Film Masters New 4K Scan Of Johnny Cash's Door To Door Maniac Makes Its Blu-ray Debut On Aug. 27 (Bonus Feature: The Right Hand Of The Devil)

Film Masters has done it again.   Another double feature, super rare and with near impossible to find material … so let’s get to it!   Aug. 27 is when the action happens!

Recording legend Johnny Cash made his first screen appearance in Five Minutes to Live in 1960 and 1961 (filming had actually begun in 1957, but it took awhile to get it finished).  It was one of those indie productions with a limited number of prints that worked its way around the country market by market, so what began in 1960 didn’t wrap up until 1961.   

A few years after it disappeared, legendary producer Robert L. Lippert, who had just wrapped up a decade long production and distribution arrangement with 20th Century-Fox (and was now on his own) acquired the film and saw potential in it.   It just needed a little extra work, so he had some new footage shot, tightened up the film and — through American International Pictures — got the “new” Johnny Cash film titled Door-to-Door Maniac released in 1966.   Was anyone the wiser?

Film Masters has a new 4K scan of Door-to-Door Maniac from the original 35mm archival elements.

Johnny Cabot (Cash) is on the run and goes into hiding in the small town of Camellia Gardens with his “girlfriend” Doris (Midge Ware), but she is not long for this world when fellow hood Fred Dorella (Vic Tayback) hooks up with him and gives Cabot the lowdown on how Doris double-crossed him.   Goodbye Doris!

The pair hit upon the idea of taking banker Ken Wilson’s (Donald Woods) wife hostage and demanding a ransom.   Cabot, disguised as a door-to-door salesman breaks into the Wilson home, takes Nancy (Cay Forester) hostage (has his way with her) and the pair demand that $70,000 be paid or she will be joining Doris in the great beyond.

The tension rises and Wilson sees (briefly) an opportunity to be rid of his wife (he’s having an affair), but — and we won’t give the ending away — he has a change of heart and events are set in motion that will see Doris having company soon.

Note, yes little Bobbie Wilson is Ron Howard (aka: “Ronny” Howard).

Bonus features include commentary by author Daniel Budnik and film historian Rob Kelly.
The companion feature is character actor Aram Katcher’s produced, directed-by, written-by and starring himself, The Right Hand of the Devil.   This too is a 4K scan from the surviving 16mm archived elements (for some unknown reason, Katcher destroyed all of the 35mm prints and negatives).

A heist caper, planned by Pepe Lusara (Katcher — who often appeared as Napoleon because of his resemblance to the same) from his abandoned mansion (filmed up in Laurel Canyon) requires that he assemble some “disposable” accomplices and the seduction of Miss Sutherland (Lisa McDonald), the head cashier at the “Hollywood Sports Arena.”

Pepe’s armed robbery plan works like a charm … what follows is pretty amazing.   We won’t give away what happens to his crew (do they pass the “acid” test) or how Miss Sutherland delivers an ironic twist to the proceedings.

The Right Hand of the Devil is a treasure for being a time capsule on film of the Hollywood area in the early 1960s.   Certainly worth a look-see as a lot of the shooting venues have long since vanished.

Members of the Monstery Party Podcast (James Gonis, Shawn Sheridan, Larry Strothe and Matt Weinhold) provide commentary, plus there is the newly-minted video essay titled “Player Piano: Passion of Aram Katcher.” 

The Film Masters Blu-ray double-feature all comes together on Aug. 27!!