Arsenic & Old Lace is a 1969 American television film directed by Robert Scheerer and starring Helen Hayes, Lillian Gish, Fred Gwynne, Sue Lyon, Jack Gilford and David Wayne.[1] It is an adaptation of Joseph Kesselring's 1939 play Arsenic and Old Lace. The production was shot on color videotape before a live audience. Inserts of outside action that were shot on film were added to the production for the April 2, 1969 broadcast.[2][3]
| Arsenic and Old Lace | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Black comedy |
| Based on | Arsenic and Old Lace by Joseph Kesselring |
| Screenplay by | Luther Davis |
| Directed by | Robert Scheerer |
| Starring | |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Producers |
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| Cinematography |
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| Editors |
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| Running time | 90 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC |
| Release | April 2, 1969 |
The story is a black comedy in which drama critic Mortimer Brewster (Crane) discovers that his two elderly spinster aunts Abby and Martha (Hayes and Gish, respectively), who live in a house in Brooklyn, have been poisoning their lonely male guests.
Fred Gwynne of Munsters fame played Jonathan Brewster, the role originated on Broadway by Boris Karloff, the star of the 1931 horror classic Frankenstein. Karloff was famous for playing Frankenstein's monster, on which Gwynne's character of Herman Munster was modeled. Jonathan Brewster is described by the other characters as resembling Karloff, who had played the role on television once before, in a 1955 adaptation for the CBS anthology series The Best of Broadway.[4]
The 1969 version was updated to contemporary times by having Crane's character meet Sue Lyon in a discotheque at the beginning.[5]
Cast
edit| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Helen Hayes | Abby Brewster |
| Bob Crane | Mortimer Brewster |
| Lillian Gish | Martha Brewster |
| Fred Gwynne | Jonathan Brewster |
| Sue Lyon | Elaine Dodd |
| David Wayne | Teddy Brewster |
| Jack Gilford | Dr. Jonas Salk |
| Bob Dishy | Officer Sampson |
| Richard Deacon | Mr. Benner, the family lawyer |
| Billy De Wolfe | Mr. Witherspoon, the superintendent of Happydale |
Reception
editThe 1969 televised version of Arsenic & Old Lace was not well received by critics. It is not available on any medium, other than a bootleg 16mm black and white copy posted on YouTube.com.
References
edit- ^ "Arsenic and Old Lace". avclub.com. AV Club. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
- ^ Mank, Gregory William (2014). The Very Witching Time of Night: Dark Alleys of Classic Horror Cinema. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co. p. 211. ISBN 978-0786449552.
- ^ "Arsenic and Old Lace (1969) - Serial TV". www.cinemagia.ro. Cinemagia. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
- ^ Nixon, Rob. "The Big Idea Behind Arsenic and Old Lace". TCM. Retrieved April 5, 2017.
- ^ Hall, Phil. "The Bootleg Files: Arsenic and Old Lace". Cinema-Crazed.com. Cinema Crazed. Retrieved August 4, 2023.