A researcher named Quintus (Garland) hypnotizes a streetwalker called Diana (Duncan) in an attempt to record her past-life experiences as a condemned witch named Helene in the Dark Ages. After numerous attempts by Quintus to influence her, Diana's consciousness decides not to alter the course of history and resigns herself to her fate.
Features the memorable character Digger Smolken, as well as the easliy-duped knight Pendragon, the scheming witch Livia, Satan himself, and Billy Barty as an imp.
Information
Features an infamous quote, spoken by Quintus towards the end of the film: "STAY!"
Filmed in a converted supermarket, and completed in six days.
Inspired by the interest during the 1950s in reincarnation (as was the film The She Creature), especially the book The Search for Bridey Murphy by Morey Bernstein, which was itself filmed in 1956. By the time The Undead was being made, the popularity of reincarnation was starting to dwindle, so Roger Corman decided to change things by adding the time travel elements of Quintus and a title change.
The "bats" that the imp and witch continually change into were left over from the Corman movie It Conquered the World.
The interior set for Scroop's tavern - The Gabriel's Horn - is the same as the Red Dog Saloon from Roger Corman's Gunslinger.
The Episode
Host Segments
Mike tries to explain the season's plot
PrologueMike attempts to bring the viewing audience up to speed on the show's current plot. The Bots, though, keep asking for more context, for what led up to what he wants to explain. Mike ends up bitterly recalling a temp job he once had.
Segment 1The Observers send everyone intelligence tests to determine their fates. Pearl Forrester gets frustrated by a question about the Periodic Table of Elements and refuses to finish the test, claiming that it is culturally biased. Professor Bobo is less intelligent than most mollusks, leading him to prove his intellect by stacking boxes. Crow sleeps through the test, Mike is still stuck in the past, Gypsy does moderately well, and Tom Servo turns out to be smarter than Observer. His brain gets to go to the Enrichment Chamber.
Servo joins the Observers
Segment 2 As a result of his test scores, Servo is invited to join the Observers. He ends up getting chased and expelled after he forgets to fill out his non-existent forms, can't read Pearl's mind, and steals all the spoons.
Segment 3Lydia, a witch similar to the one in the movie, appears on the SOL. She can't control her transformations, but she tries to steal the crew's souls anyway. She ends up stuck in the form of a bottle of bleach.
Segment 4 Mike finds his copy of Digger Smolkin's cover album. Smolkin takes popular songs and replaces the words with "rat", "corpse", "filth", and other death references. He has a nice "straight" cover of "Greensleeves".
Bridget Jones as Lydia
Final Segment Crow is a creepy imp while Mike helps Tom expresses his outrage over the fact that Leonard Maltin rated The Undead three stars. Meanwhile, Bobo makes a nice sandwich with rye, lettuce, tomato, a little mayonnaise, and, courtesy of the Enrichment Chamber, Observer's Brain.
Stinger The Observers offer you their brains...again.
Mike's album cover spells Digger's last name as "Smolken". IMDB.com (which was not as prevalent or complete at the time of the episode's production as it later became) spells the name "Smolkin". The character's name is not provided in the film's credits.
During a shot of Billy Barty as the Imp, Crow describes the scene as "Good, old-fashioned nightmare fuel." The phrase "nightmare fuel" would later be consistently used by Kinga Forrester to describe the experiments to which she subjected Jonah Heston and his robot companions, as she would invite them to "enter the nightmare-fueled world of" the various movies she had chosen. Crow uses the term sensibly, inasmuch as the image of the imp is the type of disturbing visual that might prompt (or "fuel") nightmares. Kinga suggests that the movies she is presenting are fueled BY nightmares, which is nonsense.
Benjamin Franklin quotes whenever the bust of Franklin in the office is visible.
Lord of the Rings jokes for PENDRA-gon. "Gotta help Strider move a couch."
Several references to various witches that have occurred in popular culture.
STAAAAAAAY!!!
Quotes & References
"I saw the Undead at Un-Alpine Un-Valley."
