GORGON (1964)

We were born too late to experience the great Universal horror films in first run theaters. Instead, we watched them on our local TV station’s “Shock-Horror-Monster-Chiller-Nightmare Theater.” You remember. Those late night weekend shows where the TV weather guy dressed up as a vampire or mad scientist and showed all those great Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi movies that had scared our parents.

In fact, those old black & white monster movies created such a sensation on TV that British movie studio, Hammer Films, made a tidy sum remaking endless variations of “Frankenstein,” “Dracula” and “The Mummy” so we’d have some color horror to see at the drive-in ourselves.

But one of their films featured a totally original monster and is still tremendous fun to watch today, The Gorgon from 1964.

One of the first things that makes this movie fun is the chance to see Christopher Lee play the good guy! He’s Professor Karl Meister, investigating some very strange murders in 1910 in the kind of comic opera German village at the center of every great monster movie.

Peter Cushing gets top billing as Dr. Namaroff, but trust us – this is Lee’s film!

You’ve got victims turning to stone. Sadly, very little of the famous “Hammer cleavage” that kept young boys interested in between the mayhem. And a film that trades on ancient Greek mythology rather than middle European superstitions.

There’s also a refreshing mystery angle to the plot as the title character assumes normal human form during the day, so we’re not sure which of the cast members will be sporting a head full of snakes by the end of the film.

This Halloween, check this one out. It’s from an era when “getting stoned” meant something else altogether!

No doubt your dentist tells you to floss, but is there any research to back up that advice?

Surprisingly, no.

There has never been a study to test the benefits of flossing. But that doesn’t necessarily mean you should stop flossing. No research simply means, we have no scientific evidence one way or the other. The American Dental Association still recommends flossing as well as brushing twice daily to maintain healthy teeth and gums.

Blonde on Blonde – Bob Dylan

What if you had been able to tell your 13-year-old self that Bob Dylan would one day win the Nobel Prize for Literature? Would your English teacher have let you do your book report on Dylan’s latest album?

Maybe not. But there’s no question that Dylan was on an incredible hot streak in the mid-sixties, one that saw him release 3 albums that cemented his transition from folk to rock and put him at the very forefront of the contemporary music scene.

That trio of albums began with Bringing It All Back Home, continued with Highway 61 Revisited, and reached the pinnacle with the 1966 release of one of the first double albums in rock history, Blonde on Blonde.

While the album peaked at #9 on the Billboard album chart (not too shabby), it has since gone on to be recognized as one of the greatest rock albums of all time.

Dylan started to record this record with his backup band, then known as the Hawks, now known as the Band. But they were only able to crank out one track (“One of Us Must Know (Sooner or Later)”) that made it onto the final album.

So producer Bob Johnston suggested they take super session player Al Kooper, and Robbie Robertson of the Hawks and head to Nashville. It was there, using Robertson, Kooper, and an all-star line-up of Nashville’s finest session players, that Dylan finished the rest of the album.

According to Kooper the name of the album as well as most of the song titles were invented by Dylan on the spur of the moment when they were doing the final mix down.

In any event, the album yielded 2 more hit singles for Dylan, “Rainy Day Women # 12 & 35” and “I Want You,” while “Just Like a Woman” and “Visions of Johanna” are also regarded among the very best of Dylan’s compositions. The fact that side 4 was entirely taken up with just one song “Sad-Eyed Lady of the Lowlands” was also a musical breakthrough for rock.

It was said that Blonde on Blonde influenced countless rock composers from Paul McCartney and John Lennon on down. If any Baby Boomer’s record collection had only one Dylan album and it wasn't Dylan’s Greatest Hits, it was more than likely Blonde on Blonde.

A half-century has not dimmed its brilliance in the slightest.

I WALKED WITH A ZOMBIE

I Walked with a Zombie may be the best movie with the dumbest title in motion picture history. Cranked out by the b-movie horror unit at RKO pictures in 1943, this low budget gem is far better than you might expect.

This was the second in a string of really good low-key horror movies produced under the supervision of Val Lewton, one of filmland’s most underappreciated artists.

RKO had two rules Lewton had to follow. One, he had to produce his films on a small budget. Two, he had to use titles the studio’s marketing department had already dreamed up and tested. The studio didn’t care about the actual plots, as long as Lewton used the titles.

So after they saddled Lewton with The Cat People and he turned that title into a really great horror movie, they gave him an even sillier title for his follow-up.

I Walked with a Zombie concerns a young nurse (Frances Dee) who arrives at a sugar plantation on the Caribbean island of Saint Sebastian. She is to care for the invalid wife of the plantation’s owner, played by Tom Conway. The wife appears near catatonic and is given to taking silent, dreamlike walks at night. The local legend is that the wife is not sick, but actually dead and returned to life as a zombie by the island’s voodoo practitioners.

