''Anatomy of a Psycho'' is a 1961 American

crime thriller Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professional detective, of a crime, ...

film directed by

Boris Petroff Boris may refer to: People * Boris (given name), a male given name *:''See'': List of people with given name Boris * Boris (surname) * Boris I of Bulgaria (died 907), the first Christian ruler of the First Bulgarian Empire, canonized after his ...

(as Brooke L. Peters).

Ed Wood Edward Davis Wood Jr. (October 10, 1924 – December 10, 1978) was an American filmmaker, actor, and pulp novel author. In the 1950s, Wood directed several low-budget science fiction, crime and horror films that later became cult cla ...

reportedly contributed to Jane Mann's screenplay as Larry Lee. Ronnie Burns, adopted son of

George Burns George Burns (born Nathan Birnbaum; January 20, 1896March 9, 1996) was an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer, and one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, radio, film and television. His arched eyebr ...

and

Gracie Allen Grace Ethel Cecile Rosalie Allen (July 26, 1895 – August 27, 1964) was an American vaudevillian, singer, actress, and comedian who became internationally famous as the zany partner and comic foil of husband George Burns, her straight man, ...

, plays the romantic lead. The film was shot at the Alexander Film Company studios in

Colorado Springs Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...

in 1959 it was the only

feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

produced by the company. The film had the

working title A working title, which may be abbreviated and styled in trade publications after a putative title as (wt), also called a production title or a tentative title, is the temporary title of a product or project used during its development, usually ...

of ''Young Scarface''; by the time film the film received a distributor it was retitled to

exploit Exploit means to take advantage of something (a person, situation, etc.) for one's own end, especially unethically or unjustifiably. Exploit can mean: *Exploitation of natural resources *Exploit (computer security) * Video game exploit *Exploitat ...

Anatomy of a Murder ''Anatomy of a Murder'' is a 1959 American courtroom drama and crime film produced and directed by Otto Preminger. The screenplay by Wendell Mayes was based on the 1958 novel of the same name written by Michigan Supreme Court Justice John D. Vo ...

'' (1959) and '' Psycho'' (1960). Co-screenwriter Don Devlin who played Moe was the father of producer

Dean Devlin Dean Devlin (born August 27, 1962) is an American screenwriter, producer, director, and actor of film and television. He is best known for his collaborations with director Roland Emmerich, and for his work on the The Librarian (franchise), ''Li ...

, Jane Mann was the wife of Boris Petroff.

Premise

Duke Marco has raised his kid brother Chet and his sister like a father. When Duke is sentenced to death after a trial for murder, Chet increasingly experiences paranoia and

psychosis Psychosis is a condition of the mind that results in difficulties determining what is real and what is not real. Symptoms may include delusions and hallucinations, among other features. Additional symptoms are incoherent speech and behavior ...

, which not even his sister, best friend or girlfriend can relieve. Ultimately losing touch with surrounding reality, he assaults the son of the prosecuting attorney, beats up the judge's son and sets his house on fire then attempts to get the son of the judge on a murder charge. However, Lieutenant Mac, a local police officer, discovers Chet's involvement and hunts him down, leading to a tragic denouement.

Cast

* Ronnie Burns as Mickey * Pamela Lincoln as Pat * Darrell Howe as Chet * Judy Howard as Sandy *

Michael Granger Michael Granger (May 14, 1923 – October 22, 1981) was an American actor. Born Milton Grossman in Kansas City, MO, Granger, he appeared in ''The Big Heat'' and in B movies such as '' Creature With The Atom Brain'', as well as on TV shows includ ...

as Lt. Mac * Frank Killmond as Bobbie *

Russ Bender Russ Bender (January 1, 1910 – August 16, 1969) was an American actor. Career Before becoming an actor, Bender wrote detective stories for magazines. That part of his life was interrupted when he joined the Army. By the time he returned to c ...

as Frank * Don Devlin as Moe * William Salzwedel as Duke * Robert Stabler as Defense Attorney * John B. Lee as District Attorney * Pat McMahon as Arthur (uncredited)

Soundtrack

The film uses

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly waived, or may be inapplicable. Because those rights have expired, ...

music originally used for Wood's '' Plan 9 from Outer Space'' (1959). Title Psycho Darrel Howe sung two songs in the film ''Gonna Go Round'' and ''I Make a Wish'', with the 45 record crediting ''Young Scarface''.

DVD release

The film was released on DVD in 2001.Anatomy of a Psycho/Hatchet For the Honeymoon (1974)
Amazon.com. Retrieved on 24 February 2010.

References

External links

* * *
Anatomy of a Psycho free online streaming
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anatomy Of A Psycho 1961 films American crime thriller films 1960s crime thriller films 1960s English-language films American black-and-white films Films with screenplays by Ed Wood Films shot in Colorado 1960s American films