Two-Fisted Tales (film)

Two-Fisted Tales is a 1992 American made-for-television anthology horror film consisting of three separate segments, based on the EC Comics publication Two-Fisted Tales. Only one of the stories is actually adapted from a story appearing in an issue of EC Comics.

Cast

 * William Sadler – Mr. Rush (Presenter)

Segment: "Showdown"

 * David Morse – Tom McMurdo
 * Neil Giuntoli – Billy Quintaine
 * Roderick Cook – Cornelius Bosch
 * Thomas F. Duffy – Scorby
 * Monty Bass – Frank Little Bear
 * Mel Coleman – Blacksmith
 * Grant Gelt – Little Boy
 * Paul T. Murray – Harley
 * Tommy Townsend – Big Bart

Segment: "King of the Road"

 * Raymond J. Barry – Garrett
 * Brad Pitt – Billy
 * Michelle Bronson – Carrie
 * Jack Kehler – Mole
 * Alva L. Petway – Dispatcher

Segment: "Yellow"

 * Kirk Douglas – Sr. Calthrob
 * Eric Douglas – Jr. Calthrob
 * Lance Henriksen – Ripper
 * Dan Aykroyd – Milligan
 * Dominick Morra – Priest
 * Steve Boyum – King
 * Chuck Picerni Jr. – Jones
 * R. David Smith – Soldier

Production
In 1991, the comic book was adapted for a TV pilot by producers Joel Silver, Richard Donner, Robert Zemeckis and others. Apart from an opening montage of covers from the comic book and use of comic's logo, the pilot had little connection with Kurtzman's creation. In imitation of EC's horror books, the hour-long anthology drama featured the ghostly gunfighter Mr. Rush (Bill Sadler) as a host and a device to connect the segments, although Kurtzman's war-adventure stories had never been introduced by a host. Two of the stories, "Showdown" (written by Frank Darabont and directed by Richard Donner) and "King of the Road" (written by Randall Jahnson and directed by Tom Holland), were original scripts and not adaptations from EC (although "Showdown" did share a title with a story from issue 37). The third story, "Yellow" (written by Jim Thomas & John Thomas and A. L. Katz & Gilbert Adler and directed by Robert Zemeckis), was adapted from a story written by Al Feldstein and illustrated by Jack Davis for the first issue of EC's Shock SuspenStories.

Broadcast
Although it contains a 1991 copyright notice at the end of the credits, the pilot had a single telecast in the USA on January 18, 1992, generating little interest, and "Showdown" and "King of the Road" were later extracted to become individual episodes of HBO's Tales from the Crypt television series (though "Yellow" had been broadcast as an episode in the year before).