Cartoonist and film book author Sophie Cossette pays tribute to the late, great British director Ken Russell, calling him "The Mad Hatter of British Sinema" and examining the stories behind Russell's controversial films. There's also her unique cartoons that enhance the very enlightening analysis. Click here to view 

Cinema Retro has received the following announcement from Space Monsters magazine:

""Popular horror actress and presenter Emily Booth has joined new genre magazine ‘Space Monsters’ as a regular columnist and reviewer.

As well as appearing in cult movie hits including Evil Aliens, Doghouse and Inbred, Booth is a regular guest at FILM4 Frightfest and a presenter on the Horror Channel.

‘Space Monsters’ magazine is aimed at fans of classic horror, sci-fi and fantasy movies and television with an emphasis on scary monsters, B-movies and sexy space babes. 

Issue one launched this summer and is already building a large and enthusiastic fan-base around the world.

Booth is joined by Brighton-based journalist, actor and artist Billy Chainsaw, another regular on the horror film scene who also writes for “Bizarre” and “Shock Horror Magazine”.

Editor Richard Gladman, founder of the Classic Horror Campaign and Frighten Brighton Film Festival says:

“I’m delighted to welcome both Emily and Billy to our team of talented writers and artists.  Horror fans are really in for a treat this Hallowe’en with our special “space vampires” issue!”

‘Space Monsters’ can be ordered directly from the Classic Horror Campaign website (www.classichorrorcampaign.com/space-monsters-magazine/) and is also available from Hemlock Books, The Cinema Store, The Psychotronic Store, Scary Monsters Scare Store and other outlets.

Space Monsters Digital is available from the Dead Good Newstand (www.spacemonstersofficial.blogspot.co.uk/)

Space Monsters website: www.spacemonstersmag.wordpress.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/SpaceMonstersMagazine

Emily Booth : www.emilybooth.co.uk

For all advertising and sales enquiries email spacemonstersmag@yahoo.co.uk."

By Lee Pfeiffer 

When F. Scott Fitzgerald famously wrote "There are no second acts in American lives", he would have missed the boat when it comes to actor Robert Davi. He's been a familiar face on the big screen and TV for decades and is known as one of the most memorable James Bond villains. Davi was generally regarded as a reliable and talented character actor. When I made his acquaintance some years ago, we instantly bonded. He is a regular guy with a New York attitude, no ego and a mutual love of exchanging ball-busting jokes with any other guy in his orbit. We share a love of good cigars and stories of old Hollywood but the difference, of course, is that Davi's stories are based on personal experience. His first major role came about when Frank Sinatra personally chose him as a co-star, despite his lack of experience. That was the basis of a long-time friendship and Davi always spoke reverently of Sinatra, s grateful for the break he gave him. A few years back, we were conversing over some stogies and arguing politics (we're on opposite sides but love debating the issues),when Davi told me he was determined to embark on a second career as a crooner of Sinatra's songs. In my typically gentle way of offering advice I told him he was crazy. I told him no one would go to a concert to see a guy who never sang a note on screen. Then shortly thereafter, Robert starred in a directed a little-seen independent movie called The Dukes, about an over-the-hill group of doo-woppers who were attempting to make a comeback. He did all of his own singing and was quite brilliant. The next thing I knew, he was being acclaimed as one of the best Sinatra tributes act ever. Davi is now the toast of the town, taking his show on the road around the country to packed houses. He's now fulfilling another dream by combining his singing talents on stage with Don Rickles, one of Sinatra's best cronies. In a review on The Huffington Post, writer Ellen Sterling calls him "A legend in the making". Sometimes nice guys do finish first. For more click here

HBO has made a deal with executive producers J.J. Arbrams and Jerry Weintraub to buy a pilot for a TV series based on Michael Crichton's thriller Westworld. The story was already made into a hit 1973 MGM film starring Yul Brynner, Richard Benjamin and James Brolin. If the story line remains consistent, it will involve the establishment of a high end amusement park where people can live out their most extreme fantasies. The park features exact period recreations of various eras of history with the gimmick that highly sophisticated robots are intermingled with the guests and are indistinguishable from the humans, who can use or abuse them as their fantasies dictate. Things go wrong when a design flaw in the control program allows the robots to think for themselves and rebel against their human masters. For more click here

Novak on the set of Vertigo with Alfred Hitchcock.

