Turn Blue: The Short Life of Ghoulardi

Like many another native northeastern Ohioan, even ones as young as I am, I have fond memories of Ghoulardi, one of the original television B-movie horror hosts. I of course missed his broadcast heyday (he was only on air from 1963-66), but his spirit, fittingly enough, has flourished far beyond that, and he's a permanent fixture in not only Ohio but cult movie history.

Now documentarian Phil Hoffman - who also made the Akron 1970's punk film It's Everything and Then It's Gone and it's sequel If You're Not Dead, Play! - has just completed a new film about Ghoulardi, Turn Blue: The Short Life of Ghoulardi. If you're located in northeastern Ohio, you can catch it on Western Reserve Public Media Tuesday, October 27 at 9:00 pm, Wednesday, October 28 at 2:00 am and Saturday, October 31 at 7:30 pm. Hopefully it will eventually also be available online; in the meantime, there's a clip at the film production site.

A bit of Ghoulardi live from '63

Trivia bit: Ghoulardi's son is also in show business, as a director. He's responsible for a few little films including Boogie Nights and There Will Be Blood. Now you know why Paul Thomas Anderson, son of Ernie Anderson, named his production company Ghoulardi Film Company.