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Some years back in 2007, I got wind that the once-mighty Hammer Film Productions was returning to action after decades of dormancy. However, I was somewhat let down when I looked into the matter and found that their first release would be a thoroughly modern affair called Beyond the Rave, and that the newly revived studio was looking to break away from its classic period roots and focus on contemporary horror. Which is sort of like if the Hal Roach Studio was revived to make American Pie... Read Full Story

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By Jack Norworth & Albert Von Tilzer 1908 For this Superbowl Sunday, I give you the unofficial anthem of America's true pastime and greatest sport. Norworth was inspired to write the song by a sign on the subway advertising New York Giants baseball at the Polo Grounds. Von Tilzer would later add lyrics, and the song became a hit on the vaudeville circuit, introduced by Norworth's then-wife Nora Bayes. Interestingly, it would not be played at an actual major league baseball game until the mid... Read Full Story

It's one of those movies that is on just about every serious horror fans favorites list. John Carpenter's The Thing is one of the most debated and dissected films of all time, and so is certainly fertile ground for lengthy discussion. So when I wanted to discuss, debate and dissect the movie, I contacted one of my longest-running Vault contributors, and someone who has been kind of silent as of late. I've known RayRay for more than two decades now, and I can tell you that he knows The Thing... Read Full Story

By Richard Rodgers & Lorenz Hart 1936 According to lyricist Lorenz Hart's autobiography, this song was inspired by a visit to the historic Stockton Inn in New Jersey. Hart reportedly hated he melody and enjoyed taunting Rodgers by ad-libbing raunchy verses for it. Nevertheless, it is a true Rodgers & Hart charmer, written originally for their musical Billy Rose's Jumbo, but used instead for On Your Toes. It was introduced by Ray Bolger and Doris Carson. Lyrics: There's a small hotel With a... Read Full Story

The Many Faces of Boris Karloff, Vol. 1 The Vault of Horror Read Full Story

The Vault of Horror Read Full Story

I've been well-acquainted with the raw talent of micro-biudget filmmaker Matt Glasson since I reviewed his 2007 featurette The Family Tie . I titled that review "If Dali Made a Revenge Flick"--a response to the absurdist lens through which Glasson and co-director Scott Greene interpreted the classic '70s exploitation subgenre. This time out, I was struck by another bold and jarring juxtaposition. Only now, I was viewing a much more polished product, and most importantly of all, a feature... Read Full Story

By Jerome Kern 1927 A profoundly moving duet ballad from Kern's Show Boat, usually credited as the first modern Broadway musical. It was introduced on stage by Norma Terris and Howard Marsh (pictured), and also performed to great effect by Howard Keel and Kathryn Grayson in the 1951 MGM musical adaptation. It's lyrics, expressed by two people suddenly and spontaneously realizing they are in love with each other, are among the most moving in the Great American Songbook. Lyrics: Only make... Read Full Story

She was considered by many to be among the greatest rhythm and blues singers of all time. Her career was marked by dramatic highs and lows, with the latter largely the result of the heroin addiction that consumed years of her life. First achieving success as a teenager in 1954 with the bawdy song "The Wallflower (Dance with Me Henry)", Etta James went on to record a string of hits with Chess Records in the 1960s before disappearing from public view due to her drug problem. She reemerged in... Read Full Story