102 A Game of Death ( 1945 )

This  is  a  re-make  of   the  earlier  picture  The  Most  Dangerous  Game  on  Earth  and  slavishly  follows  the  original  except  that  the intervening  Production  Code  meant  that  Audrey  Long  was  less  scantily-clad  than  Fay  Wray  in the  original.

 John  Loder  plays  Don  Rainsford, a  famous  hunter  shipwrecked by  the  machinations  of  an  evil  psychopath, Kreiger  ( Edgar  Barrier )  who  enjoys hunting  human  prey.  Rainsford  works  with  a  captive  young  woman  and  her  brother  to  defeat  him.

There's  no  reason  to  prefer  this  to  the  original.

Audrey  Long  ( as  Ellen  Trowbridge )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Audrey  was  a  successful  B-movie  actress. She  retired  in  1952  on  marriage  to  the  writer   Leslie  Charteris  and  accompanied  him  around  the  world. She  died  in  2014  aged  92.

101 Isle of the Dead (1945 )

This  is  an  unusual, very  gloomy, picture  from  producer  Val  Lewton.

Boris  Karloff  plays  Nikolas  Pherides , a  martinet  general  for  the  Greek  Army  in  the  First  Balkan  War. He  is  being  shadowed  by  a  US  war  correspondent  Oliver  Davis  ( Mark  Cramer ). When  the  two  visit  the  island  cemetery  where  Pherides'  wife  is  buried  they  find  a  small  group  of  disparate  refugees  is  living  there. An  old  woman  Kyra  warns  him  that  the  young  girl  Thea  is  possessed  by  an  evil  spirit, the  vorvaiyaka  and  when  the community  starts  dying  of  septicemic  plague  he  starts  to  believe  her.

It's  a  bit  talky  and  short  of  action  but  there's  bags  of  atmosphere  and Karloff  is  great.

Ellen  Drew  ( as  Thea  )

Sex : No

Death  : Survives

Ellen  was  originally  Terry  Ray  from  Missouri  and  made  a  number  of  movies under  that  name  before  changing  to  Ellen  Drew  in  1938. She  was  a  busy  actress  in  the  forties  then  moved  into  television  before  retiring  in  1961. She  died  in  2003  aged 88.


Katherine  Emery  ( as  Mrs  St  Aubyn )

Sex :  No

Death : Falls  off  a  cliff  in  a  mad  frenzy  after  being  buried  alive

Katherine  was  more  of  a  stage  actress  who  made  relatively  few  films. She  retired  from  acting  in  the  fifties. She  died  of  pulmonary  disease  in  1980  aged  73.

100 House of Dracula ( 1945 )

This  ensemble  picture  following  on  from  House  of  Frankenstein  the  year  before  , pretty  much  marks  the  end  of  the  golden  period  for  Universal's  monsters  before  they  were  relegated  to  supporting  players  for  Abbott  and  Costello. Lon  Chaney  Junior  was  sacked  after  this  one  while  Lionel  Atwill  died  a  few  months  after  filming.

Onslow  Stevens  plays  the  obligatory  mad  Doctor  Edelman  whose  specialty  is  a  little unclear. He  is  assisted  by  two  young  women  Miliza  and  Nina, the  latter  a  hunchback. First  Dracula  (  his  resurrection  unexplained  ) and  then  the  Wolf  Man  ( ditto )  come  looking  for  a  cure  but  the  Count' s  resolve  wavers  when  he  spies  Miliza  setting  off  a  chain  of  events  which  turn  Edelman  evil  and  bring  Frankenstein's  Monster  into  play  somehow. It  doesn't  really  hang  together  at  all  but  the  girls  are  worth  watching.

Martha  O  Driscoll   ( as  Miliza ) 

Sex : No

Death : Survives

This  would  normally  be  the  role  for  Evelyn  Ankers  so  they  found  a  lookalike  in  Martha. She  was  a  teenage  dancer  in  musicals  in  the  thirties  but  graduated  to  acting  roles  in  the  forties  with  reasonable  success.She  retired  to  raise  a  family  in  1947. She  died  in  1998  aged 76.

