The Hilarious House of Frightenstein

Oh my! What a treat it is to see this show again now airing seven days per week on the Drive-In Classics channel! For a 30+ year old show, the video and audio quality are simply superb and now to see it in colour and on a big screen. I am one happy viewer! I have vague memories of seeing this show in its first run along with the supernatural cult classic series Strange Paradise, which is also shown on the same channel and airs back to back with HHOF during the week days. I had no idea that Billy Van played so many characters. And I really thought Grizelda was played by a woman back then!

Too bad the Gemini Awards only started in 1987. Billy Van should have received some acknowledgement for his numerous roles on this show. Very pleased to see a fan made production titled "Return to Transylvania". Extensive interview segments with Billy Van and puppeteer Joe Torbay are all we will ever see as extra behind-the-scenes trivia.

To a modern audience "Frightenstein" is probably laughable but I was a religious viewer of it during the 70's. A quirky cast of characters and if you really payed attention you might even have learned something. Of course there was always Vincent Price's foreboding closing! Original, non-commercial, creative, funny, and for that matter fun. I still remember the show and still hear the music playing in my head. I still feel some shame in never realizing that one man (Billy Van) played most of the roles! A classic kid's show that never insulted our intelligence.

Holy boiled condor eggs, I was NUTS for this show as a kid in New Jersey! I always thought it was produced in NYC, not Canada ... but given the creativity of SCTV and other Canadian TV shows, I'm not so surprised. Billy Van was awesome as Count Frightenstein, but I really thought The Librarian was the best part of the show. Oddly enough, I don't remember Vincent Price being in this -- but I do remember the theme song! (To the tune of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic") "Glory, glory Transylvania / The werewolves and bats will always maim ya / The murky moors will likely claim ya --" ... OK, so I DON'T remember that last line! Anyone who does can e-mail me with it.

After not appearing on a T.V. channel for at least 9 years (Showcase Canada last aired the reruns) Frightenstein has returned on Drive-In Classics. Whether I've seen this show in the 70's, 80's, 90's, or today the show still is tremendously fun to watch. Even today, this CHCH-TV produced show is still great fun and looks much better compared with today's children fare. None of the preachiness, phony BS, or attempts to insult their young audience exist in this castle.

Half the skits involve the adventures of The Count and his lovable oaf Igor. The Count lives in Castle Frightenstein and wishes to leave so he can return to Transylvania. However, he can't leave unless Brucie, his "Frankenstein Monster" comes back to life and his futile attempts to revive his monster are always fun to watch. Other skits has him reading his mail, answering phones, or abusing Igor. Every episode starts with Igor singing the Transylvania anthem with The Count getting the last song vocal.

Also, the show was superb at teaching kids about the world. Noted physics professor Julius Sumner Miller teaches science and physics, The Oracle teaches Astrology and Mythology, Bwanna Clyde Batty teaches us about wild animals while Pet-Vet deals with domestic animals and the occasional wild pet. Add in Grizelda's hilarious cooking segment, The Librarian's attempt to scare you with his stories, and the classic 60's songs The Wolfman would play and dance to (and seeing his and Igor's silhouettes in psychedelia) and you've got more than enough here.

Still, the show goes even further with Horror King Vincent Price narrating a poem before a segment with one of the featured characters in the castle. Price's poems add even more to the show. Later in the run, they added new characters like the Grammar Slammer, who would threaten to beat up Igor unless he learned better grammar and proper sentence structure and Gronk, who would fluster The Count's attempts to read books by interjecting with hilarious comments. The Count would be close to tears after multiple ownings.

Add in the little blackouts with The Gorilla, the Maharashi, the Hippie Superman, the Mosquito, and various movie boards and you've got a show that stands the test of time for 35 years and will for another 35. Billy Van was a freaking genius and I give Drive-In Classics mucho kudos for bringing back the fun Frightenstein provides.

Produced all in one shot at the CHCH-TV studios in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada in 1971, this show elevates low budgets as the mother of creative invention to deity-status. Character actor Billy Van reaches his zenith with his portrayal of not only the self-important Count, but also a plethora of others, all of to whom he breathes life and very distinct personalities.

The groovy, record-spinning Wolfman. The Animal-loving Dr. Pet-vet. The crazed Julia Childs of Transylvania, Grizelda (who always added a pinch of Walt to every recipe...Walt was of course a large jug of her late husband's ashes). The Oracle. Bwana Clyde Batty. The list goes on.

And not to be outdone, the spooky environs of the Count's castle were shared by Fishka Rais' lovable oaf, Igor. Whether he was catching heck from the Count, dancing up a storm to a soul record with the Wolfman or begging the Three-Toed Sloth to finally let him keep one the animals Dr. Pet-vet offered him...you couldn't help but love the big green-skinned under-dog.

Oh, and nostalgia buffs be alert!!! During a huge lull in his career, horror icon Vincent Price accepted the role of the Narrator, wise sage and "host" of the show. Spouting playful rhymes that served to introduce each new segment, Price lent a certain credibility to the castle's proceedings.

The Hilarious House of Frightenstein was and still is just that, hilarious. Here's the best way to look at the show...SCTV for kids.