The Amazing Criswell
The Amazing Criswell | |
---|---|
Born | Jeron Criswell King August 18, 1907 Princeton, Indiana, U.S. |
Died | October 4, 1982 Burbank, California, U.S. | (aged 75)
Resting place | Pierce Brothers Valhalla Memorial Park |
Other names | Jeron Criswell King Charles Criswell King |
Occupation(s) | Showman, actor, writer, seer |
Years active | 1950s–1970s |
Known for | Making erroneous predictions, predicting the future on TV, radio, books, records and in newspapers and as a narrator and actor in the films of Ed Wood |
Notable work | Criswell Predicts from Now to the Year 2000! (author) Plan 9 from Outer Space (narrator and actor) |
Television | Criswell Predicts |
Spouse | Halo Meadows |
Jeron Criswell King (August 18, 1907 – October 4, 1982), known by his stage-name The Amazing Criswell /ˈkrɪzwɛl/, was an American psychic known for wildly inaccurate predictions. In person, he went by Charles Criswell King, and was sometimes credited as Jeron King Criswell.
Criswell was flamboyant, with spit curled hair, a stentorian style of speaking, and a sequined tuxedo. He owned a coffin in which he claimed to sleep. He grew up in a troubled family in Indiana with relatives who owned a funeral home, and said that he became comfortable with sleeping in caskets in the storeroom. He appeared in two films directed by Ed Wood—Plan 9 from Outer Space (1957) and Night of the Ghouls (1959)—and also appeared in Orgy of the Dead (1965), which was written by Wood.
Early life
Criswell claimed that he never talked until the age of four. During a thunderstorm he first spoke, making his first prediction, "the rain will stop." From this point on he was talkative, often placing himself center stage at any opportunity.[1]
Career
Criswell said he had once worked as a
Filmography, recording and television appearances
Year | Medium | Title | Role | Director |
---|---|---|---|---|
filmed 1956, premiered 1957[2] | Film | Plan 9 from Outer Space | Himself | Ed Wood |
filmed 1958, premiered 1959[3] | Film | Night of the Ghouls | Himself | Ed Wood |
1965 | Film | Orgy of the Dead | The Emperor | Stephen C. Apostolof |
1982 | Film | It Came from Hollywood | Archive footage | Malcolm Leo, Andrew Solt |
1994 | Documentary | Ed Wood: Look Back in Angora'[4] | Archive footage | Ted Newsom |
1996 | Documentary | The Haunted World of Edward D. Wood Jr.[5] | Archive footage | Brett Thompson |
1970 | Spoken Word Recording (LP) | The Legendary Criswell Predicts Your Incredible Future | Himself | Horoscope Productions |
1970, 1965, 1963 | Television | The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson | Himself | Frederick De Cordova
|
2007 | Television | Cinema Insomnia (Plan 9 from Outer Space & Hardware Wars) | Himself | Ernie Fosselius & Mr. Lobo |
Predictions
Criswell's predictions were nationally syndicated and he appeared on the television show Criswell Predicts on KLAC Channel 13 (now
Criswell wrote several books of predictions, including 1968's Criswell Predicts: From Now to the Year 2000. In it, he claimed that
Criswell was a student of history. He believed history repeated itself, that the United States were the "modern Romans". Each day, he read the St. Louis Post-Dispatch looking for clues for his predictions.
Some sources claim Criswell's most famous prediction was on The Jack Paar Program (1962–65) in March 1963, when he predicted that US President John F. Kennedy would not run for reelection in 1964 because something was going to happen to him in November 1963.[8]
Sources say that Criswell never claimed to be a real psychic; however, those who knew him, including actress and fellow Plan 9 alumna Maila Nurmi ("Vampira"), believed he was. According to writer Charles A. Coulombe, whose family rented an apartment from him, Criswell told Coulombe's father "[I] had the gift, but [I] lost it when I started taking money for it."[citation needed]
Private life
Criswell married a former speakeasy dancer named Halo Meadows, who once appeared on You Bet Your Life, and whom Coulombe describes as "quite mad": "Mrs Criswell had a huge standard poodle (named "Buttercup") which she was convinced was the reincarnation of her cousin Thomas.[9] She spent a great deal of time sunbathing ... which, given her size, was not too pleasing a sight."