Jane  Adams  ( as  Nina )

Sex :  A  cured  Nina  in  a  see-through  dress  appears  in  a  vision  of  Dr  Edelman

Death : Strangled  by  Dr  Edelman

Jane  was  originally  Betty  Bierce  from  Texas. She  acquired  the  nickname  "Poni"  during  her  previous  modelling  career. This  was  one  of  her  first  film  roles. Widowed  during  the  war  she  married  a  decorated  general  Thomas  Tunnage  in  1945  who  served  in  Korea  and  later  headed  the  Veterans  Administration.  She  retired  from  acting  in  the  early  fifties  and  died  in  2014  aged  95.

99 Fog Island ( 1945 )

This  is  a  creepy  dark  house  revenge  thriller distinguished  only  by  its  high  body  count  and   shortage  of   sympathetic  characters. It's  OK  but  we've  seen  it  all  before.

George  Zucco  plays    recently  released   ex-convict  Leo  Grainger   a  white  collar  criminal  believed  to  have  got  away  with  the  loot. His  loyal  wife  has  bought  him  a  big  house  on   a foggy  island.  but  then  been  murdered. Her  daughter  but   not  his  is  staying  with  him  for  reasons  not  really  explained. A  number  of  criminals, some  invited  , others  not , turn  up  to  try  and  find  the  money  but Leo  has  other  plans.

Sharon  Douglas ( as  Gail )  

Sex  : No

Death  : Survives

Sharon  was  originally  Rhona  Nelle-Rader   in  Oklahoma. She  had  influential  friends  like Howard  Hughes. Surprisingly  for  such  a  pretty  girl  she  was  predominantly  a  radio  actress. She  died  earlier  this  year  aged  95.

Veda  Ann  Borg  ( as  Sylvia )

Sex : No

Death : Drowns  in  Leo's  water  trap

  Veda  plays  a  villainess  in  this  one.

Jacqueline  De  Wit  ( as  Emiline  Bronson )

Sex : No

Death : Stabbed  in  the  back  by  Lionel  Atwill's  character

Stardom  eluded  Jacqueline  but she  had  a  long  career  in  film  and  TV  including  an  appearance  in  The  Monkees  in  1967. She  died  in  1998  aged  86.
    

98 Weird Woman ( 1944 )

This  is  a  bit  more  like  it. Four  of  our  girls  feature  in  this  enjoyable , and  thunderously  un-pc  from  the  sensitive  title  onwards, offering  from  Universal's  Inner  Sanctum  franchise. That  was  usually  concerned  with  mystery  thrillers  but  this  has  enough  of  the  trappings - and  certainly  enough  of  the  stars  - to  qualify  as  a  horror  pic.

Norman  Reed ( Lon  Chaney  Jr )  is  a  sociology  professor  who  meets  a  young  girl  Paula  living  in  a  voodoo  tribe  in  the  South  Seas  and  becomes  her  somewhat  patronising  husband. She  encounters  hostility  and  suspicion  from  his  campus  associates particularly  his  old  flame  Ilona. It's  a  good  job  Paula's  played  by  a  white  actress  when  she's  being  told  to  "Get  back  to  the  jungle !" Strange  things  start  to  happen.

Anne  Gwynne  ( as  Paula  Reed )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Anne  plays  the  titular  character  and  has  never  looked  better  as  you  can  see  for  yourself.

Evelyn  Ankers  ( as  Ilona  )

Sex : Evelyn's  been  pretty  buttoned-up  in  her  previous  films  so  it's  nice  to  see  her  in  some  nightwear.

Death  : Falls  through  a  trellis  roof  and  is,  rather  improbably,  strangled  by  vines  on  the  way  down.

Evelyn  gets  to  play  the  villain  for  once  and  is  a  revelation  as  a  scheming  jealous  bitch.

Elisabeth  Russell  (  as  Evelyn  Sawtelle  )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Elisabeth  chews  the  scenery  somewhat  as  the  wife  of  Norman's  academic  rival  but  it's  nice  to  see  her  getting  a  bit  more  screen  time.

