Thunder Alley (1967 film)

Last updated
Thunder Alley
Thunder Alley 1967.jpg
Theatrical poster
Directed by Richard Rush
Written bySy Salkowitz
Produced by Samuel Z. Arkoff
James H. Nicholson
Burt Topper
Starring Annette Funicello
Fabian
Diane McBain
Warren Berlinger
Jan Murray
CinematographyMonroe P. Askins
Edited byKenneth G. Crane
Ronald Sinclair
Music by Mike Curb
Davie Allan
Distributed by American International Pictures
Release date
  • March 22, 1967 (1967-03-22)
Running time
90 minutes
CountryUnited States
Budget$1.4 million [1]
Box office$1,250,000 (US/ Canada) [2]

Thunder Alley is a 1967 film about auto racing directed by Richard Rush and starring Annette Funicello and Fabian Forte. It was released by American International Pictures.

Contents

Plot

A race car driver, Tommy Callahan, retires after a blackout causes the death of another driver on the motorway. After the accident, he begins working at a Pete Madsen's "Thrill Circus" as a stunt driver. There he meets the proprietor's daughter, Francie, who also drives there, and her boyfriend Eddie Sands.

Bored by his new job, Tommy begins training Eddie to be a professional. Eddie picks it up quickly, winning his first race. This leads to Tommy's gold-digging ex-girlfriend Annie Blaine scheming to steal the hot young driver away from Francie.

Despite their quarreling, plus Francie's concern over his previous blackouts, she and Tommy are paired up during a 500-mile race. On the track, Tommy feels another blackout coming on, but manages to hang on. He comes to realize that the fainting spells are a psychological reaction to a childhood trauma.

Francie goads ex-fiance Eddie into reckless maneuvers on the track, causing him to crash. Tommy wins the race, and her as well.

Cast

ActorRole
Annette Funicello Francie Madsen
Fabian Forte Tommy Callahan
Diane McBain Annie Blaine
Warren Berlinger Eddie Sands
Jan Murray Pete Madsen
Stanley Adams Mac Lunsford

Production

The film was originally known as Malibu 500 [1] and Rebel 500. [3] It was the third of a seven-picture deal between AIP and Fabian. [4]

The director was Richard Rush who had made a number of lower budgeted films. He got the job through his agent, who was married to Annette Funicello at the time. Rush said AIP "were fond of my work.... They were the teenage exploitation studio... Since I was very rebellious, my characters were always very rebellious, which seemed to be the keynote of American youth at that time. My pictures worked in the marketplace." [5]

AIP was then run by the team of Sam Arkoff and James H. Nicholson. Rush said before filming, "Sam Arkoff took me aside and said, 'Look, [Jim] Nicholson has got this girlfriend, and I don't want her on the picture.' I said that was okay. A while later, Nicholson pulled me aside and said, 'Richard, there's this girl I’d like you to use on the picture...'." [6] (It is likely this was Susan Hart. [6] )

Filming began on 1 November 1966 and took place at the Producers Studio in Hollywood. [7]

Rush later said "Fabian turned out to be much better than my expectations. I had that jaundiced view of, "Oh, it's Fabian — a manufactured talent." But he wasn't like that; he was a smart kid, worked hard, and was willing to do whatever you asked him to. Annette had poise and great ability, and was a mini-movie star." [6]

Rush later said it was one of his few films "that I didn't have any freedom on." [5] He said the main problem was when he was hired the producer Burt Topper had already spent three racing seasons shooting car racing footage. [6]

"They came to me with that part already done. Since it's a racing film, it didn't have what I was hoping would be my trademark, even at that early stage. So I never felt it was completely my film. It was like writing the story around the footage." [5]

Rush said, "The part of the film that deals with the actors is mine, and the rest is Burt's. It sort of divorced me from that sense of proprietorship that I have over all of my other films. [6]

Diane McBain wrote in her memoir that "I didn’t know at the time, but this film would mark the beginning of the end of my career in motion pictures." She said Rush "tried to make something of the cliche-ridden script" and "Walt Disney must have been shocked to see Annette, his former television Mouseketeer, play the part of a young woman who threw orgies and became a drunk driver. Disney died weeks later [after filming]. I wonder if he got wind of what Annette was doing!" She added, "Thankfully, I don’t remember very much about filming this drive-in dud." [8]

Reception

Contemporary reviews were mediocre. [9] However AIP liked Rush's work and he made two other films for that company, Psych-Out and The Savage Seven . [5]

Quentin Tarantino is an admirer of the film. "Richard Rush is a terrific director and stunt man and I actually used part of the score from this film in the big car chase scene in my movie Death Proof . It’s a real Sixties hard-driving piece of music with bongos and a syntar. That’s really cool." [10]

According to Diabolique magazine:

Thunder Alley is a far more cohesive and successful film than Fireball 500 – a solid drama with a thumping soundtrack... and Annette Funicello is really good – but then it’s a strong role, perhaps her best ever for AIP. Fabian is also strong – cocky, arrogant, but haunted and basically decent; it’s one of his best parts. [11]

Soundtrack

The film features the song "When You Get What You Want" by Guy Hemric and Jerry Styner, performed by Annette Funicello. The duo also wrote the title song "Thunder Alley", performed by The Band Without a Name. [12] The song "Riot in Thunder Alley", by Eddie Beram, from the film also appears in the film and soundtrack album for Death Proof .

