Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Nothing So Appalling in Toledo


 As part of our ongoing coverage of Blood Feast's 50th anniversary, here's an item from the summer of 1964.


From The Toledo Blade
Wednesday, July 1, 1964

Grisly 'Trailer' Brings Protests, Policy Change

Ray Oviatt, Blade Entertainment Editor

The movie exhibitor's problems, created by the wide suitability range of current films, extends to the previews of coming attractions. This was emphasized by the experience of the Telegraph Drive-In this past week.

While showing a bill, generally acceptable to general audiences, a trailer promoting a grisly item called "The Blood Feast" was run, much to the outrage of numerous patrons who had come in family groups. As a result the Armstrong Circuit, operator of the theater, has canceled the scheduled showing of this reportedly distasteful picture altogether.

Also, according to Fred Lentz of the Armstrong home office in Bowling Green, managers around the circuit have been authorized to delete from their schedules any trailers which might not be in keeping with the current program.

The reasonable complaints which were registered with me were based on the fact that movie-goers had gotten something they had not bargained for. Having purchased tickets for inocuous films such as "Spencer's Mountain" and "The Wheeler Dealers," they had not expected to see gore and sadism.

Callers were not necessarily demanding that the film not be shown at all, only that they be given the opportunity to avoid it and any excerpts from it.


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