Hello Scared Silly fans! Recently I had the opportunity to meet Leonard Getz, author of the book “From Broadway to the Bowery.” The book offers a history, filmography and biographies of the long-running, inter-connected movie (mostly)comedy teams, The Dead End Kids, The Little Tough Guys, The East Side Kids, and The Bowery Boys.
Of course, the book features several reviews of some of the greatest horror-comedy films of all time. I’ve always really enjoyed the East Side Kids and Bowery Boys entries where they encountered real or phony ghosts and monsters. Most of the films have some novel element that makes them worthwhile.
The East Side Kids entries (Boys Of the City, Spooks Run Wild and Ghosts on the Loose) feature horror movie stalwarts Bela Lugosi and Minerva Urecal in two films apiece.
The Bowery Boys film series upped the ante.
• Spook Busters has a terrific slow-motion fight.
• Master Minds features Glenn Strange, one of the most popular of the Frankenstein monsters (and Abbott & Costello co-star).
• Ghost Chasers features Edgar, a real, live lovable ghost!
• The Bowery Boys Meet the Monsters preceded the TV adaptation of the Charles Addams’ Addams Family characters and delivered its own cast of creepy, kooky and altogether ooky family members.
The weakest link in that batch is the final Bowery Boys horror-comedy entry, Spook Chasers. But the boys even have some notable “horror-onable mentions” in their repertoire, too – including two tales of hypnotism (Mr. Hex and Hold That Hypnotist), a run-in with a genie (Bowery to Bagdad) and a deal with the devil himself (Up in Smoke).
I had a wonderful time speaking with Len about the team, and classic comedy in general.
Best of all, I’m happy to report that Len has offered a special deal to all Scared Silly fans: you can order an autographed copy of the book directly from Len for just $30! That’s nearly $10 off the $39.95 cover price! Just email him at lengetz@yahoo.com and tell him you found out about his special deal from Scared Silly!
Now, enjoy some classic trailers from the East Side Kids and Bowery Boys!