Lois  Collier  ( as  Margaret  Mercer )

Sex : Comes  on  to  Norman  but  he  rebuffs  her

Death :  Survives

Lois  is  great  as  the  perky  student  Ilona  sets  up  to  seduce  Norman.

97 Voodoo Man ( 1944 )

The  premise  of  this  was  very  promising- Bela  Lugosi, assisted  by  Zucco  and  Carradine,  keeping  a  harem  of  young  beauties ( most  of  whom  we've  met  before )  in  the  cellar  for  the  purpose  of  reviving  his  not-quite-dead  wife  through  voodoo - but the  end  product  is  sunk  by  low  production  values  and  a  campy  approach. The  meta-joke  at  the  end  falls  flat  on  its  arse.

Wanda  McKay  ( as  Betty  Benton )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Wanda  gets  top  billing  among  the  females  but it's  a  lacklustre  performance.

Louise  Currie  (  as  Stella  Saunders )
  
Sex :  Pawed  at  by  Carradine 

Death : Survives

Louise  gives  a  much  livelier  performance  as  the  heroine's  best  mate.

Ellen  Hall  (  as  Evelyn  Marlowe )

Sex : No

Death : Expires, presumably  permanently, when  Lugosi  perishes

Ellen  was  from  L.A.  and  had  a  reasonably  successful  career  as  a  B-movie  actress  in  the  forties. She  retired  in  1951. She  died  in  1999  aged  76.

Terry  Walker  ( as  Alice )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

This  tiny  part  was  Terry's  last  film  appearance.

96 The Monster Maker (1944)

This  is  a  cheap  and  cheerful  effort  from  PRC  Studios but  it's  not  bad.

J  Carrol  Naish  is  a  charismatic  criminal  who  has  murdered  a  Dr  Markoff  , stolen  his  identity  and  carried  on  his  work  on  a  rare  distorting  disease  called  acromegaly. He has  murdered  his  wife  by  infecting  her  but  spurns  the  love  of  his  faithful  assistant  Martha. When  he  spots  a  girl who  looks  just  like  his  wife  he  goes  after  her  by  infecting  her  father, a  concert  pianist. None  of  this  is  very  logical  but  it's  enjoyable  with  some  good  special  effects. A  pity  about  the  man  in  the  ape  suit  though.

Tala  Birrell  ( as  Martha )

Sex : No  but  she  wears  a  sheer  nightgown.

Death : Survives

Tala  was  originally  Natalie  Bierle, a  Romanian  stage  actress  who'd  doubled  for  Marlene Dietrich  in  German  films. She  came  to  Hollywood  and  had  a  decent  career  which  was beginning  to  wind  down. She  died  of  cancer  in  1958  aged  50.

Wanda  McKay  ( as  Patricia  Lawrence )

Sex : Groped  by  Dr  Markoff

Death :  Survives

This  undemanding  role  came  around  the  half  way  point  in  Wanda's  career.

95 The Lady and the Monster ( 1944 )

This  is  real  B-movie  fare  , a  mash-up  of  body  horror science  fiction  and  crime  caper  and  not  convincing  as  either.

Sinister  Dr  Mueller  ( Erich  von  Stroheim )  has  designs  on  his  young  ward  Janice  Farrell  and  seeks  to  distract  his   hunky assistant  Dr  Cory   ( Richard  Arlen )  from  her  by  involving  him  in  experiments  to  keep  the  brain  alive  after  death. When  a  nearby  plane  crash  delivers  a  dying  man  to  his  lab,  Mueller  and  Cory  keep  the  brain  alive . However  it  belongs  to  a  murderous  crook  and  exerts  a  telepathic  hold  on  Cory  compelling  him  to  continue  his  plans.

