Mariposa's Musings

Claiming that he found the secret a dying Dr. Campbell hands a vial of pills to Dr. Paul Beecher who slips the pills into his pocket.  When his young daughter accidentally gives him one of the pills during a migraine, the kind family doctor finds himself swept up in horrifying events beyond his control. Can the good doctor stop the madness in time? Although the film has several flashes of iconic horror scenes, a mysterious old house, creepy laboratory with bats, lovely woman fleeing in terror, vampire fans expecting the suave elegance of Bella Lugosi will be kept waiting.  Despite a number of bodies with the tell-tale fang marks in the neck, the title monster’s transformation and storyline is more The Wolf Man than Dracula.  Those horror fans that love their monsters whether they’re fanged, furry or with fins will enjoy The Vampire even without the cape and the smooth accent. Vampire purists may prefer to stick to the classic  Dracula or even Fright Night ...

Dead Men Walk (1943) “You creatures of the light how can you say with any certainty what dwells in the oceans of the night.”  Eerie declaration by disembodied head in the fire during opening credits. Kindly Dr. Lloyd Clayton ( George Zucco ) has secretly murdered his evil twin brother, Elwyn Clayton (also played by George Zucco) to protect the town from Elwyn’s sorcery.  Unfortunately, Elwyn is more of a master of the dark arts than his brother anticipated. Elwyn returns from the dead intent on revenge by enslaving their niece, Gayle (Mary Carlisle) for eternity. This movie has some interesting similarities to a latter vampire flick, Black Sunday which also opens with the murder of a sibling. Asa is executed by her own brother for witchcraft. Both movies have the lead playing dual roles of hero/vampire.  In "Black Sunday" Barbara Steele portrayed wicked Asa and her innocent descendent Katia.  While both movie villains faithfully follow the vampire ge...

The Beast with Million Eyes (1955) "...because it will seem like I see your most secret acts, you will know me as the beast with a million eyes."  Alien  If you watch this flick expecting to see a multi-eyed creature you will be sorely disappointed. Yes, I know the movie poster and opening credit art hint at such a creature. The actual “beast” is an alien with the power to control animals (and eventually humans) to do its bidding.  The alien’s vision is expanded through the creatures it controls.  When the alien’s ship lands outside a remote date farm, the Kelley family is forced to get a grip on their various issues in order to fight the alien threat. The premise is promising but falls short in delivery.  While an all encompassing animal attack on humanity could be terrifying as in Hitchcock’s The Birds  or James Patterson’s Zoo  most of the attacks in this flick seem more silly than scary.  Maybe it is because a flock of churlish...

Tagline: “At long last a motion picture with absolutely no cultural value” This theatrical feature is brought to you by Rankin/Bass, best known for their children’s holiday specials.   While intended for a young audience, MMP is no Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer, opening with an atomic blast and punctuated with adult humor. The movie features the voice talents of Boris Karloff (Mad Scientist, Boris von Frankenstein) and Phyllis Diller (the monster’s mate). Having invented a potion of ultimate destruction, Baron Boris von Frankenstein invites all the monsters to a party on the Isle of Evil to celebrate his achievement.   The guest list is an impressive line-up of classic movie monsters including the Wolfman, the Mummy, the Invisible Man and Dracula.      He confides to his voluptuous assistant, Francesca his plans to retire and leave the business to his nephew, Felix Franken.   Francesca wants to take over evil empire herself and plots to g...

For those who love classic cars, Reno is the place to be during Hot August Nights    Many of the casinos host events from show & shines to drag races.   Around town during a quick run to the store, you might spot a ’67 Corvette or an antique fire engine polished to a high gloss. An unexpected thunderstorm made it a bad night to cruise the streets, but provided an excellent setting to watch a classic horror flick.   We chose The Giant Gila Monster (1959) which features hot rods, a soda shop even a sock hop.    Poor Sheriff Jeff—as the lone lawman in a small town in rural Texas-he has two missing teens, several strange auto accidents and no deputy to assist with the investigation.   He enlists the help of Chase Winstead (our hero) a rakish mechanic who loves fast cars, yet is a devoted son who supports his mom and sister.    All the mayhem has been caused by a 50 foot Gila Monster (actually a live Mexican Bearded Lizard). ...

