2021: A Look Back in Bedlam

Commentary, Year in Review

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Anyone doubting that we’re currently living in Bizarro World need only take a look at the entertainment field of 2021.  I’ve certainly got plenty to say about it in this, the latest edition of my annual Look Back in Bedlam overview, starting with what seems to be the foremost rivalry of our time…

 

DCMarvelMarvel & DC (I)

It seems more and more that superhero movies, specifically those put out by the rival funnybook outfits-turned-moviemaking powerhouses Marvel and DC, are all today’s moviegoers want to see.  The numbers speak for themselves: Marvel’s 2021 releases SPIDERMAN: NO WAY HOME, BLACK WIDOW, SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS, ETERNALS and VENOM: LET THERE BE CARNAGE comprised a full thirty percent of the box office, while DC’s offerings ZACK SNYDER’S JUSTICE LEAGUE and THE SUICIDE SQUAD may not have been quite as successful, but did receive a great deal of outsized attention.

Marvel’s 2021 releases … comprised a full thirty percent of the box office,

I understand that in uncertain times the idea of superheroes seems an extremely welcoming one, yet it’s also, in light of the incredible frequency of such movies, something I was sure audiences would have outgrown by now.  That, needless to say, has not been the case, making me wonder if I need to remind everyone that there do exist other, better types of movies.

 

Meet the New BossGunpowderMilkshake1

In a previous Look Back I ruffled a few feathers by proclaiming that the left side of America’s political spectrum is becoming increasingly interchangeable with the right. Anyone doubting the truth of that statement need only take a look at the movies of 2021, in which liberal sentiment became indistinguishable from right wing rhetoric.

A prime example of this trend: the many female centered actioners of ‘21…

A prime example of this trend: the many female centered actioners of ‘21 (such as GUNPOWDER MILKSHAKE, KATE and JOLT), in which vigilante justice, gun worship and rampant brutality are celebrated in a manner that harkens back to the bad old days of 1980s action moviemaking.  There was also HALLOWEEN KILLS, the latest installment of a supposedly #metoo friendly reimagining of John Carpenter’s classic that unabashedly promotes mob justice, and we mustn’t forget THE SUICIDE SQUAD from progressive superstar James Gunn, who depicts a largely Caucasian “Squad” killing oodles of dark-skinned South Americans (of course there’s some dialogue decrying American intervention, but it doesn’t register nearly as strongly as the imagery).

 

The Important NewsDau1

I wouldn’t dare criticize 2021’s entertainment news coverage, which filled us in on such vitally important, headline-grabbing issues like Jennifer Lawrence “only” getting $25 million to make DON’T LOOK UP (I hope she’ll be okay) and the apparently “Sexist Box Office Coverage” of GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE, but there were (much) more vital and upsetting movie-related stories to be found.  A prime example: the Russian DAU film cycle, which represents a unique and, frankly, horrifying venture that in future years will likely be looked upon on in the same way the Stanford Prison Experiment is now.

…the Russian DAU film cycle, which represents a unique and, frankly, horrifying venture that in future years will likely be looked upon on in the same way the Stanford Prison Experiment is now.

The DAU project was created by filmmaker Ilya Khrzhanovsky, who set out to make a biographical film about the renowned Soviet scientist Lev Laundau.  Shooting commenced in 2008, in a vast Ukrainian construct known as “the Institute” that was closely patterned after an actual Soviet-era research institute.  After three years, during which much of his cast lived and slept in the Institute, Khrzhanovsky emerged with a reported 700 hundred hours’ worth of footage.  In 2019 editing was finally completed on over a dozen films that were screened in a vast art installation in Berlin.  Several of those films have since been released in VOD form on the DAU website, showcasing a mixture of drama and documentary that’s rather queasy given the level of violence and bad behavior on display.

For the record, I’ve seen portions of a few DAU films.  You won’t find any of them in my Year in Bedlam film listings, but I will render my verdict here, in the form of a quote from Tablet magazine with which I’m in full agreement: “Khrzhanovsky has built a testament to a great film that will never be—and could never be. DAU is a massive success as a feat of will, but a massive failure of artistry and craftsmanship.”

 

Marvel & DC (II)

Joss Whedon

Joss Whedon

Years I ago I stated that between Marvel and DC, “DC has always been the more innovative, risk-taking outfit.”  Okay, but I failed to take into account that Marvel has certain attributes DC lacks, attributes that lie in the public relations sphere.

