What's the Matter with Kansas?

The Beast From the Beginning of Time (1965)
Wichita, Kansas

When Kansas horror host Tom Leahy (a.k.a. "The Host") died earlier this year, he not only left behind several decades worth of fond memories for Wichita residents who had grown up watching "The Host and Rodney," he also left us with some half-whispered rumors about an otherwise unheard of movie called The Beast From the Beginning of Time.

Leahy starred as an unearthed caveman who is driven to kill whenever he hears the sound of thunder. Produced by the staff of local TV station KARD, the film remained unreleased until it finally debuted on Wichita television in 1981. It later screened at the Wichita Orpheum Theater in 2005.



It also aired as an episode of Joel Sanderson/Gunther Dedmond's Basement Sublet of Horror, and you can view the entire episode featuring this rare film here.

While I was researching The Dead Next Door, Sanderson helpfully provided a copy of the film, along with another Wichita flick called King Kung Fu (1976) in which Leahy appeared, and the newspaper article below that was published before the film's TV debut.


You can also download the B Movie Cast podcast about the film here.