#universal studios

Here are some of my favorite photos from my time at Universal Studios Orlando (or at least as many as Tumblr would allow me to post )

On April 1, 1883, the great Lon Chaney was born! Chaney was and always shall be cinema’s greatest boogyman. With primitive materials and tremendous ability, he transformed himself into the most beautifully bizarre beings in the history of the medium. Master of makeup and maker of monsters, Chaney was the horror film’s first true icon; a genre star before there was even a genre. As a result of having been born to deaf-mute parents, Chaney mastered non-verbal communication and possessed an innate compassion for those with disabilities; both qualities are reasons why Chaney remains an enduring figure in pop culture. Throughout his career, Chaney played a wide variety of misfits, monsters, and madmen, all of whom he brought to life with ingenious makeup of his own creation.  His characters were grotesque in appearance, but Chaney endowed them with depth and pathos. Even his most sinister creations had an endearing sensitivity to them; Lon saw the beauty in the beast.

Don’t step on that spider… it might be Lon Chaney!

IT’S ALLLLIIIIVVVVEEEE!!!

I scream! You scream! We all scream for FRANKENSTEIN! In this fearfully frigid commercial featuring fabulous Frank, an angry mob (of CORPSE!) hunts Ol’ Flathead and his creator. Nothing can stop Frankie from escaping… eXXXcept the rich taste of Magnum ice cream! With production design and makeup better than any recent Universal monster film, this one’s a graveyard smash! 

Check it out, Ho-rror Ho-mies:

On February 22, 1899, the sensationally sinister Dwight Frye was born! Known for his portrayals of madmen and minions, the fearsome Frye often stole the show with his unnerving energy. The Man with the Thousand-Watt Stare robbed graves in “Frankenstein” and ate flies in “Dracula,"  contributing some eXXXceptional eccentricity to already-odd motion pictures. A true icon of fear, Frye even inspired one of Alice Cooper’s greatest songs. We gotta get outta here!

On February 14, 1931, “Dracula” rose from the grave! Tod Browning’s supernatural shocker brought vampire ho-rror to Ho-llywood cinema. Fog-thick atmosphere and Gothic production design make this one a macabre marvel, but Bela Lugosi elevates it to legendary status. With sartorial elegance and haunting charisma, Lugosi became the definitive vampire, inspiring 90 years worth of impressions and Halloween costumes. Even today, this “Dracula” still holds eerie power!

Ho-wdy, Ho-rror Ho-mies!

In ho-nor of Valentine’s Day, we present the embodiment of romance itself: a disfigured psycho who lives in a sewer! The Phantom of the Opera is almost as synonymous with love as he is with fright, so we thought we would showcase the softer side of the Opera Ghost with this sweeping number from the popular Andrew Lloyd Webber musical. Listen to… “The Music of the Night!”

Check it out, Ho-rror Ho-mies!

Frankenstein’s Lily

Vacation

I am the Devil, and I’m here to do the Devils work