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.

Director:

William Castle

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	...	Self

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 | animate skeleton | 

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Taglines:

The 13 Greatest SHOCKS ever seen!

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Genres:

Crime | Horror | Mystery

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

The popular theme music originally had haunting lyrics by Richard Kayne, but only the orchestral version was used in the final film. For the record, the lyrics went as follows: There's a house on Haunted Hill / Where ev'rything's lonely and still / Lonely and still / And the ghost of a sigh / When we whispered good-bye / Lingers on / And each night gives a heart broken cry / There's a house on Haunted Hill / Where love walked there's a strange silent chill / Strange silent chill / There are mem'ries that yearn / For our hearts to return / And a promise we failed to fulfill / But we'll never go back / No, we'll never go back / To the house on Haunted Hill!

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Goofs

When Lance and Nora go back to the cellar after Lance was hit the each entered closets next to each other approximately six feet apart. They could hear each other quite clearly when Nora saw the ghost and began to scream. From the time she began to scream the ghost had time to stand still long enough to make Nora hysterical and then slowly float out the door before Lance made it to her without seeing anything.

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Quotes

Watson Pritchard: Only the ghosts in this house are glad we're here.

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Crazy Credits

The end title credits list "Skeleton - By Himself"

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Alternate Versions

The VHS release of the movie cuts out a small scene when Watson Pritchard shows everybody the stain in the ceiling and he says to them 'see that stain? Blood.'

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Connections

Featured in Blood Bath (2015)

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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.

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