History Of Horror Films
The first motion pictures were made in the 1890s. They were usually very short and simple. Some were only thiry senconds long! People were fascinated with moving images.
In 1910. Thomas Edison made the movie Frankenstein. It was only sixteen minutes. It terrified moviegoers, though. In 1920s, a horror movie revolution began. People made numerous silent horror films.
Studio Monster
The studios made several movies about the Frankenstein monster during this time. The original one tells about mad Dr. Frankenstein. He creates monster from body parts. The he brings it to life. The next movie was The Bride of Frankenstein. The monster froces Dr. Frankenstein to build him a monster. In The Son of Frankenstein, Frankenstein'son wakes up the monster. The terror begins all over again. The Ghost of Frankenstein includes a monster more terrible than ever.
In the 1940s, studios began teaming up movies monsters. Frankenstein Meets the Wofl is an example. It joins the story of Frankenstein's monster with the story of the Wolf Man.
In The Wolf Man, Lawrence Talbot tries to save a woman from a werewolf. Talbot kills the werewolf. But he is bitten by it. At the next full moon, Talbot turns into the Wolf Man.
The Men Who Made The Monsters
Jack Pierce was a makeup artist. he created the monsters in Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man. Pierce used glue and animal hair to make the Wolf Man. The makeup was vert uncomfortable. The actors had to sit still for many hours. It could be a grueling experience. The results were spectacular, though.
John P.Fulton was a cameraman. He worked on Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man. Fulton used stop-motion photography. This process take a very long time.
Fulton used this technique to show Talbot trasnforming into a werewolf. First he filmed the actor without makeup. Then he stopped the camera. Pierce applied the first layer of makeup. Then Fulton filmed for a few more seconds. Fulton and Pierce repeated this process many times.
Fulton put all the pieces together. On screen, Talbot transformation on film took ten seconds. The actual process tool about six hours!
The Legacy
By the 1950s, U.S. movie studios stopped making these types of monster movies. New horror movies began to take their place. The classic monsters were not forgotten, though.
In 1974, Mel Brooks and Gene Wilder made Young Frankenstein. They filmed it where the original Frankenstein series was filmed. Their movie is a comedy. It make fun of the old Frankenstein films. It also honors them.
Frankenstein Returns
in 1994, Kenneth Branagh made Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. His movie follows the same basic plot as Shelley's novel. In this movie, Frakenstein's monster is not a flat-headed, growling monster. It is an intelligent and sensitive creature.
Stamp Of Approval
The movie monster of the 1930s and '40s have had a lasting effect on popular culture. In 1997, the U.S. Postal Service made the Classic Movie Monsters postage stamps. These stamps also honored the work of makeup artist Jack Pierce.
The work of these horror movie pioneers helped make the monsters popular. Because of them, Frankenstein's monster and the Wolf Man continue to be popular today.
