I Was a Monster Movie Maker: Conversations with 22 SF and Horror Filmmakers [Hardcover]

Tom Weaver (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0786410000 | ISBN-13: 978-0786410002 | Publication Date: July 2001 | Edition: First Edition

Phil Brown, who played Luke Skywalker's uncle in Star Wars, said, "In my long life in films, there are ones I'm proud of and those I'm not proud of. The Jungle Captive and Weird Woman fall into the latter category." House of Wax co-star Paul Picerni was fired by the film's director when he refused to put his head in a working guillotine during a climactic fight scene. Packed with wonderful tidbits, this volume collects 22 interviews with the moviemakers responsible for bringing such films as This Island Earth, The Haunting, Carnival of Souls, Pit and the Pendulum, House of Wax, Tarzan the Ape Man, The Black Cat, Them! and Invasion of the Body Snatchers to the movie screen. Faith Domergue, Michael Forest, Anne Helm, Candace Hilligoss, Suzanna Leigh, Norman Lloyd, Maureen O'Sullivan, Shirley Ulmer, Dana Wynter and many more are interviewed

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Weaver interviews 22 cheap monster-movie vets, the likes of Phil Brown, star of I Wanted Wings (1941), who later played Luke Skywalker's Uncle Owen in Star Wars and who recalls working in Weird Woman and other '40s fear fests with Lon Chaney Jr. Maureen O'Sullivan recalls tree-top days with Johnny Weissmuller, playing Jane to his Tarzan and meeting Edgar Rice Burroughs, but not her recently rediscovered nude swimming sequence in some Ape Man epic. Ray Walston recollects his turn as TV's My Favorite Martian, his Emmy-winning tenure on the Picket Fences , and Bela Lugosi's drinking, acting tips, and pronouncement that Walston was "the best Renfield I've ever had." Best of show is the talk with Candace Hilligoss, star of the delectably grim low-budget gem Carnival of Souls (1962). She reports wanting to mount a sequel to Herk Harvey's prototypical cult classic but having the project stolen and eventually made into a flaccid 1989 flicker. Mike Tribby
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author

Writer Tom Weaver lives in Sleepy Hollow, New York, and has been interviewing moviemakers since the early 1980s. He has contributed to numerous magazines, including Fangoria, Starlog, Monsters of the Vault and Video Watchdog. He is also the author of Science Fiction and Fantasy Film Flashbacks (1998, $38.50), Return of the B Science Fiction and Horror Heroes (1999 [1988/1991], $30), Poverty Row HORRORS! (1999 [1993], $25) and John Carradine: The Films (1999, $65).

Product Details

• Hardcover: 314 pages
• Publisher: Mcfarland & Co Inc Pub; First Edition edition (July 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786410000
• ISBN-13: 978-0786410002
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,813,112 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars B MOVIE EXTRAVAGANZA!, September 29, 2005

By 

Tim Janson (Michigan) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: I Was a Monster Movie Maker: Conversations with 22 SF and Horror Filmmakers (Hardcover)

Tom Weaver proves again why he is one of the most knowledgeable people in the business when if comes to genre films with "I Was a Monster Movie Maker". In this book Weaver presents 22 interviews with Sci-Fi and Monster movie makers both behind and in front of the camera. While a fan, Weaver's interviews are never "fannish" in nature. He not only knows the talent but knows their work, often times, it seems, better than the subject themselves.

Phil Brown is best known as Uncle Owen from Star Wars, but did his first film back in 1941. Brown admits to taking the Star Wars role because "it was a job" and he had no idea what it was about, although he says George Lucas' genius was evident from the beginning. It's also interesting that Brown did a move (The Weird Woman) with Lon Chaney Jr. back in the 1940's. While he fondly recalls Chaney, he never joined him in his morning "spirits".

Candace Hilligoss discusses her role in one of the most atmospheric and underrated low-budget horror, "Carnival of Souls", and how she was forced out of the eventual remake even though it was largely her idea. She would eventually be offered a cameo but turned it down.

One of the best interviews was with Maureen O' Sullivan, best known as playing Jane in a number of Tarzan films. Still sharp as a tack, she relates a number of amusing anecdotes about playing Jane including stories about the skimpy jungle outfit and how she refused to do a nude scene in a silhouette. She also said that despite the rumors, there was never a romance between she and Tarzan co-star Johnny Weismuller.

