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IMDbPro

Charles B. Griffith(1930-2007)

  • Writer
  • Actor
  • Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Charles B. Griffith and Jonathan Haze in La Petite Boutique des horreurs (1960)
Legendary screenwriter Charles Byron Griffith was born in Chicago on September 23, 1930. His mother and grandmother starred in the famous radio show, "Myrt and Marge," which went on to New York and became a soap opera. After a hitch in the army, Griffith went to California to live with his grandmother, Myrtle Vail. Before he started writing scripts, Griffith and his cousin Ron Fellows were in a stage act called "Tsk, Tsk, Pare!", with famous movie and stage comedians Ole Olsen and Chic Johnson. Later, he tried his hand at writing, with his first attempt being a proposed television version of "Myrt and Marge". Griffith then met and became good friends with actor Jonathan Haze, who had just started working for prolific producer/director 'Roger Corman' on _Monster From The Ocean Floor (1954). Wanting to help his friend break into movies, Haze took several of Griffith's scripts and put them right down on Corman's desk. Corman liked the scripts and hired him. Corman took Griffith's third script and turned it into a western, La loi des armes (1956), starring Beverly Garland and John Ireland. Griffith's next movie for Corman became a sci-fi cult classic: It Conquered the World (1956). He not only wrote for Corman but also acted in some of them and was an assistant director for many. In "It Conquered the World" he was Dr. Pete Shelton. Later he wrote The Undead (1957) for Corman -- a fascinating journey into reincarnation. Originally written in iambic pentameter, the script was translated by Griffith back into English. It starred Pamela Duncan, Richard Garland and Allison Hayes -- who appeared in three of Griffith's films and later appeared as the title character in L'Attaque de la femme de 50 pieds (1958), for which she achieved "cult-status" among sci-fi fans.

Griffith's next film was the sci-fi classic Pas de cette Terre (1957), an excellent venture concerning an alien vampire from outer space that he co-wrote with Mark Hanna. Paul Birch starred as Mr. Johnson, the "blood-seeking" vampire from the planet Davanna, whose very eyes can incinerate a person's brain. The film also starred the beautiful and highly talented Beverly Garland. This low-budget excursion is considered by some to be one of the best sci-fi films of the 1950s. The interesting plot concerns the Davannans traveling to Earth, via a teleportation-integrator, in order to obtain human blood because of a blood disease that their dying race has contracted. More films followed, ;including another "B" sci-fi classic: Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957), which he not only wrote but also acted in and served as assistant director/second-unit director. This starred Richard Garland, Russell Johnson, Pamela Duncan and Ed Nelson, along with two of Griffith's best friends: Jonathan Haze and Mel Welles. Ed Nelson was also good friends with Griffith and went on to appear in several films Griffith wrote, such as Rock All Night (1957), Teenage Doll (1957) and Un baquet de sang (1959).

Both "It Conquered The World" and "Not of This Earth" had alien monsters created by the genius "monster-maker", Paul Blaisdell. For "It Conquered the World", Blaisdell created an innovative alien that was nicknamed "Beulah." In "Not of This Earth" Griffith's script called for a "protoplasmic" robotic dog, but because of budgetary restrictions Blaisdell made a different creation--a flying alien "umbrella bat" which would assimilate human brain tissue! For "Attack of the Crab Monsters" Blaisdell was asked to create a giant crab monster, but he turned it down because he thought he could not produce a realistic-looking monster due to the small amount of funds allocated to him.

"A Bucket of Blood" was a dark horror comedy about an artist who murders people to make art works out of them. Dick Miller starred in this film, one of Corman's most popular. Probably Griffith's best-known film was the low-budget classic La Petite Boutique des horreurs (1960). Shot in three days, this horror comedy starred Jonathan Haze as nerdish Seymour Krelboin and 'Jackie Joseph' as pretty but somewhat air-headed Audrey, Seymour's love. Haze delivered a magnificent performance in his role. This was such a popular cult movie that it later became a Broadway musical which was eventually made into a film (La Petite Boutique des horreurs (1960). Griffith had four parts in the original film: he was the voice of the plant Audrey 2 ("Feed meeee!"), a shadow on the wall in an alley, a man running out of the dentist's office and the burglar who breaks into the flower shop of Gravis Mushnik (Mel Welles) only to be eaten alive by Audrey 2. Griffith and Welles shot exterior locations for this film in the "Skid Row" section of Los Angeles. Griffith wrote many more films, including another cult-classic, La Course à la mort de l'an 2000 (1975), which he adapted from a story by Ib Melchior. Griffith also appeared at a number of movie memorabilia shows on the West Coast, but only appeared at one show in the East (in March 2007 in Ohio). He was a guest celebrity at the show for a "Little Shop of Horrors Reunion" along with his good friends Jonathan Haze, Jackie Joseph and writers Lawrence Fultz Jr. and Stephen Knepp.
BornSeptember 23, 1930
DiedSeptember 28, 2007(77)
BornSeptember 23, 1930
DiedSeptember 28, 2007(77)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • Awards
    • 1 nomination total

