Tales of Terror (1962)

Director:

Roger Corman

Writers:

Edgar Allan Poe (stories) and
Richard Matheson (screenplay)

Release Date:

23 February 1963 (Denmark)

Genre:

Comedy | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

A Trilogy of Shock and Horror!

Plot:

Three tales of terror involve a grieving widower and the daughter he abandoned; a drunkard and his wife's black cat; and a hypnotist who prolongs the moment of a man's death.

Plot Keywords:

Death | Widower | Dying | Hypnotist | Cat

Cast

Vincent Price	...	Locke / Fortunato Luchresi / Ernest Valdemar
Maggie Pierce	...	Lenora (segment "Morella")
Leona Gage	...	Morella (segment "Morella")
Peter Lorre	...	Montresor (segment "The Black Cat")
Joyce Jameson	...	Annabel (segment "The Black Cat")
Basil Rathbone	...	Carmichael (segment "The Case of M. Valdemar")
Debra Paget	...	Helene (segment "The Case of M. Valdemar")
David Frankham	...	Dr. James (segment "The Case of M. Valdemar")
Lennie Weinrib	...	Policeman (segment "The Black Cat")
Wally Campo	...	Barman Wilkins (segment "The Black Cat")
Alan DeWitt	...	Chairman of Wine Society (segment "The Black Cat") (as Alan DeWit)
John Hackett	...	Policeman (segment "The Black Cat")
Edmund Cobb	...	Driver (segment "Morella") (as Ed Cobb)
Scott Brown
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jack Tornek	...	Wine Society Member (segment "The Black Cat") (uncredited)

Directed by
Roger Corman

Writing credits
Edgar Allan Poe		(stories Morella, The Black Cat, The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar, and A Cask of Amontillado)
Richard Matheson		screenplay

Produced by
Samuel Z. Arkoff	....	executive producer
Roger Corman	....	producer
James H. Nicholson	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Les Baxter

Cinematography by
Floyd Crosby		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Anthony Carras

Production Design by
Daniel Haller

Art Direction by
Daniel Haller

Set Decoration by
Harry Reif

Makeup Department
Lou LaCava	....	makeup artist (as Lou La Cava)
Ray Forman	....	hair stylist (uncredited)

Production Management
Robert Agnew	....	unit manager
Bartlett A. Carre	....	production manager (as Bartlett A. Carré)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jack Bohrer	....	assistant director

Art Department
Ross Hahn	....	construction coordinator
Richard M. Rubin	....	property master (as Dick Rubin)
John Ceniga	....	props (uncredited)

Sound Department
John L. Bury	....	sound (as John Bury)
Jack Woods	....	sound editor

Special Effects by
Pat Dinga	....	special effects

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Marjorie Corso	....	wardrobe

Music Department
Eve Newman	....	music editor
Al Simms	....	music coordinator

Other crew
Jack W. Cash	....	production assistant (as Jack Cash)

Production Companies

• Alta Vista Productions

Distributors

• American International Pictures (AIP) (1962) (USA) (theatrical)
• Anglo-Amalgamated Film Distributors (1962) (UK) (theatrical)
• Warner Home Video (1988) (USA) (VHS) (pan/scan)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Globo Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (199?) (USA) (VHS) (pan/scan)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (USA) (laserdisc)
• Orion Home Video (199?) (USA) (VHS) (pan/scan)

Special Effects

• Butler-Glouner (photographic effects)

Other Companies

• Ray Mercer & Company  optical effects (as Ray Mercer Co.)

Also Known As:

"Edgar Allan Poe's Tales of Terror" - USA (alternative title)

Runtime:

89 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Pathé Colour)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #20234) | USA:Unrated (video release) | Portugal:M/12 | UK:15 (video rating) (1993) | UK:X (original rating) (cut) | Argentina:13 | Sweden:15 | Australia:M

Company:

Alta Vista Productions

Trivia:

A mixture of glue, glycerin, corn starch and make-up paint was heated and then poured over Vincent Price's head to give the impression of his face melting away. The substance was so hot, that Price could only stand it for a few seconds.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Driver:Ma'am, I have to get back to Boston.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Son of Svengoolie: Tales of Terror (1962) (#1.129)" (1982)

Pretty good

Another of the Roger Corman/Vincent Price films based VERY loosely on three Edgar Allan Poe tales.

The first is "Morella" where a dying girl comes to visit her father (Price) and find out why he abandoned her as a child. It has to do with her mother (Morella) and her death. Well-done but it doesn't make a lot of sense.

"The Black Cat" is about a man (Peter Lorre) finding out his wife is cheating on him with someone else (Price). It's pretty good but Lorre's acting turns it into a comedy more than a horror story.

"The Case of M. Valdemar" has an evil mesmerist (Basil Rathbone) keeping a man's spirit alive while his body wastes away. Well-done with a pretty gruesome ending.

Basically this a good anthology of horror stories. They're well-produced, well-acted and written. Just don't expect them to be anything like the Poe tales (especially "Morella"). GREAT liberties have been taken with the stories--they just use them as a starting point and build on it.

Also try to see it letter-boxed--the pan and scan TV version is pretty terrible.

I give it a 7.