Mesa of Lost Women (1953)

A mad scientist named Arana is creating giant spiders and dwarfs in his lab on Zarpa Mesa in Mexico. He wants to create a master race of superwomen by injecting his female subjects with spider venom.

Directors:

Ron Ormond, Herbert Tevos

Writer:

Herbert Tevos (written for the screen by)

Stars:

Jackie Coogan, Allan Nixon, Richard Travis

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jackie Coogan	...	Doctor Aranya
Allan Nixon	...	'Doc' Tucker
Richard Travis	...	Dan Mulcahey
Lyle Talbot	...	Narrator (voice)
Paula Hill	...	Doreen Culbertson (as Mary Hill)
Robert Knapp	...	Grant Phillips
Tandra Quinn	...	Tarantella
Chris-Pin Martin	...	Pepe (as Chris Pin Martin)
Harmon Stevens	...	Dr. Leland J. Masterson
Nico Lek	...	Jan van Croft
Kelly Drake	...	Lost Woman
John Martin	...	Frank
George Barrows	...	George (as George Burrows)
Candy Collins	...	Lost Woman
Dolores Fuller	...	Blonde 'Watcher in the Woods' (as Delores Fuller)

Storyline

A mad scientist named Arana is creating giant spiders and dwarfs in his lab on Zarpa Mesa in Mexico. He wants to create a master race of superwomen by injecting his female subjects with spider venom.

---

Plot Keywords:

spider | dwarf | mad scientist | giant spider | fire | 

---

Taglines:

They Were All a Man Could Desire, But Deadlier Than a Black Widow!

---

Genres:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Romance | Sci-Fi | Thriller

---

Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 June 1953 (USA)

Also Known As:

Attack of the Spider Women

Filming Locations:

Red Rock Canyon, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ron Ormond Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

70 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The character of Dr. Aranya and the spider people were added by Ron Ormond. Herbert Tevos' original story began with Masterson--who was merely a "schizophrenic homicidal maniac"--at the cantina, where the dancer played by Tandra Quinn was just a murder victim. The rest of the story is much the same as was seen in the film minus the various scenes involving the women and dwarfs watching the crash survivors. The film ended when Mexican authorities responded to the flare Phillips fired off and landed on the mesa, whereupon Phillips, Doreen, and Van Croft were rescued and the love triangle was resolved when Doreen chose Phillips over Van Croft.

---

Goofs

Rear shots of Frank's jeep show a man wearing a fedora in the passenger seat, but close-ups show Pepe in the passenger seat, wearing a sombrero.

---

Quotes

Dr. Leland J. Masterson: [referring to Tarantella dancing] You like her?
Jan van Croft: Very pretty... Fascinating... As a dancer, of course!

---

Connections

Featured in The 50 Worst Movies Ever Made (2004)

User Reviews

This thing is hilarious!

This movie is just plain fun. I consider it a budding cult classic. I say "budding" only because it seems to be relatively unknown. Jackie Coogan, who rocked as Uncle Fester of The Addams Family TV series, rocks as a mad scientist. Harmon Stevens is just as much a hoot as the insane doctor. Tandra Quinn, who plays Tarantella, is a major babe and her dance number shows it. Samuel Wu, who oddly enough plays the character Wu, speaks only in what sounds like an ancient Chinese proverb dialect and comes off as ludicrously funny. The deadly spider-girls are all pretty, the dwarfs are actually all dwarfs, the voice over is cool and crazy, and parts of it are over the top in ways reminiscent of Plan 9 From Outer Space. I love this thing. Its in a class of its own and ought not be compared to other films. It is what it is and needs to be viewed that way. Its a gut buster. Want your own personal cult classic that no one else knows about? Adopt the Mesa of Lost Women.