Photos5

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Known for

Steve Martin, Rick Moranis, Tichina Arnold, Tisha Campbell, Vincent Gardenia, Ellen Greene, Levi Stubbs, and Michelle Weeks in La Petite Boutique des horreurs (1986)
La Petite Boutique des horreurs
7.1
  • Writer
  • 1986
Jason Statham and Natalie Martinez in Course à la mort (2008)
Course à la mort
6.4
  • Writer(as Charles Griffith)
  • 2008
David Carradine and Simone Griffeth in La Course à la mort de l'an 2000 (1975)
La Course à la mort de l'an 2000
6.2
  • Writer(as Charles Griffith)
  • 1975
La Petite Boutique des horreurs (1960)
La Petite Boutique des horreurs
6.2
  • Writer(as Charles Griffith)
  • 1960

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Writer



  • Denis Grüring in Parlez-moi de Vous (2016)
    Parlez-moi de Vous
    TV Series
    • characters
    • 2020
  • Creature from the Haunted Sea (2019)
    Creature from the Haunted Sea
    • Writer
    • 2019
  • Hideouser and Hideouser (2019)
    Hideouser and Hideouser
    7.3
    Short
    • co-writer
    • 2019
  • Manu Bennett, Folake Olowofoyeku, Marci Miller, and Burt Grinstead in La Course à la mort de l'an 2050 (2017)
    La Course à la mort de l'an 2050
    3.7
    Video
    • based on the screenplay by
    • 2017
  • Ving Rhames, Danny Trejo, Luke Goss, and Tanit Phoenix in Death Race: Inferno (2013)
    Death Race: Inferno
    5.4
    Video
    • based on characters created by: "Death Race 2000" (as Charles Griffith)
    • 2013
  • Luke Goss and Lauren Cohan in Death Race 2 (2010)
    Death Race 2
    5.6
    Video
    • based on characters created by: film "Death Race 2000" (as Charles Griffith)
    • 2010
  • Jason Statham and Natalie Martinez in Course à la mort (2008)
    Course à la mort
    6.4
    • based on the screenplay by: 1975 film "Death Race 2000" (as Charles Griffith)
    • 2008
  • Athena Massey in Star Portal (1997)
    Star Portal
    4.3
    Video
    • based on a script by
    • 1997
  • A Bucket of Blood (1995)
    A Bucket of Blood
    4.9
    TV Movie
    • based upon the original screenplay by
    • 1995
  • Not of This Earth (1995)
    Not of This Earth
    4.7
    TV Movie
    • Writer (as Charles Griffith, 1957 screenplay)
    • 1995
  • Henry Brandon and Sid Haig in Les magiciens du royaume perdu II (1989)
    Les magiciens du royaume perdu II
    2.1
    • writer
    • 1989
  • Traci Lords in Le vampire de l'espace (1988)
    Le vampire de l'espace
    4.9
    • earlier screenplay
    • 1988
  • Steve Martin, Rick Moranis, Tichina Arnold, Tisha Campbell, Vincent Gardenia, Ellen Greene, Levi Stubbs, and Michelle Weeks in La Petite Boutique des horreurs (1986)
    La Petite Boutique des horreurs
    7.1
    • based on the 1960 screenplay by
    • 1986
  • Dr. Heckyl and Mr. Hype (1980)
    Dr. Heckyl and Mr. Hype
    4.0
    • screenplay
    • 1980
  • Ron Howard in Tant qu'on n'a pas essayé... (1976)
    Tant qu'on n'a pas essayé...
    5.4
    • written by
    • 1976

