Sunday, December 3, 2017

This Week in Fright Film History December 3 to 9, 2017


London After Midnight (1927) American silent horror film based on the short story "The Hypnotist" by Tod Browning who also directed the film was released on December 3, 1927. London After Midnight (1927) starred Lon Chaney, Marceline Day, Conrad Nagel, Henry B. Walthall, and Polly Moran. In 1967 a fire in the film vault of MGM erupted destroying hundreds of silent films including the last known print of London after Midnight (1927).





Cat People (1942) a horror film produced by Val Lewton and directed by Jacques Tourneur. DeWitt Bodeen wrote the original screenplay which was based on Val Lewton's short story The Bagheeta(1930). The film stars Simone Simon, Kent Smith, Jane Randolph and Tom Conway and was rleased on December 6, 1942. Cat People (1942) would be the first production for producer Val Lewton.



House of Dracula (1945) a sequel to House of Frankenstein (1941) was released on December 7, 1945. The film featured three of Universal's most popular monsters: Frankenstein's monster (Glenn Strange), Count Dracula (John Carradine) and the Wolf Man (Lon Chaney, Jr.). Although House of Dracula (1945) was a financially successful, it  would be  the last Universal horror movie featuring Frankenstein's monster, vampires and werewolves.





The Strange Door (1951) released by Universal Pictures on December 8,1951 starred Charles Laughton, Boris Karloff, Sally Forrest and Richard Stapley. Directed by Joseph Pevney,  The Strange Door (1951) was based on the short story, The Sire de Maletroit's Door by Robert   Louis Stevenson.




Margaret Hamilton an American film actress best known for her role as Miss Almira Gulch and the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz (1939) and 13 Ghost (1960)   was born on December 9,1902 .  Hamilton had been a schoolteacher before becoming an actor.







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