S2E14: "Post Mortem" (Featuring Chelsea Rebecca & Jason Stein)

S3E22: The Reluctant Vampire Speaks!: Let’s revisit our friend “The Reluctant Vampire”. MALCOLM MCDOWELL. When I was a kid, just beginning to acquire a “taste for cinema”, one of the first movies that gave me that taste was STANLEY KUBRICK’s “A CLOCKWORK ORANGE”. But, there was another Malcolm McDowell movie that struck me even more round about the same time: Lindsey Anderson’s “IF” (that’s the old “If“, not the new “If”). When I was 16, I took part in a little research study. A group of the smart kids from my high school were shown “If” and then asked a bunch of questions about it. […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

89 min listen

S3E21: The Donor - A Modern HORROR Story: This very definitely is a “special episode” of the How NOT to Make A Movie Podcast. In the TV business, calling things “Special” has a long, rich history. “Special Episodes” are usually “relationship” episodes tied to family. Well, that’s exactly how we feel here at The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast – about our new SISTER PODCAST – THE DONOR: A MODERN HORROR STORY. The Donor Is Great Storytelling… We’re also fans of great storytelling here – of course – and one thing I can tell you about The Donor: A Modern Horror Story is that it tells […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

42 min listen

S3E20 On Being Super, Man: We talk a lot here about ACTORS and ROLES. How to cast certain roles and how to play them. When the role in question is a SUPERHERO (or a super hero), it changes the equation for actor and whoever’s hiring them. Some actors – like BRANDON ROUTH – seem almost fated to play certain roles – in Brandon’s case SUPERMAN. As a kid, he dreamed about playing Superman – while growing up in IOWA – in the MID-WEST – in the middle of the corn belt. You know, just like Clark Kent and Superman. When Brandon got to LA, he […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

92 min listen

S3E19: The "Dead Easy" Table Read: The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast presents a TABLE READ of the unproduced second TALES FROM THE CRYPT branded feature film DEAD EASY. The one that “got away”… . Our cast for the table read: SEAN ASTIN, JAKE BUSEY, TIA CARRERE, BRETT CULLEN, JOHN KASSIR, CHELSEA REBECCA and LESLIE ZEMECKIS. As the CRYPT KEEPER might put it, it’s an entertainment SPOOK-tacular! Unmade Classics Some movies become “Unmade Classics” because they go unmade. They become the cinematic equivalent of zombies. DEAD EASY is one of those movies. We set out to make it as the second “TALES FROM THE […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

75 min listen

S3E18: Stand Up Guy: We first met comedian and podcast host Ken Reid when he invited us onto his podcast, the terrific TV GUIDANCE COUNSELOR. In addition to being a big “TALES FROM THE CRYPT” fan, Ted is a BOSTON-BASED STAND UP and a fantastic STORYTELLER. His approach to comedy is via story rather than jokes. That, I suspect, is where our minds all come together. Ken also has a great sense of the absurd! That also is where our minds come together. Gil and I have done a fair number of podcasts… we talk to people every week on our podcast – same […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

66 min listen

S3E17: Barbie's BFF?: There are cultural icons and then there’s BARBIE. GRETA GERWIG and MARGOT ROBBIE’S movie is a brilliant reconsideration of that icon. But, a storyteller you’ve probably never heard-of helped shape our whole perception of that icon. Before there was Gerwig and Robbie, ANDREW GALLERANI was BARBIE’S BFF. From 1988 – 2015 (that’s 27 years!), Andrew directed most of the Barbie ads seen around the world. There was a patch in between where he directed for Barbie’s competition – BRATZ among others – but, that’s what motivated MATTEL to bring Andrew back. As you’ll hear, it takes more effort to stay […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

74 min listen

S3E16: Blind Ambition: The last thing you’d ever think – if you read my friend TOM SULLIVAN’S bio – is that he’s blind. In fact, Tom is one of America’s most famous blind people. He’s written and produced movies & TV shows, sung THE NATIONAL ANTHEM at THE SUPER BOWL, and written more than a dozen books including IF YOU COULD SEE WHAT I HEAR and LEADING LADY. Tom wrote Leading Lady with his dear friend BETTY WHITE. When he’s not SKIING or PLAYING GOLF or RUNNING MARATHONS, Tom’s uplifting people as one of America’s most sought after MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKERS. Prepare to feel […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

68 min listen

S3E15: Son Of LURCH: Even among iconic TV characters from the 1960’s, few remain as iconic as LURCH from THE ADDAMS FAMILY. As often happens when a particular actor fills a particular role, TED CASSIDY became synonymous with his creature. A little overly synonymous from Ted’s perspective. Today’s guest – Ted’s son SEAN CASSIDY (the “Son Of Lurch“) – reminds us that his dad was way, way more than just Lurch. Ted Cassidy appeared in lots of feature films (playing in many what he called “Seize him!” roles where he – as the tall, threatening guy – seized people on command from the big […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

