August 14 1975

A Fantastical Film In The Cinemas On This Day In 1975

Alexander Walker in August 14th 1975’s Evening Standard gave the newly-released Rocky Horror Picture Show a considered but definitive thumbs down. But then, so did pretty much everyone. Walker was, to be fair, kinder than several of his peers. He praised the performances of Tim Curry, Richard O’Brian and Meatloaf, recognised the best of the songs and delighted over Charles Grey’s brief appearances. But overall, he concluded, the film was unengaging and overlong.

In the day’s Guardian, Derek Malcolm wrote the film was “exactly what I feared, a stage show that doesn’t translate effectively to the screen”. The best he could offer was an admission that it “was passable fun”. It was the most positive overall judgement I can find in the archives.

The reviews weren’t necessarily wide of the mark, no matter how wildly successful the movie would later become. That relied upon Rocky Horror Picture Show becoming a quite different kind of audience attraction, an unforeseen, and still largely unique, kind of joyful interactive experience.

A Fantastical Comic On The Stands On This Day In 1975

An early example of a collaboration between writer Chris Claremont and artist John Byrne, Iron Fist #1 suggests little if anything of the quality that would mark the pair’s work on The X-Men. In truth, it’s a landfill mid-70s Marvel superhero tale, complete with a by-the-numbers example of two superheroes falling out, fighting and making up. Even the depiction of Iron Man by Byrne and inker Al McWilliams is underwhelming.

It’s a perfect example of the rut that many superhero titles fell into during the period, made all the more interesting by the presence of two creators who would, together, pioneer an escape method from the very same dead-end.

A Fantastical Album, In Part, In The Record Shops On This Day In 1975

Of all the Wings albums, Venus And Mars is the most fantastical in terms of its subject matter. Some of that is, admittedly, disappointingly slight, as with Spirits Of Ancient Egypt, whose enticing title bears little relation to the majority of its run-of-the-mill lyrics. But the lovely, if brief, reprise of Venus and Mars is undeniably sci-fi, with its depiction of a wait for “Starship 21ZNA9”. Similarly, Magneto and Titanium Man, McCartney’s playful tribute to Marvel Comics and its supervillains, sits recognisably in the fantastical tradition.

It’s hard not to believe that Venus And Mars was often damned for not being as obviously outstanding as 1973’s Band On The Run. But it has its own charms and it’s an act of over-critical self-sabotage to ignore them.

The Almanac Of The Fantastical Will Return Tomorrow …