[This was my follow-up to "Noir-ish Stragglers of the Late Period." I started to do more IMDB and Google research, and it turned up some interesting material to say the least...]
Charles Rondeau (The Threat) -- Became mainly a television director, as Don Malcolm noted. Has one other perhaps somewhat noir-ish piece to his credit, The Girl in Lover's Lane (1959), a "troubled youth" film with apparent homoerotic elements, that was actually riffed during the Joel Hodgson years of Mystery Science Theater 3000. Rondeau's last theatrical release was the musical Train Ride to Hollywood (1975), made for Tom Laughlin's Billy Jack Productions (!), described thus at IMDB (I'm not making this up):
"Harry Williams, member of the rhythm & blues band, Bloodstone, is about to go onstage for a concert when he is hit on the head. The rest that follows is his dream. The four band members become conductors on a train filled with characters and (impersonated) actors from the 1930s, such as W.C. Fields, Dracula, and Scarlett O'Hara. Various songs are featured. The singing conductors are obliged to solve a mystery; Marlon Brando is murdering Nelson Eddy, Jeanette McDonald and others by suffocating them in his armpits. A wacky funeral, a fight with a gorilla, and the threat of being turned into a wax museum figure are all part of Harry's dream."
Leon Chooluck (Three Blondes in His Life) -- Only had the one theatrical feature, although he directed eps of the TV series Lock Up (which sounds interesting) and Highway Patrol. A frequent assistant director, production manager, and producer.
Bill Karn (Door-to-Door Maniac) -- Associated with the television series "Gang Busters"; also directed the theatrical feature Ma Barker's Killer Brood (1960), which sounds extremely sub-Untouchables. Died young at 53, in 1966.
Leslie Stevens (Private Property) -- Active as a producer (The Outer Limits), writer, and director. Infamously wrote and directed the William Shatner horror feature in Esperanto, Incubus (1965). Also responsible for this intriguing-sounding Fanfare for a Death Scene (1964), which like Robert Altman's very noir-ish Nightmare in Chicago (1964), aired first on Kraft Suspense Theatre before being released theatrically in a longer version.
Fredric Gadette (This Is Not a Test) -- Not a clue.
Joseph Cates (Who Killed Teddy Bear) -- Active in television producing for many years, and related to many others in the industry (Phoebe Cates [daughter], Gilbert Cates [brother], Kevin Kline [son-in-law]). His other "live" credit for our purposes is the 1960 Girl of the Night, which sounds like a genuine precursor to Klute:
"This film tells the story of a girl (Anne Francis) who becomes a high priced call girl. She is exploited by her madam (Kay Medford) until she finds a tough yet caring therapist (Lloyd Nolan) and straightens herself out."
Gene Milford (The Pusher) -- Long-time editor with just the one directing credit.
William Hale (Lonnie) -- Prominent television director for many years. No other noir-ish theatrical features, but his 1967 Western Journey to Shiloh is interesting for its then-young talent: James Caan, Jan-Michael Vincent, Harrison Ford, Michael Sarrazin.
Edward Mann (Hothead) -- There is more than one Edward Mann; both are interesting in our context. One Edward Mann, born in 1912, was a long-time editor like Gene Milford who is credited with directing Hothead and the also noir-ish Scandal Incorporated (1956), as well as eps of the early 1950s Dan Duryea TV series China Smith. Another Edward Mann (1922-1995) was primarily a writer (one of his credits is the screenplay for the Stacy Keach version of The Killer Inside Me; another is Oliver Stone's Seizure). He also directed several features, including the memorably titled Hot Pants Holiday (1972).
Milton Mann, presumably the son or brother of the first Edward Mann, wrote and produced Scandal Incorporated and Hothead for him. He also co-wrote and co-directed -- catch this -- a 1963 South Korean feature starring Jock Mahoney, apparently called Marine Battleground in its no-doubt microscopic American release.
This stuff just gets weirder and weirder. And I'm by no means done; in fact (teaser!), I'm working on a list of obscurities that will make my first group look as well-known as The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.
Breakfast is being served
3 years ago
