Black Zoo
| Black Zoo | |
|---|---|
 Film poster by Reynold Brown | |
| Directed by | Robert Gordon |
| Written by | Aben Kandel Herman Cohen |
| Produced by | Herman Cohen |
| Starring | Michael Gough Jeanne Cooper Rod Lauren Virginia Grey |
| Cinematography | Floyd Crosby |
| Edited by | Michael Luciano |
| Music by | Paul Dunlap |
| Distributed by | Allied Artists Pictures Corporation |
Release date |
|
Running time | 88 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Black Zoo (also known as Horrors of the Black Zoo) is a 1963 American horror film directed by Robert Gordon and starring Michael Gough, Jeanne Cooper, Rod Lauren, Virginia Grey, Jerome Cowan, and Elisha Cook, Jr.[1] It was produced by Herman Cohen and written by Cohen and Aben Kandel.
Plot
[edit]Michael Conrad is a private zookeeper who owns Conrad's Animal Kingdom. He leads a cult group who literally worship the animals he tends — especially the big cats: 3 lions, a lioness, a pair of cheetahs, a tiger, a cougar, and a black leopard; as well as a gorilla.[2] Conrad plays organ music to the animals in his living room, and uses them to kill anyone who gets in his way. Conrad is married to Edna and forces his mute son Carl to assist him.
Cast
[edit]- Michael Gough as Michael Conrad
- Jeanne Cooper as Edna Conrad
- Rod Lauren as Carl
- Virginia Grey as Jenny
- Jerome Cowan as Jeffrey Stengle
- Elisha Cook Jr. as Joe
- Warrene Ott as Mary Hogan
- Marianna Hill as Audrey
- Oren Curtis as Radu
- Eilene Janssen as bride
- Eric Stone as groom
- Dani Lynn as art student
- Susan Slavin as art student
- Edward Platt as Detective Rivers
- Douglas Henderson as Lieutenant Duggan
Production
[edit]Herman Cohen had the idea for the film, and hired Aben Kandel to work with him on the script.
Cohen had worked with Gough previously in Horrors of the Black Museum and Konga.
The animals were provided by Ralph Helfer, most notably Zamba, who played one of the two male lions (Zamba Jr. and Tammy also appeared playing another lion and a lioness, respectively). The zoo was built at Raleigh Studio (formerly Producers Studio) on North Bronson in Hollywood, California. The entire zoo seen in the picture was an interior set.[3]
Publicity was done with the cats – including an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.[3] Cohen did not like the title, preferring Horrors of the Black Zoo.[3]
Reception
[edit]The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "As a macabre essay, this has some unusual moments, notably the scenes showing the wild menagerie draped around the living-room furniture; but as a whole it suffers from an extravagant and rather silly script, and from Michael Gough's (perhaps inevitable) overplaying in the central role. Jeanne Cooper is rather fetching as his wife."[4]
Home media
[edit]Black Zoo was released on a VHS by The Fang (Floral Park, NY) in 2001 (OCLC 48234539)
Footnotes
[edit]- ^ "Black Zoo". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
- ^ Rovin, Jeff (1987). The Encyclopedia of Supervillains. New York: Facts on File. p. 218. ISBN 0-8160-1356-X.
- ^ a b c Tom Weaver, Attack of the Monster Movie Makers (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Co. 1994, ISBN 0-7864-0018-8, ISBN 978-0-7864-0018-8) "Herman Cohen -- Interviews, Attack of the Monster Movie Makers: Herman Cohen, Terror & the Zoo". Archived from the original on 2008-02-21. Retrieved 2007-11-01.
- ^ "Black Zoo". The Monthly Film Bulletin. 30 (348): 170. 1 January 1963 – via ProQuest.