Arm in Arm (and Arm and Arm and...) with Harryhausen- "it Came from Beneath the Sea" Tonight!

Tonight on MeTV- there’s big trouble surfacing from the deep blue sea- that can’t wait to get its arms around the general populace! It’s an early showcase for the amazing stop-action artistry of Ray Harryhausen , as San Francisco becomes the target of a giant creature- in case you were wondering- “It Came From Beneath the Sea”!

This 1955 science fiction classic begins with a nuclear submarine out on maneuvers in the Pacific Ocean- when  it appears to be rammed by something, leaving it somewhat disabled but still managing to limp back to Pearl Harbor. Inspecting the sub’s dive planes, they find something disturbing- tissue from some sort of living creature! Commander Pete Matthews is stunned by this discovery- and experts are sent for, to try and identify what exactly the tissue cane from.

Two marine biologists, John Carter and Lesley Joyce, start research- and their findings indicate that the tissue comes from an octopus- and a really big one, at that! This is not well-received by the authorities, who think that conclusion is ridiculous- until there are more losses of ships and people. Our scientists are postulating that the octopus has come from a deep area where there has been hydrogen bomb testing ( a familiar theme in ‘50s and ‘60s sci-fi films). Once again, the military authorities join Commander Matthews in thinking this is preposterous- even as there are more fatalities.

Finally, when there survivors of one of the attacks, only one of them  will tell what he saw- the others are silent after seeing the reactions of the big shots. Lesley uses her formidable feminine wiles to get the one man to repeat his story- and the authorities believe it- at last! Warnings are sent to the shipping lanes, while there is more investigation of missing ships in the north Pacific- and missing swimmers off the coast of the Pacific Northwest… you don’t think it’s coming closer…do you?

When frightening proof of the giant octopus occurs in Oregon, naval headquarters springs into action, putting mines in the surrounding ocean, and adding an electrified net at the mouth of San Francisco Bay. They even electrify the Golden Gate Bridge- but the electric shocks only aggravate the powerful sea monster, and soon it begins a destructive attack on the City by the Bay!

We’ll fill you in on lots of production details of this film( including why the creature isn’t really an OCTO-pus),  as well as introducing you to the cast, which includes Kenneth Tobey, Donald Curtis, and the lovely Faith Domergue. Plus- a song familiar to fans of old TV, an interview with an old ( and I mean OLD) submarine commander, and a product you might get stuck on- or, it might get stuck on YOU!

“It Came From Beneath the Sea” surfaces tonight at 8 pm eastern/pacific, 7 central, and, if you need to check the time and channel in your area- please look at your local listings or at www.metv.com . Last week, the show again was trending nationally on Twitter ( we again hit number one in the USA!) so, feel free to join the fans live-Tweeting during the show using the hashtag #svengoolie  ! During the daytime in the Chicago area, viewers will see an encore of “The Black Cat” at 11 am on our sister station, WCIU.

We got some big news- at the C2E2 comics and entertainment convention later this month, along with my signings and shooting segments for our show- I’ll be doing a live event on-stage on the main floor, that they are calling “Svengoolie 40^th Anniversary Fun  Live!” at 4: 30 pm on Saturday, March23rd! We’ll post info under “appearances” here on our site shortly. It’s also looking like, coming up, some very amazing things might be happening related to my 40 years as the Svengoolie character - we’ll reveal them as soon as we are allowed!

As we mentioned last weekend, the balloting information for this year’s Rondo Awards is now up at www.rondoaward.com  I’m flattered to again be nominated in category 21-“favorite horror host”- among a rather crowded field of hosts- as always, I encourage you to vote for whoever your favorite really is- and, again, follow all rules, so your vote will count!

We’re also proud to announce that the latest Sven action figure ( actually ,FIGURES, the 4 pack of Sven and the Monsters) completely sold out in about a week’s time. Thanks for your support!

Please join us tonight for a Harryhausen creature who’s armed – and dangerous! And- if you’re in an area where it applies- set your clocks back!