“...A rambunctious fracas that is funny and, at the same time, spine-tingling.”
A CAPE SCREEN-USED AND WORN BY BELA LUGOSI AS COUNT DRACULA IN HIS SECOND AND FINAL ON SCREEN APPEARANCE IN THE LEGENDARY ROLE
With the utter synonymity of the performer Bela Lugosi with the character of Count Dracula, it’s almost unbelievable Lugosi only appeared on screen in this role merely twice. The first appearance in the 1931 feature, and the second in 1948’s Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein.
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein set Universal’s number one comedy duo against a raucous coalition of its horror players in an experiment that would become one of the most beloved horror comedy films of all time. Teaming up with Lon Chaney Jr. as the Wolf Man and Glenn Strange as Frankenstein’s Monster, Lugosi’s Count Dracula is as dignified as ever, retaining his eerie yet provocative allure even as Abbott and Costello’s antics unfold around him.
“You can’t make people believe in you if you play a horror part with your tongue in your cheek. The screen magnifies everything, even the way you are thinking. If you are not serious, people will sense it.”
Draped around the count, the present lot—a black “wet” sheen satin cape with batwing cutout hems with a staggering 28ft circumference—only enhances the drama of Lugosi’s performance. In fact, the glossy “wet” sheen finish of the cape’s satin was chosen to assist with Walter Lantz Studios post-production animation of Dracula’s transformation into a bat. This piece was the only costume cape created for this feature, and the sole remaining screen-used ‘Count Dracula’ cape in the world as Lugosi was reportedly buried with his first cape from the original 1931 film. Despite the more than 15 years separating the two films, Lugosi’s Dracula in ACMF possesses the same irresistibly seductive power as he did in his 1931 film debut. It’s his singular vision for what Bram Stoker’s undead count could be that made Lugosi’s Dracula the most enduring embodiment of the character.
By the time the actors landed in Universal City in 1940, Bud Abbott and Lou Costello had built something of a comedy empire in burlesque stand-up, radio, and Broadway. Abbott and Costello appeared in their first starring vehicle as early as 1941, having quickly outgrown the supporting roles originally assigned by the studio. Through World War II, Abbott and Costello delighted American audiences with their fast-paced, full-bodied, two-man clown show. When Universal had merged with International Pictures in 1948, the new leadership brought with them the novel idea to introduce these comedic giants to some of Universal’s most profitable intellectual property—the Universal Monsters—genre be damned. Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein was the first film to be released under this new project, and the performing duo’s biggest hit since their 1941 debut in Buck Privates.
Dracula vs. The Wolfman vs. The Monster | Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein | Fear
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein was released on August 20, 1948 and earned around $2.2 million in the US that year–a figure of around $29,488,447 today–making it one of the year’s top grossing features for Universal-International. The film’s success led to four spinoffs, seeing Abbott and Costello spar against Boris Karloff as “the Killer,” The Mummy, The Invisible Man, and even Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein was the only series installment to feature Lugosi, and the present lot appears prominently on Lugosi throughout the film as well as in a diversity of publicity materials. Much like Count Dracula himself, this cape appeared on screen a second time over fifteen years later in Ed Wood’s Orgy of the Dead (1965).
Universal’s first horror-comedy Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein was inducted to the National Film Registry in 2001; the film has become a cult classic and is considered to be one of the most beloved genre films of all time.
Starring Bela Lugosi—explore additional lots featuring Bela Lugosi, one of Universal Studio’s most prolific performers
