From Zombos Closet

Pressbooks (Horror, Sci Fi, Fantasy)

First Man Into Space (1959) Movie Herald

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Who knows the effects of the deadly gamma rays? The mysteries of space provided a fertile ground for destructive rays and destructive aliens in the 1950s and 1960s as well as for heroic and conflicted comic book heroes. The Fantastic Four would blast into space and be enveloped by cosmic rays in 1961, Bruce Banner would be mutated into the Incredible Hulk in 1962 by gamma rays, and space rays would have a positive influence on DC's Negative Man in 1963. But First Man into Space in 1959 blasted off first to ignite the radiation mania in popular culture.

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Herald for first man into space movie

More Stuff in the Closet
Marvel-Con 1976 Program
The Monster Times Issue 5
Monster Game Board to Die For
Mexican Lobby Card: Chamber of Horrors (1966)

Caltiki (1959) Movie Pressbook

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Here's the four-page pressbook for Caltiki, the Immortal Monster. Mario Bava reportedly had a hand in the direction of this horror movie, but whoever is to blame, the end result is a mess only a tad less horrifying than Caltiki. Of course, I didn't notice the slipshod editing at the time, but the monster is quite impressively gloppy and scary. Hard to say if this movie was a rushed attempt at cashing in on The Blob, starring Steve McQueen, but I can tell you it scared me so much as a child I had nightmares for a week. And of course, came back for more 😉 The story is still very good, just the execution could have been much, much better.

Caltiki pressbook

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Them! (1954) Movie Pressbook

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Here's the 20 page pressbook for Them! And some interesting tidbits from the Wikipedia article on the movie: 

  • Actor James Whitmore wore "lifts" in his shoes to compensate for the height difference between himself and James Arness. It has also been noted that Whitmore employed bits of "business" (hand gestures and motions) during scenes in which he appeared to draw more attention to his character when not speaking.
  • The Wilhelm scream, created three years earlier for the film Distant Drums, is used during the action sequences: when a sailor aboard the freighter is grabbed by an ant, when James Whitmore's character is caught in an ant's mandibles, and when an overhead wooden beam falls on a soldier in the Los Angeles storm-drain sequence.
  • The giant ants were constructed and operated by unseen technicians supervised by Ralph Ayers, and were actually purplish-green in color. During the climactic battle sequence in the Los Angeles sewers, there is a brief shot of one ant moving in the foreground with its side removed, revealing its mechanical interior. This blunder has been obscured in the DVD releases of the film. (Wow, I've seen this movie a few times and never noticed. Will be looking next time.)

Pressbook Them!

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Double Bill Pressbook:
The Monster That Challenged the World
and The Vampire

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The design of the caterpillar-like creature in The Monster That Challenged the World is on my shortlist of favorite monsters of the 1950s. Although the script resorts to the usual 1950s woman in peril and is totally helpless until the man arrives but he gets into trouble so she screams a lot until more help arrives scenario, it's still a worthy B Movie staple. This pressbook shows the fantastic poster art and fun ballyhoo used for promoting this double bill of "blood-curdling monsters of the age!"

Pressbook monster challenged world

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Double Bill Pressbook:
The Monster That Challenged the World
and The VampireRead More »