Return of the Ape Man

Return of the Ape Man is a 1944 American film distributed by Monogram Pictures.^[1][2] It was directed by Philip Rosen with top-billed star Bela Lugosi^[3] and supporting actors John Carradine, George Zucco (see note in the Production section), Frank Moran, Judith Gibson and Michael Ames.^[4]

Return of the Ape Man
Directed by	Philip Rosen
Screenplay by	Robert Charles (uncredited)
Produced by	Sam Katzman Jack Dietz
Starring	Bela Lugosi
Cinematography	Marcel LePicard
Edited by	Carl Pierson
Music by	Edward Kay (musical director)
Production company	Banner Productions
Distributed by	Monogram Pictures Corporation
Release date	June 24, 1944 (1944-06-24)
Running time	61 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Plot

Two professors find a prehistoric caveman frozen in ice during an Arctic expedition. Professor Dexter (Bela Lugosi) and Professor John Gilmore (John Carradine) bring the frozen exhibit back home and soon devise a plan. They want to implant a more evolved brain into the caveman, with hopes of being able to control and utilize him.

Cast

• Bela Lugosi as Professor Dexter
• John Carradine as Professor John Gilmore
• George Zucco and Frank Moran as Ape Man
• Judith Gibson as Anne
• Michael Ames as Steve
• Mary Currier as Mrs. Gilmore
• Ed Chandler as Sergeant
• Ernie Adams as Tramp

Uncredited

• George Eldredge as Patrolman on beat
• Horace B. Carpenter as Theater watchman

Production

The working title for the film was 'Revenge of the Ape Man'. Production took place early in October 1943 and the film was released on 24 June 1944.^[5]

Cast notes

Credits for the role of the Ape Man

George Zucco is co-credited on screen and in the publicity, along with Moran,^[5] as having played the Ape Man. At the onset of the laboratory scene where Prof. Dexter (Lugosi) and Gilmore (Carradine) are preparing to melt the caveman free from the block of ice, Zucco is shown in the Ape Man makeup - albeit briefly. Zucco's prominent nose, as well as his injured and withered left arm/hand (from a WWI injury) are clearly visible facing the camera. The shot (lasting only a few seconds in total) then switches away from the Ape Man. When it returns again to the same shot, Moran has replaced Zucco.^[6] The producers later explained Zucco became ill during the filming and kept his footage as a cost-saving measure while using Moran as a replacement actor for the remainder of the film.

Other

Frank Leigh is also credited by certain modern sources^[5] for the character of Long Shot.^[1]

References

1. "Three Good Returns on Next Week's Bill at the Strand" (Lewiston Journal Magazine Section, June 17, 1944, p.A–5)
2. "Tuesday and Wednesday / Bela Lugosi and John Carradine in "Return of the Ape Man" / If you have the nerve and your heart can take it, come on and see this one" (Kentucky New Era, December 30, 1946, Page Seven)
3. "MENACE / Bela Lugosi is behind all the evil doings in "Return of the Ape Man" at the Barry" (The Pittsburgh Press, July 9, 1944, Page 24)
4. "WALTER WINCHELL ON BROADWAY / Notes of An Innocent Bystander / "Return of the Ape Man" sells gooseflesh wholesale. Lugosi is up to his old bogey-mantics—but the yarn is haunted by the ghosts of dead scripts..." (St. Petersburg Times, July 25, 1944, p.16)
5. "AFI|Catalog". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
6. MANIA, MOVIES and (March 4, 2022). "RETURN OF THE APE MAN (1944) Reviews and overview". MOVIES and MANIA. Retrieved March 21, 2023.

External links

• Return of the Ape Man at IMDb
• Return of the Ape Man at the TCM Movie Database