003: Pete Smith OAM - Luna Park and Palais Memories
Interview with Pete Smith OAM
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| Herman Leon Harold |
Some Background to this Interview and the Phillips
Brothers Herman, Leon and Harold Phillips were leading showmen in the Australian entertainment industry from the Edwardian era through to the 1950s. Their diverse interests included cinemas, amusement parks and dance halls. Beginning their conquest of Oceania in Sydney, their commercial activities eventually extended nationwide as well as across the Tasman to New Zealand. However, they quickly shifted their headquarters to Melbourne and specifically to the bayside suburb of St.Kilda where they owned Luna Park, the Palais Pictures (now the Palais Theatre) and the Palais de Danse ballroom. They also played a key role in the development of the Capitol Theatre and office building (known as "Capitol House") in the Melbourne CBD (downtown area). Later, they established other fun fairs interstate. As music promoters, they imported a number of popular jazz and big band artists from America to perform at their venues. But their career commenced way back at the dawn of the cinema age and the birth of the movies when at least one of them was involved in the operation of nickelodeons, kinetoscope parlours and penny arcades in their hometown of Spokane, Washington and Vancouver, Canada. The story as to how and why they ended up "Down Under" will be outlined in another, more detailed blog about their work which I am currently preparing.
The Phillips had a slightly unusual attitude to the spotlight. They were very successful publicists when it came to the promotion of their attractions; news of which regularly appeared in daily papers and they were close to the rich and famous. Leon, for instance, learned the tricks of the stage and screen from a dynamic travelling picture showman; a former carnival huckster, vaudeville roustabout and master of illusion who went on to become one of the most powerful studio chiefs in Hollywood. However, despite their own talent for creating thrills and excitement to enthral the public, something separated the brothers from their more ego-driven contemporaries (such as F.W.Thring) - namely their indifference to personal publicity. It seems that the "selfie" / microphone - grabbing / lampshade on the head routine never floated their River Caves boat and they preferred to maintain a comparatively low profile. Indeed, they remained somewhat mysterious figures who usually employed others to "meet the press". But a select few did get to know the men who made the magic. One was Pete Smith OAM and in this interview he reflected on that special friendship
Header Photos (Left to right): The Giggle Palace Luna Park (1960s )(Flickr), Pete Smith (Pete Smith Collection) and the Palais Theatre (BC)
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Bruce: Pete, thanks for making yourself available to have a chat about old St Kilda, the Phillips brothers and the early days of your broadcasting career
Pete: My pleasure Bruce
Bruce: Are you from St Kilda originally?
Pete: Yes, indeed....I started life in Longmore Street, West St Kilda and I was down there until the '50s when we relocated to Kew
Bruce: So, all of those iconic foreshore attractions such as Luna Park, the Palais and the Palais de Danse provided a backdrop to your youth?
Pete: They did. But they were much more than just a backdrop, particularly on Saturdays when I made a “b-line” for the Palais Theatre, or the Palais “Pictures” as it was originally called. That place was the centre of both my social life and my fantasy world... as it was for many people.
Bruce: The Palais was your “big deal”?
Pete: Absolutely, mainly because I was mad about the movies and it was a real picture palace in the grand American style. It was unusual to have a theatre like that in the suburbs and we were lucky that it was so close to home. Luna Park was magic in the old days as well.
"Good Guy" Lionel Yorke introduces
famous Aussie band, the Loved Ones performing their self-titled hit.....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ov7-FC0KHQA
Bruce: What about the Palais de Danse?
Pete: That was a bit racy, strictly for the “dancing crowd” as the flappers and their beaus were called back in the '20s
https://www.flickr.com/photos/78453720@N06/albums/72177720324969426/
just an example of the type of band that would have appeared there in the '20s)
The Black Bottom (1927) - YouTube
20s Charleston Dance - "Black Bottom" - YouTube
1920s dances featuring the Charleston, the Peabody, Turkey Trot and more - YouTube
demonstrating the Charleston on television
and the Palais de Danse on the Lower Esplanade at St.Kilda (SKHS)
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Same attractions from street level (1930s?) (SKHS) |
Bruce: In her autobiography, Helen Reddy, who came from Camberwell, said that she always envied her cousins who lived in St.Kilda. She described it as being the most exciting and cosmopolitan suburb in Melbourne, at a time when those qualities were a bit thin on the ground in this city. Would you agree with those thoughts?
