Fantasmic Features

[144guitarman]

And this is my belly button,button,button

[elc1960]

Sad to say, there's no footage on YouTube of Ed McDonnell in his better-known persona of "Major Mudd". Feep would occasionally turn up on that show too. The only footage I've found is of the tribute "toast & roast" they had for Ed shortly before he passed away.

[tedroberson]

I have great and spooky memories of spending my Saturday nights watching Fantasmic Features with the comic antics of feep. Watching horror movies like the amazing colossal man and attack of the 50 foot woman. Feep was a star even before mr bill became famous on saturday night live. My father use to take me to the local pizza parlor every Saturday night at 10pm just before Fantasmic Features would start so that we could have pizza and watch the cool B movies. A tradition I still follow today.

[almostcapecod]

I loved watching Feep on TV as a kid and all the old great sci-fi movies in black and white before color was common, I always liked "The Blob" , after watching "Killer Alage" an alage thats taking over parts of the ocean I wonder when the real Blob will appear?

[DangerouslyYours]

How well I remember Fantasmic Features. 11:30p Saturday night. I recall the first movie aired was The Giant Behemoth, the next week was Caltiki the Immortal Monster. I remember Feep very well, and later a Saturday morning Feep show called Feep-A-Rooney. Great memories.

[Bottomf]

I use to watch this show all the time.

[jaymor2n]

Thanks so much for going to the trouble to dig this up. I remember watching this every week. Question: does anyone know where the theme song for FF comes from? It sound like it was taken from a film from back then. it's a great horror theme. I'd really like to find it. Thanks again!

[TheHoldingCoat]

I've been trying to track down that music for years, but have been unable to identify it. If I ever find out what it is, I will post that info here.

[Saturday8pm]

Nice job! I've read about Feep and was curious. Plenty before my time.

[mdyankee55]

I used to love Fantasmic Features. It was a staple in our house every Monday night at 7 PM I think. Back then we'd watch it on this big box black and white TV, which had about 30 vacuum tubes and a recurring problem with horizontal hold (an unknown concept today). We talked about Feep for *years* afterwards (Well, hello there! Have you been Feeping well lately? [spacey laughter]) The monster movies were really scary by the standards of the day, too.

[TheHoldingCoat]

Yes, the show originally aired in prime time (either 7 or 8 pm - I forget) on Monday nights, then moved to latenight on Saturdays.

[inkey2]

reply to TheHoldingCoat: yes, this was quite an era.....the era of monster movies that had some kind of freaky or scary host. All over the country there was stuff like this

[jaymor2n]

Saturday nights at 11:30 - 1AM. They ran a double feature. I used to wait until the babysitter was asleep and sneak into my brothers room and filch the miniature Singer TV and watch under the covers.]

[inkey2]

what time did this show air.....I think it was 7 or 8pm??

[inkey2]

When I was a kid I so looked forward to the weekend monster movies on Fantasmic features. This was the era of "famous Monsters Magazine" ..."Aurora monster models" etc. I remember very well how I would plan the night. Early in the day I would go to the nearby market and buy a couple bottles of Coke, a bag of potato chips & dip mix (Lipton dried onion soup mix & sour cream). I watched it on an RCA black & white console TV. Looking back on it....it was "heaven"

[BigsbyDude]

That little "FEEP" scared the crap out of me way back watching it in Boston on TV. I wonder if there is any real footage of a show around ? Thanks so much for posting !

[TheHoldingCoat]

I have been corresponding with the man who directed both Major Mudd and Feep, who spent his entire career at Ch.7. If anyone would have footage, it would be him, and he has none, unfortuantely.

[caseyg5]

I sure miss the Muddman, alias Feep. The movies were classic: "Attack of the Crab Monsters," "The Giant Behemoth,"Terror from the Year 5000." Childhood was a thumbs-up partly because of Ed McDonnell.

[liquidtoez]

I remember Feep; I think he use to say "I hope you feep well"

[nazistrumpet]

no liquidtoez, what he said was "After tonight's Fantasmic Feature, you won't feep at all!" LOL close but no cigar. I loved that programme.

[julikell]

Well done, Robert. Feep used to scare the bejesus out of me when I was a kid. Gosh, I miss him.

[pompom11]

Robert, really good job, I remember Feep so well. We actually got scared shitless in the beginning before Fantasmic Features movie started, listening to Feep talk. We watched it all the time in Boston. If you close your eyes you can hear Major Mudd so well :)

[rocketguy2]

Very cool! In Northern California, we watched Bob Wilkins on Creature Features.

If you get a cahnce, check out our original retro sci-fi serial, "Thirty Second Doom". Thanks!

[dagwort]

That is really, really strange.

BTW, what was the movie that had that guy there with the all-white eye-balls? I remember that flick out of a NYC station in the 60's.

[TheHoldingCoat]

That is Paul Birch as a vampire from outer space in Roger Corman's original NOT OF THIS EARTH, a neat little movie that has never been officially released on VHS or DVD.

[thegortdude]

Thanks for post this short of feep and his show. I have been searching the net for years looking for Feep. I remember being so scared when he would come on TV way back when. Does anyone know how long he ran? I do remember him being a little more animated and very blurry. Maybe the bad focus was our TV.

[TheHoldingCoat]

"Fantasmic Features" premiered in June 1963 and ran until sometime in the mid-60s. For more info, go to E-Gor's Chamber of TV Horror Hosts website, click on "F" and scroll down to the entry on Feep.

[editdave]

This is fantasmic! Somewhere actual footage from Fantasmic Features and Major Mudd must exist. I really think a tribute DVD to Ed McDonnel is long overdue. If Rex Trailer and Bozo can have their own DVDs, why not Major Mudd (and Feep)? Ed was the funniest -- and certainly the hippest -- of all the Boston kids show hosts back in the '60s.

[TheHoldingCoat]

I completely agree with you about Ed McDonnell. If the station he worked for hadn't essentially disappeared from the face of the earth because of management & location changes, we'd probably have Feep & Major Mudd clips here on YouTube aplenty. FYI: there is a MM clip from WCVB here on YouTube, easily found if you search for it.

[pompom11]

My son had Rex Trailer as a teacher at Emerson College, he was a nice guy!

[TheHoldingCoat]

Still is, from what I hear. A documentary about Rex was made recently; not sure if its been released yet.