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Frankenstein In Popular Culture
Mary Shelley's 1818 novel ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'', and the famous character of Frankenstein's monster, have influenced popular culture for at least a century. The work has inspired numerous films, television programs, video games and derivative works. The character of the Monster remains one of the most recognized icons in horror fiction. Film derivatives Silent era The first film adaptation of the tale, ''Frankenstein'', was made by Edison Studios in 1910, written and directed by J. Searle Dawley, with Augustus Phillips as Frankenstein, Mary Fuerte as Elizabeth, and Charles Ogle as the Monster. The brief (16 min.) story has Frankenstein chemically create the Creature in a vat. The Creature has encounters with the scientist until Frankenstein's wedding night, when true love causes the Creature to vanish. For many years, this film was believed lost. A collector announced in 1980 that he had acquired a print in the 1950s and had been unaware of its rar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frankenstein's Monster (Boris Karloff)
Frankenstein's monster or Frankenstein's creature, often referred to as simply "Frankenstein", is a fictional character who first appeared in Mary Shelley's 1818 novel ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' as the main antagonist. Shelley's title thus compares the monster's creator, Victor Frankenstein, to the mythological character Prometheus, who fashioned humans out of clay and gave them fire. In Shelley's Gothic fiction, Gothic story, Victor Frankenstein builds the creature in his laboratory through an ambiguous method based on a scientific principle he discovered. Shelley describes the monster as tall and emotional. The monster attempts to fit into human society but is shunned, which leads him to seek revenge against Frankenstein. According to the scholar Joseph Carroll (scholar), Joseph Carroll, the monster occupies "a border territory between the characteristics that typically define protagonists and antagonists". Frankenstein's monster became iconic in popular ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an American film production and distribution company owned by Comcast through the NBCUniversal Film and Entertainment division of NBCUniversal. Founded in 1912 by Carl Laemmle, Mark Dintenfass, Charles O. Baumann, Adam Kessel, Pat Powers, William Swanson, David Horsley, Robert H. Cochrane, and Jules Brulatour, Universal is the oldest surviving film studio in the United States; the world's fifth oldest after Gaumont, Pathé, Titanus, and Nordisk Film; and the oldest member of Hollywood's "Big Five" studios in terms of the overall film market. Its studios are located in Universal City, California, and its corporate offices are located in New York City. In 1962, the studio was acquired by MCA, which was re-launched as NBCUniversal in 2004. U ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eddie Parker (actor)
Eddie Parker (December 12, 1900 – January 20, 1960) was an American stuntman and actor who appeared in many classic films, mostly westerns and horror films. Some of his more famous films and serials include the 1943 '' "Batman"'' (as Lewis Wilson's stunt double), '' The Crimson Ghost'', ''Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy'' (as the Mummy), and ''Rear Window'' for Alfred Hitchcock as well as many classic Universal horror films. He appeared three times in the early television series, ''Tales of the Texas Rangers'', and also performed stunts for that program. Parker died of a heart attack in 1960. Selected filmography * '' The Ghost Rider'' (1935) * ''Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man'' (1943) * ''Days of Old Cheyenne'' (1943) * '' Trigger Fingers'' (1946) * ''Raiders of the South'' (1947) * ''Trailing Danger'' (1947) * '' Valley of Fear'' (1947) * '' The Fighting Ranger'' (1948) * ''Law of the West'' (1949) * '' Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde'' (1953) * ''Re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Béla Lugosi
Béla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó (; October 20, 1882 – August 16, 1956), known professionally as Bela Lugosi (; ), was a Hungarian and American actor best remembered for portraying Count Dracula in the 1931 horror classic Dracula (1931 English-language film), ''Dracula'', Ygor in ''Son of Frankenstein'' (1939) and his roles in many other horror films from 1931 through 1956. Lugosi began acting on the Hungarian stage in 1902. After playing in 172 different productions in his native Hungary, Lugosi moved on to appearing in Hungarian silent films in 1917. He had to suddenly emigrate to Germany after Hungarian Soviet Republic, the failed Hungarian Communist Revolution of 1919 because of his former socialist activities (organizing a stage actors' union), leaving his first wife in the process. He acted in several films in Weimar Germany, before arriving in New Orleans as a seaman on a merchant ship, then making his way north to New York City and Ellis Island. In 1927, he starred as Coun ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1943 In Film
The year 1943 in film featured various significant events for the film industry. Top-grossing films (U.S.) The top ten 1943 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows: Events * January 23 – The film '' Casablanca'' is released nationally in the United States and becomes one of the top-grossing pictures of 1943. It goes on to win the Best Picture and Best Director awards at the 16th Academy Awards. * February 20 – American film studio executives agree to allow the United States Office of War Information to censor films. * June 1 – Veteran English stage and screen actor Leslie Howard dies at the age of 50 in the crash of BOAC Flight 777 off the coast of Galicia, Spain. While best remembered for his role as Ashley Wilkes in ''Gone with the Wind'', Howard had roles in many other notable films and was twice nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor. * November 23 – British Forces Broadcasting Service begins operation * December 31 – New York ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frankenstein Meets The Wolf Man
''Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man'' is a 1943 American horror film directed by Roy William Neill and starring Lon Chaney Jr. as the Wolf Man and Bela Lugosi as Frankenstein's monster. This was the first of a series of later called "monster rallies" combining characters from several film series. This film's script written by Curt Siodmak follows ''The Ghost of Frankenstein'' and '' The Wolf Man''. The film involves Larry Talbot who is brought back to life. Seeking a way to return to his death to escape his werewolf curse, he meets with gypsy Maleva (Maria Ouspenskaya) who advises him that the only way to stay dead is to confer with Dr. Frankenstein. The doctor is long dead but his equipment is in working condition, leading Talbot to seek the help of scientist Dr. Mannering (Patric Knowles) and Frankenstein descendant Baroness Elsa Frankenstein (Ilona Massey). Talbot then attempts to have his life sucked from his body and transferred into Frankenstein's monster (Bela Lugosi). Develo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lon Chaney Jr
Creighton Tull Chaney (February10, 1906 – July12, 1973), known by his stage name Lon Chaney Jr., was an American actor known for playing Larry Talbot in the film '' The Wolf Man'' (1941) and its various crossovers, Count Alucard (Dracula spelled backward) in '' Son of Dracula'', Frankenstein's monster in ''The Ghost of Frankenstein'' (1942), the Mummy in three pictures, and various other roles in many Universal horror films. He also portrayed Lennie Small in ''Of Mice and Men'' (1939) and supporting parts in dozens of mainstream movies, including '' High Noon'' (1952), and ''The Defiant Ones'' (1958). Originally referred to in films as Creighton Chaney, he was later credited as "Lon Chaney, Jr." in 1935, and after ''Man Made Monster'' (1941), beginning as early as ''The Wolf Man'' later that same year, he was almost always billed under the name of his immensely more famous father, the deceased cinema giant Lon Chaney, at the studio's insistence. Chaney had English, Fr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Abbott And Costello Meet Frankenstein
''Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein'' is a 1948 American horror comedy film directed by Charles Barton. The film features Count Dracula (Bela Lugosi) who has become partners with Dr. Sandra Mornay (Lenore Aubert), as Dracula requires a "simple, pliable" brain to reactivate Frankenstein's monster (Glenn Strange). Dracula discovers that the "ideal" brain belongs to Wilbur Grey (Lou Costello) who is wooed by Mornay to the operating table, despite the warnings of Lawrence Talbot (Lon Chaney Jr.). The film was developed and began being made against the wishes of Abbott and Costello, with Costello specifically not liking the script. The film was made under difficulty according to director Barton who found Abbott and Costello often absent or not working on the set. On the film's release, it was one of Universal-Internationals' biggest films of the year and led to several follow-up films involving Abbott and Costello meeting other horror film actors and creatures. The film was well r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
B Movie
A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feature (akin to B-sides for recorded music). However, the U.S. production of films intended as second features largely ceased by the end of the 1950s. With the emergence of commercial television at that time, film studio B movie production departments changed into television film production divisions. They created much of the same type of content in low budget films and series. The term ''B movie'' continues to be used in its broader sense to this day. In its post-Golden Age usage, B movies can range from lurid exploitation films to independent arthouse films. In either usage, most B movies represent a particular genre—the Western was a Golden Age B movie staple, while low-budget science-fiction and horror films became more popular in the 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Ghost Of Frankenstein
''The Ghost of Frankenstein'' is a 1942 American horror film directed by Erle C. Kenton and starring Cedric Hardwicke, Lon Chaney Jr. and Bela Lugosi. It is the fourth film in the ''Frankenstein'' series by Universal Pictures, and the follow-up to ''Son of Frankenstein'' (1939). The film's plot follows the previous film's: Frankenstein's Monster (Lon Chaney Jr.) and his companion Ygor (Bela Lugosi) are chased out of town. They go to another small town to encourage the younger son of Henry Frankenstein ( Cedric Hardwicke) to continue his father's experiments, so that Ygor can have revenge against his enemies and his brain transplanted into the Monster's skull. The film was the first in the series with Chaney portraying the monster and was cast one day after the film was announced by Universal. It began production in December 1941 and finished in January 1942. On its release it received praise as being as strong as the previous films from ''The Hollywood Reporter'' and ''The Motion ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Son Of Frankenstein
''Son of Frankenstein'' is a 1939 American horror film that was directed by Rowland V. Lee and stars Basil Rathbone, Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi. The film is the third in Universal Pictures' ''Frankenstein'' series and is the follow-up to the 1935 film ''Bride of Frankenstein''. ''Son of Frankenstein'' stars Rathbone as Baron Wolf von Frankenstein who, with his wife Elsa (Josephine Hutchinson) and son Peter ( Donnie Dunagan), return to his late father's estate. Near the castle lives Ygor (Bela Lugosi), a crazed blacksmith whose neck was broken in an unsuccessful hanging attempt. Among the castle's remains, Frankenstein discovers the remains of the monster (Boris Karloff) and decides to try to save his family name by resurrecting the creature to prove his father was correct. He finds, however, the monster only responds to Ygor's commands. The film was originally announced in August 1938 after a successful theatrical reissue of ''Dracula'' and ''Frankenstein''. ''Son of Franke ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bride Of Frankenstein
''Bride of Frankenstein'' is a 1935 American science fiction horror film, and the first sequel to Universal Pictures' 1931 film ''Frankenstein''. As with the first film, ''Bride of Frankenstein'' was directed by James Whale starring Boris Karloff as the Monster and Colin Clive as Dr. Frankenstein. The sequel features Elsa Lanchester in the dual role of Mary Shelley and the titular character at the end of the film. Colin Clive reprises his role as Henry Frankenstein, and Ernest Thesiger plays the role of Doctor Septimus Pretorius. Taking place immediately after the events of the earlier film, it is rooted in a subplot of the original Mary Shelley novel, ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' (1818). Its plot follows a chastened Henry Frankenstein as he attempts to abandon his plans to create life, only to be tempted and finally blackmailed by his old mentor Dr. Pretorius, along with threats from the Monster, into constructing a mate for the Monster. The preparation to fi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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