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Fanfare, v. 1, issue 1, December 1939

Page 14

                       NOTES UPON
                  THE WITNESSING OF
         DRACULA                  FRANKENSTEIN

by

Harry Warner Jr.

  1:30 P.M. Scene:  local theatre.  Background:  Double bill, "Can you take it?"  Weather:  average.  Crowds on the street, but few in the theatre. 
Christmas approaching.  We arrive. First sensation:  greenish light.  First we think that perhaps it is a hallucination, but then it is realized that this is the light Dracula is shown in.  Picture is not quite over.  We try to sit with our eyes closed, but find it impossible, with the blood-curdling war whoops, coffins creaking, and so forth.  As we enter, Dracula is leading Mina down the stairway of the Abbey, or whatever his place of residence in England is.  Thing that impresses us most for the next ten minutes is the [fact?] that Lugosi is a marvelous actor.
  1:45 P.M.  Dracula ends, and we settle back for the enjoyment of the entire double bill.  As we get in the mood for Frankenstein, our revierie is interupted by the newsreel and the short subject, unfitting for the feature pictures.  S.S. is made up entirely of Lew Lahr, and newsreel consists of everything under the sun.
  2:05 P.M. From here on we lose track of time so it is only approximate at the beginning of each paragraph.  But the main thing is that the picture begins.  Pre-picture speech silly . . . scene opens fittingly enough in a graveyard.  Strange, but we don't notice that Dr. Frankenstein's assistant is a mis-shapen dwarf until ten or fifteen minutes of the picture elapse . . . First scenes rather useless.  They don't set the background to amount to anything; it could be better explained in a few words by one of the characters.
  2:30 P.M.  In due course the Monster comes to life.  Up until this time our enjoyment is somewhat spoiled by hearing a running account of what is to happen next a few seats away, but a few drops of chloroform quieted that.  Karloff's best scene is in the awakening; and a few seconds later in the picture at the Monster's first glimpses of light, Boris rises to great heights.
  2:55 P.M.  In over-due course the Monster almosts escapes, is captured and re-escapes for good.  Two characters are wiped off the map in the scenes; for awhile we think no one will be left to finish this picture.
  3:05 P.M.  Famous scene by the lake.  The murder of the child is cut here; in fact, it ends too soon.  We think that few of the audience actually realize what had happened for sometime after the father

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NOTES UPON THE WITNESSING OF DRACULA FRANKENSTEIN by Harry Warner Jr. 1:30 P.M. Scene: local theatre. Background: Double bill, "Can you take it?" Weather: average. Crowds on the street, but few in the theatre. Christmas approaching. We arrive. First sensation: greenish light. First we think that perhaps it is a hallucination, but then it is realized that this is the light Dracula is shown in. Picture is not quite over. We try to sit with our eyes closed, but find it impossible, with the blood-curdling war whoops, coffins creaking, and so forth. As we enter, Dracula is leading Mina down the stairway of the Abbey, or whatever his place of residence in England is. Thing that impresses us most for the next ten minutes is the [fact?] that Lugosi is a marvelous actor. 1:45 P.M. Dracula ends, and we settle back for the enjoyment of the entire double bill. As we get in the mood for Frankenstein, our revierie is interupted by the newsreel and the short subject, unfitting for the feature pictures. S.S. is made up entirely of Lew Lahr, and newsreel consists of everything under the sun. 2:05 P.M. From here on we lose track of time so it is only approximate at the beginning of each paragraph. But the main thing is that the picture begins. Pre-picture speech silly . . . scene opens fittingly enough in a graveyard. Strange, but we don't notice that Dr. Frankenstein's assistant is a mis-shapen dwarf until ten or fifteen minutes of the picture elapse . . . First scenes rather useless. They don't set the background to amount to anything; it could be better explained in a few words by one of the characters. 2:30 P.M. In due course the Monster comes to life. Up until this time our enjoyment is somewhat spoiled by hearing a running account of what is to happen next a few seats away, but a few drops of chloroform quieted that. Karloff's best scene is in the awakening; and a few seconds later in the picture at the Monster's first glimpses of light, Boris rises to great heights. 2:55 P.M. In over-due course the Monster almosts escapes, is captured and re-escapes for good. Two characters are wiped off the map in the scenes; for awhile we think no one will be left to finish this picture. 3:05 P.M. Famous scene by the lake. The murder of the child is cut here; in fact, it ends too soon. We think that few of the audience actually realize what had happened for sometime after the father