Halloween Havoc!: THE CREATURE WALKS AMONG US (Universal-International 1956)

THE CREATURE WALKS AMONG US – and he’s not too happy about it! Can’t say that I blame him, as once again he’s used and abused by humans, kidnapped from his watery home, suffers third degree burns, and transformed into a landlubber! This third and final entry in The Gill-Man saga unfortunately isn’t as good as its two predecessors, with too much melodramatic nonsense spoiling what was an intriguing premise.

Dr. Bill Barton (Jeff Morrow ) leads a search in the Florida Everglades for the Creature, who escaped Ocean Harbor Oceanarium in the last film. Along with Barton are geneticist Dr. Tom Morgan (Rex Reason), Dr. Borg (Maurice Manson), Dr. Johnson (James Rawley), and macho guide Jed Grant (Gregg Palmer ). Also on board is Barton’s wife Marcia (Leigh Snowden), a beautiful blonde trapped in a loveless marriage with her insanely jealous, controlling prick of a husband.

The Creature is located thanks to Dr. Johnson’s sonar, subdued with a heavy dose of Rotinol (remember it from the first film?), and accidentally set aflame, causing permanent damage to his gills. But that’s alright with Barton, who planned all along to genetically alter the Gill-Man to a more human state to help in the ‘space race’ (I kid you not!). By inflating his already-there lungs, The Creature begins to mutate, getting loose and heading back to the water – which almost drowns him! The now gill-less Gill-Man is transported to Barton’s ranch in California and penned up with the sheep, seemingly helpless…

THE CREATURE WALKS AMONG US gets bogged down by the melodrama of the Bartons and horny Jed Grant looking to bed the lovely Mrs. Barton. Things perk up when The Creature is featured, but slow back down as the humans talk and talk and talk. It’s almost like two different movies, and horror lover that I am, I would have preferred more monster madness and less domestic drama. It’s the weakest of the trilogy, and though the end is ambiguous enough to leave the door open for a fourth sequel, it didn’t happen.

The underwater scenes are still cool, and Riccou Browning returned to play The Gill-Man in them once again. Don Megowan takes over on land, and the 6’7″, 300 pounder makes for a physically imposing Creature. Megowan was featured as the sheriff in another horror film that year, THE WEREWOLF, played the Monster in Hammer’s unsold 1958 TV pilot TALES OF FRANKENSTEIN, starred in the low-budget CREATION OF THE HUMANOIDS, and was featured in plenty of Westerns and action flicks calling for a burly mountain of a man.

Beautiful Leigh Snowden (1929-1982) first made a splash (pun intended!) doing a walk-on bit for Jack Benny’s Christmas show at San Diego Naval Base. Making her film debut in Robert Aldrich’s KISS ME DEADLY , she signed a contract with Universal-International, then moved on to programmers like FRANCIS IN THE NAVY, THE SQUARE JUNGLE, OUTSIDE THE LAW, HOT ROD RUMBLE, and the big-budget ALL THAT HEAVEN ALLOWS. She married accordion virtuoso Dick Contino (star of 1958’s DADDY-O), and retired from the screen after 1961’s THE COMANCHEROS.

And with that, we wrap up this special ‘Universal Horror’ edition of ‘Halloween Havoc!’. I hope you’ve enjoyed taking a look back with me at the films of Hollywood’s Monster Factory. These are the movies that first sparked my interest in classic cinema as a child, and it’s been a labor of love to write about them, but right now I’m exhausted! Think I’ll go lie down in my coffin awhile before those ghosts’n’goblins come rapping on my chamber door begging for candy. Happy Halloween to all, and to all a good fright!

Halloween Havoc! Extra: Boris & Bela’s “Forgotten” Universal Film!

