Turner Classic Movies is airing a real guilty pleasure of mine on March 16: She Freak from 1967. A nasty and manipulative skank mistreats all the slimeballs in a carnival until they disfigure her and she becomes the unwilling monster star of the sideshow. It’s fun to mock the lame-o acting, the dim dialogue and the low, low, low budget.
It’s also a time capsule – with real 1967 carnival crowds in Bakersfield, Sacramento and Los Angeles. You may recognize the diner-in-the-middle-of-nowhere because it was filmed at Piru, California (look it up on a map), where at least 50 movies have been filmed.
Look for Bill McKinney (famed for the infamous “Squeal like a pig” scene in Deliverance) as Steve St. John.