Pete: Yes, I would. There was, definitely, an international, or, more specifically, a fairly Americanized ambience about the area, certainly around the amusement precinct with the Canary Island palm trees, Spanish Mission architecture etc. I think that might have been deliberate or maybe it was simply due to the influence of important local Americans such as the Phillips. It looked like Santa Monica as we used to see it in Hollywood movies
Bruce: At the Palais of course?
Pete: Of course.
Bruce: Sounds like you’ve given all this a bit of thought
Pete: I have actually. I’ve got some very vivid and happy memories of those years that I spent in St.Kilda
Bruce: Like to paint a couple of word pictures?
Pete: Well, for example, I can remember, as a young boy, walking around to the Palais from Longmore Street with my parents on balmy summer nights, riding on my dad’s shoulders, past the Catani Gardens and the pier. I can still feel the gentle breezes blowing and rustling through the wispy branches of the palm trees, the splashing and laughter of the swimmers in the twilight air and the myriad colored lights from the foreshore attractions streaking the roads and the beach...
Bruce: And the Palais rose up behind all this..
Pete: Indeed, it was a prominent landmark at the top of the bay. Still is.....
(Restoration of the Palais)
(Rock band Baby Animals live at the Palais in 1992)
Bruce: When and how did you come to know the Phillips brothers?
Pete: I probably met them around 1954 or ’55. I knew Harold and Leon but not Herman, the eldest brother, who had long since passed away. In fact, they used to take me to dinner every Saturday at a terrific Chinese restaurant in the Village Belle. It all came about through my friendship with Albert Wright who was the projectionist at the Palais. As a teenager, my ambition was to work in the bio box down there. Anyway, I was just a local kid with stars in my eyes but Albert befriended me, when he realized that I was serious about a career in the business. So, I started to spend almost every waking hour at the theatre. All of them encouraged my interest in the entertainment industry
Pete: Not really, I stayed on at school and, unfortunately, by the time I was ready to join the workforce, Harold and Leon had both died and the Palais had been sold. However, what they did do was allow me to have some involvement and a whole lot of fun at the place as a stepping stone. I mean, they were big operators and that theatre was a hot spot of show business, particularly from the ‘50s onwards when all those American stars like Bob Hope appeared there.
Bruce: What was the involvement you had?
Pete: I ran the Palais Junior Film Club and the comic "swap shop". Harald Vike, who, as I recall, was the scenic artist, built a brilliant type of "shop" theatre set in the foyer where kids used to exchange their comics.
Biography - Harald Vike - Australian Dictionary of Biography (anu.edu.au)
Harald Vike Paintings & Artwork for Sale | Harald Vike Art Value Price Guide (invaluable.com
Bruce: Did you get to work on stage and front an audience at the Palais?
Pete: I did. That was where the film club came in. I used to host little presentations. I would introduce the movies, run competitions and mime Top 40 records. That was a peculiar fad in the ‘50s which became enormously popular on television when Channel 7 launched their show called the Hit Parade. That was right at the beginning when they commenced transmission in '56. Miming was all the rage for a while.
Bruce: .... and as I understand, it was in the second half of the '50s that you started in broadcasting. Is that correct?
30.Pete: Correct
Bruce: Now, as we go back a long way, I know that you have a separate and very interesting story to tell about your days as a radio DJ. You were also a pioneer of pop music shows on television and, of course, you became a household name via the nightly variety programs at GTV Channel 9 with the likes of Graham Kennedy, Bert Newton, Ernie Sigley, Don Lane and others and we'll discuss all of that in some detail a bit later....
