JERICHO, NY, September 4, 2002 – "It's alive! It's alive!" Beginning Monday, October 28, AMC celebrates the ultimate man-made monster with a day-long tribute to the creature that started it all – Frankenstein – during Monsterfest 24/7. Frankenstein's most memorable moments, from the genre-making Universal titles of the '30s and '40s to the '80s spin offs on the legend, are featured during this year's festival. AMC's Frankenstein marathon is one of five mini-fests dedicated to monsters past and present to air during the 7-day, 154-hour Halloween scare-fest.
AMC's Frankenstein fright-night begins on Monday at 12:00 AM with FRANKENSTEIN (1931). In the Universal classic, Dr. Frankenstein (Colin Clive) and his hunch-backed assistant Fritz steal body parts from a graveyard to assemble a "man" (Boris Karloff), who is brought to life with a jolt of electricity. The trouble starts when they realize their monster has been inadvertently given a criminal's brain. The version in Monsterfest 24/7 includes once-banned footage that has recently been edited back into the film, including the controversial drowning of a little girl (repeat 2:30 PM).
Following at 1:30 AM is BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935), the sequel that takes over where the original FRANKENSTEIN (1931) left off. The injured Dr. Frankenstein (Colin Clive) is reluctantly persuaded into helping Dr. Pretorius (Ernest Theisger) to create a bride for the Frankenstein monster, once again played by Boris Karloff. Elsa Lanchester plays the hissing bride with electric hair who rejects her mate, inspiring yet another rampage (repeat 4:00 PM).
AMC airs the third feature in Universal's Frankenstein series, and the last to feature Boris Karloff as the monster, SON OF FRANKENSTEIN (1939) at 2:00 AM. Set 25 years after THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935), it has Dr. Frankenstein's son, Wolf, meeting up with his father's assistant, Igor (Bela Lugosi). The son's goal is to clear the family name by bringing the monster back to life, in a positive, friendly incarnation. Unfortunately, for Frankenstein Jr. and the villagers, things don't go as planned (repeat 12:15 PM).
AMC's Frankenstein fest continues with THE EVIL OF FRANKENSTEIN (1694) at 4:30 AM, Dr. Frankenstein revives the monster, found frozen in an ice cave. Mesmerist Zoltan (Peter Woodthorpe) is called upon to reactivate the creature's (Kiwi Kingston) damaged brain with hypnotism. Being evil, Zoltan takes control and uses the lumbering monster to kill his enemies (repeat 10:15 AM).
To lighten the mood, AMC will air ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN (1948) at 6:30 AM. In traditional Abbot and Costello style, this film offers a comical approach to the monster tale, with a slew of monster staples taking part in the mayhem. During this horror-comedy tale, Dracula (Bela Lugosi) plans to turn Lou Costello's brain into the Frankenstein monster while Werewolf (Lou Chaney) has his paws full convincing the duo that they're in danger.
At 8:15 AM, AMC offers the teenage-monster movie, FRANKENSTEIN'S DAUGHTER (1958). This time, Oliver Frankenstein (Donald Murphy), another descendent of the original doctor, makes a creature with half its face melted away. He also uses drugs to turn a girl (Sandra Knight) into a buck-toothed monster.
Culminating AMC's salute, airing at 5:30 PM, is THE BRIDE (1984), a reworking of THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935), where the infamous Dr. Frankenstein (Sting) brings to life the perfect, bandage-swathed woman (Jennifer Beals) as a mate for his cruder first effort, the giant monster (Clancy Brown), who this time is a simple and lovable outcast – better fit for a husband.
AMC's Monsterfest 24/7 is a 7-day, 154-hour-long Halloween marathon that is the ultimate television destination for monster movies and themed original programming. The October 25 – 31 event features over 40 films, spanning seven decades – from classic Universal titles like FRANKENSTEIN, MUMMY and DRACULA that launched the genre in the '30s to more modern movies like FRIGHT NIGHT, PREDATOR 2 and HALLOWEEN 4-5.
AMC is a premiere 24-hour movie network dedicated to the world of American film. With one of the finest, most comprehensive libraries of popular films, and a diverse blend of original series, documentaries, and interstitials, AMC offers an elegant and contemporary entertainment destination. AMC is a fully distributed network reaching over 83,000,000 U.S. homes (as of July 2002) and ranking #16 in size among all 55 networks.
Since its launch in 1984, AMC has been dedicated to deepening the movie experience for its viewers, featuring film-loving celebrity hosts and an increasingly visible, critically acclaimed slate of original programming. AMC has more than doubled its original programming over the past 3 years and garnered many of the industry's highest honors, including seven Emmy awards.
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*All times Eastern/Pacific.