Last night we went out to a movie. Not any kind of regular movie, mind you—this one was free, in the park, under the stars. It was part of the series Monsters in the Park that's been running at the beach here each summer since 2004. We took the dog and walked over to the park, found a spot on the grass front row center, and sat down; it was like going to a drive-in movie, but without the cars. The dog loved it.
Shortly after a magnificent sunset, the movie began. The night’s monster feature: The Blob.
The Blob is a 1958 independent American horror/science-
Steve McQueen was offered $2,500 or 10% of the profits to star in the film. Astute businessman that he was, Steve took the $2,500, because he wasn't expecting the film would end up grossing over 4 million dollars. Who knew?
The producers had originally signed Steve McQueen to a three-film deal with The Blob being the first project. McQueen thought he knew a stinker when he smelled one and became so difficult to work with during filming that he was released from his contract for the other two films. All things considered, though, Steve did all right for himself.
The film's theme song, Beware of the Blob (recorded by studio group The Five Blobs), was written by Burt Bacharach and Mack David, who was the brother of Bacharach’s long-time collaborator, Hal David; when the film came out, the song was a nationwide hit in the U.S.
It was not until Steve McQueen later became famous with the TV series Wanted: Dead or Alive that The Blob became a hit at drive-in theaters. Today, the film is recognized as one of the quintessential 1950s American sci-fi/horror films.
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