I often go down the Internet rabbit hole when researching for a post, and often, this leads to another story idea. This one, has to be one of my strangest voyages down that hole. The post began, with all the news coverage of the Titan submersible, and the tragic death of the five on board. Like so many, I'd been following the story on the news, fearing it would end as it did. So... how did the submersible's implosion lead to Lewis from Revenge of the Nerds, well.. come along with me would you.
After seeing the wall to wall news coverage, many who followed the story may have wanted to watch, or re-watch Titanic. I never really loved Titanic the way others seemed to. I liked it, but the love story between Rose and Jack always seemed off to me. Forced and a little over the top give the short time-line of their time together. I especially disliked the scenes of Cal, (Billy Zane) chasing after Rose with a gun as the ship was going down. They were all going to die any way! It just seemed more silly than dramatic.
I was more in seeing a movie about Newfoundland. Newfoundland was all over the news during the week the Titan disappeared. Most major outlets, sent reporters, including CNN's Anderson Cooper, to the rock for their coverage. I visited Newfoundland for a funeral when I was a child and was struck by it's rustic beauty, the rocks, the ice bergs, the landscapes.
Orca (1977)
Yes, parts of Titanic were filmed in both Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, but it still wasn't the movie I wanted to see. There are actually several movies that came to mind that were shot there, but I landed on 1977's Orca. I have a bit of an emotional connection to Orca. I remember seeing parts of it on television when I was just a kid. A babysitter let my siblings and I stay up and watch part of it when it aired late one Saturday night in the eighties.
I saw it again, in it's entirety, on VHS when I was older, but thought this time, I will watch a HD version. The movie was as good, and as bad, as I remembered. The visuals are as majestic as ever. Richard Harris and Charlotte Rampling surpass the material they're given. Still, there remains something about the movie that always draws me in. Maybe it's the emotion, both the love and the revenge they give the film's lead, the killer whale.
During this viewing, I paid a bit more attention to some of the supporting players, and decided one needed a spotlight. I didn't connect during my previous viewing, that Ken was played by actor Robert Carradine. Ken plays an important part in the films opening scene as it's the Killer Whale saves Ken from being eaten from a great white shark that is seconds from attacking him.
Revenge of the Nerds
Although Carradine has worked steadily since starting his acting career, the 70's and 80's contained many peak films and performances from his impressive career. During these two decades, Carradine was part of several famous films including; Mean Streets, (1973) Coming Home, (1978) The Big Red One, (1980)
The actor also appeared in a number of teen horror and comedy films that I've previously featured on the site. I addition to play Lewis in the Nerds series of films, Carradine appeared in 1976's Revenge of the Cheerleaders (featuring a David Hasselhoff frontal HERE:) and 1976's Massacre at Central High, which I previously featured HERE:
The Pom Pom Girls (1976)
1976 also marked Carradine's role as Johnnie in the teen comedy The Pom Pom Girls. It also features a shower scene that I believe is Carradine's only nude scene. Carradine is much hotter when not hiding behind Lewis's nerd wear and glasses. Check out his nude scene on the NEXT PAGE HERE:
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