I think we’ve all had the “Oh, yeah, that guy” moment regarding Dick Miller, the subject of That Guy Dick Miller at the Wisconsin Film Festival. He’s in so many films that we almost instantly recognize him even though we often don’t know or we forget his name. I recently had a similar moment and I thought I’d share how I recently came across him so that you would have a fun way prepare for the Festival screening.
Recently I’ve been playing episodes of the Shocker Internet Drive-In in the background as I try to get to sleep. Try it sometime, you’ll end up with some very strange dreams. Anyway, I woke up at two different points during their “Corman Creature Feature” (Week 14), and I thought that very little time had passed because I saw the same actor on the screen. And both times I distinctly remember thinking to myself, “Oh yeah, that guy…” before falling back asleep. Well, the double feature was Corman’s Little Shop of Horrors and A Bucket of Blood, both of which feature Dick Miller, so I actually have no idea how much time had passed between waking moments. I was more familiar with Little Shop of Horrors, but I still need to go back and watch the rest of A Bucket of Blood. Luckily, a new 35mm print of A Bucket of Blood will screen at the Wisconsin Film Festival.
Meanwhile, you might want to check out the “Corman Creature Feature” episode of the Shocker Internet Drive-In, which presents old public domain features with classic trailers, drive-in advertisements (note: the Dr. Pepper Snack Bar spot is more than a little offensive), and cartoons. You have a few viewing options. First, you could watch it on your computer by following the link or watching the embedded video below. If you would prefer to watch on your television, you could use a Roku Streaming Player and watch through the Nowhere Archive channel. Once you’ve installed the channel, simply search “Shocker Drive-In” and you will find many of the episodes, including “Week 14.”