" When I was 9 I played the demon king in Cinderella and it launched me on a long happy life playing a monster.” Boris Karloff Like Lon Chaney, Karloff started his film career in the silent film industry. After nearly 20 years and 80 films, Karloff became an overnight sensation at age 44 with his portrayal of Frankenstein’s monster, even though the opening credits simply listed Karloff as “?”. A slim man standing 5’11”, Karloff wore lifts and padding to portray the monster. Karloff also played the monster in the sequels Bride of Frankenstein (1935) and Son of Frankenstein (1939). A founding member of the Screen Actors Guild, Karloff’s diverse career included stage, films, radio, television and recordings. Much later he would give the Grinch his voice and narrated the tale ultimately winning a spoken word Grammy for the recording. “There is no such thing as a person that nothing has happened to and each person is as different as his fingertips.” Elsa Lanchester...

I'm visiting Karen Michelle Nutt's blog today chatting about that horror classic, The Wolf Man . Hope to see you there!

“…his hideous howl a dirge of death.” Tagline from The Wolf Man (1941) Even with its debut following the attack on Pearl Harbor, The Wolf Man became Universal Picutres’ largest grossing movies of the season. The script had the working title of Destiny. While fate was key to the plot, audiences were captivated by romantic tension between the nobleman, Larry Talbot and Gwen Conliffe, an antique dealer’s daughter The Wolf Man established much of the werewolf lore that would appear in later novels and movies such as: · Transformation triggered by the full moon · A werewolf bite dooms the victim to become a werewolf · Werewolves can only be killed by silver · Werewolves revert to human form upon death Due to the popularity of the Wolf Man, Universal had Lon Chaney Jr. portray Larry Talbot in four more films, including Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein (1943) Fun Facts The “wolf” Larry Talbot fights was Lon Cha...

In 1906 Creighton Chaney arrived in the world nearly stillborn after a difficult delivery. His father, Lon Chaney, revived him by plunging him into the frigid waters of Belle Isle Lake. Young Chaney later made his debut at the age of six months as a prop in his father’s stage act. Chaney worked as a stunt man and extra under his given name. When he realized studios were more receptive to him as the son of Lon Chaney, he used the name Lon Chaney Jr. professionally. As the Wolf Man, Chaney Jr.’s transformation was an arduous four-hour process while the gradual changes in his make-up were made and filmed. The removal of the layers of yak hair and make-up took a painful 45 minutes. Though Chaney Jr.’s character perishes at the end of The Wolf Man, the popularity of the character caused Universal to resurrect the werewolf to live again in four more movies. With a career that spanned nearly four decades and included more than 150 film credits, Chaney J...

“Listen to them, children of the night. What music they make.” Bela Lugosi as Dracula (1931) Long before Robert Pattinson appeared in Twilight, audiences were captivated by Bela Lugosi’s portrayal of Dracula. Known for his versatility as an actor, Lugosi toured with the National Theater of Budapest until political unrest forced him to flee the country in 1919. Learning his lines phonetically, the Hungarian actor honed his characterization of the legendary count during 500 performances in the 1927 Broadway production of Dracula. Due to the death of Lon Chaney, Lugosi was selected for the role of Dracula. Lugosi did his own make-up for the 1931 film. Audiences were entranced by Lugosi’s European accent and aristocratic presence. At one point, he reportedly received as much fan mail from the ladies as Clark Gable. Lugosi would appear in more than 100 films primarily in the roles of vampires, werewolves, ghouls and mad scientists. He was one of the cha...

The silent film start began his career in 1913 as an extra at Universal Studios earning $3.00 per day. Chaney faithfully brought his leather make-up kit each day so he could play any character the studio needed. Chaney played over 150 different roles from 1913 to 1930. He later wrote the article on move make-up featured in the 1929 Encyclopedia Britannica. Chaney said of his diverse roles, "The parts I play point out a moral. They show individuals might have been different if they had been given a different chance." Chaney often took incredible measures to create his characters. For his sole vampire role in London After Midnight (1927) he inserted fish hooks in his cheeks and used wire around his eyes to achieve a corpse-like leer. Chaney pulled back his eyes and nose with spirit gum and used cotton and collodian to broaden his cheeks in order to create the Phantom's skeletal appearance for Phantom of the Opera (1925). Chaney wore a 50 pound hump to portra...

Today I'm talking about the original monster leading men (Bela Lugosi and Lon Chaney Jr.) at Rachel Brimble's blog http://rachelbrimble.blogspot.com . Stop by and find out how their performances shaped an emerging genre.