Beverly rushed into Jeannie's bedroom, excitedly shoving a folded newspaper into her sister's face as Jean was putting on some fresh socks. The paper was so close that Jeannie had to pull her head back to adjust her vision as Beverly pointed to a particular ad block.
"Look! The Starlight is running THE CRAWLING EYE tonight!"
"Is it the movie you want to see again, or is your excitement just part of your crush on Forrest Tucker?"
"Tuck is just a bonus," Bev examined the ad, "I want to see this one again. And they're playing one of our cartoons before the main feature!"
"The last time you saw that picture, you had nightmares."
"Only one."
"Well," Jeannie smiled, "if your heart is set on it, I have no other plans for tonight."
The Starlight was just outside of Ludley. A pretty good crowd had turned out for the show, and the girls could see why as they pulled their car into a choice position. The main feature was only part of a spook show being hosted at the drive-in. The host for the show was dressed like a stage magician with a black domino mask, a tall fella calling himself Dr. Macabo. Beverly was still holding the newspaper and checked it again as she reached out to grab the speaker.
"The ad block doesn't say anything about a live show," Beverly reported, "just the movies on the line-up. THE CRAWLING EYE, THE CREEPING UNKNOWN, MAN-MADE MONSTER, and GHOSTS ON THE LOOSE, and a few cartoons. Nothing about Dr. Macabo."
"Maybe he's new," Jeannie offered, "and this show is like a test run for future shows." Beverly huffed and crossed her arms as she slumped back into the passenger seat.
"I didn't come to see a silly stage show. I came to see the movie."
"Now, Bev, they do these things all the time. You'll have to wait till sundown for the show to start anyway. Just enjoy it."
"I'm sorry." Bev nodded. "I just don't have any patience for these characters any more. Vampira kept breaking into the movies she was showing and ran them down. Never mind the people watching at home who might be enjoying the picture."
"Well, monster pictures never do get a lot of respect. They make money, but they're considered kid stuff."
"Meanwhile kid's movies are respectable enough. I guess the Boss actually has a lot of guts, releasing a good dozen B monster flicks each year."
"Of course, that's peppered with a number of other genres. Oaters, crime pictures, no studio makes all of it's pictures spookers."
"Truth be told, those are the ones financing the more respectable pictures, though."
"Does this have anything to do with Uncle Simon?"
"He makes a very good living producing monster pictures. He even said he was interested in casting me in the lead of one if annies ever make the break into straight feature leads."
"You can't take this stuff personally, you know. Who cares what the critics think about Uncle Simon, or Bert Gordon, or Sam Katzman, or any of a hundred other guys. They're not hurting for it. Their movies are playing all over the country, and the tickets are selling still. The laugh is on the critics who think they should be making dramas and four hankies."
"Oh, the financial end of it I understand, but I never did like the hoi polloi thinking they're so superior. They talk down good pictures and kill careers of men trying to give the audience what it wants."
"Why do you think the Boss moved to Creek Bend to set up shop? And what about us? You know, they don't think much of cartoons either. An annie who works in pictures is a social outcast in certain circles. Misty knows all about it, but she doesn't let it bug her. She never did."
"I didn't mean to run down this Macabo guy, Sis," Beverly sighed, "I guess I'm guilty of the same sort of thing that bugs me. I just got to a boiling point, I guess. Uncle Simon's last picture got a pretty nasty pan, and I guess I've been stewing over that. I like these monster pictures. A lot of people do. When the critics tear into these flicks, they're tearing into the audience at the same time. It's not that I begrudge them their opinion on these movies, you understand. It's just that smug attitude that they're better than the rest of us. I've had my fill. And in our business, we see a lot more of it than I think is healthy."
"Maybe." Jeannie stretched. "But you have to focus on the good things. Speaking of, I'm going to hit the snack bar before the show starts. Hamburger?"
"With cheese. Onions and pickles, too."
Beverly thought things over as she waited for Jeannie to return. Jean always managed to cut through the clutter and see the bigger picture. Some people can get on your nerves, but the trick is not to let them stay there. A girl in Beverly's position certainly had experience with the annoying elements of society. Intellectuals self called, reporters, producers, writers, the kind of puffed-up personalities who could drive you out of the business if you thought only about pleasing them. But there were the others, the ones who didn't think it was a crime to be a regular Joe. Bev knew some great people. Fans, peers, even directors and producers, and yes, writers and reporters too. Focus on the good you know, not the bad you've seen.
Dr. Macabo went into his act as Beverly went through her hamburger with cheese, Dr. Pepper, and Eskimo Pie. It was a nice, clean act, done with the children present in mind. Beverly certainly appreciated that. For all her teasing of the camera in her cartoons, she always kept the kids in mind. They had always been and remained her largest audience. This endeared Dr. Macabo to Beverly, and she found his shtick less tiresome as she looked at it as a means of entertaining the tykes gathered up near the platform erected in front of the screen. It was less a spook show than it was an extension of a television kiddie show. It was upon realizing this that Beverly finally recognized Dr. Macabo's voice. It was Sam Wetherly, KLOR's afternoon newsman. He pulled double duty as the kiddie show host Mr. Sam, of Mr. Sam's Treehouse.
The Baxter sisters had actually met Sam a few times. Sam had secured for the station a block of cartoons starring the Baxter girls, and had even had Bev and Jean on his show once. Sam was a sweet fella, a loving family man and Sunday school teacher who did a lot for the kids he entertained for the sheer joy of spreading smiles. Beverly felt a little queasy as she realized how quickly she'd dismissed him as Dr. Macabo. Here he was doing something nice for the kids of Ludley and Creek Bend, and all Bev could think about was the way it might make the movie look bad to be spoofed by a horror host. Dr. Macabo even made an introduction to the first cartoon, praising the Baxter girls.
"C'mon, Sis," Beverly opened the passenger door, "before the cartoon starts." Jeannie wasn't sure what was going on as she followed Beverly up to the stage. Dr. Macabo was pleasantly surprised to see the girls join him on stage to the applause of the children below. It was an unexpected treat for the Baxter sisters to even do a song before the cartoon began. Beverly pulled Sam aside as the kids turned their attention to the screen.
"Thank you for that wonderful introduction, Sam."
"I had no idea you were here. Who arranged this?'
"Nobody. We just happened to be in the audience. I was floored when I figured out it was you behind that mask."
"Bless you girls. The smile you put on those kids' collective face was priceless."
"It was our pleasure, Sam. Is this Dr. Macabo act something new?"
"I'm trying it out. I have a promoter watching. If he likes what he sees, I start touring the LA drive-ins. After you two showed up, I'd say it's in the bag."
"I certainly hope so. You deserve it."
Back in their car, the Baxters munched on a huge tub of popcorn as THE CRAWLING EYE unspooled. Jeannie smiled to herself as she looked at Beverly.
"That was really nice of you. How did you figure out that was Sam?"
"He can hide his face, but not his voice. I figured I owed him for what I was thinking when he first took the stage. He did good here tonight. I wanted to tell him that."
"I guess he got his LA deal."
"Good for him. I hope it's a nice long run."
"I think we might be able to help him. We can get the Boss and Uncle Simon to give him a good deal on getting newer movies for his shows than most of these hosts get to use."
"That's a great idea. And we can get him a good deal on cartoons, too!"
That night, Jeannie stayed up late to jot down some ideas for new cartoons. They were spook themed, with future Dr. Macabo shows in mind. Beverly tossed in her sleep, plagued with visions of cycloptic space monsters with a tendency to rip the heads off human victims.
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