Save the First Dance of February for "Ants!"

We start a month of new-to-our-show movies- featuring bugs and beauties- of which you’ll find both in tonight’s feature- which pits  a construction crew, the staff and guests of a resort hotel, and  a scheming businessman  against thousands of  sinister six-leggers- we warn you in advance- we’ve got “Ants!”

This 1977 made-for TV movie- originally titled “It Happened at Lakewood Manor”  ( a much more vague title than one that screams “Ants!”)  begins with  a construction project going on  beside the charming and dated Lakewood Manor resort hotel. A couple of workers in the big construction pit are horrified to find themselves set upon by a bunch of nasty ants- but end up buried alive by a freak accident!

Meanwhile, a real estate entrepreneur of questionable morals is headed to the resort area, with his blonde assistant who appears to have more scruples than her boss.  The slimy Mr. Fleming wants to force out the elderly owner of the Lakewood, Mrs. Adams, while acting like he’s doing this in her best interest- with the hidden intention of tearing it down and building a fancy new showplace of a hotel/casino !

At the scene of the construction accident, foreman Mike (who’s in a relationship with Mrs. Adams’ lovely daughter Val) and his co-worker Vince have found their buried co-workers- and are shocked to find out from the doctor who examined them that they died of-  poisoning!

Fleming keeps trying to get a meeting with Mrs. Adams, and Val, worried about her aging mother, tries to set it up, feeling that it will take a lot of pressure off her mom- but the elderly owner wants everything to stay as its been for so many years.

Meanwhile, hotel employee Richard finds himself attracted to a wandering young woman who just wants a place to take a shower and relax- never realizing that she’s entering a place that soon will be in great danger!

This becomes evident when there are more mysterious poisonings- and the Board of Health sends a couple representatives who , fearful that a virus is to blame, want to shut the place down- ignoring what Mike and Vince have discovered- that there is a huge colony of deadly ants at work- and that they are infiltrating the hotel! Will they finally be convinced- before the hotel will be a deathtrap of swarming  poisonous ants?

This movie is full of familiar faces- from Suzanne Sommers and Lynda Day George to Robert Foxworth , Bernie Casey, and even big name Hollywood star Myrna Loy in her final role! We’ll  tell you about the cast, and bring the usual Sven humor you ANT-icipate- including a twist on an old kids’ favorite and a new song!

“Ants!” will infest your TV tonight on MeTV at 8 pm eastern/pacific, 7 central, or-check local listings, or at www.metv.com .  There’s been a change in the channel for MeTV in the St. Louis area- we’re now on KNLC – 24.1 over the air- and , on Dish, DirecTV, and Spectrum on channel 24. Don’t forget, our new Los Angeles homes are -KAZA 54.1 and KDOC 56.3 over the air, and, for Dish/DirecTV viewers – turn to ch. 54. Cable listings vary by community. Meanwhile, in Seattle- catch MeTV on  44.1 and 12.3 ; DirecTV and Dish are channel 45 ; and , on Comcast, we’re on either 15,21, or 117, depending in which area you live. MeTV once again invites you to live –Tweet during the film with the hordes of fans who do so every week- just use the #svengoolie – we end up trending  high just about every week!

Back in the Chicago area, viewers get to experience (?) “Godzilla’s Revenge” on WCIU, the U at 11 am.

Have you experienced everything on our new website here? Feel free to check it out, including the new FAQ- frequently asked questions- section.

Prepare your picnic for tonight on MeTV- just be ready for a LOT of little visitors!