The music group the Grateful Dead are often referred to as simply "The Dead". Alpine Valley is a music venue in southeastern Wisconsin. The Grateful Dead played there 20 times between 1980 and 1989.
"Roger Corman's Backdraft."
Backdraft is a 1991 drama film about firefighters. It was directed by Corman protégé Ron Howard.
"Smokey says: Only YOU can prevent Roger Corman."
Smokey the Bear is a mascot for the U.S. Forest Service anti-wildfire ad campaign. His slogan is "Only YOU can prevent forest fires."
"Thank you Mr. Zebub."
In Christian theology, Beelzebub is another name for Satan, also known as the Devil.
"You have fingers. I like that in a man."
In the 1981 neo-noir movie Body Heat, Kathleen Turner's seductress character says "You're not too smart, are you? I like that in a man." to Mickey Rourke's character.
"All your rowdy friends are coming over tonight."
"All My Rowdy Friends (Are Coming Over Tonight)" is a hit country song from 1984 by Hank Williams Jr. Williams later adapted it into the theme for the TV sports program Monday Night Football.
"Don't you have any Proust?"
French author Marcel Proust is known for his long, dense, slow-moving, introspective narratives.
"Take it easy, Diana." "Don't let the sound of your own wheels drive you crazy."
Excluding the name Diana, these are lyrics from the song "Take it Easy" recorded by the Eagles.
"Like a circle in a spiral... Like a wheel within a wheel..."
Lyrics from the English-language version of the song "The Windmills of Your Mind" that were written by Alan & Marilyn Bergman.
"When I touch you-" "I think about myself. No, wait..."
An inversion of the lyric "When I think about you, I touch myself" from the song "I Touch Myself" by the Divinyls.
"Must... Not... Look... Like Mr. Weatherby..."
Mr. Weatherby is the heavyset, bald, bespectacled high school principal in Archie comics.
"Oui." "Are family! I got all my sisters with me!"
Lyrics from the 1979 song "We Are Family" recorded by the group Sister Sledge.
"Tish! That's French!"
Tom is mimicking the character Gomez Addams from the various incarnations of The Addams Family. When Gomez's wife Morticia ("Tish") would speak French to him, Gomez would be overcome with passion and start kissing Morticia's arm amorously, making his way up to her neck and cheek.
"As through a glass darkly, yeah."
A reference to the Biblical verse 1 Corinthians 13:12 "For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known."
"But, my dear-" "I don't give a damn."
In Gone With the Wind, Rhett Butler rebuffs Scarlett O'Hara by saying "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn."
"She's all the way back to Quest for Fire time."
Quest for Fire is a 1981 prehistoric fantasy film directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud. It co-starred Rae Dawn Chong.
"It's Must See TV night, I have to get home!"
Must See TV was the name of NBC programming blocks from the 1990s and into the 2000s. It was originally applied to their popular Thursday night sitcoms, and was then extended to additional nights on the week for a time (Tuesdays and Sundays).
"Slightly risky liaisons."
Dangerous Liaisons is a 1988 period drama film adapted from the 1985 stage play Les Liaisons Dangereuses by Christopher Hampton, which was adapted from the 1782 novel of the same name by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos.
"Sir Ray Nitschke!"
The jailer looks a bit like former Green Bay Packers linebacker, Ray Nitschke.
"She's got the Flashdance look going."
The 1983 film Flashdance features a dancer played by Jennifer Beals who wears a sweatshirt with an extra-large hole cut at the top, causing it to ride low and fall off one shoulder.
"Am I not Devo?"
The debut album of the American new wave band Devo was entitled "Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!". It was inspired by the refrain of the Law of the Beast Folk in the novel The Island of Dr. Moreau (1896) by H.G. Wells.
"Yes, Computer."
On Star Trek: The Next Generation (and later incarnations of the Star Trek franchise) the ship's computer speaks with a woman's voice and can interact with the crew through voice commands.
"This is harassment, and I don't have to take it."
