Svengoolie’s film of the week December 28, 2024 “Blood of Dracula”

Get out your garlic, your crucifixes and your chemistry textbooks because Svengoolie is here Blood of Dracula in the December 28, 2024 edition of the MeTV series Svengoolie classic horror and science fiction film.

This 1957 film follows sweet but troubled teenager Nancy, who is dropped off at boarding school by her recently remarried father. Nancy’s grief over her mother’s death affects his style. Nancy decides to make the best of it. But an evil chemistry teacher has other plans – plans that involve turning Nancy into a ruthless bloodsucker! Teacher Miss Branding believes that every human mind holds the potential for a destructive force greater than a nuclear warhead. Your test subject? Short-lived, Nancy is just a few hypnosis sessions away from transforming into a fearsome vampire who targets her classmates.

Read on to find out more about it Blood of Dracula …and remember: high school snacks!

1It was intended as a sequel to another film about a teenage monster

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Famous B-movie film studio American International Pictures (AIP) – also known as The House Roger Corman Built – had a huge hit earlier this year with I was a teenage werewolfa film about a teenager who is transformed into a supernatural monster by the machinations of a sinister adult. How were they able to maintain this winning streak? By making a film about a teenage GIRL who is transformed into a supernatural monster by the machinations of a sinister adult, of course!

Lots of them Teenage werewolf Team returned for Blood of Dracula (more on this below). Many members of the same creative team also worked on the 1957 AIP film I was a teenage Frankensteinwhich is surprisingly the case not about a teenager who is transformed into a supernatural monster by the machinations of a sinister adult.

Blood of Dracula and I were a teenage Frankenstein were presented as a double feature, but neither was as popular as werewolf – perhaps because handsome young Michael Landon wasn’t in any of them.

2The monster’s look was created by a B-movie makeup icon

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Blood of Dracula Perhaps she’s best known for Nancy’s totally unique vampire look, which makes her look like… a bat? An evil bug? In any case, it is completely unique and the work of makeup artist Philip Scheer.

Scheer has a truly impressive B-movie pedigree – he also created the look for it I was a teenage werewolfand worked as a makeup artist I was a teenage Frankenstein, 1958s Attack of the Puppet People And How to make a monster and 1960s The Monsters of Cape Canaveral. And just to show there’s more to him than just fake blood and fangs – he was also a makeup artist in Jackie Gleason’s 1949 series The Life of Riley.

3The screenwriter didn’t actually exist (but he *was* working on it). trough)

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“Ralph Thornton”, who is the author of the script? Yes, he didn’t exist. The name was a shared pseudonym for Herbert Cohen and Aben Kandel. Cohen was one of the main producers at AIP who was in charge I was a teenage werewolf. Kandel was a Romanian-born writer who wrote about prestigious films such as the 1940 James Cagney film City to conquer. However, prestige alone is not enough, which is why Kandel also wrote scripts for B movies; He just didn’t want his name on it.

He and Cohen also wrote the screenplay I was a teenage werewolf together (which could explain the similarities between the two films). Another production that Kandel and Cohen both worked on? troughthe 1970 Joan Crawford film about the discovery of a caveman in modern times. Cohen produced while Kandel was one of the co-writers.

4The star’s next role was far healthier

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Sandra Harrison had appeared as a child actress in several television shows in previous years Blood of Draculabut her first role after the film was in 1958 Father knows best Episode “Calypso Bud.” In it, Bud gets some bongos and dreams of driving all the girls crazy with his new musical skills. Harrison plays Jeanie, the girl Bud is trying to impress with his bongo-thumping ways… and so he’s devastated when she specifically asks him to leave the instrument at home when he comes to her big party.

5The evil teacher became a nice nurse

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Louise Lewis, who plays tormenting teacher Miss Branding, has had a long career in television, appearing in all series Trawl To The Mod Squad To Tales from the Crypt. But her biggest role was on Medical centerthe medical drama with Chad Everett as the handsome doctor Dr. Joe Gannon. Lewis appeared on the series as Nurse Bascomb 18 times, mostly between 1972 and 1973.

Blood of Dracula will air on December 21, 2024 at 8:00 pm EST on MeTV.