The Rocketeer (1991)

(This post is part of the Adventure-a-Thon hosted by Cinematic Catharsis and Realweedgiemidget Reviews)

Today superhero films are a dime a dozen, but there was a time when they were much less common. The phenomenal success of  Batman in 1989 would spur the production of more superhero movies, but even then they were less common than they are today. One of those superhero movies produced in the wake of Batman (1989) was The Rocketeer (1991). What further set The Rocketeer (1991) apart from other movies made in the Nineties was that it was also a period piece set in the 1930s.

The Rocketeer centred on Cliff Secord (Billy Campbell), a stunt pilot who stumbles upon a prototype rocket pack developed by Howard Hughes that had been stolen by Eddie Valentine's (Paul Sorvino) gang. Unfortunately, others want the jet pack and ultimately Cliff, his girlfriend Jenny (Jennifer Connelly), and his mechanic Peevy (Alan Arkin) find themselves tangled up not only with gangsters and Howard Hughes but Nazis as well. Cliff must then use the rocket pack

The Rocketeer was based on the comic book character of the same name, created by artist Dave Stevens. The character came about when Dave Stevens was Steve and Bill Schanes of independent publisher Pacific Comics asked him to come up with a backup feature for Starslayer, the comic book series created by Mike Grell. Dave Stevens drew upon the Republic serials King of the Rocket Men (1949), Radar Men from the Moon (1952), and Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe (1953) to create The Rocketeer. Further inspiration came from pulp heroes such as Doc Savage and The Shadow. As in the movie, The Rocketeer was stunt pilot Cliff Secord, who stumbles upon an experimental jet pack.

The Rocketeer first appeared in a back-up story in Starslayer no. 2 April (1982). After Pacific Comics folded in 1984, The Rocketeer would be published by Eclipse and Comico, and still later Dark Horse and, following Dave Stevens's death,  IDW Publishing. For a feature published by independent comics publishers, The Rocketeer proved to be fairly successful.

It was this success that would lead to a film adaptation. It was in 1983 that Steve Milner, who had directed Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981) and Friday the 13th Part 3 (1982), bought the film rights to The Rocketeer. No Rocketeer movie came from Steve Milner as he strayed too far from Dave Stevens's original concept and ultimately his option on The Rocketeer expired. It was in 1985 that Dave Stevens gave writers Danny Bloom and Paul De Meo the option to do a Rocketeer movie, The two writers were much more in sync with Dave Stevens's ideas about The Rocketeer, and the three shared a love of the movie serials of old.

Initially, they meant for The Rocketeer to be a low-budget homage to movie serials of old, even shot in black-and-white. This idea was dropped not long after they asked William Dear to direct and co-write The Rocketeer. For the most part, they stayed faithful to the plot of the original comic books, although the movie would be largely set in Hollywood. One major change was in Cliff's girlfriend. In the comics her name was Betty and she was a nude model. Her appearance was clearly inspired by Bettie Page. Wishing to avoid comparisons to Bettie Page, they changed the character's name to Jenny and made her an aspiring movie actress. Another change was made as to who had designed the rocket pack. In the original comics, it was strongly hinted that the designer was Doc Savage. For copyright reasons, in the movie, the designer is Howard Hughes. One more change is that in the earliest comics, a submarine played a major role. In the movie, it would be a Zeppelin instead.

It was in 1986 that Dave Stevens, Danny Bloom, Paul De Meo, and William Dear began pitching The Rocketeer to various studios. This being before the release of Batman (1989), a time when comic book movies, were not in fashion, they were met with several rejections. Eventually, the Walt Disney Company picked up the property. Initially, the play was to release the film through Touchstone Pictures, Disney's arm for producing more adult movies than the typical Walt Disney product. It was then Disney chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg who moved The Rocketeer over to Walt Disney Pictures. According to Dave Stevens, the studio saw "hey really tried to shoehorn it into a kiddie property so they could sell toys. All they really wanted at the end of the day, was the name"

It would take some time before The Rocketeer would make it to the screen Danny Bloom and Paul De Meo submitted a seven-page treatment, although the script would be rewritten repeatedly. The studio fired the two writers on three different occasions. Because of the many delays, William Dear had to drop out as the film's prospective director. Fortunately, Joe Johnston, who was a fan of the comic books, offered to be the movie's director. He had directed the Disney film Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989). It was after Joe Johnston was signed as the director and Danny Bloom and Paul De Meo would go through a third rewrite of the screenplay that Disney finally gave The Rocketeer the go-ahead.