Actor



  • Eating Raoul (1982)
    Eating Raoul
    6.8
    • (uncredited)
    • 1982
  • Le convoi des casseurs (1981)
    Le convoi des casseurs
    3.5
    • Mellow Rabbi (uncredited)
    • 1981
  • Hollywood Boulevard (1976)
    Hollywood Boulevard
    5.8
    • Mark Dentine
    • 1976
  • David Carradine and Simone Griffeth in La Course à la mort de l'an 2000 (1975)
    La Course à la mort de l'an 2000
    6.2
    • Resistance Army Member (uncredited)
    • 1975
  • La Soeur de Satan (1966)
    La Soeur de Satan
    4.7
    • Policeman (uncredited)
    • 1966
  • Atlas (1961)
    Atlas
    3.9
    • Greek Soldier (uncredited)
    • 1961
  • La Petite Boutique des horreurs (1960)
    La Petite Boutique des horreurs
    6.2
    • Kloy Haddock - Hold-up Man
    • Screaming Patient
    • Audrey Junior (voice, uncredited)
    • 1960
  • Beverly Garland in Pas de cette Terre (1957)
    Pas de cette Terre
    6.1
    • Man at Newsstand (uncredited)
    • 1957
  • Pamela Duncan in Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957)
    Attack of the Crab Monsters
    4.9
    • Seaman Tate (uncredited)
    • 1957
  • It Conquered the World (1956)
    It Conquered the World
    5.0
    • Dr. Pete Shelton (as Charles Griffith)
    • 1956

Second Unit or Assistant Director



  • David Carradine and Simone Griffeth in La Course à la mort de l'an 2000 (1975)
    La Course à la mort de l'an 2000
    6.2
    • second unit director (as Charles Griffith)
    • 1975
  • La Soeur de Satan (1966)
    La Soeur de Satan
    4.7
    • second unit director (as Charles Griffith)
    • 1966
  • L'invasion secrète (1964)
    L'invasion secrète
    5.8
    • assistant director (as Charles Griffith)
    • 1964
  • Duel sur le circuit (1963)
    Duel sur le circuit
    4.9
    • assistant director (as Charles Griffith)
    • 1963
  • Atlas (1961)
    Atlas
    3.9
    • assistant director (uncredited)
    • 1961
  • La Petite Boutique des horreurs (1960)
    La Petite Boutique des horreurs
    6.2
    • second unit director (uncredited)
    • 1960
  • Beverly Garland in Pas de cette Terre (1957)
    Pas de cette Terre
    6.1
    • second unit director (uncredited)
    • 1957
  • Pamela Duncan in Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957)
    Attack of the Crab Monsters
    4.9
    • director underwater scenes (uncredited)
    • 1957

Videos1

A Very Adult Form of Entertainment
Featurette 1:01
A Very Adult Form of Entertainment

Personal details

Edit
  • Official site
    • Official Site
  • Alternative names
    • Charles B. Griffith Jr.
  • Born
    • September 23, 1930
    • Chicago, Illinois, USA
  • Died
    • September 28, 2007
    • San Diego, California, USA(heart attack)
  • Spouse
    • Marmory James? - September 28, 2007 (his death, 1 child)
  • Other works
    (August 24 to October 16, 2004) His original screenplay was adapted for the musical, "Little Shop of Horrors," at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles, Califronia. Alan Menken was composer. Based on the story by Roger Corman. Kathleen Marshall was choreographer. Jerry Zaks was director. Howard Ashman wrote the book and lyrics.
  • Publicity listings
    • 2 Interviews
    • 3 Articles
    • 1 Magazine Cover Photo

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    Was first introduced to Roger Corman by Jonathan Haze in 1954; he has written many scripts and directed several movies for Corman throughout the years.
  • Quotes
    [interview in "Fangoria" magazine, 1981] . . . I was lazy. Instead of trying to write an A-picture and sell it on the market, I'd just go back and get another assignment from Roger [Roger Corman].
  • Nicknames
    • Chuck
    • Charles Griffith
  • Salary
    • La Petite Boutique des horreurs
      (1960)
      $800

FAQ

Powered by Alexa
  • When did Charles B. Griffith die?
    September 28, 2007
  • How did Charles B. Griffith die?
    Heart attack
  • How old was Charles B. Griffith when he died?
    77 years old
  • Where did Charles B. Griffith die?
    San Diego, California, USA
  • When was Charles B. Griffith born?
    September 23, 1930

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