Universal Classic Monsters
Universal Classic Monsters (also known as Universal Monsters and Universal Studios Monsters) is a home video line based on a series of horror films primarily produced by Universal Pictures from the 1930s to the 1950s.
Although not initially conceived as a franchise, the enduring popularity and legacy of the films and the characters featured in them has led the studio to market them under the collective brand name of Universal Studios Monsters. Steve Jones of USA Today described Universal's most famous monsters as "pop culture icons", specifically Dracula, Frankenstein, the Mummy, and the Wolf Man.
| Universal Classic Monsters | |
|---|---|
 Official franchise logo as displayed on home video releases | |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
| Country | United States |
Merchandising
After the Universal horror films were syndicated to television, this led to a rise in the popularity of merchandise based on Frankenstein's monster and Dracula. Throughout the 1960s and into the 1970s, the Universal monsters were promoted via merchandizing which included: Halloween costumes, Aurora model kits, paperback novelizations, makeup how-to manuals, T-shirt iron-ons, posters, trading cards, and more. Since 1991, Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Destinations & Experiences have featured characters from the Universal Classic Monsters franchise. From 2006 to 2014, the characters also appeared in the year-round walk-through attraction, Universal's House of Horrors, at Universal Studios Hollywood. The franchise is also the central theme of Universal Orlando's Horror Make-Up Show. The live show opened in 1990 at Universal Studios Florida and is still in operation. Merchandizing of the characters in formats such as clothing and board games has continued into the 21st century. The franchise will be featured in the Dark Universe portion of Universal's upcoming Orlando theme park, Epic Universe.
Home video line
Louis Feola was the head of Worldwide Home Video for Universal Studios and said in 1999 that "a couple of years ago" he decided to "reinvigorate and re-market" Universal's Classic Monsters catalog which included the series Dracula, Frankenstein, The Invisible Man, The Phantom of the Opera, The Wolf Man, and The Mummy. In 1992, in an interview with Billboard, Feola stated that to market and sell home video, the most important thing was the packaging of their sales which was "probably our single biggest priority and has been for a number of years", and that it was key to make the series of films "look like a line".
In 1995, MCA/Universal released a collection of the films on home video under the title The Universal Studios Monsters Classic Collection. This series included Frankenstein, Dracula, The Mummy, The Invisible Man, and the Creature from the Black Lagoon series. A collection of stamps featuring Universal Classic Monsters were also released in September 1997 titled the "Universal Classic Movie Monsters series". Other characters in the series included the Mummy, Frankenstein's monster (Boris Karloff), the Phantom of the Opera (Claude Rains), and the Wolf Man (Lon Chaney Jr.).
Films
The columns show the subsequent home video releases.
Comics
Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics released comic adaptions of several of the films, featuring four one-shots and one collected edition, in 1993 and in 2006, respectively.
| Title | Creatives | Publication Date | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Writer | Artist(s) | Editor | Designer | ||
| Universal Monsters: Frankenstein | Den Beauvais | Den Beauvais | Dan Thorsland | Scott Tice | May 1, 1993 |
| Universal Monsters: Creature from the Black Lagoon | Steve Moncuse | Arthur Adams (Penciller, Cover); Terry Austin (Inker); Lois Buhalis (Letterer); Matt Hollingsworth (Colorist); Terry Austin (Cover) | Dan Thorsland | Scott Tice | August 1, 1993 |
| Universal Monsters: Dracula | Dan Vado | Jonathon D. Smith (Artist, Cover); Clem Robins (Letterer) | Dan Thorsland | Scott Tice | October 1, 1993 |
| Universal Monsters: The Mummy | Dan Jolley | Tony Harris (Artist, Cover); Lois Buhalis (Letterer); Matt Hollingsworth (Colorist) | Dan Thorsland | Scott Tice | November 1, 1993 |
| Universal Monsters: Cavalcade of Horror | Collected edition of the above; Eric Powell (Cover) | January 11, 2006 | |||
Skybound Entertainment
Skybound Entertainment, an Image Comics company, is recently publishing a new series of Universal Monsters comic books.
| Title | Issue(s) | Creative team | Release schedule | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Writer(s) | Artist(s) | Colorist(s) | Premiere date | Finale date | ||
| Universal Monsters: Dracula | 1–4 | James Tynion IV | Martin Simmonds | October 25, 2023 | January 24, 2024 | |
| Universal Monsters: Creature from the Black Lagoon Lives! | Dan Watters Ram V | Matthew Roberts | Dave Stewart | April 24, 2024 | Present | |
| Universal Monsters: Frankenstein | Michael Walsh | Toni Marie Griiffin | August 28, 2024 | TBA | ||
References
Sources
- McCullaugh, Jim (October 24, 1992). "Sell-Thru Sales Judged by Cover". Billboard. Vol. 104, no. 43.
- Nye, Doug (August 18, 1995). "Horror films making a comeback". The News-Press. p. 6.
- Kiss, Dr. Robert J. (2019). "Son of Dracula: The Release History". Son of Dracula. BearManor Media. ISBN 978-1-62933-430-1.
- Rhodes, Gary D. (2014). Tod Browning's Dracula. Tomahawk Press. ISBN 978-0-9566834-5-8.
- Mank, Gregory William (2010). Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff: The Expanded Story of a Haunting Collaboration, with a Complete Filmography of Their Films Together. McFarland. ISBN 978-0786454723.
- Weaver, Tom; Brunas, Michael; Brunas, John (2007) [1990]. Universal Horrors (2 ed.). McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-0-7864-2974-5.
- Jones, Steve (October 5, 2012). "'Dracula', 'Frankenstein' in new Universal Blu-ray set". USA Today. Retrieved July 18, 2021.
- Early, Rosalind; Malkowicz, Tom (October 16, 2017). "Frankenstein's Monster in Popular Culture". Washington University in St. Louis. Retrieved July 18, 2021.
- Murray, Noel; Phipps, Keith (October 25, 2012). "A Guide to the Universal Studios Monster Movies, 1925–1955". The A.V. Club. Retrieved July 18, 2021.
- Reimann (February 26, 2020). "The Strange History of the Universal Monsters Franchise". Collider. Retrieved July 18, 2021.
- Brooks, Nicholas (February 26, 2021). "How Universal's Classic Monsters Launched the Cinematic Universe". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved July 18, 2021.
- Young, Rob (October 16, 2015). "The Original Shared Universe: A Look Back At the Universal Monsters". Retrieved July 18, 2021.
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