Ted V. Mikes at Fangoria's Trinity of Terror. Photo/Terra King
As one who had the good fortune to see a few of Ted V. Mikel's (pronounced Michaels) films at a drive-in, I am proud to review this documentary of his films.
'The Wild World of Ted V. Mikels' is not only the history of Ted's films, but a history of Indie filmmaking. It is also the history of society as many of Ted's films reflect the times they were filmed
Narrated by filmmaker John Waters, this film is a must see for fans of campy, good movies.
Narrator John Waters. Photo/Terra King
Ted started filmmaking in the beautiful state of Oregon with a film entitled 'Strike Me Deadly.' An innovator from the start, Hollywood filmmakers couldn't figure out how he captured certain scenes so well on film. For instance, there is a scene where actor Gary Clarke is running seemingly forever. This documentary reveals that Ted had a van with a bubble top and was mobile, so he could travel while filming Gary running.
Illustrating his eye for innovation, Ted made a film in 1966, 'The Black Klansman,' in which racism was exposed at the time it was happening all over the country. This film actually got some theaters shot up.
One of Ted's most famous and fun films is 'Astro Zombies,' it's campy and it's fun to watch. Wayne Rogers who would later appear as 'Trapper John, MD,' helped finance this film.
'Corpse Grinders,' a tale of cat food gone terribly wrong, is also a very popular Mikel's film. As the title hints at, corpses get ground into cat food, giving cats a taste for human meat.
Ted tells the tale of buying the scrip for $1,800. This film is one of his best. It was also marketed in a fun way reminiscent of the great William Castle. There were nurses in the lobby of theaters doing blood pressures, an ambulance outside with it's lights flashing. Attendees even had to sign a document releasing Ted from any liability due to heart attacks, etc, from the film.
It was at this time that Ted came up with a triple bill for theaters. He called the set of films..'The final dimension in shock,' it included the films 'Corpse Grinders, Undertakers and His Pals and Embalmers.' Many theaters refused to play a triple feature. Too bad for them because the film broke revenue records taking in $190,000 at one Kansas City theater.
The story of Ted's 'Sparr Castle.' A large estate in Glendale, Ca. where Ted lived, filmed and housed women who had parts in his films. Ted says he had 60 in all during this time of his life, usually 5-7 at a time. Don't have a dirty mind, Ted was giving these people a place to stay and work in his films. The women got other work with other filmmakers. Ted is a gentleman, this is clear in this film and in person.
A film worth mentioning is called 'The Doll Squad.' The main character is named Sabrina and she works with several other strong women who are spies and go around getting the bad guys. Aaron Spieling was invited and viewed a preview showing of the film at Fox studios. Fast forward a few years and the TV show 'Charlie's Angels' hits the airways to great acclaim. One of his angels was named Sabrina. Spieling of course was the executive producer of 'Charlie's Angels.'
One of the actresses who worked extensively with Ted says he was a master at getting work done. He once filmed 15 scenes in one day on Catalina Island. Unheard of.....
The end of the 70s brought a genre of films called 'exploitation films.' Black exploitation, exploitation of women, etc. Women in prison films were very popular, Ted made a very good one entitled, '10 Violent Women.' This film followed these women from the crime they committed to their stay in prison.
Ted Mikels has had a career that has spanned over 60 years, and he is still working. His newest film is for sale on the Ted Mikels site. This new film is called 'Demon Haunt' and is Teds first use of CGI. It's available in standard and 3D.
This biographical DVD of Ted's life is also available on his website. It is a great present for a fan of the genre that Ted has done so well.
Comments