Herschell Gordon Lewis, Godfather of Gore

Book excerpt: Without a big budget, special effects team, or professional actors and crew members, Herschell Gordon Lewis created films that he himself admits were trash. Yet, while Gordon's softcore porn (The Adventures of Lucky Pierre) and heavy-duty gore (The Gruesome Twosome) were never blockbuster films, they were popular drive-in fare in the sixties and seventies. They have had a strong influence over more recent productions, and they have created for Lewis his own special niche in the world of exploitation and horror film. The history of Lewis the man and the filmmaker is a surprising one. Behind titles like Blood Feast and The Gore-Gore Girls is a warm and friendly gentleman whose road to his own brand of film glory was paved with disappointments, surprising successes, and lots and lots of fake blood. His career is examined in detail, with personal anecdotes and insights into making really gross movies on really small budgets. A filmography is included, and photographs, many of them rare, complement the text.