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The other moment I remember well was when Curtis Harrington, who needed a place to sit in order to be closer to Gloria Stuart as they compared notes regarding dear “Jimmy” Whale, went out on the patio and brought in one of my metal folding chairs and seated himself right by the pink flame. I was back in the kitchen when I heard a loud crash as Curtis and his chair collapsed, spilling sangria on Gloria as well as himself. I was very naughty and could not stop laughing, as Curtis in those days was very accident-prone. He had in fact walked into a fountain at another party a few weeks before, getting soaked once again. Curtis was angry at first as he thought, knowing me as he did, that I might have given him a trick chair or something. In time he forgave me as I reminded him that he picked that one out himself. I think he also made up with Gloria for the sangria-dousing, and she attended some of his parties as well.

Gloria and Gale, now locked arm in arm, walked out to the patio area and were laughing about how they survived the “Universal horror factory” in the eras in which they worked. I asked Gloria about a film she made with a favorite screen villain of mine, Lionel Atwill, entitled SECRET OF THE BLUE ROOM, in 1934. Gloria began to laugh at the mention of it, saying to me “You know everyone called Lionel “Pinky” and he was quite a womanizer in his day. He was playing my father by day but when we were not on camera he was very flirtatious, and I remember one afternoon my husband was away on business and I was not on call at the studio. The doorbell rang around lunch-time and who should be standing in my doorway but “Pinky,” dressed immaculately in a gorgeous three piece suit with a monocle no less. His first words to me were” Gloria you are such a beautiful creature, let me spoil you with lunch anywhere you like.” I was so taken back for a moment, but I quickly let him know that I was happily married and wished to keep it that way. He never wavered but removed his monocle and bowed saying “Well in that case it is my loss” and departed with grace and style. The next day I was playing his daughter again in Universal city.

Gale had a much different experience with Universal as she was playing the title character in a spin-off to her star turn as the female “Moriaty” in the Sherlock Holmes film. This one was to be called THE SPIDER WOMAN STRIKES BACK. It was not up to her standards, but work was work. There was a union dispute going on at the time of shooting and no one was supposed to cross the picket line to work at Universal on the first day of principal photography, so Gale had to make a hard decision, whether to refuse to cross that line and lose her job, or go to work? Gale, to her lasting regret, chose to work, as her family really needed that paycheck. Gale remembered that afternoon like it was yesterday: the first setup was in a hot-house full of deadly looking plants filled with poison, and she and Rondo Hatton (a tragic figure in horror films as he was genuinely disfigured) were to extract the poison with a hypodermic needle. On the first take Gale burst into tears as her mind was still on those men and women she had to walk past to go inside the backlot to work. “I was ashamed of myself and vowed I would never do such a thing again in my life.” When I asked Gale about working with Rondo Hatton she surprised me by being totally unaware of Hatton’s suffering with acromegaly, which caused his features to distort, creating a monster without makeup. Universal was shameless in exploiting this in a half a dozen pictures with him. Gale was in shock and told me “I would have spent more time with the poor fellow if I had known this. I was led to believe he was just another of Jack Pierce’s masterful creations.”

The afternoon began to fade as my guest left one by one, leaving just a handful in the living room. As Charles and Gloria started to leave she gave me a kiss and thanked me for a wonderful party, and especially for relieving Gale Sondergaard of any more guilt involving her late husband Herbert Biberman. Gloria remarked how much Gale had suffered in Hollywood, and yet she remained as free of bitterness about her career as Gloria had by leaving the business to pursue her bliss with painting. Both these ladies represent the spirit of personal freedom and strength of character that makes them unique in Hollywood. Years later Gloria Stuart would achieve even greater recognition with the world-wide success of TITANIC and is still actively painting as of today. Gale Sondergaard lived to see her work recognized and appreciated by film historians and fans alike. She passed away at the motion picture home in 1985

SAVAGE INTRUDER: “TAKING A CHANCE ON LOVE”

In keeping with the tone of this column I have chosen a film which, though made way back in 1969, was not released (at least on video) until 1973. I refer of course to that last gasp of the Baby Jane/horror-hag genre, HOLLYWOOD HORROR HOUSE, a mind boggling exercise in bad taste starring Miriam Hopkins in her final film. Now Ms. Hopkins was a fine actress back in the thirties and forties, nominated for Oscars, well known for her feud with Bette Davis long before the infamous Bette and Joan stand-off years later. The irony that Hopkins would make her own “Baby Jane” too late in the game is just poetic justice.

