DONOVAN’S BRAIN (1953) – Episode 120 – Decades of Horror: The Classic Era

"Janice, listen carefully. I've got to break away from the brain. I may have to do something desperate." Desperate is as desperate does. Watch your back, Janice. Join this episode’s Grue-Crew - Whitney Collazo, Chad Hunt, Daphne Monary-Ernsdorff, and Jeff Mohr - as they pick each others’ brains over Donovan’s Brain (1953).

Decades of Horror: The Classic Era
Episode 120 – Donovan’s Brain (1953)

Join the Crew on the Gruesome Magazine YouTube channel!
Subscribe today! And click the alert to get notified of new content!
https://youtube.com/gruesomemagazine

ANNOUNCEMENT
Decades of Horror The Classic Era is partnering with THE CLASSIC SCI-FI MOVIE CHANNEL, THE CLASSIC HORROR MOVIE CHANNEL, and WICKED HORROR TV CHANNEL
Which all now include video episodes of The Classic Era!
Available on Roku, AppleTV, Amazon FireTV, AndroidTV, Online Website.
Across All OTT platforms, as well as mobile, tablet, and desktop.
https://classicscifichannel.com/
https://classichorrorchannel.com/
https://wickedhorrortv.com/

Three scientists attempt to keep alive the brain of millionaire megalomaniac W.H. Donovan after an otherwise fatal plane crash. The brain has other ideas and begins to possess people.

IMDb

 

• Director: Felix E. Feist
• Writers: Felix E. Feist (screenplay); Curt Siodmak (novel: Donovan's Brain, 1942); Hugh Brooke (adaptation)
• Selected Cast:
  • Lew Ayres as Dr. Patrick Cory
  • Nancy Reagan as Janice Cory (as Nancy Davis)
  • Gene Evans as Dr. Frank Schratt
  • Steve Brodie as Yocum
  • Tom Powers as Donovan's Washington Advisor
  • Lisa Howard as Chloe Donovan (credited as Lisa K. Howard)
  • James Anderson as Chief Tuttle (credited as Kyle James)
  • Victor Sutherland as Nathaniel Fuller
  • Michael Colgan as Tom Donovan
  • Peter Adams as Mr. Webster
  • Harlan Warde as Treasury Agent Brooke
  • Shimen Ruskin as Tailor
  • John Hamilton as Mr. MacNish, Bank Manager (uncredited)
  • Mark Lowell as Allied Supply Clerk (uncredited)

Chad chose Donovan’s Brain because when he saw it as a kid, he wasn’t scared by it at all. Wait, what? True, but being a Curt Siodmak fan and someone who always appreciates John Hamilton (Perry White in Adventures of Superman, 1952-1958), he decided to give it another go.  He appreciates Donovan’s Brain more this time, describing it as a good, solid, Sci-Fi B-movie with good performances all around, most especially, that of the brain.

Donovan’s Brain is also a lot of fun for Daphne. She just loves a growing, pulsating brain in a fish tank. Whitney thinks it is pretty neat knowing that Donovan’s Brain is based on a book by the author who wrote Universal’s The Wolf Man (1941). Jeff describes Donovan’s Brain as a science fiction picture with no science, just a lot of fiction and magical thinking. He’s particularly impressed with Lew Ayre’s performance as the doctor possessed by Donovan’s brain, and always loves Gene Evans and Steve Brodie.

If you’re in the mood for some 50s Sci-Fi B-move goodness, Donovan’s Brain is available to stream (at the time of this writing) from the Classic Horror Movie Channel and as PPV on Amazon. The movie is also currently available on physical media as a Blu-ray from Kino Lorber.

Gruesome Magazine’s Decades of Horror: The Classic Era records a new episode every two weeks. Up next in their very flexible schedule is one chosen by Jeff: Son of Frankenstein (1939), featuring Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Basil Rathbone, and Lionel Atwill.

Please let them know how they’re doing! They want to hear from you – the coolest, grooviest fans: leave them a message or leave a comment on the site or email the Decades of Horror: The Classic Era podcast hosts at [email protected]

To each of you from each of us, “Thank you so much for listening!”