Bert I. Gordon
Directing
Biography
Bert Ira Gordon (born September 24, 1922 in Kenosha, WI) was an American film director most famous for such science fiction and horror B-movies as The Amazing Colossal Man and Village of the Giants. Most of Gordon's work was in the idiom of giant monster films, for which he used rear-projection to create the special effects. His nickname "Mister B.I.G." was a reference both to his initials and to his preferred technique for making super-sized creatures. Gordon held a degree from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He began his career directing television commercials before moving to film in 1954 to produce Serpent Island. In 1957, he began his prolific association with American International Pictures. In 1960, he wrote, produced and directed The Boy and the Pirates, starring then active and popular child star Charles Herbert alongside Gordon's own daughter, Susan. The trio appeared together in the celebrity lineup at the 2006 Monster Bash in Pittsburgh, as The Walt Disney Company's Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) spiked interest in previous "pirate" films. Empire of the Ants (1977) featured a pre-Dynasty Joan Collins, who later said of the film that it was her worst acting experience, but by then the loosely-based modernized H. G. Wells tale had been elevated to cult film status. While none of his films received significant critical attention, his work attained popularity in some circles. Cult TV series Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K) has featured several of his films, which the accompanying episodes are often regarded as some of the show's best. Gordon passed away on March 8, 2023, at 100 years old. Description above from the Wikipedia article Bert I. Gordon, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For
Teenagers from a small town and their high school science teacher join forces to battle a giant mutant spider, living in a cave nearby and getting hungry.
Earth vs. the Spider
A Florida real estate developer and her captain lure investors to a property in the Everglades called Dreamland Shores, under false pretenses that the swampland will soon be developed. After the group arrives on a small island, they find it has been overrun by giant mutated ants, brought on by the dumping of toxic waste in the area.
Empire of the Ants
Morgan and his friends are on a hunting trip on a remote Canadian island when they are attacked by a swarm of giant wasps. Looking for help, Morgan stumbles across a barn inhabited by an enormous killer chicken. After doing some exploring, they discover the entire island is crawling with animals that have somehow grown to giant size. The most dangerous of all of these, however, are the rats, who are mobilizing to do battle with the human intruders.
The Food of the Gods
A jazz pianist is haunted by his dead ex-lover's crawling hand and floating head.
Tormented
A comprehensive story of Hollywood's horror and science fiction films of the 1950s, told by the people who made them.
Hollywood in the Atomic Age: Monsters! Martians! Mad Scientists!
The son of a sorceress, armed with weapons, armour and six magically summoned knights, goes on a quest to save a princess from a vengeful wizard.
The Magic Sword
Los Angeles detectives Minelli and Blake must track down a serial rapist who may know the identity of a mentally disturbed bomber.
The Mad Bomber
A high school student obsessed with sex tries to seduce both his beautiful older neighbor and the shy new girl in school over a bet, only to end up falling in love.
The Big Bet
After Lori suffers a stillbirth, her husband Frank obtains a job with a northern California toy company. Frank's new boss, the mysterious Mr. Cato, explains that Frank's position will involve magic. Cato, who seemingly holds enormous influence over the town, pursues the power of necromancy and believes that Lori holds the key that will help him resurrect his own dead son.
Necromancy
"Genius" accidentally invents "goo" which causes living things to rapidly grow to an enormous size. Seeing an opportunity to get rich, some delinquent teenagers steal the "goo" and, as a result of a sophomoric dare, consume it themselves and become thirty feet tall. They then take over control of the town by kidnapping the sheriff's daughter and dancing suggestively.
Village of the Giants
A test pilot is missing and a search party is sent out in the jungles of Mexico; however, while searching they uncover a monster in the jungle who became this way due to a dose of radioactivity.
The Cyclops
An attractive reporter investigating the mysterious destruction of an Illinois town stumbles upon a secret government laboratory conducting radiation experiments on vegetables. The lead scientist is eager to help find out what happened. Together they discover that giant grasshoppers are behind the devastation. Worse yet, thousands of them are headed toward Chicago! Can they be stopped... or is this the BEGINNING OF THE END?
Beginning of the End
Jimmy desires to be a pirate when one day he discovers a magic bottle on the beach. He makes a wish and suddenly finds himself aboard Blackbeard's ship. Soon he realizes that being a pirate isn't what he expected.
The Boy and the Pirates
In 1692 Salem, Ann Putnam accuses those who have angered her of witchcraft; they are tried and put to death. In 1980, Loreen Graham is on a school outing to the Salem Witch Museum when a wax figure of a man from 1692 comes to life and accosts her. It seems that she may be the reincarnation of Ann, who had accused the man's 5-year-old daughter of witchcraft and the girl is scheduled to be burned at the stake. Loreen must fight against Ann's possession and confront the corrupt 17th century minister consorting with Ann to falsely accuse people of witchcraft.
Burned at the Stake
A TV pilot masterminded by B movie auteur Bert I. Gordon and cable production company Herts-Lion International. Vincent Price hosts as a poltergeist introducing the ghost story to follow. It's really an edited version of Gordon's 1960 film Tormented, starring Richard Carlson as a jazz musician haunted by the spirit of an old flame he let fall from a lighthouse.
Famous Ghost Stories
In 1960, four American scientists travel to a planet that has just entered Earth's solar system to see if it's able to support an Earth colony. They find an oxygen atmosphere, a lush earth-like forest, and earth-like animals living around a potable fresh-water lake.
King Dinosaur
Glenn Manning, "The Amazing Colossal Man," believed dead after falling from the Hoover Dam, reemerges in rural Mexico, brain damaged, disfigured, and very angry.
War of the Colossal Beast
Psychopathic siblings Catherine and Henry use dating sites to lure unsuspecting people to their home for sadistic games and inevitable slaughter.
Secrets of a Psychopath
Lt. Col. Glenn Manning is inadvertently exposed to a plutonium bomb blast and although he sustains burns over 90% of his body, he survives. Then he begins to grow, but as he grows he starts losing his mind. By the time he stops he is 50 ft tall, insane and is on the rampage.
The Amazing Colossal Man
A deranged scientist creates a ray that can shrink people down to doll size.