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Sometimes, the most simple movie monsters can become the most terrifying, especially when it comes to gruesome kills and excellent practical effects. The eponymous monster in 1988’s The Blob, directed by Chuck Russell from a script he co-wrote with Frank Darabont, acts as a giant slithering stomach, dissolving its food for digestion with extreme acidity. There’s no trace of intelligence in the amoeba-like entity; it’s just an insatiable need to feed. That means that not only is the body count high for this ever-growing creature, but the deaths are deliciously mean-spirited and unforgettable thanks to gruesome special makeup effects from Tony Gardner and an incredible team of artists.

Russell and Darabont reinforce the SFX showcase with unpredictability and meticulous characterization to ensure that not only do the character deaths look painful, but they also hurt emotionally. It’s not just the creature effects that make the Blob’s...

Death is the ultimate leveler. It comes for everyone in the end, no matter your station in life. Never is that more unsettlingly apparent than in 1988’s The Blob, directed by Chuck Russell from a script he co-wrote with Frank Darabont. The creature feature lets loose a gelatinous pink blob of goo upon the small town of Arborville, California, where it wreaks havoc with its insatiable appetite. It doesn’t care about archetypical hero or villain roles; its sole aim is to devour.

The eponymous Blob acts as a giant slithering stomach, dissolving its food for digestion with extreme acidity. That means that not only is the body count high for this ever-growing creature, but the deaths are deliciously mean-spirited and unforgettable thanks to gruesome special makeup effects from Tony Gardner and an incredible team of artists. Russell and Darabont reinforce the SFX showcase with unpredictability and meticulous characterization to...

Actor Billy Beck has died at the age of 91.

The American star - real name Frank Billerbeck - passed away in Glendale, California on 29 June after losing his battle with congestive heart failure.

Beck began his career in the armed forces, fighting in World War II before beginning his entertainment career with acting roles on the small screen in the 1950s. He starred in a number of TV shows over the years including The Twilight Zone, Gunsmoke and Bewitched, and his movie career included parts in Billy Wilder's Irma la Douce and The Fortune Cookie, while he was most recently seen on screen with Reese Witherspoon in 2005's Just Like Heaven.

Beck's last screen appearance came in a 2009 episode of TV show Dollhouse.

He is survived by a grandnephew and grandniece, according to Variety.