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B Movies: Interesting Facts

Your Guide to Low Budget Films

The Werewolf vs. Vampire Woman

The Tingler

The Beast of Yucca Flats

B-Movie Trivia

  • In general, B movies are made without studio backing and for a low budget. Typical genres are horror, sci-fi, and westerns.
  • Some actors who got their start in B movies include: Clint Eastwood, Jack Nicholson, George Clooney, John Wayne, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Aniston, Jamie Lee Curtis, Owen Wilson, & Johnny Depp
  • Macabre (1958) invited potential viewers to take out additional insurance policies to cover "death by fright."
  • The Tingler (1959) used buzzers attached to random seats throughout the movie theater, which activated at the climax of the movie.
  • Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959), directed by Ed Wood, was financed by a local Baptist congregation led by Wood's landlord.
  • Ed Wood has been called "The World's Worst Director."
  • Roger Corman directed 53 films in 15 years, and has produced over 400 films in the last 50 years.
  • The Little Shop of Horrors (1960), directed by Roger Corman, holds the record for the shortest shooting schedule for a feature film: TWO DAYS!
  • Every film ever directed by Coleman Francis was used for an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000.
  • Composers like John Williams, Elmer Bernstein, and Henry Mancini have written music for B-movies.

Plan 9 from Outer Space