This was a fact thrown into extremely sharp relief in 2021, when Joss Whedon, who was hired by DC to complete JUSTICE LEAGUE after its initial director Zack Snyder had to drop out (due to grief over his daughter’s suicide), was accused of unprofessional behavior by several cast members.  Interestingly enough, I’ve heard no complaints about Whedon’s demeanor on the sets of the Marvel films he directed.

Interestingly enough, I’ve heard no complaints about Whedon’s demeanor on the sets of the Marvel films he directed.

Could Marvel’s bedside manner, and DC’s apparent lack thereof, have something to do with that?  I find I’m reminded here of an interview given by comics legend Stephen Bissette, in which he stated of his time working on SWAMP THING in the 1980s that “I had been so reamed on a personal and business level by DC that I literally didn’t know up from down, left from right…It was such a disorienting and demeaning and degrading experience at the end that I ceased to enjoy drawing.” Furthermore, Bissette claims to have paid his own way to attend DC business meetings and crashed on friends’ floors, whereas “Marvel would always reimburse you.”

I’m not suggesting here that Marvel doesn’t have its own talent management problems. Far from it. I’m merely saying that in the public relations game one outfit does it fairly well, and that outfit ain’t DC.

 

Publishing TrendsFalling

It’s not uncommon for commentators, this one in particular, to overstate the joys of independent publishing while demeaning the output of the big conglomerates.  In 2021, however, I found that the real action in the literary world was indeed in the indie sector.

…the real action in the literary world was indeed in the indie sector.

Of the big boys’ output I enjoyed Richard Chizmar’s true crime pastiche CHASING THE BOOGEYMAN, ex-flight attendant T.J. Newman’s airplane set thriller FALLING and a couple of other enjoyable but unexceptional novels.  The rest of the corporate output, alas, wasn’t nearly as inspiring.

I found NOTHING BUT BLACKENED TEETH by Cassandra Khaw, a ludicrouDangerous Visions And New Worldssly overhyped, hipper-than-thou horror novella from Tor Nightfire, unreadable.  I also elected to skip the 160 page, $49.95 priced coffee table volume ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK: THE OFFICIAL STORY OF THE FILM from Titan Books, in favor of the 400-plus page YOU’VE GOT RED ON YOU: HOW SHAUN OF THE DEAD WAS BROUGHT TO LIFE from the not-exactly-Titanic 1984 Publishing, and I feel I made the right choice.

More examples?  Alan Dean Foster’s essential movie novelization themed THE DIRECTOR SHOULD’VE SHOT YOU, published by the uber-indie Centipede Press; STEPHEN KING DOLLAR BABY: THE BOOK from Bear Manor Media, which can lay claim to being the definitive book about the Stephen King adapted “Dollar Baby” film phenomenon; SWALLOWED, the first English language edition of Rejean Ducharme’s iconic French Canadian novel (previously translated as THE SWALLOWER SWALLOWED) in over fifty years; and DANGEROUS VISIONS AND NEW WORLDS, a nonfiction anthology from PM Press that will be of crucial interest to any science fiction lover.

Obviously I’m not privy to the publication histories of all those books, but each is important in its way.  The fact that the majors missed out on acquiring them suggests they’re not as commercially savvy as they like to pretend they are.  I commend the indie publishers who put them out, though, as someone has to pick up the money the big boys left on the table.

 

GaySupermanMarvel & DC (III)

The biggest Marvel-DC controversies of 2021?  In Marvel’s case that would be their apparent decision to “go woke” on ETERNALS, a film I haven’t seen, and DC making one of its major characters, Superman’s son Jonathan Kent, bisexual. That latter decision, as I’m sure you’re well aware, has roiled the comics-verse like nothing in recent memory.

As for myself, I actually find the idea of a gay/bi superman interesting, though not enough to shell out for the comic featuring this storyline.  Nor am I too pleased by the relentlessly self-congratulatory stance taken by DC, whose higher-ups have gone out of their way to tout this “important story” and the “unprecedented surge” in sales (no concrete figures were provided) they’ve supposedly experienced.  It’s almost as if they’re more interested in patting themselves on the back for their progressive stance than they are in helping the LGBT community—or in telling a story someone might actually want to read.

