House of Wax is a 1953 horror film directed by Andre de Toth. The film stars Vincent Price, Phyllis Kirk, and Frank Lovejoy. House of Wax is a remake of Warner Bros.’ earlier horror film Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933), which was based on Charles S. Belden’s short story “The Wax Works” (1932). The film is also notable for being the first color 3-D film released by a major studio.
Director: Andre de Toth
Production Company: Bryan Foy Productions, Warner Bros.
Distributor: Warner Bros.
Cast: Vincent Price, Frank Lovejoy, Phyllis Kirk, Carolyn Jones, Paul Picerni, Roy Roberts, Angela Clarke, Paul Cavanagh, Charles Bronson
US Box Office: $23,750,000 ($483,600,000 adjusted for inflation)
Film Format: WarnerColor (shot in 3-D)
Genre: Horror, Crime
Release Date: April 10, 1953 (premiere); April 25, 1953
Plot Summary: Matthew Burke (Roy Roberts), the business partner of sculptor Henry Jarrod (Vincent Price), sets fire to Jarrod’s beloved wax museum to collect the insurance money and leaves Jarrod for dead inside the burning building. Disfigured and driven insane, Jarrod murders Burke and his young girlfriend Cathy Gray (Carolyn Jones) to use their bodies for the basis of wax sculptures in his new “House of Wax.” Cathy’s roommate and friend Sue Allen (Phyllis Kirk) suspects Jarrod of the murder once she realizes how closely his Joan of Arc sculpture resembles Cathy.
Production: Bwana Devil, a low-budget independent adventure film and the first color film shot in the 3-D format, was released in November of 1952 and quickly became a box office success. Seeing the success of Bwana Devil and believing that the 3-D format had potential, Warner Bros. executives quickly began work on their own 3-D film. The executives decided to produce a remake of their earlier horror film Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933), which was based on Charles S. Belden’s short story “The Wax Works” (1932). The initial working title was The Wax Works before House of Wax was chosen. Warner Bros. rented a Natural Vision 3-D film camera rig (the rig used for Bwana Devil) from Milton and Julius Gunzburg to use on House of Wax.
Bryan Foy, the producer in charge of Warner Bros.’ B-list productions, was chosen to produce House of Wax. Foy worked on the film through, “Bryan Foy Productions,” a B-list subdivision of Warner Bros. Hungarian-American director Andre de Toth, who had a contract with Warner at the time, was chosen to direct House of Wax. Ironically, despite being hired to direct a 3-D film, de Toth was blind in one eye and thus wasn’t able to see the 3-D effects. de Toth had recently directed the westerns Carson City (1952) and Springfield Rifles (1952) for Warner Bros. Crane Wilbur wrote the screenplay for House of Wax.
Vincent Price was chosen to play the role of sculptor Henry Jarrod, the film’s main villain. At the time, Price mainly received supporting roles in A-list productions and was occasionally a leading man in B-list films. Some of Price’s notable films as a supporting actor included The Three Musketeers (1948), Leave Her to Heaven (1945), and Laura (1944). House of Wax wasn’t Vincent Price’s first horror film, but he hadn’t yet become associated with the genre. Price had previously starred in The Invisible Man Returns (1940), a low budget horror film that was part of the Universal Monsters franchise. Actress Phyllis Kirk was cast as Sue Allen, Cathy’s roommate and the main protagonist of House of Wax. She recently had supporting roles in the musical Two Weeks with Love (1950) and the western The Iron Mistress (1952). Kirk didn’t want to be typecast as a horror starlet and had reservations about the 3-D format, so she tried to turn down House of Wax, but ultimately accepted the part rather than risk suspension.
Andre de Toth began filming House of Wax in January of 1953 and shooting wrapped up by the end of February. House of Wax was primarily shot on set at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California. Given that House of Wax was shot in 3-D and in WarnerColor, the makeup artists tried to make Vincent Price’s disfigurement makeup as realistic as possible. The result disgusted many Warner Bros. employees and according to Price he was “banished from the studio commissary” on the days when he had to wear Jarrod’s burn makeup. Although she had reservations about starring in House of Wax, Phyllis Kirk later admitted that she had fun during filming.
The scene at the beginning of the film where Jarrod’s first wax museum burns down didn’t go according to plan. The crew lit three “spot fires” in strategic locations before filming began. Things soon got out of hand after filming began as the team lost control of the spot fires which merged together. Price’s eyebrows were singed and the fire ultimately burned a hole in the sound stage’s roof. Despite difficulties, de Toth kept filming because he knew that the scene’s melting wax statues would be difficult and expensive to replace. As a result, the finished scene looked quite realistic and it must have been easy for Price to act shocked while filming!
