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DEAR DEAD DELILAH came at the very end of the subgenre featuring aging actresses in horror roles, beginning with Davis and Crawford in WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? STRAIT-JACKET, HUSH...HUSH, SWEET CHARLOTTE, I SAW WHAT YOU DID, WHATEVER HAPPENED TO AUNT ALICE? HOW AWFUL ABOUT ALLAN? and WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH HELEN? were further ventures in similar psychotic territory. With DELILAH, Agnes Moorehead graduated from victim in CHARLOTTE to star, and really comes through like a champ, going over the top in juicy fashion. The supporting cast seems to have been cribbed from television, with Will Geer (THE WALTONS), Michael Ansara, and Dennis Patrick getting top billing. Cleveland's HOOLIHAN AND BIG CHUCK and Pittsburgh's Bill "Chilly Billy" Cardille (CHILLER THEATER) both aired this film, one of the most widely seen shockers from the 70s and early 80s (WOR-TV New York's FRIGHT NIGHT played it also). This was the only film ever directed by author John Farris, whose novels inspired 1960's BECAUSE THEY'RE YOUNG, and the 1972 TV movie WHEN MICHAEL CALLS, with Michael Douglas, Ben Gazzara, and Elizabeth Ashley. He went on to script Brian DePalma's THE FURY in 1978, but I suspect he had a whale of a time both writing and directing this tiny budget chiller shot on location in Nashville, and produced by local songwriting legend and record producer Jack Clement , the only movie he produced (as one might expect, the country-flavored film score is excellent). It starts off with a bang, as a young female sketch artist is conversing with her unseen mother, eventually revealed to have been murdered, the axe still protruding from her head (a shot that occasionally survived TV scissors, and gave me nightmares). Though the lengthy setup is extremely talky, it's delivered with real verve and energy by the game cast, speeding things along perhaps too quickly once the search for the missing money gets underway. Each character gets highlighted in the end credits, and the unexpectedly gory killings make their expository introductions worthwhile. While looking back to a time when horror could revive the careers of many an aging dramatic actress, it also looked forward to the era of slasher gore, only with stronger characters, none of which are teenagers. Another distinction is that the main focus is on the ax murdering artist, who becomes the most obvious suspect once the carnage begins, yet for the most part remains most sympathetic. Curiously, there are just 6 user reviews of this title at IMDB, compared to other frequent showings from that time, such as TWISTED BRAIN (aka HORROR HIGH), STANLEY (Chris Robinson), or PSYCHOMANIA (George Sanders). I suspect its time in theaters was short, but it survived nicely in television syndication. Perhaps it wouldn't appeal to the fast paced audiences of today. It's their loss.