Approached in the right frame of mind (half asleep in the air conditioning on a Sunday afternoon), I suppose it’s an agreeable enough diversion from the summer heat. Not that it’s anywhere near as good as “Goliath and the Vampires,” mind you. (Both films achieved their greatest success in Italy.) And I probably wouldn’t recommend it for anyone born in the 21st century. But as a time capsule of another era, “Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine” (1965) is a pretty good fit. Roy and I will be slathering on the suntan lotion for a heated discussion of this half-forgotten classic on the next “Roy’s Tie-Dye Sci-Fi Corner.”
American International Pictures took elements from its two most lucrative cash cows – Frankie Avalon “Beach Party” movies and the Roger Corman Edgar Allan Poe cycle – added a dash of James Bond (without the dash), and whipped them into a frothy drive-in milkshake. At the cost of one million dollars, it was the most expensive A.I.P. film released up to that time. Vincent Price must have been looking for some extra cash to add another Rembrandt to his art collection.
The film was directed by Norman Taurog, very far away from his Academy Award, for “Skippy,” in 1931. By the 1950s and ‘60s, Taurog was churning out Jerry Lewis comedies and Elvis musicals. Art Clokey, of “Gumby” fame, designed the opening credits, and the title song is sung by the Supremes. Watch fast for cameos by “Beach Party” regulars Annette Funicello and Harvey Lembeck.
What could have made it better? If it were a musical, I guess. In a 1987 interview, Price lamented, “It could have been fun, but they cut all the music out.“
Nevertheless, Mike Myers must have loved it. It’s clearly one of the influences on the Austin Powers series. Yeah, baby!
We’ll be peering over our sunglasses and donning our curly-toed slippers for an examination of “Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine,” on next Roy’s Tie-Dye Sci-Fi Corner. Shimmy along in the comments section, when we livestream on Facebook, YouTube, etc., this Friday evening at 7:00 EDT!
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The Vincent Price art collection… from Sears
The Vincent Price Museum
http://vincentpriceartmuseum.org/
“Vincent Price is an actor, no doubt about that…. But there can be and is doubt about whether he uses acting simply as a means of supporting his expensive habit – the habit of pursuing and collecting art treasures wherever he finds them.”