Fun Facts and Trivia: The role of Cathy Gray in House of Wax was Carolyn Jones’ first credited acting role. A few years later Jones appeared in the iconic science fiction-horror film Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) and she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in The Bachelor Party (1957). Jones would later be best known for playing Morticia Addams in the horror-comedy sitcom The Addams Family (1964-1966).
Igor, Jarrod’s deaf-mute assistant, was played by actor Charles Bronson. Bronson was credited under his birth name, Charles Buchinsky. He later had roles in several of director John Sturges’ films including the western The Magnificent Seven (1960) and the war-adventure The Great Escape (1963). Bronson became a bigger star during the “New Hollywood” era and notably had starring roles in the spaghetti western Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) and the gritty crime drama Death Wish (1974).
Reception: House of Wax had its New York premiere on April 10, 1953. The film’s Los Angeles premiere occurred a week later, and the film went into general release in late April. A number of celebrities attended the LA premiere, including Ginger Rogers, Rock Hudson, Judy Garland, and iconic horror star Bela Lugosi. In the case of Lugosi, he was hired by producer Alex Gordon to stand outside the theater with his “pet gorilla” (really an actor in a costume) and do a prearranged interview with reporter Shirley Thomas. House of Wax was the first color 3-D film produced by a major studio and the first film with stereophonic sound to be shown in regular theaters. Man in the Dark, the first Black & White 3-D film produced by a major studio, only premiered two days before House of Wax.
House of Wax quickly became a huge hit for Warner Bros. The film’s success was likely due to the novelty of its’ 3-D effects (House of Wax was fortunate to be released right at the start of the 3-D craze) and the studio’s skilled advertising (which emphasized the film’s use of 3-D). House of Wax was Warner Bros.’ top grossing film of 1953 and was one of the top ten highest grossing films of the year. The film was popular in drive-in theaters throughout the 1950s and received official re-releases in 1972 and 1981. Although not nominated for any Oscars, the magazine Photoplay nominated House of Wax for its “Favorite Picture of the Year” Gold Medal award. House of Wax was the film that established Vincent Price as a horror star. Price later starred in many horror classics of the 1950s and 1960s including The Fly (1958), House on Haunted Hill (1959), House of Usher (1960), The Pit and the Pendulum (1961), and The Last Man on Earth (1964).
House of Wax initially received mixed reviews from film critics. The critics at Variety were impressed with the film’s use of 3-D and praised Vincent Price’s performance. Clyde Gilmour of Maclean’s magazine also gave House of Wax a positive review. He praised the film’s 3-D and de Toth’s use of suspense, though he considered the plot to only be average for a horror film. Jack Harrison of The Hollywood Reporter applauded House of Wax for its color cinematography and use of stereophonic sound. Bosley Crowther of The New York Times gave House of Wax a negative review. Crowther was unimpressed with the stereoscopic 3-D, thought that the stereophonic sound was obnoxious, and strongly disliked the plot and style. The Monthly Film Bulletin thought that House of Wax‘s use of 3-D was superior to its predecessors but otherwise disliked the film. Richard L. Coe of The Washington Post also gave the film a negative review.
Having since become a horror classic, House of Wax has received a more positive response from modern critics. TV Guide praised Andre de Toth’s restrained use of 3-D, and noted that he used the effect to its “fullest potential” without bogging down the narrative with too many gimmicks. Jeffrey M. Anderson of Combustible Celluloid gave House of Wax a perfect 4/4 star review. Anderson praised the film’s atmosphere and de Toth’s contrasting use of bright colors and shadows. Christopher Null of Filmcritic.com described House of Wax as “one of the great horror classics.” John J. Puccio of Movie Metropolis also commended House of Wax for its creepy setting and atmosphere and praised Price’s performance as the villain.
Why You Should See It: House of Wax is an excellent Horror classic. Andre de Toth does a great job establishing a creepy atmosphere for the film. House of Wax also features plenty of effective suspenseful moments. The scene where Jarrod chases Sue through the city streets and the climax set at the “House of Wax” stand out as exciting and exceptionally suspenseful. Vincent Price gives a memorable performance as Jarrod. The character has plenty of intense and villainous moments, but Price also adds sympathy to Jarrod. The makeup used to bring Jarrod’s disfigurement to life is outstanding as well.