Vera  Ralston  ( as  Janice )

Sex : Looks  great  in  a  very  tight  dress

Death : Survives

Vera's  original  surname  was  Hruba . She  was  born  in  Prague  and  became  an  international  figure  skater, competing  in  the  Munich  Olympics  where  she  claimed  to  have  met  and  insulted  Hitler. She  moved  to  the US  and  began  a  film  career   although  her  range  was  limited  by  her  accent.  In  1952  she  married  studio  head  Herbert  Yates  40  years  her  senior  and  inherited  his  estate  14  years  later  by  which  time  she'd  already  retired.  She  died  of  cancer  in  2003  aged  83.

Helen  Vinson  ( as  Chloe  Donovan )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Helen's  original  surname  was  Ruffs. She  was  coming  to  the  end  of  a  career  mostly  spent  playing  gangster's  molls  and  other  loose  women. She  had  been  married  to  tennis  legend  Fred  Perry  for  five  years. She  died  in  1999  aged  92.

Juanita  Quigley  ( as  Mary  Lou )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Despite  being  in  her  early  teens,  Juanita  was  also  in  the  twilight  of  her  career. After  making  her  last  film  in  1950,  she  became  a  nun  for  several  years  but  then  lost  her  vocation  and  got  married. She  has  guarded  her  privacy  carefully   since  then  and  lives  quietly in  Massachusetts,  now  aged  85.

Janet  Martin  ( as  cafe  singer  ) 

Sex  : No

Death :  Survives

Janet  was  originally  Valya  Terry, daughter  of  a  Russian  exile. She  was  a  singer  rather  than  an  actress  and  I'm  guessing  she  paid  to  be  in  the  film  as  her  appearance  has  bugger  all  to  do  with  the  story. She  may  be  still  alive.

Maxine  Doyle   ( as  Receptionist  )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Just  one  of  many  uncredited  roles  for  Maxine  as  her  career  withered  away,

94 Jungle Woman ( 1944 )

In  case  you  were  in  any  doubt  that  this  was  a  sequel  to  Captive  Wild  Woman , the  first  15  minutes  of  Jungle  Woman  are  a  helpful  resume  with  full  replays  of  the  climax  and  Milburn  Stone's  lion  taming  routine.

He  and  Evelyn  Ankers   resume  their  roles  though  only  as  cameos. Acquanetta  also  returns  as  the  woman/ gorilla  revived  by  well-meaning  Doctor  Fletcher  ( J  Carrol  Naish )   and  just  as  angry  and  jealous   as before.  The  change  in  setting  to  Fletcher's  sanatorium  and  a  couple  of  well-filmed  sequences  prevent  this  from  being  a  dull  re-hash  of  the  first  film.

Acquanetta  ( as  Paula  Dupree )

Sex : No, she's  more  covered  up  this  time  round

Death : By  an  overdose  of  sedative  in  a  struggle  with  Dr  Fletcher

Acquanetta  gets  more  screen  time  and  an  opportunity  to  speak  - not  necessarily  an  advantage  -  in  this  one.

Lois  Collier  ( as  Joan  Fletcher )

Sex : No

Death : No

The  new  girl  on  the  block  was  originally  Madellyn  Jones  from  South  Carolina, a  former  radio  actress. She  did  more  Westerns  than  horror. She  moved  into  TV  in  the  fifties  with  a  regular  role  in  Boston  Blackie  ( 1951-4 ). A  couple  of  divorces  helped  her  to  retire  from  acting  in  1957. She  died  in  1999  aged  80.

Evelyn  Ankers  ( as  Beth  Mason )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Evelyn's  completely  wasted  in  her  barely  necessary  cameo.

93 The Wolf Man ( 1941 )

This  one  is  out  of  sequence  because  I've  only  just  seen  it.

Lon  Chaney  Junior  plays  Larry  Talbot  son  of  the  local  squire ( Claude  Rains ) in  Llanwelly ( though  you'd  be  hard  pressed  to  spot  a  Welsh  accent  in  the  film )  who  returns  to  the ancestral  home. While  courting  a  local  beauty  he  intervenes  when  her  friend  is  attacked  by  a  wolf  and  kills  it  though  he  sustains  a  bite. He  then  learns  that  he  has  actually  killed  gypsy  fortune  teller  Bela  ( Lugosi  in  a  very  meagre  role )  and  now  he  too  will  become  a  werewolf.

