From Zombos' Closet

Zombos' Closet...a vast trove of endearingly cheap thrills, including movie and book reviews, and scans of his collections of cinema pressbooks, goofy paper-cutout Halloween decorations, and his amazing collection of Mexican lobby cards from B-grade films. If you have time to descend into a serious rabbit-hole of marvelous trash-culture nostalgia, visit that site just as soon as you possibly can. (DangerousMinds.net)

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Roar of the Iron Horse (1951) Pressbook

The pressbook for Roar of the Iron Horse contains a lot of promotional information and ideas. Of course, in the 1950s, cowboy movies were an easy draw for the younger set, until mutant monsters and atom bombs creeped out everyone enough to make the classic monsters in the 1960s more inviting. By then, science fiction and detective shows crowded out the Western dramas across television screens while the big screens showed less and less of them too. But in 1951, they were still roaring at the box office.

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The Sea Hound (1947) Pressbook

Here's the 1955 re-release pressbook for The Sea Hound serial with Larry "Buster" Crabbe. The smarty-pants patches promotion, as a giveaway, is novel. Note to "sort patches into two groups: one for small children and one for teen-agers." On page 2 it's mentioned that patches were used "for smooth selling of Adventures of Captain Africa and other smash Columbia super-serials." I quickly reread that pressbook and found the patches were both plastic and cloth, and 2.5 inches. Looks like 1955 was the year for patches as giveaways. 

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Desperadoes of the West (1950) Pressbook

Thanks to The Serial Squadron member Chris McCleary, I've been posting many pressbooks from his dad's collection. He did two great things: collected serial pressbooks to keep the history alive and met his screen heroes to boot. Here's one signed by Roy Barcroft. I miss the days when you could meet and greet your screen heroes, chat a bit, and walk away with a signed something or photograph while keeping your shirt on your back. Today, of course, it's a Wells Fargo stagecoach holdup's worth to do anything like that at a convention. 

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Terror Tales Vol. 2 No. 1

The classic, I Chopped Her Head Off! is in this issue. If you ever wondered why parents and decent citizens (don't you love that term?) ganged up on the comics industry forcing the bland comics code on us all (but a boon to magazine sales), this one story captures everything you would put on a poster illustrating the evils of comic books. And you can color it in! Yes boys and girls, you too can be seduced by the dark side, just a few color pencils needed. Now that's one thing I bet you hadn't thought about. Just print out the pages of this splaterific issue of moral decay and bamm! instant adult coloring book! You can thank me later. Just don't tell your parents and loved ones where I live. I'll deny everything.

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Jungle Raiders (1945) Pressbook

Treasure, a miracle drug, and jungle mystery and intrigue are "sizzling" in this jungle serial from Columbia. I wonder if any theaters added jungle sounds or the fortune telling idol to their lobbies? I also would love to have one of those club cards, punched or unpunched. Nice use of contest mats, a code, and a jungle sundae help round out the promotional business. The poster art is also exciting and there were 8x10 art stills available highlighting it. I don't know what was more exciting: the serial itself or the ballyhoo around it?

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Hop Harrigan (1946) Re-Release Pressbook

Here's the 1956 re-release pressbook for Columbia's Hop Harrigan serial. Somehow, I don't think going after everyone in town who is air-minded is the best promotional campaign I've come across. However, the other promotional items are nifty: a model display, a lobby death ray gun (always a draw for me), club card for youngsters (but I still want one), a substitution code, and inviting people named Harrigan to the opening. Of course there's the usual clothing and luggage, the not so usual making paper planes, and the very challenging finding airplane parts "from your local air field" to put in theater lobbies.

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Sophie Lang Goes West (1937) Pressbook

I was drawn to this pressbook because you don't often see early movies fronting a female lead character. There were three Sophie Lang movies of which this is the last one.  Promotion ideas for this one had fashionable clothing trends, luggage, a hope chest stunt, and a photo-fun contest. Larry "Buster" Crabbe (Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers) plays the heavy. 

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Give Us Wings (1940) Pressbook

It gets confusing trying to keep track of the Dead End Kids, the Little Tough Guys, the Bowery Boys, and the East Side Kids as they pop up in various serials and movies. Long story short: the Dead End Kids were a group of young actors that appeared in the Broadway play Dead End in 1935. In 1937 they wound up in Hollywood to star in the filmed version of the play. Then in 1938 some of them, along with newbies, starred in the movie, Little Tough Guy, so they also became known as the Little Tough Guys. This led to more movies and eventually acquiring the additional monikers East Side Kids and Bowery Boys as they continued to participate in the lucrative franchise over the years. Interestingly, though they began on a serious note, their movies became more comedic and light-hearted as time progressed.

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Jungle Siren (1942) Pressbook

Burlesque stripper Ann Corio made her way to Hollywood to star in Swamp Woman, Jungle Siren, Call of the Jungle, and Sarong Girl. Note the trend toward steamy environs to lessen the need for clothing. What's unusual about this pressbook is that it's larger than most (18x12 inches) and has two fold-out sections, which makes this a pricey pressbook to print and distribute. 

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The Blonde Captive (1932) Pressbook

Contrary to the title, the blonde woman is not a captive. She also puts in just a few minutes of screen time.  This whole movie is a sham. Basically taking a 1928 documentary and adding a blonde woman subplot along with some extra footage, blame Columbia Pictures for this pre-code weirdness in 1932.  Exploitation? Hell yes. Someone snoozing during a new ideas meeting for generating more box office? Hell yes. The only saving grace here is the poster art by Wynne Davies, a superb pulp-style artist who could capture the sexy and tawdriness with the best of them. This movie was lost at one point but someone found it in 2010.  They can't find London After Midnight but they could find this?

