A recent trip to my mailbox rewarded me with the new Gold Ninja Video blu-ray release of White Zombie. As a gem of the public domain, the 1932 film has been released numerous times from dollar bin VHS Tapes/DVDs to a deluxe remastered Kino Lorber special edition. This charming release sources an old library 16mm print in a new 2K scan. The beauty lies in the imperfections of the frames. The hazy, blurred atmosphere is only enhanced after decades of wear and tear.
To market the disc, the Gold Ninja himself Justin Decloux and his podcasting cohort Will Sloan recorded old fashioned “horror host” segments. These emulated the feelings of watching a town’s schlocky midnight movie screenings. As they played I felt nostalgic and sentimental for my time working in public access TV. More specifically, the now long lost midnight movie show I hosted, Critic’s Choice Theatre.
The bend we took on the program was “I’m going to show you the greatest films of all time!” But because we were a public access station, we could not afford to show any of the great films. So each episode we would instead show a schlocky public domain film. I’d come up with a get rich quick scheme to send my assistant to accomplish in order to license the week’s film. Inevitably, the plan would fail and the money would fall through. We’d promise Citizen Kane and Casablanca and follow through with things like Manos: The Hands of Fate or The Screaming Skull. In total we made two 12 episode seasons. By that point the joke had certainly ran its course. Not to mention we had to prep for the upcoming school year and the myriad concerts/sporting events that come along with it.
Unfortunately, there is almost no proof that this show existed. After asking about putting all the hosting segments together on a DVD, I was informed the hard drives containing the show files were wiped for football season. And just like that, the whole show was gone. After all the months of developing, writing, and shooting I had nothing to show for it, save one lone snippet I shared on snapchat years ago.
I don’t recall which film we were showing that episode, but I do remember the prefacing gag. The previous week’s ploy involved sending my production assistant out to a summer street busking night in Holland. He told me he was a fabulous singer and would be able to rake in the big bucks. However, the lack of tips told me otherwise. So, back to the archive of public domain films we went.
Once I am able to dig this clip up I will be sure to upload it. Though highly unlikely, if any of its three viewers happened to have recorded any episodes, I would love to get in touch about purchasing your recordings. Very few PEG (Public, Educational, and Government for the uninitiated) access shows get properly preserved, and I want to make sure I can keep all those carefree pre-covid-days alive.
Keep checking back as I continue to unearth relics of my past, plant seeds for my future projects, and try to stay sane on this rock in space. I remain always, obediently yours.
-JWJS
Jesse Shira's Rambling Rants 