THE LAST DINOSAUR (1977) – Episode 241 – Decades of Horror 1970s

“Well, they will have to get un-unanimous and un-choose her. Now, I’ve been going on Safari most of my life, and I’ve never taken a woman. And I’m not going to change now, Barney.” Spoken like a true dinosaur of the human variety. Join your faithful Grue Crew – Bill Mulligan, Chad Hunt, Gregory Crosby, and Jeff Mohr – as they discuss The Last Dinosaur (1977), a movie whose title refers to two different kinds of last dinosaurs: one is the man-in-suit Tyrannosaurus Rex variety and one is the obsolete human variety.

Decades of Horror 1970s
Episode 241 – The Last Dinosaur (1977)

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Decades of Horror 1970s is partnering with the WICKED HORROR TV CHANNEL (https://wickedhorrortv.com/) which now includes video episodes of the podcast and is available on Roku, AppleTV, Amazon FireTV, AndroidTV, and its online website across all OTT platforms, as well as mobile, tablet, and desktop.

Synopsis: A wealthy big game hunter and his group become trapped in prehistoric times, where they are stalked by a ferocious dinosaur.

• Directors: Alexander Grasshoff (credited as Alex Grasshoff); Tsugunobu Kotani (credited as Tsugunobu ‘Tom’ Kotani)
• Writer: William Overgard
• Selected Cast:
  • Richard Boone as Masten Thrust Jr.
  • Joan Van Ark as Francesca ‘Frankie’ Banks
  • Steven Keats as Chuck Wade
  • Luther Rackley as Bunta
  • Masumi Sekiya as Hazel
  • William Ross as Hal – Mother 1 Chief Technician
  • Carl Hansen as Barney
  • Tetsu Nakamura as Dr. Kawamoto
  • Nancy Magsig as Thrust’s Girl on Plane
  • Don Maloney as Mother 1 Captain
  • Vanessa Cristina as Reporter
  • James Dale
  • Hyôe Enoki
  • Shunsuke Kariya as Caveman Leader
  • Gary Gundersen
  • Toru Kawai as Tyrannosaurus
  • Katsumi Nimiamoto as Triceratops (front half)

This one is Bill’s pick, so naturally, … dinosaurs! But this time, they’re Japanese man-in-suit dinosaurs instead of stop-motion animated dinosaurs. The Last Dinosaur (1977), a co-production of Tsuburaya Productions and Rankin/Bass Productions, is shot in Japan and stars Richard Boone, Joan Van Ark, Steven Keats, Luther Rackley, Tetsu Nakamura, Masumi Sekiya, and Toru Kawai (as the Tyrannosaurus Rex). Fans of Tokusatsu and Kaiju films will recognize Tetsu Nakamura from his frequent appearances in Toho films and his turn as the mad scientist in Manster (1959). Of course, Jeff is most excited about Richard Boone. The Grue-Crew (mostly) agree that The Last Dinosaur is not a good movie, but it is a fun movie. Chad even owns it! Now there’s a recommendation!

At the time of this writing, The Last Dinosaur (1977) is available to stream from Plex, and PPV from Amazon.

Gruesome Magazine’s Decades of Horror 1970s is part of the Decades of Horror two-week rotation with The Classic Era and the 1980s. In two weeks, the next ‘70s episode, chosen by Jeff, will be A Cold Night’s Death (1973), an oft-requested TV movie starring Robert Culp and Eli Wallach. Deposited in an arctic research station just in time for a storm, the two scientists encounter a mystery they must solve before they both go loony tunes! You gotta love 70s TV horror!

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