Don't Answer the Phone
Encyclopedia
Don't Answer the Phone! is a 1980 low-budget cult classic
horror
thriller film directed by Robert Hammer, written by Hammer and Michael D. Castle.
vet and photographer Kirk Smith is a crazed killer who stalks the streets of Los Angeles
, picking up young women and strangling them in lurid fashion. He repeatedly contacts Dr. Lindsay Gale, the psychologist on a radio show. He targets Dr. Gale's patients, commits a murder while on the phone to her show (forcing her to listen to the victim's cries), and eventually goes after Dr. Gale herself. Two goofy policemen track him down.
.
. The VHS was in the United States released as The Hollywood Strangler on 28 February 1982 at Media Home Entertainment
. The DVD in 2002 over Rhino Home Video and re-released by BCI Eclipse on 10 October 2006.
Cult Classic
Cult Classic is a Blue Öyster Cult studio recording released in 1994, containing remakes of many of the band's previous hits.-Track listing:# " The Reaper" - 5:05# "E.T.I...
horror
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
thriller film directed by Robert Hammer, written by Hammer and Michael D. Castle.
Plot
Former VietnamVietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
vet and photographer Kirk Smith is a crazed killer who stalks the streets of Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, picking up young women and strangling them in lurid fashion. He repeatedly contacts Dr. Lindsay Gale, the psychologist on a radio show. He targets Dr. Gale's patients, commits a murder while on the phone to her show (forcing her to listen to the victim's cries), and eventually goes after Dr. Gale herself. Two goofy policemen track him down.
Cast
- James Westmoreland as Lt. Chris McCabe
- Ben Frank as Sgt. Hatcher
- Flo Lawrence as Dr. Lindsay Gale
- Nicholas WorthNicholas WorthNicholas Worth was an American character actor who portrayed General Marzaq and Premier Romanov in Westwood Studios' Command & Conquer series of games, Emperor: Battle for Dune, and also voice-acted as Colonel Bulba/Mr. Jones in Freedom Fighters...
as Kirk Smith - Denise GalikDenise GalikDenise Galik-Furey is an American actress who has starred on television and in film.-Career:Born in in Cleveland, Ohio, Galik has starred in television on soap operas, daytime and night time soaps. Her first soap opera role was in the 1980s CBS soap Knots Landing as Linda Stricker from 1980 to 1981...
as Lisa - Stan Haze as Adkins
- Gary Allen as John Feldon
- Michael D. Castle as Lab Man
- Pamela Jean Bryant as Sue Ellen
- Ted Chapman as Man in Bar
- Chris Wallace as Psychic Von Hammensveld
- Dale Kalberg as Nurse
- Deborah Leah Land as Police Woman
- Tom Lasswell as Police Psychiatrist
- Mike Levine as Gary Markov
- Chuck MitchellChuck MitchellChuck Mitchell was an American actor, known for his role as "Porky" in the raunchy 1982 cult classic movie Porky's...
as Sam Gluckman - Victor Mohica as Ventura
- Susanne Severeid as Hooker
- Paula Warner as Carol
- Hugh Corcoran as Wino
- Gail Jensen as Joyce
- Joyce Ann Jodan as Roommate
- Corinne Cook as Rikki
- Ellen Kay Karsten as Hooker
- Havoc Oliver as Hooker
- David Osterhout as Policeman
- Peter Fain as Policeman
- Jon Greene as Policeman
- Robin Oliver as Dope Dealer
- Shirley Handelsman as Nurse's Mother
- Don LakeDon LakeDon Lake is a Canadian actor, film and television writer, and television producer. He is frequently cast by director Christopher Guest, and is also a close friend and the collaborative partner of Bonnie Hunt....
as Man in Plastic - Eileen Castle as Neighbor
- Danny Disner as Boyfriend
- James Dunaway as Fred at Radio Station
Production
Nicholas Worth won the Medalla Sitges en Plata de Ley for his role as Kirk Smith. It was shot in and around Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
.
Release
The theatrical was on 29 February 1980 over Crown International PicturesCrown International Pictures
Crown International Pictures is an independent film studio formed in 1959 by Newton P. Jacobs Jacobs was a former branch head of RKO Pictures until 1947 when he formed his own company "Favorite Films"; a film releasing organisation. Jacobs became one of the first franchises for showing American...
. The VHS was in the United States released as The Hollywood Strangler on 28 February 1982 at Media Home Entertainment
Media Home Entertainment
Media Home Entertainment Inc. was a home video company headquartered in Culver City, California, originally established in 1978 by filmmaker Charles Band....
. The DVD in 2002 over Rhino Home Video and re-released by BCI Eclipse on 10 October 2006.