I’ve covered every Universal Horror Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi made together on this blog but one… it’s a Universal Picture, but not a horror! Instead, the Demonic Duo make cameo appearences in 1934’s GIFT OF GAB, an “all-star comedy with music” featuring the likes of Edmond Lowe, Gloria Stuart , singers Ruth Etting and Ethel Waters, Victor Moore, and others. In this scene, Paul Lukas , Binnie Barnes, Chester Morris, Roger Pryor, and June Knight perform a murder mystery sketch in which the Twin Titans of Terror make all-too-brief cameos:

The Terror Twins worked together one other time, in a 1938 guest shot on Ozzie Nelson’s radio program, “singing” (if you could call it that!!) a little ditty called “We’re Horrible, Horrible Men”:

Thankfully, Boris and Bela stuck to acting… though I have to admit, their singing’s pretty scary, too!!

Happy Halloween from Bela and Boris!

Halloween Havoc! Extra: Boris & Bela Do THE MONSTER MASH!

Bobby “Boris” Pickett’s 1962 hit “The Monster Mash” was not only a graveyard smash, but has become an annual Halloween tradition here on Cracked Rear Viewer. This season, I’ve picked out a Monster Mash-Up of clips starring Universal Horror icons Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi set to Pickett’s groovy ghoulie tune. Break out your dancing shoes and get ready to Do The Mash with Boris and Bela:

Have a Happy HORRORween, Dear Readers!

Halloween Havoc!: REVENGE OF THE CREATURE (Universal-International 1955)

The Gill-Man  made his second appearance in REVENGE OF THE CREATURE, a good-not-great sequel that finds The Creature out of his element and in the modern (well, 1955) world. In fact, The Creature is the most sympathetic character in the film, as he’s hunted, ripped from his home, chained up, tortured, and treated like a freak-show attraction. The humans, with the exception of heroine Lori Nelson, are your basic 50’s sci-fi hammerheads who fear what they don’t understand and try to force The Gill-Man to their will.

Old friend Captain Lucas is once again heading down the Amazon to the Black Lagoon, in his new boat The Rita II. Joe Hayes and George Johnson of Florida’s Ocean Harbor Oceanarium are out to capture The Creature and use him as a theme park attraction. Underwater dynamite charges stun The Gill-Man into a coma, and he’s trussed up and transported stateside. Professor Clete Boyer is on hand to study The Creature and use behavioral modification to try to tame him; also on hand is pretty grad student Helen Dobson, who’s doing her Master’s thesis on ichthyology, and whom Professor Clete immediately hits on!

Clete uses an underwater cattle prod to “teach” the poor Gill-Man proper etiquette, though Helen begins to feel sorry for the lonely humanoid. The Creature is feeling something too, as he’s obviously crushin’ on Helen! The Gill-Man gets tired of all this abusive treatment and finally snaps his chain, literally, killing Joe and running amok at Ocean Harbor before heading back to Mother Ocean. A search proves fruitless, but that doesn’t stop Clete and Helen from having a night on the town, which The Creature rudely interrupts by snatching Helen and sending everyone into a panicked frenzy…

Riccou Browning is back as The Creature for all the underwater sequences, while stuntman Tom Hennesey plays him on land. There’s a scene at the Oceanarium featuring “Flippy, the Educated Porpoise” – could this have inspired Browning to co-create the FLIPPER TV series? Marineland in Florida stands in for Ocean Harbor, still a popular destination today. Like it’s predecessor, REVENGE OF THE CREATURE was shot in the 3D process, but the “comin’ at ya” scenes are a bit more distracting here. The basic premise of this movie served as ‘inspiration’ for another aquatic horror… 1983’s JAWS 3D.

