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Tag Archives: Peter Lorre

I Creep into a Monstrous Monday Post

Hello and welcome to another Monstrous Monday Post.  It has not been a horrible Monday.  It rarely is.  My life is not that bad, which makes my persistent depression difficult to understand and not a little embarrassing.  However,  my purpose now is to entertain myself and (I hope) others with a few creepy-crawlies, or perhaps gruesome movie villains.

Is he as villainous as he looks?

Here is one of the masters, Vincent Price.  I believe this is a publicity shot from House on Haunted Hill, which features the immortal line, said to Price by his onscreen wife, “Darling, the only ghoul in this house is you.”

I don’t think he is bidding us velcome.

And here is one of our finest ghouls, Bela Lugosi as Count Dracula.  He is looking rather malevolent in this picture.

Crazy love? Insane love? No, it’s…

I was hoping to find a creepy-crawly but will make do with creepy:  Peter Lorre in Mad Love, one of my favorites.

Not from a movie, but they will do!

Here are a couple of crawlies!  They were props for a murder mystery.  I do love fake bugs and often use them in my home decor.

I guess my gruesome friends have cheered me up.  At least I have made my blog post, which always adds to my level of contentment.  I will try for a more Mohawk Valley-oriented post tomorrow,  but, as usual, no promises.  Creep and crawl on, my friends!

 

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Cheerful Monsters?

I feel I ought not make another whiny Monday post, as some of my Monstrous Monday Posts turn out to be. Yet, I am feeling monstrous. Perhaps I could be monstrous but cheerful.

Looks like a fun bunch to me!

Who could be uncheered by William Castle, Vincent Price, and friends? I could get into watching a Castle/Price collaboration about now. However, I would probably want to go to bed before the end. I am on overtime so get up unreasonably early and get very tired by the end of the day (NOT whining! Merely explaining why I am not watching a movie) (It also explains why this post is turning out to be kind of dumb).

A tense confrontation.

The above is from The Terror, a Roger Corman romp, starring Jack Nicholson and Boris Karloff. I like a Corman/Karloff collaboration, too. Plus, it has the charm of alliteration. Regular readers know I love alliteration.

An even rompier movie.

And here is a Price/Karloff collaboration, with Peter Lorre and Jack Nicholson thrown in for good measure, The Raven. I must get that one on DVD for my collection.

Well, now I am feeling quite cheerful, thinking about these movies I love. Additionally, I am approaching 200 words. Regular readers (I think I still have some) know I call that respectable. At any rate, I made it through another Monstrous Monday. I hope to see you all again on Tired Tuesday, as I fear it will be (not whining now either, just predicting).

Is this Post Classic? Or Just Horror?

The Masters.

As I was looking through my Media Library for something for a Throwback Thursday Post, I came across this gem. I have been watching a lot of Halloween movies lately. Of course, I love Halloween movies all year long. The above picture, in case you didn’t know (and I feel so badly for you if you do not!), shows Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, and Vincent Price .

Gotta get me an outfit like that.

This is a shot from Mark of the Vampire, which I watched last night. It features Lionel Barrymore, another favorite of mine and not just for horror movies.

Anybody could lose their head sometime.

I add in Peter Lorre and Vincent Price. I am following the theme of horror classics, but I seem to be a little disjointed about it. Am I disjointed enough for this to be a Non-Sequitur Thursday Post? You decide.

I can’t choose!

I need to get back to the movie watching portion of my evening. As you may have guessed, I prefer the classic flicks. Perhaps I can write more about specific movies. In the meantime, Happy Thursday, and Happy Halloween Movie Viewing!

A Monstrous Moment

He’s got things all wrapped up.

Yes, it is another Monstrous Monday Post.  I am not even sure I can manage that, but I will try.  Don’t mind me; I’m having a moment.  For the past two months I’ve been having a moment.  I expect to get over it soon.

I need a little spookiness to cheer me up!

This is a neighbor’s Halloween display from last year.  I must begin my own Halloween decorating soon.  That will be nice.

He is hot, yes.

