Doyle's Space

The Black Cat (1934)

I watched the 1934 the Universal Pictures psychological horror movie “The Black Cat” on Svengoolie. It stars two of the greatest in horror, Béla Lugosi as Dr. Vitus Werdegast and Boris Karloff as Hjalmar Poelzig. This was the first of this pairing with seven more movies to come. Black Cat was the number one movie for Universal in 1934. They hyped the move as an Edgar Allan Poe story but actually had little, more like nothing, to do with the famous writer. The name on the posters and other promotion certainly helped the movies appeal.

World’s Largest Mushroom

The World’s largest organism is a … tree, elephant, blue whale? Nope. At 2 miles across. you can’t even see most of this MUSHROOM. Armillaria solidipes (formerly Armillaria ostoyae) – also called the honey mushroom.

Jackie Mason Dies

Jackie Mason, known for his rapid-fire befuddled observations has passed away, Saturday July 24, 2021, at the age a 93. Jackie was born Yacov Moshe Hakohen Maza on June 9, 1928 in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, into a family of strict Orthodox Jews. His father, his grandfather, his great-grandfather, and his great-great grandfather were all rabbis. His mother and father were born in Minsk and immigrated to the United States in the 1920s. When Jackie was five his family moved to the Lower East Side of Manhattan in New York City.

Fiend Without a Face (1958)

I watched the British, Amalgamated Production, Mayer Goldwyn Mayer’s 1958 horror movie “A Fiend Without a Face” on Svengoolie. Experimenting with telekinetic powers, enhanced by a nearby nuclear power plant, Professor R. E. Walgate succeeds in creating another kind of life form. After escaping his laboratory murders start to occur and Air Force Major Jeff Cummings arrives to investigate. The weirdest thing is that the murdering fiend is invisible!

Political Correctness

Political Correctness (PC) is a term used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended to avoid offense or disadvantage to members of particular groups in society.

The Mummy (1959)

I watched this re-telling of the original, 1932 horror classic, “The Mummy” on Svengoolie. This one is by Hammer Studios from Universal-International, the 1959 “The Mummy”. When searching for Princess Ananka’s tomb in 1895, the protector of the tomb, the Mummy, is released. The film is produced by Michael Carreras (The Curse of Frankenstein, The Abominable Snowman, Dracula, The Revenge of Frankenstein, The Man Who Could Cheat Death, The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll, The Brides of Dracula, The Curse of the Werewolf,

Big Gulp

In 1946 Tote’m Stores changes its name to 7-Eleven to reflect the new extended hours – 7am to 11pm, seven days a week. In 1976, Dennis Potts, merchandise manager for 7-Eleven, against his will, went with a Coca-Cola idea for a large, square bottomed 32 ounce cup.

Dowel Pin Dimensions

A dowel is a cylindrical rod, usually made from wood, plastic, or metal. A dowel is usually referred to as a dowel rod. When cut into short lengths they are called dowel pins

Cod Liver Oil

You might want to sit down for this… Cod Liver oil is a dietary supplement derived from the liver of cod fish. We use it at the compounding pharmacy for making medical suspensions for animals. This got me wondering about the history of this oil. It contains the omega-3 fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) which play an important role in the human diet and in human physiology. Cod liver oil also has vitamins A and D and was historically given to children to prevent Rickets (weak or soft bones in children). A tablespoon contains 4,080 μg of retinol (vitamin A) and 34 μg (1360 IU) of vitamin D.

The Crawling Eye (1958)

I watched the 1958 Alliance Film Studios horror movie “The Crawling Eye”, known as the “The Trollenberg Terror” in Europe, on Svengoolie. It seems that there is a radioactive cloud that hovers over Mount Trollenberg in Switzerland that has had unusual accidents occurring near it. Sisters Anne and Sarah Pilgrim are worried when Anne’s telepathic sense goes haywire. United Nations troubleshooter Alan Brooks, joined by journalist Philip Truscott are investigating and suspects these deaths are related to similar incidents, from three years earlier, that occurred in the Andes Mountains which involved a similar radioactive cloud.