One wonders what Dr. Gogol might have written had he sent a Valentine's Day card to the lovely Yvonne!
Rivaling Universal's THE BLACK CAT in its litany of perversities, MGM's MAD LOVE (a,k.a. THE HANDS OF ORLAC) reads like a What's What of the unnatural: Obsession, lust, greed, lunacy, fetishism, you name it.
Peter Lorre really got into his role as the sinister surgeon and eschewed the bald head cap for the barber's razor to shave his head. Just a couple of years away from his alcohol-related death, Colin Clive plays his usual hysteric role as a famous pianist who loses both his hands. His wife, Yvonne Orlac, is the hapless victim of the diabolical Dr. Gogol's twisted love. Played by Frances Drake, can you blame him?
Here are a trio of startling studio photograph negatives of Peter Lorre (one shown above) in his role, probably shot by Clarence Sinclair Bull. Following is a little story to read to your Valentine today, the Filmbook of MAD LOVE from FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND #63 (March 1970).
| Gogol by Gogos. |