(Note: After we concluded the interview, it was decided that this period of Pete's career warranted more space than could be allocated to it within the confines of our main, chat regarding the Phillips. With that being the case, this part of our conversation was expanded with additional questions and photos and it has now been presented separately as an extension to this post - see INTERVIEW EXTENSION below)
Pete: From my viewpoint, they were just thoroughly nice blokes and very generous, as evidenced by the fact that they took me to dinner every week. In regard to their style, I do remember that they always wore great suits...... even on the weekends. I suppose, they bought a lot of their clothes back from the States. However, in some ways they didn’t fit the standard image of showbiz moguls. They weren’t particularly flamboyant in themselves. Actually, they were quite reserved and conservative.
Bruce: I know that they drove Cadillacs. Indeed, they must have been driving them for years because I found a news item in a film industry magazine from the 1930s that was about them buying such a car. They had a relative in the California who owned a Cadillac dealership so I assume that they used to buy current models when they were over there.
Pete: Right
news item in Everyone's magazine, February 8,1933
A 1955 Cadillac Fleetwood similar to the one
that was owned by the Phillips in their final years (BC)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1gTN6DX2XE
Bruce: Did they remain emphatically American, despite all the years that they had been in Australia?
Pete: Oh yes. They always looked, sounded and thought, like Americans. In fact, I think they remained strictly US citizens.
Pete: They were both in South Yarra
Bruce: Did one of them seem to be the overall boss?
Pete: No, from what I saw, they were an equal partnership. They had managers who did most of the day to day hiring and firing
Bruce: They owned several film exchanges in Australia and elsewhere prior to WWI and I have heard that they were, possibly, a distributor for Paramount Pictures. Do you know anything about that?
Pete: Not sure. But it's possible. As I understand, Paramount leased the Capitol for several years so there may have been some sort of wider tie-up between them
Pete: Sadly, I don’t have any photos. However, there would have to be some in existence because they were important figures in the Australian cinema industry. But they weren't interested in personal publicity.
Pete: Yes, as I understand, all of their attractions were taken over by a group of their business associates.
children William and Helen Kemter (Brighton, Victoria, 1950s)
(Photo courtesy of Helen)
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Phillips brothers grave at St.Kilda cemetery (BC) |
Bruce: How would you sum up your memories of the Phillips brothers and the time that you spent with them?
Pete: They were extremely happy days indeed. The Phillips did everything on a grand scale and with great style. They made a huge contribution to the local entertainment scene and they deserve more recognition.
Bruce: Let’s hope that they get it. Thanks again Peter.
Pete: Thanks Bruce.
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INTERVIEW EXTENSION
Bruce: Pete, you went on to become a famous identity on the commercial side of the industry, most notably with the Nine Network in Melbourne and Adelaide (where you did your own tonight show). You were also at radio stations 3AK and 3UZ and I remember you being on air with Bert Newton at UZ, years after this period that we're discussing at the moment. But a lot of people may not be aware that you got the ball rolling at the ABC. What was your first job at "'Auntie", as the non-commercial, government-owned national broadcaster is known?
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Pete and Bert (Pete Smith Collection) Frankenstein attacks Bert on Channel Nine's New Faces....... |
Pete: Well, actually, we need to go back a step further than that. Straight after I left school, I commenced my working life in the movie business as a junior at the 20th Century Fox distribution office in Melbourne where I was responsible for sending out preview trailers to suburban cinemas. But that only lasted a few months. Then I got a foot in the door with radio as a messenger boy at the ABC.
Highlights from 3AK's 70th Anniversary 2001:
Hosted by Gavin Wood
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKAUCqHtHIM
(Click to Supersize)
Rhett Walker of Station KRLA on stage at the Anaheim Convention
Centre in Los Angeles, November 17,1967 introducing a Donovan concert
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donovan_in_Concert
("Friendly 3AK" idents - Rhett Walker voiceover)
Pete: In that era, it was called the Australian Broadcasting Commission rather than the Corporation as it is today and it was based at "Broadcast House" in Lonsdale Street
Bruce: ... and which stations were operating from that address?
