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House of Wax (1953 film)
Encyclopedia
House of Wax is a 1953
American horror film
starring Vincent Price
. It is a remake of Warners' Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933) without the comic relief featured in the earlier film, and was directed by André de Toth
. The 1953 House of Wax was an early example of the 3-D film
craze of the early 1950s.
The film was the first 3-D color feature from a major American studio, and premiered just two days after Columbia Pictures
's Man in the Dark
, the first 3-D feature released by a major studio. It followed the very successful premiere months earlier of the independent production, Bwana Devil
, both sparking the 3-D film boom of the 1950s. House of Wax premiered nationwide on April 10, 1953 and went out for a general release on April 25, 1953.
) is a devoted wax figure
sculptor with a museum
in 1910s New York
. When his financial partner Matthew Burke (Roy Roberts
) demands more sensational exhibits to increase profits, Jarrod refuses. Unwilling to wait to be bought out, Burke deliberately sets the museum on fire, intending to claim the insurance money. He fights off Jarrod in the process, who is desperately attempting to save his precious sculptures, and splashes kerosene over his body, leaving him to die in the fire. Miraculously, Jarrod survives with severe injuries, and builds a new House of Wax with help from threatening deaf-mute sculptor, Igor (Charles Bronson
).
The museum's popular "Chamber of Horrors" showcases both notable crimes and more recent ones, including the murder of Jarrod's former business partner by a cloaked, disfigured killer. Burke's fiancée, Cathy Gray (Carolyn Jones
) is also killed. But when Cathy’s friend, Sue Allen (Phyllis Kirk
), visits the museum, she makes a discovery that leads to the horrifying truth behind the House of Wax - that all of the waxworks are the wax-coated bodies of Jarrod's victims. Allen herself almost becomes an exhibit, but in the end it is the disfigured Jarrod who falls into the waxworks.
and Cinerama
) used by 1950s studios attempting to compete with the new threat of television
. Just over 50 titles were released in the 3-D process during its 2½ year heyday. House of Wax was always shown in dual interlocked 35 mm projection with polarized glasses. The film was re-released in the period of 1975 through 1980 in both single strip 35mm Stereovision 3-D and in Stereovision's pioneering (first commercial success) 70mm 3D process, where it played in major venues like Grauman's Chinese Theater, in Hollywood, and the huge Metropolitan Theatre
in Boston (seating 4300 patrons). This effort pre-dated the first IMAX 3D (also on 70mm film) by nearly 12 years.
House of Wax, originally titled The Wax Works, was Warner Bros. answer to the 3-D hit Bwana Devil
, which had been released the previous November. Seeing something big in 3-D's future, WB contracted the same company, Natural Vision, run by the Gunzberg Brothers, Julian and Milton, to shoot the new feature. The film is ultimately a remake of the studio's 1933 film, The Mystery of the Wax Museum, which in itself was written and based on Charles Belden's three-act play, The Wax Works.
Among the scenes featured in the film that make the best use of 3-D are a museum fire, a paddleball man, and can-can
girls. Ironically, the director de Toth was blind in one eye, and unable to experience stereo vision or the 3-D effects. “It’s one of the great Hollywood stories,” Price recalled. “When they wanted a director for [a 3-D] film, they hired a man who couldn’t see 3-D at all! Andre de Toth was a very good director, but he really was the wrong director for 3-D. He’d go to the rushes and say, ‘Why is everybody so excited about this?’ It didn’t mean anything to him. But he made a good picture, a good thriller. He was largely responsible for the success of the picture. The 3-D tricks just happened—there weren’t a lot of them. Later on, they threw everything at everybody.”
1953 in film
The year 1953 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*September 16 — The Robe debuts as the first anamorphic, widescreen CinemaScope film.-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue- Awards :Academy Awards:A...
American horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
starring Vincent Price
Vincent Price
Vincent Leonard Price, Jr. was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.-Early life and career:Price was born in St...
. It is a remake of Warners' Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933) without the comic relief featured in the earlier film, and was directed by André de Toth
André De Toth
André de Toth was a Hungarian-American filmmaker, born and raised in Makó, Csongrád, Kingdom of Hungary Austro-Hungarian Empire. He directed the 3-D film House of Wax, despite being unable to see in 3-D himself, having lost an eye at an early age. He is known for his gritty B movies in the western...
. The 1953 House of Wax was an early example of the 3-D film
3-D film
A 3-D film or S3D film is a motion picture that enhances the illusion of depth perception...
craze of the early 1950s.
The film was the first 3-D color feature from a major American studio, and premiered just two days after Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
's Man in the Dark
Man in the Dark
Man in the Dark is a film noir drama 3-D film starring Edmund O'Brien, Audrey Totter and Ted de Corsia released in 1953. It is a remake of the 1936 Ralph Bellamy vehicle The Man who Lived Twice.It was the first Columbia Pictures film released in 3-D....
