{"id":40123,"date":"2017-03-14T22:22:59","date_gmt":"2017-03-15T02:22:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.filmbuffonline.com\/FBOLNewsreel\/wordpress\/?p=40123"},"modified":"2017-03-14T22:22:59","modified_gmt":"2017-03-15T02:22:59","slug":"blob-producer-jack-harris","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.filmbuffonline.com\/FBOLNewsreel\/wordpress\/2017\/03\/14\/blob-producer-jack-harris\/","title":{"rendered":"THE BLOB Producer Jack Harris, 98"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Jack Harris, the producer of the seminal 1950s monster movie The Blob<\/strong>, died earlier today at his home in Beverly Hills. He was 98.<\/p>\n

Born in Philadelphia, Yeaworth got his start in show business at the age of six, as a child performer in Gus Edwards’ Kiddie Revue vaudeville show. As an adult he became active as a theatrical publicist.<\/p>\n

Harris became interested in producing when he got into a argument with Rocketship X-M<\/em> Robert L Lippert. Harris said that Lippert’s movies were “lousy” and hard to promote. Lippert responded that if Harris thinks he could do a better job than he should. While on tour promoting a Boy Scout-themed film Jamboree<\/strong>, Harris began cultivating the idea for what kind of movie he should make. He realized that both science-fiction and juvenile delinquency films were two genres that seemed to always turn a profit.<\/p>\n

Teaming with Irvin “Shorty” Yeaworth, a director of short religious films based outside of Valley Forge who was looking to make a feature that could infuse some cash into his production company, Harris put the wheels in motion that would eventually result in 1958’s The Blob<\/strong>. The film was shot in the Philadelphia suburbs of Phoenixville, Downingtown and Royersford. Made for just $240,000, the film would go on to gross over $4 million.<\/p>\n

Harris would reteam with Yeaworth a year for the science-fiction thriller The 4-D Man<\/strong>, which would again see them shooting in the Philadelphia suburbs.<\/p>\n

Harris also exhibited an eye for upcoming talent, producing 1970’s Equinox<\/strong>, co-directed by future multiple Academy Award-winning special effects wizard Dennis Murren, Schlock<\/strong>, the 1973 directorial debut of John Landis, and Dark Star<\/strong>, the feature debuts of co-writers and co-directors John Carpenter and Dan O’Bannon.<\/p>\n

Harris would return to The Blob<\/strong> for a 1972 sequel, Beware! The Blob<\/strong>, directed by Larry Hagman, the 1989 remake and reportedly had been in active in the more recent attempt to get a second remake launched.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Philadelphia-born producer helped bring the to screen a number of genre films.<\/div>\n

[click for more]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[86],"tags":[8907,1209],"series":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-40123","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-opinion","7":"tag-jack-harris","8":"tag-the-blob"},"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t