Eddie Deezen Movies

The time is 1964, and the Beatles, already a hugely popular group, are about to go on the Ed Sullivan Show for the first time, an appearance that launched them into a worldwide phenomenon. Already, girls are fainting during their concerts from sheer excitement at being in the same theater with them. Pam Mitchell (Nancy Allen) is happy enough to be getting married but wants to bed one of the "Fab Four" before she does. Grace Corrigan (Theresa Saldana), a dedicated fan, is certain that if she can get some exclusive photos of the Beatles, her career as a photographer will be secured. And then there are two people who feel that the future of civilization as we know it depends on their efforts to ruin the Beatles' appearance on Ed Sullivan's show. In this madcap comedy, when these people (and others besides) descend on the New York hotel the Beatles are staying in, things begin hopping. This comedy was Robert Zemeckis' first feature. A protégé of Stephen Spielberg, he went on to direct Forrest Gump, Back to the Future, and Who Framed Roger Rabbit? among other popular features. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

It's December of 1941, and the people of California are in varying states of unease, ranging from a sincere desire to defend the country to virtual blind panic in the wake of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Thus begin several story threads that comprise the "plot" of this strange period comedy, a sort of satirical disaster movie, from Steven Spielberg. The stories and story threads involve lusty young men, officers (Tim Matheson) and civilians (Bobby Di Cicco) alike, eager to bed the young ladies of their dreams; Wild Bill Kelso, a nutty fighter pilot (John Belushi) following what he thinks is a squadron of Japanese fighters along the California coast; a well-meaning but clumsy tank crew (including John Candy) led by straight-arrow, by-the-book Sgt. Tree (Dan Aykroyd), who doesn't recognize the thug (Treat Williams) in his command; and homeowner Ward Douglas (Ned Beatty), who is eager to do his part for the nation's defense and, despite the misgivings of his wife (Lorraine Gary), doesn't mind his front yard overlooking the ocean being chosen to house a 40 mm anti-aircraft gun. There is also a pair of grotesquely inept airplane spotters (Murray Hamilton, Eddie Deezen) who are doing their job from atop a ferris wheel at a beachfront amusement park; a paranoid army colonel (Warren Oates) positive that the Japanese are infiltrating from the hills; a big dance being held on behalf of servicemen, being attended by a lusty young woman of size (Wendie Jo Sperber) eager to land a man in uniform; and General Joseph "Vinegar Joe" Stillwell (Robert Stack), in charge of the defense of the West Coast, who can't seem to get anyone to listen to him when he says to keep calm. And, oh yes, there's also a real Japanese submarine that has gotten all the way to the California coast under the command of its captain (Toshiro Mifune) and a German officer observer (Christopher Lee), only to find itself without a working compass or usable maps. Its captain won't leave until the sub has attacked a militarily significant, honorable target, and the only one that anyone aboard ship knows of in California is Hollywood. By New Year's Eve, all of these characters are going to cross paths, directly or once-removed, in a comedy of errors and destruction strongly reminiscent of the finale to National Lampoon's Animal House (as well as several disaster movies from the same studio), but on a much larger and more impressive scale. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide

This strange movie is about a roller skating fanatic who leaves home, goes to San Francisco to pursue his passion, and then comes up against a troublesome relationship. Andy Steigler (Steve Tracy) gets a low-level job at a large roller rink to be close to his sport. He makes friends with some other employees as well as his landlady, Dottie Butz (Isabel Sanford), but after he meets Olivia (Dana Handler) things go downhill. His feelings are intentionally either mocked or encouraged by the mean-spirited Olivia and before he can resolve what is happening to him, he has a few odd sessions with Dr. Boxer (Christopher Lee), a man who is knowledgeable about dominating relationships. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Given the runaway success of Grease, which became the biggest-grossing movie musical of all time, it was all but inevitable that there would be a sequel, and four years later this follow-up brought a new group of kids back to Rydell High. It's 1961, and Stephanie Zinone (Michelle Pfeiffer) is the tough leader of the Pink Ladies, while Michael Carrington (Maxwell Caulfield) is a clean-cut British exchange student. Michael likes Stephanie, but the Pink Ladies' by-laws prevent her from dating guys who aren't members of the T-Birds, their affiliated male gang. However, when a Zorro-like masked avenger on a motorcycle rescues Stephanie from a gang of ill-mannered toughs, she's eager to get to know the hero with the cool wheels. Any guesses as to who he might be? Eve Arden, Sid Caesar, and Dody Goodman return from the first film as members of the Rydell High faculty, while actual '50s teen icons Tab Hunter and Connie Stevens are on board as new members of the staff; Didi Conn as Frenchy is the only one of the students to appear in both movies. Patricia Birch, who served as choreographer on Grease, made her debut as a director on Grease 2; while she's remained active as a choreographer, she hasn't directed again since. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Cult filmmaker Mark Pirro directed, wrote, produced, and starred in this first of his irreverent low-budget horror-comedies, made for under $3000 on Super-8 film. Pirro plays a virgin vampire whose sister (Lori Sutton) introduces him to the life of bloodsucking. The director replaced Eddie Deezen in the lead when the cult favorite quit, but Deezen still shows up as Pirro's brother in flashback scenes. Genre veteran Conrad Brooks (Plan 9 from Outer Space) also appears. Pirro returned four years later with the outrageous Curse of the Queerwolf. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide

