“I don’t mind making it on the lawn. You wanna make it on the lawn?” Sure sounds like a line of dialogue from a movie from the 1970s, but a horror movie? Join your faithful Grue Crew – Doc Rotten, Chad Hunt, Bill Mulligan, and Jeff Mohr – as they follow the sound of Donovan’s voice and end up somewhere between night and dawn with George Romero’s Season of the Witch.
Decades of Horror 1970s
Episode 93 – Season of the Witch (1972)
Synopsis:
A bored, unhappy suburban housewife gets mixed up in witchcraft and murder.
– IMDb
- Writer/Director: George A. Romero
- Featured Cast:
- Jan White as Joan Mitchell
- Raymond Laine as Gregg Williamson
- Ann Muffly as Shirley Randolph
- Joedda McClain as Nikki Mitchell
- Bill Thunhurst as Jack Mitchell
- Esther Lapidus as Sylvia
- Neil Fisher as Doctor Miller
- Virginia Greenwald as Marion Hamilton
- Bill Hinzman as The Intruder
Season of the Witch, aka Jack’s Wife, aka Hungry Wives, is one of Romero’s lesser known works but it still packs enough content to make it worth the watch. This one was Chad’s pick and he managed to find a film by the legendary director that none of the Grue Crew had seen! Bill discusses how the story’s premise is grounded in the women’s liberation movement of the ‘70s and makes sure to point out that Bill Hinzman, who plays The Intruder in this film, also played the ghoul that killed Barbara’s brother in Night of the Living Dead. The more Doc talks about the film, the more he finds to like, especially Raymond Laine’s performance as Gregg, the hip, philandering college professor. Jeff, on the other hand, takes a liking to Ann Muffly’s portrayal of Joan’s friend Shirley and doesn’t take kindly to the fake-pot-prank Gregg plays on her at a party. The entire Grue Crew commended Jan White for her lead performance and agree that true horror fans, especially Romero completists, should see Season of the Witch.
We want to hear from you – the coolest, grooviest fans: leave us a message or leave a comment on the site or email the Decades of Horror 1970s podcast hosts at docrotten@decadesofhorror.com.
Jeff has written for Horrornews.net and SQ Horror Magazine. He currently writes for Gruesome Magazine and is a co-host of the Decades of Horror podcasts - The Classic Era, 1970s, and 1980s - and the Gruesome Magazine Podcast.