The Rocketeer's troubles would not end there. Casting the all-important role of Cliff Secord/The Rocketeer proved difficult. Johnny Depp was Disney's favourite for the role, but he turned it down. Vincent D'Onofrio also refused the role. Kevin Costner and Matthew Modine were both considered for the role, but they proved to be unavailable. Actors as diverse as Dennis Quaid, Kurt Russell, and Emilio Estevez all auditioned for the role. Bill Paxton apparently came very close to getting the role. Dave Stevens and Joe Johnston were both happy with actor Billy Campbell, who at the time may have been best known for playing Detective Joey Indelli on the TV show Crime Story, but Disney was wanting an A-lister. It was Joe Johnston who convinced Disney to finally cast Billy Campbell as Cliff.

Several different actresses were also considered for the role of Jenny. , Sherilyn Fenn, Kelly Preston, Diane Lane, and Elizabeth McGovern were all considered. Ultimately, Jennifer Connelly, then as now known for Labyrinth (1986), was cast in the role. Dave Stevens had wanted Lloyd Bridges to play Cliff's mechanic and friend Peevy, but he turned the role down. Nonetheless, he would be played by a legend, as Alan Arkin was cast in the role. The role of gangster Eddie Valentine had been written for Joe Pesci, but he turned down the part and it went to Paul Sorvino. The all-important role of the Errol Flynn-like movie star Neville Sinclair was offered to both Jeremy Irons and Charles Dance, who declined the role. The role would ultimately go to Timothy Dalton, fresh from his stint as James Bond.

According to Dave Stevens, for the most part, production designer Jim Bissell utilized his own reference library he had used for the comics in the designs for the movie. As shocking as it might seem now, Walt Disney Pictures wanted to change The Rocketeer's helmet from the comic books. Michael Eisner, then president of Disney, wanted something closer to a NASA astronaut's helmet. This did not set well with director Joe Johnston, who told the studio that if they changed the helmet it would no longer be The Rocketeer and he would no longer be interested in directing it. The studio backed off and tried creating their own prototype helmets, none of which were satisfactory. It was ultimately Dave Stevens and a sculptor who came up with the helmet design used for the movie, one that looked like the one from the comic books.

Filming on The Rocketeer would not always go smoothly. It ultimately went over schedule by fifty days, due to "weather and mechanical problems" according to executive producer Larry Franco. The movie would see its budget increase as time passed. Walt Disney Pictures was pleased with the dailies, and so the film's budget went from $25 million to $35 million.

The Rocketeer premiered on June 19 1991 at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood. It went into wide release on June 21 1991. For the most part, it received mixed to positive reviews at the time. Perhaps the best review came from Peter Travers of Rolling Stone, who wrote, "The Rocketeer is more than one of the best films of the summer; it's the kind of movie magic that we don't see much anymore—the kind that charms us, rather than bullying us, into suspending disbelief." Unfortunately, audiences at the time were not in agreement with critics. It ultimately grossed only $46.6 million in the United States, making it a disappointment at the box office. To make matters worse, it also bombed in the United Kingdom.

The Rocketeer was released on VHS on February 5 1992. It was released on DVD on August 17 1999. It aired on the Disney Channel in 1993, and it made its broadcast network television debut on ABC in 1994. After years of being on television and home video, The Rocketeer would develop a cult following. This would eventually lead to a children's animated TV series that aired on Disney Junior from 2019 to 2020. The series followed  Cliff's great-granddaughter who became the new Rocketeer. Billy Campbell provided the voice of the father of the new Rocketeer. While the series was well-received by critics, it ultimately lasted only one season. Ever since the release of The Rocketeer in 1991, there have been calls for a sequel, and since the Teens remakes and reboots have been announced.

I grew up reading reprints of old Doc Savage and Shadow pulp novels, listening to old radio shows on cassette tape, and watching old movie serials on television. I was quite naturally a fan of Dave Stevens's The Rocketeer comic books. Because the film does such a great job of capturing the feel of the comics, I am also a huge fan of it. Of course, one does not have to be familiar with the comic books or even old movie serials to love The Rocketeer. It is quite simply a fun adventure movie. There is a wide range of excitement to be found in the movie, from both The Rocketeer and aeroplanes racing across the sky to gun battles to old-fashioned swashbuckling. In many ways The Rocketeer is not simply a superhero movie, but also a love letter to the media of the Thirties, drawing upon pulp novels, radio shows, movie serials, and swashbuckler movies.

