THE 1950'S TV HORROR "KICK"

"How often can you dissect a brain?" -Zacherley

This article from the May 1959 issue of TV RADIO MIRROR begins with relating the recent success of the SHOCK THEATER horror films that had just begun the previous year to be shown to TV audiences across America. After that, it veers into social commentary and asks if there is too much violence on TV (ever hear of that one?). After author Charlotte Barclay gets that off her chest, she returns to reporting how monster movies are all the rage. The self-professed "Dick Clark of Transylvania", Zacherley, is interviewed and he offers some personal views, including his playing of "The Cool Ghoul" a result of him being "too weak-willed to go look for work." He was also worried early on with being able to come up with enough intermission shtick to last. Well, we know how that ended up!

Ending the piece is a discussion of TV networks that were ready to deluge audiences with "action" shows, which contained a healthy (or unhealthy, if you proffer) dose of violence. Barclay also speaks of the more "subtle" types of thrillers, such as ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS, where she offers up one of Hitch's well-known intros: "I'd like you all to join us for another half-hour of group therapy. I understand there is nothing like a nice juicy murder to help you work off your aggressions."

Read on, for a good example of the "You Are There" experience, during the dawn of the Monster Mania explosion!

GOODNIGHT, ZACHERLEY -- WHATEVER YOU ARE!

 

I never had the pleasure of watching a live SHOCK THEATER program hosted by the "Cool Ghoul", Roland/Zacherley. I was on the west coast, so I had horror hosts like Dr. Diablo and The Old Woman during the same period.

Roland/Zacherle/Zacherley is perhaps, outside of the voluptuously-commercialized Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, the best known of the horror hosts. It is said that his friend, Dick Clark, gave him the nickname, "The Cool Ghoul", and it stuck.

John Zacherley passed away last week. He was 98 years old. Assuredly, he had a full life in the entertainment industry, and when he was done with that, he remained very active in the convention circuit. He was well known for his friendly demeanor and of course, his sense of humor.

When Universal's SHOCK! horror film package was leased by Screen Gems, it was Zacherley who was the first to host the TV show, SHOCK THEATER. Others followed, but Zach was the first, and most say, the best (Vampira/Maila Nurmi was the first TV horror host, but this was before the SHOCK! package was released).

Not long after the success of SHOCK THEATER, publisher James Warren and editor/agent Forrest J Ackerman teamed up to create the first, regularly published monster magazine, FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND. SHOCK! was covered in the very first issue, and issue #2 covered, among other horror hosts, Zacherley. In issue #4 Zach was featured in his very own article. As a result, FM contributed to the obsession that became known as "Monster Mania" in the 1960s.



FAMOUS MONSTERS #4 cover art by Albert Nuetzell.



FAMOUS MONSTERS #7 cover art by Albert Nuetzell.



FAMOUS MONSTERS #7 was the first issue to sell the 6' Zach poster.



FAMOUS MONSTERS #15 cover art by Basil Gogos.

ZACH'S TOPSTONE MASK

Any Monster Kid worth his wolfs bane knows that Zacherley was the coolest ghoul on television back in the days of SHOCK THEATER. His studio sets were always crowded with the creepiest stuff imaginable.

Zach also knew what kind of masks to have on hand, too. For instance, the mask in the lower left shown in the photo below looks suspiciously like a Topstone witch mask. You can almost hear Zach saying: "What's that doing here? We don't wear masks on this show!"

BONUS: Here's the first ad for Zacherley's own mask for sale in issue #8 of FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND (it's the one on the left, wiseguy). It was sold through "General Promotions Co." which would soon become the famous Captain Company mail order department that we all know took up about a third of each magazine that Warren published.

SCREEN GEMS' 'SHOCK!' PACKAGE: THE SWEETEST HALLOWEEN TREAT (PART 1)

"SHOCK! brings your television audience what they have never had before -- night after night of thrills and more thrills with the screen's titans of terror" - SHOCK! Program Guide

This is it, monster lovers. This here is the real deal. It's the genius loci, the ne plus ultra, the holy grail of modern monster movie history. These films were originally released during the 1930s and 1940s and scarcely a dozen years later they were resurrected to be enjoyed (and obsessed over) by a new generation. What followed was a major pop culture phenomenon. To paraphrase a certain Dr. Henry Frankenstein, "They were just resting, waiting for a new life to live."

While there was chatter from other movie studios, it was Universal that first offered a catalogue of 550 films for lease to be shown on this relatively new fangled gizmo called a television. Screen Gems, the TV Division of Columbia Pictures, snapped them up in a $20 million deal.

You had to hand it to "SG" as it was known in the trades -- they were taking a huge chance, but they were banking on success. You see, 52 of the films that SG now owned were from deep inside the Universal castle vaults where lurked their classic horror, thriller and mystery films. After all, they had already made a mint for "U", including saving the entire studio from bankruptcy more than once. SG would not be disappointed as the Screen Gems SHOCK! horror package not only sold well, but was the cause behind the explosion of the biggest monster craze in horror history. Popular culture would never be the same.



Billboard June 17, 1957.

It all happened in in June, 1957. A 10-year lease was struck between U and SG for 550 feature films at the aforementioned $20 million. It was the largest deal so far in television's relatively short history. TV stations around the country jumped on the bandwagon, renting the 52-picture parcel aptly labeled SHOCK! In October of that year, kids from coast to coast were treated to the best Halloween they'd ever had in their young lives when they turned on their TV to watch the most famous monsters ever made.

Inspired by the suggestions promoted by SG, many stations added a "horror host" to their "Shock Theater" broadcast, who, in various ghoulish (or not) makeup and attire would introduce the film and provide creepy comic relief between commercial breaks. Speaking of commercials, an automobile dealership bought a slot of time to advertise their cars. Instead of hearing from interested adults, they receive nothing but numerous calls from kids wondering when the next "Shock Theater" would air!

Presented here is the first part of the original Screen Gems SHOCK! Program Guide, complete with the pop-up Frankenstein monster cut-out page and sales and audience promotional gimmicks. Each movie is given it's own page and includes a photo from the film, a plot synopsis, the film credits, on-air promotions, a TV news release snippet, and a bio of a star from the movie.

The impact of this huge entertainment event is inestimable. SHOCK! launched a monster mania that reached every nook and cranny of popular culture for decades.