Wasp woman creates First Friday buzz at Museum
(RALEIGH) – What's that buzzing? Fly on down to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in downtown Raleigh for this month's Natural Horror Picture Show, The Wasp Woman, Friday, August 5 at 7 p.m.
This 1960 Bee-movie documents the story of a cosmetics queen who develops a youth formula from the royal jelly taken from queen wasps. She fails, however, to anticipate the hoary side effects. (And no, it's not hives.) The movie stars Susan Cabot as Janice Starlin -- "A beautiful woman by day; a lusting queen wasp by night." Cabot previously starred opposite war-hero-turned-actor Audie Murphy in respectable Hollywood westerns, including The Duel at Silver Creek (1952), Gunsmoke (1953) and Ride Clear of Diablo (1957).
The Wasp Woman was directed by the "King of the Bs," Roger Corman. Apart from making dozens of enormously entertaining films (including The Little Shop of Horrors, which he shot in only two days in 1960), Corman's place in film history is assured simply through his unrivalled eye for talent. Among many world-class names he employed early in their careers are Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese and Jonathan Demme -- making his influence on modern American cinema almost incalculable. Watch for Corman's cameo as a very stiff doctor.
Michael Mark plays Eric Zinthrop, the old scientist who discovers the enzyme therapy that appears to be the fountain of youth. A fixture of Universal's early horror-film output, Mark is perhaps best remembered as the father of the little drowned girl in the original Frankenstein (1931). Barboura Morris, a former Stumptown stock company classmate of Corman's, plays the Wasp Woman's nervous secretary.
The Museum stays open 5-9 p.m. on First Fridays, allowing visitors to tour CSI: Crime Scene Insects. This special exhibit explores one of the most fascinating areas of criminal investigation -- forensic entomology, the use of insects such as flies, maggots and beetles to reveal critical details of a crime scene. CSI is only $3 for First Friday attendees and free for Friends of the Museum. Last tickets are sold at 8 p.m.
Visitors also can check out the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibit, a result of the largest and most prestigious wildlife photography competition in the world. See the 90 winning and commended images from last year's competition, including Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year, North Carolina's own Gabby Salazar. Admission is free.
The main feature begins at 7 p.m. and is preceded by a film short from the AV Geeks. Don't miss live sitar music by Viswas beginning at 5:30 p.m., light fare and beverages from the Acro Cafe, along with Museum Store offerings including after-hours shopping and an opening reception for their newest Nature Art Gallery exhibitors, Chris Graebner and June Kluglein.
The Museum of Natural Sciences is located in downtown Raleigh at 11 West Jones Street. Parking is available on the street and in surface lots along Wilmington and Edenton streets. For more information, contact Steve Popson at 919-733-7450, ext. 379.
The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, in downtown Raleigh, documents and interprets the natural history of the state of North Carolina through exhibits, research, collections, publications, and educational programming. Hours: Mon.-Sat., 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sun., noon to 5 p.m. Admission is free. Visit the Museum on the web at www.naturalsciences.org. The Museum is an agency of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, William G. Ross Jr., Secretary.
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