Today The Rocketeer may be more popular than it was upon its initial release. It certainly has a loyal following. And while it failed at the box office, along with other comic strip movies released in the wake of Batman (1989), such as Dick Tracy (1990) and The Crow (1994), it would lead to the superhero boom that began in the Naughts. Indeed, it would have a direct impact on the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Joe Johnston directed Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), a movie also rooted in the media of the past. The Rocketeer may have underperformed at the box office in 1991, but it has proven to be a lasting success.

(Here I want to acknowledge the debut I owe to the coverage of The Rocketeer in Cinefantastique vol. 22 no. 1 (August 1991) and Jon B. Cooke's interview with Dave Stevens at TwoMorrows.)

The Late Great Ruth Buzzi

Ruth Buzzi, the actress and comedian perhaps best known for her work on Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In, died yesterday, May 1 2025, at the age of 88. The cause was complications from Alzheimer’s disease.

Ruth Ann Buzzi was born on July 24 1936 in Westerly, Rhode Island. She grew up in Stonington, Connecticut. She was 18 when she moved from the East Coast to the West Coast to attend the Pasadena Playhouse College of Theatre Arts. Her classmates included the late Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman. She appeared in a San Francisco production of Jenny Kissed Me with Rudy Vallee and later the Broadway revue Misguided Tour. In 1961 in Pennsylvania, she played Agnes Gooch in a production of Auntie Mame. It was her portrayal of Agnes in the play that would lead Ruth Buzzi to create her character Gladys Ormphby, made famous by appearances on Laugh-In.

In the Sixties she was the voice of Granny Goodwitch on the Saturday morning cartoon Linus the Lionhearted. She was part of the cast of the television special Laugh-In that aired on September 9 1967. The special proved successful enough that it led to the TV series Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, which debuted on January 22 1968. Ruth Buzzi remained on the show for its entire run. In many sketches she played Gladys Ormphby opposite Tyrone F. Horneigh, played by Arte Johnson. She was a regular on both The Entertainers and The Steve Allen Comedy Hour (the latter of which led to her being cast on Laugh-In). For one season she played a recurring character on That Girl. She also guest starred on the talk shows and variety shows The Garry Moore Show, The Steve Allen Show., The John Davidson Show, The Leslie Uggams Show, Life with Linkletter, The Bob Hope Show, The Glen Campbell Gootime Hour, and This is Your Life. She also guest starred on the scripted shows The Monkees, That's Life, In Name Only,. and The Wonderful World of Disney. She was the singing voice of Frou-Frou in the Disney animated feature film The AristoCats. She appeared in Broadway as part of the original cast of Sweet Charity.

In the Seventies Ruth Buzzi continued to appear on Laugh-In. She was the only cast member to appear in the entire run of the show besides Dan Rowan, Dick Martin, and Gary Owens. She voiced Gladys and Arte Johnson voiced Tyrone on the Saturday morning cartoon Baggy Pants & the Nitwits later in the decade. She also starred on the Saturday morning, live-action sitcom The Lost Saucer opposite Jim Nabors. She played various roles on Whatever Turns You On and provided additional voices on The Plastic Man Comedy Adventure Show.  She guest starred on The Dean Martin Show, Night Gallery; Here's Lucy; Love, American Style; Losta Luck!; ABC Afternoon Specials; Emergency!; Medical Center; You Can't Do That on Television;  and CHiPs. She appeared in the movies Freaky Friday (1976), Record City (1977), The North Avenue Irregulars (1979), The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again (1979), The Villain (1979), and Skatetown USA (1979). She provided for the animated feature films The Rescuers (1977) and I Go Pogo (1980).

In the Eighties she provided voices for the animated TV shows Alvin & the Chipmunks, Paw Paws, The Berenstain Bears, and Pound Puppies. She guest starred on the shows Alice; Aloha Paradise; Trapper John, M.D.; Gun Shy; Days of Our Lives; Masquerade; George Burns Comedy Week; Down to Earth; Check It Out; Life with Lucy; The Love Boat; Kids Incorporated; Saved by the Bell; and The Munsters Today. She appeared in the movies The Being (1981), Chu Chu and the Philly Flash (1981), Surf II (1983), Bad Guys (1986), Dixie Lanes (1988), Up Your Alley (1989), My Mom's a Werewolf (1989), Wishful Thinking (1990), and Diggin' Up Business (1990).

