Summary
Anatomy of a Psycho is a 1961 American crime thriller film directed by Boris Petroff (as Brooke L. Peters). Ed Wood reportedly contributed to Jane Mann's screenplay as Larry Lee. Ronnie Burns, adopted son of George Burns and Gracie Allen, plays the romantic lead. The film was shot at the Alexander Film Company studios in Colorado Springs in 1959[1] it was the only feature film produced by the company.[2] The film had the working title of Young Scarface;[3] by the time film the film received a distributor it was retitled to exploit Anatomy of a Murder (1959) and Psycho (1960).[4]
| Anatomy of a Psycho | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Boris Petroff (as Brooke L. Peters) |
| Screenplay by | Jane Mann Don Devlin |
| Story by | Jane Mann Edward D. Wood, Jr. (as Larry Lee) |
| Produced by | Boris Petroff (producer) |
| Starring | See below |
| Cinematography | Joel Colman |
| Edited by | Ed Spiegel |
| Music by | Michael Terr |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Unitel |
Release date | 14 June 1961 |
Running time | 75 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Co-screenwriter Don Devlin who played Moe was the father of producer Dean Devlin, Jane Mann was the wife of Boris Petroff.[5]
Premise edit
Duke Marco has raised his kid brother Chet and his sister like a father. When Duke is sentenced to death after a trial for murder, Chet increasingly experiences paranoia and psychosis, which not even his sister, best friend or girlfriend can relieve. Ultimately losing touch with surrounding reality, he assaults the son of the prosecuting attorney, beats up the judge's son and sets his house on fire then attempts to get the son of the judge on a murder charge. However, Lieutenant Mac, a local police officer, discovers Chet's involvement and hunts him down, leading to a tragic denouement.
Cast edit
- Ronnie Burns as Mickey
- Pamela Lincoln as Pat
- Darrell Howe as Chet
- Judy Howard as Sandy
- Michael Granger as Lt. Mac
- Frank Killmond as Bobbie
- Russ Bender as Frank
- Don Devlin as Moe
- William Salzwedel as Duke
- Robert Stabler as Defense Attorney
- John B. Lee as District Attorney
- Pat McMahon as Arthur (uncredited)
Soundtrack edit
The film uses public domain music originally used for Wood's Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959).
Title Psycho Darrel Howe sung two songs in the film Gonna Go Round and I Make a Wish, with the 45 record crediting Young Scarface.[6]
DVD release edit
The film was released on DVD in 2001.[7]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "Western History Subject Index".
- ^ "Local film company, celebrating 90 years, had storied past".
- ^ p.8 Motion Picture Herald August 1959
- ^ "Local film company, celebrating 90 years, had storied past".
- ^ "Symphony in Grey | B'nai B'rith Messenger | 30 October 1936 | Newspapers | the National Library of Israel".
- ^ "Darrell Howe – Gonna Go Round / I Make a Wish (1959, Vinyl)".
- ^ Anatomy of a Psycho/Hatchet For the Honeymoon (1974), Amazon. Retrieved on 24 February 2010.
Further reading edit
- The Haunted World of Edward D. Wood, Jr. (1996), documentary film directed by Brett Thompson
- Rudolph Grey, Nightmare of Ecstasy: The Life and Art of Edward D. Wood, Jr. (1992) ISBN 978-0-922915-24-8
External links edit
- Anatomy of a Psycho at IMDb
- Anatomy of a Psycho on YouTube
- Anatomy of a Psycho is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive
- Anatomy of a Psycho free online streaming
