FROM THE AUTHORS OF TAKING SHAPE
COMES A NEW BOOK ABOUT A CERTAIN GOOD GUY...

Monday, October 17, 2022

Incredible Tall Man Balloon Art

I've always found balloon characters impressive, but this takes the art form to another level entirely! Enter Brad Wood, better known on Instagram as BradTheBalloonGuy. He's managed to create a full balloon version of the Tall Man complete with silver sphere and dwarf! Dig the detail here - the Tall Man's eyebrow is even raised! Of his phandom, Brad writes: "I love this series! It's so weird and awesome!"

Check out more of Brad's spiffy creations here!





Monday, September 12, 2022

New Phantasm Podcast Debuts

Greetings, my fellow phans. It's been a while, I know. How've you been? 

I wanted to make you all aware of this groovy new Phantasm podcast that's just launched called MORNINGSIDE FM. Hosted by phan Chris Dischord, the first episode features special guest Mary Wild, who self-describes as a "Freudian Cinephile Pop Psychoanalyst." Given that background, Chris and Mary engage in a pretty interesting exploration of the series.

Check out the first episode here. There are multiple ways to listen including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and even YouTube.

Saturday, October 9, 2021

Wrong Discs Included on New Phantasm Set


Per the official Phantasm Ravager Twitter account, we've learned that Well Go USA apparently packaged the wrong discs in some editions of their newly released Phantasm Double Feature Blu-ray. These discs were supposed to be identical to the one included in their Sphere Collection, but phans have been complaining that they contain older discs instead. What's the difference? The newer discs contain additional special features on both films and the 4k UNCUT edition of Phantasm II. Some phans are quite pissed at this distributor screw-up, which is understandable. When you're paying these prices for movies you likely already own, you want the discs as they were advertised.


The Ravager Twitter account encourages phans to reach out to Well Go USA to discuss how to get replacement discs. They also claim that only SOME of the new editions were affected, but we've yet to hear from a phan who received the correct discs. (Speak up in the comments if your set was packaged correctly!)


Sunday, September 26, 2021

2021 Update: Phantasm's Hanging Tree Location

(Top right photo from Don Coscarelli's personal archive.)

Back in 2019, there was some concern that yet another classic Phantasm filming location was going to vanish due to new construction in the area. I'm speaking of the famous "hanging tree," which was featured in an eerie scene removed from the 1979 film that later appeared prominently in 1998's Phantasm Oblivion.

Well, it's 2021 and I'm happy to report that - as of today - the hanging tree is somehow still standing. The construction that seemingly once threatened the tree has held off. Mega-phan Scott Pensa sends in the following photos. Thanks for the pics and update, Scott!






Wednesday, September 8, 2021

Rare Phantasm Oblivion Set Photos Surface

I don't know about you, but I loved 1998's Phantasm: Oblivion from the moment I first saw it, way before it was cool to like it. (Longtime phans might recall that, before Phantasm Ravager, the fourth film was the most shat-upon entry in the series.) It might not have the bigger budgets of its predecessors, but it arguably has the most heart. Imagine my delight this evening when I discovered the following set photos over in the IMDb gallery for the film. These pics depict stuntman Bob Ivy in his Demon Trooper getup. If memory serves, these rare pics are from Bob's personal collection, which has long been kept off the internet. I have no idea how these snapshots wound up on IMDb, but I thought I'd share them here for your personal enjoyment.


When I interviewed Bob Ivy for Phantasm Exhumed a decade ago, he explained that the top picture was the only known photo of the Demon Trooper with the Tall Man - understandable since they never had a scene together. The second picture shows Bob with Don Coscarelli. (I think that's Gigi Fast Elk Bannister peering over Bob's shoulder?) The final pic shows what appears to be a rehearsal between Bob and Reggie Bannister. All in all, great shots!






Thursday, September 2, 2021

The Sphere Is Back on Shudder!?! Apparently so!

 


Well, this was unexpected. Yesterday, Shudder dropped the first trailer for season three of their critically-acclaimed Creepshow series. It looks to be a predictably bloody affair - complete with a silver sphere attack. Wait, WHAT!?!? That's right - we can clearly see one of the Tall Man's sentinels attacking someone here. Watch the trailer below for yourself. 


What might this amount to - a small sphere cameo or a complete Phantasm-themed episode? One can hope! The show did have a pretty swell tribute episode dedicated to Evil Dead in the last season, so a Phantasm-themed episode isn't entirely impossible. The new season of Creepshow kicks off on September 23. Is it any coincidence that the Phantasm series (minus part two) hit Shudder the week after that? Hmm.....




Sunday, August 8, 2021

Phantasm is on a Major Streaming Service with a Weird Hitch

This may not be breaking news, but I just yesterday signed up for the Peacock streaming service from NBC Universal and noticed "The Phantasm Collection" listed on the main screen. How cool is that?? The selection of "movie collections" I scrolled through included The Godfather, Harry Potter, Leprechaun, and Phantasm, which is one mighty eclectic grouping of franchises.


The strange part about this was that "The Phantasm Collection" contained the entire franchise minus Phantasm II. Why is that strange? Because Phantasm II is technically the only film in the franchise actually owned by NBC Universal, meaning they had to license the other four. Even stranger is that the "collection" icon features an image of the Tall Man and Perigord Mausoleum from the missing Phantasm II. Even so, it's great to see the series with this exposure. (And kudos to whomever listed them as "Phantasm Philms" on the franchise page. Nice touch!)








Incredible Tall Man Balloon Art

I've always found balloon characters impressive, but this takes the art form to another level entirely! Enter Brad Wood , better known o...