The Endangered List (Case File #119)

HOW'S YOUR LOVE LIFE? (1971)

CAST
Russ Vincent (Jack Romanti)
Leslie Brooks (Dr. Maureen John)
Mary Beth Hughes (Linda Roberts)
John Agar (Lieut. Rafferty)
Grant Williams (Paul Miller)
Rick Cooper (Rick Stewart)
Johnnie "Dixie" Uhl (Sharon Miller)
John Armond (Mr. Rivero)
Stormy Uhl (Kim)
Linda Susan Hill (Jane Stewart)
Babette (Ann Dunn)
Sean Kenney (Steve Roberts)
Sherry Mills (Judy)
Michael West (Tim)
Bill Hudson (Mr. Dunn)
Joe Castagna (Jim Hunter)
Lois Ursone (Bobbie Courtney)
Eve Brent (Mrs. Ryan)
Stuart Gardner (Stu)
Alicio Balsa (Adagio Dancer)
Vera Allen (Adagio Dancer)
Dana Diamond (Drum Dancer)
Charles Vincent (Drum Dancer)
Saraha Jones (Belly Dancer)
Steve Vincent (Hypnotist)
Francisco Vespia (Troubador)
Doris Barton (Rita Rivero)
Dixie Daugherty (Mrs. Smith)
Floyd Schenk (Mr. Smith)
Rosalind Miles (Julie)
Rigg Kennedy (Hippie)
Sonja Dunson (Showgirl)
Nitchka Newell (Cuddlebutt)
Vincene Wallace (Showgirl)
Regina Champlin (Showgirl)
Sheri Lohr (Showgirl)
and
Mel Blanc (Blackie)

Written, produced, and directed
by
Russ Vincent

Executive Producer
William J. McCarthy

Cinematography by
Bob Caramico

Edited by
Lee Osborne

Music by
Robert 'Bumps' Blackwell

Assistant Director
George Moskov

Production Manager
George Moskov

Assistant to Producer
Tom Whitney

Second Assistant Director
George Light

Sound
Dick Damon

Lighting
Ralph Marshall

Script Supervisor
Marlene Buckalew

Property Master
C. W. Butlin

Make-Up
by
Jim Nielson
and
Tino Zacchia

Wardrobe
Janet Strong

MPAA rating: X

SYNOPSIS

Jack Romanti (RUSS VINCENT) runs a peculiar theatre-club in Hollywood where he gives scholarships to youngsters seeking to get ahead in the entertainment industry and who pays for this through admissions to the public performances and also contributions from sponsors. But it is the behind-the-scenes entertainment which intrigues the "participating" sponsors, both men and women, for they have free access to the students, via appointment, to satisfy their sexual whims.

Into this situation stumbles Kim (STORMY UHL) who has been given a scholarship. She is a naive virgin, fearful that she is turning Lesbian. Aiding Romanti in his enterprise is Dr. Maureen John (LESLIE BROOKS), a psychiatrist who advises her patients with sex hangups to join Romanti's foundation and becoming participating members. Chief assistant to Romanti is Linda Roberts (MARY BETH HUGHES) who in addition to acting as wardrobe mistress helps him in the running of the organization and who herself has a yen for Romanti.

On the sidelines observing all of this is Lieut. Rafferty (JOHN AGAR) of the Los Angeles Police Department who, suspecting blackmail and worse, tells Romanti that "Some day you're going to fall and I'm going to be there to catch you."

Another assistant to Romanti who also has a craving for him is Jane (LINDA JEAN HILL) who at first is content to stand in the background while Romanti makes his plays for the various women who come under his influence. Jack's real ambition is to become a motion picture director and that is one of his hangups. He shrugs off his sexual prowess and that of his "students" with "Everyone has hangups. I'm performing a service."

The fact that he is acting as a pimp does not occur to him. The only goad to his conscience is Blackie, a mynah, who is extremely precocious and worldly and whose comments are both humorous and irritating.

Jack exhibits compassion when Kim experiences a Lesbian activity with one of the patrons, Mrs. Courtney (LOIS URSONE), and finds that she believes herself normal. He demotes her from the show and puts her in the checkroom. He has a mad affair with Judy (SHERRY MILLS), a married woman whose husband has for months failed to satisfy her. She is killed by a Peeping Tom and Jack is arrested for the murder, only to be exonerated when the real killer Tim (MICHAEL WEST) is captured. At that time, Lieut. Rafferty, releasing Jack, says, realizing that the operator of the theatre-club may be doing a service, says: "You're a like-able bastard."

