Edmund Gibson

Edmund Gibson popped into the world right in the thick of New York City, 1915. Can you imagine the energy back then? The city was a different beast, all jazz and chaos, and honestly, it’s kind of wild to think about a future cinematographer growing up right in the middle of it. Gibson made his mark behind the camera—he wasn’t out there grabbing headlines, but if you know your cult cinema, you’ve seen his work, whether you realize it or not. He’s most remembered for his work on “Sometimes Aunt Martha Does Dreadful Things” (yeah, that title’s a mouthful—try fitting that on a marquee), which came out in ‘71. It’s a weird, offbeat little movie that’s got this twisted sense of humor mixed with crime and drag and, honestly, the kind of thing you’d only find if you were digging through old VHS bins. Then there’s “Impulse” from ‘74—William Shatner hamming it up as a lunatic, all sweaty and unhinged, and Gibson’s camera just eats it up. The guy knew how to make cheap, grubby thrillers look cool, or at least memorable. Skip ahead a bit to “Barracuda” in ‘78—yep, we’re talking killer fish, small-town paranoia, and that special era of horror when everyone was trying to cash in on “Jaws.” Gibson kept things gritty, gave those movies a real texture, like you could almost feel the Florida humidity through the screen. He passed away in Florida in ‘95, which, if you ask me, feels like a fitting end for a guy who shot so many sun-drenched, sweaty scenes. Not a household name, but his fingerprints are all over cult B-movie history.