Day of the Animals (1977) - Newspaper Ad [Oakland Tribune]

May 25, 1977

One year after striking box office gold with Grizzly, director William Girdler, producer Edward L. Montoro, and stars Christopher George and Richard Jaekel gathered together to see if they might be able to milk more cash from the animal attack genre cow.

While Day of the Animals looks to have turned a modest-to-low profit at the box office, it did fall far short of collecting the impressive and sizable stacks of cash that Grizzly had raked in the year prior.

From my own admittedly skewed and imprecise memory, this movie came and went from local theatres and drive-ins without my noticing it. First time I saw it was when it debuted on television and I remember liking it okay. It held my 11, 12, or 13 year old attention, but it did not grab me like Grizzly had. So it goes.

As far as the co-hits keeping the film company on its opening weekend, the Alameda Showcase had it coupled with Embryo, while the Coliseum Drive-in had it with Grizzly. The Hayward 6 had Days of the Animals going solo, while the neighboring Union City Drive-In had it paired with Black Sunday. That would be the one with the blimp, not the Mario Bava movie. 

Richmond's Hilltop Drive-In also had it paired with Grizzly, while Pleasant Hill's Motor Movies Drive-In had it with Rooster Cogburn, of all things. Of all of those films, I think Embryo is the only one I have yet to see.

Grizzly (1976) - Newspaper Ad

San Francisco Examiner - May 12, 1976

While Jaws made me afraid of the ocean and the unseen terrors lurking in its impenetrable depths, Grizzly made me terrified of the potential dangers of camping in the woods. In May or June of 1976, when I was eight or nine years old, Grizzly seemed a tad plausible. Today it just looks and feels like what it is, a quickie Jaws cash grab.

But, like yesterday's The Manitou, there are flashes and glimmers of prowess hinting that director William Girdler was capable of doing more with far better material than he what had to work with here.

Still though the movie, though. And that Neal Adams poster art will never not be awesome to behold.

The Manitou (1978) - Newspaper Ad

Oakland Tribune - May 11, 1978

The film version of The Manitou first dinged my burgeoning horror geek radar when I perused the paperback movie tie-in edition at our local Gemco. I remember being unnerved by the color photos on the back cover and, I believe, that were in the center of the book. It looked far too scary for me.

Years later I would finally catch up with the film on home video, or television, and be both amused and somewhat unnerved by it. While the movie is awash with over the top cheesy zaniness, it also has one or two really effective moments. The best of which, I argue, is the birthing sequence. It really works and also shows that the late William Girdler had legit talent as a director. Who knows what he might have done, if he had he lived.

Abby (1974) - Newspaper Ad

Oakland Tribune - December 24, 1974

One year after The Exorcist opened on Christmas Day, William Girdler's knock-off cash-in is poised to open on December 25th as well. Because nothing says Christmas better than demonic possession, right?

While I know about the legal dispute and such, I have yet to see the actual movie. I need to change that.

The Manitou (1978) - Newspaper Ad [Oakland Tribune - May 12, 1978]

The only memory I have regarding the 1978 release of William Girdler's final film (he had died in a helicopter crash in January of that same year) is of picking up the paperback tie-in edition of the film's source material and being unnerved by the color stills contained therein. At least that is how I remember it.

I would not see The Manitou until 1983 or 84, I think. Maybe. I am pretty sure it was while we were living in Hong Kong, I think. 1984 would also be the year that I tore through a bunch of Graham Masterton novels. Devouring The Pariah, The Manitou, The Djinn, and The Wells of Hell in quick and delighted fashion.