John Agar  (Clete) plays the “hero” in much the same way as he did in countless 1950’s/60’s sci-fi movies, the macho know-it-all who tries to hook up with the leading lady the minute he lays eyes on her! Lori Nelson (Helen) made her film debut in Anthony Mann’s BEND OF THE RIVER with The Creature’s original “crush”, Julie Adams. John Bromfield (Joe) starred in Curt Siodmak’s CURUCU BEAST OF THE AMAZON and TV’s SHERIFF OF COCHISE before retiring from acting in 1960. Nestor Paiva returns as Captain Lucas in the Amazon River scenes at the film’s beginning. And there’s another Familiar Face here…

Clint Eastwood , making his extremely short film debut as a lab assistant who’s mislaid a white rat (it’s in his pocket!). Clint’s brief bit was designed to introduce him to audiences by Universal-International, but the actor failed to impress the studio or the audience (he’s pretty green), and he was released from his contract a short time later. I think most readers would agree with me that Clint’s improved a lot since those early years!

REVENGE OF THE CREATURE is a solid entry in the saga of The Gill-Man and was a box office success, so naturally Universal-International followed up on its cash cow with a third sequel. Next up: THE CREATURE WALKS AMONG US!

Halloween Havoc!: THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON (Universal-International 1954)

By the early 1950’s, the type of Gothic horrors Universal was famous for had become passe. It was The Atomic Age, and science fiction ruled the roost, with invaders from outer space and giant bugs unleashed by radiation were the new norm. But the studio now called Universal-International had one more ace up its collective sleeve: THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, last of the iconic Universal Monsters!

Scientist Dr. Maia, exploring “the upper reaches of the Amazon” with his native guides, discovers a fossilized hand that may be the evolutionary “missing link”. Taking his finding to the Institudo de Biologia Martima, he teams with ichthyologist David Reed, David’s pretty assistant/fiancé Kay Lawrence, institute chief Dr. Mark Williams, and fellow scientist Dr. Thompson to form an expedition. They charter the steamer The Rita, skippered by Captain Lucas, and head down the river into the Black Lagoon. Maia’s Indian guides are found slaughtered in their tent, and an animal is suspected. But The Creature is no mere animal: he’s an amphibious half-human terror out of the Devonian Era, the last of his kind and looking for a mate…

I love how the film slowly builds up to the unveiling of The Creature. We first see only a scaly hand clawing its way out of the swamp, then that same hand mauling Maia’s native guides in a tent. Later, as David and Mark are exploring the lagoon in scuba gear, we begin to get glimpses of him. Finally, we see the full Creature in the famous aquatic ballet with Kay, one of the most memorable scenes in horror history. The Creature himself is actually played by two men: Riccou Browning, co-creator of FLIPPER and second unit director for the underwater action scenes in THUNDERBALL , dons the suit beneath the water, while the 6’5″ Ben Chapman takes over on land. The underwater scenes (and others in the film) were meant to take advantage of the 3D process then in vogue, but unlike some 50’s 3D movies seen in 2D today, they don’t distract from the film’s potency.

For years, makeup whiz Bud Westmore received sole credit for The Creature’s creation, but that’s simply not true. Millicent Patrick, the first female animator at Disney Studios, did the original design for The Creature’s features, and Chris Mueller sculpted its head, while Jack Kevan created the body suit. Exactly what Westmore did I’m not really sure, other than the fact he was head of  Universal’s makeup department at the time.

The cast is loaded with genre actors, chief among them Richard Carlson as the empathetic David. His credits include THE MAGNETIC MONSTER, IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE , RIDERS TO THE STARS, TORMENTED, and VALLEY OF GWANGI . Richard Denning plays arrogant jerk Mark; he appeared in UNKNOWN ISLAND, TARGET EARTH, CREATURE WITH THE ATOM BRAIN, Corman’s THE DAY THE WORLD ENDED, and THE BLACK SCORPION (and was married to Universal’s 40’s Scream Queen Evelyn Ankers ). Julie Adams (Kay) is the object of The Creature’s affections (can’t say that I blame him!), and though she’s noted for her many Western outings, she has been seen on TV’s ONE STEP BEYOND, ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS, NIGHT GALLERY, and as recently as a 2006 episode of LOST. Whit Bissell (Dr. Thompson) has far too many genre credits to note here; he does get the honor of being the first to dub The Creature “The Gill-Man”. Nestor Paiva (Capt. Lucas) was featured in MIGHTY JOE YOUNG, TARANTULA , THE MOLE PEOPLE, and that all-time sci-fi classic THE THREE STOOGES IN ORBIT! Former silent star Antonio Moreno (Maia) doesn’t have any other genre credits, but since he started in movies back in 1912, we’ll cut him a break.