I actually find the idea of a gay/bi superman interesting, though not enough to shell out for the comic featuring this storyline. 

Regarding ETERNALS, Marvel has been a bit less in-your-face about its liberal bonafides, disseminating info on a strict need-to-know basis (proving yet again that they know how to play the public relations game much better than DC).  That, however, is about all I can say about the flick, which, “woke” or not, I have no plans to see.

 

Big GurlFavorite Discoveries, Literary and Cinematic, of 2021:

12:01 PM

An Academy Award nominated short from 1991 that directly foreshadows GROUNDHOG DAY in its narrative, adapted from a short story by Richard A. Lupoff, about a guy living a single hour over and over.

BEDBUG 75 (KLOP 75 ILI MAYAKOVSKIY SMEYOTSA)

A partially animated, boldly anarchic 1975 mind-roaster from the Soviet Union that attempted to introduce the work of the early Twentieth Century playwright Vladimir Mayakovsky to modern audiences.  It failed in that endeavor, but the film is an astonishment nonetheless.

BIG GURL By THOM MELTZER, RICHARD P. SCOTT

Yes, I really should have been aware of this 1989 horror novel, one of the most authentically subversive of its era, long before 2021 (I consider the insanely inflated price I paid for it my penance).  I’ve finally read BIG GURL, though, and can report that it’s every bit as gloriously unhinged and antisocial as it’s been cracked up to be.

Men Women And RattlesnakesMEN, WOMEN AND RATTLESNAKES by FRANKLIN P. COLLIER JR.

Not exactly a “discovery,” as I’ve been searching for an affordable copy of this 1933 novel for seemingly ever.  It is, in any event, a worthwhile acquisition, a bizarre and often quite disturbing study of small town dysfunction that ranks with PEYTON PLACE and BLUE VELVET.

THE MYSTERY OF PISKOV (DAS RATSEL VON PISKOV)

A West German TVM from 1969 about the effects of time travel on a small town, told in the form of a mock news broadcast (a full review, FYI, can be found in the upcoming issue of Shock Cinema).

POKOL-INFERNO

Another long searched-for item that was finally uncovered in 2021, a Hungarian TV filming of Dante’s INFERNO with once-revolutionary video effects that now seem straight out of the Sid and Marty Kroft factory.

SCREAM AND SCREAM AGAIN By PETER SAXON

Forget about the so-so movie adapted (loosely) from this novel and go directly to the real thing, an altogether unique genre-buster that interweaves medical experimentation, amnesia, mass murder, robots, political espionage and a most suspicious batch of corrosive acid.

The Shadow by Bill GarnettTHE SHADOW By BILL GARNETT

An unassuming paperback original that turned out to be—no joke—one of the most profound and intense depictions of first-person psychosis I’ve ever read.

THE STORY OF REBECCA (LE RECIT DE REBECCA)

A French made short film adaptation of a portion of Jan Potocki’s immortal MANUSCRIPT FOUND IN SARAGOSSA, with ghosts, hallucinations and magic incantations predominating.

TYLER’S THIRD ACT By MICK GARRIS

A dark, corrosive and (mostly) dead-on satire of the entertainment world, specifically the “reality” portion of it, by a writer who knows the territory all too well.

 

Remembering Those Who’ve Passed on

MICHAEL APTED (1941-2021) Director: HAUNTED (TV), GORKY PARK, BLINK, ENOUGH

BOB BAKER (1939-2021) Screenwriter: DOCTOR WHO (TV), THE WRONG TROUSERS, WALLACE AND GROMIT: CURSE OF THE WERE-RABBIT

Ned Beatty

Ned Beatty

NED BEATTY (1937-2021) Actor: DELIVERANCE, EXORCIST II: THE HERETIC, SUPERMAN: THE MOVIE, WISE BLOOD, SUPERMAN II, THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING WOMAN, THE UNHOLY, REPOSSESSED, REPLIKATOR, THE KILLER INSIDE ME (2010)

JEAN-PAUL BELMONDO (1933-2021) Actor: THE NIGHT CALLER, STRANGER IN THE HOUSE

MARIE-CLAIRE BLAIS (1939-2021) Novelist: MAD SHADOWS

JEAN-CLAUDE CARRIERE (1931-2021) Screenwriter: THE DIABOLICAL DR. Z, THE WEDDING RING, THE DISCREET CHARM OF THE BOURGEOISIE, THE TIN DRUM, HARD TO BE A GOD (1989)