This line occurs in a PSA about sexual harassment in the workplace from the 1990s. It is spoken by a woman addressing her male superior after he makes inappropriate comments to her.
"Get that cat out of here..."
In the 1983 comedy film The Man with Two Brains, Steve Martin plays a successful brain surgeon. During several scenes in which he is performing surgery, a cat makes an inexplicable appearance in the operating room, to which Martin's character calmly says "Get that cat out of here..." while remaining focused on his task.
In the 1939 film adaptation of The Wizard of Oz, young Dorothy Gale meets a traveling fortune teller in a wagon before her journey to the land of Oz. Later, she will discover that the famous Wizard in Oz looks the same as this fortune teller. His wagon resembles the hearse seen here.
"Meatloaf!" "Phil Harris!" "Topol!"
All heavyset male singers. Meatloaf is known for his album "Bat Out of Hell" and his appearances in the films The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Fight Club, To Catch a Yeti, and Spice World. Phil Harris was a regular performer on The Jack Benny Program (radio show) and voiced several characters in Disney animated features (including Baloo the Bear in The Jungle Book). Topol starred in the film adaptation of Fiddler on the Roof.
"Great, I'll send that off to Phil Spector today."
Phil Spector is a successful record producer who pioneered the "Wall of Sound" audio mixing technique in the 1960s. He was later convicted of murdering Lana Clarkson.
"Oh, God, no! Mike Farrell!"
Mike Farrell is an American actor, author, and activist known for having played Dr. B.J. Hunnicutt on the TV series M*A*S*H.
"How will Z.Z. Top carry on?"
Z.Z. Top is an American rock band whose members all have long, thick beards.
"One Adam-12, see thouest the man, corner of Coldwater and Mulholland."
On the TV police procedural Adam-12, the officers would often be contacted through their radio and instructed to "see the man" (typically a witness, victim, or other complainant) at a particular address or intersection. Coldwater Canyon Blvd. and Mulholland Dr. are both thoroughfares in Los Angeles (the city in which Adam-12 was set).
"Oh, hey, the Hooters mascot!"
Hooters is an American restaurant chain. Its locations feature attractive female waitstaff in skimpy clothes. The mascot for the chain is indeed an owl, though "hooters" is also a slang term for breasts.
"The Couple Seconds of the Iguana."
The Night of the Iguana is a 1961 stage play written by Tennessee Williams. It involves a number of disparate characters who find themselves in a run-down hotel on the U.S.-Mexico border.
"Weekend at Bernie's The Early Years."
Weekend at Bernie's is a 1989 comedy film about two men who must maintain the appearance that their deceased boss (Bernie) is still alive. Butch & Sundance: The Early Days is the 1979 prequel to the 1969 western film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. It is sometimes mis-identified as Butch & Sundance: The Early Years (such as in the 1991 comedy movie Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey, in which Death says the wrong title during a game of charades).
"This is how Anthony Quinn's wife must feel."
Anthony Quinn (1915-2001) was a Mexican-American actor, writer, painter, and a film director known for his starring role in the film Zorba the Greek. He often wore a thick beard.
"Ah, medieval Squiggy..."
Squiggy (played by David Lander) was a supporting character on the TV sitcom Laverne & Shirley, which was set in the 1950s and 60s. Squiggy and his best friend Lenny were greaser characters who were friends with (but also often annoyed) the titular female duo.
"Let's see... What rhymes with "coffin"...Often...Soften...John McLaughlin..."
There are two notable John McLaughlins. One was an American broadcaster who hosted the long-running TV political commentary show The McLaughlin Group. The other is a British musician.
"You are bewitched? "Bothered? Bewildered?"
"Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered" is an American popular song by Rodgers & Hart. It was first performed as part of the 1940 stage musical Pal Joey, and has since become a standard for lounge and torch singers.
"Wouldst thou pick me up a Mad Magazine?" "I have to watch Mad About You tonight."
Mad Magazine was a long-running humor publication. Mad About You was a popular TV sitcom in the 1990s that starred Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt as a newly-married couple.
