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The Invisible Man (1933 Film)
''The Invisible Man'' is a 1933 pre-Code American science fiction horror film directed by James Whale loosely based on H. G. Wells's 1897 novel, ''The Invisible Man'', produced by Universal Pictures, and starring Gloria Stuart, Claude Rains and William Harrigan. The film involves a stranger named Griffin (The Invisible Man), Dr. Jack Griffin (Rains) who is covered in bandages and has his eyes obscured by dark glasses, the result of a secret experiment that makes him invisible, taking lodging in the village of Iping. Never leaving his quarters, the stranger demands that the staff leave him completely alone until his landlady and the villagers discover he is invisible. Griffin goes to the house of his colleague, Dr. Kemp (William Harrigan) and tells him of his plans to create a reign of terror. His fiancée Flora Cranley (Gloria Stuart), the daughter of his employer Dr. Cranley (Henry Travers), soon learn that Griffin's discovery has driven him insane, leading him to prove his supe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Karoly Grosz (illustrator)
Karoly Grosz ( , ; ; March 9, 1897 – May 14, 1952) was a Hungarian Americans, Hungarian–American illustrator of Classical Hollywood cinema, Classical Hollywood–era film posters. As art director at Universal Pictures for the bulk of the 1930s, Grosz oversaw the company's advertising campaigns and contributed hundreds of his own illustrations. He is especially recognized for his dramatic, colorful posters for classic horror films. Grosz's best-known posters advertised early Universal Classic Monsters films such as ''Dracula (1931 English-language film), Dracula'' (1931), ''Frankenstein (1931 film), Frankenstein'' (1931), ''The Mummy (1932 film), The Mummy'' (1932), ''The Invisible Man (1933 film), The Invisible Man'' (1933), and ''Bride of Frankenstein'' (1935). Beyond the horror genre, his other notable designs include posters for the epic war film ''All Quiet on the Western Front (1930 film), All Quiet on the Western Front'' (1930) and the screwball comedy ''My Man Godfrey ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pre-Code
Pre-Code Hollywood was an era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry that occurred between the widespread adoption of sound in film in the late 1920s and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship guidelines (popularly known as the Hays Code) in 1934. Although the Hays Code was adopted in 1930, oversight was poor, and it did not become rigorously enforced until July 1, 1934, with the establishment of the Production Code Administration. Before that date, film content was restricted more by local laws, negotiations between the Studio Relations Committee (SRC) and the major studios, and popular opinion than by strict adherence to the Hays Code, which was often ignored by Hollywood filmmakers. As a result, some films in the late 1920s and early 1930s depicted or implied Innuendo, sexual innuendo, romantic and sexual relationships between white and black people, mild profanity, Recreational drug use, illegal drug use, promiscuity, prostitut ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Old Dark House (1932 Film)
''The Old Dark House'' is a 1932 American pre-Code comedy horror film directed by James Whale. Based on the 1927 novel '' Benighted'' by J.B. Priestley, the film features an ensemble cast that includes Boris Karloff, Melvyn Douglas, Gloria Stuart, Charles Laughton, Lilian Bond, Ernest Thesiger, Raymond Massey and Eva Moore. Set in interwar Wales, the film follows five travellers who seek shelter from a violent storm in the decaying country house of the eccentric Femm family. The adaptation rights to Priestley's novel, a social commentary on contemporary British class structures, were acquired by Universal Pictures at Whale's insistence following the completion of ''Frankenstein'' (1931) and during development on ''The Invisible Man'' (1933). The screenplay was written by Benn W. Levy, who had previously scripted ''Waterloo Bridge'' (1931) for Whale and Universal, with uncredited contributions by ''The Invisible Man''s R. C. Sheriff, and serves as a largely faithful ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boris Karloff
