“Will you put that goddamn map away? Look, I gave you 78 men, you’ve got the National Guard, and he’s still loose in my city! And look at the hole he made!” Would that be a… manhole? Join your faithful Grue Crew – Chad Hunt, Bill Mulligan, Crystal Cleveland, and Jeff Mohr – as they brave the body-strewn sewers populated by Alligator (1980).
Decades of Horror 1980s
Episode 241 – Alligator (1980)
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Decades of Horror 1980s is partnering with the WICKED HORROR TV CHANNEL (https://wickedhorrortv.com/) which now includes video episodes of 1980s and is available on Roku, AppleTV, Amazon FireTV, AndroidTV, and its online website across all OTT platforms, as well as mobile, tablet, and desktop.
A pet baby alligator is flushed down a toilet and survives in the city sewers. Twelve years later, it grows to an enormous size thanks to a diet of discarded laboratory dogs injected with growth hormones. Now, humans have entered the menu.
- Director: Lewis Teague
- Writers: John Sayles (screenplay); (story by) John Sayles, Frank Ray Perilli
- Cinematographer: Joseph Mangine (director of photography)
- Editing by: Larry Bock, Ron Medico (as Ronald Medico)
- Special Effects Makeup: Robert Short
- Special Effects:
- Special effects coordinator: Richard O. Helmer
- Special effects: William F. Shourt, Pete Girard, David Beasley, David Bartholomew, John Ramsey Jr. (as John Ramsey)
- Gator operators: Kevin Blackton, Tom Goeken
- Original alligator created by: The Stansbury Company
- Miniatures: Bill Kaufman
- Production Assistant/Effects Assistant: Bryan Cranston
- Selected Cast:
- Robert Forster as David Madison
- Robin Riker as Marisa Kendall
- Michael V. Gazzo as Chief Clark (as Michael Gazzo)
- Dean Jagger as Slade
- Sydney Lassick as Luke Gutchel (as Sidney Lassick)
- Jack Carter as Mayor
- Perry Lang as Officer Jim Kelly
- Henry Silva as Col. Brock
- Bart Braverman as Kemp
- John Lisbon Wood as Mad Bomber
- James Ingersoll as Scientist Arthur Helms
- Robert Doyle as Bill
- Patti Jerome as Madeline
- Angel Tompkins as Newswoman
- Sue Lyon as ABC Newswoman
- Leslie Brown as Young Marisa
- Buckley Norris as Bob
- Royce D. Applegate as Callan
- Mike Mazurki as Gatekeeper (as Michael Mazurki)
The Grue Crew chase down the classic creature feature Alligator starring Robert Forster. Writer John Sayles and director Lewis Teague turn the urban legend of flushing baby alligators, which in turn grow to sewer-dwelling alligator adults, into a full-fledged monster movie. How glorious! Silly hijinks and fun chomping ensue! What will the Grue Crew think of it?
At the time of this writing, Alligator is available for streaming from Shudder and Tubi, and asPPV from multiple sources. It is also available on physical media as Alligator – Collector’s Edition 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray [4K UHD] from Shout! Factory.
Every two weeks, Gruesome Magazine’s Decades of Horror 1980s podcast will cover another horror film from the 1980s. The next episode’s film, chosen by Bill, will be Fear No Evil (1981), written and directed by Frank LaLoggia (Lady in White, 1988).
Please let them know how they’re doing! They want to hear from you – the coolest, grooviest fans – so leave them a message or comment on the Gruesome Magazine Youtube channel, on the Gruesome Magazine website, or email the Decades of Horror 1980s podcast hosts at feedback@gruesomemagazine.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.
