Dwain Atkins Esper (October 7, 1894 – October 18, 1982) was an American director and producer of exploitation films.

Biography

A veteran of World War I, Esper worked as a building contractor before switching to the film business in the mid-1920s. He produced and directed inexpensive pictures with titles like ''Maniac (1934 film), Sex Maniac'', ''Marihuana (1936 film), Marihuana'', and ''How to Undress in Front of Your Husband''. To enhance the appeal of these low-budget features, he included scenes containing gratuitous nudity and violence that led some to label him the "father of modern exploitation." Esper's wife, Hildagarde Stadie, wrote many of the scripts for his films. They employed extravagant promotional techniques that included exhibiting the mummified body of notorious Oklahoma outlaw Elmer McCurdy before it was acquired by Dan Sonney.

''Maniac'' (1934)

''Maniac (1934 film), Maniac'', also known as ''Sex Maniac'', an exploitation film, exploitation/horror film directed by Esper, is a loose adaptation of the Edgar Allan Poe story "The Black Cat (short story), The Black Cat" and follows a vaudeville impersonator who becomes an assistant to a mad scientist. It is considered by many film critics and historians to be the worst film of all time. Danny Peary believes that ''Maniac'' is the worst film made, Charlie Jane Anders of Gawker Medias io9 described it as "possibly the worst movie in history" and ''Chicago Tribune'' critic Michael Wilmington wrote that it may be the worst film he had seen, writing: "There are some voyages into ineptitude, like Dwain Esper's anti-classic ''Maniac,'' that defy all reason." Rotten Tomatoes placed ''Maniac'' on its list of movies "So Bad They're Unmissable", the Italian ''Vanity Fair'' included the film on its list of the 20 worst movies, and it is featured in ''The Official Razzie Movie Guide''. Esper died in San Diego, California at the age of 88. He and Hildagarde had two children, Dwain Jr. and Millicent.

Filmography

Director credits

* ''Sinister Harvest'' (1930) * ''The Seventh Commandment (1932 film), The Seventh Commandment'' (1932) : a.k.a. ''Sins of Love'' (US: reissue title) : a.k.a. ''The 7th Commandment'' (US: poster title) * ''Narcotic'' (1933) : a.k.a. ''Narcotic Racket'' (US: reissue title) : a.k.a. ''Narcotic!'' (US: promotional title) : a.k.a. ''Narcotic: As Interpreted by Dwain Esper'' (US: closing credits title) * ''Maniac (1934 film), Maniac'' (1934) : a.k.a. ''Sex Maniac'' * ''Modern Motherhood'' (1934) * ''Marihuana (1936 film), Marihuana'' (1936) : a.k.a. ''Marihuana, the Devil's Weed'' : a.k.a. ''Marihuana, the Weed with Roots in Hell!'' * ''How to Undress in Front of Your Husband'' (1937) * ''Sex Madness'' (1938) : a.k.a. ''Human Wreckage'' (US: reissue title) : a.k.a. ''They Must Be Told'' (US: reissue title) * ''Curse of the Ubangi'' (1946) * ''Will It Happen Again?'' (1948) : a.k.a. ''Love Life of Adolph Hitler'' (US: reissue title) : a.k.a. ''The Strange Love Life of Adolf Hitler'' (US: reissue title) : a.k.a. ''The Strange Loves of Adolf Hitler'' (US: reissue title)

Producer credits

:Excluding films Esper directed. * ''How to Take a Bath'' (1937) * ''Angkor'' (1935) : a.k.a. ''Beyond Shanghai'' (UK) : a.k.a. ''Forbidden Adventure'' (US: informal reissue title) : a.k.a. ''Forbidden Adventure in Angkor'' (US: reissue title, 1937)

Reissues

* ''Reefer Madness'' * ''Hell-a-Vision'' : a.k.a. ''Hell-o-Vision'' (US) * ''Man's Way with Women'' * ''Freaks (1932 film), Freaks'' (uncredited) as ''Forbidden Love'', and later ''Natures Mistakes'' with Sam Alexander providing a live appearance with some disfigured members of his 'troupe' * ''Cain: Aventures des mers exotiques'' : a.k.a. ''Cain''

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Esper, Dwain Film directors from Washington (state) 1894 births, Esper, Dwain 1982 deaths, Esper, Dwain Film producers from Washington (state) People from Snohomish, Washington American military personnel of World War I