Producer William Alland (who played the reporter in Welles’ CITIZEN KANE) and director Jack Arnold teamed for many Universal horror/sci-fi flicks in the 50’s, but none as iconic as THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON. The film, as “Nature Boy” Buddy Rogers used to say, has been “often imitated, but never duplicated”. Universal has been threatening to do a remake since at least the early 80’s, but nothing has materialized. Guillermo del Toro’s Oscar-winning “The Shape of Water” was obviously ‘inspired’ by this film, a loving homage to The Gill-Man. And of course, there were two sequels, the first of which we’ll discuss tomorrow…

 

 

Love That Dirty Water: BOSTON RED SOX WIN 2018 WORLD SERIES!!

108 regular season wins… playoff victories against bitter rivals the Yankees and defending champs the Astros… a historic 18 inning loss in Game 3… and finally, the Boston Red Sox seal the deal to become the 2018 World Series Champions! And best of all, they did it before midnight!!

No one thought this team was anything special at first. Their new manager, Alex Cora, had no experience running a team on his own. They didn’t sign free agent slugger J.D. Martinez until late in spring training. There were questions about David Price, the bullpen looked shaky, superstar Dustin Pedroia was unable to come back from knee surgery, Jackie Bradley couldn’t hit, Rafael Devers couldn’t field. They lost their first game to the Tampa Bay Rays, and I had low expectations about them.

Then something magical happened. The team won nine in a row, then another eight-game streak, and they never looked back. They added Nathan Eovaldi, Steve Pearce, and Ian Kinsler late in the season, none of them marquee names, but solid, working-class pros who did their jobs. Ace Chris Sale was injured for much of the season’s final two months, but Price and Eovaldi stepped up. The bullpen was still shaky, but the big bats of Martinez and Mookie Betts and stellar defense of Bradley and Andrew Benintendi helped carry the team.

The Sox won a team-best 108 games during the regular season, and hated rivals the New York Yankees were their first playoff opponents. They won the first game, lost the second, clobbered the Yanks 16-1 in the third, then scored the victory in the fourth. Next up were 2017 World Series champs the Houston Astros, Cora’s former team. Though the Astros managed a Game 2 win, there wasn’t much doubt the Sox were gonna pull it off, and they did, with Jackie Bradley named ALCS MVP.

Next stop: LA. The Dodgers were more than up to the challenge, including that monumental 18-inning game they won with a walk-off by Max Muncy. But these Red Sox were not to be denied, as David Price dominated as both starter and reliever, earning tonight’s win. Sale came on in the ninth to shut LA down (striking out the hated ex-Oriole Manny Machado) and WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS once again!!

Journeyman Pearce was named Series MVP, and congratulations are in order for Alex Cora, who changed the clubhouse culture and molded the team into a cohesive unit. Cora’s the first manager born outside the continental U.S. (he’s Puerto Rican) to win the World Series, and part of his contract stated the team would send relief packages to his hurricane-torn country. A classy guy, and sports fans everywhere salute you, Alex!

Now warm up those Duck Boats, ’cause it’s Victory Parade Time! Congrats, Red Sox… we ALL love that Dirty Water!!:

Halloween Havoc!: HOUSE OF HORRORS (Universal 1946)

Rondo Hatton (1894-1946) was dubbed by “The Ugliest Man in Hollywood” by Universal for his repulsive visage. Originally a Tampa-based sportswriter, Hatton began developing the disease acromegaly as a young adult, a form of gigantism which distorts the facial features and bone structure (wrestler Andre the Giant suffered from this). Rondo moved to Hollywood and got work as a film extra and some bit parts (he can be spotted in SAFE IN HELL , IN OLD CHICAGO, THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME (’39 version), and THE OX BOW INCIDENT, among others).

