
Frankenstein first lurched into the
public imagination in 1818 making him the oldest of the Universal monsters and
even after 200 years on the prowl there is no indication the he is losing his
foothold in the horror realm. It is for this reason that Frankenstein’s
creature is considered by many horror fans to be the king of monsters. Although
Frankenstein 1931 was not the first horror film produced, it’s success at the
box office as well as the success of
Dracula released earlier the same year that made Universal Studios leader in
the Horror genre during the 30’s and 40’s.
“The
monster not only gave me recognition as an actor it created for me a certain
niche, which has given me a career” Boris Karloff once said of
Frankenstein's creature.
In late 1931 in darken movie
theaters across America, audiences watched as Edward Van Sloan, who plays Dr.
Waldman in the film, steps from behind a closed curtain and gives a friendly
warning to the audience:
“How do you do? Mr. Carl Laemmle [the
producer] feels it would be a little unkind to present this picture without
just a word of friendly warning. We are about to unfold the story of
Frankenstein, a man of science who sought to create a man after his own image
without reckoning upon God. It is one of the strangest tales ever told. It
deals with the two great mysteries of creation - life and death. I think it
will thrill you. It may shock you. It might even - horrify you. So if any of
you feel that you do not care to subject your nerves to such a strain, now's
your chance to - uh, well, we warned you.”

In 1930 Universal Pictures bought the rights to the play Frankenstein written by Peggy Webling which was adapted from the novel by Mary Shelley for a whopping $20,000 plus 1 percent of the worldwide gross, this of course was during the beginning of the Great Depression when the average income was under $2000.00 per year. It was writers Francis Faragoh, Garret Fort, John Balderston, Robert Florey and John Russel who turned the play into one of the most chilling screenplays of the 1930s. Robert Florey and John Russel did not receive them credit for their contributions in writing the screenplay.
It took three and a half hours to apply the monsters makeup, which according to Karloff was a very painful ordeal. Originally Bela Lugosi was approached to play Frankenstein's creature. However
after several makeup tests and intense negotiations Lugosi decided to decline
the role. It should be noted that the role that Lugosi was offered was an
entirely different from the role Karloff would accept. At the time Lugosi
was offered the part the final script had not been completed and at that time
Frankenstein's creature was simply a mindless killing machine. Lugosi upon
declining the role stated "I was a star my country and I will not be a
scarecrow over here." However in 1943 Lugosi
would play the role of Frankenstein's creature in Frankenstein meets the Wolf Man.
Frankenstein is
unique in that there is no clear-cut hero or villain for that matter. It is
Henry Frankenstein's blind determination that leads him to construct a creature
he cannot control. When Henry Frankenstein turns his back on the being he has
brought to life, the creature finds himself thrust into a world that he does
not understand and is totally unprepared for. The creature although enormous in
stature and strength is lacking the intellectual and emotional maturity to
interact with society. Frankenstein's monster not only becomes the villain but
also the victim. Although he had no speaking parts in the film Karloff did a
tremendous job projecting the creature's fear and frustration. Karloff’s performance
earned him critical praise, legions of fans and launched the career that would
last for decades.
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