THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY / Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer - 1945

It's time for a classic forties horror flick that was filmed in black and white with special color segments used for shock value. It had a hefty budget of $3,500,000 and was filmed at the MGM studios in Culver City, released a few months before the end of WWII. The story begins in London in 1886...

Eegah!! sent over a sound clip from this movie for our earjoyment, sooooo, you can push the big red 'GO' button located there by our portrait gallery, NOW, Ralphie The Tarantula!.. Here's a taste of... THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY!

Man, that song in the sound clip is like claws on a chalkboard for me, youch-a-roonie!!

Hurd Hatfield is Dorian Gray, he also played the Prince of the Lionians in TARZAN AND THE SLAVE GIRL and was in the LIGHTS OUT episode of "The Masque of the Red Death" in 1951. Notice his youthful face with not a wrinkle to be found!

In a color segment we see Dorian's beautiful portrait, he wishes that the figure in the portrait would grow old instead of him and he gets his wish because of an ancient Egyptian statue that's in the room!

He goes to a side show at the Two Turtles in a poor part of the neighborhood where he gets to see this weird puppet show that features the woman showing her ware!

Then, he sees Sibyl Vane doing her song for the drunk crowd, as heard in the sound clip. He invites her to his place, she falls in love with him but he ultimately rejects her and she commits suicide. Sybil is played by the great Angela Lansbury.

Here's a nice shot of youngsters Donna Reed and Peter Lawford.

The portrait is changing in weird ways, not only is it aging, it also seems to be taking on the sins of its vain owner!

Dorian kills the artist that did the portrait because he thinks he's the one making changing on the painting!.. Paranoid much?!

Then, the painting changes again and gets even more gruesome with signs of the artist's murder. The paintings were done by the English painter, Basil Hallward.

Dorian doesn't fit in with the rest of the people where he lives and is considered to be a weirdo or worse! They want to know why he doesn't seem to age after 20 years.

Dorian is trying to change his ways and notices the painting changes for the better when he is kind to people. So, he decides that destroying the portrait will get rid of the evil and he plunges his knife into it!

He unknowingly stabs the knife into the heart, causing the painting to revert back to its original form, a handsome young man! Did it work?..

I don't think so!!.. Nice horror makeup job by Jack Dawn.

Virus Man is here on Wednesday with more delirious, delightful Dungeon mayhem!! Later, dudes and dudettes.