Thanks. I want to mention here that Joe Dante later said he was surprised and not entirely happy about the way Forry Ackerman expanded on his list of movies he didn't like.
..I guess FJA couldn't resist the "Dante's Inferno," puns being a weakness of his.
Complicating the situation is the fact that some of the scenes of 10-minute depiction of Hell realized by director Harry Lachman in the 1935 Dante's Inferno were taken from the 1925 Dante's Inferno directed by Henry Otto.
The Devil shown here may be from the earlier film, in which case he is played by Noble Johnson, an African-American actor and film producer. Standing 6'2" and weighing 215 pounds, his impressive physique and handsome features made him in demand as a character actor and bit player.
In the silent era, he assayed a wide variety of characters of different races in a plethora of film serials, Westerns and adventure movies. Although Johnson was cast as black in many films, he also played just as many Indians, Latins, Arabs and "exotic" characters, including the aforementioned handsome Devil.
The 1924 film was pre-Code and the 1935 film had more leeway with its depiction of Hell because it could be rationalized as sexual moralism rather than sexual exploitation.
Like several previous Fox Films, such as The Queen of Sheba, A Daughter of the Gods and some Theda Bara films, the 1924 version featured full nudity in some sequences. Actress Pauline Starke is completely nude in the Hell sequences, with the exception of a large flowing black wig that covers her nether regions. Some bit players and extras are fully nude but so microscopic as to pass muster in most venues. The different prints of the film were probably edited according to the attitudes of the different regions or parts of the world they played in
( ... )
This appears to be someone's idea of an occult ritual, combining elements of a mythological Egyptian feline/woman goddess (perhaps Sekhmet or Wadjet sitting) and an ever horny satyr, Pan (in background) and Baphomet (the bare chest being the half-man bit whilst the cape conceals a multitude of other sins including his goaty legs). The trident adds an overwrought satanic touch.
I'd guess this photo was staged and published originally to illustrate an "exposé" type article in a 50s early 60s men's magazine focusing on what lurid fun can be had joining the Dark Side with the likes of Aleister Crowley, et al. It may then have been re-purposed for Joe Dante's Inferno article in Famous Monsters of Filmland, July, 1962. But I'm guessing.
Your idea appeals to me because the mixture of elements does seem incongruous. That this was a staged photo for some article about witchcraft revivals sounds plausible.
I have a few similar oddball photos, some seem to be from stage shows put on for midnight showings of old horror films. Those "spook shows" where guys in masks ran up and down theatre aisles were popular for years.
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..I guess FJA couldn't resist the "Dante's Inferno," puns being a weakness of his.
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The Devil shown here may be from the earlier film, in which case he is played by Noble Johnson, an African-American actor and film producer. Standing 6'2" and weighing 215 pounds, his impressive physique and handsome features made him in demand as a character actor and bit player.
In the silent era, he assayed a wide variety of characters of different races in a plethora of film serials, Westerns and adventure movies. Although Johnson was cast as black in many films, he also played just as many Indians, Latins, Arabs and "exotic" characters, including the aforementioned handsome Devil.
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Thanks, I believe I've seen that silent footage in various cinema retrospectives. Quite lurid imagery.
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Like several previous Fox Films, such as The Queen of Sheba, A Daughter of the Gods and some Theda Bara films, the 1924 version featured full nudity in some sequences. Actress Pauline Starke is completely nude in the Hell sequences, with the exception of a large flowing black wig that covers her nether regions. Some bit players and extras are fully nude but so microscopic as to pass muster in most venues. The different prints of the film were probably edited according to the attitudes of the different regions or parts of the world they played in ( ... )
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I'd guess this photo was staged and published originally to illustrate an "exposé" type article in a 50s early 60s men's magazine focusing on what lurid fun can be had joining the Dark Side with the likes of Aleister Crowley, et al. It may then have been re-purposed for Joe Dante's Inferno article in Famous Monsters of Filmland, July, 1962. But I'm guessing.
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I have a few similar oddball photos, some seem to be from stage shows put on for midnight showings of old horror films. Those "spook shows" where guys in masks ran up and down theatre aisles were popular for years.
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