It Came from the Screen

Hello and welcome to the first ever installment of It Came From the Screen! I’m your horrible host, er, no wait a minute…your horror host, yeah that’s it, the Count! 

Coming to you from Macabre Manor this blog will discuss classic horror movies. I’m dedicated to monsters, ghouls, and all the things that go bump in the night! (Which might just be me, sometimes.)

Tonight we look at a classic 1958 piece of horror sci fi cinema, the Blob! This is not to be confused with the 1988 remake of the same name, Blob from the X-Men, or your uncle at Thanksgiving.

We start by talking about the plot of the Blob. Of course, I’ll try not to give away too much of the film in case you haven’t seen it! 

In  the very beginning of the Blob our heroes, Steve Andrews and Jane Martin are busy making out when they see a mysterious meteorite crash nearby in their rural Pennsylvania town. They leave their lover’s lane or make out point, or whatever you prefer to call it, to investigate. You know, like normal teenagers. Once they get to the meteor they find an old farmer to whom the Blob has attached itself. For some reason the old man poked the meteor with a stick. Because of course he did. This reveals a tiny little blobby baby jelly monster. They take the man to the hospital, but the Blob only starts eating people here, unbeknownst to the people who aren’t being eaten themselves. 

After several disappearances, Steve becomes convinced that whatever the Blob is, it’s a monster! This theory of course doesn’t get much traction with the authorities or the adults in the town. So it’s up to Steve, Jane, and his army of teenagers to do something about it.  And while everyone in town is treating the teenagers like a bunch of obnoxious hooligans, the blob keeps getting bigger and bigger!

Finally in the iconic “running from the movie theater” scene, the town folk are acquainted with the  monster and wonder just how they’ll stop the Blob, which is of course by–oops, I almost ruined it for everyone! Better watch the movie if you want to see how Steve and Jane figure out how to beat the Blob! 

Probably the most important thing about the Blob is the monster itself. Duh, it’s in the title! We only see bits and pieces of the blob leading up until the end, when we really get a heaping dose of the monster. This helps to build tension during the course of the movie. Not only that but the blob itself is a horrifying creature because it’s, well, a blob. It doesn’t have human features, no face no body, so it’s not human. It can’t be reasoned with. It’s a faceless, formless hunk of space goo bent on eating anything in sight. All it does is consume and get bigger. It’s hairless and fat, like many of us when we get over 40! It is an unnatural element in a natural world. Not to mention it can get into any place, under doors, through vents, nothing can stop the Blob! 

As I said, this film was released in 1958. It was originally known as the Molten Meteor, but then they figured your uncle already had that name. After some time they changed the name to the Glob, and then eventually the Blob. It was directed by Irvin Yeaworth jr. , who’s best known for directing, well, the Blob. The film was produced by Jack H. Harris, this being his first production. He would go on to produce the campy 1972 sequel Beware! The Blob, as well as the 1988 remake. The Man really liked his blobs. The script was written by Kay Linaker, who appeared in many B-movies herself, and a man named Theodore Simonson. Lastly Bart Sloane is listed as the man who was in charge of special effects/art director/and animator. There are some cool bits of animation at the end of the film, when the Blob gets really, really big that we can attribute to him. Wow that’s quite a few hats. I wonder, did he create the Blob? Is he the father of the Blob! Silicone and red food dye will go a long way in classic 50s B movie cinema, my hats off to him. 

Now let’s talk a little about the cast. And I do mean a little because we’re just going to look at the two main characters Steve and his girlfriend Jane. 

Steve Andrews was played by the King of Cool himself, Steve McQueen, who you might know from such movies as Bullitt, The Magnificent Seven, and the Disney Pixar film Cars. No, wait…that was Lightning McQueen…no relation I’m sure. This was McQueen’s first leading role and helped launch his career. Which is kind of funny because it’s said that Steve McQueen didn’t like the movie and didn’t talk about it. That’s some way to show gratitude, Steve! That being said, his acting really helped make this movie believable and enjoyable to watch. 

Of course, the most science fiction fueled aspect of this movie, to me, is believing McQueen, 28 at the time the movie came out, was a teenager! McQueen does a brilliant job of channeling a teenager, unsure of himself and way in over his head, but to me he doesn’t look like one! Though I have a theory McQueen was never a teenager, he was born a full grown man! Maybe that’s a blog for another time. 

Jane, Steve’s girlfriend, was played by Aneta Corsaut. If you’re of a certain age, you might recognize her as Helen Crump on the Andy Griffith show. And if you’re under a certain age you’ll…Google her. Like I did. She starred in a handful full movies but was pretty heavily active in television lasting all the way from the 50s to the early 90s! She was also a writer so maybe she coulda helped me with the lousy blog. 

Jane is important because not only is she Steve’s main girl, but also she’s the only one that believes him from the beginning. Without seeing the monster, even! She plays a pivotal role in this film because she’s there when Steve begins to doubt himself. She gives him the confidence to keep going and her belief in him not only keeps Steve going, but the movie itself. So without Jane, Steve probably would have just gone home and got eaten like all the other poor schmucks who died in this film!

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that this movie also features an amazing title song called Beware the Blob! Attributed to the group the 5 Blobs, it was really the work of a singer named Bernie Knee. He does this amazing popping noise…oh, just listen to the song, huh?

I’ve heard it was designed to make sure the audience wasn’t too scared, but it sets a completely different tone for the film.

Amazingly this movie was made for between 110 and 120 thousand dollars and made back 4 million! Which is at least…4 million in today’s dollars! Now, if rumors are to be believed, the movie could have been made for even less money if it weren’t for the heinous drug addiction of the Blob itself. Sad to see a jelly space alien so darn addicted. And I doubt that anyone thought it would make that kind of money, certainly not McQueen who only made somewhere around $2,500, taking the money upfront. In fact, the movie became so popular that it was moved to the A movie of the double feature, replacing its lead feature, I Married a Monster from Outer Space. 

I’m sure that lots of B movies took inspiration from the Blob, due to both its use of color and its fun monster. Without color, you wouldn’t see the Blob getting more and more red, aggressive and hungry! And who doesn’t love a good slime monster? It’s just fun!  However there’s something else that you see in cinema that was emulated and led to the success of the Blob: Teenagers. That’s right, they aren’t just those darn kids on your lawn in this movie, they’re the heroes. You see this influence in future films and TV such as Nightmare on Elm Street and even today with Stranger Things. This also helps explain some of the success of the movie, as the ones going to see the movie, and ultimately pay for it, were reflected on the screen. Teenagers were seeing themselves as the protagonists, and not just some nuisance getting eaten by the Blob themselves. 

This movie no doubt also influenced classic literature such as the Goosebumps book the Blob That Ate Everyone by R.L. Stine. Never let it be said that the Count is not a high scholar, my dear horror fiends. 

But influence and success aside, this is just a fun B Movie to watch with your friends. Essentially it’s about a monster that eats more and more, becoming more and more belligerent as the show goes on. It’s like I said, remember? Your uncle at Thanksgiving! And we can all relate to that on a deep human level. 

I hope you’ll check this movie out for yourself. You can find it for rent on Amazon Prime. But hey what can’t Amazon provide these days? Besides a livable wage. 

And I truly hope I can count on you to like and subscribe to It Came From the Screen! Get it? Count on you? Well…I had to do it at least once, didn’t I? 

Anyway, uh hem, subscribe to read about more creepy content and classic frightful fun right here on It Came From the Screen!