#Curt Siodmak

[laurasimonsdaughter]

 Silver in werewolf folklore?

This is a bit of a ramble but lately I’ve been stuck on the concept that silver is the best weapon against a werewolf. People often suggest a connection to the (full) moon, but in a lot of werewolf folklore the moon has nothing to do with their transformation and it happens every night or certain nights in a pattern.

Interestingly, Curt Siodmak, screenwriter of “The Wolf Man” (1941), which launched the “modern werewolf” in all its glory, is sometimes stated to have completely invented the use of silver, or at least silver bullets (nytimes, maverick-werewolf). But I have seen the concept of using silver against werewolves in folklore from before 1941:

Ashliman compiled German folklore that mentions “a bullet of inherited silver” (Bartsch, 1879), “flintlock with a silver bullet” (Müllenhoff, 1921), and most interestingly:

At first they were powerless against them, until finally the students brought together all of the silver buttons that they had inherited, and with these they killed the werewolves. (Temme, 1840)

That mention of buttons immediately caught my attention, because while the publications about it I’ve been able to find are all from after 1941, in Dutch folkore there is a rather frequent mention that the best weapon against a werewolf is a silver coin, most commonly a ten cent piece (1 ; 2 ; 3 ; 4 ; 5 ; 6) This coin was usually loaded into a rifle, but one mentions holding it as a talisman.

Furthermore, in Dutch (and some wider Germanic) folklore werewolves are frequently treated as the masculine equivalent of a witch. And I could find mentions from before 1941 of witches being defeated by loading a rifle with silver coins (1934, 1932) or silver in general (1933). There is also a mention of a soldier loading a gun with finely chopped silver in order to chase away ghosts (1933, origin from before 1926) and this interesting piece of magic:

If one wished to shoot a ghost or witch, the rifle would not fire unless one rubbed a piece of silver on the flash pan , only then could one fire or would the flintlock give a spark. (1892)

In both the werewolf and the witch folklore the silver is not always fatal. But it’s described as the only thing that they can be shot with, or that will leave a scar, or a wound they can’t heal from. This certainly does not seem to be the norm though, I’ve seen far more folklore where the werewolves are either not harmed at all, or harmed with normal weapons.

In short, since Curt Siodmak was born in Germany to Jewish parents, I think it’s likely he was more inspired by local folklore than people give him credit for, but I’m very interested in any other (older) mentions of silver and werewolves in folklore. If anyone has anything to share, I’d love to see it!

#werewolf #werewolves #curt siodmak #laura babbles #folklore #dutch folklore #german folklore

[brokehorrorfan]

Republic Pictures Horror Collection will be released on May 21 via Kino Lorber. The two-disc set features four horror films produced by Republic Pictures: The Lady and the Monster, The Phantom Speaks, The Catman of Paris, and Valley of the Zombies.

1944's The Lady and the Monster is directed by George Sherman and written by Dane Lussier and Frederick Kohner, based on Curt Siodmak's 1942 novel Donovan's Brain. Vera Ralston, Richard Arlen, and Erich von Stroheim star.

1945's The Phantom Speaks is directed by John English and written by John K. Butler. Richard Arlen, Stanley Ridges, Lynne Roberts, Tom Powers, Charlotte Wynters, and Jonathan Hale star.

1946's The Catman of Paris is directed by Lesley Selander and written by Sherman L. Lowe. Carl Esmond, Lenore Aubert, Adele Mara, Douglass Dumbrille, Gerald Mohr, and Fritz Feld star.

1946's Valley of the Zombies is directed by Philip Ford and written by Dorrell McGowan and Stuart E. McGowan. Robert Livingston, Adrian Booth, Ian Keith, Thomas E. Jackson, Charles Trowbridge, and Earle Hodgins star.

All four films have been have been scanned in 4K by Paramount Pictures. Special features are listed below.

Special features:

The Lady and the Monster audio commentary by film historian Stephen Bissette (new)

The Phantom Speaks audio commentary by film historian Tim Lucas

The Catman of Paris audio commentary by film historians David Del Valle and Miles Hunter (new)

Valley of the Zombies audio commentary by film historians David Del Valle and Miles Hunter (new)

Valley of the Zombies audio commentary by film historian Tim Lucas

The Lady and the Monster interview with film historians Tim Lucas and Steven Bissette

In The Lady and the Monster, a scientist (Erich von Stroheim) and his two assistants (Vera Hruba Ralston, Richard Arlen) keep a dead criminal's brain alive. In The Phantom Speaks, the vengeful spirit of an executed killer takes possession of a scientist to take revenge on those who wronged him, and a newspaper reporter becomes suspicious. In The Catman of Paris, an amnesiac Frenchman (Carl Esmond) blames himself for deeds done with the mark of a beast. In Valley of the Zombies, a woman falls under the hypnotic spell of a resurrected madman.

Pre-order Republic Pictures Horror Collection.

#republic pictures #the lady and the monster #the phantom speaks #the catman of paris #valley of the zombies #kino lorber #dvd #gift #horror #40s horror #1940s horror #erich von stroheim #curt siodmak #richard arlen #robert livingston

[weirdlookindog]

Curucu, Beast of the Amazon (1956)

#curucu beast of amazon #beverly garland #john bromfield #1956 #1950s movies #curt siodmak #horror movie poster

[rherlotshadow]

“Even a man who is pure in heart, And says his prayers by night, May become a wolf when the wolfbane blooms, And the moon is full and bright.”

