A Party Without the Main Course

The Scene: The “toast” hosted Wednesday at Sunset Boulevard’s Bar One club by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films for Trimark’s “Leprechaun.” This is the ultra low-budget horror film that was on the straight-to-video expressway until it did extremely well with test audiences. It is now getting a theatrical opening--and a pot of gold’s worth of hype to go with it.

“Toast” Translated: It was a premiere party sans screening. Why? “Let’s just say it does them no good to show the movie,” one involved person said. Co-producer Michael Prescott noted that “critics aren’t usually kind to this type of genre picture.” This makes “Leprechaun” a stealth horror film--nobody sees it until it bombs.

The Buzz: Maybe we were lucky they didn’t show the film. “This could be what they mean by the luck of the Irish,” one guest said.

Who Was There: Aside from the film’s cast, it was as fine a selection of unemployed horror film actors as you’d ever see in one room. From the film were writer-director Mark Jones and stars Jennifer Aniston, Ken Olandt and Mark Holton. Possibly the best-known name among the 300 others at the party was game show host Bob Eubanks.

Fashion Statement: Forrest Ackerman, from the science-fiction academy, wore Bela Lugosi’s cape, the same one Lugosi wore in “Dracula” and the equally immortal, though somewhat less well-received, “Plan 9 From Outer Space.” This is the film that, in Ackerman’s words, “is not one of the worst films of all time. It is the worst film of all time.”

Corroborating Evidence: One of “Plan’s” co-stars, Paul Marco, said the film ran into problems. First, Lugosi died two days into shooting. What little film they had of the star had to be stretched throughout the movie. Then the film’s original name and plot had to be altered. It was first made as “Grave Robbers From Outer Space.” However, the money to finish the film came from a Baptist denomination, which didn’t look fondly upon grave robbing. “We didn’t think the movie was that bad,” Marco said. “It was during the ‘50s. There were a lot of films like that.”

Current State of the Horror Film: “I think things have gotten worse,” Ackerman said. “It’s a case of the tail wagging the werewolf. They’ve gotten into special effects over developing character and plot.”

Chow: In keeping with the film’s low budget, it was quite possibly the smallest buffet with the longest line in premiere history. There were cheese, crackers and a bowl of pasta set out on a banquette. “If (popular premiere caterer) Along Came Mary is anywhere near here,” a screenwriter said, “it’s because their truck is driving past.”

Quoted: Co-producer Michael Prescott noted that the horror genre has “done gremlins, goonies and trolls. And they’ve done Halloween, St. Valentine’s Day and Christmas. But nobody did leprechauns and St. Patrick’s Day. It was the last franchise.”