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Cobra Woman Pressbook Front Cover

Ah, the good old days when Hollywood idealized, feminized, exoticified, and basically fronted eye-candy appeal stories for pretty women. Such women spent countless hours making themselves attractive to men and simply lounged around until a man came along to get the story moving. And of course they were surrounded by other pretty women, making all men swoon and lust after them. Here's the front cover to the pressbook for Cobra Woman (1944). Maria Montez plays the exotic woman and her twin  sister (points for twins!). I wish I had the whole pressbook, but this cover will have to do for now. Leonard Maltin called it a camp classic. You may call it something else. Of course, what's a pretty woman without a tropical locale? Here it's Cobra Island. Along with the prettiness you have Sabu and the not so pretty Lon Chaney Jr. What more can you ask for in a camp classic?

 

Terror Tales Vol. 2 No. 4 July 1970

The lead off story, Isle of the Demons, will have you in stitches, assuming they can find all the pieces. If that weren't nauseatingly enough for you, Evil Monsters will bring you past dripping, oozing labyrinths of slime, past plopping whirlpools of filth (whew!). Mere mortals had a tough time in horror comics, that's for certain. In Death Strikes Four, the amount of narrative and dialog text (a staple of early horror comics), just may kill you before the clock strikes, but the art is fabulous as you wait. And talk about chasing time, that clock has long hands and a homicidal temperament. This is one of my favorites! Oh, and there's a detective who tries to Bury Her Deep, but she keeps bobbing up with the tide, and a hangman at the end of his rope, and a witch who...well, you know, it's all there in gory black and white. Enjoy.

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Pirate Treasure (1934) Pressbook

What drew my eye to this pressbook for Pirate Treasure, Universal's swashbuckling movie serial, was the showmanship page. From lobby stunts, pirate coloring competition, pirate mask and hat, pirate treasure bags, heralds, hangers, and more, it's a splash of thrills. The stunt work in this serial is noted as stellar too. Yo ho ho!

Find more buried treasure without a lot of digging: pressbooks from Zombos' Closet.

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Double Shock Running Wild and Tarantula Insert

Get your bobby socks on. It's a double bill of shock and horror! Just when you escape the juke box jungle the tarantula grows on you (in a bad way). This double bill promotion insert fell out of the Running Wild pressbook I was thumbing through. I'm thinking this made a neat date night movie or drive-in snuggle. I'd think the date night would get more traction at the drive in, but the balcony might do in a pinch. I miss theater balconies. They were filled with mystery along with the sticky floors. Thanks to Trailers from Hell (Joe Dante and Charlie Largent) for supplying the Running Wild pressbook and this pleasant surprise contained within.

Witches' Tales Vol. 5 No. 1 January 1973

An interesting escape into the wrong body, Satan dances into mischief, a burning desire flames up, people are doomed, scientists screw up, and the art is to die for (which apparently many people do in horror comics). Enjoy.

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The Hitch-Hiker (1953) Pressbook

Ida Lupino directs a gripping 1950s styled noir that brings home the dangers of picking up hitchhikers. William Talman's performance (best known for playing Hamilton Burger on the Perry Mason television series, 1957 to 1966) is pitch perfect. He has the face, the voice, and the attitude for nasty in spades. Edmond O'Brien makes the perfect 1950s average Joe pushed to the extreme. This is one film noir you won't want to miss. This 18x12 inches pressbook is no slouch either.

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Witches' Tales Vol. 4 Issue 3 May 1972

A puppet carved from gallows wood, a dancer who twirls in the wrong direction, Medusa's head holds up like granite, and a witch goes for a joy ride on her  broom. And two stories and the undying fiend provide a bit more terror for you in this issue of Witches' Tales.

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Fort Vengeance (1953) Pressbook

This pressbook for Fort Vengeance is more interesting than the movie. The campaign art promoted the "red savage" theme in the usual way (war paint, axe, feathers, and menacing face). Rita Moreno starred in a cardboard role and sold cardboard bread in a Hollywood Bread tie-in. Interesting to note that bread was a common tie-in (called tie-up here) with westerns, especially for television. The pressbook mentions "the movie was filmed in color to bring out the scenic splendor of the Canadian Northwest, but the movie was shot indoors and outdoors in California. 

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Gentleman Joe Palooka (1946) Pressbook

Clean-living prizefighter makes good. Monogram made 12 movies based on Ham Fisher's comic character, Joe Palooka. Lots of movies and shorts in the 1940s and 1950s knocked out stories centered around the boxing ring. We tend to label more contemporary comic book inspired movies as franchise, merchandise, and sequel-itis prone properties, but merchandising and repeated entries for a property started decades ago, even before Star Wars. If it's hot its cloned more than a gaggle of storm troopers, when the force of an insatiable audience kicks in.

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20 Million Miles to Earth (1957) Pressbook

Not until Terry Michitsch sent along these wonderful scans of 20 Million Miles to Earth did I realize William Hopper was playing a lead role in it. Now an ardent Perry Mason fan (the television show with Raymond Burr), Hopper plays Paul Drake, the private detective Mason relies on; so now I need to watch 20 Million Miles again, just to see him in action. TCM's overview mentions how this movie started filming in Italy because Ray Harryhausen wanted to vacation there. Smart move, combining work and play at the same time, and getting paid for it to boot. Harryhausen's Ymir is one of his best creations, with a solid personality and superb body design. Given more budget money, and better scripting, this would be an all out classic.

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