Creature Features

I recall staying up late with the family and family friends one night to watch some very strange show regarding Mushrooms from outer space. It was a Japanese monster "horror" film, aptly titled, "Attack of the Mushroom People", or so I seem to recall (my memory might be hazy on that).

I was extremely young, and could barely write my name, but I do remember what an odd yet strangely benign film it was because it wasn't scary (as horror films are supposed to be), but somewhat mysterious and kind of light hearted. It was compelling in that it was different from a lot of the so called serious adult theatre about love, lawyers, money and whatever else that usually aired in the 1970s.

That was ages ago, on KCRA Channel 3 (possibly KTXL Channel 40). And the man hosting the show was Sacramento's own Bob Wilkins. If it wasn't Godzilla, then it was forgettable classics like "Sssss" or "The 7th Voyage of Sinbad" and a host of other titles. And they kept coming as Hollywood and Tokyo kept cranking out the monster fare, all seemingly ending up on Bob Wilkins' show at midnight in Sacramento.

Bob was not a great teller of stories. He was very plain, but it was his prosaic San Juoquin Valley attitude that I grew up with that made him the attractive midnight TV mogul that he became.

Truth be told, since I was a kid, I usually fell asleep about half way through until I got older. I didn't always tune into Bob Wilkins, and I didn't like every movie he ever showed, but I loved his show for what it was. Between Bob Wilkins, Star Trek, and Hee Haw on the weekends, Sacramento and the San Juoquin valley had permanently etched itself in my heart and mind, and Bob Wilkins will always be with me in this regard.

Those lazy summer weekend nights when the air was calm, nothing but the TV could be heard, and the worlds troubles were literally thousands of miles away, Bob Wilkins took us to Monster Island, to a mysterious dark castle in Eastern Europe with a pit and a pendulum, to the north pole where The Thing marauded an army outpost, and many other places beyond.

And of course Bob Wilkins later became Captain Cosmic after he and the show permanently moved to KTVU Channel 2 in Oakland (not regrettably a FOX affiliate).

I only ever saw Bob Wilkins live once on stage at a Star Trek convention in Sacramento, even though I had plenty of opportunity to see him elsewhere. I was saddened beyond belief to learn of his passing some years ago. The world is somehow not as wondrous without him. The mystery and awe I felt for the world seemed to atrophy somewhat with mister Wilkins' passing. And all those lazy summer nights I spend with him in front of the TV watching some fantastic fantasy film, are now only memories now that he's gone.

But his legacy lives on in me and other fans who remember those times. When life wasn't so interconnected. When privacy the norm. When CGI was still a concept, and Star Wars was still on the horizon.

Good times.

This legendary horror program was my weekly childhood ritual. The premiere host, Bob Wilkins(also the man behind the mask of CAPTAIN COSMIC) and his follow-up John Stanley(a noted horror/sci-fi wiz), were both excellent in their own distinct ways, even if the films they presented were sometimes considerably less-so(which was, of course, why we loved them)...I treasure the memories I have of staying up late to watch "classics" like THE CREEPING TERROR, TWISTED BRAIN, and THE LEECH WOMAN. The show often featured interesting guest stars, too, generally luminaries in the horror cinema ambit and sci-fi/comics nerd-zones.

Late-night hosted horror shows are a virtually extinct species today, which is a crying shame. They are an unalloyed example of Americana...a unique cultural tradition we should try harder to preserve. CREATURE FEATURES was one of the best, and is still missed by many.

When there was nothing to do on Saturday night, I could always turn to my nerdy bespectacled friend, Bob Wilkins, who, between puffs of smoke on his giant cigar, would run commentary on the plethora of horror and sci-fi movies he presented on KTVU, Channel 2 - Oakland/San Francisco's independent station. Sitting in a rocking chair next to a small table with a skull (with candle perched on top) and looking a bit like a thinner version of Laugh-In's Artie Johnson, Wilkins introduced me to the likes of "Night of the Living Dead," Ed Wood's "Plan 9 From Outer Space," "The Monster of Echo Park Lake," "Dracula's Daughter," "Billy the Kid Meets Frankenstein," some movie where an evil botanist develops a tree that sucks your blood from an elongated pistil through your cheek AND "Bambi Meets Godzilla!"

With such fine fare as this, who could resist?

The show ran during the seventies. Wilkins knew folks wouldn't watch unless he told them NOT to. He would begin his commentary by telling the audience how bad the movie was, what was on the other channels, etc.

It would start at around 8:00 or 9:00 in the evening (can't remember which) and ran until the wee hours of the morning, usually showcasing two movies per night.

Between movies, at times, Bob would interview sci-fi and horror stars - the likes of Christopher Lee and Buster Crabbe.

I was introduced to more sci-fi and horror movies than you could imagine - some very good - some very ignominious and rotten.

But it was all good fun. Wilkins made it that way with his quirky, campy personality. Definitely good fun on a Saturday night.

For many of us in the early '70s and watching Creature Features was a weekly ritual for myself and all my friends. No one since in television has ever achieved a similar purity of nerdhood to Bob Wilkins. RIP Bob.

This was my Dad and I's weekly time to bond over Sci-Fi and horror movies. Bob Wilkins was such a great pairing as a host and it was easy to see he loved the genre. He was also Captain Cosmic in costume on daytime TV, playing all my favorite Ultraman episodes.

You could always count on Creature Features to present a horror or Sci-Fi classic B-movie. It's where I first watched "the Day the earth Stood Still". Bob would sit, smoking a cigar in his rocking chair commenting as an aficionado with a very dry sense of humor that was perfect to introduce some truly cheezy movies . He would sometimes have guests on and run trailers of upcoming movies in theaters. It is actually the first place many people in the S. F bay area saw the trailer for "Star Wars".