, the first 3-D feature released by a major studio. It followed the very successful premiere months earlier of the independent production, Bwana Devil
Bwana Devil
Bwana Devil is a 1952 drama based on the true story of the Tsavo maneaters. It was written, directed, and produced by Arch Oboler, and is considered the first color, American 3-D feature. It started the 3-D boom in the U.S. film making industry from 1952 to 1954...
, both sparking the 3-D film boom of the 1950s. House of Wax premiered nationwide on April 10, 1953 and went out for a general release on April 25, 1953.
Plot summary
Professor Henry Jarrod (Vincent PriceVincent Price
Vincent Leonard Price, Jr. was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.-Early life and career:Price was born in St...
) is a devoted wax figure
Wax figure
A wax sculpture is a sculpture made in wax. Often these are effigies, usually of a notable individual, but there are also death masks and scenes with many figures, mostly in relief....
sculptor with a museum
Wax museum
A wax museum or waxworks consists of a collection of wax sculptures representing famous people from history and contemporary personalities exhibited in lifelike poses....
in 1910s New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. When his financial partner Matthew Burke (Roy Roberts
Roy Roberts
Roy Roberts was an American character actor. Over his more than 40-year career, he appeared in more than nine hundred productions on stage and screen.-Biography:...
) demands more sensational exhibits to increase profits, Jarrod refuses. Unwilling to wait to be bought out, Burke deliberately sets the museum on fire, intending to claim the insurance money. He fights off Jarrod in the process, who is desperately attempting to save his precious sculptures, and splashes kerosene over his body, leaving him to die in the fire. Miraculously, Jarrod survives with severe injuries, and builds a new House of Wax with help from threatening deaf-mute sculptor, Igor (Charles Bronson
Charles Bronson
Charles Bronson , born Charles Dennis Buchinsky was an American actor, best-known for such films as Once Upon a Time in the West, The Magnificent Seven, The Dirty Dozen, The Great Escape, Rider on the Rain, The Mechanic, and the popular Death Wish series...
).
The museum's popular "Chamber of Horrors" showcases both notable crimes and more recent ones, including the murder of Jarrod's former business partner by a cloaked, disfigured killer. Burke's fiancée, Cathy Gray (Carolyn Jones
Carolyn Jones
Carolyn Sue Jones was an American actress.Jones began her film career in the early 1950s, and by the end of the decade had achieved recognition with a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for The Bachelor Party and a Golden Globe Award as one of the most promising actresses...
) is also killed. But when Cathy’s friend, Sue Allen (Phyllis Kirk
Phyllis Kirk
-Early life and career:Born Phyllis Kirkegaard in Syracuse, New York , she contracted polio as a child which resulted in health problems for the rest of her life. As a teen, she moved to New York City to study acting and changed her last name to "Kirk"...
), visits the museum, she makes a discovery that leads to the horrifying truth behind the House of Wax - that all of the waxworks are the wax-coated bodies of Jarrod's victims. Allen herself almost becomes an exhibit, but in the end it is the disfigured Jarrod who falls into the waxworks.
Cast
- Vincent PriceVincent PriceVincent Leonard Price, Jr. was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.-Early life and career:Price was born in St...
as Professor Henry Jarrod - Frank LovejoyFrank LovejoyFrank Lovejoy was an American actor in radio, film, and television. He was born Frank Lovejoy Jr. in Bronx, New York, but grew up in New Jersey. His father, Frank Lovejoy Sr., was a furniture salesman from Maine...
as Lt. Tom Brennan - Carolyn JonesCarolyn JonesCarolyn Sue Jones was an American actress.Jones began her film career in the early 1950s, and by the end of the decade had achieved recognition with a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for The Bachelor Party and a Golden Globe Award as one of the most promising actresses...
as Cathy Gray - Phyllis KirkPhyllis Kirk-Early life and career:Born Phyllis Kirkegaard in Syracuse, New York , she contracted polio as a child which resulted in health problems for the rest of her life. As a teen, she moved to New York City to study acting and changed her last name to "Kirk"...
as Sue Allen - Paul PicerniPaul Picerni-Life and career:Picerni was born in New York City, New York. He was an Eagle Scout who joined the United States Army Air Forces during World War II, where he served as a B-24 Liberator bombardier in the China-Burma-India Theater. He flew 25 combat missions with the 493rd Bomb Squadron of the 7th...
as Scott Andrews - Roy RobertsRoy RobertsRoy Roberts was an American character actor. Over his more than 40-year career, he appeared in more than nine hundred productions on stage and screen.-Biography:...