In 1993 Ruth Buzzi began appearing on Sesame Street as Ruthie the shopkeeper. She was a regular voice on the animated series Cro, The Pink Panther, and The Savage Dragon. She provided additional voices on the animated show The Addams Family. She guest starred on the shows They Came from Outer Space, The New Adam-12, Out of This World, Lucky Luke, Major Dad, The Jamie Foxx Show, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Diagnosis Murder, and 7th Heaven. She appeared in the movies Botte di Natale (1994), The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland (1999), and Nothing But the Truth (2000).

In the Naughts she continued to appear on Sesame Street. She guest starred on the shows Passions and Come on Over. She appeared in the movie Fallen Angels (2006). She would later appear in the movies Glenn's Gotta Go (2020) and One Month Out (2021).

Ruth Buzzi was very funny woman who possessed an incredible amount of talent. On Laugh-In alone she played a wide array of character. In addition to the frumpy, old lady Gladys, she also played silent film star Laverne Blossom, gossip columnist Busy Buzzi, the overly friendly prostitute Kim Hither, and drunkard Doris Swizzle (the wife of drunkard Leonard Swizzle, played by Dick Martin). As much of an impact as she had on the show, Ruth Buzzi's career went much further than Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In. In The Monkees episode "A Coffin Too Frequent"she played  the wealthy, elderly Mrs. Weatherspoon. On That Girl she played Pete Peterson, a friend of main character Ann Marie (Marlo Thomas) who was also trying to break into show business. Over the years she was a voice on many animated series, both as a regular and as a guest. On Linus the Lionhearted she voiced the occasional opponent of Sugar Bear, Granny Goodwitch. She was Mama Bear on The Bearenstain Bears. Ruth Buzzi brought joy to her many fans, playing a wide variety of roles throughout her careers. She will not be forgotten.

The Season Finale of Wild Cards Preempted Last Night

Wild Cards is a CBC series that airs in the United States. It stars Vanessa Morgan as con artist Max Mitchell, who through circumstances I won't go into here must work with police officer Cole Ellis (Giacomo Gianniotti). The show has proven popular in Canada and has gotten better ratings for The CW than most of its shows. While Wild Cards isn't particularly original, it is a fun show with interesting characters and I have enjoyed it since it debuted in 2024. Last night the finale of its second season was set to air on The CW. Unfortunately it was preempted by a NewsNation special, Cuomo Town Hall: The First 100 Days. As to the Wild Cards season finale, it will now air next week, on May 7.

At any rate, I was not exactly happy. Here in the Columbia/Jefferson City market, the season finale of Wild Cards was still being advertised as airing on April 30 as of yesterday. From an internet search it would seem that the decision to delay the season finale of Wild Cards was made only about two days ago or so. Apparently Nexstar, the parent company of both The CW and NewsNation, made the decision to delay the Wild Cards season finale on the spur of the moment.

As to their motivation for doing so, that is anybody's guess. Cuomo Town Hall: The First 100 Days also aired on NewsNation, so it was not as if The CW was the only venue available for the special. For that matter, I do no think the special comes under the heading of news so important or pressing that they had to change The CW's schedule at the last minute. As to the Neilsen ratings, Wild Cards is one of The CW's higher rated shows, so it's not like they had to prop up their ratings for the night and I seriously doubt that they thought Cuomo Town Hall: The First 100 Days would get higher ratings than Wild Cards. And it is not as if the season finale of Wild Cards has not yet been completed. It already aired on CBC on April 2 of this year! It is then a total mystery to me as to why Nexstar decided to preempt the season finale of one of The CW's most popular shows.

Of course, Wild Cards is not the only show affected by the decision to air a TV special in lieu of regularly scheduled programming last night. The third season of Sullivan's Crossing, another Canadian import, was set to begin on The CW on May 7. Now, it will not start on The CW until May 14. Sullivan's Crossing is apparently another one of The CW's more popular shows. 

Now I don't know if other viewers were unhappy with The CW last night. I haven't run onto any viewers complaining about the preemption on social media. It may be that while they were unhappy about not seeing the season finale last night, they were not so unhappy as to complain about it on social media. As for myself, I thought what The CW did was disrespectful to their viewers. They preempted Wild Cards last night for a special that was airing on NewsNation and hence there was no great need for it to air on The CW as well. There are certainly legitimate reasons broadcast networks have to preempt regularly scheduled programming. I don't think anyone believes that the networks should never preempt television shows. Historic examples of times the broadcast networks had to preempt their regular schedules include the assassination of John F. Kennedy, the Challenger disaster, and 9/11. The first 100 days of a presidency is not one of those reasons.

