Creature Feature 1971-1973 What Did Sir Cecil Creape Show On WSM Channel 4 Nashville? Part Four

Part One can be found here, Part Two is located here, and here is Part Three.  Let's continue the review of what movies and if list which episodes of Thriller were shown during the WSM Channel Four horror movie series Creature Feature which ran on Saturday nights at 10:30PM. The great Sir Cecil Creape hosted these shows and was often the main reason to tune in to the show. This list will have 1973 up to the last Saturday night show. It would get moved to Saturday afternoon once the baseball season ended. I've provided a short synopsis of each entry. If you want more information you can always go to IMDB, google it, or you can buy the forthcoming book by Larry Underwood AKA Dr. Gangrene all about Nashville horror movie hosts and the films they showed. Many of the episodes shown during 1973 featured films previously shown. When this is the case I will note the other air dates and you can refer back to previous posts if you want more information. 

January 6, 1973 "Karloff Special" The Man in Half Moon Street 1944 A scientist has figured out how to prolong his life, but he needs new glands or he will finally die. 

January 13, 1973 "Karloff Special" I Bury the Living 1958 Previously shown on October 30, 1971

January 20, 1973 Preempted by Inaugural Balls coverage

January 27, 1973 "Karloff Special" The Creeping Unknown 1955 Previously shown on October 9, 1971

February 3, 1973 Preempted by UCLA vs USC basketball game

February 10, 1973 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "The Weird Tailor" 

The Ghost Breakers 1940 Bob Hope in a haunted Cuban castle.

February 17, 1973 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "Waxworks"

The Horror of Dracula 1958 The first Hammer horror film and one of the best. Christopher Lee as Count Dracula and Peter Cushing as Doctor Van Helsing. 

This episode of Creature Feature would be the second to last one with an episode of Thriller called "Karloff Special" playing before the movie. They would be programmed after the film instead other than the March 17, 1973 airing. I will now list them after the movie and if the episode title is listed I will share it. Many of the movies are ones previously shown. 

February 24, 1973 House of Wax 1953 Vincent Price is a wax museum artist who survives his museum burning down. He continues his craft anew many months later with murder on his mind. 

"Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller was "The Closed Cabinet"

March 3, 1973 Journey to the Center of the Earth 1959 Since this film's runtime is over 2 hours there was no episode of Thriller on this Creature Feature. The movie is based on the Jules Verne novel and the title describes the plot for you. James Mason is great. Pat Boone m'eh.

March 10, 1973 Preempted by the Cerebral Palsy telethon

March 17, 1973 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "God Grante That She Lye Stille" 

The Last Man on Earth 1964 Previously shown on March 4, 1972 

March 24, 1973 The Man with Nine Lives 1940 A cryogenic cancer cure goes awry. 

"Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "A Third for Pinocle" 

March 31, 1973 The Blood Rose 1970 An artist's fiancee burns her face. He becomes obsessed with repairing the damage with the help of an unorthodox plastic surgeon. 

"Karloff Special"

April 7, 1973 The Curse of the Living Corpse 1964 Millionaire's dying wishes are not honored. His relatives all gather at this home. Murders commence.

"Karloff Special" 

Sir Cecil Creape appeared at Capitol Chevrolet on April 14, 1973. 

April 14, 1973 Indestructible Man 1956 Previously aired on June 10, 1972 "Karloff Special"

April 21, 1973 Man with the Synthetic Brain 1967 I'll make an exception about linking to the IMDB page as this movie has one long twisted history with multiple titles. The more common title is Blood of Ghastly Horror. There's a very good explanation at IMDB in the user reviews by kevinolzak. 

"Karloff Special"

April 28, 1973 Vampire Men of Lost Planet 1970 Original title Horror of the Blood Monsters The movie is about the Earth having a vampire plague which came from space. Astronauts are sent to find the source. 