61 min listen

S3E14: When Crypt Went To London: It sounded like a GREAT IDEA! In many ways, it was a great idea: take HBO’s iconic “TALES FROM THE CRYPT” to LONDON for its very last season! The great? We got to hire actors like EWAN MCGREGOR and DANIEL CRAIG and STEVE COOGAN and ELIZABETH MCGOVERN. And we got to shoot in the coolest locations – actual CASTLES and other CREEPY PLACES. But, there were big-assed problems in taking our LA-produced show to ENGLAND – where, frankly, they do things differently! For starters, they drive on the other side of the road! In LA, Crypt was a nomad, moving […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

72 min listen

E3S13: More Buried Bodies: STORIES are a lot like BURIED BODIES – especially if you’re the one who buried them. Just like with a body, you can bury a story. Sometimes – in time – we forget about them. Meanwhile, there they sit. But, whereas bodies rot into nothing while buried, stories often gain heft and weight – and even significance. Some stories, just like ghosts, seem to rise from the dead and haunt people! That’s the idea behind this episode. Except for the haunting people part. Gil and I both have buried bodies – stories we haven’t even told each other yet! Part […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

69 min listen

S3E12: The 5X2 - 5 Movies 2 Songs: With a warm tip of the hat to the BBC’s wonderful, long-running classic show “Desert Island Disks“, we offer you the 5X2. Here’s the premise: you’re a passenger on a cool, futuristic spacecraft hurtling toward the far reaches of the cosmos. Your ride is first rate. It’s comfortable as can be. The food’s great! Almost everything has been done to make this journey painless. There’s only one problem: they ran out of money and memory when they got to the entertainment system. All there’s room for is 5 MOVIES 2 SONGS. The 5X2. That’s it. The good news? You get […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

59 min listen

S3E11: A Demon Knight Sequel?: On the one hand, this episode is a SEQUEL – to our first chat with ETHAN REIFF and CY VORIS, the long-time screenwriting team who wrote TALES FROM THE CRYPT PRESENTS DEMON KNIGHT. The horror audience now considers Demon Knight a CLASSIC. In our sequel, we’ll talk about why there’s never been a sequel to Demon Knight. From the moment it opened, its audience has been crying out for one! In this episode, we’ll talk about why it hasn’t happened. Yet. For the first time ever, we’ll talk about the possibility that there actually could be a DEMON KNIGHT SEQUEL […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

109 min listen

S3E10 Hollywood Sized Balls: We first met JACKIE GEORGE when we took over running TALES FROM THE CRYPT. Jackie worked for WARNER BROTHERS and SILVER PICTURES at the time (on movies like DIE HARD, RICHIE RICH and DEMOLITION MAN). That means she worked for our old boss JOEL SILVER. That took considerable balls. Hollywood sized balls. Jackie was Joel’s executive. Before that, she was a super-talented production coordinator. When you meet Jackie, she and Joel seem an unlikely pairing. He’s an over-the-top, over-bearing, egomaniacal movie producer and she’s a woman with a zero tolerance for other people’s bullshit. Especially when that bullshit is male. […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

88 min listen

S3E9 "A Comic Book Nerd's Revenge": COMIC BOOKS have propelled many a film and TV career. Hell, various SPIDERMAN movies have kept various movie studios alive. DC COMICS was a pillar at WARNER BROS. The MARVEL UNIVERSE has made billions for DISNEY. And where the hell would we be if WILLIAM F. GAINES hadn’t taken over running EC COMICS from his dad in the late 1950’s. EC published titles like VAULT OF HORROR, THE HAUNT OF FEAR and TALES FROM THE CRYPT. I confess to being a COMIC BOOK NERD with a stack of EC comics under the covers, a flashlight within reach, and a bottomless […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

98 min listen

S3E8: "Demon Knight Payback": Thirty years ago, in 1994, alongside my creative partner at the time Gil Adler, I co-produced the now CLASSIC horror movie “TALES FROM THE CRYPT PRESENTS DEMON KNIGHT”. The movie opened on Friday, January 13, 1995. As often happens in the movie biz, as producers, we fired the original writers – CY VORIS and ETHAN REIFF from the project. Unceremoniously. Thirty years later, Cy and Ethan will at long last get a little payback. In fact, they’ll finally get to fire back at us because we fired them! This monster movie features payback. Now, Cy and Ethan’s script was terrific […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

