Awesome!
Monday, April 6, 2015
The Baker Street Universe dares you to enter its world!
Don't forget to check out my Baker Street Universe. It's collecting lots of cool articles and stories. All about Sherlock Holmes and a myriad of other fantasy and science fiction heroes and authors.
I update the blog once a week with new factual as well as fictional material. Take a leap into the world of Arthur Conan Doyle, the author and the hero. Tremble in fear of Doctor Jekyll's Hyde, written by Robert Louis Stephenson, but be afraid, very afraid of the Baker Street Universe Hyde, a creature of pure evil and energy that sucks the life from its victims.
I update the blog once a week with new factual as well as fictional material. Take a leap into the world of Arthur Conan Doyle, the author and the hero. Tremble in fear of Doctor Jekyll's Hyde, written by Robert Louis Stephenson, but be afraid, very afraid of the Baker Street Universe Hyde, a creature of pure evil and energy that sucks the life from its victims.
Rocketman Two Trailer for my Rocketman adventure series.
Rocketman was written with the idea of showing what could happen if someone like Hitler had won the World War Two, and what he might have done to the citizens of the world had they remained apathetic and let him continue to run over them.
Evil men, sometimes not so much evil as ambitious, will do anything to win, and sometimes what they do turns out to be evil.
What manner of evil would flourish in a world where the United States and Britain had been vanquished by nuclear weapons during World War Two, instead of them stopping the Nazis for their quest for power and world domination.
World War Two was lost in 1945 to the 3rd Reich. A select few had fled underground to bases hidden in Switzerland to keep on fighting the tyranny and horror of Hitler and his minions.
Rocketman: Betwen Two Worlds depicts some of that fight and how the courageous few keep the war against the Nazis alive, even in the face of overwhelming odds.
Purchase it now at Amazon. Rocketman: Between Two Worlds!
The Invisible Ray starring Bela Lugosi
When I was a child Boris Karloff, Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, Bela Lugosi played all the big horror roles, and with panish and style way beyond what many movies demonstrate these days. They chewed their roles up, delivering chills and thrills that gave quite a few tykes like myself delicious nightmares for years and years.
Here's just one of those horror movies that rocked my world. The Invisible Ray.
Enjoy
John
From Wikipedia
A visionary doctor, Dr. Janos Rukh (Boris Karloff) invents a telescope that can look far out into space — into the Andromeda Galaxy — and pick up rays of light that will show the Earth's past. Looking at the past on a planetarium-like dome in his lab, a group of assembled scientists as well as Dr. Rukh see a large meteor hit the earth thousands of years ago. Amazed by the demonstration, Rukh is invited by the group to go on an expedition to find the meteor that appeared to land in Africa. While in Africa, Rukh finds the meteor but is exposed to strong radiation ("Radium X") from the rock, which makes his touch death on the spot, and Dr. Benet (Bela Lugosi) develops a serum that holds this effect at bay, and takes a piece of the stone back to Europe and uses it to heal people, including curing the blind. Rukh, suffering from the radiation, glows at night when not treated, and is slowly losing his mind.
The situation is complicated by the romantic relationship between his wife, Diana (Frances Drake) and Ronald Drake (Frank Lawton) - the nephew of Lady Arabella Stevens (Beulah Bondi), who was part of the African expedition. Crazed with a desire for revenge, Rukh follows his enemies to Paris. There he fakes his own death, upon which Ronald and Diana marry. Rukh then uses the toxic radiation poisoning imparted to him by Radium X exposure to kill off the members of the expedition. He saves Ronald and Diana for last, but finds himself unable to kill his wife.
Rukh's hesitation brings him close to the point where the radiation poisoning will become fatal to himself. He had been able to stave off the terminal stage by taking the antidote developed by Dr. Benet, but Rukh's blind mother (who had foreseen her son's undoing, and had her blindness healed by the meteor) smashes the antidote bottle, and he bursts into flames as he jumps out a window.
Cast
- Boris Karloff as Dr. Janos Rukh (billed as KARLOFF)
- Béla Lugosi as Dr. Felix Benet
- Frances Drake as Diana Rukh
- Frank Lawton as Ronald Drake
- Violet Kemble Cooper as Mother Rukh
- Walter Kingsford as Sir Francis Stevens
- Beulah Bondi as Lady Arabella Stevens
- Frank Reicher as Professor Meiklejohn
- Paul Weigel as Monsieur Noyer
- Georges Renavent as Chief of the Sûreté (as Georges Renevant)
Production
The film was originally budgeted at $166,785 but went $68,000 over budget.[2]Soundtrack
The film features music by film composer Franz Waxman. Many of the sets and sound effects were later used in the Flash Gordon movie serials.See also
References
- Stephen Jacobs, Boris Karloff: More Than a Monster, Tomohawk Press 2011 p 189
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Invisible Ray. |
Case of the Stern Staircase "A Chittles and RedEye Story." John Pirillo
Case of the Stern Staircase
"A Chittles and RedEye Story."