"Karloff Special" 

May 5, 1973 Return of the Fly 1959 The son of Philippe Delambre decides to carry on his his teleportation experiments. What could possibly go wrong? "Karloff Special"

May 12, 1975 Frankenstein 1970 1958 Boris Karloff gets to play a descendant of the original Victor Frankenstein. The Nazi's scarred his face and he's out of money. Here's where the movie becomes meta. He invites an American television company to film at his castle so he can get the funds for an atomic reactor. Then he will create his own monster! "Karloff Special" 

May 19, 1973 House on Haunted Hill 1959 Previously shown on February 26, 1972 

"Karloff Special"

May 26, 1973 The Man They Could Not Hang 1939 A mad scientist is hanged. That was probably a mistake. Terror comes to those who tightened the noose's threads. "Karloff Special"

June 2, 1973 The Uninvited 1944 Gothic sea side mansion sells dirt cheap. A composer and his sister discover why the place was such a steal. Ghosts. It's always ghosts. "Karloff Special"

June 9, 1973 The Beast with Five Fingers 1946 Previously shown on November 20, 1971 and on October 21, 1972 "Karloff Special"

June 16, 1973 The Night of the Hunter 1955 Previously shown on October 2, 1971 and September 16, 1972 "Karloff Special"

June 23, 1973 The Black Sleep 1956 Previously shown on September 25, 1971 and October 28, 1972 "Karloff Special"

June 30, 1973 The Ape 1940 Karloff plays a scientist trying to cure polio. An escaped circus ape is on the loose with murder on its mind. "Karloff Special"

July 7, 1973 The Creeping Unknown 1955 Previously shown on October 9, 1971 and January 27, 1973 "Karloff Special"

July 14, 1973 Gog 1954 Previously shown on November 27, 1971 "Karloff Special"

July 21, 1973 I Bury the Living 1958 Previously shown on October 30, 1971 and January 13, 1973 "Karloff Special"

July 28, 1973 The Curse of Dracula 1958 Theatrical title The Return of Dracula Previously shown on November 13, 1971 "Karloff Special"

August 4, 1973 The Manster 1959 An American journalist can now get twice as many articles done once a Japanese scientist injects him with something that gives him 2 heads. Maybe he'd need more hands. "Karloff Special"

August 11, 1973 The Fly 1958 Previously shown on December 30, 1972 "Karloff Special"

August 18, 1973 The Horror of Dracula 1958 Previously shown on February 17, 1973 "Karloff Special"

August 25, 1973 The Brides of Fu Manchu 1966 Christopher Lee plays Fu Manchu. He kidnaps the daughters of scientists to force them to make a death ray so he can take over the world. "Karloff Special"

September 1, 1973 The Curse of the Living Corpse 1964 Previously shown on April 7, 1973 

"Karloff Special"

September 8, 1973 House of Wax 1953 Previously shown on February 24, 1973 "Karloff Special"

This would end the airing of Creature Feature(s) hosted by Sir Cecil Creape on Saturday nights. WSM Channel 4 decided to show them on Saturday afternoons once the Major League Baseball season ended. I was originally not going to go past the September 8, 1973 date, but I'm having too much fun. The very least I can do is list the days the show ran. Maybe I'll even find out what was shown. Lets's commence with BONUS CONTENT! 

October 20, 1973 Creature Feature 1PM - 2:30PM is announced in the Sunday paper however if you go to the daily guide the World Series is listed. The Oakland A's beat the NewYork Mets 3-1 to tie the series. I suppose that was horrible for the Mets fans. 

October 27, 1973 Creature Feature 1PM - 2:30PM It's back! Finally. It will air in the same time slot until it is canceled. If I know the movie I will list it. 

November 3, 1973 Creature Feature

November 10, 1973 Invisible Invaders 1959 Previously shown on December 4, 1971

November 17, 1973 Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein 1948 Horror comedy at its very best. I watched this every chance I got as a child. This would have a been super special Saturday to get to see the movie run as a Creature Feature. The plot is simple. Dracula wants to put Costello's brain into the Frankenstein monsters. The Wolfman shows up to warn Abbott and Costello. 

November 24, 1973 Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde 1953 Abbott and Costello are cops in this way on the hunt for Mr. Hyde. Perhaps they'll get some help from Dr. Jekyll. 

December 1, 1973 Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy 1955 Are you my mummy? This marks the end of Creature Feature on Channel 4. Host Sir Cecil Creape would be revived to host The Phantom of the Opry on The Nashville Network (TNN) from 1983 to 1985. 

