Wonderland Burlesque's Let's All Go To The Movies - Summer Edition, Part III : Sunny and Funny

Wonderland Burlesque's

Let's All Go To The Movies

Summer Edition, Part III

Sunny and Funny

Nothing goes better with summer like laughter, unless there's a bit of nostalgia thrown in for good measure. Today's edition of Let's All Go To The Movies delivers that tenfold, taking us back to a time when a night at the movies was as golden as the summer sun itself.

So, grab a seat in the front row and bask in the glow... It's Wonderland Burlesque's Let's All Go To The Movies - Summer Edition, Part III : Sunny and Funny!

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Summer School Teachers

(1974)

"The student body always scores..."

(This drive-in movie favorite was directed by a woman; Barbara Peeters, who cut her teeth directing X-rated movies. She's also responsible for the biker chick flick,  Bury Me An Angel. She'd move on to television, found behind the camera of such fare as Falcon Crest and Remington Steel.)  

(Also notable for an appearance made by Michael Greer of The Gay Deceivers fame. A gay icon, Greer was an openly-gay actor during a time when that simply was not done.)

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Almost Summer

(1978)

"Don't you wish it was..."

(Co-produced with Universal Pictures, this happens to be the only Motown-produced movie not to center on black characters. Notable because it is considered to be the first of a series of distinctive 'youth genre' films, such as The Breakfast Club and Fast Times At Ridgemont High.) 

"Aren't you glad it's..."

(The soundtrack, surprisingly. released on MCA Records, is credited to a studio band called Celebration, which is actually the work of Mike Love, a member of Beach Boys. The title song would prove to be a minor hit - reaching #28 in the US and #30 in Canada.)

(The film features actress Didi Conn, who starred in 1977's You Light Up My Life and played 'Pinkie' in the blockbuster Grease.)

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Corvette Summer

(1978)

(This was the first film Hamill would star in post Star Wars. It also stars Annie Potts, making her film debut. She would actually earn a Golden Globe nomination for her work on this film! The film also features The Partridge Family's Danny Bonaduce, as well as character actress Wendi Jo Sperber.)

"Mark Hammill, who you loved in Star Wars."

"Annie Potts who you'll never forget!"

"And he thought fast cars were a thrill..."

(The movie's theme song, Give Me The Night, is sung by none other than Dusty Springfield!)

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Summer School

(1978)

AKA: Mag Wheels

"Trash the books..."

"The movie your parents will hate."

"Learn the three R's - Rowdy, Racey (sic) and Reckless in..."

(A drive-in movie comedy about a bunch of kids, a beach and a van. Really? What more do you need? The film debut of actor John McLaughlin.)

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Summer Camp

(1979)

"Panty Raids... Short Sheets... Food Fights..."

"After lights out, it's gross out!"

(Another one with John Laughlin - here, billed as John C. McLaughlin. Released four weeks before the much more successful Meatballs (AKA: Summer Camp.) In order to save production costs,  the cast and crew actually stayed and lived on the campgrounds during the course of the shoot.)  

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Pick-Up Summer

(1980)

"School's out and everything's in!"

(A drive-in movie favorite, featuring Joy Boushel, who would go on to appear in Terror Train and 1986's The Fly, among others.)

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Summer Rental

(1985)

"Life's a beach."

"John Candy is about to face the most devastating experience known to man - the family vacation."

(Based on a true story and directed by comedy legend Carl Reiner, this served as John Candy's first film as a leading man. The main reason the film got made was Paramount's new studio president, Ned Tanen, had a six month hole in the studio's release schedule to fill. Reiner and Candy hit it off so well that a sequel was planned, but never came to fruition.)

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One Crazy Summer

(1986)

"They're the last bunch in the world you'd expect to win anything... but with this crowd anything can happen!" 

(The film stars Jon Cusack and Demi Moore, however the pic's heat was stolen by supporting cast members Bobcat Goldthwait and Curtis Armstrong. Goldthwait's star was on the rise, thanks to the success of the first Police Academy film and Armstrong was still on fire, thanks to The Revenge Of The Nerds. When the film performed less than expected at the box office, it was rebranded, unsuccessfully, to capitalize on Goldthwait's name recognition.) 

(David Silverman and Wes Archer, who worked on the film as animators, would later animate Simpsons shorts for The Tracey Ullman Show, and then become directors on Fox's The Simpsons.)

"One weird island: One wanton woman. One wicked tycoon. One wacky musician. One Japanese monster. One damsel in distress. One load of loonies... one crazy summer!"

"Featuring Bob 'Police Academy' Goldthwait."

"Of course Tom Cruise is coming to the party."

"Just keep smiling and no one will notice what my other hand is doing."

"Somehow fishing hasn't been the same since Jaws."

(Director Savage Steve Holland was upset with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert's criticism of his earlier film Better Off Dead - also with Cusack and Armstrong. That led to the gag where the two bunnies, who resemble the movie critics, get blown up at the movie's end.)

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Summer School

(1987)

(Another from Carl Reiner, and starring a then-hot-as-a-pistol, People Magazine's 1986 'Sexiest Man Alive', Mark Harmon. At the time, Harmon was appearing in two highly-rated television shows, St. Elsewhere and Moonlighting. The film also features Cheers' Kirsti Alley and Ally McBeal's Courtney Thorne-Smith.)

"At Ocean Front High, what do they call a guy who cuts classes, hates homework and lives for summer vacations? Teacher."

(The film's score is by Danny Elfman, and features a dance hit, which was originally supposed to be sung by Debbie Harry. Instead, it was sung by its writer, E.G. Daily, who played Pee Wee Herman's girlfriend in Pee Wee's Big Adventure and also served as the voice of Tommy Pickles in Nickelodeon's Rugrats.)

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Aloha Summer

(1988)

"In the tradition of Stand By Me and Where The Boys Are comes..."

(Director Tommy Lee Wallace was given a second bite at the apple, after his directorial debut in 1982 with the franchise-killing Halloween III: Season Of The Witch . In 1988, in addition to this comedy/drama set in scenic Hawaii, he also directed Fright Night II.)

"The waves, the girls, their friendship..."

"Life was fine in '59!"

(Starring Chris Makepeace and Tia Carrere, The New York Times called this little more than "empty nostalgia done for its own sake.")

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And that's all for now.

Tune in next time...

Same time, same channel. 

Mind Over Matter - E.G. Daily

from the motion picture Summer School

Almost Summer - Celebration feat. Mike Love

from the motion picture Almost Summer

Give Me The Night - Dusty Springfield

from the motion picture Corvette Summer