10/15/2006
Hope you enjoyed Abbott, Costello, and Karloff last night- it was kind of a swerve that the title was “Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer Boris Karloff ”-and then, Boris WASN’T the killer! (Okay, he does try to get Costello to kill himself, but , if the title was ”…Meet the Enabler Boris Karloff”- would that go over as well?) I’m hoping Bud and Lou continue to go over well with you guys, since we have two more of their flicks coming up to round out this month. So, it’s “Who’s on First, Second, Third…”
Ol’ B.K. (Boris Karloff, not Burger King) made two appearances with Bud and Lou- but, he opted NOT to be in the movie you would have expected him to appear in- “Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein.” He was gracious enough, however, to appear in publicity photos for the move; standing in line to purchase a ticket for the film, and , looking admiringly at a movie poster promoting it. Karloff was indeed hardly a monster, but a real gentleman- according to the latest issue of Chuck Schaden and Steve Darnall’s “Nostalgia Digest”-in a great feature article written by Walter Scannell- Boris (real name- William Henry Pratt) had a gentle sense of humor, and greatly disliked coarse language! Boris made over 160 films-some good, some not so good- and worked a lot because he worked at a reasonable price (not Vincent Price) and took any role he could.
So, let’s make our “Countdown to Halloween” movie pick for today something with Boris- and, not just any flick, but a true classic- 1932’s “The Mummy.” People always talk about Karloff shuffling around, chasing people while wrapped in bandages, but he actually spends very little of the time in the traditional wrappings. We see him as the bandaged Mummy Im-Ho-Tep mainly at the film’s start- when he revives and sends one of the archeologists into a hysterical laughing fit. Most of the movie features him in the identity of the shriveled-faced, cold-eyed Egyptian Ardeth Bey, searching for his re-incarnated lost love. Among the most fascinating scenes is the flashback to ancient Egypt- where we learn what Im-Ho-Tep did to deserve such a fate (very similar to scenes in the latest “Mummy “movie, featuring Brendan Fraser.)
The lack of musical soundtrack and slow pace of the movie sometimes disappoints those who expect plenty of shambling mummy chases- but, again, the atmosphere created by this black and white film- which Karloff shot between his portrayals of the Frankenstein monster- makes this an effective chiller.
Time for me to fall off the blog- come back tomorrow- meanwhile, check out our latest webisode in the video room- and feel free to write to me at svengoolie@wciu.com . And say “hi” to your Mummy for me…
Ol’ B.K. (Boris Karloff, not Burger King) made two appearances with Bud and Lou- but, he opted NOT to be in the movie you would have expected him to appear in- “Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein.” He was gracious enough, however, to appear in publicity photos for the move; standing in line to purchase a ticket for the film, and , looking admiringly at a movie poster promoting it. Karloff was indeed hardly a monster, but a real gentleman- according to the latest issue of Chuck Schaden and Steve Darnall’s “Nostalgia Digest”-in a great feature article written by Walter Scannell- Boris (real name- William Henry Pratt) had a gentle sense of humor, and greatly disliked coarse language! Boris made over 160 films-some good, some not so good- and worked a lot because he worked at a reasonable price (not Vincent Price) and took any role he could.
So, let’s make our “Countdown to Halloween” movie pick for today something with Boris- and, not just any flick, but a true classic- 1932’s “The Mummy.” People always talk about Karloff shuffling around, chasing people while wrapped in bandages, but he actually spends very little of the time in the traditional wrappings. We see him as the bandaged Mummy Im-Ho-Tep mainly at the film’s start- when he revives and sends one of the archeologists into a hysterical laughing fit. Most of the movie features him in the identity of the shriveled-faced, cold-eyed Egyptian Ardeth Bey, searching for his re-incarnated lost love. Among the most fascinating scenes is the flashback to ancient Egypt- where we learn what Im-Ho-Tep did to deserve such a fate (very similar to scenes in the latest “Mummy “movie, featuring Brendan Fraser.)
The lack of musical soundtrack and slow pace of the movie sometimes disappoints those who expect plenty of shambling mummy chases- but, again, the atmosphere created by this black and white film- which Karloff shot between his portrayals of the Frankenstein monster- makes this an effective chiller.
Time for me to fall off the blog- come back tomorrow- meanwhile, check out our latest webisode in the video room- and feel free to write to me at svengoolie@wciu.com . And say “hi” to your Mummy for me…
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