Zombies on Broadway (1945)

Director:

Gordon Douglas

Writers:

Robert Faber (story) and
Charles Newman (story) ...

Release Date:

1 May 1945 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Fantasy | Horror

Tagline:

Hee! Hee! What ghoulish glee!

Plot:

Two inept press agents are ordered to the island of San Sebastian to get a zombie for an opening night publicity stunt of a nightclub...

Plot Keywords:

Island | Publicity Stunt | Press Agent | Zombie | Nightclub

Cast

Wally Brown	...	Jerry Miles
Alan Carney	...	Mike Streger
Bela Lugosi	...	Dr. Paul Renault
Anne Jeffreys	...	Jean LaDance
Sheldon Leonard	...	Ace Miller
Frank Jenks	...	Gus
Russell Hopton	...	Benny
Joseph Vitale	...	Joseph
Ian Wolfe	...	Prof. Hopkins
Louis Jean Heydt	...	Douglas Walker
Darby Jones	...	Kolaga (the zombie)

Also Known As:

Loonies on Broadway (UK)

Runtime:

69 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Spain:7

Company:

RKO Radio Pictures

Quotes:

Ace Miller: You do not resign and you do not quit and that guy Walker does not make a monk out of me to the tune of eighty grand! Now get this - you either produce a real zombie on opening night, or I take Gus's idea.

Movie Connections:

Spoofs I Walked with a Zombie (1943)

Not nearly as bad as it sounds

Apparently this film was put together partly with leftovers from the classic Val Lewton film "I Walked With a Zombie." Even the title is somewhat similar and just about as ridiculous. Sir Lancelot is the calypso singer in both movies singing songs that partly predict what has happened and what is about to happen. The main zombie is played by the same actor, Darby Jones, using the same makeup. The stage setting for St. Sebastian Island looks similar to the setting for "I Walked With a Zombie." In some ways "Zombies on Broadway" is actually a parody of "I Walked With a Zombie" and of zombie movies in general.

Brown and Carney, a poor man's Abbott and Costello, do a fairly decent job in the comedy department in this film, though Carney's aping of Lou Costello becomes annoying after a time. Toward the end, a monkey is able to steal the show indicating the level of talent in the cast. Sheldon Leonard does well in his usual role as a mobster who talks tough but tends to be a pussycat. Bela Lugosi and the lovely Anne Jeffreys add a degree of dignity to the goings on. Too bad they were so often wasted in programmers since they were both such gifted performers.

The title is misleading since the movie is actually about press agents Brown and Carney trying to pan off a fake zombie named Sam to a nightclub mobster for his gala opening of the Zombie Club. Brown and Carney are caught and made to travel to St. Sebastian and bring back a real zombie. The movie is fast paced and there are a few belly laughs along the way. Don't expect anything on the level of "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein" and you won't be disappointed.