The King is Dead- Long Live "The Son of Kong"- Tonight!

We are very happy to have something special for you tonight on MeTV- the sequel to one of the biggest monster movies of all time (with one of the biggest monsters!) in which we discover that the infamous giant ape has left behind an offspring! The man who brought the original Kong to civilization now encounters- “the Son of Kong”!

This movie begins just a few weeks after the original film ended- with brash film-maker and showman Carl Denham taking plenty of heat for the awful destruction the mighty Kong inflicted on New York City. Dead broke and hounded by creditors and the media, Denham reunites with the boat captain who had taken him to Kong’s island- who is also feeling the wrath of the city! Captain Englehorn knows that it’s only a matter of time before he will be under siege by the law, just like Denham- and suggests the two of them sail away from all this turmoil, and make a living shipping cargo to foreign ports.

Away they go, with a motley crew on board, including the Chinese cook Charlie who had also accompanied them on the original Kong quest. They struggle along, not making much money, and stop at the port of Dakang in the Orient. Looking for some entertainment, Denham and the Captain attend a small bizarre show featuring performing animals and a cute young songstress that Denham thinks might have “something”- to which the captain remarks “it isn’t talent”!

The girl, Hilda (billed as “Helene”), is actually the daughter of the small-time showman who runs the show. That night, father Petersen is drinking – far too much- with a ne’er-do-well sailor named Helstrom-  and the evening ends in disaster caused by Helstrom- leaving the show destroyed and Hilda alone.

In an odd coincidence, Denham and his captain are in a dive bar and happen upon Helstrom- who actually is the guy who originally gave Denham the map that lead to Kong’s island that enabled his original trip. Helstrom feels Denham owes him for that- and, after dropping the hint that there is still a vast treasure on the island, talks the two into setting sail for the foreboding isle one more time, in hopes of discovering the riches hidden there!

Things get complicated along the way- with the discovery that Hilda, who had nothing left for her in Dakang, has stowed away on board- and she is ready to spill the beans about Hellstrom’s foul acts regarding her father and the show. Hellstrom threatens her into keeping quiet- and begins to work the crew into a mutinous state!

This all results in Denham and his few sympathizers thrown off the ship- only to find their way to Kong’s island ( also known as Skull Island, though I don’t think we hear anybody call it that) for a brief run-in with a few of the natives they had previously met- and new encounters with prehistoric beasts – and, of course- the Son of Kong!

After the success of “King Kong”, this film was rushed into production, coming out in the same year. With a smaller budget (and a smaller ape!) and realizing they could never surpass the original, they went in a different direction with more humor regarding their star simian. There is still impressive stop-motion animation created by Willis O’Brien- and Robert Armstrong is always amusing as the brassy Denham. We’ll talk about details of the production, the cast, and more- including some extra Sven material, since the movie is a little shorter than most we run. You’ll see some highlights of our trip to the New York Comic Con, which we hit last fall to promote the “Svengoolie Meets the DC Universe” comics. We’ll have more from that trip in future shows.

“The Son of Kong” premieres on our MeTV show tonight at 8 pm eastern/pacific, 7 central- to confirm the time and channel where you are, please check your local listings, or go to www.metv.com ! Thousands of fans are live-Tweeting during our show on Twitter – bringing us into the top trending topics pretty much every week- and you’re invited to join in, using the hashtag #svengoolie  ! Chicago viewing area fans get an encore of  Don Knott’s “The Ghost and Mr. Chicken” (which, as always, brought us a huge rating last Saturday night) but, at a special EARLIER time on the U, due to sports programming. You can catch us at 9 am- making it a sort of breakfast with Ghost Toasties!

Thanks to all our friends who came to Pet Supplies Plus in Berwyn last weekend- we had an incredible turn-out and appreciate the wonderful staff there for helping make the event a big success! Next up- the C2E2 convention at the end of the month!

The Rondo Awards nominations are out- and, once again, I am nominated as favorite horror host among a particularly wide field this year! I was also honored to see that, among the nominations for top event of 2019 is the city of Chicago honoring me on my 40^th anniversary. The Rondos- national awards for horror and science fiction in various media, winners completely chosen by the fans- are truly the voice of the those fans, indicating what their favorites are in these areas. Please vote for YOUR true favorites- in as few or as many categories as you wish- and READ and FOLLOW all the rules, or your vote will not count. That includes voting only once! You can get the ballot and information at www.rondoaward.com

Tonight-  we invite you to come along- for “The Son of Kong”!