This was a time well before George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead, when zombies were not malevolent flesh-eaters, but merely soulless reanimated bodies who, according to legend, were employed as free labor on plantations throughout the Caribbean.

It soon becomes apparent to the young nurse that there is more to the story than she is being told, particularly as it relates to Conway, his somnambulant wife and his half-brother (James Ellison). She also finds herself falling for her employer, who is obviously still married – but is it to a sick woman or a zombie?

The film relies more on your imagination than trying to scare you with special effects. The climax of the picture takes the young nurse and the sleepwalking wife/zombie through the wilds of that island to a climactic voodoo ceremony. As with most of Lewton’s films, the viewer is left to decide for themselves whether the events are supernatural or can be explained away by more mundane coincidences.

The plot is actually cribbed from Jane Eyre, as Lewton was a fan of classical literature and longed to be making costume dramas instead of these low budget thrillers.

Lewton served as the producer and often the un-credited co-writer of his films. For directors, he gave a start to some young guns who would go on to much greater fame, including Robert Wise (West Side Story) and Mark Robson (Von Ryan’s Express). I Walked with a Zombie was directed by Jacques Tourneur (Out of the Past), who also went on to a long, successful career.

All of Lewton’s horror films did well at the box office, but genuine critical acclaim would have to wait until the 1970’s. Today’s Lewton’s movies are hailed as some of the best b-movies in Hollywood history, studied and praised by master filmmakers like Martin Scorcese, who narrated a televised tribute to Lewton a few years back.

If you want something this Halloween that’s more creepy than bloody and more cerebral than slashing, check out I Walked with a Zombie, readily available on either disc or from streaming outlets.

We’ve all heard about “skimming.” That’s when you use your ATM card and some scam artist has inserted an additional piece of card-reading hardware that will steal you ATM card information. The people that monitor this sort of thing say incidents of skimming were up 500% in 2015 over the previous year.

Here’s how you can reduce the risk of someone getting you valuable information:

1. Stick with the Chip – Digital chips are harder to hack (not impossible, but harder). Try to avoid using card readers where you still have to swipe the card's magnetic strip.
2. Use a Bank Machine – While not perfect, bank ATMs are more secure. They are better maintained and have 24/7 surveillance cameras. Machines at gas stations and convenience stores account for the majority of card information theft.
3. Inspect Before Swiping – If the machine doesn’t accept your card smoothly, walk away. Newer machines also have a flashing light in the card slot. If you don’t see one or it’s partially obscured, you might want to find another machine.
4. Always Check Your Card Statements – Make there are no unusual or unfamiliar charges.
5. Talk with Your Bank about Alternative Solutions – You might open a separate account with a smaller amount of money just for ATM purchases or you can lower the daily limit for ATM withdrawals.

Keeping an eye on your blood pressure can help you know if you’re at risk for heart disease or a stroke. But you need to know more than just the raw numbers you get from that free blood pressure machine at your local supermarket or pharmacy.

Here are five facts that can help you “handle the pressure.”

1. Blood pressure climbs as you age – It’s normal, but make sure you are getting it checked regularly to ensure it doesn’t become hypertension.

2. The top number is the one to watch – Systolic pressure is the one to pay attention to because it measures the peak force your pulmonary system is experiencing.

3. The optimum blood pressure number is different for different people – In fact, experts don’t agree on what the ideal pressure should be. Work with your primary care physician to determine what range is optimum for you.

4. Healthy diet and lifestyle changes can work as well as a pill – Cutting back on salt is the easiest. Dropping weight, while more difficult, can also help. It almost goes without saying that regular exercise will not only lower your blood pressure, but can provide other positive health benefits. (Make sure you consult with your physician before beginning any exercise regimen.)

5. Yes, coffee makes blood pressure spike, but… The spike lasts about 3 hours but appears to have no long-lasting effect. So, if you still need that jolt of java in the morning, most experts agree that you can go for it.

5 Ways to Be Sure You Get the Most Accurate Readings

When you’re checking your blood pressure, here are 5 ways to guarantee you’re producing the most reliable readings.

1. Be as still as possible – Make sure you haven’t been doing anything stressful (anything that might raise your heart rate) like exercising or lifting heavy objects. Experts also recommend that you refrain from smoking and caffeinated beverages for at least 30 minutes before you check your pressure.

2. Be seated correctly – Sit up straight (like your mom always told you) in a chair with a solid back on it. Keep your feet separate and flat on the floor. Your arm should be supported, either by an arm rest or place your chair next to a table that will have your elbow at about heart level.

3. Be sure you take your blood pressure at the same time every day – Our blood pressure will vary regularly during different day parts. To make sure you’re comparing “apples to apples,” so to speak, take your readings at the same time of day.

