Before turning in last night I checked the onscreen guide and was surprised to see Eddie Romero's SAVAGE SISTERS (1974?) listed to air on FLIX at 3am PST. I briefly checked it in the morning--it's letterboxed (1.85) and starts with the AIP logo. I don't recall if the MGM logo is at the beginning. This has never had a home video release, as far as I know. I've never seen it, and though word seems to be that it's not the greatest, the gang is certainly all here in this one: John Ashley, Cheri Caffaro, Gloria Hendry, Vic Diaz, Sid Haig and more! I expect it will air again.
Flix runs this again Jan 20 at 2:15 am. That's it for January. The guide says nothing about any nudity in this R rated puppy..too bad. Still, never seen it and thanks for the heads up Mike. I'll be taping on the 20th!
SAVAGE SISTERS, although filled with the normal amounts of profanity and violence you'd expect from a movie in this genre (the body count is especially high), is surprisingly timid in the nudity department. Although most of the female cast disrobes, their private parts are discreetly hidden by editing tricks or conveniently placed furniture. The print I watched was broadcast over Canada's Drive-In Channel, but if they didn't censor the curse words or violence, it seems unlikely they'd snip boob shots (it aired with an 18+ rating). I'm not sure why Romero didn't film any nudity--Caffaro certainly wasn't shy about it in her GINGER movies. (Caffaro also has the film's best line when stumbling into an occupied room while searching a whorehouse).
Also unusual is that SAVAGE SISTERS is mainly played for comedy, especially during the second half after John Ashley makes his main entrance. His performance is pretty broad as he attempts to screw his partners in crime (in more ways than one), but he looks like a model of efficiency compared to Sid Haig, whose muggings closely resembles Charles Nelson Reilly on a Saturday morning TV show. Also of note is Les Baxter's screaming jazz riffs, which are pretty fun, but seem out of place--more conducive to a late '60s IRONSIDE episode.
After appearing briefly in BLACK MAMBA and SUDDEN DEATH, Ashley more or less retired from the business for awhile, but eventually moved back to Los Angeles (where he had appeared in several teen-oriented films in the '60s) and became a full-time television producer, working on series like THE A-TEAM and WALKER, TEXAS RANGER. Gloria Hendry never again had a role this prominent, and Caffaro returned only briefly to the screen with the GINGER knockoff TOO HOT TO HANDLE.
The little onscreen program bar listed the film as containing nudity, but FLIX's content warning, prior to the movie starting, did not note any nudity. It sounds like it will be just as Marty describes, fleeting at best. Still, it's Eddie Romero and John Ashley (not to mention Cheri and the other gals)--I gotta see it!