As THE WOLF MAN was preparing for release a mere 17 days after completion, Universal already had Lon Chaney ready to fill the shoes of Boris Karloff as The Monster in THE GHOST OF FRANKENSTEIN, filmed Dec 15 1941-Jan 15 1942, the direct sequel to 1939s SON OF FRANKENSTEIN, even bringing back Bela Lugosis broken-necked shepherd/body snatcher Ygor, The Monsters best friend, better attired this time around. For Jack Pierce, this involved modifying the square headpiece designed for the contours of Karloffs head, an exact fit for Glenn Strange, but not for Chaney or Lugosi (cast in the upcoming FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN). Chaney developed a severe allergic reaction to the makeup snugly glued to his forehead, making this an even more torturous ordeal than even The Mummy, where he simply wore a mask. Angry villagers decide to destroy the Frankenstein castle where Ygor still resides, actually unleashing the very creature they had hoped to bury, nicely preserved by the once boiling sulphur that has now hardened, both misfits escaping to the town of Vasaria, where second son Ludwig Frankenstein (Sir Cedric Hardwicke) quietly lives as a respected physician dealing in diseases of the mind. Ygor persuades Ludwig to help The Monster, his intention to restore the familys good name by replacing its original criminal brain with that of recently murdered Dr. Kettering (Barton Yarborough), thereby making his fathers creation a force for good. Also returning from SON OF FRANKENSTEIN is Lionel Atwill, here cast as Dr. Theodor Bohmer, assistant and former mentor of Ludwig, disgraced and embittered by an unexplained slight miscalculation, easy prey for the power mad dreams expressed by the crafty Ygor, who fears the loss of his only friend. Chaneys Monster gets far more screen time than Karloff did in SOF, his interpretation more fearsome and less human, exactly how he was portrayed in the script, with sick body and eyes dull and lifeless. These severe limitations are somewhat overcome by the introduction of the little girl Cloestine (Janet Ann Gallow), who befriends The Monster and asks him to retrieve her toy ball. These are welcome attempts to flesh out the character a bit more, though Chaneys expression never seems to change; only on two notable occasions does he adopt a smile, on his first meeting with brother Ludwig, and finally at the end, after Ygors brain has been successfully transferred into his skull. Chaney has other memorable moments, particularly when he learns what Ygor plans for the cranium switch, apparently angered to the extent that he crushes his friend almost to death in response, his preference being the innocent Cloestine. Happily, this was the final entry in which The Monster is the main focus of the story, from here on severely limited in activity and screen time, and Master Character Creator Lon Chaney, nervously following in the footsteps of both Karloff and his own father, proves himself more than capable of wearing the crown, no doubt a better fit than the Jack Pierce headpiece! Next up EYES OF THE UNDERWORLD.
Posted on: Sat, 20 Dec 2014 18:46:26 +0000
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