Pete: There was 3LO which was known as the "home service", 3AR, Radio Australia and the news services for the network's Victorian regionals such as Ballarat, Bendigo etc. also beamed out of that building as well
Lonsdale and William Streets in the Melbourne CBD. (1950s) (Facebook)
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php/?story_fbid=4408439385908586&id=120943481324886
Bruce: So, you got started in the office. Then you ended up on air. How did that come about?
Pete: I managed to pass one of the auditions that were open to the public on a regular basis. I was still in my teens when I joined the announcing staff
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ABC Melbourne announcers in the '50s (Left to right) Pete Smith, Jocelyn Terry and John Sloan (Pete Smith collection) Bruce: What sort of programs did you present at Lonsdale Street? Pete: Initially, I just did minor jobs which included occasional news reading. However, I found a niche for myself as host of the ABC's Hit Parade that was broadcast nationally. That was a weekly countdown of the country's Top 10 records. I also did a version on Radio Australia that was beamed overseas via short wave to North America, the British Isles and Asia. In addition to all that, I conducted another teenage program that featured the ABC Melbourne Dance Band and singers such as Gaynor Bunning, Heather Horwood and Frankie Davidson, all of whom did cover versions in the studio of some of the big songs of the day
The "Twist" dance craze came to to Australia in the early '60s when (Left to right) American pop stars Del Shannon, Chubby Checker and Bobby Rydell meet Melbourne DJs Geoff "The Hound" Haynes (3UZ),Mike Walsh (3XY?) Pete Smith (ABC), Ernie Sigley (3DB) and Stan "The Man" Rofe (3KZ)(Pete Smith Collection) (Del Shannon "Runaway") (Chubby Checker "The Twist") (Bobby Rydell "Swingin' School") American folk group The Kingston Trio (seated) at a Melbourne media launch with DJs (Left to right) Ralph Rickman (with glasses)(3AW), ABC Radio record librarian George Nicholls, Pete Smith (ABC), Geoff Manion (3AW), Rhett Walker (3UZ?) and Don Lunn (3UZ) (Pete Smith Collection) (Kingston Trio "I'm Going Home" 1965) Bruce: There was a lot going on from your viewpoint... Pete: Indeed. But there was yet another activity happening via Broadcast House and that was FM broadcasting. Bruce: How fascinating. Tell me more ... Pete: They had a transmitter on Jolimont Hill above the MCG. However, only enthusiasts who had the relevant, specialized reception equipment could hear it as an FM signal. It was quite revolutionary, being done many years before any commercial FM stations arrived in Melbourne. Bruce: Very revolutionary. And I should mention that I found an article in the ABC Weekly magazine from 1942 that includes a photo of Leon Phillips who is pictured at the Radio Australia studios with a group of American servicemen who were apparently broadcasting to US troops in the South Pacific. According to the caption, Leon was Recreational Supervisor for the American military (see main biography) Pete: I must have a look at that Bruce: So, you gained some on air experience in radio then you made the switch to television at ABV Channel 2 in Ripponlea as host of your own show that had the intriguing title of the Sports View Hit Parade which sounds like a slightly weird combination. What was that all about?