Another fantastic interview was with Ray Walston. Walston played Uncle Martin in the hit 1960's series "My Favorite Martian" but many people probably don't know that he played Renfield in the Broadway stage version of Dracula with Bela Lugosi. Walston has some wonderful stories about being out on the town drinking with Lugosi, who, ever frugal, would bring his own flask of scotch. Walston was positively ecstatic to relate how Lugosi told him he was the best Renfield he had ever had. High praise indeed!

Shirley Ulmer also has some interesting stories about Lugosi from the set of "The Black Cat" where her husband Edgar was the director. She talks about the tension between Lugosi and Karloff and the grueling 16 hour days of filming to get the picture done on time.

Other interviews include Dana Wynter from "Invasion of the Body Snatchers", Yvonne Lime from "I was a Teenage Werewolf", Phyllis Kirk from "The House of Wax" and Michael Hoey, the Director of legendary "B" film "The Navy Vs. the Night Monsters." This is another outstanding effort from Weaver and a first rate production by McFarland Books.

Reviewed by Tim Janson

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More excellent interviews..., June 7, 2002

By 

James Nemeth (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I Was a Monster Movie Maker: Conversations with 22 SF and Horror Filmmakers (Hardcover)

Genre interviewer extraordinaire, Tom Weaver, is back with his first book since the celebrated John Carradine: The Films. I Was A Monster Movie Maker collects 22 interviews with various genre personalities, the majority of whom may not immediately ring bells with even the most knowledgeable of genre fans. All of these interviews have appeared in abridged versions in various magazines; here they are printed in their entirety.

The range of interviewees range from the easily recognizable: Maureen O'Sullivan, Norman Lloyd, Phyllis Kirk, Dana Wynter, and John Kerr--to the downright scratch-your-head-and-ask-who? variety: Booth Colman (Dr. Zaius on the Planet Of The Apes television series, Karloff's Thriller), Nelson Gidding (screenwriter of The Haunting), Suzanna Leigh (The Deadly Bees, Lust For A Vampire), and Joan Weldon (Them!), among others. Filmographies are included for all performers.

Among the many treats to be found: O'Sullivan's days as Tarzan's Jane and the revelation of whether there was any romance with Johnny Weissmuller; Wynter's discussions on the 1956 Invasion Of The Body Snatchers, and Kevin McCarthy; Candace Hilligoss' very frank opinions concerning the Carnival Of Souls remake; the always interesting Norman Lloyd's remembrances, especially those of Hitchcock; Phil (Uncle Owen) Brown's recollections of his getting his role in Star Wars, meeting George Lucas, and anecdotes of Lon Chaney, Jr.; Paul Picerni and Phyllis Kirk (in what are clearly the best of interviews done with these two stars) share trips down memory lane, relating tales of making House Of Wax (Picerni's story of filming the guillotine scene is priceless), Andre' de Toth, and Vincent Price; Nelson Gidding's discussion on bringing The Haunting (original version) to the screen; and Ray (My Favorite Martian) Walston talks of working with Lugosi.

In too many interviews, the reader only gets a rapid-fire question and answer session, with no sense of any real interest being generated by either party. Weaver's strength, however, is his ability to get his subjects to really open up. The reader feels that there is a real conversation between two interested parties going on, rather than a rote asking/answering of questions. Perhaps it's his genuine interest in his subjects; perhaps it's his years of experience; perhaps it's his research and preparedness (he often knows more about his subjects' careers than the subjects themselves can remember!). Regardless of Weaver's secret, we get a depth, interest, and even excitement out of the subjects--not to mention the wealth of memories and anecdotes--that one seldom finds elsewhere.

Downsides to the book? I could find only two, and they are small, one (perhaps both) out of the hands of the author. First, that cover! Second, my usual complaint with books by McFarland: the price. Like all McFarland books, IWAMMM is nicely produced and certainly worth the price, but still more than likely out of the price range of many of the monster fans the book is written for.

I Was A Monster Movie Maker is typical first-rate, high quality product readers have come to expect from the author, and is the latest in a long line of his acclaimed interview books.