121 min listen

S3E7: The Real Demon Knight: Next year, in January, horror movie fans will celebrate the 30th ANIVERSARY of the movie TALES FROM THE CRYPT PRESENTS DEMON KNIGHT. The movie succeeded because it had a great script by CY VORIS and ETHAN REIFF (who also wrote KUNG FU PANDA). ERNEST DICKERSON brought both remarkable skills as a director and cinematographer, and a deep down love of horror movies. This podcast has focused on the second Crypt feature BORDELLO OF BLOOD. But there are a few UNTOLD STORIES about the first Crypt feature, DEMON KNIGHT, too! Some pretty juicy ones! Like how Gil and Alan unceremoniously fired […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

96 min listen

S3E6: "Rust Bust Disgust": We could also call this one “Rust Bust Discussed” since that’s what we’re going to do – update our earlier talk about New Mexico indicting actor/producer Alec Baldwin on manslaughter charges. ALEC BALDWIN, you recall, held the 1880’s prop gun on the set of independent western film “RUST” on October 1, 2012. When the PROP GUN fired during a rehearsal – it had a real bullet inside of it – it killed the film’s DP HALYNA HUTCHINS and wounded director Joel Souza – both on the other side of the camera during the rehearsal. We’ll talk about this tragedy with […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

79 min listen

S3E5 SNL ALUM (FINALLY) SPEAKS!: Long before she became an adjunct lecturer at BROWN UNIVERSITY in its Department of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies, my friend CONNIE CRAWFORD did something for which I envied her intensely. In 1978, She appeared on SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE. She acted in sketches and everything! She was one of five finalists in the “Anyone Can Host SNL” contest they held during season 3. BUCK HENRY hosted. Connie tells some great stories about that experience. Hell, Connie tells a lot of great stories! We were both freshman at VASSAR COLLEGE – in a Drama Department that was still buzzing about very […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

112 min listen

S3E4: 5 Movies & 2 Songs: In this episode, we’re doing our own version of the BBC’s classic show “DESERT ISLAND DISCS“. On that show, guests are invited to answer the question, if you were marooned on a desert island and could take five pieces of music and two books, what would they be (and neither book can be Shakespeare or the Bible)? Because we’re movie makers, we’ve swapped the music for movies and music for the books. So, the question is: “what are your 5 FAVORITE MOVIES and your 2 FAVORITE SONGS?” Funny thing? Though Gil Adler and I were creative partners and best mates […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

49 min listen

S3E3 Back To College (With Brett Goldstein): In this one, I go back to college as Gil and I sit down with BRETT GOLDSTEIN, my freshman semester roommate at VASSAR COLLEGE. This Brett is the American CASTING DIRECTOR and TALENT MANAGER, not the English actor. Brett won an EMMY AWARD casting HOMICIDE: LIFE ON THE STREET. He also cast feature films like DONNIE BRASCO, GI JANE and POOTIE TANG! Whatever made us bad roommates then doesn’t seem to bother us now! Could it be we’ve all grown up? The Vassar Drama Department As we go back to college, we’ll talk about what being at Vassar did for […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

92 min listen

S3E1: Starting Over, Part 1: It’s kinda weird, but we feel like we’ve been waiting for 2024 all our lives! And now that it’s here, we’re excited about “Starting Over”! On the one hand, by “starting over”, we mean going back to the very beginning (as Maria sings in The Sound Of Music, it’s “the very best place to start”). Back to how it was when Gil and I started making “Tales From The Crypt” together. We were just hitting our creative stride. We soared doing Crypt and we saw it as the launching pad to the next phase of our creative career together. And […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

110 min listen

S3E2 Starting Over, Part 2: This episode is a continuation of S3E1, Starting Over, Part 1. It’s kinda weird, but we feel like we’ve been waiting for 2024 all our lives! And now that it’s here, we’re excited about “Starting Over”! On the one hand, by “starting over”, we mean going back to the very beginning (as Maria sings in The Sound Of Music, it’s “the very best place to start”). Back to how it was when Gil and I started making “Tales From The Crypt” together. We were just hitting our creative stride together. We soared doing Crypt and we saw it as the […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

90 min listen

S2E69: Beast Of The Year: For our LAST EPISODE OF THE YEAR (and the season), we present (what our old pal the CRYPT KEEPER would have called “the BEAST of the Year”. Included here are a few favorite bits including our CAR RIDE TO HELL – the story of 6 hours spent driving around L with uber producer JOEL SILVER. There’s our chat with “smartest guy we know” ROGER NYGARD and his reflections on TREKKIES. Then there’s CHELSEA REBECCA and JAMES JANISSE from DEAD MEAT. Not only did we get to sit down for a chat with Chelsea, we all agreed to work together on […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