October Country: evidently there are werewolves in the woods

#october country #curt siodmak #woods #werewolves

[contentabnormal]

Boris Karloff as Dr. Gustav Niemann in House Of Frankenstein

Watercolors on Paper, 8.5" x 11", 2024

By Josh Ryals

#boris karloff #william henry pratt #house of frankenstein #house of frankenstein 1944 #curt siodmak #erle c. kenton #jack pierce #universal classic monsters #dr. niemann #dr. gustav niemann #doctor gustav niemann #fan art #original art #portrait #painting #watercolors #mad scientists #40s horror #josh ryals #joshua ryals #josh ryals art #joshua ryals art #joshryalsart

[briarrosefromthedead]

Bride of the Gorilla (1951) dir. Curt Siodmak

#bride of the gorilla #filmedit #horroredit #raymond burr #curt siodmak #horror #mygifs

[citizenscreen]

Novelist/screenwriter/director Curt Siodmak (August 10, 1902 – September 2, 2000)

#curt siodmak

[lisamarie-vee]

#curt siodmak #donovan's brain #book cover #1940’s

[schlock-luster-video]

On December 4, 1953, The Magnetic Monster debuted in Australia.

Here's some new fan art inspired by the b-movie classic!

#the magnetic monster #curt siodmak #herbert l. strock #science fiction #sci fi movies #sci fi thriller #z movies #b movies #cult movies #indie horror #indie sci fi #horror film #1950s sci fi #retrofuturism #1950s #sci fi #sci fi art #movie art #art #drawing #movie history #cmyk #pop art #modern art #pop surrealism #portrait #cult film

[mariocki]

The Climax (1944)

"I don't hate you. I only hate the thing that's come between us: your voice."

"Yes, I know. You were out front tonight. I felt your eyes on me. Like you're looking at me now. Go away. Get out of here! I'm afraid of you."

"You needn't be. I love you, my darling, you know that. I'd give my life for you. This thing that shuts me out, I won't let it, I tell you I won't let it. It's here... now, between my fingers. I've only to close them to silence it forever."

#the climax #american cinema #1944 #george waggner #curt siodmak #edward locke #lynn starling #boris karloff #susanna foster #turhan bey #gale sondergaard #thomas gomez #june vincent #george dolenz #jane farrar #ludwig stössel #lotte stein #ernö verebes #scotty beckett #william edmunds #this rocked up on one of the universal horror sets Eureka have been putting out‚ but it's an odd fit and seems to have drawn the ire of #more than one reviewer. i sort of get it: it's hardly a horror film at all‚ much more a romantic melodrama with musical numbers and just a #slight swirl of psychological intrigue to get the plot moving. originally conceived as a direct sequel to the previous year's Phantom of #the Opera (mainly to try and get some more use out of the lavish theatre sets built for that film)‚ at some point in production this was #retooled as a loose adaptation of Locke's play. the result may disappoint horror hounds but i was actually very charmed by this #it's undeniably self indulgent‚ frequently tacky‚ and full of the strangest opera stagings that clearly don't belong to the period in which #the film is set‚ but it's just so damn sincere‚ so irresistibly campy and romantic. Karloff is criminally underused as the Phantom insert #obsessed with a dead love (that he deaded) but the supporting cast make up for his absences. lovely Turhan Bey is a lovesick composer so #moved by his fiancée's first public performance that he eats his theatre programme. i mean if that doesn't sell it what will? also a stand #out is the perennially dependable Gomez as the brash theatre manager with a twinkle in his eye and a soft heart. a lot of fun this (ymmv)

[gatutor]

Lon Chaney Jr.-Barbara Payton "La novia del gorila" (Bride of the gorilla) 1951, de Curt Siodmak

#Barbara Payton #Lon Chaney Jr. #Curt Siodmak

[misforgotten2]

A book you very likely don’t have on your shelf #206

Cover by Howard Koslow  --  1961

#book cover #cover art #vintage paperbacks #paperback #curt siodmak #1961 #1960s #1960's #space station #scifi #science fiction #ephemera

[letterboxd-loggd]

Bride of the Gorilla (1951) Curt Siodmak

July 24th 2022

#bride of the gorilla #1951 #curt siodmak #barbara payton #raymond burr #tom conway #lon chaney jr. #gisela werbisek #paul cavanagh #carol varga #paul maxey #the face in the water

[weirdlookindog]

Curucu, Beast of the Amazon (1956)

#curucu beast of amazon #curucu #1952 #1950s movies #curt siodmak #horror

[peepingtomb]

#on this date #on this day #film #movies #happy birthday #horror movies #horror #universal monsters #curt siodmak

[moviesandmania]

BLACK FRIDAY Reviews of Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi crime horror hybrid - free to watch online

‘A man-made monster is on the loose!’ Black Friday is a 1940 American sci-fi-crime-horror film about a doctor who transplants a gangster’s brain into his professor friend’s body to save his life. However, there is a side effect that causes a dangerous split personality. The movie was directed by Arthur Lubin (Hold That Ghost; Phantom of the Opera). It stars Boris Karloff. Although…

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#1940 #Anne Gwynne #Anne Nagel #Arthur Lubin #Bela Lugosi #Black Friday #Boris Karloff #crime #Curt Siodmak #free to watch on YouTube #gangster #movie film #reviews