"Lucy Harbin Took an Axe"...But Is She Back to Taking Whacks? Put On the "Strait-Jacket" Tonight!

Tonight, it’s more William Castle murder and mayhem with Joan Crawford trying to start a new life for herself- and reunite with her daughter- after she is released from a psychiatric asylum. Questions arise about whether or not she has recovered- when she finds herself “seeing” bizarre things- and axe murders abound! Be ready to settle into a comfy garment with sleeves that strap you in- as we try on, for size, the 1964 chiller- “Strait-Jacket”!

We learn the past history of Lucy Harbin – who caught her hubby with a floozy- and gave them the axe until she felt woozy!  This axe-slinging “crime of passion” put her away for twenty years in a psychiatric hospital. Now, with doctors okaying her final release, she returns home- to the farm of her brother and his wife, the couple who adopted Lucy’s daughter Carol when she was sent away. Carol was three years old when she was an eyewitness to the savage murders- but now has grown into a young adult and an aspiring artist, complete with a wealthy young fiance named Michael. Reunited with her mother, Carol thinks it would help Lucy if she returns to the way she was twenty years ago, before the “incidents”. Lucy wants nothing more than to rebuild her relationship with Carol, but the past is hard to forget-especially when she sees axes and has visions of decapitated heads1

Carol takes Lucy on a shopping and beauty spree- thinking that returning to her former self will help her re-enter society. Recapturing her past may not be the best tactic- especially when she is due to meet Carol’s intended- and grey-haired Lucy reverts to her old self big-time- with dark wig, new dresses and jewelry, and begins to play the vamp-even flirting with Michael. A further meeting with the future in-laws turns out to be a disaster, thanks to Lucy. Her return to society appears to include the return of murder! Has trying to be like she used to be truly restored  Lucy to her old axe- murderer persona?

This film, written by “Psycho” author Robert Bloch, was originally slated to star other actresses- but the first choice for Lucy, Grayson Hall, opted to instead return to stage work. Next up was Joan Blondell , but she suffered an injury at home before shooting started, and William Castle asked Crawford to step in. She agreed, but only if certain stipulations were met- and we’ll fill you in on what her demands were. We’ll also acquaint you with the cast, which includes a future TV hero in his first screen role, and a familiar actor from “Cool Hand Luke” and all four “Airport” movies. And, yes, we’ll explain the presence of a load of Pepsi Cola products (and no wire hangers, of course) in the film! We’ll even encore the song we originally did for this film when we first showed it several years ago.

“Strait- Jacket” will  welcome you with open- or maybe strapped- arms tonight at 8 pm eastern/pacific, 7 central- and if you are unsure of what time we are on or where to find MeTV where you are, please check the local listings or go to www.metv.com . We continue to trend nationally on Twitter during the program, thanks to all the fans live-Tweeting along with the show using the hashtag #svengoolie and MeTV encourages you to join in! For Chicago viewers, there’s one more white- eyed  look at the creepy “Village of the Damned” at 11 am on MeTV.

Speaking of which- for those in the Chicago area who catch our show on WCIU- with the change of 26.1 to CW26- featuring the CW ‘s slate of shows- be aware that the U is moving- and I’ll be moving with it! Starting on September 7^th, the U will be found over the air ( with an antenna) on 48.1 and 26.2  . If you watch on cable, Comcast will have the U on 230 ( some suburban areas may have a different channel allocation)- RCN will have it at 610- and WOW will have the U at 170. You’ll find us on Dish on channel 48, as well as on other providers. Please note- this is ONLY for viewers of the U  in Chicago- everywhere, we are still on MeTV Saturday nights at the usual time!

And, if you’re around that Chicago area, this afternoon, you can meet me at the big Route 66 event in Berwyn! I’ll be there from 2 to 4 pm, signing autographs and taking photos, with a limited stock of Sven merchandise for sale. You can see the classic cars, enjoy music , and more right at the site where the famed “mother road” begins!  Click on the “appearances” tab here on our site for full details!

Be with us tonight for a William Castle-brand nightmare that’s truly “cutting-edge”!