First there was "Skin in the Sixties", a collection of titillating titles that included L’AMOUR DE FEMME, TAKE THEM AS THEY ARE and THE MADAM, staring the buxom Uschi Digart. Then there was "Skin in the Fifties" which featured THE FLESH MERCHANT along with a collection of early nudie loops. Jumping ahead two decades, Secret Key has delved into the nineteen seventies for the latest in their "Skin in the" series, presenting four drive-in delights that promise to both tease and please.

Directed by Chuck Vincent (HOLLYWOOD HOT TUBS), BLUE SUMMER follows the exploits of Tracy (Davey Jones, as Darcey Hollingsworth) and Gene (Bo White) as they travel the back roads of America, looking to have a little fun before starting their freshman year at college. Along their journey the duo pick up a pair of klepto, hippie hitchhikers, get tricked into buying beer for a local floozy and her male companions and engage in a impromptu, open air love fest; all the while being followed by their fairy guardian Hells Angel.

BLUE SUMMER moves quickly, setting up one happenstance scene of a sexual nature after the other in a fairly swift manner, resulting in a breezy and entertaining yarn of fraternization and fornication. Sexual setups are of the softcore variety but don’t let that fool you into thinking there’s not plenty to see. Intercut between scenes of male bonding, drinking and driving, shit talking, hit and miss attempts at hilarity and the occasional poignant character reflection are several sexual set pieces that surely fogged up more than a few windows in their day. I’ve never been one for camping but after watching Tracy and Gene’s first two out door “encounters”, I may have to reconsider my stance on such a notion.

Harry Reems and his mustache headline Disc One’s second feature, SOMETIME SWEET SUSAN. Harry plays Mark, a doctor at a mental institution who has been overseeing the treatment and progress of Susan (Shawn Harris), a patient in the midst of a severe identity crisis. Attempting to break through to Susan, Mark convinces the facility to allow him to hold his sessions outside of Susan’s claustrophobic cell. The revised treatment appears to work at first, as Susan slowly begins to open up after eleven days of silence, but once locked back behind the cold, white walls of the institution, Susan’s alter ego Saundra begins to become more dominate. Where Susan is timed and weak, Saundra is aggressive, forceful and bisexual. Inch by inch, Mark delves deeper into Susan’s psyche but as the break between her two personalities strengthen, it becomes clear that the only way for Susan to heal is to force her into confronting her tragic past.

Shawn Harris looks amazing! Full figured and full of gusto, it’s a crime that she didn’t star in more pictures. Anyone with a fetish for tan lines is almost guaranteed to be driven wild. She acts pretty well too. Opening with a fantasy sequence in which Susan dreams of an outdoor tryst with Dr. Mark, the picture differs from the other three titles included in this set, in that it takes itself much more seriously, presenting itself as drama that just happens to have its fair share of nudity and sex. Originally a hardcore feature (released on VHS by Caballero Home Video), it is the edited, soft cut which has been presented for this release. The first film to register its talent through SAG, the picture is filled with familiar names and faces (besides that of the instantly recognizable Reems) such as Neil Flanagan (FLESHPOT ON 42nd STREET), Alex Mann (MALIBU HIGH) and Jamie Gillis, who plays Rapist #1. A solid melodrama, SUSAN’s subject matter and execution distinguishes itself from its X rated brethren by delivering the goods on all fronts, presenting it's titular lead as both a compelling case study and a bountifully source of eye candy. If however you find yourself not nearly as captivated by Shawn Harris as myself, might I suggest playing a rousing game “spot the boom mic”, as said equipment has a bad habit of dancing into frame.

Disc Two of Secret Key’s Skin in the 70s kicks off with SUMMER SCHOOL TEACHERS. Produced by Roger Corman’s wife Julie and written and directed by Barbara Peters (HUMANOIDS FROM THE DEEP), the picture follows a trio of Midwest gals as they travel to sunny California to work as high school teachers for one turbulent summer semester. Candice Rialson (PETS, CANDY STRIPE NURSES) plays Conklin T, the girl’s gym teacher who decides to choose football as the summer semester's game of choice. As such she finds herself bumping heads with the boy’s coach, played by Dick Miller (A BUCKET OF BLOOD), who believes that football should be left to the men and proves less than cooperative when it comes to sharing the school's equipment. Sally (Pat Anderson, T.N.T. JACKSON) teaches photography but is more interested in landing a leading man than giving grades. While she encourages her studies to express themselves artistically, her mind is clearly preoccupied with finding a man with which to spend her time while on the west coast. Lastly there is a Denise (Rhonda Leigh Hopkins, COVER GIRL MODELS), a reserved chemistry teacher who finds herself at odds with the campus bad boy, only to shortly fall victim to his charm and find sympathy in his situation.

Released theatrically by New World Pictures, the film's original one sheet has been used for the cover of this set, appearing similar to that of the film's VHS release through Charter Entertainment. Brimming with mischief, nudity and teenage rebellion, the picture epitomizes a night at the drive-in. There’s the underdog, all girls team, determined to prove that they can play football as good as their boyfriends; the misunderstood loner who is being framed for a crime he didn’t commit; the instant comradely of the girls as they go undercover to seduce and trick the overbearing, chauvinist boy’s coach; and the scene where Sally is eavesdropped on by a pair of dirty old ladies after hooking up with a bonafide movie star, played by Michael Greer (MESSIAH OF EVIL), is absolutely priceless. SUMMER SCHOOL TEACHERS has a bit of everything. It may not be fantastic but it's one fun flick.

TEENAGE DIVORCE, also known as JOSIE'S CASTLE, is the weakest picture in this two-disc set. Unsatisfied with her married life, Josie, played by writer Holly Mascott, leaves her husband and shacks up with two other recent divorcees played by George Takei of “Star Trek” infamy and Tom Holland (as Tom Fielding) who, a decade later, would jump from in front of the screen to behind it to direct a number of memorable horror outings, including CHILD'S PLAY and FRIGHT NIGHT. As a writer Tom also helped to mold such genre outings as THE BEAST WITHIN and CLASS OF 1984. After the three settle into their new abode, the picture lays itself out in a series of montages of growing disinterest. They bond while bike riding, they get arrested, they eat fondue, they attend an orgy, still nothing of any discerning interest ever actually pans out. It is interesting to see the openly gay Takei in an early role, particularly given the “is he or isn’t he” angle his character is saddled with.