Ultra Swank - Retro Adventures

Film

Man’s Favorite Sport?
Written by Jesse Kowalski in Film

Man’s Favorite Sport?

Rock Hudson and Paula Prentiss star in Howard Hawks’ film Man’s Favorite Sport? (1964). This screwball comedy is a loose remake of Hawks’ earlier film hit Bringing Up Baby (1938), which starred Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn. The plot for this film is relatively complicated for a comedy. Rock stars as Roger Willoughby, a salesman at Abercrombie & Fitch – your grandfather’s Abercrombie & Fitch...

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians
Written by Jesse Kowalski in Film

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (1964) begins with a hastily prepared animation sequence set to the sonic stylings of children singing “Hooray for Santa Claus.” Once the songs ends, we are told by the newscaster for KID-TV that they have sent a news crew to the North Pole to interview Santa Claus. I got excited upon hearing this news, only to find out in the...

Tickle Me – That time Elvis Battles a Ninja

What do a dude ranch, a hidden treasure, and an Elvis-battling ninja have in common? Tickle Me! Elvis Presley’s 18th studio film takes us to a dude ranch in the American Southwest where Elvis is helping out. Like many men his age, he wants to earn enough dough so that he can join the rodeo circuit. However, his plans are quickly forgotten when he meets...

Halloween Special
Written by Jesse Kowalski in Film

Halloween Special

Being a big fan of horror films and organ music, I present my film suggestions for your Halloween viewing pleasure. Carnival of Souls (1962) Carnival of Souls features young Mary Henry as a wayward organist. Mary doesn’t fit in well with her congregation, so she drives aimlessly from her home in Kansas to the Western United States. On the way to nowhere, she has visions...

A Tribute to Dudley Moore
Written by Jesse Kowalski in Film

A Tribute to Dudley Moore

My introduction to Dudley Moore was with the 1978 film “Foul Play”. The film starred Chevy Chase and Goldie Hawn in a well-written homage to Hitchcock and featured a dwarf, an albino, a kung-fu fighting Burgess Meredith (The Penguin in Batman), and a papal assassination. But the hero of the film, at least to this pubescent boy, was Dudley Moore as Stanley Tibbets. Stanley is...

Thoughts on Raquel
Written by Jesse Kowalski in Film

Thoughts on Raquel

All you need to know is “Raquel!” stars Raquel Welch and was “filmed on location in London, Paris, Acapulco, Mexico City, Big Sur, Sun Valley, Yucatan, and Los Angeles!” She sings. She dances. And Bob Mackie designed the costumes. Prepare yourself to step into a time capsule that is so quintessentially 1970. “Raquel!” starts off with Raquel singing “Games People Play” during the opening credits...

Video
Written by Christopher in Film

An Homage to Louis Armstrong

Shot by Academy Award-winning cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond as a modern re-imagining of early silent film, LOUIS is an homage to Louis Armstrong, Charlie Chaplin, beautiful women and the birth of American music. The grand Storyville bordellos, alleys and cemeteries of 1907 New Orleans provide a backdrop of lust, blood and magic for 6 year old Louis (Anthony Coleman) as he navigates the colorful intricacies of...

Get all the goods straight to your inbox