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fabian Forte</span> American singer and actor (born 1943)

Fabian Anthony Forte, professionally known as Fabian, is an American singer and actor.

American International Pictures LLC is an American film production company owned by Amazon MGM Studios. In its original operating period, AIP was an independent film production and distribution company known for producing and releasing films from 1955 until 1980, a year after its acquisition by Filmways in 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frankie Avalon</span> American actor and singer (born 1940)

Francis Thomas Avallone , better known as Frankie Avalon, is an American actor, singer, and former teen idol. He had 31 charting U.S. Billboard singles from 1958 to late 1962, including number one hits, "Venus" and "Why" in 1959. He is the earliest surviving singer to have scored a solo number one hit on the Billboard Hot 100.

Annette Joanne Funicello was an American actress and singer. She began her professional career at age 12, becoming one of the most popular Mouseketeers on the original Mickey Mouse Club. In her teenage years, Funicello had a successful career as a pop singer recording under the name "Annette". Her most notable singles are "O Dio Mio", "First Name Initial", "Tall Paul", and "Pineapple Princess". During the mid-1960s, she established herself as a film actress, popularizing the successful "Beach Party" genre alongside co-star Frankie Avalon.

<i>The Shaggy Dog</i> (1959 film) American film directed by Charles Barton

The Shaggy Dog is a 1959 American fantasy comedy film produced by Walt Disney Productions and loosely based on the 1923 novel The Hound of Florence by Felix Salten. Directed by Charles Barton from a screenplay by Lillie Hayward and Bill Walsh, the film stars Fred MacMurray, Tommy Kirk, Jean Hagen, Kevin Corcoran, Tim Considine, Roberta Shore, and Annette Funicello. The film follows a teenage boy named Wilby Daniels who, by the power of an enchanted ring of the Borgias, is transformed into a shaggy Old English Sheepdog.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tommy Kirk</span> American actor (1941–2021)

Thomas Lee Kirk was an American actor, best known for his performances in films made by Walt Disney Studios such as Old Yeller, The Shaggy Dog, Swiss Family Robinson, The Absent-Minded Professor, and The Misadventures of Merlin Jones, as well as the beach party films of the mid-1960s. He frequently appeared as a love interest for Annette Funicello or as part of a family with Kevin Corcoran as his younger brother and Fred MacMurray as his father.

<i>The Monkeys Uncle</i> 1965 American comedy film by Robert Stevenson

The Monkey's Uncle is a 1965 American comedy film starring Tommy Kirk as genius college student Merlin Jones and Annette Funicello as his girlfriend, Jennifer. The title plays on the idiom "monkey's uncle" and refers to a chimpanzee named Stanley, Merlin's legal "nephew" who otherwise has little relevance to the plot. Jones invents a man-powered airplane and a sleep-learning system. The film is a sequel to 1964's The Misadventures of Merlin Jones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beach party film</span> Film genre

The beach party film is an American film genre of feature films which were produced and released between 1963 and 1968, created by American International Pictures (AIP), beginning with their surprise hit, Beach Party, in July 1963. With this film, AIP is credited with creating the genre. In addition to the AIP films, several contributions to the genre were produced and released by major and independent studios alike. According to various sources, the genre comprises over 30 films, with the lower-budget AIP films being the most profitable.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Rush (director)</span> American film director (1929–2021)

Richard Rush was an American film director, scriptwriter, and producer. He is known for directing The Stunt Man, for which he received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Director. His film Color of Night won a Golden Raspberry Award as the worst film of 1994, but Maxim magazine also singled the film out as having the best sex scene in film history. Rush, whose directing career began in 1960, also directed Freebie and the Bean, a police buddy comedy/drama starring Alan Arkin and James Caan. He co-wrote the screenplay for the 1990 film Air America.

<i>Beach Party</i> 1963 film by William Asher

Beach Party is a 1963 American film and the first of seven beach party films from American International Pictures (AIP) aimed at a teen audience. This film is often credited with creating the beach party film genre.

<i>How to Stuff a Wild Bikini</i> 1965 film by William Asher

How to Stuff a Wild Bikini is a 1965 Pathécolor beach party film from American International Pictures. The sixth entry in a seven-film series, the movie was directed by William Asher and features Mickey Rooney, Annette Funicello, Dwayne Hickman, Brian Donlevy, and Beverly Adams. It was written by Asher and Leo Townsend. The film features a brief appearance by Frankie Avalon and includes Buster Keaton in one of his last roles.

