THE STEVE REEVES MOVIE YOU NEVER SAW! by Dave Goode

 

I was watching the Gordon Scott sinew & sandal flick Goliath Vs. The Vampires again the other day. Also known as Maciste Contra Vampiro ( 1961 ) this is my favorite of the former Tarzan's peplum pictures. The hilight of the flick is arguably the battle between Goliath / Maciste and the villain who has taken the hero's form. For years it was rumored that the evil Goliath in long shots was portrayed by Steve Reeves himself. Not the case. But an understandable mistake. The actor was in fact Giovanni Cianfriglia who had worked as Reeves' body double in a number of costumed melodramas beginning with the landmark Hercules ( 1957 ). He would also appear as an extra and stuntman in other genre flicks. Most notably in Hercules The Avenger ( 1965 ) where he portrayed the Earth giant Antaeus to Reg Park's Hercules.

 

Of course Cianfriglia was better known to genre movie fans as the star of the masked wrestler movies Superargo Vs. Diabolicus ( 1966 ) and Superargo And The Faceless Giants ( 1968 ). I got to thinking again about a masked wrestler movie starring Steve Reeves. I've always said that such a movie starring Reeves , Gordon Scott or Mark Forest would be a great deal different from the masked wrestler movies of Mexico ( Mexiluchahero movies ). Where the heroes of those flicks are never seen without their masks. Any movie starring Reeves would have the hero going maskless for over half the film.

 

So imagine if you will a masked wrestler movie starring Reeves where body double and stuntman Cianfriglia portrayed the hero with the mask on. Reeves would play the hero in romantic scenes and such. Also maybe in scenes in a gym showing him training to show off Mr. Universe's physique. Which was the reason you went to a Steve Reeves movie to begin with. " Something visual that's not to abysmal. " This would make such a move similar to the classic Republic serial The Masked Marvel ( 1943 ). In that chapterplay stuntman Tom Steele portrayed the hero. No one else would wear the mask. He also did stunts for other actors throughout the movie. But strangely enough he received no screen credit. Not even as a stuntman.

 

 

JUST A FEW OF MY FAVORITES by Dave Goode

And now for something visual that's not to abysmal. And I'm not to talking about an old Steve Reeves movies. But close. The other day I was thinking about two of the greatest movie entertainments ever. Gladiator movies and masked wrestler flicks. And how both had some of the greatest posters of any genre. I wasn't thinking about which genre had the best. That's an apples or oranges discussion. But both would make great comic book covers.

This week's blog looks at some of my favorites from the masked wrestler genre. And when I say my favorites I mean just that. Too many times when someone says their favorites what they mean is "the best". I mean "my favorite". If I call something the best I usually follow it with "IMHO".

El Santo made more movies than any other masked wrestler so it follows that his movies would have some of the best posters. How do you not love the poster for Santo vs. The Vampire Women? That would have made a great cover for a novelization of the movie. But there are other great posters from the genre. 

Blue Demon and Mil Mascaras movies had great posters too. 

And then there were the posters from Europe's Superargo series. As well as the Neutron series.

SUPERARGO UNMASKED by Dave Goode

As I've mentioned before Superargo vs. Diabolicus is one of my favorite masked wrestler movies. And I like the sequel Superargo and the Faceless Giants as well. Just not as well. What makes both of these movies for me are the athletic performances of actor Ken Wood who portrays the masked grappler. The way he moved , especially in his scenes in the squared circle , I imagined that he was a professional wrestler. Like Blue Demon , Mil Mascaras or any other star from the Mexiluchahero film genre. It wasn't until later that I found out he wasn't a pro wrestler. Nor was his name Ken Wood. He was in fact Giovanni Cianfriglia.

Giovanni Cianfriglia is a name that's familiar to fans of European costume melodramas. But at the same time he might be considered an unsung hero of the peplum film genre. In a film career that spanned decades he appeared in many sinew & sandal flicks as an extra, stuntman and even Steve Reeves body double. His two best known roles outside of the costumed crime-fighter Superargo might have been in Maciste vs.The Vampires a.k.a Goliath vs. The Vampires ( 1961 ) and Hercules the Avenger ( 1965 ).

In Goliath vs. The Vampires he appears in the movie's climax as Goliath's evil twin and they fight an epic battle. It had been rumored for years that it was Steve Reeves himself that appeared as the evil twin in long shots. But it was Cianfriglia who you'll remember was Reeves' body double in several movies including Hercules ( 1957 ).

