Sad to report that British actress Ingrid Pitt passed away. A Hammer Glamour Girl, she appeared in some of their most provocative films of the late 60s/early 70s including The Vampire Lovers (trailer below) and Countess Dracula. Some of her non-Hammer Films include Where Eagles Dare with Clint Eastwood and the cult horror movie The Wicker Man. Click here to read more.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTVVjMKUpAA
Click here to read about the purported remake of TV’s The Man from U.N.C.L.E. with George Clooney stepping in for Robert Vaughn as agent Napoleon Solo. This classic 60s spy series deserves the big screen treatment. Good news is that they are intending to keep the setting during the Cold War 60s. Wouldn’t it be even better news if some of the 60s starlets that were associated with the series such as Yvonne Craig and Sharyn Hillyer were asked to make cameo appearances along with Vaughn and David McCallum. I can keep dreaming, can’t I?
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePvSgNNFroA
A source has informed me that former actress and 1968’s Playmate of the Year Victoria Vetri is selling off most of her memorabilia collection relating to her career in order to raise money for her legal defense. She allegedly shot her boyfriend and lied to the police. He is supposed to make a full recovery and there is no word if he is pressing charges, but she still faces jail time even if he doesn’t.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrMhFp3j-ro
The Warner Brothers Archive has been going gang busters releasing hard to find movies on DVD on Demand such as Once You Kiss a Stranger, El Condor, Zeppelin, The Green Slime, etc. and a few TV shows. One that has been announced for a 2011 release is The Lieutenant (1963-64) produced by Gene Roddenberry before he hit with Star Trek and starring Gary Lockwood and a pre-Man from U.N.C.L.E. Robert Vaughn. Click here to read more about the release.
The Lieutenant was an one hour long drama about the exploits of Marine Lt. Bill Rice (Lockwood) stationed at Camp Pendleton. Actress Chris Noel was a regular but in an unusual move she usually played a different character week after week. As she recalled in my book Fantasy Femmes of Sixties Cinema now out in soft cover:
“I had so much fun doing The Lieutenant. It was so exciting to have the opportunity to work with Gene Roddenberry. He only wanted one girl on the show. How many actresses do you know appearing in a series that got to play a different role week after week? Not many. That was such an original idea. It goes to show you how creative Roddenberrry was. He was a genius! I was very proud that I got to work with him.”
Recalling her co-stars, Chris remarks, “Gary Lockwood was very cute and we flirted. That made it interesting. He was likable but he could be moody, moody, moody. For instance, one day he commented to me, ‘Why do you do all these pictures for the studio? Why do you go to all the parties? It’s never going to make you a star!’ Robert Vaughn is a very good actor but he wasn’t nice to me. He was very cold and distant.”
Below is a link to a clip of Chris Noel (Armed Forces Radio’s first female DJ during the Vietnam War) and Vetsville a charity she founded years ago to help homeless Vietnam vets:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53805jMumMA