Meanwhile, Jack has directed the test of a young student of his, Rick Stewart (RICK COOPER) with Sharon Miller (JOHNNIE "DIXIE" UHL), wife of film producer Paul Miller (GRANT WILLIAMS). It is a success, and Rick moves in with the Millers to get acquainted and learn his part. After a series of so-called get-togethers between Sharon and Rick, Paul discovers them making love and cancels the picture, including his promise to Jack that he would get his chance to direct the film. However, after a session with his over-sexed wife, Paul, who had fears of having become a latent homosexual, changes his mind: Rick and Sharon are to star, Jack to direct.

Jack returns to the theatre-club and later is confronted by Jane who has been willingly and presumably gratefully removed from her virginity by a male "participant." She tells him, "I don't feel like a deprived whore any more. I really enjoyed it."

His world crashes - for he has begun to think that this virgin had been the only thing for him. Jack is told the news by Paul that he will direct the upcoming film with Sharon and Rick as the stars.

And, as Dr. John who is still nurturing her like for him, tells him: "Maybe it didn't work out the way you wanted it to. But it's for the best."

And Blackie, the bird, agrees.

Movie Ad of the Week: PSYCHED BY THE 4D WITCH! (1973)

World Premiere - March 23, 1973 - New Orleans, LA

Today’s post was submitted many months ago by tireless TOS researcher Mike MacCollum, who -- in the process of digging up more information on such New Orleans-shot obscurities as THE THURSDAY MORNING MURDERS and THE LARDFATHER -- stumbled upon the true identity of the mysterious “Victor Luminera,” director of PSYCHED BY THE 4D WITCH! Described by Something Weird Video as “the most maddening, jaw-dropping, mind-bending piece of celluloid lunacy ever to play American theaters,” PSYCHED is the one-of-a-kind brainchild of Lawrence Milton Boren, founder of The World of Tomorrow Foundation and author of Woman, A Glorious Destiny Awaits You! A Scientific Breakthrough, Part 1. Also known as "Dr. Destiny," Boren claims to be an intuitive right-brain contactee with the ability to channel the future! Our interest piqued, we decided to dig a little deeper to see what else we could find. Long story short, Mike and I are writing an artcle about Boren/Luminera and his trippy movie, which we hope to get published in a magazine sometime this summer. It's a strange story, to say the least! Stay tuned for more details.
                                                                                   -- Chris P.

Below: PSYCHED BY THE 4D WITCH! opened in Colorado Springs, CO on May 18th, 1973

"Week of Hong" presents HOT CONNECTIONS (1972)

For our contribution to Lost Video Archive’s “Week of Hong” (April 9-14), a blogathon devoted to the long and always interesting career of actor-filmmaker James Hong, we unveil another Temple of Schlock exclusive: HOT CONNECTIONS (1972), a soft-X skin flick directed by “James Young,” the same alias Hong used as the co-star of the hardcore CHINA GIRL (1975). Made at the tail end of an all-too-brief period in Hollywood when the opportunity to direct an adult movie was looked upon as an opportunity to direct a movie (see: Corey Allen, Melvin Van Peebles, Jack Starrett), one can’t fault Hong for ultimately hiding behind a pseudonym, even if HOT CONNECTIONS had more brain in its head forty years ago than most legitimate comedies are packing today. Pic carries a 1972 copyright date but seems to have received the bulk of its playdates (through Ellman Film Enterprises) beginning in the spring of 1973. The ad campaign above, promising "The first seX with karate," appeared in July '73 and could possibly explain a brief, awkward karate fight seemingly shoehorned into a beach scene that may have been shot earlier. Hong handled dubbing supervision duties on the Ellman kung fu import FEARLESS FIGHTERS around the same time.

The film's ad art winkingly refers to the female switchboard operators employed by Ma Bell, still pretty much a monopoly in 1972, more than 20 years after an antitrust lawsuit should've ended the bitch's reign of terror. THE PRESIDENT'S ANALYST it ain't, but HOT CONNECTIONS smartly uses TPC as a platform for its pro-feminism plotline; in addition to being figuratively screwed by the Bell like everyone else, its own curvier employees are literally (according to the ad below) "Bugged...Tapped...Crossed...Plugged" by The Phone Company's chauvinistic, micromanaging men-in-power.

Enter the militant Marilyn Thaxton (Tallie Cochrane), leader of the Women's Liberation Defense Center.

