A Full House with a Joker (Sven)- It’s “House of Frankenstein” Tonight!

Tonight on MeTV- we bring back the biggest "monster rally" movie of all-  a stacked deck with Dracula, the Wolf Man, the Frankenstein Monster, a hunchback- and the great Boris Karloff-  in a full house of horror- 1944's "House of Frankenstein"!

Fans of Universal horror will pick up on the fact that this is the film that follows the events that occurred in  “Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man”. We start out in a bleak prison, where the dastardly Dr. Neimann has been imprisoned for his unspeakable experiments- work so bizarre, the authorities have labelled them crimes against nature! In an ironic coincidence, it is nature itself that provides an escape for Neimann , along with his cellmate/accomplice, the hunchbacked Daniel. As they make their escape , they encounter a stalled wagon  containing a traveling "house of horrors"- and, under the guise of helping the proprietor get back on the road- take over his identity and his wagon, as a disguise that will enable them to try to discover Dr. Frankenstein's lost secrets of creating life.

Putting the wagon's attractions on display along the way at a small village's fair, to maintain their cover-but still attracting some suspicion-  Neimann unwittingly revives one of the exhibits-the remains of Count Dracula! He enlists the count's help in his plans for revenge- but the vampire has his own agenda, as well- targeting a lovely young bride!

Later, as Neimann nears his main objective- the ruins of  Dr. Frankenstein's laboratory- a stop near a gypsy camp  adds one more passenger to their wagon-  a pretty young gypsy girl whom Daniel rescues from misfortune- who has captured his heart. Neimann and Daniel continue on to the ruins- and stumble upon a frozen underground chamber- that yields its own surprise- the frozen bodies of the Wolf Man and the Frankenstein Monster! The Wolf Man reverts to his human form of Larry Talbot as he thaws out- but the Monster is still in  a weakened state-  and must be treated soon if he is to be restored to his awesome strength. The journey continues, on the way to Neimann's own abandoned laboratory- but,meanwhile, Daniel is dismayed to find that his gypsy girl has found Talbot very attractive!  The mad doctor sets out to heal the Monster, as well as taking revenge on those who got him sent up the river.  Jealousy isn't the only problem between Daniel and Talbot- as both want to be brain donors for the Monster, and eliminate their main problems - the curse of the full moon and deformity, respectively. Neimann's promises to both men  give way to his own agenda- to have the Monster at full power and at his command- and then there's the suspicious villagers who realize something is up at Neimann's  old place... all leading up to a battle between two powerful monsters!

This film was the original “monster mash-up” film, bringing together Universal's " big three" monsters- the Mummy would also have been a part of the roster, but complications prevented it. adding to the firsts- John Carradine taking on the role of  Count Dracula ( a role he would again take on in the next "monster rally" film, "House of Dracula”), and big Glenn Strange stepping into the big boots of the Frankenstein Monster for the first time. With the only man to ever play Larry Talbot in the classic era of Universal monster films, Lon Chaney Jr- the headliners  are all present- as well as the King of horror, Karloff! We'll fill you in on the whole cast- bring you a new song and a new visit to one of our old haunts-and some classic Sven bits as well!

The “House of Frankenstein” welcomes you tonight on MeTV at 10 pm eastern/pacific, 9 pm central, or check listings in your area ( or at www.metv.com) for when and where you can see us. MeTV invites you join the growing legion of fans who live-Tweet along with the movie on Twitter during the show- just be sure to use the hashtag #svengoolie.

In the Chicago viewing area, it's a Saturday morning revisit to "Black Friday" at 11 am on our sister station, WCIU, the U. We're proud to be entering a third year  of sponsorship with Ankin Law- watch for our new commercials in the WCIU viewing area!

Come join the horrid house party tonight on MeTV!