Test Pattern

We venture into the realm of horror in fantasy with Legend (1985) and Willow (1988)!  Tab fangirls about Rob Bottin and Jacob regales listeners with tales of Burglekutt.   Sources for this episode: Legend (1985) Director's commentary - Ridley Scott "Ridley Scott's Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy: The Making of Legend" by Ed Power, The Telegraph "Looking Back at Ridley Scott's Legend" by Michael Leader, Den of Geek "How the 1985 Fantasy Film Legend Ended Up with Two Soundtracks"  by Eric Grundhauser   Willow (1988) "Revisiting George Lucas' Forgotten Epic Willow" by Graeme McMillan, The Hollywood Reporter  

We go back to the depths of Soul’s Midnight to look at America’s most infamous unsolved case – the Zodiac Killer – and David Fincher’s ultra-realistic adaptation of Robert Graysmith’s Zodiac.   Sources: The Zodiac Killer This is the Zodiac Speaking (documentary) His Name is Arthur Lee Allen (documentary) Zodiac by Robert Graysmith Zodiac: Unmasked by Robert Graysmith "David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen" by Tom Voight, zodiackiller.com "Darlene Ferrin and Mike Mageau" by Tom Voight, zodiackiller.com "Cecelia Shepard and Bryan Hartnell" by Tom Voight, zodiackiller.com "Paul Stine" by Tom Voight, zodiackiller.com "Robert Domingos and Linda Edwards" by Tom Voight, zodiackiller.com "Cheri Jo Bates" by Tom Voight, zodiackiller.com Signature vs Modus Operandi venn diagram, Wayne State University "Kathleen Johns" by Tom Voight, zodiackiller.com "The Jim Dunbar Show" by Tom Voight, zodiackiller.com "Zodiac Letters and Ciphers" by Tom Voight, zodiackiller.com "Arthur Leigh Allen" by Tom Voight, zodiackiller.com   Zodi

We unwrap The Mummy and one of Hammer’s answers to the classic monster – Blood From the Mummy’s Tomb.    Sources: The Mummy (1932) "The Mummy (1932)" by Frank Miller, TCM "Mummy Dearest: A Horror Tradition Unearthed" (The Mummy Legacy Collection featurette) "Jack Pierce: The Man Behind the Monsters" (The Mummy Legacy Collection featurette)   Blood From the Mummy's Tomb (1971) "Blood From the Mummy's Tomb (1971)" by Felicia Feaster, TCM

We’re taking a trip to Tromaville with The Toxic Avenger and Class of Nuke ‘Em High! Sources: The Toxic Avenger (1984) "The Toxic Avenger: A Brief History of Troma's Superhero Franchise" by Jim Knipfel, from Den of Geek Class of Nuke 'Em High (1986) "Class of Nuke 'Em High is a Nutty, Nostalgic Treat" by Bill Gibron, from PopMatters

Jacob curates an episode that’s all about horror in anime with Wicked City and Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlines.   Sources: Wicked City (1987) Wicked City DVD commentary, Michael Toole "Wicked City" by Jasper Sharp, Midnight Eye: Visions of Japanese Cinema  

We explore the legacy of the Alien franchise, with a focus on Alien and Aliens and a brief discussion of the other films! Sources: Alien (1979) The Book of Alien by Michael Cross and Paul Scanlon "Looking Back at Ridley Scott's Alien" by Ryan Lambie, from Den of Geek The Beast Within: The Making of Alien (documentary, Alien Anthology BluRay collection)   Aliens (1986) Superior Firepower: The Making of Aliens (documentary, Alien Anthology BluRay collection)

We pay homage to the Sultan of Splatter, Tom Savini, with two of his earlier films – Maniac and The Burning! Tom Savini “ Sources: Tom Savini "Forward" by Tom Savini, from Horror 101: The A-List of Horror Films and Monster Movies Vol. 1 Interview, Fantastic Flesh documentary "Savini's a Scream: Checking in with the Master of TerrorMania" by John Hayes, Pittsburg Post-Gazette "Freddy V Jason" by Chris Hewitt, from Empire Maniac (1980) Maniac commentary, William Lustig and Tom Savini Behind the scenes featurette, Maniac BluRay The Burning (1981) "The Burning - Production" by J.A. Kerswell, from Hysteria Lives "The Burning - Promotion" by J.A. Kerswell, from Hysteria Lives "The Burning - Censorship" by J.A. Kerswell, from Hysteria Lives

We become creatures of the night and go back to 1987 – the year of the tragically hip vampire – with The Lost Boys and Near Dark.  Sources: The Lost Boys (1987) "5 Things You Might Not Have Know About The Lost Boys on its 25th Anniversary" by Oliver Lyttleton, from IndieWire "9 Found Facts About The Lost Boys" by Andrew LaSane, from Mental Floss "The Infamous Sax Man from Lost Boys Still, Still Believes: A Chat with Tim Capello" by Christopher Bickel, from Dangerous Minds   Near Dark (1987) Director commentary, Kathryn Bigelow "One of the Coolest Vampire Movies Ever: Watching Near Dark with Scott Weinberg" by Jeff Bayer, from Film School Rejects "Near Dark Highlighted Everything That Was So Special About Bill Paxton" by John Squires  

