Arsenic and Old Lace in Old Time Radio and Audio Horror Forum

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Arsenic and Old Lace

Author	Comment
The Wolf Person	Arsenic and Old Lace	Lead	[-]
Feb 20 04 9:21 AM Moderator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I purchased a broadcast of "A & OL" a couple of months ago from a fellow who sells radio show CD's online....I'm not giving his name because he told me in they're kind of a pain to produce, so I'll leave it up to him as to whether he wants to advertise them or not. I bought it because it was a chance to hear Boris Karloff in the role of Jonathan Brewster, which of course he didn't perform in the film. A young Eddie Albert played Mortimer, and he was terrific...managing to get big laughs with his line readings. The chap who plays Dr. Einstein was quite funny, too. The play was compressed to a half hour format, and interesting how details are either dropped or condensed for the sake of time. Also on the same disc is a radio version of "Angel Street" better known as "Gaslight". I highly recommend this disc, the packaging is cool and the sound quality is good.
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SFfilmfan	Arsenic and Old Lace	#1	[-]
Feb 20 04 2:43 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	If you ever get the chance to visit the UCLA Film Archives, they are stored in their collection a Hallmark Hall of Fame version of Arsenic and Old Lace that starred Karloff as Brewster, which is a delight to see (though I am still fond of the Raymond Massey performance in the Capra film version as well).
Count Gamula	Re: Arsenic and Old Lace	#2	[-]
Feb 20 04 4:08 PM Burgomaster Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	*Quote:* If you ever get the chance to visit the UCLA Film Archives, they are stored in their collection a Hallmark Hall of Fame version of Arsenic and Old Lace that starred Karloff as Brewster I saw it at the Museum of Televison History in New York. Nice to see Karloff in the role, even if he was older. The fact that he didn't play the part in the screen version is one of the unforgivable crimes of movie history. Count Gamula
SFfilmfan	Arsenic and Old Lace	#3	[-]
Feb 23 04 5:40 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Well, Bela also played the part on stage and there is no record of his performance whatsoever. Would that also count as a cinematic crime, or is it simply that since Karloff originated the part on Broadway (and was a great success in it), he was the go-to guy they should have gone with. Do you have anything against Massey's portrayal (which was filmed with him as Karloff was still performing the part on Broadway when it was filmed)? I thought he gave menace and authority to the role, and I loved his byplay with Lorre, myself. (I also enjoy Karloff and Lorre together in THE BOOGIE MAN WILL GET YOU, but there the material is far less prime).
The Wolf Person	Re: Arsenic and Old Lace	#4	[-]
Feb 23 04 9:46 PM Moderator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I thought Massey was terrific, not only bringing (as you mentioned, SF Fan) great menace and authority to the part, but also great humor...towards the end of the film, when Jack Carson observes that Jonathan Brewster looks like Boris Karloff, Massey does sort of an animal snarl as his mouth snaps open and he attacks Carson....makes me laugh every time. Still, I'd give anything to be able to see Karloff in the role that, after all, was written for him. Imagine hearing him utter the line, "He said I looked like Boris Karloff". Now imagine Martin Landau, as Lugosi, saying "That ********** said I looked like Boris Karloff!"
Count Gamula	Re: Arsenic and Old Lace	#5	[-]
Feb 23 04 10:10 PM Burgomaster Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	*Quote:* Well, Bela also played the part on stage and there is no record of his performance whatsoever. Would that also count as a cinematic crime, or is it simply that since Karloff originated the part on Broadway Of course it would have been great to see Lugosi's performance too, but his tour was just a minor footnote in the play's history. The part was written for Karloff and was one of the highlights of his career. He was a huge hit in the role for years on Broadway making fun of himself and his monstrous looks. Putting anyone else in the movie version seems unthinkable. Massey did fine, but the humor in the killer becoming enraged when people said he looked like Boris Karloff came from the fact that the actor behind the face WAS Boris Karloff. Yes, the movie was filmed while the play was still on Broadway, but the other Broadway leads left the play to recreate their roles on film. Karloff was considered too important to be replaced so he stayed with the play. Since the film was held back from release until the play had finished its Broadway run, why didn't they just wait for Boris? Count Gamula
The Wolf Person	Re: Arsenic and Old Lace	#6	[-]
Feb 23 04 10:20 PM Moderator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Possibly Karloff was under contract to another studio which wouldn't loan him out to Warner's?
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grampy	Re: Arsenic and Old Lace	#7	[-]
May 5 04 11:28 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Hmmm,not much of a comedy fan but this Movie is funny.It is hard for me to compare a performance by a different charactor without a reference.Stage and Screen are two different animals. What difference does it make as long as everyone enjoys the Movie? I agree ,Karloff or Lugosi would have been great.In my opinion you all overlooked the obvious.The aunts.Their performances have been slighted for years.Without them there would be no Play or Movie. Warmest Regards, Grampy
The Wolf Person	Re: Arsenic and Old Lace	#8	[-]
Aug 1 04 7:52 PM Moderator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Mrs. Wolfie, Wolfie Jr. and yours truly went to the Museum of Broadcasting in Manhatten today...I couldn't resist, had to see the Hallmark Hall of Fame production of Arsenic and Old Lace. Of course it was great to see Karloff as Jonathan. I must say, Tony Randall as Mortimer was hilarious. Tom Bosley played brother Teddy, he was quite good as well. Mildred Natwick played....Aunt Martha or Aunt Abbey..can't remember (does it matter?) Also available were a couple episodes of Thriller (alas, no Pigeons from Hell) but there was so much cool stuff to choose from, it was hard to decide. I wonder how many years it will be until you can access the archive from your home?
Gord Shriver	Arsenic and Old Lace	#9	[-]
Dec 8 04 12:55 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Boris did ARSENIC three times on TV, in case some of you weren't aware. The first being on "Ford Theater" in 1949 (with Josephine Hull) and then in '55 on "The Best of Broadway". The latter would be great to see, as it got very good reviews at the time. Plus, Boris was joined by Helen Hayes, Billie Burke, John Alexander (as Teddy, which he did in the original NY production), Orson Bean, Bruce Gordon (also from B'way as one of the cops) and Peter Lorre as Einstein. Anyone remember the early '70's TV version? That one had Helen Hayes, Lillian Gish, Bob Crane, and--as Jonathan--Fred Gwynne.
The Batman of Gotham	Re: Arsenic and Old Lace	#10	[-]
Dec 29 04 2:07 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	About 15 years ago I saw Arsenic and Old Lace in a theatrical play version with a rather interesting cast. Maureen Stapleton and Marion Ross were the Aunts. James MacArthur ( Danno on Hawaii 5-0 ) as Mortimer Brewster. Jonathan Frid as Jonathan Brewster and Larry Storch as Einstein. It sounds like odd-ball casting but, it worked! - GJS
Count Gamula	Re: Arsenic and Old Lace	#11	[-]
Dec 29 04 3:19 AM Burgomaster Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Sounds like an interesting cast. MacArthur's mother, Helen Hayes, appeared in a few incarnations of the play. *Count Gamula*
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