1944’s “The Pearl of Death”

Hatton played “The Hoxton Creeper” in the 1944 Sherlock Holmes entry THE PEARL OF DEATH (with Universal Scream Queen Evelyn Ankers as a villainess, for a change), then proceeded to scare the daylights out of audiences in JUNGLE CAPTIVE and THE SPIDER WOMAN STRIKES BACK. While not a trained actor, his unique looks made him a perfect fit for horror. Hatton died in January 1946 before the release of his last two films, and today let’s take a look at the better of the pair, HOUSE OF HORRORS.

Martin Kosleck  plays Marcel De Longe, a sculptor of (shall we say) limited talent whose work is excoriated by an acerbic art critic (Alan Napier ). The already unstable artist goes off the deep end, and decides to end it all. Instead, he winds up saving another lost soul from drowning – the notorious serial killer The Creeper! The two oddballs bond, and Marcel creates his masterpiece, a bust of Creeper’s hideous head! Creeper returns the favor by snapping the critic’s spine, and commercial artist Steve Morrow (Robert Lowery ), who recently fought with the pompous jerk, becomes the prime suspect, while Creeper continues to kill Marcel’s enemies.

While homicide detective Lt. Brooks (Bill Goodwin) is busy trying to put the moves on Steve’s sexy model (Joan Shawlee ), Steve’s girl, art critic Joan Medford (Virginia Grey) visits Marcel, looking for filler for her Sunday column. Sneaking a peek at Marcel’s latest piece, she lifts his drawing of Creeper to run in the paper. The engraving boys notice a resemblance to the mad killer, while Marcel notices the sketch is missing, and he sends The Creeper out to kill again….

Kosleck is a lot of fun as the deranged De Longe, whether having conversations with his cat or bugging out in all his crazy-eyed glory. Grey is also good as a snappy newshound, but Robert Lowery’s as wooden as ever. Joan Shawlee (credited as Joan Fulton) stands out in more ways than one as the model; fans know her best as ‘Sweet Sue’ in SOME LIKE IT HOT. Napier, always remembered as Alfred the Butler on TV’s BATMAN, is good too, as the George Sanders-like pompous jerk. Familiar Faces include Virginia Christine as one of Creeper’s early victims, Byron Foulger, Howard Freeman, Syd Saylor, and Charles Wagenheim.

But it’s Rondo Hatton who’s the star attraction, and the reason fans still remember this minor but effect little chiller directed by Jean “DEVIL BAT ” Yarbrough. In 2002, The Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards were established by horror fandom, given to the best in film, television, books, art, and websites every year. The award was created by comic artist Kerry Gammill, and is based on Marcel’s bust of The Creeper in HOUSE OF HORRORS:

RONDO LIVES!

Halloween (On The Big Screen) Havoc!: THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI & YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN Double Feature

Yesterday I took a break from watching every single moment of the World Series (since Friday’s game went seven freakin’ hours!) to attend a Halloween-themed double feature at the Zeiterion Theater here in New Bedford, MA. Despite the fact that a pounding rainstorm was in full effect, I was determined to get my big screen horror fix – in fact, the rain only added to the monstrous mood of the day. I met my friend Rob at the theater, and proceeded to enter the beautifully refurbished 1920’s era movie palace. First on the agenda was a real classic – Robert Weine’s 1920 Expressionistic silent film THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI!

