Elvira: Mistress of the Dark (1988)

Upon arriving in a small town where she has inherited a rundown mansion, a famous horror hostess battles an evil uncle, and townspeople who want her burned at the stake.

Director:

James Signorelli

Writers:

Sam Egan, John Paragon

Stars:

Cassandra Peterson, Phil Rubenstein, Larry Flash Jenkins

1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Phil Rubenstein	...	Director
Larry Flash Jenkins	...	Technical Director
Cassandra Peterson	...	Elvira (as Elvira)
Damita Jo Freeman	...	Associate Producer
Tress MacNeille	...	Anchorwoman
Edwina Moore	...	Hairdresser
Mario Celario	...	Rudy
Lee McLaughlin	...	Earl Hooter
Bill Swearingen	...	Cameraman
Charles Woolf	...	Manny
Bill Dance	...	Messenger (as William Dance)
William Cort	...	Lawyer / Game Show Host
Sharon Hays	...	Game Show Girl
Bill Cable	...	Cop
John Paragon	...	Gas Station Attendant

Storyline

When a chauvinist millionaire buys the television network where the sexy Elvira is the horror hostess of a late show, she quits her job with the intention of producing her own show in Las Vegas. However, the producers demand 50 thousand dollars from her and Elvira does not have the money. Out of the blue, she receives a telegram informing that her great-aunt Morgana died and she has an inheritance to receive. Elvira drives to the uptight town of Fallwell, Massachusetts, where her convertible breaks down. While repairing her convertible, Elvira inherits an archaic mansion, a recipe book and a poodle. Her great-uncle Vincent Talbot proposes to buy her book, but the poodle hides it in the sofa. Meanwhile, the conservative council of Fallwell feels uncomfortable with Elvira's clothes and behavior and does not let her find a job. But cinema owner Bob Redding and the local teenagers help Elvira. When she decides to cook a dinner to impress Bob, she uses Morgana's recipe and finds that it is...

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Plot Keywords:

inheritance | hostess | black comedy | small town | magic | 

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Taglines:

Elvira busts out in her outrageously funny feature film debut!

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Genres:

Comedy | Horror

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Official Sites:

Elvira's Official haunting ground on the Web.

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 September 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Elvira

Filming Locations:

Higgins-Verbeck-Hirsch Mansion - 637 South Lucerne Boulevard, Windsor Square, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$7,500,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$5,596,267

Company Credits

Production Co:

NBC Productions, New World Pictures, Panacea Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Las Vegas scene was originally omitted from the shooting script because NBC executives thought this would be too expensive to build the set. So the movie was shot and edited without this, and then screened for NBC executives to decide on whether or not to fund more money for the Vegas finish (which Cassandra Peterson really wanted). Ultimately, executives liked the film enough to fund the Las Vegas scene. The scene was shot a month later in a warehouse in the San Fernando Valley, but some parts of the song and dance were deleted from the final movie.

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Goofs

On her car ride to Massachusetts she gets to stop next to a carriage. During that short scene the shadow of the cameraman and his equipment on the floor is visible.

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Quotes

Lesley Meeker: We do have a room. Remember the trucker with the bad skin checked out yesterday?
Elvira: I hope you changed the sheets.

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Alternate Versions

Along with the television version, many international theatrical and video versions cut out Elvira's magic trick during the Las Vegas musical number.

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Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Hottest Goth Girls in Movies (2016)

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Soundtracks

Maniac
Written by Michael Sembello and Dennis Matkosky
Performed by Rick Cershaw

User Reviews

My hearts on fire for Elvira!

Any movie that starts off with the epic closing scene from "It Conquered The World" is going to be a great movie! Essentially a movie of one Elvira routine after another, playing off of an uptight town of puritans, siding with the kids who just want to have a good time and see Elvira ham it up to schlocky old movies at their local theater. If you like Elvira's style of comedy, this is the movie for you. No pun is left unacknowledged, no breast reference unaccompanied by a stare down at "the twins". Low-brow, silly and schlocky, just like the movies she hosts and celebrates. Edie McClurg is here in her perennial role as uptight busybody, she seems typecast as this in every movie she does, but this has become her image and she is marvelous at it. Great Halloween party movie, would go well with a few B Horror Movies from the 1950s. Recommended!