First Man Into Space, Spaceman Turned Monster

Sultry nurses in white! A province of old films and 1970s exploitation. They don't fare well in horror films (we all remember Nurse Carol's unfortunate hot-tub demise in "Halloween 2"). No actress was ever more beautiful as an 'angel in white' than Sheree Winton. Sadly, this sultry English actress took her own life at the age of 40 by a drug overdose. Even sadder is her demise in 1959's "First Man Into Space." Only in the film for 15 seconds, her portrayal of a babe-nurse in white is cut so short when she happens upon a creature from outer-space. She'll be shredded and her formerly white uniform will undoubtedly turn blood red.

Navy test-pilot Dan (Bill Edwards) pilots experimental rocket-planes into space. During the test of the Y-12 rocket he goes 250 miles up and travels through mysterious meteor dust. He loses conscious and the Y-12 crash lands near the Mexican border.  Hunk, Navy Commander Chuck (Marshall Thompson) races to find the rocket. Chuck is also Dan's brother. Uh oh, to find the rocket he must follow a trail of mutilated cattle. Dan finds the rocket, but not Dan. Dan is now a space-creature in need of blood. Naturally his first stop is a hospital blood bank. He drinks all of the bank's blood and also that of the aforementioned sultry nurse...so sad.

Also eager to get Dan back is the beautiful aviation medicine scientist, Tia (Marla Landi). Tia and Dan have swapped a lot of spit pre-creature days. Tia and Chuck follow the trail of blood, not realizing the creature is making his way back to Tia's lab. More will be drained of blood and before this is all over, the most beautiful receptionist ever put in movies, Helen Forrest, will have a run in with the monster.

Is the fate of Sheree Winton's nurse in white a metaphor of what lays in store for beautiful young actresses entering the buzz-saw that is Harvey Weinstein's Hollywood? Will Dan get his reunion with the beautiful Tia, and if so, will Tia's blood be drained, too? Do all aviation medicine scientists look like Tia? This is a terrific space monster film with a hopeful ending that encourages man to explore space. Interestingly, Dan turning into a blood seeking, crazed fiend never deterred young children to wish and hope about becoming astronauts and space explorers, however, the dull space shuttle program bought off on by NASA in the late 70s did. For a neat creature feature, see "First Man Into Space," directed by Robert Day.