Tonight on MeTV- we bring you an iconic horror star in what was the Warner Bros. Studios only dip into the horror genre in the 1940s- and was the final film for the studio of the star himself- as Peter Lorre faces mystery, murder, and- the “Beast with Five Fingers”!
This 1946 chiller introduces us to brilliant pianist Francis Ingram who lives in near isolation in his Italian manor. Though he has suffered a stroke that has paralyzed half his body, he can still play the piano masterfully, with special arrangements playable with only one hand. Young Bruce Conrad, who also makes money by selling phony antiques to tourists, arranges these pieces.
Ingram, confined to a wheelchair, is cared for by his lovely nurse Julie, whom he is obsessed with- though, unbeknownst to him, Julie is in love with Conrad. Also in the manor is Ingram’s personal secretary Hilary, whose own obsession is astrology- which he feeds by using Ingram’s vast personal library to research what he feels will reveal lost secrets of incredible power. Finding out that Ingram has changed his will, leaving everything to Julie, makes Hilary think that will take him away from the library and his research- but, when he attempts to reveal to his boss the truth about who Julie actually cares for, Ingram grabs him by the throat- only to be stopped when Julie enters the room!
Then- on a dark and stormy night- strange circumstances bring about Ingram’s demise. The local police commissario pronounces it an accident. His passing also brings a relative and his son, who question the legality of the new will that cuts them out of any inheritance- but Ingram’s sneaky attorney feels he can overturn the new will- in exchange for part of the inheritance!
He ends up getting something quite different and far more unpleasant than an inheritance- and the race is on to find Ingram’s original will, which must be somewhere in the house. Things get more unnerving that night, when the household hears Ingram’s piano playing! We soon see a disembodied hand – and learn where it seems to have come from- while the search goes on for the original will, and Hilary tries to convince everyone that he has encountered this five-fingered horror! Will the deadly digits be discovered-or will they go on a strangling spree?
Please note that we have avoided some spoilers here- and ask that comment posters do the same, James Arness not withstanding ( yes, I’ll get in trouble for mentioning that), or your posts may be deleted. This movie certainly benefits from Peter Lorre’s creepy performance as Hilary- with supporting cast members like Robert Alda ( yes, Alan’s dad) and J. Carrol Naish. We’ll talk about them and other actors appearing in the film, have the finger put on the hand’s supposed other work, and bring you a new song. Due to the length of the movie, we will again minimize the Sven content in order to bring you more of the film.
“Beast with Five Fingers” inches onto your screen tonight at 8 pm eastern/pacific, 7 central. Not sure where to find it in your area? Just check your local listings or at www.metv.com . Live-tweeting during the show on Twitter has had our program trending among the most posted about topics, and MeTV invites you to join in, using the hashtag #svengoolie. Saturday morning means an encore of “Leech Woman” on our main local station, CW26, at 11- leaving you the chance to watch the Saturday Morning Cartoons earlier on MeTV. We’re happy to see that so many of you have tuned in “Toon In With Me” weekday mornings- if you haven’t joined Bill, Toony the Tuna, and some of the most fun cartoons ever- catch up with them Monday through Friday at 7 eastern, 6 central time.
Let your fingers do the walking on your TV remote tonight to bring you to MeTV for what is, hands down, one of the eeriest movies in Peter Lorre’s resume!
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Took a lunch ride on the bike the other day a saw this at a gas station. Can anyone tell me what its for ? Did they used to get cigarettes out of it ?
"The back country of the Amazon contains 50,000 miles of unexplored water-ways. Who can say what may be living in that jungle ...."
Movie watchers can say
... Dinosaurs on a remote plateau
... A beast named Curucu
... Army ants stripping a jungle naked
... Green skinned Amazons who capture love slaves
... Lousy self-published book covers
and
... A creature in a black lagoon.
On the Amazon, the epiglottis fight
On the Amazon, the hemispheres at night all slink where the agnostics drink
On The Amazon, Don McLean
I always thought it was a Tom Lehrer song, it's certainly his style.
Besides playing Duprex the lawyer in the movie and the floating head in the crystal ball in the pre-credits of all but one of Universal's Inner Sanctum mysteries, David Hoffman also appeared in the 1943 multi-story FLESH AND FANTASY, released by Universal. Not quite a horror movie (although the stories do touch on elements of the supernatural), it starred such noteworthy names as Charles Boyer, Barbara Stanwyck, and Edward G. Robinson.
The other is a humorous story about Peter Lorre that was recounted on an A and E Biography special. Perhaps our resident classic radio expert, the Kodak Kid knows about it. During a radio broadcast adaptation of THE BLACK CAT, Lorre got so into his role that his front dentures flew out of his mouth. The actor grabbed the choppers in mid-air and quickly reinserted them, never missing a beat or his next line!
Concerning the 1960 version of The Hands of Orlac, which starred Mel Ferrer, and co-starred Christopher Lee, I found a, hopefully, interesting bit of trivia. Not to get spoiler-y, but in this movie the person lost his hands in a plane crash-and the actor who played the pilot of the plane was David Peel. Mr. Peel, of course, portrays vampire that is the Dracula substitute in the movie, Brides of Dracula-the sequel to The Horror of Dracula that Christopher Lee chose to pass on when it came to reprising his role as Dracula.
In re the Lorre sound alike:
"I can't stand it, I tell you, this is driving me sane!"
Spike Jones radio: the opposite of gaslighting?
The Creature From the Black Lagoon is one of my favorites.
Have a Great Day & Take Care!!
"The Creature from
the Black Lagoon" 🐸
A great classic to
watch with you all!
🍿📺🍿📺🍿📺🍿📺
What would be a
great dinner 🐟 I
think Fish & Chips
for tomorrow 🤔
Have a very nice
Friday 💙🤖💙
Peter Lorre actually did sing in one movie, _Was Frauen Traümen_ (1933). He appeared to accompany himself (and Nora Gregor), but when the camera had a clear view of the keyboard he wasn’t actually striking the keys. Yes, it’s a song about cute policemen!
https://youtu.be/tyO7O1zRRRI?t=2370
Spike Jones radio: the opposite of gaslighting?
(At least she's not a Buckeye! Talk about a mixed marriage, that'd be as bad as a MacDonald and a Campbell!)