<i>Ski Party</i> 1965 film by Alan Rafkin

Ski Party is a 1965 American teen musical comedy film directed by Alan Rafkin and starring Frankie Avalon and Dwayne Hickman. It was released by American International Pictures (AIP). Ski Party is considered as a beach party film spin-off, with a change of setting from the beach to the ski slopes – although the final scene places everyone back at the beach.

<i>Beach Blanket Bingo</i> 1965 film by William Asher

Beach Blanket Bingo is a 1965 American beach party film directed by William Asher. It is the fifth film in the Beach Party film series. The film stars Frankie Avalon, Annette Funicello, Linda Evans, Deborah Walley, Paul Lynde, and Don Rickles. Earl Wilson and Buster Keaton appear. Evans's singing voice was dubbed by Jackie Ward.

<i>Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine</i> 1965 film by Norman Taurog

Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine is a 1965 Pathécolor comedy film directed by Norman Taurog and distributed by American International Pictures. Starring Vincent Price, Frankie Avalon, Dwayne Hickman, Susan Hart and Jack Mullaney, and featuring Fred Clark, the film is a parody of the then-popular spy trend, made using actors from AIP's beach party and Edgar Allan Poe films. The film was retitled Dr G. and the Bikini Machine in England due to a threatened lawsuit from Eon, holder of the rights to the James Bond series.

<i>The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini</i> 1966 film by Don Weis

Ghost in the Invisible Bikini is a 1966 American fantasy comedy film. It is the seventh and last of American International Pictures' beach party films. The film features the cast cavorting in and around a haunted house and the adjacent swimming pool.

<i>Pajama Party</i> (film) 1964 beach party film directed by Don Weis

Pajama Party is a 1964 beach party film starring Tommy Kirk and Annette Funicello. This is the fourth in a series of seven beach films produced by American International Pictures. The other films in this series are Beach Party (1963), Muscle Beach Party (1964), Bikini Beach (1964), Beach Blanket Bingo (1965), How to Stuff a Wild Bikini (1965), Ski Party (1965) and The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini (1966).

<i>Dr. Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs</i> 1966 film directed by Mario Bava

Dr. Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs is a 1966 Eurospy comedy film, made in Technicolor and directed by Mario Bava. Serving as a sequel to two unrelated films, Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine and Two Mafiosi Against Goldginger, the film stars Vincent Price, Fabian, Francesco Mulé, Laura Antonelli, and the Italian comic duo Franco and Ciccio.

<i>Its a Bikini World</i> 1967 film by Stephanie Rothman

It's a Bikini World is a 1967 American musical comedy film starring Tommy Kirk, Deborah Walley and Bobby Pickett. The film features cameos by the music groups the Gentrys, the Animals, Pat & Lolly Vegas, the Castaways and R&B girl group the Toys. Featuring a pro-feminist plotline, it is the only film in the beach party genre to be directed by a woman.

<i>Fireball 500</i> 1966 film by William Asher

Fireball 500 is a 1966 stock car racing film, blended with the beach party film genre. A vehicle for stars Frankie Avalon, Annette Funicello, and Fabian, it was one of a string of similar racing films from the 1960s. Written by William Asher and Leo Townsend, and directed by William Asher, it tells the story of Dave Owens (Avalon), a stock car racer forced to run moonshine.

<i>Maryjane</i> (film) 1968 film by Maury Dexter

Maryjane is a 1968 feature film starring Fabian as a high school art teacher who is framed for drug possession.

References

  1. 1 2 Tide Running Out for Beach Films, In for Protest Movies Thomas, Bob. Los Angeles Times 12 Feb 1966: b7
  2. ↑ "Big Rental Films of 1967", Variety, 3 January 1968 p 25. Please note these figures refer to rentals accruing to the distributors.
  3. ↑ Filmways Inks Jack Clayton Martin, Betty. Los Angeles Times 12 July 1966: c9.
  4. ↑ Fabian Role Assigned Los Angeles Times 4 Nov 1966: C20.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Murray, Noel (June 13, 2011). "Interview with Richard Rush". AV Club.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 "Savage Cinema: An Interview with Director Richard Rush". Shock Cinema. No. 36. p. 12.
  7. ↑ MOVIE CAL SHEET: SCHALLERT JOINS 'TOMBSTONE' Martin, Betty. Los Angeles Times 15 Oct 1966: 19.
  8. ↑ McBain, Diane (2014). Famous enough : a Hollywood memoir. p. 185.
  9. ↑ The Screen: Neighborhood Houses Get 'Thunder Alley' New York Times 14 Sep 1967: 55.
  10. ↑ "QUENTIN TARANTINO: MY FAVOURITE RACING MOVIES" F1 Social Diary 21 August, 2013 Archived 2014-07-07 at archive.today accessed 5 July 2014
  11. ↑ Vagg, Stephen (26 August 2019). "The Cinema of Fabian". Diabolique.
  12. ↑ Thunder Alley (1967) – Soundtracks
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.