The Blob (Exclusive Series) (HBO Max)

Initial release date: September 12, 1958

Studios: Paramount Pictures

Tagline: Bloated with the blood of its victim!

Beware of the Blob! It creeps, and leaps, and glides and slides across the floor

It crawls .. It creeps … It eats you alive!

Plot: A drive-in favorite, this sci-fi classic follows teenagers Steve and his best girl, Jane, as they try to protect their hometown from a gelatinous alien life form that engulfs everything it touches. The first to discover the substance and live to tell about it, Steve and Jane witness the blob destroying an elderly man, and grow to a terrifying size. But no one else has seen the goo, and policeman Dave refuses to believe the kids without proof.

Cast

Steve McQueen - Steve Andrews

Aneta Corsaut - Jane Martin

Earl Rowe - Lt. Dave

Olin Howland - Old Man

Stephen Chase - Dr. T. Hallen

John Benson - Sgt. Jim Bert

Geroge Karas - Officer Ritchie

Elbert Smith - Henry Martin

Writer(s): Theordore Simonson and Kay Linaker

Irvine H. Millgate (original idea)

DIrector: Irvin S. Yeaworth Jr.

Not Rated (86 min)

The 1958 film ‘The Blob’ is a really fun, and sometimes cheesy “B” movie. There are quite a few genuinely creepy moments that will really surprise you. ‘The Blob’ also has a few campy moments and the effects for its time are pretty decent for the “Blob” sequences. Even though this 1958 classic can be witty and silly at times, it can still be really entertaining.

If you are in the mood for a 1950s creature feature during what’s left of the Halloween season, then make sure to check out the original ‘The Blob’ on HBO Max!

Here are some interesting tidbits about the 1958 classic ‘The Blob’:

• Steve McQueen had the poster of this film on his bedroom wall at the time of his death.

• The actual Blob, a mixture of red dye and silicone, had never dried out and is still kept in the original 5 gallon pail in which it was shipped to the production company in 1958 from Union Carbide. It was put on display over the years as a part of the annual Blobfest, held over a 3 day period each summer in Phoenixville, PA, which provided a number of the shooting locations for the film. In addition to displaying the Blob and miniatures used in the shooting, the event features a reenactment of the famous scene in which panicked theatergoers rush to exit the town’s still functioning Colonial Theater, as well as several showings of the film.

• According to producer Jack H. Harris, the filmmakers added dye to the Blob to make it increasingly redder after it had consumed successive victims.

• McQueen was offered $2500 or 10% of the profits. He took the 2500 because the film wasn’t expected to make much. Harris, when being interviewed by film historian Tom Weaver, the film ultimately grossed $4 million.

• This independent production was originally picked up by Paramount for use on the bottom half of a double bill with Paramount’s production, ‘I Married a Monster from Outer Space’ (1958). Early marketing tests and initial booking indicated that a larger share of the ticket buyers were coming for this film rather than the top-billed picture, so it became the main feature and more money was spent on its promotion.

• Producer Jack H. Harris was also a producer on the 1988 remake.

• Filmed in and around Valley Forge, PA, principal photography took place at Valley Forge Studios. Several scenes were filmed in the towns of Chester Springs, Downington, Phoenixville and Royersford.

• ‘The Blob’ has been released as part of the Criterion Collection on three formats: LaserDisc (1988), DVD (2000) and Blu-ray (2013)

https://youtu.be/TdUsyXQ8Wrs