Popcorn Crunchers, Reel 40 Trivia Quiz

Answer: They cook it with electricity.

The airmens' attempts to shoot the creature with their guns have no effect; the bullets pass through its vegetable structure. At Nikki Nicholson's suggestion, they douse the Thing with kerosene and light it on fire but it flees into the snow and puts the flames out.

The alien shuts off their heating fuel supply. They retreat into the station's power-generating room and set a sort of electrical "fly-trap" for the Thing. Dr. Carrington tries to reason with the beast but it knocks him to one side and steps into the trap.

The electricity is turned on and the Thing is reduced to a small pile of vegetal ash.

Answer: Curse of the Yeti

"The Abominable Snowman" (1957) involves a kindly botanist (played by Peter Cushing) exploring the Himalayas. "Monster Snowman" (1955), also known as "Half Human", was directed by Ishiro Honda, who also directed "Godzilla". "Snow Creature" (1954) is an American film in which the monster is transported from the Himalayas to California.

There is a 2009 motion picture called "Yeti: Curse of the Snow Demon" and a 2022 motion picture called "The Yeti" but there does not appear to be a 1950s film named "The Curse of the Yeti".

Answer: a two-headed man

An American reporter, Larry Stanford, played by Peter Dyneley, is sent to Japan to interview a reclusive scientist, Dr. Robert Suzuki, played by Tetsu Nakamura, at his mountain-top laboratory. The doctor drugs the journalist and injects him with a drug which causes him to sprout a third eye on his shoulder, which eye grows eventually into a second head.

Answer: Gene Barry

Gene Barry was accustomed to leading roles. He was the lead in the television Western series "Bat Masterson" and in the television detective series "Burke's Law". He also played leads in several science fiction films, notably George Pal's "War of the Worlds" (1953).

In "The 27th Day", Barry plays American reporter Jonathan Clark. Along with an Englishwoman, a Chinese peasant, a German physicist and a Soviet soldier, he is given a capsule capable of destroying huge parts of the Earth's population (to see what he/they will do with it).

Answer: They sought to avoid a lawsuit for copyright violation.

Jack Pierce did the make-up for Boris Karloff in the 1931 Universal Pictures production. The result was copyrighted. Hammer's make-up artist, Phil Leakey, designed a completely new look for the creature. To avoid legal complications, Leakey deliberately avoided anything that could be seen as derivative from Jack Pierce's monster.

Answer: giant mutated homicidal crabs

On an unknown, unnamed Pacific Island, a pair of crabs were caused to mutate by the 23 nuclear explosions at the Bikini Atoll. The first scientists sent to investigate radiation effects on the island were killed and consumed by these two giant crabs. The crabs absorbed their victims' minds, learned to speak with their voices, and now plan to reproduce. One is pregnant when the second expedition arrives.

Answer: koo-roo-SOO

This creature's name in Portuguese (the national language of Brazil) is "curuçu" in which the little mark under the second letter "c" is called a cedilha and changes the sound from a "k" sound to an "s" sound.

Answer: directing

Frederick Francis Sears (1913-1957) was an American film actor and director who appeared in as many films as he directed, and that was a large number. The numbers would have been even larger had he not died at 44. He did not act in horror or science fiction films but narrated several: "The Werewolf" (1956), "The Night the World Exploded" (1957), and "The Giant Claw" (1957).

He directed a significant number including: "Earth vs. the Flying Saucers" (1956), "The Werewolf" (1956), "The Giant Claw" (1957), and "The Night the World Exploded" (1957).

Answer: Dunsford University

Dunsford University is a fictional institution of higher learning, located somewhere in the USA. The name Dunsford was well chosen. There is a village in Devon more than ten centuries old named Dunsford. The surname Dunsford is a habitational name. Martin Dunsford (1744-1807) wrote a history of the town and parish of Tiverton.

Historians and English villages make great names for fictional colleges and universities. The on-campus scenes were shot at Occidental College in Los Angeles. The remainder was shot on the Universal back lot and sound stages.

Answer: stolen diamonds

The captain and crew of the Susan B had stolen diamonds from a local temple. They were cursed for the theft, their ship sunk, the crew drowned, and they were turned into zombies required to guard the diamonds from further theft by others.