Mae West used Criswell as her personal psychic; he once predicted her rise to President of the United States, whereupon she, Criswell and George Liberace, the brother of showman Liberace, would take a rocket to the Moon.[9] Criswell and West were great friends and she would lavish him with home-cooked food which she had delivered to the studio that he shared with Maila Nurmi ("Vampira").[10] It is said that West sold Criswell her old luxury cars for five dollars.[9]
Criswell died on October 4, 1982, at the age of 75; he was cremated days later.[11]
Legacy
- In 1955, Mae West wrote and recorded a song called "Criswell Predicts" for her album The Fabulous Mae West[9][12]
- In 1994, Criswell was portrayed in the Tim Burton biopic Ed Wood by actor Jeffrey Jones.[13]
- In 1997, several actors, including Sean Phillip Mabrey,[14] have played Criswell in Plan 9 from Outer Space: The Musical, written by David G. Smith.
- In 1999, the film Devil Girls featured a portrayal of Criswell by Rob Gorden.[15]
- In 2000, the song "Criswell Predicts" by pop punk band Groovie Ghoulies appeared on their album Travels With My Amp.
- In 2005, Criswell and the Plan 9 cast were lampooned in an episode of the television series, Deadly Cinema, and clips of this episode were featured in the documentary, Vampira: The Movie.[16]
- In 2006, Craig Brown played Criswell in Plan Live From Outer Space, a stage adaptation of Plan 9 from Outer Space which won a Canadian Comedy Award the following year.[17]
- In 2009, a teaser trailer[18] was released by Darkstone Entertainment for the John Johnson film Plan 9,[19] a remake of Plan 9 From Outer Space. The voice of popular television horror host Mr. Lobo can be heard narrating the trailer as Criswell. He also portrayed Criswell in the film, in a much larger role in this re-imagining of the original Ed Wood story. In addition, for the purpose of promoting the film on the internet, Mr. Lobo has produced 62 episodes of Criswell Predicts![20][21] which is a parody and homage to Criswell's original television program of the same name sans the exclamation mark.
Notes
- ^ Criswell's birthday.
References
- LCCN 68-13824.
- ^ Rudolph Grey, Nightmare of Ecstasy: The Life and Art of Edward D. Wood, Jr. (1992). pg. 203. ISBN 978-0-922915-24-8.
- ^ Rudolph Grey, Nightmare of Ecstasy: The Life and Art of Edward D. Wood, Jr. (1992). pg. 205. ISBN 978-0-922915-24-8.
- IMDb
- IMDb
- ^ "Dharma Pancakes: Criswell Predicts (Part 1)". 22 February 2010.
- ^ a b "Dharma Pancakes: Criswell Predicts (Part 5)". 26 February 2010.
- ^ "C-E-N-T-E-R Art Project interview with Criswell biographer Edwin L. Canfield". Archived from the original on 7 October 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Who Was Criswell?". Criswell Predicts. Archived from the original on 1 September 2013. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
- ^ "Watch Haunted World of Ed Wood, Jr. online | Free". Hulu. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
- ^ "Criswell Predicts - Who Was Criswell?".
- ^ "Mae West Sings About Criswell | Music/ Not Music". Musicnotmusic.wordpress.com. 3 January 2009. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
- IMDb
- ^ "Plan 9 From Outer Space: The Musical". YouTube. 1997. Archived from the original on 2021-12-11. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
- IMDb
- ^ "Cast of Vampira: The Movie". Vampirathemovie.com. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
- IMDb
- ^ "Plan 9 Teaser Trailer". YouTube. 8 September 2009. Archived from the original on 2021-12-11. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
- ^ "PLAN 9". Plan9movie.com. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
- ^ Darkstone Entertainment (10 May 2010). "Criswell Predicts! #7 - Community of the Universe on Vimeo". Vimeo.com. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
- ^ Darkstone Entertainment (10 May 2010). "Criswell Predicts! #6 - Body Modification on Vimeo". Vimeo.com. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
External links
- Criswell at IMDb
- Criswell at AllMovie
- "Criswell Predicts" — The Onion A.V. Club, August 11, 1999