Ted Newsom: 1952-2020

Yours truly with Ted Newsom in August 2010.

Word has been circulating online that writer-director Ted Newsom has passed away at age 67. No details seem to be available, but he's had a myriad of health problems in recent years, so news of his passing isn't all that surprising. But the world of Monster Kid fandom will be a lot less interesting without his unique voice.

A day at Don Glut's house, with Ted Newsom, Bill Warren, and others. Photo by Brett Homenick. 

I met Ted only once -- in August 2010. When I went to visit Donald F. Glut at his home in Burbank, Don took it upon himself to invite several fandom luminaries to join us. Naturally, Ted Newsom was among them. I was especially pleased to meet him, as I always enjoyed reading his perspective on things, even when I disagreed with him.

Actually, out of all of the folks who attended that day, I'd have to say that I gravitated toward Ted the most. I appreciated his wit (which was just as quick and amusing in person), and he was a friendly fellow. I had a great time picking his brain about a variety of topics.

From left to right: Ted Newsom, me, William Winckler, Sid Terror, Don Glut, and Tim Smyth. 

I'd hoped to meet Ted right before I left for Japan, but it wasn't to be. I lost touch with him over the years and thought about reestablishing contact (especially after my friend Jacob hung out with him in California). Unfortunately, life got in the way, and I never got around to it. I'll just have to hang on to the memories I have.

RIP, Ted.

UPDATE (7/9): Given the general theme of this blog, I thought this story that Ted shared on Facebook on May 4, 2019, ought to be preserved for posterity.

I had a CSUN teacher named Al C. Ward. He had been writing for films and TV since the early 1950s, first for the Brian Donlevy series Dangerous Assignment (Bela Lugosi's wife Lillian worked on that; she married Donlevy 10 years later) then shows like Ben Casey and The Fugitive and finally as writer-producer of UMC Medical Center. I had a potential gig writing a dubbed comedy version of the two Steve Reeves Hercules films ("Hercules Recycled"), and I asked Al about it. He said "When I first started out, I had a job like that. They had this Japanese film with a lot of special effects and they needed an American version. I wrote the thing, and they said 'Y'know, if you take a little less money, you can have a piece of this.' I said 'Oh, no, give me the cash.' That was a movie called 'Godzilla.' Brilliant." 

He won have been 100 this year. Poor laddie passed away in the prime of his youth ten years ago.

Bill Warren: 1943-2016

 Author Bill Warren (in the Hawaiian shirt) chats with Tim Smyth at Don Glut's house. Photo by Brett Homenick.

The news of Bill Warren's passing at age 73 was unfortunately expected, given his declining health, but it is major loss for fans of classic sci-fi and horror films. Bill wrote numerous books and articles on the genre over the decades, and his association with the Forry Ackerman and Famous Monsters (the real one, not the pale imitation of recent years) speaks for itself. Not many classic horror fans can say that they met Boris Karloff, but Bill Warren could.

I met Bill Warren once. In August 2010, I visited Don Glut's home where he was throwing a party for various local monster movie fans. Among the folks in attendance were Ted Newsom, William Winckler, Perry Martin, Tim Smyth, and of course Bill Warren. At one point, I asked Bill to tell the story about his attempt at interviewing Teri Garr on the set of a movie, which had the group in stitches. (I'd read the story before on the Classic Horror Film Board.) Among other awkward moments, when Bill asked her about Close Encounters, she retorted, "That's not science fiction, that's Steven Spielberg's VISION!"

Bill Warren, Tim Smyth, Perry Martin, Don Glut, William Winckler, and Ted Newsom talk about all things horror. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Toward the end of the afternoon, the conversation turned toward some of the drama unfolding on the CHFB. Bill, despite his reputation for being "irascible," offered a level-headed assessment of the events. I wouldn't have blamed him at all for being upset at the way he was treated, but he actually seemed unfazed by it all and took it in stride. I was impressed.

My favorite Bill Warren moment? As the party was preparing to move to a nearby pizzeria, Bill (and his wife Beverly) were planning to return home. As we were about to say our goodbyes, Bill flashed a playful smile and asked me, "So [insert egomaniac's name here] lets you be a Godzilla fan, eh?" Given that I was on somewhat friendly terms with said individual at this point, I had to play it safe, but even then I had a good laugh over Bill's question. I always enjoyed his sense of humor.

RIP, Bill.

Return to the Glutermansion

Tim Smyth, Perry Martin, Don Glut, William Winckler, Ted Newsom, and Bill Warren discuss many movie-related subjects at the Glutermansion.

In June 2005, just before I left for North Dakota for four years, I visited the home of author and filmmaker Donald F. Glut with my friends David McRobie and Peter H. Brothers. Since I was leaving California for the foreseeable future, I arranged for us to visit Don's house (which I nicknamed the Glutermansion) as sort of a last hurrah for me. The visit was a fun experience for us, but it would be one that wouldn't happen again for five years.

Bill and Ted have an "excellent" discussion on who really killed Ted Healy!

Several days ago, I contacted Don about possibly visiting him again at his home. I mentioned that I'd love to meet other fans in the area that he knew, and I welcomed as many of them to participate as he could get. Don then started pounding the pavement and arranged a veritable "who's who" of monster fandom to converge on the Glutermansion!

Don Glut proudly displays his Mangled Skyscraper Award, which he won at G-FEST XIV in 2007, with much of his prized memorabilia collection.

As it turned out, Don was under the impression that I still lived in North Dakota and explained to his friends that I was coming in from out of state for this occasion! The group got a big laugh when I revealed that I drove about two hours to get to L.A.!

For several hours, we sat around a table and simply discussed various movies, swapped stories about celebrities, gave our opinions on some "infamous" names in fandom, and had a blast. I was surprised to learn that these sort of get-togethers don't happen so often. Everyone agreed that these meetings should occur a lot more frequently.

Don Glut and yours truly, right outside the Italian restaurant in which we ate dinner.

Shortly after 7:00 pm, a slightly smaller group went out for Italian food. There we discussed more movies, debated Godzilla movies vs. Ray Harryhausen movies, and even did a few voice impressions! We actually stayed seated well past closing time, but we were so caught up in our conversation that we didn't even notice!

Ted and I pose with Famous Monsters of Filmland #250. Phil Kim would be proud!

After we left the restaurant, most of our group left, although Don, Sid Terror, Tim Smyth, and I stuck around to continue the conversation even longer! It lasted until almost 12:30 am, much later than I would have ever guessed. But, when you're having fun, it's easy to lose track of time.

I'd like to thank everyone who came out to Don's house. You certainly made my day! It was tremendous fun, and I suspect these shindigs will be happening a lot more often from now on.

Hanging out is what it's all about! Ted, me, William Winckler, Sid Terror, Don, and Tim Smyth smile for the camera.

. . . and I haven't been the same since!