STEVE CARVER (1945-2021) Director/Assistant Director: JOHNNY GOT HIS GUN, DRUM

SONNY CHIBA (1939-2021) Actor: TERROR BENEATH THE SEA, WOLFGUY: ENRAGED LYCANTHROPE, MESSAGE FROM SPACE, HUNTER IN THE DARK, VIRUS, SAMURAI REINCARNATION, BATTLE ROYALE II: REQUIEM

MICHAEL CONSTANTINE (1927-2021) Actor: THE TWILIGHT ZONE (TV), THE OUTER LIMITS (TV), THE NIGHT THAT PANICKED AMERICA, PRAY FOR DEATH, THINNER

JACK COUFFER (1924-2021) Cinematographer: JONATHAN LIVINGSTON SEAGULL

Nathalie Delon

Nathalie Delon

NATHALIE DELON (1941-2021) Actor: BLUEBEARD, THE MONK (1972)

NINA DIVISKOVA (1936-2021) Actor: VALERIE AND HER WEEK OF WONDERS, MORGIANA, THE APPLE GAME, WOLF’S HOLE, THE FROG PRINCE

RICHARD DONNER (1930-2021) Director/Producer: THE TWILIGHT ZONE (TV), THE OMEN, SUPERMAN: THE MOVIE, LADYHAWK, THE LOST BOYS

ROBERT DOWNEY SR. (1936-2021) Director/Actor: POUND, GREASER’S PALACE, THE TWILIGHT ZONE (TV; 1985)

PETER FLEISCHMANN (1937-2021) Director: DOROTHEA’S REVENGE, THE HAMBURG SYNDROME, HARD TO BE A GOD (1989)

ROBERT FLETCHER (1922-2021) Costume Designer: THE SCARECROW, STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN, STAR TREK III: THE SEARCH FOR SPOCK, THE LAST STARFIGHTER, FRIGHT NIGHT, STAR TREK IV: THE VOYAGE HOME

CHARLES FRIES (1928-2021) Producer: SHE WAITS, TALES FROM THE CRYPT (1972), HALLOWEEN WITH THE NEW ADDAMS FAMILY, THE MARTIAN CHRONICLES (TV)

Charles Grodin

Charles Grodin

ALBERTO GRIMALDI (1925-2021) Producer: SPIRITS OF THE DEAD, A QUIET PLACE IN THE COUNTRY, FELLINI SATYRICON, SALO: THE 120 DAYS OF SODOM

CHARLES GRODIN (1935-2021) Actor: ROSEMARY’S BABY, KING KONG (1976), THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING WOMAN

DAVID GULPILIL (1953-2021) Actor: THE LAST WAVE, DARK AGE, UNTIL THE END OF THE WORLD, BEASTMASTER (TV)

JEROME HELLMAN (1928-2021) Producer: MIDNIGHT COWBOY, THE DAY OF THE LOCUST

MONTE HELLMAN (1929-2021) Director/Second Unit Director: BEAST FROM HAUNTED CAVE, HEAD, COCKFIGHTER, FIGHTING MAD, IGUANA, SILENT NIGHT DEADLY NIGHT 3, ROBOCOP

PATRICIA HITCHCOCK (1928-2021) Actor: STAGE FRIGHT, STRANGERS ON A TRAIN, ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS (TV), PSYCHO (1960)

HAL HOLBROOK (1925-2021) Actor: THE PEOPLE NEXT DOOR, JONATHAN LIVINGSTON SEAGULL, RITUALS, CAPRICORN ONE, NATURAL ENEMIES, THE FOG, CREEPSHOW, THE UNHOLY

JOHN HORA (1940-2021) Cinematographer: THE HOWLING, TWILIGHT ZONE: THE MOVIE, GREMLINS, GREMLINS 2: THE NEW BATCH, MATINEE

Tawny Kitaen

Tawny Kitaen

TAWNY KITEAN (1961-2021) Actor: THE PERILS OF GWENDOLINE IN THE LAND OF THE YIK-YAK, WITCHBOARD, AFTER MIDNIGHT

YAPHET KOTTO (1939-2021) Actor: NIGHT GALLERY (TV), ALIEN, WARNING SIGN, THE PARK IS MINE, ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS (TV; 1985), THE RUNNING MAN, FREDDY’S DEAD: THE FINAL NIGHTMARE, THE PUPPET MASTERS

