don’t have to. Horror Films of the 1980s has already steered me clear of a few turkeys, made me watch and re-watch a few gems, and even forced me to reevaluate my opinions of one or two…. I have always considered the ending of Wes Craven’s film Deadly Blessing (1981) to be a cop-out, but John’s reading puts it in a different context than I did, and has made me see the film with new eyes… That’s exactly what good criticism is supposed to do!


The book also contains a series of scattered interviews with filmmakers whose work deserves to be plucked from relative obscurity: Thom Eberhardt (Sole Survivor and Night of the Comet), Lewis Teague (Alligator, Cujo and Cat’s Eye), Kevin Conner (Motel Hell), James L. Conway (The Boogens), Richard Franklin (Road Games and Psycho 2), Tom McLoughlin (One Dark Night and Friday the 13th Part 6: Jason Lives!), and Ken Russell (Altered States and Gothic). These friendly interviews in addition to Muir’s wry, incisive commentary make this a must-have for horror fans. Like the decade it depicts, Muir’s analysis is both complex and amusing – in final analysis, more entertaining than many of the films themselves.

RETRO TOY FLASHBACK #61 Blip; The Digital Game (Tomy)


It's difficult for me to believe that this toy, Blip. The Digital Game is thirty years old! It was released by Tomy (No. 7018) in 1977, at the dawn of the Atari age and was advertised as a good alternative to new-fangled video games. The box blares: "Take it Anywhere. NO TV set is needed."

Designed for ages 6 and up, Blip, an electronic game, originally sold for 9.99. The back of the box reads: "Blip is the TV type game that you can take with you anywhere. It's player against player when you BLIP it with a friend."

Hey, I want to BLIP it with a friend...
Seriously, the game box offers a detailed diagram of the playing console, a sort of electronic tennis court in a sense, and shows a "Permanent Light Emitting Diode (L.E.D.)," "Numbered BLIP buttons," an "Automatic Timing Mechanism," "Individual Serve Buttons," "Automatic Digital Scoring" and a "Game Selector Switch."

The description on the back goes on to report how to play BLIP. "Now, press the serve button and watch the light emitting diode (L.E.D.) come at you. But don't watch it too long. To win, your hand must be quicker than the BLIP."

My hand is always quicker than the BLIP...

"Quickly press one of the numbered BLIP buttons to send your L.E.D. back where it came from. If your opponent misses, it's score one for you on the automatic digital scoreboard."

The box also admonishes us to "Take BLIP anywhere. On boats, trains, cars, rocketships and planes."

The back of the console also features instructions for 2 players. It warns you that "if you choose the wrong space" (to hit back a BLIP), "or push the button too late, the ball will stop on your side of the court." The object of the game is twin, to score up to 10 points.

In other words, this electronic fun is clearly a prehistoric Game Boy, no? And clearly, it's also a variation of Pong (a four-letter word like BLIP), a game that was very, very popular in 1977.

I owned this game as a kid and loved it. It really seems antiquated today, but I'm just fascinated by these pre-video electronic games. I wonder, would a kid raised on video games still find BLIP fun? I'm going to find out. As soon as Joel is old enough, I'm MAKING him play it.

When he's bugging me. I'm going to say "Joel, go play with your BLIP."

"But Dad..."

Friday, May 11, 2007

THE HOUSE BETWEEN Ep. 7: Departed?

In the climactic, cliffhanging webisode of THE HOUSE BETWEEN's first season, the denizens in the house at the end of the universe access a dangerous user interface in hopes of finding a way to escape their predicament. While Theresa (Alicia A. Wood) attempts to interface with the house, the others learn why they've been in trapped in the mysterious structure. When a chance for escape presents itself, however, there's a series of surprises and shocks for Astrid (Kim Breeding), Arlo (Jim Blanton), Travis (Lee Hansen), Bill (Tony Mercer) and Theresa (Wood). Produced by Joseph Maddrey for the Lulu Show LLC. Written and directed by John Kenneth Muir.

40 Years Ago: Godzilla 1985

Godzilla: 1985 , or  Return of Godzilla  (1985) is the first and only Godzilla movie I was fortunate enough to see theatrically in my youth....