Child actress Soleil Moon Frye played the title role in the lightweight half-hour sitcom Punky Brewster. After being abandoned by her parents, resourceful eight-year-old Penelope "Punky" Brewster moved into an an empty Chicago apartment with her little dog, Brandon. They were discovered and subsequently adopted by the building's owner, middle-aged photographer Henry Warnimont (George Gaynes), the archetypal "old grouch with the heart of gold." Punky quickly became friends with Cherie Johnson (played, amazingly enough, by Cherie Johnson), who lived in the apartment upstairs with her legal guardian, registered nurse Betty Johnson (Susie Garrett). The two youngsters attended school with their other friends, stuck-up Margaux Kramer (Ami Foster) and mischievous Allen Anderson (Casey Ellison). Their teacher during season one was Mrs. Morton (Dody Goodman), succeeded in season two by Mike Fulton (T.K. Carter). Also on hand during the series' inaugural season was Eddie Deezen as the apartment's goofy maintenance man, Eddie Malvin. The series debuted September 18, 1984, on the NBC network, whose programming head, Brandon Tartikoff, had actually had a childhood friend named Punky Brewster (still alive at the time the series was produced -- and, incidentally, generously compensated for the use of her name). Though the series lasted only two seasons on NBC, it proved to be a huge hit in rerun syndication after its cancellation on September 7, 1986. Thus, beginning in the fall of 1987, new episodes of Punky Brewster were seen in first-run syndication with virtually the entire cast (except for T.K. Carter) intact. The property remained in production for an additional two years, during which time the character of Henry Warnimont forsook his photography career to open up a restaurant, appropriately christened "Punky's Place." And from 1985 to 1989, an animated cartoon spin-off featuring the same cast in voice-over roles, It's Punky Brewster, was seen on NBC's Saturday-morning manifest. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In a thinly-plotted story about redeeming a failing hotel by turning it into an optional brothel (depending on the guest), Peter Scolari stars as Elliot, the young man who has to succeed at this hotel business in order to garner the favor of Clifford, his prospective father-in-law (Christopher Lee). Unknown to Elliot and his girlfriend Tracy (Colleen Camp), her father just intends to blast the building to smithereens so he can collect the insurance money. But with Fran Drescher as the head of the contingent of call girls-cum-bellhops, the hotel starts to turn a tidy profit, giving Clifford second thoughts. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Six sorority sisters are desperate for rent money, so, encouraged and trained by their den mother, they enter a mud-wrestling tournament in Las Vegas. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide

With a cast starring such comic veterans as Harvey Korman, Anne Meara, Jack Weston and Tim Conway (who also wrote the script), and executive produced by Mike Nichols, it is normally a safe bet that hiliarity will ensue. Unfortunately, this sure thing does not pay off and is disappointingly dumb as it tells the tale of four luckless gamblers who in desperation borrow a large sum for a local loanshark so they can bet on a particular horse. Unfortunately, they bet on the wrong nag and suddenly the foursome must scramble around for quick cash before the loanshark's thugs show up for some bruising payback. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

John DeBello, the man who brought you The Attack of the Killer Tomatoes back in 1978, was responsible for the 1987 fantasy farce Happy Hour. The premise: a Coors-like beer manufacturer stumbles onto a secret ingredient that compels the guzzlers of America to consume its product exclusively. The complication: the magic formula has been stolen by a rival brewery. The original beermeisters send Rich Little out to steal back the formula, while the rival company dispatches Jamie Farr to prevent Little from completing his mission. Upon meeting one another, Rich and Jamie discover that they're old college chums and former student activists. Together, Little and Farr attempt to foil the mercenary machinations of both beer companies. Is Happy Hour as funny as John DeBello imagined it to be? Let us merely observe that the film's high point is a shot of a group of six-year-olds chugging beer, and that the closing image is of a pretty blonde who chastises the audience for not being smart enough to follow the plot. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

"B"-sleaze auteur Fred Olen Ray pounded out this vampire parody, which stars career nerd Eddie Deezen as an affable dork and wannabe Hollywood hot-shot who discovers that a high-market bordello -- overseen by slinky Madam Cassandra (Britt Ekland) -- is actually a den of lascivious vampire bimbos from hell. Though his companions are easily lured by the ladies' deadly charms, Deezen takes a definite liking to his self-proclaimed title of Vampire Hunter, even going as far as to sew a crucifix into his skivvies. Laughing yet? This is actually one of Ray's more witty efforts -- with a manic pace, some clever in-jokes, copious amounts of skin, and a throwaway attitude that makes the relentless silliness a bit more palatable... although Deezen's hyperkinetic mugging may be more than some viewers can endure. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide