This episode is a continuation of S3E1, Starting Over, Part 1. It’s kinda weird, but we feel like we’ve been waiting for 2024 all our lives! And now that it’s here, we’re excited about “Starting Over”! On the one hand, by “starting over”, we mean going back to the very beginning (as Maria sings in The Sound Of Music, it’s “the very best place to start”). Back to how it was when Gil and I started making “Tales From The Crypt” together. We were just hitting our creative stride together. We...

For our LAST EPISODE OF THE YEAR (and the season), we present (what our old pal the CRYPT KEEPER would have called “the BEAST of the Year”. Included here are a few favorite bits including our CAR RIDE TO HELL – the story of 6 hours spent driving around L with uber producer JOEL SILVER. There’s our chat with “smartest guy we know” ROGER NYGARD and his reflections on TREKKIES. Then there’s CHELSEA REBECCA and JAMES JANISSE from DEAD MEAT. Not only did we get to sit down for a chat with Chelsea,...

It’s hard to believe our friend Tobe Hooper has been gone so long. Hardly a podcast goes by where we don’t reference Tobe one way or another. He was a fascinating person to know and work with. Like a lot of people who succeed in horror – or who create iconic horror characters and stories – Tobe was a pussycat. There wasn’t anything scary about him. Tobe changed the horror business. That changed the movie business. Now, Tobe didn’t set out to change any of that when he set out into the movie...

In this GRAB BAG OF GOODIES, MALCOLM MCDOWELL, TAYE DIGGS, SHERRIE ROSE, BARRY PRIMUS MARK IVANIR, CHARLES FLEISCHER and BRANDON ROUTH all do a little ACTING UP as they take us deep inside their acting process to where the nitty meets the gritty. Where characters really come alive inside actors’ heads. We’ve said many times on this podcast that we never, ever hired actors to act. That’s because, in film and TV, the camera sees everything – including acting. That’s why the best, most...

It’s a question that comes around every year as reliably as Christmas itself: “Is Die Hard a Christmas movie?” In this BONUS EPISODE, Die Hard’s screenwriter – our good friend STEVE DESOUZA – brings plenty of hard evidence that proves not only IS Die Hard a CHRISTMAS MOVIE, it’s way more of one than than the classic “White Christmas”. In a Yahoo News/YouGov poll taken this very year, half of Americans agree with Steve that, yeah, Die Hard’s a Christmas movie. Fight me on it! Or, better yet,...

TV and movie producer SCOTT STONE calls himself a “SERIAL ENTREPRENEUR”. We think of him as a “rolling Stone” because he’s actually one of the most prolific TV PRODUCERS ever. Among his credits are LEGENDS OF THE HIDDEN TEMPLE, THE MAN SHOW, SHOP TIL YOU DROP, THE MOLE and TOP DESIGN. Horror’s not really Scott’s thing. Nor are feature films. But, also among Scott’s copious credits are “FREDDY’S NIGHTMARES: THE NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET TV SERIES” and “CHILDREN OF THE CORN 2”, based on STEVEN...

As we head toward 2024, we’re recalling some of our favorite moments from 2023. DIRTY LAUNDRY is a whole episode filled with favorite moments. Wanna know what’s really happening on a movie or TV set? Talk to “the pretties” – HAIR AND MAKEUP or, even better? Talk RANDALL THROPP – he was the WARDROBE SUPERVISOR on “TALES FROM THE CRYPT”. He also worked on “DEMON KNIGHT” and “BORDELLO OF BLOOD” and the TV version of “THE SHINING“. The folks in WARDROBE and COSTUMES see a set’s literal dirty...

DARK CASTLE Entertainment sorta kinda rose from the ashes of BORDELLO OF BLOOD. The creative team had some of the same people as Crypt. And HORROR was its calling card. The brain child of JOEL SILVER, ROBERT ZEMECKIS and GIL ADLER, Dark Castle set out, initially, to re-make the movies in the WILLIAM CASTLE canon: HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL, 13 GHOSTS, THE TINGLER… For a brief moment, it looked as if Dark Castle might catch fire. Its first feature – House On Haunted Hill did okay financially. Its...

