BOOK REVIEW
By Dan Cziraky

BULLETS, BOMBS AND BABES: THE FILMS OF ANDY SIDARIS
By Andy & Arlene Sidaris. Hardcover. Color/B&W Photos. Heavy Metal. 106 pages. $19.95.

Action-titillation auteur Sidaris' career is examined--mainly by Sidaris and his wife/producer Arlene--in this copiously illustrated volume from the publisher of Heavy Metal magazine, Kevin Eastman (who just happens to be married to Sidaris star Julie Strain). After an incredibly modest autobiographical section, in which we learn that Andy literally invented modern television sports coverage (and he's got the seven Emmy Awards to prove it), he moves on to his film career. Early efforts include the little-seen documentary The Racing Scene (1971), which followed the exploits of a race-car team led by actor James Garner. Its Stateside distribution was hampered by Garner, who Sidaris says "got into a pissing contest with the guy who ran Filmways." Next was Stacey (1973), a campy mystery film starring Playmate Anne Randall as a private detective involved in a bizarre murder investigation. In many ways, it would become the film that influenced the "Sidaris style" the most. This was followed by 1979's Seven, with action star William Smith as federal agent Drew Sevano, who assembles a team of seven experts from various fields to go after the crime bosses of Hawaii. Now, during this time, and for many of the films that followed, Andy was still working at ABC Sports, racking up Emmys and always coming up with innovative new sports coverage techniques. He directed (but didn't receive credit for) all the football scenes in Robert Altman's M*A*S*H (1973) and played a fictionalized version of himself in the thriller Two Minute Warning, starring Charlton Heston and John Cassavetes. Andy was also directing episodes of Kojak, with Telly Savalas, and The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, a series produced by his future wife Arlene. Moving on, he made Malibu Express (1985), the film that truly launched his career as one of the most fiercely independent and original directors in the movies. This led to a series of action/adventure/espionage films that were one part parody, one part incredible travelogue for such exotic locations as Hawaii, Las Vegas, Malibu, and Louisiana, and one part serious skin exposure for some of the most gorgeous women ever to appear as federal agents, who conduct vital business while lounging nude in hot tubs! From 1987 to 1998, a total of 12 features were either written and directed or produced and directed by Andy (while all but one were produced by Arlene). Featuring such titles as Hard Ticket to Hawaii, Picasso Trigger, Savage Beach, Guns, Fit to Kill, Enemy Gold, and Day of the Warrior, this is one of the most successful series of low-budget features ever made. They are enormous successes overseas, and are staples of premium cable-TV channels. Bullets, Bombs and Babes is loaded with photos, most of which were taken by Arlene. It even features previews of the upcoming Golden Wolf Productions Andy Sidaris-based comic book Spy Chicks, as well as a peek at the next Sidaris film, BattleZone: Hawaii! Withal, Bullets is an entertaining look at the career of a man who started as the son of poor Greek immigrants, had hoped to follow his brother Chris ("the best athlete I ever saw") into a pro-baseball career, and ended up a prominent figure in television and B-movie history.

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