John Pirillo
Dame Edith took off her pale pink gloves which she always
wore to the Opera. She had just returned and her butler was putting away the
horse and cart. No Tesla for her. Only the finest. She was born wealthy and had
managed through clever investments to become one of them most wealthy women in
the Greater Britains. She shook her red hair out from the elegant hat she had
been wearing, inspired by Gardini, an
Italian clothing designer who also specialized in personalized hats for the
lords and ladies. He had spent the better part of a year sewing on the various
jewels she had insisted be placed in a specific pattern about the rim of the
hat.
She wanted her wealth to not only dazzle the minds of
others, but also to dazzle their eyes. A kind woman in some ways, she always
fed the poor on the holidays, gave free food to the Kitchens of Queen Mary of
Scots, and partook in the elections to help them be honest, she was
nevertheless not one to think much about anything else, but her accumulation of
wealth and her beauty.
She looked at her reflection in her Gaudin portrait, with
its faceted glass cover, and saw a gray hair popping out of her red. She let
out a sound of alarm, checked to make sure none of her servants were watching,
and swiftly plucked it from existence.
"That's better." She sighed with relief.
She eyed the steep staircase that wound its way to the top
of her three storm mansion. It was gelded with gold and silver trimming on its
railing and each step was carpeted with a plush, deep red rug. As a matter of
fact only one other person had more red in their home than herself, one Lord
Frederick, known to the commoners and his course friend, Chittles, as RedEye.
She blushed at the thought of the man. Though a good score of years younger
than herself, the idea of a tête a tête with the man caused her to get
goosebumps in places she didn't dare admit existed to anyone but herself.
"Fanks." She called out.
Her butler, Fanks, came rushing into the living room and
stood next to the staircase, with a key on a plush red cushion.
She took the key, gave him a nod and began ascending the
staircase. Several steps creaked when she was halfway up. She didn't look down.
She knew Fanks would still be standing there waiting for her to safely reach
her room. It was her custom, and his duty.
"Fanks. Do see to those stern steps. My staircase
should be as firm as my wealth. Stern and strong. I didn't import these
beautiful pieces of wood to have them become grumbly and uncooperative when
they are needed the most."
"Yes, My Lady." Fanks said from below.
She nodded, so he knew he she had heard him, and then
continued upwards. She laughed. "I know I shouldn't have had that last
glass of champagne." She heard a loud creaking sound as she took the
second to the last step and looked down. Something was wrong.
=========================================================================
Lord Frederick, also known as RedEye, because of his
constant affliction from allergies which kept his eyes bloodshot constantly,
got out of his Tesla, which Chittles was driving this day. He looked at his
gorilla like companion, whose face and body were thick and strong like that of
an ape, and smiled.
"It could be worse, Chittles."
"Yes. You could have cooked breakfast."
"Complain. Complain. Complain."
Chittles gave RedEye, his best friend, the evil eye, but
RedEye ignored it and didn't die or have a heart attack. "When will you
get over that weird Voodoo stuff, Chittles, it won't work on me. I'm protected
from it."
"Yeah, by your swollen ego." Chittles muttered.
"I heard that."
"You would."
RedEye laughed and pressed the button at the gate of Dame
Edith's mansion. A few moments passed, and then Fanks opened the front door,
straightened his clothes and came forth, followed by a well dressed policeman,
who looked not only angry, but deeply disturbed.
"Good afternoon, Inspector Bloodstone."
"What's good about it? I had to leave my favorite dish
to come to this woman's death investigation, abandon my newly found son's
birthday party, and ignore the fact that it's a Sunday and I don't work on
Sundays."
Chittles nodded. "Death is a hard mistress."
"Well personally, I'd prefer it if she made an
appointment, Chittles."
Chittles nodded again. "Maybe someday she will."
Inspector Bloodstone did a double take, not sure if Chittles
was making a joke at his expense or not, or predicting a dire future.
RedEye stepped back as the gate swung outwards to admit him
and Chittles.
"Good day, Fanks, this must be a hard thing to bear
what with your family needing your employment at this time. How is your
youngest son doing?"
Fanks looked at the Inspector, then back at RedEye. "He
can barely walk without help. It's only because of my sizable salary here that
I've been able to keep up with the medical expenses."
"I'm sorry to hear that." RedEye responded
sincerely, and then when the Inspector jerked his head towards the front door,
he sighed. "Well, work awaits us."
Chittles and RedEye followed the Inspector inside, where
they discovered the body of Dame Edith laying sprawled at the base of the
spiral staircase.
Fanks came up and sighed. "I saw the whole thing. Her
face. She couldn't believe that death had a date with her this day."
"None of us ever do, do we?" RedEye commented,
shaking his head.
He stooped beside the fallen woman, felt her neck, then her
upper shoulders. Her legs were crossed over awkwardly.