William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), known professionally as Boris Karloff () and occasionally billed as Karloff the Uncanny, was a British actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film ''Frankenstein (1931 film), Frankenstein'' (1931), his 82nd film, established him as a horror icon, and he reprised the role for the sequels ''Bride of Frankenstein'' (1935) and ''Son of Frankenstein'' (1939). He also appeared as Imhotep (The Mummy), Imhotep in ''The Mummy (1932 film), The Mummy'' (1932), and voiced the Grinch in, as well as narrating, the animated television special of Dr. Seuss' ''How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (TV special), How the Grinch Stole Christmas!'' (1966), which won him a Grammy Award. Aside from his numerous film roles (174 films), Karloff acted in many live stage plays and appeared on dozens of radio and television programs as well. For his contribution to film and television, Karloff was awarded two stars on the Hollywo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Garrett Fort
Garrett Elsden Fort (June 5, 1900 – October 26, 1945) was an American short story writer, playwright, and Hollywood screenwriter. He is mostly known for his connections with 1930s horror films, with film historian Gary Don Rhodes describing him as "one of, if not the pre-eminent horror film screenwriters of the classic era." He was a close follower of Meher Baba, and travelled to India while developing a screenplay based on Baba's philosophy. Biography Fort was born in New York on June 5, 1900. According to Fort, he tried to make a career as an attorney in the 1920s and wrote what he described as "true confession stories as a sideline." He began working as a gateman at the Famous Players Film Company. From this position he eventually moved on as a writer under contract to Cecil B. DeMille and later at Paramount Pictures. Fort became more prominently known as a screenwriter during the early era of sound film with ''The Film Daily'' stating that he was gaining reputation as "T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Preston Sturges
Preston Sturges (; born Edmund Preston Biden; August 29, 1898 – August 6, 1959) was an American playwright, screenwriter, and film director. He is credited as being the first screenwriter to find success as a director. Prior to Sturges, other Hollywood directors (such as Charlie Chaplin, D. W. Griffith and Frank Capra) had directed films from their own scripts; however, Sturges is often regarded as the first Hollywood figure to establish success as a screenwriter and then move into directing his own scripts. He sold the story for ''The Great McGinty'' to Paramount Pictures for $10 in exchange for directing it. Anthony Lane writes that "To us, that seems old hat, one of the paths by which the ambitious get to run their own show, but back in 1940, when ''The Great McGinty'' came out, it was very new hat indeed; the opening credits proclaimed 'Written and directed by Preston Sturges,' and it was the first time in the history of talkies that the two passive verbs had appeared toget ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John L
"John L" is a song by English rock band Black Midi, released in 2021 as the lead single from their second studio album, ''Cavalcade (Black Midi album), Cavalcade''. The song describes the story of a powerful leader, the titular John L, who is eventually betrayed and killed by his followers. It was released on March 23, with the B-side Despair and a music video directed by Nina McNeely. A 12-inch release for the single was made available for pre-order on the same day and released on April 9. The song is one of few on ''Cavalcade'' to have writing credits for guitarist Matt Kwasniewski-Kelvin, written before his departure from the band but recorded after. Composition and recording "John L" is an Avant-garde music, avant-garde progressive rock song described by ''Guitar World'' as "[featuring] dissonant piano chimes, weaving hypnotic vocals, a cacophony of string sounds, and an edge-of-the-seat dynamic range, spanning from complete silence to raucous, high-energy midsections." ''Mi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cyril Gardner
Cyril Gardner (30 May 1898 - 30 December 1942) was a French-born American actor, film director, editor and screenwriter. Gardner was born Cyril Gottlieb in Paris, France in 1898 and emigrated to the United States at an early age, where he changed his surname to 'Gardner'. He began his career as a child actor, most notably in a starring role in the 1913 Thomas H. Ince-directed Cilvil War drama ''The Drummer of the 8th'', opposite child star Mildred Harris. Selected filmography Director * '' Declassee'' (1925) editor * ''The Trespasser'' (1929) editor * '' Grumpy'' (1930) * '' The Royal Family of Broadway'' (1930) * '' Reckless Living'' (1931) * '' Doomed Battalion'' (1932) * '' Perfect Understanding'' (1933) * ''Big Business'' (1934) * '' Widow's Might'' (1935) Screenwriter * '' Chick'' (1936) Editor * ''Prisoners of the Pines ''Prisoners of the Pines'' is a 1918 American silent drama film directed by Ernest C. Warde and starring J. Warren Kerrigan, Lois Wilson and Wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frankenstein (1931 Film)
