Happy 140th Birthday, Bela Lugosi!

 

On what would have been Bela Lugosi's 140th birthday, I urge you to check out the book I coauthored with Gary D. Rhodes, BELA LUGOSI AND THE MONOGRAM NINE, an in-depth analysis of the nine Poverty Row films in which Lugosi starred during World War II. You can hear Gary and I discussing this book at great length during the October 22, 2019 episode of Roejen Razorwire's PROJECT ARCHIVIST. And if you're not completely Lugosied out by that point, why not take a deep dive into my Rondo Award-nominated novel, BELA LUGOSI'S DEAD?

PRAISE FOR BELA LUGOSI AND THE MONOGRAM NINE:

"BELA LUGOSI AND THE MONOGRAM NINE, by Gary Rhodes and Robert Guffey, critically and wonderfully examines a series of no-budget films made by no-budget Monogram Studios in the 1940s featuring Lugosi that are among the most wonderfully odd cinematic follies ever made--surrealistic, straight from the subconscious, sometimes stupid, at moments seeming to spring from the mind of Bunuel, and in the next, an idea Ed Wood would have discarded as too unbelievable. But, movies always unlike any others, and at their best seeming like fever dreams through which Lugosi calmly walks in evening clothes carrying a flaming blowtorch. I highly recommend this book." 

--JACK WOMACK, author of RANDOM ACTS OF SENSELESS VIOLENCE and LET'S PUT THE FUTURE BEHIND US

"Gary Rhodes has become my favorite nonfiction author, while the subject of some of his writings, Bela Lugosi, has long been one of my favorite actors. Now Gary has teamed up with co-author Robert Guffey to present, for the first time, a collection of in-depth and insightful essays evaluating those lesser ‘classics’ that comprise the so-called ‘Monogram Nine.’ If you are a Lugosi fan and also a fan of old ‘B’ horror films, you will love this book."

--DONALD F. GLUT, filmmaker, Marvel Comics writer, and author of THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK novelization

"An extraordinary volume. Rhodes and Guffey refract these films through the lens of surrealism, detailed genre study, auteurist-informed close readings, star studies, and vigorous historicism to name a few of the kaleidoscope of methods employed. This book provides a breakthrough model for serious work on films that have to date received very little scholarly attention.”

--MICHAEL LEE, Ph.D. (University of Oklahoma), editor at the journal HORROR STUDIES

"It would require an enthusiastic writing team such as Gary Rhodes and Robert Guffey to bring respect and probing inquiry to these Lugosi films from Monogram Studios. Are the films minor miracles or minor masterpieces? This book is food for thought in that area. For too long, 'the nine' was considered throw-away entertainment. Watch it once, then forget it. The authors of this book demur [...]. I encourage every monster fan to get this book. You’ll love it. The treasure chest of Monogram classics is shown knowledgeable evaluation and context at long last."
 
--MICHAEL COPNER, MONDO CULT ONLINE

"Containing several chapters offering different variations on its subject matter, Rhodes and Guffey explore the films Lugosi made at Monogram with an open-minded approach, an intelligent appreciation, and a historical knowledge. Even those of us long familiar with these films will be enlightened by the further information provided in these essays [...]. The reader's understanding of film history, production, and promotion will be enhanced by this exceptionally intelligent text.

"BELA LUGOSI AND THE MONOGRAM NINE is a book that needs to be included in any library, research center, or personal collection that even hopes to be considered at all comprehensive. For fans of film history, of Lugosi, of the horror genre, or of B movies, BELA LUGOSI AND THE MONOGRAM NINE is an absolute must." 

--JAMES L. NEIBAUR, author of THE MONSTER MOVIES OF UNIVERSAL STUDIOS

PRAISE FOR BELA LUGOSI'S DEAD:

“Blending intertextual rampage through the horror-movie canon with engrossing noir mystery and a backdrop of Hollywood esoterica, Robert Guffey serves up an intoxicating pulp cocktail that will leave you wanting more. A crepuscular treasure from a fascinating author.”

--ALAN MOORE, author of V FOR VENDETTA and WATCHMEN

“In Robert Guffey's latest and greatest novel, dreams of old movies and nightmares of classic horror rack into sharp focus through the lens of a brave film historian, one determined to squint clearly at fleeting grains of film through the shifting sands of time. Never has the truth of Hollywood been so well revealed through fiction. As a result, BELA LUGOSI'S DEAD delightfully and definitively proves that Bela Lugosi isn't dead.” 

--GARY D. RHODES, author of LUGOSI and TOD BROWNING'S DRACULA

"[H]orror fans will delight in how Guffey cleverly immerses movie monsters in the real world. Film buffs and monster enthusiasts will relish the supernatural characters brought to life in this atmospheric celebration of monster mayhem." 

--PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

"The sensation [of reading BELA LUGOSI'S DEAD] is like being led deep underground while your flashlight grows dimmer and dimmer, until you’re left in total darkness. That’s when the lights of a subterranean crypt flash on to reveal that you’re not where you expected to be, and where you are is far worse than you could have imagined. The result is an ending that left me chilled and took me a few days to fully process. As shocking as it was, everything was set up from the beginning. I know, I went back and checked, and have to give Guffey credit for pulling off a literary sleight of hand that caught me by surprise. I won’t spoil it with more, except to say that like the frog in water that’s warmed so slowly it doesn’t realize it’s coming to a lethal boil, Guffey’s readers face an equally stunning conclusion." 

--TERENCE TAYLOR, NIGHTMARE MAGAZINE