In other cheerful news, I just read that Peter Cushing is the Star of the Month for TCM in October.  That means Hammer Horror!  Yay!

Speaking of Masters of Horror…

 

Here are a few more fellows who I’d like to see featured by TCM:  Basil Rathbone, Boris Karloff, Peter Lorre, and Vincent Price.

Yum, yum!

I thought I ought to include Christopher Lee as well.  No doubt there are others I should include, but there will be other Monstrous Mondays.

Regular readers know who my favorite is!

Here are a few actual monsters, just to get back to the theme of the day.

She needs a new outfit.

I close with another of my at-home monsters, Bonita.  Isn’t she elegant?  And that brings me over 200 words.  Freudian typo:  I started to put years instead of words.  How old I feel?  Or how long some things seem to take?  Anyways, it’s better than 200 pounds!

 

It Will Probably Be a Monstrous Monday

Here’s a funny thing: in the past I have been posting at 4:30(ish) in the morning because I am posting late for the day before. Today I am posting early for TODAY!  I call that progress.  You see, I got up early for a different reason (not worth recounting), so I have a few minutes extra time, which I will not have tonight, so…

Still, this isn’t going to be much of a post.  I cannot completely disrupt my morning routine, or this will be an even more Monstrous Monday than usual.  I don’t even know how far down my Media Library I will scroll to find a few monster pictures to post.  Lame Post Monday?  Let’s not call it that; it only reminds me how far away Friday seems (which is not a completely bad thing, since I have a murder mystery on Saturday I am still getting ready for).

“You’re just getting up? It’s almost my bedtime!”

I’m thinking vampires hate summer, because they must spend more time hiding from the sun.  Then again, maybe they like the extra sleep.  I do not purport to know how a vampire feels, although I do not rule out guessing for the sake of fiction.

“Put my head back, you monster!”

Not exactly a monster, but two horror movie icons, Peter Lorre and Vincent Price (yes, I know I did not need to tell some of you).  It is an appropriate picture for me, because this week I may be running around like the proverbial chicken with its head cut off (writer’s trick:  you can use a cliche if you insert the words “the proverbial” in there; it’s kind of like “sic” but more hip) (or do I flatter myself?).

I know just how he feels. Come to think of it, I know pretty much how she feels, too.

A splash of color and a big ape to close this week’s Monstrous Monday post.  I gotta run now; I’m missing my Local on the Ones.  I feel more secure once I’ve heard the weather report.

 

A Ghost of a Post

Tired Tuesday follows Monstrous Monday some weeks.  My allergies are kicking my butt, which is hardly a surprise at this time of year.  But I like to make a blog post every day, so I ask my readers to bear with me while I try to come up with something.

Hmm… nothing is coming. I’ll throw in a picture to distract from the lack of substance.

Does this kind of thing make your head hurt?

This was in my Media Library from last October.  I’m sure people have written stories about ghosts being haunted by humans, but I have never read one.  There was that one movie, but I don’t want to mention which one, in case you have not seen it.  It’s the big reveal at the end.  Oh dear, I’ve already said too much.  Now every ghost story you see onscreen, you will be asking yourself, “Which one is really the ghost?”

“Spoil my movie viewing, will you?”

You might get so mad at me, you’ll tear my head off, as Vincent Price has apparently done to Peter Lorre. I wonder what Peter did that was so annoying?  Additionally, I wonder what happened to all the blood, but I do appreciate the neatness.

It’s a beautiful building.

For a third picture, here is Ilion Little Theatre in Ilion, NY, a marvelous community theatre (perhaps you have read a few of my blog posts about it).  It is also reportedly haunted, just to fit it in with today’s theme.  Or are WE the ghosts?  Discuss among yourselves.

 

A Monstrous Monday

I am sitting on my couch, laptop on my lap (good place for it), typing in words and backspacing them out.  This is not a good start to my blogging week.  Darn it, I’m tired!  I had a marvelous time at the Crusader’s Wine Tasting yesterday, and I worked ten hours today, got my articles for next month’s Mohawk Valley Living magazine submitted…  OK, I have no excuse.  Well, this is going to be a Monday Mental Meanderings post.  Maybe I should add a few monsters.  As regular readers know, I like monsters.

