News Updates
Want to see Special Edition DVDs of "Poltergeist II" and "III"? Sign my Petition to MGM here!:
5-17-09
Recently, I had a chance to exchange emails with Michael Grais, co-writer of the original film and co-writer/producer of the first sequel. Here's what he had to say about the remake, his unused idea for a sequel called "Poltergeist: In The Shadows," and how (like Oliver Robins) he's never seen "Poltergeist III" all the way through:
Hi David, thanks for your interest. I have no doubt that a new version of Poltergeist will probably be well received. Horror seems to be doing quite well commercially speaking. "In the shadows" was not a sequel but an original take on the subject and I cannot divulge any of it's "secrets" as some day I may decide to sit down and write it and not use the Poltergeist name as it had nothing to do with the franchise except the title. In The Shadows is a compelling ghost story on it's own. What MGM is now selling is a pre-sold title and not a storyline that has been done in 3 films and is finished. They are businessmen first, entertainers second, and this decision is a smart business decision and maybe a good artistic one -- if the people who are writing/directing are good, which I assume they are.
I haven't seen ["Poltergeist III"] either. I left after about 8 minutes...
5-2-09
Someone who went to the recent Chiller Theatre convention in New Jersey April 18th says they met "Poltergeist I and II" former child star/now director Oliver Robins there:
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0732319/board/thread/135961411
I met Oliver today at the Chiller Theater convention in Parsippany, NJ. He is a super nice guy, very friendly. He talked with my friend and I for a long time.
We wound up talking about Poltergeist 3, and interestingly he has never seen it. He was actually asking us questions about the plot! He wanted to know how the movie explains the absence of his character, and the rest of the family. All he knew is that it takes place in a skyscraper, and there's a lot of mirror action. It was pretty funny! He said he wants to see it, but he just keeps putting it off all these years because he heard it wasn't very good. I agreed. He also said he was never approached to be in Part 3, and that he never believed in any "curse" of the Poltergeist movies.
I find it hard to believe that he's never seen the film, but I guess it's possible.
Interesting also that supposedly MGM never asked Oliver to be in the film. I guess he wasn't under contract for it, but Heather was. Either that or maybe he was under contract and MGM just decided to not ask him back (big mistake on their part).
3-23-09
I'd like to make mention here of actor Nathan Davis, who passed away last October 15th at the age of 91. He replaced the late Julian Beck in "Poltergeist III," and gave a very creepy performance as the Rev. Kane. As I was doing research on the re-shot ending of the film a couple of years ago, I asked his publicist if Mr. Davis could recall anything about the original ending and the re-shoot. Even though he wasn't able to provide me with information, he sent me a very nice handwritten note in the mail which read "Hi David, Sorry I can't help you." Hopefully Mr. Davis has himself gone "into the Light" now and is at peace. You can read more about his long career in film and the theatre here:
3-30-08
New MGM chairperson hints: something "Poltergeist" related is in the works
Mary Parent, who was recently named by MGM as the
Chairperson of the Worldwide Motion Picture Group at the studio, gave me an interesting tidbit of info over the weekend. Was she referring to the rumored remake?
Here's my original email to her on March 15th:
Hi Mary, Congratulations on your new position with MGM! I run a fan web site dedicated to MGM's "Poltergeist" franchise. I'd heard that there were plans for either a new sequel or a remake...do you know if this is still the plan? As a huge fan, I was hoping to see a new sequel. Thanks for any information you may be able to provide. Regards, David Furtney
And here's what she wrote back yesterday (emphasis mine):
Hey David- Thanks for the email. Not quite two weeks into the new post so I don’t have a specific update but hopefully going forward there will be more to talk about. In the meantime, thanks for your enthusiasm.
3-18-08
Special thanks to Lance from "Kindertrauma.com!" He gave me a great shout out today and praise for this site. Check out his post here:
2-25-08
Here's a "Viewer's Choice" promo from (1989?) with an ad for P3. It's about 3 mins and 30 seconds in:
11-20-07
Check out this recent video interview that Zelda Rubinstein did with "The Insider" TV show. She got very emotional when talking about Heather:
8-8-07
Check out this original 1988 television review that the late Gene Siskel and still living Roger Ebert gave the film:
Predictably, they both gave it two thumbs down.
Click here for archived news updates:
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Thanks for visiting my site. Most of you are probably thinking "Why do you have a web site dedicated to such an awful movie?!" To that I'd say even bad movies have some good things about them! If you'd like to have a good laugh at "Poltergeist III's" expense, check out this YouTube video called "Who Dammit Who?!"
from:
If you’ve never seen Poltergeist III before, you’re not missing anything that you can’t get in this 5 minute digest version, composed entirely of characters calling other characters’ names.
Check out the making of "Poltergeist III" here:
*On Wednesday August 9, 2006, this site had it's 10,000th visitor!*
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*Check out this great video tribute to Heather O'Rourke:*
http://media.putfile.com/Before-The-Dawn-A-Tribute-to-Heather-ORourke
If you have any other questions or comments you can reach me at dfurtneyjr@comcast.net
Did you know that Nancy Allen is not holding Heather O'Rourke ("Carol Anne") in the scene above? She's actually holding a photo double. This scene was part of a re-shoot, and was done after Heather passed away. It replaced the old ending, which probably exists somewhere in MGM's vaults. For more information, check out the ENDING section above.
