Boris Karloff takes a break on the Bride of Frankenstein (1935). Note, in the background, how thin the castle walls really were. The Monster’s special chair ostensibly allowed the actor to take the weight off his feet between takes.
Forty years later, a very similar contraption — with a large parasol to ward off the harsh Tunisian sun — was used by Anthony Daniels when encased in his C-3PO robot costume, on Star Wars (1977). “I could never sit down,” Daniels said. “I had this terrible leaning board, a kind of medieval thing with arms that allowed me to recline at about 70 degrees, which was very little use at all, because the weight still went down to your ankles.”
At least Karloff had a short seat on his board, though it couldn’t have been very comfortable. There are numerous photos of Karloff, in costume, sitting in a regular canvas chair or stretched out in a lounge chair, a luxury unavailable to Daniels in stiff armor.
Anthony Daniels quote: Taringa.net
8 comments:
Excellent stuff!
"There are numerous photos of Karloff, in costume, sitting in a regular canvas chair or stretched out in a lounge chair, a luxury unavailable to Daniels in stiff armor."
You should post some of those photos, they sound charming and hilarious.
Justin --
http://a822.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/8/l_d8a14d85daae899fad8d9797e601425d.jpg
Yep, that's one pic I have on tap.
Justin, great idea! I'll post some backstage Frankensteins over the next few weeks.
I've seen actresses like Myrna Loy and Gail Patrick using those chairs..for the purpose of not ruffling their elegant gowns by sitting down between takes..
http://thefishery.typepad.com/frankenstein/
Does anyone know what ever happened to Karloff's "monster chair"? Not sure I've ever seen any of the other Frankenstein actors using it.
Guido: Thanks for that link.
Zencat:Never seen another Frankenstein using The Chair, but I've seen a picture of a ballerina using one!
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