Blood & Flesh: The Reel Life and Ghastly Death of Al Adamson
Photo credit: Severin Films/Shudder
Blood & Flesh is a documentary that covers the wild career of B-Z movie maker Al Adamson. The end covers his brutal murder by a trusted employee in 1995. His films weren’t cursed, but his death was brutal.
Cult Filmmaker
If you are a child of the sixties, seventies or eighties, you went to a drive-in. If you went to a double feature, you probably saw an Al Adamson directed film.
Al’s films were for entertainment. He never pretended they were Oscar contenders, he never worried about doing more than one take. But his films endure as cult classics.
Most people bandy about Roger Corman’s name for exploitation films, but Roger usually had a budget. Al, not so much.
The Man Really Liked the Word “Blood”
He is credited with 33 films, and almost 20% of them have “Blood” in the title.
He made horror, westerns, sci-fi, and a sex musical(mmmkay…also wtf).
Equal Opportunity
Al really didn’t care who he worked with. He never showed any racism or prejudice, casting people of color, little people, and former porn stars before it was mainstream.
Weird Beliefs
Before his death, Al alleged that he met an alien human hybrid, and set out to make a film about UFOs. That film was never made, which really has given the conspiracy theorists conspiracy boners since and about Al’s death. None of them actually considered this “meeting” was to be a marketing ploy.
Photo credit: Severin Films/Shudder
Flipping Houses
Al eventually retired and began flipping houses. He hired Fred Fulford as a handyman to take care of repairs.
The Change
Fred eventually was caught stealing and committing fraud. Instead of firing him, Al made an agreement with Fred to work off his debt.
Not only did Fred resume his criminal activities, he began styling his hair and wearing clothes like Al.
Al Disappears
Al always kept in contact with friends and family. When no one had heard from Al for weeks, the police investigated.
Al’s body was eventually discovered under the concrete floor in one of his houses. Fred had left the state, and was soon captured and convicted of his death. Not only had he killed Al, Fred had also stolen his cars, sending them to Florida.
Real life horror-Al’s body is recovered.
Photo credit: Severin Films/Shudder
The king of exploitation no budget schlock was murdered at the age of 66. He was remembered as difficult, wonderful, complex. In other words, human. Disagree or agree with his films, no one deserved to die like he did.
RIP Al.
Blood & Flesh: The Reel Life and Ghastly Death of Al Adamson is available for streaming on Shudder, or for purchase in the box set of his films.
