RARE BERT WHEELER MONSTER MASKS

"Studio masks are beautifully made by clever artists and finished by make-up artists. These must be seen to appreciate their quality".

- Bert Wheeler's Make Up and Mask Catalogue

Before Don Post claimed the top spot in the monster mask market, Bert Wheeler's Hollywood Magic Shop and mail order business located at 6660 Hollywood Blvd. and Las Palmas was selling a line of over-the-head latex masks inspired by Universal monsters. They had the added cachet of being designed and created by none other than makeup man, Ellis Burman, Sr., who, among his other accomplishments, had the distinction of creating Lon Chaney, Jr.'s mask of Kharis for the mummy movies of the 1940s.

Ad from Genii, The Conjuror's Magazine, still being published today.

The masks were cast and painted by hand and sold exclusively by Wheeler, whose main business was selling magic supplies. The prices ranged from $8.95 to 14.95, depending how much work was put into them. Existing examples are extremely rare and my search only came up with photographs from the catalog and various images like the one below.

From left to right: Don Post, Bert Wheeler, Verne Langdon, Tor Johnson and Forrest J Ackerman.

There's a lengthy thread about his shop, the masks and similar paraphernalia at the Classic Horror Film Board on Tapatalk.

WALK SOFTLY, AND CARRY A BIG WOLF MAN STICK

Monster Kid #1 Bob Burns currently owns the original prop cane used in Universal's 1941 release of THE WOLF MAN. An exotic implement even for this type of movie, the cane, whose handle depicts a sculpted wolf's head alongside a pentagram (the mark of the werewolf), was explained as being made from pure silver, coincidentally the only known element that could free a person afflicted as a werewolf with the gift of death.

The original cane head was sculpted in vulcanized rubber by an uncredited Ellis Burman, Sr., special effects, property master, and makeup assistant to Jack Pierce, who was head of Universal's makeup department at the time. The cane is shown in several scenes, including the final scene where the elder Talbot beats to death a wolf only to find out that it is his own son.

Along with Curt Siodmak's verse, "Even a man who is pure in heart", and "The way you walked was thorny" (or, as Maleva "the old gypsy woman" would say, "De vay you valked wus torny"), the wolf cane will live on in the legends of screen history and the memories of Monsterologists forever.

Here are a few screen shots depicting the cane and the Wolf Man in action:

The Wolf Man cane prop replica, designed and issued by Factory Entertainment, will be available this December from Monsters In Motion at the discounted price of $379.99.

Universal Monsters
The Wolfman Cane Limited Edition Prop Replica 
Limited to 400 Pieces Worldwide

Purchased as a harmless gift in the film, the cane ultimately becomes the instrument of Larry Talbot's destruction.Based on the work of Ellis Burman, the sculptor of the original The Wolfman cane prop, this replica created  was sculpted using never-before-seen imagery of the original prop, as well as the careful guidance of prop collector and film historian Bob Burns (Owner of the original Burman piece!)

A numbered limited edition of 400 pieces, each Larry talbot Cane includes a prop story booklet, certificate of authenticity and numbered limited-edition wall-hanging display with plaque. The cane measures 30 inches long with solid wood shaft, metal tip, and durable chrome plated wolf-head handle. (Handle measures 4 inches by 7 inches)

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