“Forgotten Hollywood”- Mistaken Identity…
Manny P. here…
Famous screen characters in cinema are considered culturally iconic. However, what if characterizations lead to a series of films that have little to do with the initial faire. The urban legend lives on to generations of movie-goers. Consider three examples during Hollywood’s Golden Age.
~ FRANKENSTEIN – Baron Frankenstein was the creator of the tall creature that terrorized Eastern European hamlets, and in one instance, the American home of Abbott and Costello. His son, also named Frankenstein, would revive the fiend. Other mad scientists kept the franchise alive for almost two decades. Frankenstein and his offspring were not played by Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Lon Chaney Jr., Glenn Strange, or Peter Boyle; they were portrayed by Colin Clive, Basil Rathbone, and even, Gene Wilder. By the way, the genetically man-made monster was actually named Adam. COLIN CLIVE ——>
~ THE THIN MAN – Nick Charles, the posh detective, was fleshed out in the writings of Dashiell Hammett. The first in the series of flicks paired William Powell with Myrna Loy (Nora). The initial movie was directed by W.S. Van Dyke in 1934, and earned Powell an Oscar nod. Nick Charles was not The Thin Man; but, the man the detective is initially hired to find. In cinema, he also became the first victim in the series. The actor caught by Nick and Nora at the end of the mystery was the ubiquitous Porter Hall. Each subsequent sequel had The Thin Man in the title to sell movie tickets.
~ THE PINK PANTHER – Inspector Clouseau was the bumbling detective forever in search of The Pink Panther. Peter Sellers perfected the role of the cagey law-enforcement boob in a number of movies. It’s just The Pink Panther was initially not a jewel thief, a British royal, or even, an animated character; rather, it was the nickname of a really gaudy diamond. The erudite criminal, known as The Phantom, was elegantly presented by David Niven. And, so it goes.
Isn’t it fun to set the records straight.
Until next time> “never forget”
This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 17th, 2016 at 12:29 am and is filed under Blog by Manny Pacheco. You can follow any comments to this post through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.
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