I hope you've enjoyed this look back at what movies and Thriller "Karloff Special" episodes were shown on Creature Feature(s). Be looking out for Larry Underwood's upcoming book about Nashville horror hosts as I hear it will be a real page turner. Now I'm going to try and watch as many of these movies as I can find. "Good night, sleep tight and don't let the beddy bugs bite." 

Since y'all have been good here's one last midnight movie snack. Your very own Sir Cecil patch.

 

Creature Feature 1971-1973 What Did Sir Cecil Creape Show On WSM Channel 4 Nashville? Part Three

Did someone call?

Part One can be found here and Part Two is located here. Let's continue the review of what movies were shown during the WSM Channel Four horror movie series Creature Feature which ran on Saturday nights at 10:30PM. The great Sir Cecil Creape hosted these shows and was often the main reason to tune in to the show. This list will have the second half of 1972. I've provided a short synopsis of each entry. If you want more information you can always go to IMDB, google it, or you can buy the forthcoming book by Larry Underwood AKA Dr. Gangrene all about Nashville horror movie hosts and the films they showed. 

Now called Creature Features in the television guide each show would begin with episodes of the Boris Karloff hosted series Thriller before showing a sci-fi or horror film. These Thriller episodes were labelled "Karloff Special" and they would switch to being shown after the films in 1973. I'm listing "Karloff Special" with a note on the episode if the paper listed it, followed by the movie that aired. If the movie ran previously on Creature Feature(s) I'm just noting that. You can look at a previous post to see my brief summary and a movie poster of it. 

July 1, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "Girl with a Secret"

The Disembodied 1957 Previously aired on January 29, 1972

July 8, 1972 "Karloff Special" Fright 1956

July 15, 1972 "Karloff Special" Attack of the Crab Monsters 1957 There was a giant Black Morning spider on Gilligan's Island. On Roger Corman's shrinking island you get giant crabs. 

July 22, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "The Purple Room"

The Hypnotic Eye 1960 Beware the hypnotist. Especially if you're a woman. 

July 29, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "The Big Blackout"

Terror in the Haunted House 1958 I like the original title My World Dies Screaming better. A newlywed wife moves into a haunted house that she had recurring nightmares about before ever seeing it for real. 

August 5, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "Knock Three-One-Two"

World Without End 1956 I don't know if we should send people to Mars. this movie taught me that if they return they'll get in a time warp and end up on a post apocalyptic mutant run Earth. Maybe we've already sent astronauts there. 

August 12, 1975 "Karloff Special" Beast from Haunted Cave 1959 There are gold thieves. Lots of snow. And a giant spider, but not a Black Morning one. 

August 19, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "The Hungry Glass" 

Nightmare Castle 1965 Cuckold kills his wife and lover. He remarries but forgot to tell his new bride that he had kept the hearts of the wive and her lover. Uh oh! The best thing about this film is it has Barbara Steele in it. 

August 26, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "The Poisoner" 

War of the Satellites 1958 The United Nations mucks around with putting a satellite up into space unaware that they are in a Roger Corman film. 

September 2, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "Man in the Cage" 

Donovan's Brain 1953 Previously aired on September 18, 1971

September 9, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "The Merriweather File" 

Pharaoh's Curse 1957 Previously aired on December 18, 1971

September 16, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "The Fingers of Fear"

 The Night of the Hunter 1955 Previously aired on October 2, 1971

September 17, 1972 The Tennessean runs a photo of Sir Cecil Creape awarding a young man keys to a red VW Super Beetle. The keys are in a casket. 

September 23, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is  "Hay-Fork and Bill-Hook" 

Behind the Mask 1932 There are multiple films with this title, but I believe this one is correct since Boris Karloff is in it. There's narcotics, dead bodies, and coffins stuffed full of said narcotics.

September 30, 1972 "Karloff Special" Night of Terror 1933 Bela Lugosi. How does a seance sound to you? How about a haunted house? 

October 7, 1972 "Karloff Special" Return of the Vampire 1943 Bela Lugosi plays a vampire. There's a talking werewolf who, we presume, has nards. Pretty good atmospheric flick. 

October 14, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "The Terror in Teakwood" 

The Island of Lost Souls 1932 A mad doctor on an island experiments on people and animals creating gruesome hybrids except for the character of Lota the Panther Woman. This movie has Lugosi and Karloff so it's a must watch. 