"And back to my Tin Pan Alley songs..."
"Tin Pan Alley" is a term applied to the popular music publishers and writers based in New York City during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Their product tended to be melodramatic ballads or comedic novelty songs that could be sold as sheet music around the United States and abroad.
"Apparently there were Hardware Hanks during the middle ages."
Hardware Hank is a chain of retail hardware store in the American midwest. The joke seems to be that Smolkin's shovel is clearly mass-produced, rather than the type of hand-made tool that would have been available at the time.
"Gettest thou a cemetery full of savings at Menards!"
Menards is a different chain of retail hardware stores with locations in 15 states throughout the mid-western United States. They are the third-largest home improvement retailer in the U.S. after Home Depot and Lowe's.
"I may be James Coco."
James Coco was a rotund American actor. He starred in several plays and films written by Neil Simon, and as Sancho Panza in the film adaptation of Man of La Mancha.
"And I'll leave the light on for you."
"We'll Leave the Light on for You." is the slogan of the Motel 6 chain of American motels.
"Falstaff'll be down in a sec..."
Sir John Falstaff is a character in three plays by William Shakespeare. In Henry IV Part I he acts as a friend but bad influence to Prince Hal, the future King. He has a diminished role in Henry IV Part II and his death is reported in Henry V (after Hal has become King). He is also in The Merry Wives of Windsor. He is consistently depicted as a heavyset glutton and a heavy drinker who is also vain, boastful, and cowardly.
"Her breath smells like Fancy Feast."
Fancy Feast is a brand of wet cat food. It is marketed as being slightly more upscale than other brands.
"That frog's a good licking size."
Certain species of toads (including the cane toad) secrete a poison that can have a hallucinogenic affect on humans if ingested. This has caused some people engage in the practice of licking any toad or frog that they encounter in an attempt to alter their consciousness, despite the significant danger of this practice.
"What a pretty yarmulke!"
A yarmulke is a skullcap traditionally worn by practitioners of the Jewish faith. They are typically only worn by men. Helene's hat resembles one.
"Grumpy! Sneezy! Let me in, it's Snow!"
Grumpy and Sneezy are two of the dwarves who befriend Snow White in the Walt Disney animated feature Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, which is based on one of the Grimm Brothers' Fairy Tales (in which the dwarves are not named).
"James Woods!"
American actor James Woods has a pock-marked face.
"Oh, it's the Olive Garden!"
The Olive Garden is a chain of American casual dining restaurants. The chain specializes in Italian food and promotes itself as having a welcoming atmosphere.
"She sounds like David Brinkley."
David Brinkley was an American journalist and broadcaster.
"I'm going down to the Winn-Dixie for some of the grease that sweaten from the murderer's gibbet."
Winn-Dixie is chain of grocery stores in the American south. In William's Shakespeare's play MacBeth, One of the witches mentions "grease that sweaten from the murderer's gibbet" as an ingredient in their brew. In olden days, the bodies of executed murderers were left hanging on the gallows (gibbet) for weeks until they decomposed. Eventually, liquefied body fat (grease) would start seeping through the bodies' skin as if it was sweat.
"Could you pick me up some Rice Dream?"
Rice Dream is a brand of low-fat, non-dairy alternative to ice cream.
"She's hitting happy hour with Margaret Hamilton."
Margaret Hamilton played the Wicked Witch of the West in the well-known film adaptation of The Wizard of Oz.
"The door is unlatched. Pray enter." "Ba-da-dada-dada-dada..."
As Meg-Maud enters the room, Mike and the 'Bots sing a bit of the instrumental theme song to the TV sitcom The Dick Van Dyke Show, which would play as Van Dyke's character entered the door to his home.
"What is this, blank verse?"
Blank verse is a type of poetry that does not rhyme but has a regular meter. It is typically in iambic pentameter.
"What is this, a bust of Chiang Kai-shek made out of liver?"
Chiang Kai-shek was the leader of the Republic of China from 1928 to 1975. He was known for shaving his head bald.