Her ex-husband happens to be Arnold Thaxton (Christopher Geoffries from TEENAGE JAILBAIT, billed as "Fred Kodel"), a VP at the TPC as well as the company's number one abuser of the female staff.

Arnold’s had affairs with hundreds of phone company gals...

...but when he knocks up one of his employees and then fires her for not getting an abortion, he incurs the wrath of his ex-wife and the Women’s Liberation Defense Center.

The pregnant girl’s name, Mary Collins, is mentioned numerous times during demonstrations and meetings as if she’s a notable public figure, leading us to the conclusion that her character (hardly seen in the movie) is supposed to represent Mary Moore, the first voice of the Bell Telephone Company.

Arnold’s best friend and co-conspirator is dopey middle manager George Hanes, played by John Hayes stock actor Jay Scott, credited as “Billy Busby” (the name of his character in Hayes’ sexploitation western FANDANGO).

The men share a few bad habits, both in and out of the office.

One of these habits is keeping track of how much time the female employees spend in the women’s room and on the telephone with their boyfriends. Here we see the professional manner in which George deals with Angie (Rene Bond).

ANGIE: “Honestly, George, are you still timing my trips to the washroom?!

GEORGE: “This is phone company business and my name is Mr. Hanes!”

ANGIE: “Why don’t you change some of these figures? You’re making me look like I’ve got diarrhea!”

George is married to foxy Cynthia, played by Margie Lanier from FUGITIVE GIRLS (billed as "Marjorie Lane").

She's a member of the Women’s Liberation Defense Center as well, and -- much to George's irritation -- their home is frequently used as the group's meeting place.

Marilyn and Cynthia set out to publicly humiliate Arnold and get him fired from The Phone Company. Their plan? Hire a snooper to snap photos of Arnold balling his latest squeeze, Tiffany (sexy Lynn Harris from THE PICK-UP), enlarge the pics to placard-size and use them in a demonstration outside the TPC building.

The snooper is played by our guest of honor, James Hong.

Oops, sorry -- we mean "James Young."

Hmm. There's also a James Haig credited as producer.

Hong/Young/maybe-Haig tails Arnold to a meeting with George at a shoeshine stand. George tells Arnold about the photos and the Women’s Liberation Defense Center's plan to get him fired.

At this point, Snooper Hong is spotted...

...and the two friends hide behind newspapers until he leaves.

This is a nicely composed shot, with the Bell sign in the top center of the frame, above the shoeshine stand (power-subordination imagery), as director Hong crosses in the foreground, a camera dangling from a strap around his neck.

It makes us wish Hong had directed more features than just the three we know about. HOT CONNECTIONS never reaches the genius plateau of his masterwork, THE GIRLS NEXT DOOR (a.k.a. TEEN LUST), but is still a solid sexploiter with strong performances by the attractive leads, decent camerawork by future director Steve Carver, and a fast, funny script. Other cast members include Elana Casey (CANDY STRIPE NURSES), Starlyn Simone (A CLIMAX OF BLUE POWER), and THE ALL-AMERICAN GIRL'S Peggy Church. The print from Something Weird runs 71 minutes, 14 seconds and appears incomplete, with four minutes of loud distortion on the soundtrack at the one-hour mark. Hopefully a better print will surface eventually.

Please visit the Week of Hong's other participants:

Monday April 9th

Illogical Contraption - BLOODSPORT II

Fist of B-List - THE DYNAMITE BROTHERS

From the Depths of DVD Hell - BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA

Tuesday April 10th

Direct to Video Connoisseur - SOUTH BEACH ACADEMY

Lost Video Archive - TEEN LUST

Wednesday April 11th

She Blogged By Night - SEVENTH SIN

Lost Video Archive - CYBER BANDITS

Thursday April 12th

Booksteve's Library - CHINA GIRL

Lost Video Archive - GLADIATOR COP

From the Depths of DVD Hell - BALLS OF FURY

Friday April 13th

Direct to Video Connoisseur - CAGED FURY

Lines That Make Things - THE A-TEAM (TV episode)

Temple of Schlock - HOT CONNECTIONS

Saturday April 14th

Illogical Contraption - BLOODSPORT III

Explosive Action - NINJA III: THE DOMINATION

Lost Video Archive - BLADE IN HONG KONG
Thrilling Days of Yesteryear - BAT MASTERSON and CHECKMATE (TV episodes)

Movie Ad of the Week: THE GIRLS NEXT DOOR (1979) a.k.a. TEEN LUST (1983)

Atlanta opening: February 16, 1979

New York opening: September 9, 1983

We've covered this movie before, and as recently as March 30th, but our friends at the Lost Video Archive are gearing up to dedicate an entire week to its director, the multi-talented (but best known as a character actor) James Hong! The celebration begins Monday, April 9th at the Lost Video Archive and the participating blogs listed below.