The  film  is  marred  by  Ralph  Bellamy's  plot  resolution  at  the  end  which  makes  no  sense  at  all  but  otherwise  it's  a  worthy  addition  to  the  Universal  canon.

Evelyn  Ankers  ( as  Gwen  Conliffe )

Sex  : No

Death : Survives

It's  a  bit  hard  to  believe  that  Gwen  would  fall  for  bovine  Larry  when  he  admits  to  stalking  her  at  their  first   meeting  but  maybe  that  sort  of  behaviour  was  more  acceptable  then.

Fay  Helm  ( as   Jenny  Williams )

Sex : No

Death  :  Has  her  throat  torn  out  by  werewolf  Bela.

You  know  Jenny  is  doomed  from  the  moment  she  appears.

92 House of Frankenstein (1944 )

Universal's  follow-up  to  Frankenstein Meets  The  Wolf  Man  threw  in  more  of  its  monsters  for  an  ensemble  picture. The  same  went  for  its  actors  although, tellingly,  Bela  Lugosi  is  absent. Lionel  Atwill  and  George  Zucco  have  to  make  do  with  small  roles.

Boris  Karloff  tops  the  bill  as  evil  Dr  Niemann  who  idolises  Frankenstein  and  wishes  revenge  on  those  who  stopped  him  swapping  the  brains  of  dog  and  man. Aided  by  hunchbacked  sidekick  Daniel  ( J  Carrol  Naish ) , Niemann  kills  a   travelling  showman  ( Zucco )  whose  claim  to  have  the  skeleton  of  Dracula  turns  out  to  be  true. Niemann  uses  Dracula  ( John  Carradine )  to  exact  the  first  part  of  his  revenge  before  hurrying  on  to  Frankenstein's  castle  to  revive  the  Wolf  Man  (Lon  Chaney  Jr  again )  and  the  Monster  ( now  played  by  stuntman  Glenn  Strange ).

This  ensemble  picture  wasn't  that  well  received  and  I  don't  like  Carradine's  Dracula   but  it  moves  at  a  rollicking  pace  and  manages  to  work  in  a  bit  of  romance  along  the  way.

Anne  Gwynne   ( as  Rita  Hussman )

Sex :  No

Death : Survives

This   was  actually  Anne's  swansong  for  Universal.

Elena  Verdugo  ( as  Ilonka )

Sex :  Shows  a  bit  of  cleavage

Death :  Savaged  by  the  Wolf  Man  after  hesitating  to  kill  him

This   was  the  19  year  old's first  film  for  Universal  but  she  had  been  a  child  actress. She  made  a  career  playing  exotic  dancers  and  gypsies  in  B  movies  before  moving  across  to  TV  most  notably  in  Marcus  Welby  M.D.  in  which  she  had  a  regular  and  Emmy-winning  role. She  retired  from  acting  30  years ago  but  is  still  with  us  at  91.

91 Cry of the Werewolf ( 1944 )

This  promised  a  lot  with  an  attractive  actress  playing  a  female  werewolf  but  unfortunately  it's  a  dreary  plod,  neither  erotic  nor  ordinarily  exciting

A  Professor  Morris  ( Fritz  Leber  ) is  killed  in  a  museum  dedicated  to  infamous  werewolf  Marie  La  Tour  just  as  he's  about  to  announce  a  major  discovery. We  know  straight  away  that  the  culprit  is  Celeste,  a  gypsy  princess  who  is  really  Marie's  daughter, we  then  just  have  to  wait  for  the  police , Morris's  son  ( Stephen  Crane ) and  his  Transylvanian   girlfriend  Elsa  to  catch  up  and  it's  pretty  boring. Crane's  wooden  acting  doesn't  help.

Nina  Foch  ( as  Celeste )

Sex : No

Death : Gunned  down  by  the  police  as  a  wolf

Nina  doesn't  quite  cut  the  mustard  as  the  femme  fatale  here.