October 21, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller was "Prisoner in the Mirror" 

The Beast with Five Fingers 1946 Previously aired on November 20, 1971

October 28, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "Pigeons from Hell" 

The Black Sleep 1956 Previously aired on September 25, 1971

October 30, 1972 This advertisement ran in the Tennessean. You could join Sir Cecil Creape every Monday from 5-8PM at Nanny's Cafeteria in the heart of Donelson. I wonder if his favorite dish featured blood sausages and lady fingers?

November 4, 1972 "Karloff Special" Cry of the Werewolf 1944 The movie's original tagline says it all: As a woman she wanted LOVE! As a werewolf she wanted BLOOD!

November 11, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "The Devil's Ticket" 

 Doctor Cyclops 1940 Title also seen as Dr. Cyclops but it should have been titled Dr. Shrinker.

November 18, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "The Grim Reaper" 

The Innocents 1961 Nowadays we might term this film an ASMR haunted house dark ride. Black and white films is really the best for horror.

November 25, 1972 "Karloff Special" The Black Room 1935 It's Abel and Cain all over again. 

December 2, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "The Ordeal of Dr. Cordell" 

The Monster and the Girl 1941 Brother tries to save sister from gangsters. He's framed for murder and goes to prison. A mad scientist transplants his brain into a gorilla. The brother then gets revenge. 

December 9, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is listed "Choose a Victim"

The Mad Doctor 1940 Basil Rathbone marries for money and murder!

December 16, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "Papa Benjamin"

Supernatural 1933 Carole Lombard plays an heiress possessed by a serial killing black widow. 

December 23, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "Late Date"

A Christmas Carol 1951 Previously aired December 25, 1971

December 20, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper"

The Fly 1958 If your teleportation device is not fly proof you could be in for a shock. 

That's all for 1972. Creature Feature would continue in 1973, but the halcyon days were waning. Stay tuned for the fourth and final installment on Sunday January 26. 

Creature Feature 1971-1973 What Did Sir Cecil Creape Show On WSM Channel 4 Nashville? Part Two

Well, I suppose it's appropriate that I have to do this post all over again. It was originally posted on January 22, but I decided to add some information and somehow deleted the entire thing. What a drag. That's going to push part three and four out. Part One can be found here. Let's continue the review of what movies were shown during the WSM Channel Four horror movie series Creature Feature which ran on Saturday nights at 10:30PM. The great Sir Cecil Creape hosted these shows and was often the main reason to tune in to the show. This list will have the first half of 1972. I've provided a short synopsis of each entry. If you want more information you can always go to IMDB, google it, or you can buy the forthcoming book by Larry Underwood AKA Dr. Gangrene all about Nashville horror movie hosts and the films they showed. 

January 1, 1972 King of the Zombies 1941 It's a requirement that doctors on islands be evil. This one is in control of a small army of zombies. 

January 8, 1972 Preempted by the UCLA vs Oregon basketball game

January 15, 1972 Atom Age Vampire 1960 There's an exotic dancer. A mad scientist. Glands from murdered women. But no vampire.

January 22, 1972 Battle of the Worlds 1961 There's an errant planet on a collision course with Earth. No, it's not Nibiru. It's called "The Outsider" and flying saucers attack from it. 

January 29, 1972 The Disembodied 1957 Jungles seem to always be full of voodoo cults. 

February 5, 1972 Preempted by the Winter Olympics

February 12, 1972 Preempted by the Winter Olympics

February 19, 1972 Godzilla 1954 Atomic radiation awakens a monster that takes it out on Japan. This is the American version, but this didn't matter to me as a child. One of my favorites of all time. 

February 26, 1972 House on Haunted Hill 1959 The fantastic Vincent Price shines in this haunted house thriller. The great director Willam Castle helms this spooky gimmick filled dark ride. 

March 4, 1972 The Last Man on Earth 1964 Vincent Price returns for another week on Creature Feature and this time he has the greatest immune system ever.

March 11, 1972 Preempted by the Cerebral Palsy Telethon

March 18, 1972 The listing is for Godzilla's Revenge, but the description is for Son of Godzilla 1967. I know if was a little orphan monster I'd be overjoyed to have Godzilla adopt me. 