In Hercules the Avenger Cianfriglia portrays the demi-god Antaeus. The highlight of this film has Hercules , played by multiple Mr. Universe - winner Reg Park , looked in a life or death struggle with Antaeus. It's Cianfriglia who makes this fight acting like a professional wrestling "jobber" making the much more muscular Park look good.

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 At the time of writing this weeks blog we learned

of the passing of legendary artist Russ Heath

 Russ Heath - September 29, 1926 – August 23, 2018 RIP

Oh What Could Have Been by Dave Goode

K. Gordon Murray presents...

Being a fan of masked wrestler movies I sometimes imagine the genre taking off here in America during the 1960s. I imagine some Hollywood producer seeing the success K. Gordon Murray had at American matinées with his re-dubbed Santo flicks and decided to make a series of homegrown movies. The results would probably resembled the Superargo series from Europe that starred Giovanni Cianfriglia under the Americanized name Ken Woods.

 

Samson Burke in action

 The logical choices to star in these movies would have been the expatriate North American bodybuilders who went to Europe to star in sinew & sandal epics. Some of the more athletic stars like Dan Vadis, Brad Harris, and Gordon Mitchell could have nailed it. Samson Burke had been a pro wrestler under his real name Sammy Berg. Frankly I'll never understand how he didn't take the name "Samson Burke" when he began his career as a wrestler. It was a natural.

 

Gordon "Tarzan" Scott

Gordon Scott who starred as Tarzan and appeared in a number of peplum pictures would have been a good choice too. A former member of the U.S. Military Police and an expert in hand-to hand combat Scott would have been great playing a pro wrestler. The problem with Scott or Steve Reeves or Mark Forest playing a masked wrestler would be that they would spend 60% of the movie mask-less. And one of the things that makes the masked wrestler genre is that the heroes wear masks. But they had no secret identities. Something that the writers of the Superargo series understood.

Sundown Cinema has a great video about Superargo. Click HERE to see it. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

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THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN MORE SEQUEL by Dave Goode

Without a doubt the best masked wrestler movies not to come out of Mexico were the Superargo series from Italy. The two movies starred Giovanni Cianfriglia. Someone who should be familiar to all fans of European costume dramas. He worked as a body double for Steve Reeves and did stunt-work in many Italian action movies. Cianfriglia portrayed the Earth giant Antaeus in HERCULES THE AVENGER and has a memorable fight scene with Mr.Universe winner Reg Park who plays the demi-god Hercules. He also has a great fight in GOLIATH AGAINST THE VAMPIRES against former Tarzan movie star turned sinew & sandal hero Gordon Scott. Scott portrays Maciste and Cianfriglia in the course of the battle portrays an "evil twin". For years it was rumored that it was Steve Reeves that was seen in long shots as the evil Maciste/Goliath as the two men grappled. But it was in fact Cianfriglia.

In SUPERARGO VS. DIABOLICUS(1966) Cianfriglia billed as Ken Wood plays the masked wrestling champion Superargo. In what is more or less an origin tale masked wrestling champion Superargo defends his title against his friend,a wrestled called el Tigre. During the course of the match el Tigre is accidently killed. Superargo is understandably despondent and looks for purpose in life.He finds it when his former commanding officer from the army,now the head of the secret service,recruits him for a special mission. And he uses his special abilities plus a bullet-proof costume and some Bondian gadgets to take on the modern alchemist Diabolicus and his sexy red-headed accomplice who refers to her employer as the "future ruler of the universe". This flick is a lot of fun with a lot of action. And Loredana Nusciak as Diabolicus accomplice(girl friend?) and Monica Randall as Superargo's girl friend Lidia are both nice to look at.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The sequel SUPERARGO a.k.a SUPERARGO AND THE FACELESS GIANTS(1968) has Cianfriglia returning as the masked wrestler turned secret agent. Superargo's girl friend from the first flick is nowhere to be found. Instead the masked man is keeping company with Kamir a Hindu guru who has taught him to unleash his psychic abilities. Superargo is called in by the authorities to solve a case involving a group of missing athletes and ends up battling Professor Wond,played by former American western star Guy Madison,and his army of living robots.

 

 

 

I always thought there should have been a third movie so that fans of the masked wrestler genre would be talking about a Superargo trilogy today. Wondering what that might look like my buddy Vance Capley and I put together this faux page for a Superargo comic book.

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VANCE CAPLEY DISCUSS THIS FILM:

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