How did I ever manage to miss MAD MONSTER PARTY? The creation of Rankin/Bass, the production company responsible for bringing us those beloved holiday perennials RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER, SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN, HERE COME PETER COTTONTAIL, THE YEAR WITHOUT A SANTA CLAUS and more, MAD MONSTER PARTY is like all these others a “Claymation” cartoon (And the fact that these shows were classified as “cartoons” confused the hell out of me as a little boy, since it was obvious they were NOT animated.) created via stop-motion. I watched and loved all those holiday specials, and here was one made exclusively for the Monster-lovin’ set, the kids, like me, who spent many a Saturday afternoon parked in front of the television watching old Horror movies. It might as well have been custom-made for me. How did I miss it?
Oh, well. I’ve seen it now. And I daresay I found it just as magical as I would have had I first watched it as a child. MAD MONSTER PARTY features a Claymation Boris Karloff, as well as a Claymation Peter Lorre as his ghoulish assistant, and (almost) the entire cast of famous monsters: Dracula, Frankenstein, the Bride, the Invisible Man, A Creature from the Black Lagoon (since they didn’t have the copyright to call him that specifically), Dr. Jekyll and Mister Hyde, et al. I hated the ending, as it seemed to me a lazy way to wrap up the story (although, to be fair, it is the way all monster movies typically end) but the picture overall is as charming and delightful as it can be. Highly recommended.