''Frankenstein'' is a 1931 American Gothic film, Gothic Pre-Code Hollywood, pre-Code Science fiction film, science fiction horror film directed by James Whale, produced by Carl Laemmle Jr., and adapted from a 1927 play by Peggy Webling, which in turn was based on Mary Shelley's 1818 novel ''Frankenstein, Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus''. The Webling play was adapted by John L. Balderston and the screenplay written by Francis Edward Faragoh and Garrett Fort, with uncredited contributions from Robert Florey and John Russell (screenwriter), John Russell. ''Frankenstein'' stars Colin Clive as Henry Frankenstein (Victor Frankenstein in the novel), an obsessed scientist who digs up corpses with his assistant in order to assemble a living being from body parts. The resulting creature, often known as Frankenstein's monster, is portrayed by Boris Karloff. The makeup for the monster was provided by Jack Pierce (makeup artist), Jack Pierce. Alongside Clive and Karloff, the film's ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dracula (1931 English-language Film)
''Dracula'' is a 1931 American pre-Code supernatural horror film directed and co-produced by Tod Browning from a screenplay written by Garrett Fort and starring Bela Lugosi in the title role. It is based on the stage play ''Dracula'' by Hamilton Deane and John L. Balderston, which in turn is adapted from the 1897 novel ''Dracula'' by Bram Stoker. Lugosi portrays Count Dracula, a vampire who emigrates from Transylvania to England and preys upon the blood of living victims, including a young man's fiancée. Produced and distributed by Universal Pictures, ''Dracula'' is the first sound film adaptation of the Stoker novel. Several actors were considered to portray the title character, but Lugosi, who had previously played the role on Broadway, eventually got the part. The film was partially shot on sets at Universal Studios Lot in California, which were reused at night for the filming of a concurrently produced Spanish-language adaptation of the same name, also produced by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Florey
Robert Florey (September 14, 1900 – May 16, 1979) was a French-American director, screenwriter, film journalist and actor. Florey directed more than 50 films, the best known likely being the Marx Brothers first feature ''The Cocoanuts'' (1929). His 1932 foray into Universal-style horror, ''Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932 film), Murders in the Rue Morgue'', is regarded by horror fans as highly reflective of German expressionism. In 2006, as his 1937 film ''Daughter of Shanghai'' was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, he was called "widely acclaimed as the best director working in major studio B movie, B-films". Life and work Early life Born as Robert Gustave Fuchs in Paris, he grew up near the studio of George Melies. In 1920, he worked at first as an assistant and extra in featurettes from Louis Feuillade. Hollywood Florey went to Hollywood in 1921 as a journalist for Cinemagazine. He worked as foreign publicity d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iping
Iping is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Stedham with Iping, in the Chichester (district), Chichester Districts of England, district of West Sussex, England. It lies just off the A272 road west of Midhurst, on the River Rother, West Sussex, River Rother. In 1931 the parish had a population of 400. Etymology The Old English name means settlement of the family or followers of a man called Ipa. History Iron age There is an British Iron Age, Iron Age contour fort on the hill at Hammer Wood north of the village. Iping Roman station This rectangular earthwork with rounded corners lies astride the Roman road between two major British tribal centres at Noviomagus Regnorum (Chichester) and Calleva Atrebatum (Silchester), which runs north–south through Iping. Measuring , the area enclosed by the turf defences was about , and would have contained the official posting station or mansio and perhaps an iron-smithy. It is similar in size to the way stations at Hardh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
