Drive-in theaters may be mostly a thing of the past, but old-fashioned creature features are alive and well.
On Friday, the historic Louisville Palace opens its summer movie series — "Monsters: A Celebration of Horror Classics from Universal Studios" — with the 1931 movie "Dracula," starring Bela Lugosi, and the 1925 silent film "The Phantom of the Opera," with Lon Chaney as the disfigured music lover who haunts the Paris opera house.
The Palace will show two different movies each weekend through Aug. 8. Like other movie theaters, the theater at 625 S. Fourth St. sells concessions.
People in the community are interested in seeing classic films at the Palace every summer, said Jennifer Crutcher, director of corporate sales and marketing. "These are ones that have not been shown over and over on television, and they are ones parents can come see with their kids. They aren't like horror films today."
Single-ticket purchases are $5 per movie. A pass for all 10 movies is $30. For more information, go online to www.louisvillepalace.com.
Here's a look at the monster movies with a tip about why each is considered a classic:
"The Phantom of the Opera" (Friday, 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, 2 p.m.) — There are many versions of this ghostly story but the 1925 film with Lon Chaney Sr. remains the most famous, mainly because of Chaney's expressive hands and eyes. And yes, it has a masked ball and a falling chandelier.
"Dracula" (Saturday, 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.) — Bela Lugosi's most famous role has been copied and parodied but the atmosphere, background sets and Lugosi's blood-thirsty vampire in this film, directed by Tod Browning, can still make you shiver.
"Frankenstein" (July 17, 7:30 p.m.; July 18, 2 p.m.) — Director James Whale's expressionistic horror story stars Boris Karloff as Mary Shelley's poignant monster. The 1931 film's unforgettable images include a lab that sparks with electricity, a peasant mob and the Frankenstein makeup that has become a pop culture fixture.
"The Mummy" (July 18, 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.) — Karloff is creepy beyond compare as a former Egyptian priest who comes back to life and sheds his mummy wraps for an obsessive love interest. Karl Freund's stylized direction and the film's art-deco look make it more than a silly freak flick.
"The Invisible Man" (July 24, 7:30 p.m.; July 25, 2 p.m.) — This 1933 movie scared the wits out of me when I saw it as a teenager on late-night television. The raspy, power-mad voice of Claude Rains, visual details and special effects that make Rains appear transparent contribute to a full horror experience in the hands of director James Whale.
"The Black Cat" (July 25, 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.) — Lugosi and Karloff starred together for the first time in this taut 1934 gem with art-deco sets and striking costumes.
"The Raven" (July 31, 7:30 p.m.; Aug. 1, 2 p.m.) — The mirror scene and Lugosi's performance are two reasons to appreciate this 1935 film, which paired Lugosi and Karloff for the second time. "The Black Cat" and "The Raven" are inspired by the works of Edgar Allen Poe.
"The Bride of Frankenstein" (Aug. 1, 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.) — Many critics considered James Whale's 1935 sequel to "Frankenstein" superior to the original. Nowadays, it may appear less so because of Mel Brooks' hilarious spoof, "Young Frankenstein." Still, this film with Elsa Lanchester as the monster's intended mate remains one of the horror genre's best.
"The Wolfman" (Aug. 7, 7:30 p.m.; Aug. 8, 2 p.m.) — The stars are aligned in this 1941 horror film with extravagant sets and an amusing script. Lon Chaney Jr. plays the lupine monster in a cast that also features Claude Rains and Bela Lugosi.
"Creature from the Black Lagoon" (Aug. 8, 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.) — You can't miss the sexual undercurrent that flows through this 1954 monster movie about an Amazonian Gill-Man who falls for Julie Adams in a white bathing suit. The picture was one of the first to use professional underwater photography.
Reporter Judith Egerton can be reached at (502) 582-4503.
