Sandra: When our next feature, "Blood Feast," opened in 1964, the Los Angeles Times called it "a blot on the U.S film industry." Reel Wild Cinema viewers know that is high praise indeed. We are proud to have with us the makers of "Blood Feast" -- the dynamic duo of sexploitation films, director Herschell Gordon Lewis and producer David Friedman. Welcome, gentlemen, it's good to see you again. David: It's good to see you, Sandra. Sandra: So, how did you two twisted souls meet? David: I had an independent film distributing firm in Chicago, and one day a young man came in and said, "I'm making a picture." And I said "So?" He said, "But this is different, I have the money." And I said "Come in." Sandra: I'll bet. (To Herschell) And that was you? David: That was him. Sandra: That was unbelievable. David: And from that hour on, we became close friends and collaborators. Sandra: Extraordinary. Was that your plan? To become a team? Herschell: Well, we happened by accident, as many twins do. Sandra: You weren't separated at birth. Herschell: At the rump (laughs). The idea really was to get a picture that people would play. In those days, one lived or died as an independent producer. And today we have cable and videos, and some of these movies are released directly onto cable. We did not have that luxury. Sandra: Right. Herschell: We had to go in to see these theater owners who were a scurvy bunch to begin with, and convince them to throw out "Ben Hur" and "The Ten Commandments" and throw in "Blood Feast." Sandra: Herschell, you actually invented stage blood. Tell us the secret ingredient. Did you get a patent? Herschell: Well, I hope that we don't get sued by our former actors and actresses. But we came to the conclusion that the original stage blood was too purple. It didn't look like real blood. Sandra: Right. Herschell: So off we went to a little cosmetic lab in Coral Cables, and we came up with our own blood. And it looked so much like real blood that you would think nothing of getting a transfusion of it. Of course you would die, but you would think nothing up until the point of death. Sandra: (laughs) Herschell: The main ingredient was Kaopectate. We never told any of our actors this or our actresses. Sandra: (laughs) Herschell: Of course, this had some problems. It looked real, but it would bind you up. Sandra: Make you constipated. Herschell: Our stage blood was very hard to get out, so we made the blood scene the last one shot, then afterward the actors were to be thrown away. Sandra: Hold on, we are now going to go to "Blood Feast." A movie that centers around virgins in Florida. Herschell: That is very hard to come by nowadays. PART 2 Sandra: Did you set out in "Blood Feast" to make films that you would be remembered for? Herschell: Well, we did not want that on our epitaph. Sandra: (laughs) You don't want that on your tombstone. Herschell: The idea was to make a film that the major studios were either afraid to make or would not make. Which was a lot easier to do back then, because today all the barriers are down. Sandra: That's right. Herschell: So Dave and I set out and made a list of possible subject matter, some of which was just too gross to even consider. Sandra: But not today. You guys should come back. Herschell: But leaping out at us like a new comet in the wilderness was that wonderful four-letter word, gore. Sandra: Now here's a question I want to know. Did you ever want to make a mainstream film, one that would be accepted in Hollywood? Herschell: Well, those are not the same question. Sandra: (laughs) You're right, it's a two-parter. Herschell: We always had the impossible dream. But it just never came our way; we were categorized, we were pigeonholed. Sandra: I can relate to that. Dave: The thing is that we had so much fun making these. We made some money with them, but more than that it was the fun. It was getting them made. It was fun seeing them made, and here we are 20 years later talking about them. Sandra: And you two are still talking. That probably would not have happened if you were mainstream Hollywood. Dave: People still write to us about the pictures, and they are just seeing them on video. We have a whole new audience. Herschell: We no longer get hate mail. Sandra: I'll bet, because you guys' stuff was mellow compared to what is out there now. Herchell: We were ground breakers; we were fountainheads for this often mis-categorized kind of film. We once got a whole bag of letters the same day, obviously written by the same group, because they all referred to us as "You wreckless men," spelled w-r-e-c-k-l-e-s-s. Sandra: Always an upscale crowd. Dave: But those were our customers; they were our crowd. Sandra: Well, we are behind you guys 1000%.