Dracula (partially found epilogue scene of Universal horror film; 1931)

Advertisement poster for the film.

Status: Partially Found

Universal's Dracula is a 1931 horror film loosely based on the 1924 play of the same name directed by Tod Browning and Karl Freund starring Bela Lugosi as Dracula and Edward Van Sloan as Van Helsing. The film is seen as a classic by many and is often regarded as the film that made Dracula a popular icon. The initial theatrical run of the film featured an epilogue by Sloan, similar to the prologue of Frankenstein, where he directly said to the audience:

"Just a moment, ladies and gentlemen! A word before you go. We hope the memories of Dracula and Renfield won't give you bad dreams, so just a word of reassurance. When you get home tonight, and the lights have been turned out, and you are afraid to look behind the curtains — and you dread to see a face appear at the window — why, just pull yourself together and remember that after all, there are such things as vampires!"

When Dracula was reissued in 1936, The Motion Picture Code, which worked to censor films in order to keep certain morals, was being taken very seriously. As such, the epilogue was removed to avoid contention from religious groups. The epilogue was never restored for any future releases.

However, in the 1999 documentary Road to Dracula, there are a few stills and even some footage with audio taken from the epilogue's reel. It's unknown why the entire scene wasn't included, but one possible explanation is that the footage in the documentary may have been the only usable footage, as the footage looked somewhat decayed, the fact they only use the last sentence, and considering both how old the film must have been and how it likely wasn't taken good care of. It is unknown if Universal can or will attempt to restore the footage or if any other copies exist.

Video

Footage of the epilogue and explanation of the scene (7:53).

External Links

• Wikipidea page for the film that details the epilogue. Retrieved 30 Apr '21