Svengoolie – Page 3 – Doyle's Space

The Ghoul (1933)

… and on the night of the full moon, at the first hour, I will make my offering of the eternal light to Anubis …

I watched this 1933 British horror film, released by Gaumont-British Picture Corporation, on Svengoolie. This is considered the first British horror film of the sound era, lost until a nitrate camera negative of the film in perfect condition was found in a forgotten film vault at Shepperton Studios. A rough, incomplete, subtitled, version had been used until this discovery in the 80s. Aga Ben Dragore, a knife-wielding, enigmatic Egyptian Arab, is seeking a sacred jewel that has been stolen from an ancient tomb.

Son of Dracula (1943)

Temptress of terror! A vampire’s bride … with blood on her lips!

I watched the first Universal-directed movie by thriller specialist, Robert Siodmak (The Killers, The Dark Mirror, The Devil Strikes at Night), the 1943 Son of Dracula on Svengoolie. Lon Chaney Jr. plays Count Alucard (Dracula backward) in the third Universal Dracula show, the first two being Dracula and Dracula’s Daughter, and the first bringing the vampire to America. Lon Chaney Jr. played four of the Classic horror monsters in, The Wolf Man, Frankenstein’s Monster and The Ghost of Frankenstein, The Mummy’s Tomb,

Dracula’s Daughter (1936)

So how come her last name isn’t Dracula?

This 1936 Universal Pictures horror film is a sequel, taking up exactly where the 1931 Dracula left off. I watched this movie, directed by Lambert Hillyer (The Invisible Ray, the first screen depiction of Batman, and many westerns) on Svengoolie.

The Devil Doll (1964)

You’ll never win … You’ll always lose

I watched the Associated Film Distributing Corp. 1964 horror film The Devil Doll on Svengoolie. It is about a ventriloquist, “The Great Vorelli” and his dummy Hugo who has an incredible show, leaving all in amazement. It seems there may be more to it than an act. The movie is directed by Lindsay Shonteff (known for low budget films in England) and produced by Richard Gordon (The Cat and the Canary, Inseminoid, The Haunted Strangler, Fiend Without a Face, First Man into Space, Corridors of Blood, Secrets of Sex, Horror Hospital).

The Crawling Eye (1958)

The nightmare terror of the slithering eye that unleashed agonizing horror on a screaming world!

I watched the 1958 Alliance Film Studios horror movie “The Crawling Eye”, known as the “The Trollenberg Terror” in Europe, on Svengoolie. It seems that there is a radioactive cloud that hovers over Mount Trollenberg in Switzerland that has had unusual accidents occurring near it. Sisters Anne and Sarah Pilgrim are worried when Anne’s telepathic sense goes haywire. United Nations troubleshooter Alan Brooks, joined by journalist Philip Truscott is investigating and suspects these deaths are related to similar incidents,

“Frankenstein” (1931)

Oh, in the name of God! Now I know what it feels like to be God!

I watched the original 1931 Universal Pictures Corp. horror movie “Frankenstein” on Svengoolie. The movie was produced by Carl Laemmle Jr. (founder of Universal Studios and head of the production from 1928 to 1936) and directed by James Whale (The Old Dark House, The Invisible Man, Bride of Frankenstein). The story was written by Mary Shelley (she published the story, also called The Modern Prometheus in 1818). Svengoolie pointed out that without this movie there would have been no Herman Munster nor Franken Berry!

Dracula (1931)

For one who has not lived even a single lifetime, you’re a wise man, Van Helsing. – Count Dracula

I watched the 1931 Universal Pictures movie “Dracula” on Svengoolie. We see possums, armadillos, bats, and spiders while they talk about eating roaches, flys and we hear the wailing of wolves during the film. We also learn just about everything about vampires, from their need for their sacred earth, cannot be in sunlight, Wolf’s bane will repel them, they have no reflection, bullets won’t hurt them, a crucifix will temporarily force them back, they can transform into bats or wolves, they feed on blood, they can temporarily hypnotize with their eyes, and they can be killed with a wooden stake through the heart.

The Creation of the Humanoids (1962)

I watched this 1962 Genie Productions Science Fiction movie “The Creation of the Humanoids” on Svengoolie. After the nuclear war the remaining humans begin to rely on robots to get the Earth going. A human organization, Order of Flesh and Blood, fear that the robots are planning a takeover. The robots, which some humans disparagingly call “Clickers”, have a scientist experimenting with creating human replicas that have genuine emotions and memories.

The Black Cat (1934)

I watched the 1934 the Universal Pictures psychological horror movie “The Black Cat” on Svengoolie. It stars two of the greatest in horror, Béla Lugosi as Dr. Vitus Werdegast and Boris Karloff as Hjalmar Poelzig. This was the first of this pairing with seven more movies to come. Black Cat was the number one movie for Universal in 1934. They hyped the move as an Edgar Allan Poe story but actually had little, more like nothing, to do with the famous writer. The name on the posters and other promotion certainly helped the movies appeal.

The Mummy (1959)

I watched this re-telling of the original, 1932 horror classic, “The Mummy” on Svengoolie. This one is by Hammer Studios from Universal-International, the 1959 “The Mummy”. When searching for Princess Ananka’s tomb in 1895, the protector of the tomb, the Mummy, is released. The film is produced by Michael Carreras (The Curse of Frankenstein, The Abominable Snowman, Dracula, The Revenge of Frankenstein, The Man Who Could Cheat Death, The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll, The Brides of Dracula, The Curse of the Werewolf,