MICHAEL LAUGHLIN (1938-2021) Director: STRANGE BEHAVIOR, STRANGE INVADERS, MESMERIZED

MARTHA DE LAURENTIIS (1954-2021) Producer/Associate Producer: FIRESTARTER, CAT’S EYE, SILVER BULLET, MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE, KING KONG LIVES, THE BEDROOM WINDOW, HANNIBAL, RED DRAGON, HANNIBAL RISING

CLORIS LEACHMAN (1926-2021) Actor: YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN

DAVID LIGHTFOOT (1959-2021) Producer: BAD BOY BUBBY, WOLF CREEK, ROGUE, TURKEY SHOOT (2014)

ZYGMUNT MALANOWICZ (1938-2021) Actor: A KNIFE IN THE WATER, THE LURE

LARRY McMURTRY (1936-2021) Novelist/Screenwriter: ANYTHING FOR BILLY, PRETTY BOY FLOYD

FRANK McRAE (1941-2021) Actor: TRACKS, THE END, THE TWILIGHT ZONE (1985; TV), BATTERIES NOT INCLUDED, THE WIZARD

PETER DEL MONTE (1943-2021) Director: INVITATION AU VOYAGE, JULIA AND JULIA (1987), ETOILE

Michael Nesmith

Michael Nesmith

MICHAEL NESMITH (1942-2021) Musician/Actor/Producer: HEAD, TIMERIDER: THE ADVENTURE OF LYLE SWAN, REPO MAN

DENIS O’BRIEN (1941-2021) Producer: TIME BANDITS, TRACK 29, COLD DOG SOUP, CRACKS

GAVAN O’HERLIHY (1951-2021) Actor: SUPERMAN III, DEATH WISH 3, WILLOW, TWIN PEAKS (TV)

WALTER OLKEWICZ (1948-2021) Actor: WIZARDS AND WARRIORS (TV), TWIN PEAKS (TV), BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES (TV), TWIN PEAKS: FIRE WALK WITH ME

MELVIN VAN PEEBLES (1932-2021) Director/Actor: SWEET SWEETBACK’S BAADASSSSS SONG, JAWS: THE REVENGE, FIST OF THE NORTH STAR (1995), THE SHINING (TV)

CLARE PEPLOE (1941-2021) Screenwriter/Director: LUNA, ROUGH MAGIC

CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER (1929-2021) Actor: THE PYX, STARCRASH, MURDER BY DECREE, STAR TREK VI: THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY, WOLF, DOLORES CLAIBORNE, 12 MONKEYS

MARKIE POST (1950-2021) Actor: THE INCREDIBLE HULK (TV), BUCK ROGERS IN THE 25th CENTURY (TV), FANTASY ISLAND (TV), STRANGER AT MY DOOR, GHOST WHISPERER (TV)

Anne Rice

Anne Rice

ANNE RICE (1941-2021) Novelist/Screenwriter: INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, THE VAMPIRE LESTAT, QUEEN OF THE DAMNED

TANYA ROBERTS (1955-2021) Actor: FINGERS, TOURIST TRAP, THE BEASTMASTER, SHEENA

CLIFFORD ROSE (1929-2021) Actor: MARAT/SADE, WORK IS A FOUR LETTER WORD, THE GIRL (1987), PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES

GIANNETTO DE ROSSI (1942-2021) Make-up/Special Effects Artist: EMANUELLE IN AMERICA, THE HUMANOID, ZOMBIE, CANNIBAL APOCALYPSE, THE BEYOND, HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY, PIRANHA 2: THE SPAWNING, CONAN THE DESTROYER, DUNE (1984), DR. M

GIUSEPPE ROTUNNO (1923-2021) Cinematographer: ON THE BEACH, THE BIBLE: IN THE BEGINNING, THE WITCHES, SPIRITS OF THE DEAD, CANDY, FELLINI SAYRICON, JULIA AND JULIA (1987), HAUNTED SUMMER, WOLF, THE STENDHAL SYNDROME

RICHARD RUSH (1929-2021) Director: PSYCH-OUT, THE COLOR OF NIGHT

SAMPOTE SANDS (1941-2021) Director: THE 6 ULTRA BROTHERS VS. THE MONSTER ARMY, HANUMAN AND THE FIVE RAIDERS, CROCODILE, KRAITHONG, PHRA ROD MEREE, MAGIC LIZARD