Our good friend – and a guest on this podcast – ELLIOT SILVERSTEIN – just passed away. He was 96 and had an extraordinary run. He was a terrific director with features like CAT BALLOU, A MAN CALLED HORSE and THE CAR to his name. Also, Elliot directed lots of TV including TALES FROM THE CRYPT. That’s when Gil and I first met Elliot. In total, Elliot directed 4 episodes of Crypt including “The Reluctant Vampire“, one of Crypt’s most beloved episodes. It stars our other friend Malcolm McDowell....

When it comes to SHOOTING STARS, few still photographers have shot as many (on so many movie sets) as DAVID JAMES – maybe the most successful SET PHOTOGRAPHER of all time. Stars like TOM CRUISE and directors like STEVEN SPIELBERG and J. J. ABRAMS love working with David because he understands how to tell (and – just as important – sell) their stories via his camera lens. His keen eye discerns what’s truly heroic in SUPERMAN, BATMAN or any other super hero. He sees what makes stars “stars”....

For the first time ever, Gil and I talk about Gil’s last big studio movie, VALKYRIE starring TOM CRUISE and directed by BRYAN SINGER. Bryan asked Gil to produce Valkyrie for him after Gil produced SUPERMAN RETURNS which Bryan also directed. Making Valkyrie changed Gil’s life. That is, it changed the direction his life took. For starters, making a story about Germany during WWII – about the Nazi hierarchy – was challenging to Gil; he grew up in the war’s shadow. In fascism’s murderous shadow....

When we left BRANDON ROUTH, back in S2E62, SUPERMAN RETURNS had just opened to great reviews and respectable numbers, but not respectable enough for WARNER BROS to continue the SUPERMAN REBOOT. They cancelled the next two movies. It’s devastating seeing your future vanish in front of you. But, in time, Brandon found his feet again. He became a regular on CHUCK and PARTNERS. He played TODD in SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD, and filled the uniform of another super hero in the LEGENDS OF TOMORROW...

BRANDON ROUTH was fated to play SUPERMAN. As a kid, he dreamed about playing the MAN OF STEEL. When he got to LA (from Iowa) – and learned WARNER BROS planned a reboot – equal parts hustle, circumstance and luck got him not just an audition, but the role itself in SUPERMAN RETURNS. Since then, he’s donned the cape for LEGENDS OF TOMORROW and the BATWOMAN TV series. He plays another superhero – RAY PALMER/THE ATOM on CW’s ARROW. Of course, Brandon’s done lots of other things, too. Working With...

Happy Halloween, Everyone!!! It’s a Killer Klown Konfidential all right, as two of the three CHIODO BROTHERS sit in for a special HALLOWEEN EPISODE! The CHIODO BROTHERS, Stephen, Edward and Charles are MONSTER MAKERS and sculptors. They’re stop motion animators, puppeteers and moviemakers, too. Their work on projects like MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON, THE SIMPSONS and TEAM AMERICA (among many, many others) is nothing short of brilliant! But, some would argue, their masterpiece is the B...

Like us, KRISTEN LOPEZ is passionate about movies (she’s a huuuuuge VERONICA LAKE fan). She’s passionate about the MOVIE BUSINESS, too. An ENTERTAINMENT JOURNALIST, she’s been THE WRAP’s FILM EDITOR since 2022. She created and co-hosts a great podcast called TICKLISH BUSINESS and wrote “BUT HAVE YOU READ THE BOOK: 52 Literary Gems That Inspired Our Favorite Films” where all of Kristen’s passion, considerable talent and delightfully puckish point of view – are on full display. Kristen’s also...

Among Hollywood producers, CHRIS BOARDMAN is famous for being one of those very rare musicians who can write literally anything. Over his extraordinary career, he has written literally everything. His orchestrating/composing credits include THE COLOR PURPLE, THE WIZ, DIE HARD, LETHAL WEAPON, WATERWORLD, OUTBREAK, TOMMY BOY, PAYBACK, SPY KIDS and BORDELLO OF BLOOD. Chris has also lent his talents to musical acts like JULIE ANDREWS and co-founded the band WISHFUL THINKING. He really is an all...

