Museum of Natural Sciences shows “Bug,” the picture you see with your eyes closed
For immediate release ‐ August 25, 2015
Contact: Jon Pishney, 919.707.8083. Images available upon request
RALEIGH — They look like rocks. Possess a high intelligence. Have no eyes. Eat ashes. Make fire. Kill. Don’t miss “Bug,” invading the big screen at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences on First Friday, September 4 at 7pm.
After an earthquake releases a strain of mutant cockroaches with the ability to start fires, scientist / local professor James Parmiter (Bradford Dillman) studies the bugs in an attempt to stop the path of destruction. Unfortunately, he finds himself aiding their evolution into unassailable marauders. [WARNING: This film features some profanity and intense scenes that may not be appropriate for children. Parental guidance is suggested.]
Dillman had a solid start in films, appearing in the melodrama “A Certain Smile” (1958) and earning a Golden Globe for Most Promising Newcomer. He followed this with a strong appearance in “In Love and War” (1958), which featured a cast of young rising stars including Hope Lange and Robert Wagner. More acting honors followed after “Compulsion” (1959), including a share of the Best Actor award at the Cannes Film Festival with fellow co-stars Dean Stockwell and Orson Welles. But his film career proceeded on a much slower burn soon after, although he did play Dr. Lewis Dixon in “Escape from the Planet of the Apes” (1971), Capt. McKay in Clint Eastwood’s “The Enforcer” (1976) and appeared in just about every TV show between “Dr. Kildaire” (1966) and “Murder, She Wrote” (1995).
Joanna Miles plays the professor’s Bible-thumping wife, whose death at the tarsi of the raging roaches drives him to hole up in a shack and run several ill-advised experiments on the critters. Miles began her career in New York, acting in a number of plays, television shows and films. She reached the apogee of her career, winning an Emmy Award for her portrayal of Laura Wingfield in the 1973 TV production of “The Glass Menagerie,” alongside co-stars Katharine Hepburn, Sam Waterston and Michael Moriarty.
The screenplay for “Bug” was written by B-movie horror Maestro William Castle, who had a penchant for over-the-top gimmicks, both in promotion and presentation of his films. Susan King of the Los Angeles Times wrote: “The master showman took out an insurance policy from Lloyd’s of London for his 1958 thriller ‘Macabre,’ supposedly just in case anyone died of fright during the film. He created an even more elaborate gimmick for his 1959 classic, ‘House on Haunted Hill’: Emergo, a skeleton that flew across the audience. For another 1959 chiller, ‘The Tingler,’ frightened audiences encountered Percepto, buzzers placed under theater chairs that would go off at the creepiest moments.”
“Bug” was the last film Castle was involved in before his death.
The Museum stays open from 5 to 9pm on the First Friday of every month, inviting visitors to witness a (classic) sci-fi or horror movie, wander through eye-catching exhibits, groove to live music, and enjoy snacks and beverages from the Daily Planet Café. Additionally, the Museum Stores offer after-hours shopping (till 7pm) and an opening reception for Vicki Rees (6-8pm), whose show “Raleigh, Naturally” runs September 4–27 in the Nature Art Gallery. All exhibited art is for sale.