"Chittles, please note that this woman died of a broken
neck. Fifth cervical above the shoulder pan."
"Yes. Noted." He replied, scribbling in his book.
"She broke both legs as well, I see."
RedEye felt both legs carefully, and then nodded. Her back
as well, I think."
He probed the backside of the sprawled woman, gently
pressing several spots that protruded much too far outwards. "Three
vertebrae. Lower lumbar area, middle back and upper thoracic."
"Noted."
RedEye stood up and looked at the Inspector. "I see no
reason to investigate this further. She has obviously suffered a great
fall."
Fanks shuffled his feet nervously. The Inspector motioned
with his hands to speak up.
"Uh, actually Lord Frederick, she didn't fall."
"What!" RedEye and Chittles both exclaimed at the
same time.
"It was more like she was propelled."
He led the men up the staircase until they reached near the
top. He pointed at the second to the last step. "It was this one."
RedEye leaned down and pressed it. "It is as firm and
stern as a step should be."
"Exactly." Fanks agreed.
Chittles stepped on the step and bounced a bit, but no creak
or groan came from the step.
"Do you believe in ghosts, Lord Frederick?" Fanks
inquired nervously.
"Not usually. But anything is possible in a world of
magic and science." RedEye pointed out.
"Well, I was watching her when she stepped on
this...stern step...and it didn't budge, but I heard it creak loudly at the
same time I think she did."
"What happened next?"
"She flew up and backwards, as if propelled by a blast
of air so powerful it could shake down this home."
"Did you feel such air?" Inspector Bloodstone
asked pointedly, his eyes on Chittles, who was slipping some crackers from a
bowl on a nearby table to eat.
"What?" Chittles asked, and swallowed them.
Fanks gave Chittles a sour look, and then looked at the
Inspector and RedEye. "Not even enough to move one hair."
Chittles reached into the bowl again and this time, Lord
Chittles slapped the back of his hand with his cane. "Mind your matters,
Chittles."
"Spoil sport." Chittles complained, but withdrew
his hand. His eyes roved the room and spotted the table where a bowl of fruit
sat. He licked his lips.
RedEye knelt close to the fallen woman again, then rolled
over her to her back, so he could press her eyelids open. When he did he saw
something dark and malignant looking out at him. He dropped back, letting out a
startled sound.
Dame Edith's body rolled back into the same position again
to his astonishment.
Chittles, about to take a huge bite from one of the apples
on the table, made a choking sound.
The Inspector and Fanks looked over at him. He put the apple
back and rejoined them.
"What? A hungry man doesn't have a clear mind. Benjamin
Franklin's motto. Full stomach, healthy mind."
RedEye tapped Chittles stomach with the tip of his cane.
"That doesn't apply to fat stomachs."
"I am not fat. Just well endowed." Chittles
bragged with a huge grin.
"You're disgusting."
"And you're...wrong." Chittles shot back.
"I am not."
"You most certainly are." Chittles hurled back.
"I definitely am not."
"You..."
"Will you two stop it?" The Inspector uttered with
frustration. "There's a dead woman here and an unsolved murder."
"Actually." RedEye went to the table and took the
apple Chittles had picked up. "Not necessarily."
He took the apple and went back to the fallen woman. He
placed the apple before her mouth. Nothing. He rubbed the apple against her
lips, allowing some of the blood there to touch the apple then went up the
steps and placed the apple on the second step.
Immediately, the apple shot into the air, hurtling high over
his head.
The Inspector gasped. Chittles caught the apple, wiped off
the blood with a hanky, and then began eating it, as if nothing out of the
ordinary had just occurred.
RedEye came back down. "Case solved."
"How so?" The Inspector demanded, perplexed by
that possibility.
"The second step is obviously possessed."
Fanks shook his head. "Then why didn't it throw me when
I stepped on it?"
"Dame Edith had one fatal flaw and that was her
undoing." RedEye explained.
"What is that?"
"She had everything in this home draped in red,
including the stairs."
RedEye touched the railing. "This staircase was
imported from Russia, and was used exclusively by the late Emperor. When he
died, he cursed the second step."
"How so?" The Inspector inquired, his curiosity piqued.
"That anyone who was not stern when they stepped on it
would perish."
RedEye looked to Fanks. "What was the last thing that
Dame Edith spoke before she was expelled from the staircase?"
Fanks told them.
RedEye looked at the Inspector. "Case closed. Chittles
do collect our usual fee before you join me in the Tesla."
RedEye nodded to Fanks and the Inspector and turned to
leave, then turned back. He put a hand on Fanks' shoulder. "My good man, I
want you to have our fee instead. It should keep you and your lovely child
until you can find a new placement."
Fanks began to cry. "You are too kind!"
RedEye, stopped, looked back and cried. "Nonsense. What
is the point of having wealth if you can't do good with it as well as buy
expensive things?"
Chittles turned to the Inspector and put out a hand.
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