Osa  Massen  ( as   Elsa )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Osa  was  born  Aase  Iverson  in  Copenhagen  and  was  a  press  photographer  before  coming  to  Hollywood  in  1937.  She  had  a  good  decade  in  films,  despite  a  strong  accent,  before  switching  to  TV  in  the  fifties. She  gave  up  acting  in  the  early  sixties  but  served  on  the  foreign  film  selection  committee  for  the  Oscars. She  died  in  2006  aged  91.

90 The Seventh Victim ( 1943 )

This  is  a  flawed  but  very  intriguing  film  that  treads  the  borderline  between  horror  and  noir   prefiguring  both  The  Third  Man  and  Rosemary's  Baby.

Kim  Hunter  in  her  first  film  role  plays  Mary  Gibson , an  ingenue  fresh  out  of  school  due  to her  wealthy  sister  Jaqueline  ceasing  to  pay  her  fees  and  going  incommunicado. Mary  goes  to New  York  to  find  out  what  has  happened  and  encounters  a shadowy  world of  deceit,  murder  and  a  secret  occult society.

Contemporary  critics  were  rather  baffled  by  it  and  it's  undoubtedly  overambitious  ; the  aim  of the  writers  to  give  even  the  minor  characters  some  psychological  depth  takes  precedence  over  a  smooth  narrative  flow  and some  important  events  go  unexplained. Nevertheless  it  remains  gripping  down  to  its  ultra-bleak  ending.

Kim  Hunter  ( as  Mary  Gibson )

Sex : She's  in  a  very  creepy  shower scene  but  only  from  the  shoulder  blades  up

Death :  Survives

Kim  was  originally  Janice  Cole  from  Detroit. Her  star  quickly  rose  after  this  and  she  starred  with  David  Niven  in  A  Matter  of  Life  and  Death  in  1946. She  won  a  Best  Supporting  Actress  Oscar in  1951  for  A  Streetcar  Named  Desire   but  thereafter  fell  foul  of   McCarthy.  She  successfully  resumed  her  career   on  TV   in  the  late  fifties  then  enjoyed  another  burst  of  fame  playing  Dr  Zira  in  the  first  three  films  in  the  Planet  of  the  Apes  franchise. She  died  in  2002  aged  79.

Jean  Brooks  ( as  Jacqueline  Gibson )

Sex :  No

Death : Commits  suicide  by  hanging

We've  already  met  Jean  in  The  Crime  of  Dr  Crespi  when  she  was  known  as  Jeanne  Kelly. She's  only  really  in  the  last  quarter  of  the  film  but  makes  a  big  impression.

Isabel  Jewell  ( as  Frances )

Sex :  Although  Frances  mentions  a  boyfriend,  there  are  strong  hints  she's  attracted  to  both  sisters

Death : Survives

Isabel  was   an  experienced  actress  who   usually  played  trashy  women,  most  notably  in  Gone  With  The  Wind.  Her  film  career  had  petered  out  by  the  end  of  the  forties  but  she   was  busy  on  TV  in  the  fifties  and  was  still  acting  up  to  her  death  in  1972  aged  64.

Elisabeth  Russsell  ( as  Mimi )

Sex : No

Death : Mimi  claims  to  be  dying  but  she's  still  alive  at  the  film's  close.

Elisabeth's  role  here  is  only  a  cameo but  it's  a  memorable  one.

Marianne  Mosner  ( as  Miss  Rowan )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Marianne   was  born  in  Germany  and  had  a  very  brief  acting  career in  the  early  forties. She  was  much  more  successful  writing  for  TV  with  credits  spanning  20  years. She  died  in  1988  aged  76.

Joan  Barclay  ( as  Gladys )

Sex :  She  hints  at  some  debauchery  with  Jacqueline

Death : Survives

Joan   was  also  in  The  Corpse  Vanishes .

Eve  March  ( as  Miss  Gilchrist )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Eve  was  a  bit  part  actress  from  Fresno. She  died  in  1974  aged  63.

