House on Haunted Hill (1959)

Director:

William Castle

Writer:

Robb White (written by)

Release Date:

17 February 1959 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

See it with someone with warm hands!

Plot:

Eccentric millionaire Fredrick Loren and his 4th wife, Annabelle, have invited 5 people to the house on Haunted Hill for a "haunted House" party...

Plot Keywords:

Party | Murder | Eccentric | Haunted House | Caretaker

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

Also Known As:

The House on Haunted Hill (USA) (trailer title)

Runtime:

75 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | West Germany:18 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M (DVD rating) | Australia:PG (original rating) | Finland:(Banned) (1963) | Norway:16 (1960) | Sweden:15 | UK:12 (video rating) (2003) | UK:X (original rating) | USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

Ennis-Brown House - 2655 Glendower Avenue, Los Feliz, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

William Castle Productions

Trivia:

William Castle had related the story of meeting Vincent Price on a day when Price had learned that he had been passed over for a part. Over coffee, Castle described the premise of this picture. Price liked the idea and it led to a two-picture collaboration, this and The Tingler (1959).

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: After Nora brings everyone to the cellar when Lance gets locked in the room you see Mr. Loren light a candle when he goes to enter, but the room itself lights up before he even enters the room.

Quotes:

Watson Pritchard: [shows everyone a knife] This is what she used on my brother and her sister, hacked them to pieces. We found parts of their bodies all over the house, in places you wouldn't think. A funny thing is the heads have never been found, hands and feet and things like that, but no heads.
Dr. David Trent: The wife, probably in a fit of rage, threatened her husband with the knife, and then, carried away by hysteria, took a swing at him and simply went on from there.
Lance Schroeder: [laughing] She certainly went on, how many people did she kill, Mr. Pritchard?
[...]

Movie Connections:

Featured in Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003)

Soundtrack:

House on Haunted Hill

Fantastically entertaining camp classic! A must see for all horror fans.

Forget the awful, senseless remake, the original 'The House On Haunted Hill' is one of the most entertaining and enjoyable chillers of all time. William Castle's over the top camp style is an acquired taste for many, but once you enter into the spirit of things you're in for a wild, fun ride. The legendary Vincent Price is in his element here as the cynical millionaire trapped in a loveless sham of a marriage, and Carol Ohmart, who I have only ever seen in the cult classic 'Spiderbaby', is a knockout as his tough as nails "better half". Their haunted house party guests, led by the much loved character actor Elisha Cook, Jr ('The Maltese Falcon' ,The Killing',etc.etc.), are well cast and amusing, and the whole thing is a hoot! I recommend this movie to all horror fans. It is quite possibly the single most entertaining horror thriller of the 50s. Supremely silly but still scary at the same time. Great stuff!