House on Haunted Hill (1959)

A millionaire offers $10,000 to five people who agree to be locked in a large, spooky, rented house overnight with him and his wife.

Directors:

William Castle, Rosemary Horvath (uncredited)

Writer:

Robb White

Stars:

Vincent Price, Carol Ohmart, Richard Long

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Vincent Price	...	Frederick Loren
Carol Ohmart	...	Annabelle Loren
Richard Long	...	Lance Schroeder
Alan Marshal	...	Dr. David Trent
Carolyn Craig	...	Nora Manning
Elisha Cook Jr.	...	Watson Pritchard (as Elisha Cook)
Julie Mitchum	...	Ruth Bridgers
Leona Anderson	...	Mrs. Slydes
Howard Hoffman	...	Jonas
Skeleton	...	Himself

Storyline

Eccentric millionaire Fredrick Loren and his 4th wife, Annabelle, have invited 5 people to the house on Haunted Hill for a "haunted House" party. Whoever will stay in the house for one night will earn ten thousand dollars each. As the night progresses, all the guests are trapped inside the house with ghosts, murderers, and other terrors.

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Plot Keywords:

acid | overnight in a haunted house | breaking the fourth wall | faked death | husband wife relationship | 

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Taglines:

See it with someone with warm hands!

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Genres:

Horror | Mystery

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 February 1959 (USA)

Also Known As:

The House on Haunted Hill

Filming Locations:

Ennis House - 2607 Glendower Avenue, Los Feliz, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$200,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

William Castle Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

75 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Although this was one of Allied Artists' most profitable films of that period, it fell into the public domain. Despite the widespread availability on home video, the current (2018) holder of the Allied Artists library, Warner Bros., still receives bookings for 35mm release prints.

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Goofs

When Dr. Trent removes Annabelle's "Hanging harness", it is just a leather bustier. A real hanging harness would have some sort of hook(s) to transfer the pressure from the neck to the shoulders. Such a harness was used by Darto (Burt Lancaster) in "The Flame and the Arrow,"

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Quotes

Frederick Loren: This is Lance Schroeder, a test pilot. He's no doubt a brave man, but don't you think you can be much braver if you're paid for it? And I happen to know that Lance needs the ten thousand I'm giving, if he's brave enough to stay all night.

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Crazy Credits

The end title credits list "Skeleton - By Himself"

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Alternate Versions

The 20th Century Fox DVD edition contains a new computer-colorized version and a restored black and white print.

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Connections

Featured in A Trip to Sleepy Hollow (2009)

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Soundtracks

Theme
House on Haunted Hill"
by Richard Kayne and Richard Loring

User Reviews

Vinnie Throws One Heck of a Party!

Vincent Price asks five strangers to spend an evening in a haunted house for ten thousand dollars a piece. With his estranged wife in tow, the seven house guests begin a nocturnal odyssey of mayhem, murder, and the macabre. This film is a great vehicle for Price's unique talents as an actor, and is also a very atmospheric film due in large part to the direction of William Castle. Castle gives us all kinds of horror in the traditional vein...a severed head, a skeleton, the screaming-without-end hysterical young woman, the plot twists and turns, and the firmly planted tongue-in-cheek. The cast is very good, with Carol Omhart, as Price's elegant and gorgeous wife, and Elisha Cook, as a drunken sot who continually rants about all the evil that has happened in the house, as standouts. This is a great Halloween film, or one that you turn off the lights to watch.