Larry Buchanan (January 31, 1923 − December 2, 2004), born Marcus Larry Seale Jr., was a film director, producer and writer, who proclaimed himself a "schlockmeister". Many of his extremely low-budget films have landed on "worst movie" lists or in the public domain, but all at least broke even and many made a profit. Most of his films were made for television and were never shown theatrically.

He is perhaps most famous for his American International Pictures films In the Year 2889, The Eye Creatures, Zontar, the Thing from Venus, Curse of the Swamp Creature, Creature of Destruction, It's Alive!, and Mars Needs Women, all of which were released directly to late night television.

Early life

Buchanan was born in Lost Prairie, Texas, on Jan. 31, 1923. He was orphaned as a baby and was raised in Dallas in an orphanage. It was while growing up there that he became fascinated with the movies which were shown in the orphanage's theater. He considered becoming a minister early in life, but got into the movie industry instead.

Career

Buchanan visited Hollywood and landed a job in the props department at 20th Century Fox. It was while working here that his acting career got off the ground. He played some bit parts in movies, and the studio gave him the stage name "Larry Buchanan", which he used for his entire career.

In the early 1950s, Buchanan began producing, directing, writing, editing, and acting in his own low budget movies. The first was a one-reeler, The Cowboy (1949), which he shot back in Dallas for $900. His first feature film was Grubsteak (1952); he knew Stanley Kubrick from working in New York at this time and Kubrick offered to be his cinematographer on Grubsteak, but he wanted more money than Buchanan could pay.

In 1964 Buchanan created The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald, which presented an alternate history in which Lee Harvey Oswald was not killed by Jack Ruby and stood trial for the assassination of John F. Kennedy. In 1984 he produced Down on Us, which charged that the U.S. government was responsible for the deaths of Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison and Janis Joplin.

Among the notable features of Buchanan's movies were:

  • Monsters with eyes literally made from ping-pong balls
  • day-for-night footage "with a blue gel slapped across the camera lens with the noonday sun clearly visible on surfaces of water, car bumpers, etc."
  • Extremely low production values
  • One reasonably well-known (if over-the-hill) lead actor (such as John Ashley or John Agar).

Later life, death, and legacy

Buchanan died in Tucson, Arizona on December 2, 2004, at age 81. He died of complications from a collapsed lung, according to his wife, Joan Buchanan (they were married for 52 years). Buchanan left behind his wife,

one daughter and three sons.

The AIP TV Movies

  • The Eye Creatures (1967) - remake of Invasion of the Saucer Men (1957)
  • Zontar, the Thing from Venus (1967) - remake of It Conquered the World (1956)
  • Creature of Destruction (1967) - remake of The She-Creature (1956)
  • Mars Needs Women (1968) - an original script by Buchanan
  • Curse of the Swamp Creature (1968) - loose remake of Voodoo Woman (1957)
  • In the Year 2889 (1969) - remake of Day the World Ended (1955)
  • Hell Raiders (1969) - remake of Suicide Battalion (1958)
  • It's Alive! (1969) - adapted from the Richard Matheson story "Being"