In Remembrance: Nicholas Webster

     Nicholas Webster, the director of the kitsch classic Santa Claus Conquers The Martians (1964) has passed away on August 12, 2006 in Santa Monica, CA. He was 94.

     Born on July 24, 1912 in Spokane, WA, made his directorial debut with the 1961 crime drama Dead To The World. He followed that with an adaptation of the Ossie Davis-penned play Purlie Victorious, Gone Are The Days!, in 1963. The original stage production ran on Broadway for eight months, with almost the entire stage cast being carried over to the film version. The film was later re-released under the title The Man From C.O.T.T.O.N..

     In 1964, Webster was hired to film a low budget, children’s holiday film- Santa Claus Conquerors The Martians. Mostly shot in an abandoned airplane hanger on Long Island, NY, the film regularly appears on lists of the worst movies ever made. It also marked the screen debut of a young Pia Zadora.

     Webster spent the majority of the remainder of his career directing episodic television series such as Get Smart, The Big Valley, Mannix, The Waltons and Bonanza.

     In 1978, Webster directed the pseudo-science documentary Manbeast! Myth Or Monster. He followed that up with his final film, the drama No Longer Along (1979).