The Mad Monster (1942)

Director:

Sam Newfield

Writer:

Fred Myton (original screenplay)

Release Date:

15 May 1942 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Romance | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

The blood of a wolf he placed in the veins of a man... and created a monster such as the world has never known!

Plot:

A mad scientist changes his simple-minded handyman into a werewolf in order to prove his supposedly crazy scientific theories - and exact revenge.

Plot Keywords:

Serum | Werewolf | Handyman | Mad Scientist | Reporter

Cast

Johnny Downs	...	Tom Gregory
George Zucco	...	Dr. Lorenzo Cameron
Anne Nagel	...	Lenora Cameron
Glenn Strange	...	Petro
Sarah Padden	...	Grandmother
Gordon De Main	...	Prof. Fitzgerald (as Gordon DeMain)
Mae Busch	...	Susan
Reginald Barlow	...	Professor Warwick
Robert Strange	...	Professor Blaine
Henry Hall	...	Country Doctor
Ed Cassidy	...	Father (as Edward Cassidy)
Eddie Holden	...	Jed Harper
John Elliott	...	Prof. Hatfield
Slim Whitaker	...	Officer Dugan (as Charles Whitaker)
Gil Patric	...	Detective Lieutenant

Directed by
Sam Newfield

Writing credits
Fred Myton		(original screenplay)

Produced by
Sigmund Neufeld	....	producer

Original Music by
David Chudnow

Cinematography by
Jack Greenhalgh

Film Editing by
Holbrook N. Todd

Art Direction by
Fred Preble

Makeup Department
Harry Ross	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Bert Sternbach	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Melville De Lay	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Hans Weeren	....	sound engineer

Special Effects by
Eugene C. Stone	....	special effects (as Gene Stone)

Production Companies

• Producers Releasing Corporation (PRC)

Distributors

• Producers Releasing Corporation (PRC) (1942) (USA) (theatrical)
• Madison Pictures (1946) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Goldstar Video (1991) (USA) (VHS)
• Alpha Video Distributors (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Gotham Distribution (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Retromedia Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Navarre Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Ventura Distribution (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Reel Media International (2004) (worldwide) (VHS)
• Reel Media International (2005) (worldwide) (TV)
• Reel Media International (2007) (worldwide) (all media)
• Grapevine Video (????) (USA) (DVD)
• LS Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Loonic Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Metromedia Entertainment Group (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Mill Creek Entertainment (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Nostalgia Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Platinum Disc (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Sinister Cinema (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Something Weird Video (SWV) (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Treeline Films (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Video Archive (????) (USA) (VHS)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

77 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono | Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #8264)

Company:

Producers Releasing Corporation (PRC)

Trivia:

Clocking in at 77 minutes, it ranks as the longest B-picture made on "poverty row" in the 1940's.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Dr. Lorenzo Cameron:Yes, I know. You'd like to join your brothers outside and howl at the moon. But you're serving a much better purpose. Yes, you're serving science through me.

Movie Connections:

Featured in 100 Years of Horror: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1996) (V)

Kitsch, a Werewolf and an utterly mad scientist! What more could you wish for?

This is a really cool movie and, no…I'm not joking! The Mad Monster is a pleasant and fairly original camp-film obviously trying to pick in on the Universal Monster successes. But who cares if it can't live up to the preciously wealthy production values of those films? I sure don't and especially not since it features werewolves and insane men of science which are my two top favorite horror topics! It stars the infamous B-movie legend George Zucco as the very devoted – but equally insane – scientist Dr. Cameron who got banned from the academic community because of his unethical and inhuman experiments. Cameron plots a violent vengeance on those who discredited them and with his groundbreaking new formulas he manages to turn his slightly retarded gardener into a ravenous werewolf. While his cute daughter is unaware of what happens in her father's lab, Cameron sends out his creation to devour his scientific competitors. I can't stress this enough: this film is fun! Not very scary, of course, and the werewolf-transformations & killings mostly happen off-screen. And even when they do make an attempt to use special effects or make up it looks really cheap and kitschy. So, lovers of new-age computerized gore should avoid this at all costs. Zucco is really terrific and the madness can be seen in his eyes throughout the entire film! He even holds imaginary meetings in his basement, trying to convince the world his visions are brilliant! I love this; Zucco surely ranks amongst cinema's most memorable demented doctors. Glenn Strange also was an outstanding casting choice to play the not-so-clever guinea pig. Strange looks an awful lot like Lon Chaney Jr. who made himself immortal one year before by playing …. The Wolf Man! If you're intrigued by undiscovered horror gems, werewolf horror films or just ordinary cult-amusement this is your film! Highly recommended!