“Is this where the water aerobics class meets?”

I haven’t shared the Creature from the Black Lagoon in a while.  I think it’s kind of sad he doesn’t have a real name.  Do you suppose his friends call him Blackie?  Maybe ‘Goon?  Or Creach?  These are the things I think about when I am supposed to be writing a blog post.

“I told him not to lose his head.”

As I was searching my Media Library for Creach, I noticed this lovely shot of Peter Lorre and Vincent Price.  I decided to include it under the contention that people are the real monsters.  That is definitely an argument one can make.  In fact, as I typed that in, I overheard somebody on Snapped call the murderess a monster.  I would really like to finish this blog post so I can watch the next episode of that show, by the way.

Did she reach her breaking point? Or is she just a monster?

 

I Like Monsters

Hello, and welcome to Lame Post Friday.  I went running earlier, hoping to offer a Running Commentary Post.  Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, depending on how your tastes run, I just don’t feel like doing that.  I feel like posting pictures from monster movies.  Since I indulge myself on Fridays (and most other days when it comes to this blog) (don’t judge me), here is Bela Lugosi in a publicity shot from The Wolfman.

This is how I will look on Sunday, contemplating the approach of Monday.

I actually had been scrolling down Facebook trying to talk myself out of my monster movie picture cop-out when I saw this picture of Bela and I just couldn’t resist.  I went on to see what else I could find, skipping around to my favorite movie groups and pages.

Icons in coffins, what’s not to like?

I believe this is Basil Rathbone, Boris Karloff, Vincent Price and Peter Lorre (in the back).  I’m almost sure I’ve seen this before and cannot believe I have not used it in a blog post yet.  If I repeat myself, well, some things are worth repeating.

This is probably what he would look like riding a subway.

When we think of monsters, especially movie monsters, naturally we would think of Frankenstein’s monster, one of the first and one of the best.  I shall conclude with a less literary monster in another publicity shot.

I never knew that magazine had centerfolds.

Full disclosure:  I am not that familiar with the Planet of the Apes movies.  I think Steven and I watched the first one once, but I don’t remember that much about it.  I think we saw the remake and were unimpressed.  Then again, one could argue that these movies are more sci fi than horror.  But why argue on Lame Post Friday?  I’m going to have another glass of wine.  I hope you’ll tune in again for my other weekend posts.

 

But What Would Poe Think?

Spoiler Alert! I’m going to tell the plot and I may give away a couple of the best jokes.

I thought The Raven (1963) had it all: Vincent Price, Boris Karloff and Peter Lorre star. Roger Corman directed. And it’s based, or rather “inspired by” Edgar Allen Poe. This movie is going to rock! I thought, as I set my DVR.

Well, the movie does rock, but not quite in the way I expected it to. It starts out creepy enough: the camera pans through a gloomy castle while Price’s inimitable voice intones the poem “The Raven” by Poe. A big, scary black bird appears on cue. When Price dramatically asks will he ever see his dear Lenore again and we are waiting for — come on, you know this — Quote the Raven, “Nevermore!” instead we hear a rather testy Peter Lorre answer, “How should I know?”

And it goes on from there.

It is a very silly movie. Boris Karloff is responsible for Lorre’s feathered state. He is the evil head magician. Price’s father used to be the (not evil) head magician, but Price lives retired with his beautiful daughter and the body of his dead wife.

Lorre’s son is played by Jack Nicholson. I think it is delightful that Nicholson got his start in cheesy horror movies. So far I’ve seen him in Little Shop of Horrors, The Terror and now The Raven. Unfortunately, in The Raven, he is merely a handsome young man and doesn’t get much to do.

The highlight of the picture is the showdown between Karloff and Price. This is a scene they love to show clips of in Price or Corman retrospectives. Price counters Karloff’s zaps with panache and a sweet smile.

I laughed heartily at The Raven and recommend it to lovers of horror with a sense of humor.