We get electrified about the king of the Universal monsters – the one and only Frankenstein’s Monster!  Sources: Frankenstein (1931) Commentary with film scholar Rudy Behlmer, Frankenstein Legacy BluRay "Frankenstein (1931)" by Felicia Feaster, from TCM Universal Studios Monsters: A Legacy of Horror by Michael Mallory, pgs. 66-69 "The Frankenstein Files" Making Of Featurette, Frankenstein Legacy BluRay Pre-Code Hollywood: Sex, Immorality, and Insurrection in American Cinema 1930-1934 by Thomas Patrick Doherty, pg. 297 "Guillermo Talks!" by Mike Sampson, JoBlo.com "Guillermo del Toro on The Hobbit and Frankenstein" by CS, from comingsoon.net   "Frankenweenie" (1984) "Tim Burton: How Disney Fired Me" by Edward Bovingdon, from Yahoo Movies   Young Frankenstein (1974) Director Commentary, Mel Brooks "Inside the Lab: Secret Formulas in the Making of Young Frankenstein" (Young Frankenstein 40th Anniversary BluRay featurette) "It's Alive! Creating a Monster Classic" (Young Frankenstein 40th Anniversary BluRay featu

We study the king of the cryptids!  We’re examining the legend of Bigfoot through “true” sightings and representations of the legendary monster in films like Abominable, Exists, and more!  Sources: Bigfoot "Bigfoot", from The Skeptic's Dictionary “Had Slain His Thousand”, from Placerville Mountain Democrat “A Terror to Ranchmen. ‘Bigfoot,’ the Giant Grizzly, and His Costly Depredations”, from Goshen Daily Democrat "Bigfoot Claim Exposed As Hoax", from CBS News "Bigfoot Hunter Admits He Lied About Killing Beast" by Joel Landau, from The New York Daily News "Bigfoot Dead? Hunter Plans to Take Sasquatch Corpse On Tour" by Bonnie Burton by CNET

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Tab fangirls out about MST3K … and Jacob humors her!   

We can’t get enough … of The Stuff and They Live in this episode about the horror of 80s consumerism! Sources: The Stuff (1985) "Why Larry Cohen's The Stuff is a Work of Scruffy Genius" by Ryan Lambie from Den of Geek They Live (1988) "They Live (1988)" by David Kalat, from TCM Director's commentary, John Carpenter and Rowdy Roddy Piper  

In our first Godzilla-level Patreon curated episode, Ryan S. (@TheGiantBWithU) gives us a Hallowed Halls double feature of Michael Mann’s films! Sources: The Keep (1983) "In Defense of Michael Mann's The Keep" by Chris Alexander, from ComingSoon.net "Movie of the Day: The Keep" by Joshua Miller, from CHUD.com "Shlock & Awe: The Keep" by Kyle Anderson, from Nerdist Manhunter (1986) "Manhunter is a Serial-Killer Movie That Keeps the Gloves On" by Katie Rife, from The AV Club "Why You Should Watch Michael Mann's Manhunter" by Ryan Lambie, from Den of Geek "13 Things You Never Knew About Manhunter, the First Hannibal Lecter Movie" by Gary Susman

We nerd out about Kong: Skull Island and the Legendary Monsterverse!

We go underground with the 90s classic Tremors and its sequel Tremors 2!   Sources: Tremors (1990) Director's commentary, Ron Underwood Tremors II: Aftershocks (1996) Official Tremors II Fan Page

For our first installment of Hallowed Halls, we look at the Master of Suspense, Alfred Hitchcock! Alfred Hitchcock Hitchcock on Hitchcock: Selected Writings and Interviews edited by Sidney Gottlieb Alfred Hitchcock: A Life of Darkness and Light by Patrick McGilligan “The Top 21 British Directors of All Time” from The Telegraph Shadow of a Doubt (1943) […] The post Episode 18: Alfred Hitchcock – Shadow of a Doubt & Vertigo appeared first on TEST PATTERN with Jacob and Tab.

We look at two controversial documentaries – Jesus Camp and Hell House! “Innocence Lost or Regained? The Clear-Eyed Vision of Jesus Camp” by Alan Jacobson, from Bright Lights Film Journal “Sheep in Human Clothing – Scientist Reveal Our Flock Mentality” from University of Leeds “The Kids of Jesus Camp, 10 Years Later: ‘Was it child […] The post Episode 17: Separate Hells – Jesus Camp & Hell House appeared first on TEST PATTERN with Jacob and Tab.

Now that it’s on Amazon Prime, we get all nostalgic on you guys by reminiscing about “Unsolved Mysteries”! Unsolved Mysteries Official Site Official Unsolved Mysteries Twitter Test Pattern is originally broadcast on 103.5 FM WLSPLP Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, underwritten by the Bank of Sun Prairie. Music for Test Pattern is “Dance of Deception” by Kevin […] The post Minisode #4: Unsolved Mysteries appeared first on TEST PATTERN with Jacob and Tab.

In honor of Bill Paxton, we look at his star turn/directorial debut Frailty, as well as the crime spree that loosely inspired it. Frailty (2001) “The Day Bill Paxton Saw John F. Kennedy” by Robert Wilonsky, from The Dallas Observer “Joseph Kallinger: The Shoemaker” by Christopher Greenlief, Amanda Hall, and Jenna Hafey, from Radford University Department […] The post Episode 16: Frailty (For Bill) appeared first on TEST PATTERN with Jacob and Tab.