Turner Classic Movies host Robert Osborne pays tribute to the legendary Kim Novak...click here to read. TCM is showing Ms. Novak's films every Thursday during the month of September. 

Early Woody: Take the Money and Run (1969)

Despite his aversion to making public appearances or attending awards shows (he has even shunned the Oscars when nominated), Woody Allen will receive the prestigious Cecil B. DeMille lifetime achievement award at next year's Golden Globe ceremonies, to be telecast on January 14. For more click here

Did anyone even know a sequel to Easy Rider was in the works? Suddenly, it is upon us. Easy Rider: The Ride Back follows the life and adventures of the son of Wyatt Willliams (aka "Captain America", played by Peter Fonda in the 1969 classic). We don't know how the new team of filmmakers scored the rights to a film that was so contentious between Fonda and his co-star and director Dennis Hopper that they could never agree on a concept for a follow-up. A trailer has been released for the film, which opens later this month. We hate to judge a book by its cover but the trailer looks pretty awful...like a low-brow attempt to rip off the original, with some unconvincing Vietnam footage and plenty of tits and ass tossed in for the male audience. On the up side, two great character actors have prominent roles: Michael Nouri and Rance Howard, so let's all just hope for the best.- Lee Pfeiffer  Click here for more and to view trailer. 

Upon the 50th anniversary of It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, you can own an authentic piece of the movie.  You can even wear an authentic piece of the movie.  Academy Award nomination and Golden Globe award winning artist Dave Woodman is mainly known for his 20 years of Hollywood animation, especially the Disney animation & over 35 years of illustration work.  The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin are among his animation credits.  Paula Abdul dancing with a cartoon cat in her Opposites Attract video, miniature animated children for Honey I shrunk the Kids titles as well as an animated Santa that looks suspiciously like Al Hirschfeld in Christmas Vacation are all part of the flow of graphite Dave spewed during that magical time of his life.  Familiar illustration projects include The Laugh Factory logo and Phyllis Diller's caricature logo.  All of this aside, Dave recently created a line of shift knobs, jewelery, belt buckles, paperweights, charms, models and assorted art pieces with authentic pieces of Jimmy "The Smiler" Durante's crashed car from the legendary opening sequence of It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. 

In the year 2000, the traditional animation system was coming to an end.  Without an inkling that this might be in his future, Dave used downtime to travel to Palm Springs in search of filming locations from this, his favorite movie.  When movies could only be watched in the theater or on network television, availability of location photos was extremely rare.  The aid of video tape and DVDs made finding locations possible.  Near and around "The Smiler"'s bucket kicking location, Dave noticed piles of glass, turned aqua by the sun and assorted car parts.  This was an added and unanticipated bonus.  Dave says, with a smile, "The parts can be traced to find that they are indeed from a 1957 Ford Fairlane 500."  A '57 Fairlane was the automobile used in this most beloved car crash.  Since a ramp was built for the Ford to dive from and the car deliberately raced downhill for the most spectacular sail and impact possible, no other Ford Fairlane could have landed that far down the mountainside.  So, aged glass turned aqua by the sun and other Ford Fairlane pieces found in the exact spots that are now traceable by DVD research, all add up to a treasure find other than the Smiler's buried $350,000.  Dave even found a piece 16m of 16mm movie film negative down there, deemed authentic by archivist-producer Robert Harris!  "At first I thought it was a piece of paper, and then I noticed the sprocket holes.  You might say I found some of the missing footage,...if you don't care what you say".  The very short scene shot from inside the wayward car explains a possibility related to the film find.  A hubcap, side chrome, red taillight fragments, headlight fragments, and even a tire were left for Dave to discover.  Research has taught Dave that, "The Nygen General Dual 90 was common on this type of car.  It was left in the right spot and mangled instead of blown out.  In addition to the larger finds obscure pieces such as the top off of a shock absorber and a Fairlane Custom door lock cylinder lever only gave me more confidence in what I had found."