March 25, 1972 Hands of a Stranger 1962 A concert pianist gets a hand transplant. But they came from a killer and we're not talking Jerry Lee Lewis. 

April 1, 1972 Rodan 1956 A giant turkey vulture menaces Japan. 

April 8, 1972 The Little Shop of Horrors 1960 A fable about a carnivorous plant which feasts on people. It's going to love Soylent Green. Feed me Seymour!

April 8 & 9, 1972 Sir Cecil Creape made an appearance at Woolco in Nashville. 

April 15, 1972 The Brain from Planet Arous 1957 An alien brain takes over a scientist's body so it can conquer Earth. You'd think an alien brain would have better things to do. 

April 22, 1972 From Hell It Came 1957 Groot runs amok! No, wait, it's a different tree. 

Sir Cecil Creape would appear on the cover of the April 23, 1972 Tennessean Sunday Showcase. He had become a bit of a sensation for Channel 4. Station management figured Creature Feature would attract an audience mainly of teenagers, but it turned out lots of us young Gen X children were being allowed to stay up late and watch too. 

April 29, 1972 The Man Without a Body 1957 A businessman who is dying of a brain tumor steals the head of Nostradamus from a crypt so it can be transplanted to his body. Nostradamus should have seen that coming. 

May 6, 1972 Not of this Earth 1957 An alien from the planet Davana uses a matter transporter to come to Earth. He needs blood to save his planet. How will it get it? 

May 13, 1972 Creature Feature gets expanded to run from 10:30PM to 1AM on Saturday nights. My first thought was that they were showing double features, but the second thing listed for this night wasn't a movie. This would be the case for a few weeks and then the television guide started putting in "Karloff Special" so from the dim recesses of my mind I remembered that Boris Karloff hosted the show Thriller. So you would get a movie and a Thriller episode each week on Creature Feature(s). If the Thriller episode is known I will provide a link to the IMBD entry. If you only see "Karloff Special" listed I wasn't able to find the name of that one. These would be run before the movie beginning in June before swapping to after the movie in March of 1973. 

May 13, 1972 The Premature Burial 1962 Roger Corman film based on Edgar Allan Poe. 

The episode of Thriller is "The Twisted Image"

May 19, 1972  Sir Cecil Creape would pay a visit to Mercury Plaza in Murfreesboro, Tennessee! Mercury Plaza was always putting on neat stuff. I rode an elephant there once. Saw a dolphin show. I met Bozo the Clown. I either missed this one completely or my folks conveniently didn't tell me. Or maybe I did go....memories are tricky things. 

May 20, 1972 This episode of Thriller is "Worse Than Murder" 

Attack of the 50 Foot Woman 1958 This one gets a bad review in the Showcase. It's not Village of the Giants, but it's still a pretty cool b movie. 

May 27, 1972 This episode of Thriller is "Man in the Middle" 

The Sorcerers 1967 Boris Karloff can hypnotize you and feel what you feel. Trippy man, trippy. 

June 3, 1972 "Karloff Special" This episode of Thriller is "The Mark of the Hand" 

The Giant Behemoth 1959 Atomic tests awaken a giant dinosaur. This one attacks London.

June 10, 1972 "Karloff Special" Indestructible Man 1956 Lon Chaney Jr. plays a brutal criminal who is put to death. However the Detective on the case wants to find out where Lon's character hid the stolen loot. So, he is brought back to life and becomes indestructible. 

June 17, 1972 "Karloff Special" The Wasp Woman 1959 The owner of a cosmetics firm wants to keep from aging so a scientist convinces her to take Zinthro which is made from wasp enzymes. She should have tried botox instead. 

June 24, 1972 "Karloff Special" Per Murfreesboro newspaper the Daily News Journal this episode of Thriller is  "Child's Play"  From Hell It Came 1957 previously aired on April 22, 1972 

We would start to see more repeats into the second half of 1972 and more in 1973. It was the nature of the business. Most stations didn't have Ted Turner type money so they could only buy the film libraries they could afford. I'm no expert on that era of television business, but I'm pretty sure they rented these movie packages for a set time. Very few people had the ability to record television video from home at this point. Movies and syndicated shows would get rerun often. This was fine with me since this was the only way you'd get the chance to see films you enjoyed again. They became like good friends that paid you visits. Stay tuned for part three tomorrow.