Quick! What do TOM CRUISE, FREDDY KRUEGER, DAMIEN (from “THE OMEN”), THE OSCARS and Progressive’s MOTAUR have in common? PATRICK LUMB was their PRODUCTION DESIGNER. Not only is Patrick a remarkable, innovative production designer, he’s a great STORYTELLER, too. And, this episode features some amazing stories from the sets of VALKYRIE, 2006’s THE OMEN and 2010’s NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET reboot. Gil first met Patrick when he hired Patrick to take over as Valkyrie’s production designer....

Experience the fun as TALES FROM THE CRYPT takes over HORRORCON LA. We brought some friends along with us: one of our favorite actors SHERRIE ROSE, makeup special effects maestro TODD MASTERS and TV producer extraordinaire ED TAPIA (back then, Ed was the best assistant any producer ever had!). And meet THE CHIODO BROTHERS! I moderated their panel celebrating the 35th anniversary of their B movie classic KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE. We  had a monstrously good time meeting fans, signing...

PAUL ABASCAL went from being a super talented, highly sought-after movie set HAIR STYLIST (he was MEL GIBSON and SLY STALLONE’S hair guy!) to being a super talented MOVIE AND TV DIRECTOR whose very first dramatic directing credit was the “Oil’s Well That Ends Well” episode of “TALES FROM THE CRYPT”. Paul saw hair architecturally. That’s one reason he took to directing so well. Good directing, like good hair, is all about structure. Teasing Hair To Teasing Stories So, how do you go from...

Would scary movies be as scary without scary scores? Of course not! Our guest NICK PIKE has composed scores for tons of movies and TV shows but SCORING HORROR has always been a sweet spot. Nick wrote the theme for FREDDY’S NIGHTMARES: THE NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET TV SERIES, ten episodes of HBO’s TALES FROM THE CRYPT and lots of scores for STEPHEN KING adaptations, many for his good friend MICK GARRIS (another Crypt alum). Bring on the scares & scores! Nick’s a great storyteller with music....

JOHN KASSIR – the voice of THE CRYPT KEEPER – discusses the Crypt Keeper’s birthing process. It took FOUR PEOPLE to turn the CK from a great puppet into an iconic character. Are there Crypt Keeper segments the CK’s creators like best? Are there any they hate? There ae no secrets in this Crypt! With guest appearances by WHOOPI GOLDBERG, ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGAR, ALFRED HITCHCOCK, ELVIS, THE BEATLES, MARLON BRANDO, FORREST GUMP and JOEL SILVER! Sittin’ In With John Kassir It’s always a blast to...

Here at The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast, we really and truly appreciate our fans. But, also, we appreciate how the fan experience has changed since we started making movies and TV shows back in the stone age. There used to be a lot more distance between us – what we now call “content creators” and “content consumers”. We knew “Tales From The Crypt” had fans but it was much harder for our fans to connect with us – and for us to connect with them. Then V Now Back then, we’d go hire a...

Welcome to the fright of the century – The Grim Reaper v The Crypt Keeper. It’s not at all unusual for writers and directors to forge long creative bonds with certain actors. Scorsese and De Niro… Hitchcock and James Stewart… Tarantino and Samuel L. Jackson.  At Tales From The Crypt, we fell in love with a few actors ourselves and worked with them repeatedly. William Sadler arrived at Crypt before we did; he’s in one of the three brilliant episodes that launched the whole series on HBO....

Welcome to our return visit to the Castle Of Horror! Movie producer, director, writer and actor William Castle was one of the very first film makers who saw their own brand – understood what it was – and then bent movie-making toward themselves. Like Alfred Hitchcock – some critics called Castle a poor man’s Hitchcock – Castle understood that he had a brand to begin with – and that brand was, in large part, him. Castle started in the theater. Even there, he implicitly understood that...

It’s not unusual for long-running TV shows – like HBO’s “Tales From The Crypt” was – to develop a family-like feeling among its regular crew. At Crypt, that feeling got magnified by Crypt’s whole “lightning in a bottle” mystique. As we’ve talked about here at The How NOT To Make A Movie Podcast, Crypt really did go places no TV show had ever gone before. We were the first crossroad where TV and feature films ever tried to work together to create great TV. That’s why we went after – and got –...