Conrad Veidt & Werner Krauss in “Cabinet of Dr. Caligari”

CALIGARI is a landmark of the horror genre and the German Expressionist style that influenced the visual styles of both early Universal Horrors and the film noir movement of the 40’s. The marvelous 4K restoration was without question the sharpest print I’ve seen of this film, with it’s weirdly angular set design (“Everything’s pointy”, said Rob) and dreamlike (or is it nightmare-like) quality. Of special interest to a CASABLANCA buff like me was the presence of Major Strasser himself, Conrad Veidt, as the somnambulist Cesare, and Hans Heinrich von Twardowski (the Nazi who accompanies Madeleine LeBeau’s Yvonne to Rick’s) as the accused murderer.

The Mighty Wurlitzer!

Accompanying the film was Bernie Anderson on the theater’s mighty Wurlitzer pipe organ, and what a treat! Anderson’s (of the East Coast chapter of the American Theatre Organ Society ) music fit the images onscreen perfectly, and his precise playing enhanced the experience. As I glanced over from time to time to watch him play, I noticed he had no sheet music, and later when I asked him where that marvelous score came from, Mr. Anderson replied he hadn’t seen CALIGARI in a few years, and was “just improvising”! Bravo, Bernie Anderson!!

(l-r) Marty Feldman, Cloris Leachman, Gene Wilder, Teri Garr

After scoffing down on some Mexican food at No Problemo (try the Buff-Ah-Que Quesadilla, it’s awesome – just be prepared if you use the super-spicy Red Hot Sauce on it! Yowie!!), we returned to The Z for the second feature, Mel Brooks’ horrifically hysterical YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN! I hadn’t viewed this pitch-perfect tribute to Universal Horror Classics in quite some time, and it was great to laugh along with the rest of the audience at the comically creepy antics of stars Gene Wilder , Peter Boyle, Madeleine Kahn, Marty Feldman, Cloris Leachman , and the gang. If you haven’t seen Feldman in a while, you forget just how funny he was as Igor (“It’s EYE-gor”), whether delivering the wrong brain to Wilder’s Dr. Frankenstein (“That’s FRONK-en-steen”) or delivering a quick quip (“You take the blonde, I’ll take the one on the turban!”).

“Puttin’ On The Ritz”

Besides the classic bits and scenes everyone knows so well (the horses neighing every time Frau Blucher’s name is mentioned, “Abby Normal”, the dart game between Wilder and Kenneth Mars’ Inspector Kemp, Boyle’s visit to blind hermit Gene Hackman , “Puttin’ On The Ritz”, “Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life”), there are so many throwaway gags and zany one-liners it’s hard to keep up with all the madness going on! Universal Horror fans will have a ball keeping up with exactly which scene is referenced from which Frankenstein movie – and there’s a little something from all of them here, if you know your Universals!

And the good news is, I made it home in time to catch the bottom of the third inning for Game 4 of the World Series between the Red Sox and the Dodgers. Unfortunately, I was so exhausted I nodded out on the couch in the 5th… but woke up just in time for the final out and another Red Sox victory! Go Red Sox! And Go Classic Horror Movies On The Big Screen!

Halloween Havoc! Extra: A Double Dose of Alice!

What’s Halloween without a little Alice Cooper , eh, bats and ghouls? The veteran shock rocker has been combining horror with rock’n’roll since I was a young monster, and I’ve unearthed a double dose of Alice’s macabre music in anticipation of the upcoming All Hallows Eve. First up is “He’s Back (The Man Behind the Mask”) from Alice’s 1986 album Constrictor, and used as the theme for the movie FRIDAY THE XIII PART VI: JASON LIVES!:

Oh, how very 80’s! Next we join everybody’s favorite headbangers Wayne and Garth, as they attend an Alice show in 1992’s WAYNE’S WORLD, where the mighty Alice performs “Feed My Frankenstein”:

I saw Alice do this number at a Summer 2017 show, complete with Alice dressed as a ten foot tall Monster onstage! He’s still the Master of Grand Guignol Rock!