Monday April 9th

Illogical Contraption - BLOODSPORT II

Fist of B-List - THE DYNAMITE BROTHERS

From the Depths of DVD Hell - BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA

Tuesday April 10th

Direct to Video Connoisseur - SOUTH BEACH ACADEMY

Lost Video Archive - TEEN LUST

Wednesday April 11th

She Blogged By Night - SEVENTH SIN

Lost Video Archive - CYBER BANDITS

Thursday April 12th

Booksteve's Library - CHINA GIRL

Lost Video Archive - GLADIATOR COP

From the Depths of DVD Hell - BALLS OF FURY

Friday April 13th

Direct to Video Connoisseur - CAGED FURY

Lines That Make Things - THE A-TEAM (TV episode)

Temple of Schlock - HOT CONNECTIONS

Saturday April 14th

Illogical Contraption - BLOODSPORT III

Explosive Action - NINJA III: THE DOMINATION

Lost Video Archive - BLADE IN HONG KONG
Thrilling Days of Yesteryear - BAT MASTERSON and CHECKMATE (TV episodes)

Po-Man's April update

Hey folks! Chris here with a couple of announcements...

Dave Konow and I have written an article about Crown International Pictures, one of the longest-running and most important companies in exploitation movie history. You'll find it in Rue Morgue #121, now available at a newsstand or bookstore near you.

A week or so back, I participated in a TCM Movie Morlocks blog post for Paul Gaita and Richard Harland Smith in which I (and several other movie maniacs) answered the question "What's the weirdest movie you've ever seen?" Instead of choosing just one movie that I probably wasn't in the mood to spend a couple of hundred words with anyway, I zeroed in on three movies I did feel comfortable writing about, all of them pretty weird but none of them the quote-unquote weirdest. I think I overthought the question. For instance, I didn't single out PSYCHED BY THE 4D WITCH because I figured someone else just had to be covering that wacky thing -- and I was wrong. Then there's that bizarro Russ Meyer-styled comedy from Hong Kong that I watched at the -- "Shut up, Chris!" "Oh, all right!" Here's the post! Big thanks to Paul and RHS for including me in the survey.

The editors of Cinema Retro magazine recently approached me about contributing material to their upcoming special issue dedicated to THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE (1972). One article I'll be submitting this week is an interview with artist Mort Künstler, who painted the stunning one-sheet as well as another equally impressive but lesser-known piece of promo art for the blockbuster movie. I will also be participating in a panel discussion scheduled to occur before a 40th anniversary screening of THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE (35mm vault print!) on Saturday, April 28th at the Landmark Loew's Jersey Theatre. I never knew I was a "Poseidon expert" but that's what they're calling me here. If you live in the New York-New Jersey area, try to attend. It'll be a good time.

Marquee Gazing: SAVAGE SISTERS at the Woods

Eddie Romero's action-packed fighting femmes flick SAVAGE SISTERS (1974), now available as an MGM Limited Edition DVD-R, has been a TOS favorite since its occasional appearances on Commander USA's Groovy Movies beginning in August 1986. So imagine our surprise when we spotted it on the marquee of Chicago's legendary Woods Theater during a recent viewing of the Michael Keaton-meets-Maria Conchita Alonso romcom TOUCH AND GO (1986).

About an hour into the movie, 12-year-old Louis DeLeon (Ajay Naidu), streetwise son of single mom Denise DeLeon (Alonso), skips school to see SCARFACE in one of the last of the Loop theaters.

However, the establishing shot in this open matte VHS source reveals the actual program at the Woods that week: THE BOUNTY (1984), starring Mel Gibson and Anthony Hopkins and released by Orion Pictures, paired with the decade-older AIP release SAVAGE SISTERS.

We knew Orion had kept many of the '70s AIP films in theatrical circulation until 1987, so the appearance of SAVAGE SISTERS on a marquee with a then-new Orion release didn't surprise us.

What did surprise us was the realization that TOUCH AND GO -- an August 1986 release evidently filmed during the spring of 1984 -- was in theaters at the same time we first caught SAVAGE SISTERS on the USA Network!

Movie Ad of the Week: TRUCKIN' MAN (1975)

World Premiere - April 9, 1975 - Florence, SC

The movie was re-released as TRUCKERS WOMAN beginning in 1976.