Merry Christmas with the Castle Films style!

Most of us recall Castle Films for their ultra-short adaptations of the old Universal horror films. I saw Dracula, Frankenstein and others at school during holiday and summer school assemblies. But Castle adapted a wide variety of films, including this short Christmas film found on YouTube. I have no idea what the original film was, although it seems to be from the 1930s or 1940s.

In any event, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Plan9Crunch and the old memories of Castle Films!

-- Doug Gibson

Friday sanity break -- check out the Castle Films' mini-version of Dracula!

Courtesy of Castle Films and YouTube comes this eight minute-plus version of the classic Universal Bela Lugosi Tod Browning directed 1931 Dracula. Castle Films' heavily edited adaptations of classics used to be on all the time. I waited for decades to see Castle Films' adaptations and finally with YouTube we have just about all of them. I first saw this brief adaptation during an assembly at summer school in the early 1970s.

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Friday afternoon break - Castle Films' The Mummy's Ghost

Kick back and enjoy a condensed version, courtesy of Castle Films and YouTube, of The Mummy's Ghost. I used to watch Castle Films as a kid in school at assemblies. It's cool to see an 8 minute version of a classic, and Castle's got a bunch, including all the old Universal horrors. So, enjoy:

Sit back and enjoy Dracula, courtesy of Castle Films

I'm not old enough to recall seeing these Castle Films ultra-shorts of classic horror in living rooms in 8MM, or in theaters (if they actually played in theaters), but I have memories of seeing several Castle shorts (Dracula, Frankenstein ...) in public schools, during assembly time. They were mesmerizing and fun and made me want to stay up all night to see the original long versions when they played on movies-till-dawn channels. (VCRs were still not anywhere near mass marketed in the early '70s).

Thanks to YouTube, and retailers such as Sinister Cinema, it's easy to find these Castle film, and the past few years I've enjoyed watching these shorts after a 30-plus year hiatus. So, sit back, no need for popcorn, the film's over before you know it, and enjoy this almost 9-minute version of Universal's Dracula. And remember, Sunday is Bela Lugosi's birthday!

-- Doug Gibson

The Castle Films edit of 'Dracula

Courtesy of Castle Films and YouTube comes this eight minute-plus version of the classic Universal Bela Lugosi Tod Browning directed 1931 Dracula. Castle Films' heavily edited adaptations of classics used to be on all the time. I first saw this brief adaptation during an assembly at summer school in the early 1970s.

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Castle Films break! The Mummy's Ghost

Kick back and enjoy a condensed version, courtesy of Castle Films and YouTube, of The Mummy's Ghost. I used to watch Castle Films as a kid in school at assemblies. It's cool to see an 8 minute version of a classic, and Castle's got a bunch, including all the old Universal horrors. So, enjoy:

Enjoy an abbreviated 'Dracula'

Courtesy of Castle Films and YouTube comes this eight minute-plus version of the classic Universal Bela Lugosi Tod Browning directed 1931 Dracula. Castle Films' heavily edited adaptations of classics used to be on all the time. I first saw this filmette during an assembly at summer school in the early 1970s.

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Another Castle Films classic short! FRANKENSTEIN

PLan9Crunch readers, I love these old Castle Films short adaptations of great old horror flicks. Watched 'em many times as a kid and thanks to the Web, they are back. Take 10 minutes, sit back and enjoy the great Boris Karloff in "Frankenstein." -- Doug Gibson