I mentioned it earlier, but this one deserves a closer look. It's probably Bud and Lou's most popular film, combining scares and laughter.
Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were two vaudeville comedians who teamed up and found great success in Hollywood around the time of World War II. Their "in-the-Army-now" Buck Privates was a smash hit, and they became one of the top comedy teams in Hollywood. Bud was the tall, thin, serious man, perfect for the short, rotund, manic, child-like Lou to bounce off of. But, by 1948, they weren't doing so well. Universal's new management wanted them gone, except that the studio was broke. So, the green light was given to this film. And it turned out to be a great idea. A small investment brought a huge return and made Bud and Lou successful again.
The two play baggage handlers who run afoul of three Universal Classic monster: Frankenstein's monster, the Wolfman, and Count Dracula, with Dracula wanting to put Lou's brain into the Monster's head. That's really all you need to know.
Lon Chaney Jr. is the Wolfman, for the fifth and last time. Lon played a lot of the monsters, but he was the only actor to play the Wolfman consistently. "He was my baby," Chaney said proudly. "The Wolfman was mine all alone." He still complained about the hours-long makeup sessions, though.
Glenn Strange, all 6'7" of him, plays the Frankenstein monster for the third time. He has very little of the sympathy that Boris Karloff brought to the role, and that's what Universal wanted: a big, lumbering brute. And Glenn, who was a heck of a nice guy in real life, gave it his all.
Our vampire is, of course, Dracula. For only the second and last time in his career, Bela Lugosi plays the immortal count. It's a fitting book-end to the Universal Horror Canon: Bela began Dracula, he'll finish with him. There's a story that Lugosi's agent shamed the producers into giving Bela the role at the eleventh hour, but who knows how true it is? Also, Bela--consummate professional that he was--didn't think much of Bud and Lou's on-set pranks and goofing off, but got along with them just the same. According to Glenn, Bela once blew up, "Ve shouldn't be keeding vhen ve are vorking!"
Rounding out our cast, lovely Lenore Aubert plays the mad scientist Dracula has coerced into performing the operation, playing up to Lou for all she can.
Much of the film's humor comes from the snappy dialogue given to Bud and Lou, especially Lou, and from the energetic set pieces, such as the moving candle or Lou beating up the Wolfman thinking it's Bud in a mask. It should be noted that the monsters play it straight, but that makes the laughs stand out even more.
Oh, and see if you can guess whose voice you hear at the end! No hints!
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