ENZO SCIOTTI (1944-2021) Poster Artist: THE BEYOND, THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY, MANHATTAN BABY, BLUE VELVET, A CAT IN THE BRAIN, ARMY OF DARKNESS

George Segal

George Segal

GEORGE SEGAL (1934-2021) Actor: THE ALFRED HITCHCOCK HOUR (TV), NO WAY TO TREAT A LADY, WHERE’S POPPA?, THE TERMINAL MAN, ROLLERCOASTER, THE COLD ROOM, TO DIE FOR, THE BABYSITTER

BARBARA SHELLEY (1932-2021) Actor: THE CAT GIRL, BLOOD OF THE VAMPIRE, VILLAGE OF THE DAMNED, THE GORGON, DRACULA PRINCE OF DARKNESS, RASPUTIN THE MAD MONK, QUATERMASS AND THE PIT, GHOST STORY (1974)

WILLIAM SMITH (1933-2021) Actor: BATMAN (TV), GRAVE OF THE VAMPIRE, INVASION OF THE BEE GIRLS, PLANET OF THE APES (TV), FAST COMPANY, CONAN THE BARBARIAN, THE TWILIGHT ZONE (1985; TV), MANIAC COP, HELL COMES TO FROGTOWN, RASPUTIN: DARK SERVANT OF DESTINY

STEPHEN SONDHEIM (1930-2021) Composer/Lyricist: DICK TRACY, SWEENEY TODD, INTO THE WOODS

DEAN STOCKWELL (1936-2021) Actor: THE BOY WITH GREEN HAIR, ALFRED HITCHOCK PRESENTS (TV), THE TWILIGHT ZONE (TV), PSYCH-OUT, THE DUNWICH HORROR, THE LAST MOVIE, NIGHT GALLERY (TV), THE WEREWOLF OF WASHINGTON, TRACKS, TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED (TV), TO KILL A STRANGER, BLUE VELVET, THE TWILIGHT ZONE (1988; TV), THE LANGOLIERS, THEY NEST, BATMAN BEYOND: THE RETURN OF THE JOKER, STAR TREK: ENTERPRISE (TV), THE DUNWICH HORROR (2009)

KUNIE TANAKA (1932-2021) Actor: SWORD OF DOOM, KWAIDAN, GRAVEYARD OF HONOR, LUMINOUS MOSS

MARK TARLOV (1952-2021) Producer: CHRISTINE, SECOND SIGHT, MORTAL THOUGHTS, SERIAL MOM, COPYCAT, CECIL B. DEMENTED

BERTRAND TAVERNIER (1941-2021) Director/Assistant Director: ORGASMO, DEATH WATCH, COUP DE TORCHON, THE PASSION OF BEATRICE, FRESH BAIT

STACY TITLE (1964-2021) Director: THE LAST SUPPER, LET THE DEVIL WEAR BLACK, HOOD OF HORROR, THE BYE BYE MAN

RUTHIE TOMSON (1910-2021) Animator: FANTASIA, LORD OF THE RINGS (1978), WINDS OF CHANGE

ISELA VEGA (1939-2021) Actor: DIABOLICAL PACT, MADAME DEATH, BRING ME THE HEAD OF ALFREDO GARCIA, THE BLOODY MONKS

Jessica Walter

Jessica Walter

JESSICA WALTER (1941-2021) Actor: LILITH, PLAY MISTY FOR ME, DR. STRANGE (1978), VAMPIRE (1979), GHOST IN THE MACHINE (1993), POLTERGEIST: THE LEGACY (TV), HARLEY QUINN (TV)

NORMAN J. WARREN (1942-2021) Director: SATAN’S SLAVE, PREY, TERROR, HORORPLANET, BLOODY NEW YEAR

LINA WERTMULLER (1928-2021) Director: SEVEN BEAUTIES

CLARENCE WILLIAMS III (1939-2021) Actor: 52 PICK-UP, TALES FROM THE HOOD

S. CLAY WILSON (1941-2021) Graphic Artist: ZAP COMIX, BOGEYMAN, TABOO

EIICHI YAMAMOTO (1940-2021) Director: BALLADONNA OF SADNESS, SPACE BATTLESHIP YAMAMOTO