The wonderful Christian world of Ron Ormond

When the great June Ormond died a few years back we did a nice tribute to her on the show. June was the "better half" of the "first filmmaking family of Nashville," the Ormonds. This week's Funhouse episode returns to the strangest and most extreme works they made, their Christian films spearheaded by preacher Estus Pirkle (apparently his real name).

This marvelous scene from the wonderfully titled If Footmen Tire You, What Will Horses Do?(1971) gives us the brilliant juxtaposition, Communism=bad/Xtianity=good (I never understood that candy part of the equation, I woulda done things differently back in Catholic school).



There are absolutely no limits in this kind of scare-tactic exploitation film. Here we see a kid get harmed, a definite no-no in mainstream moviemaking.



But when you need to frighten people to follow the Prince of Peace, it's perfectly fine to scare the shit out of the kiddies:



The Ormonds only made a handful of these suckers, but they are truly the furthest-out-there they ever went—and I'm talking about a filmmaking unit that created Please Don't Touch Me! and The Monster and the Stripper! This week on the show I present a few clips from The Burning Hell(1974), which is posted in its entirety on YouTube. The pic is only an hour, but I doubt that most of you will want to watch the whole thing, so I will just spotlight two clips:



Go to hell, man!


The greatest thing about this posting on YouTube is that the person who put it up labels it quite sincerely "The Everlasting Sorrows" and appears to take it very seriously, as do some of the commenters. I was quite interested, by the way, to see that my posts last year of Christsploitation and rapture thrillers got some great comments from YT viewers. Check them out:

The smoothest preacher ever

It's Easter time again, and in the Funhouse that means it's time to celebrate Xtian excess. Here's one of the finest discoveries to hit the 'Tube, the kindly "Rev. X," from the L.A. public access show "Spirit of Truth, One Man Show." You've probably seen the initial video that attracted so much attention, but I had no idea that people in Cali had been posting other episodes in which the backdrops are even more eye-catching, and the Rev. busts some moves, with or without his shirt on (but with pimp cane always at the ready).

The initial vid:



Wherein he reveals he's not just a vessel of god, he IS god, bee-yotch!


Wherein he chooses to pose while 'Pac plays, and then can't help but dancin'


More terpsichorean magic