The year is 1939. Universal Studios, surprised by the successful re-release of the original Frankenstein movie, decided to cash in and make the third Frankenstein movie, Son of Frankenstein. The movie itself is average - the son of Heny Frankenstein returns to prove his father right and resurrect the monster, ending with the monster going on a rampage. But what makes the film notable to me is that this is the movie where the monster changes his clothes.

Originally Son of Frankenstein was going to be filmed in color, and it's thought that the vest was added to break up the monotony of the monster's tradtional black suit. According to the story, movie executives were not impressed with the color test footage and ordered the movie to be shot in black and white. The color footage has been lost, but home movies shot by Boris Karloff's family show what the monster looks like in color. And if you look it up on Google, you can see still frames of the footage. So, yes, this Minimate has been designed and painted based on images found on the Internet from a 70-year-old home movie. I can only hope it's accurate...

The Recipe

The Son of Frankenstein Minimate is made from a carfully repainted Frankenstein Minimate. His furry vest is made from Magic Sculpt.

Originally posted October 2011