I have been mighty busy of late trucking the old devil Spanish "Dracula" (born 1931) around the planet and letting him out of his coffin once in awhile to frighten again at vatiousl fulm festivals all over the world.

Here is a photo from the Jerusalem show, taken by Orli

This summer I sold out twice with my project: http://garylucas.com/www/dracula--at both the Jerusalem Film Festival in early July, and at the Silent Movie Theatre in Hollywood at the end of that month. The audiences thrilled to my score in conjunction with a screening of this incredible little-known classic horror film. In Jerusalem I was introudced by my friend and President of the JFF Jury Richard Pena, who green-lighted the project for the 2010 New York Film Festival, when he was the head programmer there (he stepped down from this position last year but has been more active than ever since departing). Special thanks to Gilli Mendel who had the vision to bring me to Jerusalem to perform with this film years ago after she saw  performance of mine at the Sevilla Film Festival in 2012.

At the Silent Movie Theatre show I was happy to have in attendance my old partner Bill Moseley (we ran a horror film society Things That Go Bump in the Night together at Yale in the early 70's) who is today considered one of the world's greatest living actors in horror films--you may know him as ChopTop in Tobe Hooper's "Texas Chain Saw Massacre 2" and he also starred in Rob Zombie's last two films "The Devil's Rejects" and "House of 1000 Corpses". Also in the audience was Vincent Price biographer writer Lucy Chase Williams, whom Bill and I turned the reins of Things That Go Bump in the Night over to when we departed the campus in 1974. The big thrill for me besides selling out the show was to have Pancho Kohner, the son of the great Mexican film actress Lupita Tovar--who is 102 years old today and still going strong--in attendance. His father Paul Kohner was the producer of Spanish "Dracula" and later a top Hollywood agent. Pancho told me he had read about my project and was frankly skeptical--but seeing and hearing me play my music live in tandem with the film sold him on it 100%--and he thanked me sincerely for my efforts!

More about Spanish Dracula in my next blog coming soon!!

xxGary Lucas

Comments (1)

gary Lucas in LA

November 8th, 2013 — American Film M...

HOLLYWOOD: My brother performs at Silent Movie Theatre

JULY 31, 2013 BY LAURIE LUCAS

 

My brother, Gary Lucas, performs the soundtrack he wrote for the 1931 horror film, Spanish Dracula. (laurie lucas)

If you love nostalgia, you’ll love Cinefamily,  a non-profit cinematheque in LA’s Fairfax District, not far from the famous Canter’s Deli.   The theater is the site of the historic Silent Movie theatre, built in 1942, slightly restored, but still a funky little place that seats 150 and that feels like the inside of a wide-bodied airplane.

My brother, Gary Lucas, performed there Tuesday, July 30, playing the original soundtrack he wrote for Spanish Dracula, the 1931 horror film directed by George Melford.  It’s an adaptation (very campy now) of the 1897 novel by Bram Stoker.  The Spanish crew filmed at night on the same sets that were being used during the day for the English-language film, Dracula.  And the critics say the Spanish version is superior:  hotter women, better costumes, scarier special effects.

It’s not a silent film and has English subtitles.    My brother produced the haunting, moody  score playing solo with two guitars and special effects that sound like a full orchestra.

Here’s my brother’s website: http://garylucas.com/

 

• Login or register to post comments