Frankie Howerd had a career renaissance several years before he died. However some years after his death he was exposed as a sex pest.
Howerd had hidden his homosexuality when he was alive. After he died, many men, some of them who became famous in later years would tell how Howerd would claim to have a bad back. He would then ask them to rub ointment on his back, soon exposing himself.
I saw The House in Nightmare Park several times as a kid. Made by EMI, it is a step up in quality from his other films. The low budget Carry Ons and movie versions of his television character Lurkalot.
Set in 1907. Howerd plays hammy actor Foster Twelvetrees invited by Stewart Hendersen (Ray Milland) to perform for his family at their stately Gothic mansion.
Foster is happy to oblige for the money. However the Hendersen family are rather sinister with an unhealthy interest in the Hindu goddess Kali ma. Foster is in fact the heir to a family fortune. He might also know the whereabouts of some hidden diamonds.
Soon people start to die and someone is trying to bump off Foster so others in the Henderson family can inherit.
This is an old dark house comedy mystery with shades of Psycho with a host of sinister characters and blustering idiots. If you are scared of snakes then you might want to avoid it.
It is amusingly quirky and silly. Howerd is served with a decent enough script. This probably was the last time that Milland made a movie in his native Britain.
John Bennett plays the Indian manservant Patel. I am not sure why he was the go to guy for ethnic parts. Bennett's most notorious part these days was playing the Chinese hypnotist Li H'sen Chang in Doctor Who.
Howerd had hidden his homosexuality when he was alive. After he died, many men, some of them who became famous in later years would tell how Howerd would claim to have a bad back. He would then ask them to rub ointment on his back, soon exposing himself.
I saw The House in Nightmare Park several times as a kid. Made by EMI, it is a step up in quality from his other films. The low budget Carry Ons and movie versions of his television character Lurkalot.
Set in 1907. Howerd plays hammy actor Foster Twelvetrees invited by Stewart Hendersen (Ray Milland) to perform for his family at their stately Gothic mansion.
Foster is happy to oblige for the money. However the Hendersen family are rather sinister with an unhealthy interest in the Hindu goddess Kali ma. Foster is in fact the heir to a family fortune. He might also know the whereabouts of some hidden diamonds.
Soon people start to die and someone is trying to bump off Foster so others in the Henderson family can inherit.
This is an old dark house comedy mystery with shades of Psycho with a host of sinister characters and blustering idiots. If you are scared of snakes then you might want to avoid it.
It is amusingly quirky and silly. Howerd is served with a decent enough script. This probably was the last time that Milland made a movie in his native Britain.
John Bennett plays the Indian manservant Patel. I am not sure why he was the go to guy for ethnic parts. Bennett's most notorious part these days was playing the Chinese hypnotist Li H'sen Chang in Doctor Who.