SONG OF THE SUCCUBUS is the first of two made for TV horror movies featuring Kim Milford and his band Moon. It was originally broadcast on ABC's late night WIDE WORLD OF MYSTERY in 1975. I saw it when it was first broadcast and liked it, but then it seemed to disappear. It had been allegedly lost since 1990, and was never released on VCR or DVD However, Stash Wagner, one of the members of Moon has recently uploaded to You-Tube a copy that was recorded from a later television broadcast, and I was able to recently re-watch it again almost 50 years after its initial broadcast, and I still like it a lot!
Kim Milford, the younger brother of actress Penelope Milford, was a very talented actor/singer/songwriter who often seemed right on the verge of stardom, but never really found it prior to his untimely death from heart failure in 1988 at the age of 37. He was briefly the lead singer of the Jeff Beck Band, and performed onstage in HAIR, JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, and THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW. Here he plays the leader of a rock band who is haunted by the ghost of a Victorian era singer (Brooke Adams). Kim and his bandmates attempt to solve the mystery surrounding her death. The movie begins and ends with performances by the band, and they are actually very good. The excellent screenplay was written by Robert Thom, who wrote WILD IN THE STREETS, BLOODY MAMA, and DEATH RACE 2000, among others. This was obviously produced on a very low budget, but the actors acquit themselves well, especially Kim Milford, who had a lot of charisma, and Brooke Adams, very early in her career. The other band members were also all talented musicians. Stash Wagner was a member of The Fraternity of Man, and still performs in Australia. David Foster became a famous movie and music producer and has won 16 Grammy Awards.
I would love to see this movie and it's sequel ROCK-A-DIE BABY get a proper video release someday, and the music of Moon be released in some other form, but now I'm just glad the movie is available again for viewing thanks to Stash Wagner.
