A girl goes against the advice of her parents and her roommate and runs away with her boyfriend. The short asks the question of whether their love has the necessary elements to last long or not.
Information
This short was included on Shorts Vol 3, released by Rhino Entertainment on VHS in Janurary 2001, and on DVD in August 2004 as an limited time exclusive bonus for ordering MST3K: The Essentials from a specially created Rhino site.
A serial killer has been targeting teenage girls in a small town, strangling his victims with pantyhose and drawing an "X" in lipstick on their foreheads. Lieutenant Anderson (Bill Bloom) is frustrated by the crimes, and thinks that modern parents have become too lax with their curfews. Local hot-rod gang the Fast Backs find themselves prime suspects, since an eyewitness says she might have seen their insignia, a bulldog, on the killer's back. Their only alibi is an illegal drag strip race (they're the number one group in the state), except for Jimmy (John Ensign), who is carrying on a forbidden romance with Betty (Jo Canterbury), and can't answer for his whereabouts. Tensions with fellow gang member Curly cause Jimmy to throw his Fast Backs jacket away, and a wild fistfight leads to a challenge to drag. When another body is found, the clues suddenly point to Curly, but a high speed chase and a terrible accident only complicate matters further. So who is the killer? Is it the creepy janitor? Is it the dweebish kid brother? [1]
Information
File:Teenstrangler2.jpgThe episode revitalized interest in the film so much so that it was given a premiere showing in Huntington, West Virginia (where it was filmed) in 1994.
This movie was re-released in black & white in 1990.
John Humphries (Mikey) had never acted before doing this film. He has since said that he took his acting cues from Jo Canterbury, whom he knew had some acting experience off-Broadway. So, as her performance became more teary and shrill, so did his.[2]
According to Humphries, most of the cast and crew of this film were friends or relatives of director Ben Parker.
John Humphries appeared at the first MST3K ConventioCon in September, 1994.
The Episode
Host Segments
The Frank-N-Forcer
Prologue:Mike tries to phone his grandma for help. He runs into problems with calling long distance from space and answering machines.
Segment One (Invention Exchange): In Deep 13, the Frank-N-Forcer keeps Frank out of Dr. F’s way. On the SOL, the Waiter-Baiter attracts waiters so you don’t have to.
Segment Two: Mike and the Bots read some e.e. cummings poetry and ponder the question, "What is love?" Crow wants to hear more about "hot love". The gang ends up pondering the nature of love, mostly in terms of famous celebrities.
The Waiter-Baiter
Segment Three:Crow of the Crow-Magnons and Tom of the Hovermothers want to rumble gangland style, but Mike intervenes by "rapping" with the Bots.
Segment Four: Crow and Tom have a gadget attached to a pair of giant glasses that will make Mike act like Mikey from the movie. Mike wises up eventually, and takes revenge on Crow.
Segment Five: As the Bots go on Thanksgiving Break, lonely custodian Mike sings "I’m a Janitor". Back in Deep 13, Dr. F uses sawdust to clean up after Frank when he bounces along to the song.
Crow and Tom's "Mikey" glasses
Stinger: "And he didn’t steal no bike neither... I did!"
Referring to The Story of Lot's Wife from the Book of Genesis in which Lot and his family flee from the City of Sodom to avoid its destruction. They were advised by the angels escorting them not to look back but Lot's wife did anyway. As a result, she "became a Pillar of Salt."
A play on Scared Straight!, a 1978 television documentary in which a group of juvenile delinquents were led on a tour of a New Jersey prison to demonstrate the ultimate consequences of criminal behavior.
"Watchtower!"
A reference to The Watchtower, a magazine published by the Jehovah's Witnesses.
"Oh, it's Andrew Dice Clay!"
Andrew Dice Clay was a popular comedian during the early 1990s. He was known for his vulgar, chauvinistic on-stage persona and costume, a throwback to the "greaser" look of the 1950s which consisted a black leather jacket and dark, slicked-back hair.
"Free Huey!"
A reference to Black Panther co-founder Huey Newton, who was accused of murder in two separate cases in 1967 and 1974.
"Jonathan Silverman!"
Jonathan Silverman is an American actor best known for his lead roles in the film Brighton Beach Memoirs and the TV series "Gimme a Break" and "The Single Guy". He has dark hair and a prominent nose.
Actress Vivian Vance was best known for playing Ethel Mertz on I Love Lucy.
"Cornjob!"
"Cornjob" was Joel and the 'Bots' nickname for a character in Gamera vs Guiron.
"It's the Battle of the Network Sedans."
Battle of the Network Stars was a series of television specials from the 1970s and '80s that pitted TV stars from the three major networks against each other in a series of athletic competitions.
"You could learn a lot from a dummy."
During the 1990s, a series of public-service announcements promoting the use of seat belts featured the comical misadventures of a pair of living crash-test dummies, and used the slogan "You could learn a lot from a dummy."
A quote from the Annie Hall, in which Woody Allen's character reacts with paranoia about perceived anti-Semitism.
"Clang clang clang went the trolley."
Lyrics from "The Trolly Song" featured in the musical Meet Me in St Louis, used here because the soundtrack is similar to the trolley theme from Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood.
"You're not fully dead unless you're Zest-fully dead!"
Reference to a series of Zest soap commercials prominently featuring showerers and the slogan "You're not fully clean unless your Zest-fully clean!".
Memorable Quotes
Is This Love? (short)
[Reading the title card]
Servo: Is this love, or is it just rough sex with Michael Douglas?
[Inside the college dorm room]
Servo: So... Where's Waldo?
Mike: He's under the bed.
[We see Liz, an oddly mature woman, brushing her hair before bed.]
Crow: Geez! How many times was she held back?
Servo: Heh heh heh.
Liz: Hi, Peg!
[In the mirror, we see college girl Peg toss her books on her bed.]
Mike [as Peg]: Hi, Mom.
Peg: I think I'll send a telegram instead.
Liz: Don't be silly, Peg! You always talk as if your mother were an… ogre, or something.
Mike [as Liz]: Well, I've known her for fifty years…
Liz: Honestly, Peg — I don't know how many times, ever since we were in high school together, I've heard you go on the same way about some man or other.
Peg: Oh, but this is different, Liz! Really it is!
Mike [as Peg]: He's anatomically correct, and everything!
Peg: It's the real thing.
Liz: I remember when I first felt that way about Andy.
Servo [as Liz]: ...at the turn of the century.
[The short is ending.]
Narrator: How would you answer this question for Liz and Andrew? Peggy and Joey?
Servo: Bob and Carol? Ted and Alice?
Narrator: How can you tell? Is this love?
Crow: You have ten minutes to answer the question starting now.
[Servo imitates a clock ticking.]
Mike: And, now stay tuned for the Clarance Thomas-Anita Hill hearing.
Crow: No animals were hurt during the filming of this movie.
[A list of related film titles scrolls on the screen.]