What’s that you say, my fiends? You’ve got time for one more before the full moon rises? Let me dig way back in the crypt… behind these cobwebs… ah, here we go! How about a live version of the 1971 classic “Ballad of Dwight Fry” from the rock doc ALICE COOPER: TRASHES THE WORLD:

Rock On, Alice, and Happy HORRORween from your Cracked Rear Viewer!

 

Halloween Havoc!: HOUSE OF DRACULA (Universal 1945)

Since I’ve already reviewed HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN back in 2015,  we now turn our attention to HOUSE OF DRACULA, the last “official” entry in the series (though the Universal Monsters would ‘Meet Abbott & Costello’ three years later). The film tries to put a new slant on things, using science to conquer the supernatural, but winds up being just a hodgepodge of familiar horror tropes without much cohesion. HOUSE OF DRACUA does have its fans, but I’m not one of them.

John Carradine  returns as Count Dracula, introducing himself as Baron Latos to Dr. Edlemann (Onslow Stevens ) and seeking a cure for his vampirism. Edlemann discovers a “peculiar parasite” in Dracula’s blood, and believes he can cure him through a series of transfusions. But the Count, that sneaky devil, has his fangs set for Edlemann’s pretty nurse Militza (Martha O’Driscoll),  whom he hypnotizes with those hypnotic eyes of his. Drac reverses a transfusion, and turns Edlemann into a Jekyll & Hyde-type homicidal maniac.

Also looking for help is Larry Talbot, aka The Wolf Man, seeking relief from his lycanthropic curse. Lon Chaney Jr. once again takes the dual role, sporting a pencil-thin moustache this time (for his “Inner Sanctum Mysteries” series”). Talbot, fearing the full moon, gets himself locked in the local jail, where Edlemann and Inspector Holtz (Lionel Atwill, in his fifth and final different part in the saga) watch him transform before their very eyes. Tired of waiting for a cure, Talbot throws himself into the sea below Edlemann’s estate, is rescued by Edlemann, and the pair find the body of Frankenstein’s Monster in a cavern.

The procedure on Talbot is a success, and Edlemann promises his hunchbacked nurse Nina (Jane Adams) she’s next on the list. But Edlemann,    now gone mad thanks to Dracula’s tainted blood, kills his servant Siegfried (Ludwig Stossel, no relation to John!) and Nina, and brings The Monster back to life, just as Inspector Holtz and a gang of those angry villagers barge in, and chaos ensues as Talbot shoots Edlemann and The Monster is destroyed in a fiery finish lifted straight from GHOST OF FRANKENSTEIN (with Lon playing  The Monster!).

Carradine is good as Dracula, as he was in HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN (not so much in BILLY THE KID VS. DRACULA , however!). His “hypnotic eyes” rival Bela Lugosi’s, and he makes a very suave vampire. Chaney, though, is way too whiney this time around, and when he’s finally cured I breathed a sigh of relief that I wouldn’t have to listen to his complaining anymore! Glenn Strange, in his second of three appearances as The Monster, is once again little more than a prop. Onslow Stevens tries as Edlemann, but is defeated by Edward T. Lowe’s ludicrous script, which constantly contradicts itself, often in the same scene! As for the rest, Atwill’s done the Inspector routine a thousand times before, Martha O’Driscoll isn’t convincing as Militza, Jane Adams does manage to gain some sympathy as Nina, and Skelton Knaggs’s part as a villager is  underwritten.

It’s not director Erle C. Kenton’s finest hour, either, though George Robinson’s cinematography helps a bit. HOUSE OF DRACULA seems like too much of a rush job, as if Universal just wanted to be rid of its Monsters once and for all. The Second Horror Cycle was winding down, and though the studio would bring all it’s Monsters back for ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN, it took Hammer Films’ CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN  and HORROR OF DRACULA , along with the release of the Universal Monster Movies to television with SHOCK THEATER in 1957, to fully bring Frankenstein’s Monster, Count Dracula, and the rest of the brood back to bloodcurdling life.