"Do you get free tailoring on every suit you buy? I guarantee it..."
In an apparent non-sequitur, Crow is mimicking George Zimmer, who was the executive chairman of the Men's Wearhouse chain of clothing stores from 1973 to 2013. Zimmer would appear in commercials for the store, which would end with him saying the slogan "You're gonna like the way you look. I guarantee it."
"I sense radon."
Radon is a colorless, odorless, tasteless noble gas that affects indoor air quality and can cause lung cancer. Increased awareness of radon and its effects led to a new industry of radon detection services for homeowners in the 1980s and 90s.
"-And your little dog, too!"
A line spoken by the aforementioned Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz.
"Now I understand dwarf-tossing."
Dwarf-tossing a fad in bars that began in Australia in the early 1980s. Patrons would compete to see how far they could throw a (willing) adult little person. It has since fallen out of favor for being demeaning and exploitative.
"Amongst our weaponry..."
Reference to the Monty Python's Flying Circus "Spanish Inquisition" sketch, in which a zealous inquisitor keeps revising the list of weapons at his disposal.
"Rivendell...", "I have to help Strider move a couch", "Bought some land on the edge of Mordor, it's really coming back"
All references to the Lord of the Rings series of novels: Rivendell is a part of the Elvish realm, "Strider" was the alias used by Aragorn during his time as a wandering ranger, and Mordor was the location of Mount Doom and the base of operations of the dark Lord Sauron.
"Rob!" "Rob, I'm telling Alan what you're doing!"
References to the bald and bespectacled character Mel Cooley (played by actor Richard Deacon) from The Dick Van Dyke Show, whom the character resembles. Rob Petrie was one of his co-workers, and Alan Brady was their temperamental boss.
Reference to the Monty Python's Flying Circus "Encyclopedia Salesman" sketch, in which a housewife suspects that a man claiming to be a burglar is actually a door-to-door encyclopedia salesman.
"Sunrise, you better take care..."
Mike purposely misquotes the Gordon Lightfoot song, "Sundown".
Memorable Quotes
[A fire is being used as a background for the opening credits.]
Crow: Fire in the projection room! Guess we can't watch the movie!
[Crow darts toward the exit but is restrained by Mike.]
[The movie opens with a flamboyant Satan speaking to the viewers.]
Mike: Satan, the Prince of Cabaret.
. . .
Mike: This guy was never in heaven, he was cast out of community theater!
[Quintus is hypnotizing Diana. A bust of Benjamin Franklin looks over his shoulder.]
Quintus: We breathe as one. We are one.
Servo [as Franklin]: You know, early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.
Quintus: When I touch you…
Crow [as Quintus]: I think about myself. No, no, no, wait.
Quintus: …we will be one.
Servo [as Quintus]: We'll be me, for convenience' sake.
[As Smolkin the gravedigger slouches around.]
Servo: Smolkin's naked sometimes, Mike.
Mike: [cringing] Ohh. Damn you, Servo!
[A knight demands to look inside a coffin in a coach being pulled by a gravedigger.]
Servo [as Knight]: Towest thy vehicle to the curb and showeth me thy driver's license and registration. Did thou knowest how fast thou was driving?
[Satan explains to Quintus how he cannot return to his own time.]
Satan: Thy voyage to this age was down a long, long road…
Crow [as Satan]: Route 666!
Satan: …that tied Diana to Helen. It was a road from living mind to living mind.
Mike [as Satan]: …to sleeping audience.
. . .
Satan: Here you are fixed! Make of a local life what comfort, sport, and joy thou may.
Servo: [singing to "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen"] O-ho, tidings of comfort, sport, and joy!
Mike: There. Sure glad I don't look stupid in this.
[Quintus sets upon and subdues an unprepared knight.]
Mike [as Knight]: [in stilted "medieval" grammar that parodies the knight's own dialogue] Me help! Attacked I am being! Hitting me stop you must! God dear! Bleeding am I! Break my leg think I did you!
Mike: I've never known more about what isn't going on in a movie.
