Movies that were NOT released as part of the Shock Theater film packages
by tharrx | created - 09 Jul 2011 | updated - 1 month ago | PublicIn the late '50s, Screen Gems released dozens of Universal horror films on TV via the Shock Theater and Son of Shock film packages. (Some Columbia Horror films were included in the Son of Shock Package as well.)
Though the packages were padded with non-horror thrillers like Danger Woman and the Man Who Cried Wolf, a number of films from 1931 to 1946 (the years covered by the Shock packages) were not included.
Not all of these films are pure horror films, but most would have been more welcome late night viewing than Chinatown Squad or Reported Missing.
Some of the films were probably considered to "classy" to be part of the package. Some might have already been released on another package. Some might have been missing, overlooked, or lacking a decent print.
In any case, here are some notable Universal films that were not released as part of the Shock packages.
NOTE: This list doesn't include any of the many Paramount films (like Island of Lost Souls or The Monster and the Girl) which MCA purchased in 1958. None were ever included in a Shock film package, possibly because MCA did not take over Universal until 1962.
The list also does not include films that Universal lost the rights to, like The Old Dark House and Life Returns.
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1. The Man Who Reclaimed His Head (1934)
Approved | 80 min | Drama, Mystery
A brilliant but impoverished writer, who is a pacifist, goes to work for a publisher and writes anti-war editorials. When he discovers that the publisher has betrayed him and is in league ... See full summary »
Director: Edward Ludwig | Stars: Claude Rains, Joan Bennett, Lionel Atwill, Juanita Quigley
Votes: 196
More of a "message" picture with horrific overtones. Plus there might have been legal issues, but I'm not sure.
2. Tower of London (1939)
Approved | 92 min | Drama, History
In the 15th century Richard Duke of Gloucester, aided by his club-footed executioner Mord, eliminates those ahead of him in succession to the throne, then occupied by his brother King ... See full summary »
Director: Rowland V. Lee | Stars: Basil Rathbone, Boris Karloff, Barbara O'Neil, Ian Hunter
Votes: 2,230
This costumer was probably reserved for another film package.
3. The Invisible Woman (1940)
Approved | 72 min | Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi
An attractive model with an ulterior motive volunteers as guinea pig for an invisibility machine.
Director: A. Edward Sutherland | Stars: Virginia Bruce, John Barrymore, John Howard, Charles Ruggles
Votes: 3,356
The Columbia comedy "The Boogie Man Will Get You" made into the Son of Shock package, but no other comedies made the cut, not even this one.
4. The Black Cat (1941)
Passed | 70 min | Comedy, Mystery
Elderly Henrietta Winslow lives in an isolated mansion with her housekeeper and beloved cats. As her health fails, her greedy relatives gather in anticipation of her death.
Director: Albert S. Rogell | Stars: Basil Rathbone, Hugh Herbert, Broderick Crawford, Bela Lugosi
Votes: 2,082
This is a curious omission. Perhaps someone didn't realize there was more than one Black Cat film in the Universal vault.
5. Invisible Agent (1942)
Passed | 81 min | Action, Adventure, Romance
The Invisible Man's grandson uses his secret formula to spy on Nazi Germany.
Director: Edwin L. Marin | Stars: Ilona Massey, Jon Hall, Peter Lorre, Cedric Hardwicke
Votes: 2,654
Admittedly, not a horror movie. But it was firmly part of the Invisible Man series, and should have been included.
6. Flesh and Fantasy (1943)
Approved | 94 min | Drama, Fantasy, Mystery
An anthology of three loosely connected occult tales, with ironic and romantic twists.
Director: Julien Duvivier | Stars: Edward G. Robinson, Charles Boyer, Barbara Stanwyck, Betty Field
Votes: 1,151
More romantic than horrorific, even if it was about the supernatural.
7. Phantom of the Opera (1943)
Approved | 92 min | Drama, Horror, Music
An acid-scarred composer rises from the Paris sewers to boost his favorite opera understudy's career.
Director: Arthur Lubin | Stars: Nelson Eddy, Susanna Foster, Claude Rains, Edgar Barrier
Votes: 8,305 | Gross: $3.49M
This technicolor extravaganza was probably saved for a fancier film package.
8. The Climax (1944)
Passed | 86 min | Horror, Music, Thriller
A demented physician becomes obsessed with a young singer whose voice sounds similar to his late mistress.
Director: George Waggner | Stars: Boris Karloff, Susanna Foster, Turhan Bey, Gale Sondergaard
Votes: 1,036
Another technicolor extravaganza too good for the Shock packages.
9. Destiny (1944)
Approved | 65 min | Crime, Drama, Fantasy
Bank robbers Cliff Banks and Sam Baker go their separate ways while being chased by the law. Now fleeing alone, Cliff begins to reflect, via flashback, on the various events and unsavory ... See full summary »
Directors: Reginald Le Borg, Julien Duvivier | Stars: Gloria Jean, Alan Curtis, Frank Craven, Grace McDonald
Votes: 200
This started out as part of the Flesh and Fantasy anthology, and thus is also not horror as Universal fans usually define it.
10. Ghost Catchers (1944)
Approved | 68 min | Comedy, Music, Romance
Two zanies get mixed up with a Southern colonel, his beautiful daughters, a nightclub and a haunted mansion.
Director: Edward F. Cline | Stars: Ole Olsen, Chic Johnson, Gloria Jean, Martha O'Driscoll
Votes: 204
No Universal comedies ever made it into the Shock film packages, no matter how supernatural the plot elements were.
11. Jungle Woman (1944)
Approved | 61 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
Paula the ape woman (Acquanetta) is alive and well, and running around a creepy old sanitarium run by the kindly Dr. Fletcher (J. Carrol Naish), also reverting to her true gorilla form every once in a while to kill somebody.
Director: Reginald Le Borg | Stars: Evelyn Ankers, J. Carrol Naish, Samuel S. Hinds, Lois Collier
Votes: 547
This must be the most curious omission on the list. The first and third films in the trilogy made it into the package, so why not this one? My guess is it was mistaken for a "Tarzan" type film based on its name.
12. Murder in the Blue Room (1944)
61 min | Comedy, Crime, Film-Noir
A party is thrown at a haunted mansion, people start to die, and a man who spent a night in the "blue room" disappears.
Director: Leslie Goodwins | Stars: Anne Gwynne, Donald Cook, John Litel, Grace McDonald
Votes: 395
This is a musical-comedy remake of Secret of the Blue Room, which was included in the Shock package, so I guess they figured it would be redundant.
13. Strange Confession (1945)
Passed | 62 min | Crime, Drama, Horror
A scientist who is working on a cure for influenza is victimized by his unscrupulous boss, who releases the vaccine before it's ready, resulting in tragedy.
Director: John Hoffman | Stars: Lon Chaney Jr., Brenda Joyce, J. Carrol Naish, Milburn Stone
Votes: 736
This is the only "Inner Sanctum" movie not to be included in the Shock film packages, perhaps because it leaned more towards melodrama. I also heard it might have been the subject of legal wrangling because of its alleged similarities to the Man Who Reclaimed His Head.
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