Sarah  Selby  ( as  Miss  Gottschalk )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Sarah  was  only  a  bit  part  actress   in  films   but  had  over  100  TV  credits  on  her  death  in  1980  aged  74.

Ann  Summers  ( as  Ward's  Secretary )  

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Ann  was  another  bit  part  actress  who  went  over  to  TV. In  her  case  she  left  acting  in  the  mid-fifties  but  was  active  again  in  the  four  years  before  her  death  in  1974  aged  54.
 

89 Revenge of the Zombies ( 1943 )

This  isn't  so  much  a  sequel  as  a  re-make  of  King  of  the  Zombies  and  unfortunately  even  less  entertaining. Mantan  Moreland  returns  as  Jeff  serving  a  different  master  and  Madame  Sul-Te-Wan  returns  in  a  similar  role.

John  Carradine  plays  Max  Altermann , a  mad  scientist  creating  zombies  for  use  by  the  Nazis including  his  wife  Lila.  Bela  Lugosi  showed  good  judgement  in  declining  the  role. A  group of   US  agents  go  undercover  to  thwart  him. The  film  is  so  cheap  and  crass  that  Bob  Steele's character  is  just  "Agent "  despite  being  a  significant  speaking  role  and  many  of  the characters'  knowledge  and  motivations  go  unexplained.

Gale  Storm  ( as  Jennifer  Rand )  

Sex :  No

Death : Survives

Gale  was  originally  Josephine  Cottle  from  Texas  and  came  to  Hollywood  through  a  radio  talent  contest. After  a  non-descript  film  career  in  the  forties  she  switched  to  television  in  the  fifties  with  great  success  , having  her  own  sitcom  between  1956  and  1960. She  also  started  a  recording  career  with  some  success. She  had  a  lost  couple  of  decades  due  to  alcoholism  but  survived  to  raise  awareness  of  the  issue  and  take  the  occasional  TV  role. She  died  in  2009  aged  87.

Veda  Ann  Borg  ( as  Lila  Altermann )

Sex  :  No 

Death : Well  she's  already  dead  when  the  film  opens  but  she  later  drowns  herself  and  her  husband  in  a  swamp.

Veda  was  a  former  model  from  New  York  of  limited  talent  but  steely  determination  who  made  a   successful  comeback  after  a  car  accident  in  1939  left  her  requiring  extensive  facial  reconstruction. She  worked  hard  and  made  over  100  films  before  crossing  over  into  TV  in  the  fifties. She  died  of  cancer  in  1973  aged  58.

Sybil  Lewis  ( as  Rosella )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Sybil  appeared  in  ten  films, all  in  the  forties. Not  much  is  known  about  her.

88 The Return of the Vampire ( 1943 )

This  is  a  Dracula  film  in  all  but  name  - because  Universal  held  the  copyright  and  this  was  made  by  Columbia  - and  it's  a  good  one.

Bela  Lugosi  plays  Armand  Tesla, a  European  vampire  with  a  predilection  for  young  women. After  attacking  a  child  called  Nicki  in  London, 1918,  her  grandfather  Dr  Saunders  ( Gilbert  Emery ) and  his  colleague  Lady  Jane  Ainsley  ( Frieda  Inescourt )  slay  him  in  a  church  yard  and reclaim  his  werewolf  servant  Andreas   ( Matt  Willis )  for  humanity. Twenty  years  later,  the Luftwaffe  bombs  disturb  his  grave  and  he  comes  after  Nikki  again.

Lady  Jane  fails  to  recognise  Tesla  when  he  returns, posing  as  a  refugee  doctor  and  neither she  nor  Andreas  have  aged  enough  in  the  interval  but  otherwise  it's  a  nicely  atmospheric chiller  with  good  performances  all  round.

Nina  Foch  ( as  Nicki )  

Sex :  No  ( beyond  the  usual  caveat  about  the  symbolism  of  vampire  attacks )

Death : Survives

This  was  only  the  second  film  for  19-year  old  Nina  from  Holland. She  had  a  strong  career  with  an  Oscar  nomination  for  Executive  Suite  in  1954. From  the  late  fifties  on,  she  appeared  in  fewer  films  and  moved  more  into  television. She  also  worked  as  an  acting  coach  and  stage  director. She  was  still  acting  on  TV  until  right  up  to  her  death  in  2008  aged  84.

