Just like last week’s film, this week’s movie was delayed by scheduling confusion- but tonight, we finally air the final part of the Universal Gill Man trilogy! The conclusion to the saga of this strange missing link takes him several steps further on the evolutionary scale- as the aquatic terror unwillingly becomes an air-breathing denizen that dwells on land in "The Creature Walks Among Us"!

As if we aren’t exposed to enough headstrong wealthy people in real life, our story opens with just such a couple -Dr. William Barton and his lovely wife Marcia. They’re headed to the docks, where they meet up with a team they’ve assembled aboard their boat. It seems Barton has heard tales of the Gill Man surviving his supposed demise down in the Everglades- and has put together this team to see if the Creature is alive- and can be captured! Among his crew- geneticist Tom Morgan, a couple biologists, and an arrogant young guide named Jed . They set out to track down the Gill Man, with onboard tensions already rising- Mrs. Barton is unhappy with her abusive and somewhat maniacal husband- and is having to combat the unwanted advances of Jed. That, and some fundamental disagreements on the aims of capturing the Creature, create an uneasy atmosphere that can only get worse!

The pursuit of the Gill Man leads  to some underwater exploration- not to mention the opportunity for  Marcia to take a swim in a ( most likely) Creature- approved white bathing suit. Their search leads them into some extremely shallow waters- necessitating them heading out in a smaller boat, only to be confronted by the Creature itself! Accidentally, as they fight him off- the Gill Man becomes severely burned- with his gills so badly singed, they are completely destroyed- leaving him  suffocating!  When x-rays show that, among his internal organs,he actually has a back-up set of lungs- the decision is made to operate on him- in order  to allow him to use the lungs to breathe. Through skill and a lot of luck, they pull it off and save the Creature- leaving him confused- he no longer has the ability to breathe underwater as he always has in the past! However, in actuality , this falls into place with  why Barton wanted to find the Creature in the first place- to prove his  theory that evolution can occur on an individual basis!

As the Gill Man recovers on board, he finds himself attracted to Marcia ( as is his nature, based on the first two parts of the saga)- meanwhile, on the human side, Jed keeps forcing his attentions on her, causing more conflict.  Upon arrival back in the U.S., Barton has the Gill Man brought to his sprawling rural compound near San Francisco- where the Creature tries to cope with being a land animal, and  co-existence with other land creatures- including the humans. He is exposed to the fact that there is great cruelty in this brave new landlocked world. Is the Gill Man evolving-  is he still a danger to those around him-  and does his original hatred of the humans who once dared to invade his underwater world  become more focused after exposure to some degenerate human beings?

This 1956 "final chapter" in the trilogy features a cast of familiar faces ( including  a couple we’ve seen in “This Island Earth”, as well as one that's under the Creature mask, whose name we know from the previous films)- we'll introduce you to them and bring you some additional Creature capers, including a parody of long-running one-man show, plus, a new song with a visiting soloist!

"The Creature Walks Among Us" walks onto the Me-TV airwaves tonight at 8pm eastern/pacific, 7 pm central, or, check your local listings (you can also check for station and time  at www.metv.com ) -  you’re invited to live-Tweet along with other fans during the show on twitter- just use the hashtag  #svengoolie  ! Chicago viewers can refresh their memories of the previous part of the Gill Man trilogy on WCIU at 11 am with "Revenge of the Creature"- and , be aware that we have secured rights to the very first part- the original “Creature from the Black Lagoon”- later this year.

Our October Halloween tour kicks off next weekend, with an appearance at the Drury Lane Theatre’s presentation of the musical “Little Shop of Horrors”- and- yes- my return to the famed Berwyn “Houby Parade”! You’ll find info under the “appearances” tab on this site- and- even more in the Sven newsletter that comes out Monday. Additional information will be posted shortly here on our site.

Tonight- don’t judge a Gill Man until you walk a mile in his flippers- and discover what being a landlubber is all about!

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