Vintage original 8x10 in. US single-weight glossy photograph from the classic 1950's horror film, I WAS A TEENAGE WEREWOLF, released in 1957 by American International Pictures (AIP) and directed by Gene Fowler, Jr. A hypnotherapist (Whit Bissell) uses a temperamental teenager (Michael Landon) as a guinea pig for a serum which transforms him into a vicious werewolf. The cast includes Yvonne Lime, Charles Wilcox, Dawn Richard, Barney Phillips, Ken Miller, and Cynthia Chenault.
The image features an interior scene of high school student Tony Rivers (Michael Landon) having punched fellow classmate Vic (Ken Miller) and giving him a bloody nose. It is in near-fine condition with various creases of varying sizes on the corners and random signs of wear in the borders. There are no pinholes, tears, stains, writing, or other flaws.
I Was a Teenage Werewolf was one of the most successful films ever released by American International Pictures (AIP), made for just $150,000 and grossing over $2 million. AIP rushed out a number of films similar to this in hopes of capitalizing on the success of I Was A Teenage Werewolf. Among them: I Was a Teenage Frankenstein (1957), How to Make a Monster (1958), and Blood of Dracula (1957). According to producer Herman Cohen, Jack Nicholson was turned down for the lead role, because he was "the wrong type". Nicholson later played a werewolf in Wolf (1994).
It was the first film where Michael Landon receives a starring role. He later satirized his role in this film on his TV show, Highway to Heaven (1984). In the 1987 Halloween episode, "I Was A Middle Aged Werewolf," written and directed by Landon, the angel Jonathan Smith turns himself into a werewolf to scare-off some bullies. Smith and his friend, Mark Gordon (Victor French) watch the movie I Was a Teenage Werewolf (1957) on TV. Watching the werewolf, Mark tells Jonathan, "You know, this guy in the movie reminds me a lot of you. I mean, when he's a regular guy, not when he's got fuzz all over his face." This was the film that came up with the popular title motif "I Was a *insert noun here*." Numerous films, songs, and books have paid homage to this film through their titles alone.