House of the Damned (1963 film)

House of the Damned
Theatrical poster
Directed by	Maury Dexter
Written by	Harry Spalding
Produced by	Maury Dexter
Starring	Ron Foster Merry Anders Richard Crane Erika Peters
Cinematography	John M. Nickolaus, Jr.
Edited by	Jodie Copelan
Music by	Henryk Wars (as Henry Vars)
Production company	Associated Producers (API)
Distributed by	Twentieth Century-Fox
Release date	March 1963
Running time	63 minutes
Country	USA
Language	English

House of the Damned is a 1963 horror thriller film, shot in CinemaScope. It was produced and directed by Maury Dexter, and stars Ron Foster, Merry Anders, Richard Crane, Erika Peters and Richard Kiel.^[1]

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Plot

Architect Scott Campbell (Ron Foster) and his wife (Merry Anders) survey an old mansion where the previous tenant disappeared. Strange noises, eerie sights and vanishing keys ruin their attempt at a wedding anniversary. Things get worse after Scott's employer (Richard Crane) and his wife arrive, and his employer's wife is kidnapped.

Cast

Ron Foster as Scott Campbell (credited as Ronald Foster)
Merry Anders as Nancy Campbell
Richard Crane as Joseph Schiller
Erika Peters as Loy Schiller
Dal McKennon as Mr. Quinby
Georgia Schmidt as Priscilla Rochester
Stacey Winters as Nurse
Richard Kiel as The Giant
Ayllene Gibbons as The Fat Woman
John Gilmore as The Legless Man
Frieda Pushnik as The Legless Girl

Production

Harry Spalding said he was inspired to write the film by the movie Freaks and wondering what happened to the sort of characters who used to work in freak shows in circuses.^[2]

Exteriors are filmed at the former Bugsy Siegel Mansion (later owned by Madonna) in the Hollywood Hills overlooking Lake Hollywood reservoir.

The movie was shot over seven days.^[2]

Release

Home media

The film was released on DVD by 20th Century Fox on September 5, 2006. The company would release the film again in 2010 as a part of its 4-disc 75th Anniversary Studio Classics collection. It was later released by Fox on June 27, 2017.^[3]

Reception

House of the Damned has received mixed reviews from critics. Author and film critic Leonard Maltin awarded the film two out of four stars, calling it "Modestly suspenseful" but criticized the film's ending as being "surprisingly wistful".^[4] Brett Gallman from Oh, the Horror! gave the film a mixed review, commending the film's moody cinematography, atmosphere, and occasional chills generated by the title house's tenants, but criticized the film's underwhelming revelation, and "failure to deliver on its intrigue".^[5] Craig Butler from AllMovie called the film "dull", criticizing the film's cheapness, script and cardboard characters, while also complimenting Nickolaus' cinematography as "above-average"^[6]