Who Killed Teddy Bear 1965

 You might want to have a good hot shower waiting for you after you view this cheapo B thriller from 1965. There is a sadness attached to it, maybe it has to do with seeing the late Sal Mineo at the end of his short and sometimes impressive career or the cheap actual dingy apartments, or the time lost footage of the long gone Times Sq. The plot is sordid. A sexual stalker is on the loose and we know who it is pretty much as soon as the film begins. The investigation is led by a police detective played by an unexpected Jan Murray whose wife was slaughtered by a sexually crazed killer who has never been found, and he takes a deep personal approach to the new crimes, especially the threatening calls that Juliet Prowse keeps getting.

Juliet spins disco records at a seedy dance club managed by Elaine Strich where Sal also works. Strich who is lesbian and in keeping with the times will not have a happy time of it. Strich along with Murray and Mineo have eyes for Juliet, oh those legs but all three get nowhere with her. The calls continue and the chase is on to find the stalker before he turns into a killer. The film is fun for its actual shooting on New York streets and in Times Sq. along with the campy disco where these people from another time, do these silly dances that look scary and dated.

Sal lives in a cramped dump with his mentally challenged sister who saw something when she was a kid that caused her to fall down a flight of stairs in fright. Sal takes care of her as best he can and our sympathies are with them. At least for a time. What she saw finally comes out, and you will have to sit through this B to find the answer which is very sordid and ugly especially for its time. Also the images of sal in a tight bathing suit showing off his bulge and butt did not sit well with the censors at the time, and the film had trouble finding places to show it. It was banned in England for a time. Feminists applaud the film for the strong woman Juliet Prowse projects especially for the time who takes no prisoners or shit from anyone. I'm not on the bandwagon for this film, its just too sordid and nasty for me, but the nyc footage by joseph Brun is great, and seeing the wonderful Sal Mineo is a treat. This film has a big cult following and it is now showing on the Criterion Channel.