4. Be sure you take multiple readings and keep track of your results – The experts recommend that you take two readings, one minute apart, every time you check your blood pressure. Make sure your record each result. That way, you’ll have a convenient, accurate record to take with you when you visit your healthcare provider.

5. Be careful not to let your clothes interfere with the measuring device – If possible, wear something short-sleeved or sleeveless. If not, loose-fitting long sleeves that can be rolled up without constricting your upper arm works best.

Taking regular readings is important because a single reading is just like a snapshot. It may not give you the best picture. Taking multiple readings over a period of time will bring your true heart health into better focus.

We loved Kookie on 77 Sunset Strip not just for the way he dressed and his famous hairstyle. We loved the hipster slang he would use in every episode. We didn’t know if the terms were actually in use among the cognoscenti in large urban areas or if the show’s writers were just making them up. And we didn’t care.

Here are a few classic “Kookie-isms.” See how many you remember:

Don’t point your ears – Don’t turn around

Endsville – The best

Ginchiest – Beyond Endsville

Light up the tilt sign – Lie

Slip me a Washington – Give me a dollar bill

Wheeling – Driving

The beam came to me – I got the idea

Mushroom people – Night owls

Blasting off – Leaving

It’s real nervous – It’s real good

Satchels – Bags under the eyes

That cat has hi-fi thoughts – The guy is smart

Fold a fender – Park a car

I’m still sending – I’ve got more to tell you

 Video Village was one of the first game shows to debut after the infamous quiz show scandals.  Up until its debut, most quiz shows fell into one of two categories. 1.) A contestant tried to stump a panel of D-list celebrities (I mean, did anyone ever know what Arlene Francis was “famous” for?) 2.) Two contestants answered questions or solved puzzles while in isolation booths or standing right next to the game show host.

Video Village’s concept was as simple as it was different. It was a board game transferred to TV. The contestants were the living game pieces. They had friends or family members (almost always a spouse or boyfriend/girlfriend) who spun the dice.

The show debuted in prime time on July 1, 1960. A daytime version started on July 11^th - both on CBS. For that first summer, game show perennial Jack Narz was the host. The hostess duties were handled by Joanne Copeland, who was eventually to become Mrs. Johnny Carson # 2.

After Narz departed, the show was taken over by a young Canadian lad named Monte Hall.

The game played like any board game. Dice were spun. Players moved the number of spaces indicated and had good or bad things happen to them based on the space they landed on.

The night time version ended after the summer of 1960. The daytime version ran until June 15, 1962.

Two kid show versions were spun off: Kideo Village (from September 1961 to June 1962) and Shenanigans with Stubby Kaye on ABC (in 1964 and 1965).

The “home version” board game from Milton Bradley was a no-brainer.

BTW – Both Video Village and Shenanigans featured Kenny Williams (who later joined Monte Hall on Let’s Make a Deal) as the announcer.

The Rat Pack (started by Humphrey Bogart and inherited by Frank Sinatra after Bogey’s death) made two movies in the sixties. Neither were great shakes as movies go, but the first one, Ocean’s 11, is a wonderful time machine back to a place and time that no longer exist.

Released in 1960, Ocean’s 11 can be seen as the 1950’s last hurrah. In just a few short years, the British invasion in music and fashion would change everything. Film historians think the film was conceived as way to give Frank, Peter Lawford, Joey Bishop, and the rest something to do with their days while they were headlining at the Sands resort at night.

Thanks to George Clooney’s remake, most know the plot centers around Sinatra and his old army buddies attempting to rob 5 Vegas casinos simultaneously (in the Clooney remake, it's only 3).

It doesn’t really matter. The plot takes a back seat to the easy-going repartee of the ensemble cast. Frank and especially Dean Martin get to croon. Sammy Davis, Jr. is still relegated to the role of a garbage man who riffs on old Amos & Andy impressions and the Rat Pack’s one female member, Shirley MacLaine shows up for a totally pointless scene with Dino near the film’s climax.

No worries. The fun comes from digging on the late 1950’s fashions (a time when men still wore hats) and a fascinating look at a Las Vegas that seems downright quaint by today’s standards.

In 1960, most American had still not made the trip to Sin City. The daytime casino action was centered around Fremont Street with just a handful of resorts on a patch of barren desert road known as “The Strip” pulling in the evening crowd with their shows.

Compared to today’s palaces like the Venetian, Bellagio and others, the Sahara, Riviera, Sands, Desert Inn and the Flamingo depicted in Ocean’s 11 have all the glitz and glitter of a redecorated rumpus room in a suburban basement somewhere in the Midwest.

But it was a time when this small band of entertainers ruled the town like royalty.

So give yourself a treat and take a trip to 1960 with the Rat Pack. And hang on through the credits. The film’s best joke happens at the very end as Ocean’s 11, now 10, make their way along the Strip on foot.

BTW – The other Rat Pack film was Robin and the 7 Hoods (1964).