Out of the Inkwell

My parents moved down to Virginia in 1987 following my brother and his wife who moved the year before. Virginina has never been appealing to Mary and me, but we've made dozens and dozens of visits over the years and I've visited Whitings Old Paper in an antique mall near Mechanicsville (on Route 301) probably every visit.

It's a great shop and I've found many thimgs over the years, including a four-sheet catalog from a non-theatrical rental company this last visit.

The reason it intrigued me so is the movies it offered were low-budget productions most of which I've never heard of and there is nothing mor einticing to a film fan that movies that are unknown to them.

I call it the "What's this thing?" condition.

Here is an example:



"FBI Girl" is available on DVD in a double feature from VCI Entertainment.

The other film, "Timber Fury," is also on DVD, but there are no youtube posts for either film.

Here are two others from the sales sheet:



I've actually seen part of another minstrel movie years ago, but "Yes Sir Mr. Bones" beat it as a truly inexplicable cultural document. Shot in 1951, one realizes that racist humor was still very much of the mainstream American comic lexicon. Try to watch this clip – it's painful.

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The other film seen here is a starring vehicle for one of the most active second or third bananas in ther 1950s and 60s: Sid Melton. Anyone who grew up in that era could see Sid in a variety of TV and film productions, but I bet this was one of the few times he got star billing.

I couldn't find a clip from this film, but I did find "Lost Continent," perhaps the "biggest" film offered by this company. In fact, you can experience this entire film right here:

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Stick with it. You've got to see the dinos!