Off the shelf & on the move...

William Ragsdale DVD alert! The long out-of-print "Mannequin Two: On The Move" finally makes it's DVD debut.

Announcing the newly-released double feature of "Mannequin" & "Mannequin Two: On The Move" from MGM Home Entertainment. This is the first official DVD release of "Mannequin Two" and it's only available in this set. ("Mannequin" first issued on DVD in 2001.)

Retailing at an average of $9.99, this 2-disc set incorporates the same exact double-sided DVD for "Mannequin" (boasting both 1.85:1 widescreen and full screen transfers + the theatrical trailer) from the previous release, along with a second disc devoted to the sequel. "Mannequin Two" sports a fine 1.85:1 (16:9 enhanced) transfer (with 2-channel Dolby Surround) which, in my opinion, beats all former incarnations. Beyond that, unfortunately, the disc contains no supplemental features.

"Mannequin On The Move," as titled in the opening credits, debuted theatrically in 1991 and stars Ragsdale and Kristy Swanson (the original "Buffy, The Vampire Slayer") in the lead roles. Co-starring Terry Kiser (Bernie Lomax from "Weekend At Bernie's"), Stuart Pankin (Dudley Laywicker from "The Hollywood Knights") and Meshach Taylor reprising his role from the original as 'Hollywood' Montrose. Produced and co-written by Edward Rugoff (he also co-penned the 1987 predecessor) and directed by Stewart Raffill ("High Risk," "The Ice Pirates," "The Philadelphia Experiment" and a slew of those "Wilderness Family" epics from the mid-1970s).

Since it's not included on the DVD, the film's theatrical trailer can be found on various LIVE Home Video VHS releases, circa late '91 to early '92. Of course, if you're a fan of "Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker," you should already know this! ACK!

He's a good man in a bad time...

Whatever happened to Nick Savage?

It takes a seriously over-confident chap to challenge the likes of both Jerry Dandrige AND Jason Voorhees! Enter character actor Nick Savage, a man who was certainly up for the task! I remember first seeing "Fright Night" and saying "Hey, that's the dude from 'Friday The 13th, Part III' and he still hasn't learned his lesson!"

In the third-dimensional "Friday" entry, Savage portrayed a vengeful biker named 'Ali' who presumably met his demise early in the film only to return during the finale, seemingly out of nowhere, extremely pissing Jason (Richard Brooker) off. The result of which was Ali's true demise, caused by an acute case of severed hand followed by a terminal case of quick death.

Fast forward to 1985 and Savage is back as 'Bouncer #1' in Tom Holland's "Fright Night". Of course, when he attempts to mess with Jerry Dandrige (Chris Sarandon), 'Bouncer #1' immediately regrets the decision and nearly does a #2 in his pants at the sight of this vamped-out gate crasher.

The Nick Savage Factor (as I've deemed it) is something I've always been intrigued with and it's definitely a relief to finally document the issue.

Where for art thou, Nick Savage?!
You can come out of hiding.
The coast is clear.
The boogeymen are all gone.

Or, are they?
[Insert sinister maniacal laughter here!]

A frightful reunion revisited...

On March 7, 8 & 9th, Texas Fear Fest hosted the first-ever "Fright Night" reunion, featuring cast members and filmmakers from both films. Tom Holland, Chris Sarandon, William Ragsdale, Amanda Bearse, Stephen Geoffreys, Jonathan Stark, Julie Carmen and Tommy Lee Wallace were all in attendance.

Thanks to the fine folks at IconsOfFright.com, a complete transcription of the Q&A panel (moderated by Robg) has been made available. Video clips are also included!

http://www.iconsoffright.com/IV_FrightNight.htm

Special thanks to Robg for the heads up on this!

Excellent work, M8!

Upcoming transmissions...

Encore is airing a few showings of "Fright Night" throughout the month of April on both it's main channel and it's Mystery channel. ENCORE: April 11th/12th @ 1:30 am (12:30 am central) and April 29th/30th @ 12:40 am (11:40 PM central) . ENCORE MYSTERY: April 6th @ 11:15 am (10:15 am central) & 6:10 PM (5:10 PM central); April 15th @ 1PM (12PM central) & 9:30 PM (8:30 PM central); April 19th @ 12:50 PM (11:30 am central) & 10PM (9PM central); April 23rd @ 8PM (7PM central); April 23rd/24th @ 3am (2am central).

Unfortunately, this is the pan & scan version, but hey, it's "Fright Night"!