37 min listen

S2 Bonus Episode: Tobe Hooper - A "Tales From The Crypt" Tribute: It’s hard to believe our friend Tobe Hooper has been gone so long. Hardly a podcast goes by where we don’t reference Tobe one way or another. He was a fascinating person to know and work with. Like a lot of people who succeed in horror – or who create iconic horror characters and stories – Tobe was a pussycat. There wasn’t anything scary about him. Tobe changed the horror business. That changed the movie business. Now, Tobe didn’t set out to change any of that when he set out into the movie business in the 1960’s. At the time, […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

64 min listen

S2E68: Acting Up: In this GRAB BAG OF GOODIES, MALCOLM MCDOWELL, TAYE DIGGS, SHERRIE ROSE, BARRY PRIMUS MARK IVANIR, CHARLES FLEISCHER and BRANDON ROUTH all do a little ACTING UP as they take us deep inside their acting process to where the nitty meets the gritty. Where characters really come alive inside actors’ heads. We’ve said many times on this podcast that we never, ever hired actors to act. That’s because, in film and TV, the camera sees everything – including acting. That’s why the best, most successful film actors don’t act for the camera. They just “are”. They’ve learned how to be […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

56 min listen

BONUS EPISODE: "Is Die Hard A Christmas Movie?": It’s a question that comes around every year as reliably as Christmas itself: “Is Die Hard a Christmas movie?” In this BONUS EPISODE, Die Hard’s screenwriter – our good friend STEVE DESOUZA – brings plenty of hard evidence that proves not only IS Die Hard a CHRISTMAS MOVIE, it’s way more of one than than the classic “White Christmas”. In a Yahoo News/YouGov poll taken this very year, half of Americans agree with Steve that, yeah, Die Hard’s a Christmas movie. Fight me on it! Or, better yet, “Ho-ho-ho”. Now, there is resistance to the idea. The movie’s star – […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

11 min listen

S2E67 Rolling Stone Of Horror: TV and movie producer SCOTT STONE calls himself a “SERIAL ENTREPRENEUR”. We think of him as a “rolling Stone” because he’s actually one of the most prolific TV PRODUCERS ever. Among his credits are LEGENDS OF THE HIDDEN TEMPLE, THE MAN SHOW, SHOP TIL YOU DROP, THE MOLE and TOP DESIGN. Horror’s not really Scott’s thing. Nor are feature films. But, also among Scott’s copious credits are “FREDDY’S NIGHTMARES: THE NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET TV SERIES” and “CHILDREN OF THE CORN 2”, based on STEVEN KING’s short story. Scott’s over 50 TV shows have played in nearly every country on […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

83 min listen

BONUS EPISODE: "Dirty Laundry": As we head toward 2024, we’re recalling some of our favorite moments from 2023. DIRTY LAUNDRY is a whole episode filled with favorite moments. Wanna know what’s really happening on a movie or TV set? Talk to “the pretties” – HAIR AND MAKEUP or, even better? Talk RANDALL THROPP – he was the WARDROBE SUPERVISOR on “TALES FROM THE CRYPT”. He also worked on “DEMON KNIGHT” and “BORDELLO OF BLOOD” and the TV version of “THE SHINING“. The folks in WARDROBE and COSTUMES see a set’s literal dirty laundry. Often, they’re the ones who have to clean it up. Uch! […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

49 min listen

S2E66 Inside The Dark Castle: DARK CASTLE Entertainment sorta kinda rose from the ashes of BORDELLO OF BLOOD. The creative team had some of the same people as Crypt. And HORROR was its calling card. The brain child of JOEL SILVER, ROBERT ZEMECKIS and GIL ADLER, Dark Castle set out, initially, to re-make the movies in the WILLIAM CASTLE canon: HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL, 13 GHOSTS, THE TINGLER… For a brief moment, it looked as if Dark Castle might catch fire. Its first feature – House On Haunted Hill did okay financially. Its second and third features (“13 Ghosts” and “Ghost Ship”) also performed. But […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

45 min listen

Bonus Episode: A Crypt Tribute To Elliot Silverstein: Our good friend – and a guest on this podcast – ELLIOT SILVERSTEIN – just passed away. He was 96 and had an extraordinary run. He was a terrific director with features like CAT BALLOU, A MAN CALLED HORSE and THE CAR to his name. Also, Elliot directed lots of TV including TALES FROM THE CRYPT. That’s when Gil and I first met Elliot. In total, Elliot directed 4 episodes of Crypt including “The Reluctant Vampire“, one of Crypt’s most beloved episodes. It stars our other friend Malcolm McDowell. Perhaps Elliot’s biggest accomplishment though happened off screen. Elliot led the […] by The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast

57 min listen

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S2E14: "Post Mortem" (Featuring Chelsea Rebecca & Jason Stein)

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