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(Lane's debut performance on Brian Henderson's
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Hollywood Heartthrobs : (Left to right) Tony Curtis, Kirk Douglas and Mel Gibson (YouTube) |
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The Comedians: (Left to right) Bob Hope, Phyllis Diller (You Tube) and Robin Williams (Getty Images) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1aFQBVYQUCg&t=121s (Complete Bob Hope appearance on the show) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMCQbYmMBvM&t=1s (Canadian TV comedian Dave Thomas - one of the few impressionists who can get even close to doing Bob Hope) The Music Makers: (Left to right) Olivia Newton John, the Village People and Jerry Lee Lewis (You Tube) Interviewing the Interviewer: Chatting to Britain's leading television journalist Michael Parkinson (You Tube) Sparring (via satellite) with the Champ, Muhammad Ali (who was about to visit Australia)(You tube) ... and a very special edition of the show from Elvis Presley's "Graceland" mansion in Memphis..... |
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXEMhm-3kPU&list=RDrXEMhm-3kPU&start_radio=1
(.. and Dean performs "Ain't that a kick in the Head'
| An honorary member of disco hit-makers the Village People (Left) (You Tube) |
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| Donny Osmond (at left with sister Marie) (You Tube) |
| Melbourne television legend Ernie Sigley (Left on the cover TV Week 1974) (Bio information at the end of interview) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvhZVuPAUNw&list=RDSvhZVuPAUNw&start_radio=1 Kerry Packer (Left) (Google)- owner of the National Nine Television network and creator of World Series Cricket (You Tube) ...a Hare (HAH-RAY) Krishna playing finger cymbals (You Tube)(Right) Hare Krishna marching in Melbourne's 2019 Australia Day parade (Dreamstime.com photo) |
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| "Gina" - Don's fiery first wife. As you can see, the resemblance to the lady herself (right) was quite uncanny (Nine Network & Getty Images) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQhIXFSJYfE (Bert looks back at some of the above comedy bits on the occasion of the 500th edition of the "Don Lane Show" Honolulu Star Advertiser Dec 18, 1964 So.... we all know how those people sounded to Bert ....but how did Bert sound to others?.....Melbourne radio man John Allan (a one time colleague of Bert's) gave us a clue in a playful bit that he did on air with 3DB presenter Lawrence Money back in the 1980s... Anything could.. and usually did happen.... Bert arrives for "The Wheel" on "elephant back"(Nine Network) American daredevil Evel Knievel was always in the news back in the '70s performing some sort of 'death-defying" stunt. Here Bert, somehow, survives his own "(toilet) brush with death" by being "blown up" in an outhouse |
(1.42 minute mark) in this 1968 line up of GTV9 personalities....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkkYfvg1YAM
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(Left to right) Pete with two of GTV's most popular American imports from back in the early years - comedian Tommy Hanlon Jr (center) and legendary wrestling commentator Jack Little (Pete Smith collection) Tommy Hanlon Jr. - Wikipedia https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_XPm8u_jOs&t=46s (Tommy's famous "Letter from Mother" comedy routine) Jack Little (broadcaster) - Wikipedia https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUjAkpC3KvE (Jack on Channel 9 in the 1970s) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEi_bcBetG8 (.... and announcing the wrestling at the Hollywood Legion Stadium in 1951) |
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Ernie's album from the 1974 which included the hit single "Hey, Paula" - a duet that he recorded with his television co-host Denise Drysdale (yours truly was one of Ernie's many program producers way back when - BC) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_z9FPiKSgg&list=RDR_z9FPiKSgg&start_radio=1 (Ernie sings "Think About me" on his first tonight show at NWS9 Adelaide) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuKq8h3qh28&list=RDMuKq8h3qh28&start_radio=1 (Ernie's final song on NWS before he came over to GTV9 Melbourne - Sinatra's "My way".. talk about having "more front than Myers" (or John Martin's) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2ggAfG05Lw (A immediate ratings success, Ernie arrived in Melbourne to set GTV9 on fire....with some no doubt wishing that they had perished in the blaze rather than having to sit through any more of Ernie's "musical performances") https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernie_Sigley Ernie's Comedy team at GTV around 1974 (Standing left to right) Joy Westmore, Pete Smith, Phil Brady and Denis Drysdale (Seated) Colin McEwan and Sue McIntosh (Pete Smith collection) (Martin and Molly's hilarious commentary on the Ernie Sigley show Back on track at Luna Park in the '70s for a special outside broadcast of the "Ernie Sigley Show" (Right) Enjoying the view with Australian television personality and "Penthouse Pet" Cheryl Rixon (Pete Smith Collection) Bruce: After only a year or so, Ernie parted company with Nine and was replaced by Don Lane |
the program through which I first started to . As I recall, Graham wanted to take a break from theor fROM gRAHAM... we have barely touched on the initial part of what turned out to be a very long and successful career - one that has continued, unbroken, all the way from the 1950s right up to the present day. You worked, not only with Graham and Bert, but also Ernie Sigley, Denise Drysdale, Don Lane and Paul Hogan. Indeed, many viewers who attended tapings of the Hogan shows will remember you keeping them entertained between sketches some of which you also appeared in. Later, you reached a whole new audience with radio and television programs such as the D-Generation, Micallef Tonight, Martin and Molloy, Frontline and the Late Show. And, even today, when most of your contemporaries have put up their feet to enjoy retirement, you're back on air, with D-Gen alumni, Tony Martin, as part of a monthly podcast called "'From the Hideout" which is getting rave reviews... and I will provide a link at the end of all this....