By sheer coincidence, today CBC renewed Wild Cards for two more seasons. A search on the various social media services shows that many, presumably Canadian fans are happy about this. Unfortunately, there has been no word yet from The CW whether they will renew the show.

The Wonderful Cora Sue Collins Passes On

Cora Sue Collins, the child actress who appeared in movies from Queen Christina (1933) to Blood and Sand (1941), died yesterday, April 27 2025, at the age of 98 from complications from a stroke. She was a fixture in the classic film community and friends with many classic movie buffs.

Cora Sue Collins was born on April 19 1927 in Beckley, West Virginia. Her mother moved to Los Angeles when Cora Sue Collins was just shy of four years old, along with her older sister.  In an interview with Danny Miller from 2015 she explained how she was discovered. When she accompanied her mother to enroll her sister in school, a woman asked her mother, "Excuse me, would you like to put your little girl in pictures?" Her mother said that she would. It was then that Cora Sue Collins made her film debut playing Pudge in The Unexpected Father (1932).

Cora Sue Collins would have an incredible career as a child actress in the Thirties, often playing the younger version of some of Hollywood's best known actresses or the daughter of those actress. In the early Thirties she appeared in the films The Strange Case of Clara Deane (1932), Smilin' Through (1932), Silver Dollar (1932), They Just Had to Get Married (1932), The Mysterious Rider (1933), Picture Snatcher (1933), Jennie Gerhardt (1933), Mary Stevens, M.D. (1933), Torch Singer (1933), The Prize Fighter's and the Lady (1933), The Sin of Nora Moran (1933), Queen Christina (1933), Caravan (1934), As the Earth Turns (1934), Black Moon (1934), Treasure Island (1934), The Scarlet Letter (1934), Elinor Norton (1934), Evelyn Prentice (1934), The World Accuses (1934), and Little Men (1934). In the late Thirties she appeared in the films Without Children (1935), Naughty Marieta (1935), Public Hero Number 1 (1935), Mad Love (1935), Anna Karenina (1935), The Dark Angel (1935), Harmony Lane (1935), Two Sinners (1935), Mary Burns, Fugitive (1935), Magnificent Obsession (1935), The Harvester (1936),. Devil's Squadron (1936), Three Married Men (1936), The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1938), Stop, Look and Love (1939), and All This and Heaven Too (1940).

In the Forties Cora Sue Collins appeared in the films Blood and Sand (1941), Get Hep to Love (1942), Johnny Doughboy (1942), Youth on Trial (1945), Roughly Speaking (1945), and Week-End at the Waldorf (1945). She appeared on Broadway in Junior Miss. She retired from acting when she was only 18.

Cora Sue Collins would later study architecture and she was active in various charities. She was active in the classic film community, and she attended the TCM Classic Film Festival multiple times. She appeared at last year's festival and had to cancel a planned appearance there this year. Not only have many of my classic film buff friends met Miss Collins, but some were also friend with her. In some ways, her death seems as much like the death of a friend's beloved aunt whom I had never met, but about whom I had heard many stories. Cora Sue Collins was sweet and kind, and always eager to tell stories about the Golden Age of Hollywood.

While Cora Sue Collins is not nearly as famous today as Shirley Temple is, in the Thirties she was a serous rival to the child megastar. And there was no doubt that Cora Sue Collins was talented. When she made her film debut at age 4 in The Unexpected Father (1932), she received praise from critics. While many child stars were stuck in one particular sort of role, she could play a wide array of roles. She often played the younger version of famous actresses in various films. She played the younger Christina to Greta Garbo's older Christina in Queen Christina (1933). for which Miss Garbo chose her herself. She and Greta Garbo would remain friends until Greta Garbo's death in 1990. She also played the younger versions of Norma Shearer in Smilin' Through (1932),  Frances Dee in Keep Them Rolling (1934), Dorothy Lee in Without Children (1935), and Lynn Bari in Blood and Sand (1941).

Cora Sue Collins didn't just play the younger versions of characters played by well known actresses, but other roles as well. She was Becky Thatcher's rival Amy in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (she was supposed to play Amy, but grew taller than star Tom Kelly). She was Anna's daughter Tania in Anna Karenina. In Get Hep to Love she played the manipulative, none-too-nice Elaine. In Youth on Trial She played Carn Chandler, the delinquent daughter of a juvenile court judge. At a young age she held her own with such heavyweights as Claudette Colbert, Bette Davis, Irene Dunne, Greta Garbo,Myrna Loy, Merle Oberon, and William Powell. She may not be among the most famous actors from the Golden Age of Hollywood, but she was most certainly a star.