Herschell Gordon Lewis, Godfather of Gore

Without a big budget, special effects team, or professional actors and crew members, Herschell Gordon Lewis created films that he himself admits were trash. Yet, while Gordon’s softcore porn (The Adventures of Lucky Pierre) and heavy-duty gore (The Gruesome Twosome) were never blockbuster films, they were popular drive-in fare in the sixties and seventies. They have had a strong influence over more recent productions, and they have created for Lewis his own special niche in the world of exploitation and horror film. The history of Lewis the man and the filmmaker is a surprising one. Behind titles like Blood Feast and The Gore-Gore Girls is a warm and friendly gentleman whose road to his own brand of film glory was paved with disappointments, surprising successes, and lots and lots of fake blood. His career is examined in detail, with personal anecdotes and insights into making really gross movies on really small budgets. A filmography is included, and photographs, many of them rare, complement the text.

The late Randy Palmer has written for Fangoria, Cinefantastique and other genre magazines, and was also the author of Paul Blaisdell, Monster Maker (1997, “tremendous”—Fangoria). He lived in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Randy Palmer
Forewords by Herschell Gordon Lewis ; and David F. Friedman
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 203
Bibliographic Info: 46 photos, filmography, index
Copyright Date: 2006 [2000]
pISBN: 978-0-7864-2850-2
eISBN: 978-1-4766-0464-0
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments      vii

Foreword by Herschell Gordon Lewis      1

Foreword by David F. Friedman      3

Preface      5

1. A Scar Is Born      7

2. Sexploitation Ain’t No Dirty Word      11

3. Primed for Profit      15

4. Lucky Strikes      21

5. Sin ’n’ Skin      27

6. A Slip of the Tongue      38

7. How Did It Play in Peoria?      60

8. A Little Southern Hospitality Never Hurt Anyone … Much      66

9. Canvassing for Corpuscles      83

10. Moonshine Monsters      97

11. 100 Percent Weird      104

12. Whatever Flips Your Wig      109

13. Sex-O-Rama      116

14. Gouts of Blood      121

15. Hellraiser      132

16. California Cowpoke      141

17. Here Comes Mr. Wizard      144

18. What a Bunch of Yahoos!      157

19. Gore Smorgasbord      160

20. Life After Gore      172

Filmography      183

Index      187

“detailed, well-referenced biography”—Booklist; “an impressive performance”—Video Watchdog; “an extremely enjoyable portrait of [Lewis’] wild film career”—Shock Cinema; “a sharp, entertaining read…an excellent document of Lewis’ career…filled with amusing anecdotes…a welcome addition”—Crimson Celluloid; “a highly readable study”—Brutarian Quarterly.