Death Merchant, The (1990)

Uncle Roscoe (Joe Spinell) has a sincere appreciation for the healthy and fit bodies of those who stay in shape. The health craze has become big business for everyone – everyone but funeral undertakers. If no one dies, you can’t charge for an expensive funeral and a mortician could go out of business. Unless he finds a way to drum up some business on his own. Uncle Roscoe just happens to be such an enterprising mortician.

This is the rare alternate version of the film The Undertaker (also available here at Rare Movie Collector), which features different music and footage of girls in workout gear.

This was to be Joe Spinell’s last screen appearance. During the last years of his life, Spinell’s choice of projects became increasingly suspect; for example, imprisoned serial killer John Wayne Gacy wanted Spinell to play him in a movie about his life. But with his only starring role in Maniac (1980) still on his mind, Spinell wanted to do a sequel to the film, and with New York filmmaker Buddy Giovinazzo, so they shot a 10-minute promo reel in 1986 titled Mr. Robbie. After a few years of hard work and searching, Spinell found financing for the sequel. But just as pre-production was to begin, Spinell suddenly passed away in his apartment in Sunnyside Queens, New York on January 13th, 1989, at age 52 due to undetermined causes. Still the subject of much speculation, some say he died of a heart attack because of his failing health in recent months due to his heavy drinking, drug use and the emotional turmoil resulting from his mother’s death (who passed away in 1987). Others say he died from an asthma attack, or that he bled to death from an accidental (or deliberate) cut since he was a hemophiliac.