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Stars of "From the Hideout" (Left to right) Tony Martin, Djovan Caro and Pete Smith (Herald Sun photo) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iS14IfMBVY (You Tube Promotion for "From the Hideout") https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Martin_(comedian) |
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ni3CAHcmaLM
(2018 Radio interview on Southern FM with Alex Hehr)
commercials, Pete wrote the book. One of his most famous
and longest- running campaigns was for the Coppeart retail chain. ...
quiz show... "Saaaalllle of the Century"....
... but, above all else, and he has been the
"Voice of Channel 9" to millions of viewers since the 1960s......
And now...... for a truly BIG finish..............
Ernie's album from the 1974 which included the hit single "Hey, Paula" - a duet that he recorded with his television co-host Denise Drysdale (yours truly was one of Ernie's many program producers way back when - BC) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_z9FPiKSgg&list=RDR_z9FPiKSgg&start_radio=1 (Ernie sings "Think About me" on his first tonight show at NWS9 Adelaide) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuKq8h3qh28&list=RDMuKq8h3qh28&start_radio=1 (Ernie's final song on NWS before he came over to GTV9 Melbourne - Sinatra's "My way".. talk about having "more front than Myers" (or John Martin's) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2ggAfG05Lw (A immediate ratings success, Ernie arrived in Melbourne to set GTV9 on fire....with some no doubt preferring to perish in the blaze rather than having to sit through any more of Ernie's "musical performances") https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernie_Sigley Ernie's Comedy team at GTV around 1974 (Standing left to right) Joy Westmore, Pete Smith, Phil Brady and Denis Drysdale (Seated) Colin McEwan and Sue McIntosh (Pete Smith collection) (Martin and Molly's hilarious commentary on the Ernie Sigley show Back on track at Luna Park in the 1970s for a special outside broadcast of the "Ernie Sigley Show" (Right) Enjoying the view with Australian television personality and "Penthouse Pet" Cheryl Rixon (Pete Smith Collection) ![]() Logies Time (Late '70s?): (Standing left to right) Philip Brady, Olivia Newton-John and Pete ham it up with Paul Hogan (Pete Smith collection) (Remembering GTV 9 in the '70s: A terrific collection of archival gems) A few more chums from the golden days…. (Left to right) We're No Angels (1955) Billy Budd (1962) Death on the Nile (1978) (We're No Angels) (Billy Budd) (Death on the Nile)\ (Interview compilation with Sir Peter Ustinov) (Left) Enjoying a joke with Hollywood horror star Vincent Price and (Right) In the clutches of another legendary movie bad guy -The Mummy ... https://www.imdb.com/video/vi921764121/?playlistId=tt0023245&ref_=tt_ov_pr_ov_vi (Original theatrical trailer for the1932 movie "The Mummy" ![]() (Left to right) Fall of the House of Usher (1960) The Last Man on Earth (1964) Witchfinder General (The Conqueror Worm) (1968) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyPcBGMre1o (A video tribute to Vincent Price) House of Usher - Trailer | IMDb The Last Man on Earth - The Vincent Price Collection Blu-ray Trailer | IMDb Witchfinder General - Official Trailer | IMDb https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vincent_Price One of the hottest sex symbols of the 1970s... shown here with actress Britt Ekland (Mrs Peter Sellers) |













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