This could have been a lot more fun than it is if only a decent director had been assigned to the project and, more to the point, a script worthy of the talents of a Miriam Hopkins not to mention Gale Sondergaard. Both ladies give better performances than the film deserves. Then there is the debut of the late John Garfield’s son David in the pivotal role William Holden played in SUNSET BLVD, except in this one the gigolo is also a psycho as in the infinitely superior NIGHT MUST FALL. Nothing new in this one, and everything recycled.

The fun begins and ends with the wild abandon in which Miriam Hopkins gives herself over to this has-been movie queen who drinks too much and daydreams too much and listens too little and too late to those who still care about her image in Hollywood history.
The first scene says it all when Miriam, who imagines herself preparing for a party by drinking a gallon of vodka, staggers to the top of her staircase and plunges to the bottom where she will remain in one form or another for the rest of the film.

Gale Sondergaard plays her assistant, similar to the role played by Eric Von Stroheim in SUNSET BLVD, cleaning up madam’s mess and helping her hold on to her image as a former movie queen in retirement. All this changes upon the arrival of John Garfield Jr., who has spent the first ten minutes of the film hacking up drunken old ladies off Hollywood blvd with an electric knife. Before long the young man holds sway over the household, and goodbye yellow brick road.

The film was screened for various and sundry parties from 1969 till early 1971 where it finally fell into the video graveyard where it now resides under the title of SAVAGE INTRUDER. It has many “camp” moments, all of which involve Miriam Hopkins in one way or another. My personal favorites are Miriam drunk on top of a float during the Hollywood Christmas parade. When she is asked on camera what she thinks of the event, she replies ”Hollywood used to be a great town full of glamour; now it is full of fags and freaks.” (Maybe this is really a documentary.) Or Miriam at a Hollywood hippy party, when asked by a midget drug dealer if she wants some LSD, replying “The only trips I take are to Europe.”

This film almost qualifies as so bad it is good, except it really isn’t, not by a mile, because the editing and script are so bad and downright sleazy that you can not help but lament the total waste of talented veterans and the use of the marvelous old mansion that once belonged to a real movie queen – Norma Talmadge. Fans of the Three Stooges will be happy to know that the last and worst replacement for “Curly” wound up as a sight seeing bus driver in the film’s first few minutes.

If you are in the mood for sleazy camp thrills you could do worse than see an old time movie great sing “Taking a chance on love” at the top of her lungs, or watch for a bit of breast, ancient of course, as Miriam gets up too fast from her massage table. Or watch John Garfield’s only son trip out in a pop art LSD flashback where he… well, see for yourself.

My favorite line in this classic has to be Garfield Jr. telling his next victim “Leslie thought you were in the trunk; she didn’t know you were in the flower bed with Greta.”

As the tagline on the poster says: “She loved and trusted him until he cut off her head”

DEL VALLE AND CORMAN TOGETHER AGAIN. “NEVERMORE”

On October 21st The Dark Room Gallery and The Del Valle Archive will host a reception in honor of Roger Corman. The subject of a month long retrospective of his “Poe films” made from 1960-1964 entitled ‘NEVERMORE’

Mr. Corman will be in attendance during that evening from 7:30 until ten pm and I would like to invite all the CAMP DAVID readers in the Los Angeles area to attend as well. Please log onto our website www.drrm.com for more information.

Roger Corman and David Del Valle previously did a Q&A at the AERO Theater in Santa Monica last year after screening MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH and TALES OF TERROR.

Until next time, may all your nightmare be enhanced for 16×9.

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