as Matthew Burke - Angela Clarke as Mrs. Andrews
- Paul CavanaghPaul CavanaghPaul Cavanagh was an English film actor. He appeared in over 100 films between 1928 and 1959. He was born in Chislehurst and died in London from a heart attack....
as Sidney Wallace - Dabbs GreerDabbs GreerRobert William "Dabbs" Greer was an American actor who performed many diverse supporting roles in film and television for some fifty years. His distinctive, southern-accented voice fitted well in shows featuring rustic characters, such as westerns...
as Sgt. Jim Shane - Charles BronsonCharles BronsonCharles Bronson , born Charles Dennis Buchinsky was an American actor, best-known for such films as Once Upon a Time in the West, The Magnificent Seven, The Dirty Dozen, The Great Escape, Rider on the Rain, The Mechanic, and the popular Death Wish series...
(credited Charles Buchinsky) as Igor - Reggie Rymal as the paddleball barker
Production
Stereoscopic 3-D was an alternative technology (like CinemascopeCinemaScope
CinemaScope was an anamorphic lens series used for shooting wide screen movies from 1953 to 1967. Its creation in 1953, by the president of 20th Century-Fox, marked the beginning of the modern anamorphic format in both principal photography and movie projection.The anamorphic lenses theoretically...
and Cinerama
Cinerama
Cinerama is the trademarked name for a widescreen process which works by simultaneously projecting images from three synchronized 35 mm projectors onto a huge, deeply-curved screen, subtending 146° of arc. It is also the trademarked name for the corporation which was formed to market it...
) used by 1950s studios attempting to compete with the new threat of television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
. Just over 50 titles were released in the 3-D process during its 2½ year heyday. House of Wax was always shown in dual interlocked 35 mm projection with polarized glasses. The film was re-released in the period of 1975 through 1980 in both single strip 35mm Stereovision 3-D and in Stereovision's pioneering (first commercial success) 70mm 3D process, where it played in major venues like Grauman's Chinese Theater, in Hollywood, and the huge Metropolitan Theatre
Citi Performing Arts Center
The Citi Performing Arts Center is located in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. It consists of two theatres, Wang Theatre and Shubert Theatre, both of which are neighbors, on Tremont Street, in Boston's Theatre District...
in Boston (seating 4300 patrons). This effort pre-dated the first IMAX 3D (also on 70mm film) by nearly 12 years.
House of Wax, originally titled The Wax Works, was Warner Bros. answer to the 3-D hit Bwana Devil
Bwana Devil
Bwana Devil is a 1952 drama based on the true story of the Tsavo maneaters. It was written, directed, and produced by Arch Oboler, and is considered the first color, American 3-D feature. It started the 3-D boom in the U.S. film making industry from 1952 to 1954...
, which had been released the previous November. Seeing something big in 3-D's future, WB contracted the same company, Natural Vision, run by the Gunzberg Brothers, Julian and Milton, to shoot the new feature. The film is ultimately a remake of the studio's 1933 film, The Mystery of the Wax Museum, which in itself was written and based on Charles Belden's three-act play, The Wax Works.
Among the scenes featured in the film that make the best use of 3-D are a museum fire, a paddleball man, and can-can
Can-can
The can-can is a high-energy and physically demanding music hall dance, traditionally performed by a chorus line of female dancers who wear costumes with long skirts, petticoats, and black stockings...
girls. Ironically, the director de Toth was blind in one eye, and unable to experience stereo vision or the 3-D effects. “It’s one of the great Hollywood stories,” Price recalled. “When they wanted a director for [a 3-D] film, they hired a man who couldn’t see 3-D at all! Andre de Toth was a very good director, but he really was the wrong director for 3-D. He’d go to the rushes and say, ‘Why is everybody so excited about this?’ It didn’t mean anything to him. But he made a good picture, a good thriller. He was largely responsible for the success of the picture. The 3-D tricks just happened—there weren’t a lot of them. Later on, they threw everything at everybody.”
Home Media Releases
- The movie was released on DVD by Warner Bros. Home Video on August 5, 2003.
See also
- Mystery of the Wax Museum
- List of 3-D films
- House of Wax (2005 film)House of Wax (2005 film)House of Wax is a 2005 horror film directed by Jaume Collet-Serra. It shares the name of a 1953 horror film, which was a remake of the 1933 film Mystery of the Wax Museum. It was released in theaters on May 6, 2005 to negative reviews, but a financial success...
- Carry On Screaming! - A horror spoof which shares a similar plotline to House of Wax
- Vincent Price filmographyVincent Price filmographythumb|right|Vincent Price, as credited in the 1944 film [[Laura |Laura]].This is a filmography of Vincent Price. Price made his theatre debut in the Gate Theatre's 1935 production of Chicago, followed by work on Broadway. Under contract to Universal, Price traveled to Hollywood, making his screen...