Dracula 1931

Premiered on February 12 1931 at the Roxy Theatre in New York where audience fainted in shock at the horrors they had just witnessed on screen, it opened in the rest of America on February 14 1931.

Filming stared on September 29 1930 rapped on November 15 1930

Directed: By Tod Browning

Starring:

Bela Lugosi - Count Dracula

Helen Chandler - Mina

Edward Van Sloan - Van Helsing

David Manners - John Harker

Dwight Frye - Renfield

Locations:

Vasquez Rocks Natural Area Park

Universal Studios

Whitby, North Yorkshire, England, UK

Chatham Historic Dockyards, Chatham, Kent England, UK

Budget

$355,000

Profit

$700,000 which was universals most profitable film of 1931.

Bits & Bites

Lon Chaney was set to play the role of Dracula but passed away on August 26 1930, so Bela Lugosi who was playing the role of Dracula for The theatrical Broadway production was touring in Los Angeles, lobbied for the lead role, Bela was only payed $500 per week would only make $3,500 but established himself as a legend of Horror.

The scenes where Dracula & Renfield are sailing to England on the Vesta where originally filmed for the silent film The Storm Breaker. The shaky camera is due to the difference in frame rate for silent films where its 16 fps & the frame rate for talkies where 24 fps.

Bela Lugosi created his icy dead stare by never blinking.

Nicolas Cage sold his one-sheet movie poster of Bela Lugosi Dracula for $310,700 back in 2009.

The Director Tod Browning was more well known as a director in the silent film era, he also directed another cult classic Freaks.

A piece of Cardboard is in view of a few scenes

There is a Spanish version of the film Dracula it was filmed at night using the same sets as the English version.

Dracula's Castle was designed with a special FX called Upcoming where the background is painted on a glass in front of a camera.

Soundtrack

There was no budget for a film score, so they used

Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake

Wagner's Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg

Schubert's "Unfinished Symphony" in B minor

But back in 1998 Phil Glass was commissioned to compose the the score for the film.

Sources

https://www.theguardian.com/film/gallery/2012/mar/14/10-most-expensive-film-posters-in-pictures

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0021814/trivia?ref_=tt_trv_trv

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dracula_(1931_English-language_film)

Dracula Commentary on Legends of Horror Box Set

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