Jeanne  Bates  ( as  Miss  Norcutt  )

Sex : No

Death :  From  blood  loss and  shock  at  the  vampire's  return

Though  slightly  older, Jeanne  was also  appearing  in  only  her  second  film. Before  that  she  was  a  model  and  radio  actress.  Though  never  more  than  a  supporting  actress  , Jeanne  also   had  a  long  career  in   television. She  died  in  2007  aged  89.

 Sherlee  Collier  ( as  young  Nicki )

The  South  African  child  actress  appeared  in  just  11  films, mainly  in  uncredited  roles. She  died  in  1972   aged  35.

87 The Mysterious Doctor ( 1943 )

This  is  a  decent  little  wartime  thriller . It  does  qualify  as  a  horror  pic  despite  having  a  Scooby Doo-ish  non-supernatural  ending. It  was  made  in  Hollywood  but  is  set  in  Cornwall  and  has  a  convincingly  British  feel.

Lester  Matthews  plays  the  titular  doctor  who  comes  to  a  village  inn  at  night   supposedly  as  part  of  a  walking  holiday  but  really  to  investigate  a  tin  mine  which  isn't  running  because  a  headless  ghost  lurks  there. When  he  is  killed  a  plucky  local  girl  and  young  army  officer  take  up  where he  left  off.

It  does  suffer  a  bit  from  Talking  Killer  Syndrome  but  otherwise  it's  good  stuff

Eleanor  Parker  ( as  Letty  Carstairs ) 

Sex : No  but  she  wears  a  thin  nightie

Death : Survives

Eleanor,  from  Ohio, was  at  the  beginning of  an  illustrious  career  which  didn't  include  much horror  but  did  garner  three  Oscar  nominations  at  different times. Her  last  major  role  was  The Baroness  in  The  Sound  Of  Music  , after  which  she  went  into  television. She  died  in  2013  aged  91.

Phyllis  Barry  ( as  Ruby )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Phyllis  actually  was  British, originally  Gertrude  Hillyard  from  Leeds. She  became  a  dancer  in  Australia  and  came  to  Hollywood  in  the  1930s. She  got   a  co-starring role  opposite  Ronald  Colman  in  Cynara  ( 1932 )  but  after  that  flopped  she  was  quickly  relegated  to  supporting  roles. Her  last  role  came  in  1947  and  seven  years  later  she  committed  suicide  with  an  overdose  of  barbiturates aged  45/

86 The Mad Ghoul ( 1943 )

This  is  an  interesting  film  which  manages  to  remain  engaging  despite  some  enormous  plot  holes.

George  Zucco  plays  mad  Dr  Morris  who  involves  one  of  his  students  Ted  Allison ( David Bruce ) in  his  experiments  on  apes  with  an  ancient  nerve  gas  that  was  used  to  turn  people into  zombies. However  Morris  has  another  passion, Ted's  fiancee  Isabel  a  popular  singer,  and decides  to  use  the  gas  to  get  Ted  out  of  the  way. Isabel  on  the  other  hand  wants  to  be  free of  Ted  to  be  with  her  pianist  Eric ( Turhan  Bey ). How  this  romantic  quadrangle  plays  out  is actually  more  interesting  than  the  contrived  horror  element  and  there's  good  support  from  Milburn  Stone  as  a  police  detective  and  King  Kong's  Robert  Armstrong  as  a  crime  reporter.

Evelyn  Ankers ( as  Isabel  Lewis )

Sex  : No

Death : Survives

Evelyn   gets  to  do  a  bit  more  acting  in  this  one  although  not  singing  as  her  "voice"  was supplied  by  Lillian  Cornell.

Rose  Hobart  ( as  Della )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

This  marked  Rose's  return  to  horror  for  the  first  time  since  the  1931  version  of  Dr  Jekyll  and  Mr  Hyde.