Hillbillys in a Haunted House

• Director: Jean Yarbrough
• AMG Rating:
• Genre: Musical
• Movie Type: Musical Comedy, Horror Comedy
• Themes: Fish Out of Water
• Main Cast: Basil Rathbone
• Release Year: 1967
• Country: US
• Run Time: 88 minutes

Plot

Horror, comedy, and country corn combine when country singers Woody Weathrby and Boots Malone get caught in a big storm en route to the Nashville Jamboree and end up taking shelter in a creepy looking old mansion that is said to be haunted. Though plenty of spooky things go on there, the hapless hayseeds quickly figure out that the haunting has more to do with a ring of international agents led by the enigmatic and sly Madame Wong than it does the supernatural. The spies have made the abandoned building their headquarters as they endeavor to steal a valuable atomic secret. This was the final film of Basil Rathbone. It is also a sequel to Las Vegas Hillbillies (1966). ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Review

One sequence in particular betrays Hillbillys in a Haunted House's true goal: that of presenting a series of then-popular country music acts. In the scene, our three exhausted travelers -- entertainers Ferlin Husky and Joi Lansing and their business manager, Don Bowman -- have all settled down for the night in the dilapidated and possibly ghostly Old Beauregard Mansion. The latter decides to pass the time with a bit of television and the movie grinds to a complete halt while the movie audience watch him watching a couple of music acts. It is all very silly -- and how could an obvious drive-in potboiler like this be anything but? -- but considering the appallingly sad state of such horror movie icons as Basil Rathbone (in his final performance), John Carradine, and Lon Chaney Jr., Hillbillys in a Haunted House is also quite depressing. Not coincidentally, the hayseed comedy proved veteran director Jean Yarbrough's final theatrical release. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

Cast

George Barrows - Gorilla; Don Bowman - Jeepers; John Carradine - Dr. Himmil; Lon Chaney, Jr. - Maximillian; Linda Ho - Madame Wong; Ferlin Husky - Woody Weatherby; Sonny James; Jay Jasin; Joi Lansing - Boots Malone; Pat Patterson; Basil Rathbone - Gregor; Richard Webb; Marcella Wright; Merle Haggard; Molly Bee

Credit

F. Paul Sylos - Art Director, Jean Yarbrough - Director, Roy Livingston - Editor, Hal Borne - Composer (Music Score), Igo Kantor - Musical Direction/Supervision, Vaughn Wilkins - Cinematographer, Bernard Woolner - Producer, Duke Yelton - Screenwriter

Similar Movies

Munster, Go Home!; The Comedy of Terrors; Elvira, Mistress of the Dark; House 2: The Second Story

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