"How could I just leave it all down there?" Mr. Woodman asked.  "Over the years I left most of it, thinking that there should be some for anyone else who might track down this location.  Then after moving to Palm Springs I noticed a line of cones was placed down that side of the road, leading me to believe the road might be widened.  This could have covered all of it and that's when I started seriously gathering whatever Fairlane parts I found.  When I noticed the 50th anniversary approaching, I began to make items of interest out of the very beautiful, aqua glass, as well as merely placing pieces in protective cubes.  I believe this materiel should belong to the people who will love it.  The more fun I can make from it, the better."  Dave's "Smiler" products are currently listed at: http://www.etsy.com/shop/DaveWoodmanArt?ref=ss_profile

What makes even a larger treasure is the use of 3 cars to create this spectacular wreck sequence.  Dave noticed, "The first car shown, tilts to its left, the second in the sequence hits head on and flips over and the third is shown settling right side up.  I discovered that the final car shown was used as the prop car behind Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, Jimmy Durante, Buddy Hackett, Mickey Rooney and Jonathan Winters.  Since it had crash landed right side up, most of the glass remained inside.  Turning it on its side for use behind the men caused more glass to spill out.  I finally found all 4 areas when my friend Ron Kwal helped me find where the car that tilted to its left had hit the ground.  It's mysterious to me is that the glass from this car did not turn aqua.  Hopefully someone can tell me why."

When asked if there's anything else he might add, Dave said, "Criterion has hired me to create a map of locations for their box set release of this movie and last night Karen Kramer gave me permission to reveal that the 50th anniversary Cinerama Dome screening of It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World will take place on October 27th.  The Dome itself was built to showcase this movie.".

Los Angeles continues to suffer from the "runaway production"  syndrome that has found virtually none of this summer's major blockbuster releases filmed in the legendary movie capital. For many years, production has been on a downward spiral in Hollywood as studios are lured by major tax incentives in other states, England and Canada. New York City has prospered by aggressively pursuing studios with such incentives. L.A. has incentives, too, but they pale in comparison to what other locales are offering. L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti is fighting back, lobbying state politicians to enact even greater tax incentives and hiring a new "Film Czar" to actively work to bring production back to Hollywood. However, it may be a quixotic undertaking. In a state that has been devastated by severe financial cuts across the board, some who live outside of L.A. feel that further tax incentives may benefit L.A. on a local level but be a losing proposition for the rest of California. In the earliest days of the film industry, New York and New Jersey were the centers of business before the lure of Hollywood devastated local production. Now, ironically, Hollywood finds itself in the same bind. For more click here

Welles starred in the lost film Too Much Johnson, along with his friend and frequent collaborator Joseph Cotten.

Contrary to popular opinion, Orson Welles' first cinematic experience was not on his 1941 masterpiece Citizen Kane. As film critic Dave Kehr reports in the New York Times, as early as 1934, when still a schoolboy, Welles made an 8 minute, sophisticated short film that was satirical in nature. However, his other pre-Kane film venture is more legendary simply because it was widely believed to have been lost to the ages. In 1938, Welles was engaged (at age 23) to direct and star in short film segments that would accompany a stage revival of actor William Gillette's 1894 romantic farce, Too Much Johnson, which centers on a philanderer whose schemes get him in trouble with the women in his life. The plan was to have various acts of the revived production preceded by filmed segments. Welles put a lot of time and effort into the project and was pleased with the results. However, when the revival of the play was shelved early on, Welles naturally abandoned the accompanying filmed segments. In 1978, he told a reporter that he had recently rediscovered the footage in his villa in Spain and that it was pristine in terms of condition. The notoriously critical Welles also heaped praise on the starring performance in the film of his old friend and collaborator, Joseph Cotten, whose work he called "magnificent".  Welles said he intended to send a copy of the film to Cotten as a present but, ironically, before he could do so, a fire destroyed Welles' villa. Everyone presumed the footage was lost in the inferno and Welles, who died in 1985, never mentioned the film again. Now it has come to light that the footage has been found in an Italian storage locker. How it got there remains a mystery, but after being lost to time, the film is now being prepared for its first public screening at a film festival. For more on this fascinating story, click here