The Comedy of Terrors (1963): Cast & Plot
The Comedy of Terrors is a 1963 comedy horror film directed by Jacques Tourneur, starring Vincent Price as Waldo Trumbull, Joyce Jameson and Boris Karloff. It runs 1 hour 24 minutes.
- Released
- Runtime
- 1h 24m (84 min)
- Director
- Jacques Tourneur
- Original language
-
English - Studio
- Alta Vista Productions
- After the credits
- No No extra scene
What Is The Comedy of Terrors About?
The premise of The Comedy of Terrors without spoilers. The whole story is in the plot summary further down.
An impoverished undertaker, long without any “customers,” faces a looming deadline to cover a year’s back‑rent. Desperate for cash, he resorts to murdering locals to fill his coffins, setting off a chain of wildly absurd, darkly comedic mishaps as his grisly venture spirals out of control.
The Comedy of Terrors Themes & Keywords
· 50 tags- psychotronic film
- graveyard
- man in a coffin
- scammer
- fraud
- hard of hearing
- overdue rent
- sword cane
- landlord tenant dispute
- bad singing
- horse drawn hearse
- buffoonery
+38 more Show fewer
- picking a lock
- screwball comedy
- top hat
- sleeping woman
- suffocated with a pillow
- turning the tables
- eviction notice
- reference to shakespeare's macbeth
- reference to shakespeare
- landlord killed
- closeup of an eye
- checking for breath with a mirror
- funeral director
- catatonic man
- waking up in a coffin
- muddy footprints
- threatened with an axe
- swordplay
- dark comedy
- allergic to cats
- scene during closing credits
- 1800s
- breaking a wineglass
- husband chokes his wife
- marital problem
- karloff and lorre
- price and lorre
- undertaker
- animal in cast credits
- unhappy marriage
- sword
- sword fight
- suffocation
- smothering
- singing
- servant
- senility
- presumed dead
The Comedy of Terrors Cast & Characters
Vincent Price leads the cast as Waldo Trumbull, with Joyce Jameson as Amaryllis Trumbull and Boris Karloff as Amos Hinchley. Directed by Jacques Tourneur; 18 actors are credited in all.
-
Director Jacques Tourneur
-
Vincent Price as Waldo Trumbull - Joyce Jameson as Amaryllis Trumbull
-
Boris Karloff as Amos Hinchley -
Peter Lorre as Felix Gillie
Also Starring in The Comedy of Terrors
· 14 more- Basil Rathbone John F. Black
- Douglas Williams Doctor
- Orangey the Cat Cleopatra
- Luree Holmes Black's Servant
- Joe E. Brown Cemetery Keeper
- Charles Soldani Mourner (uncredited)
- Lovyss Bradley Mourner (uncredited)
- Fred Walton Mourner (uncredited)
- Beverly Powers Mrs. Phipps
- Harvey Parry Man Knocked Down on Street (uncredited)
- Alan DeWitt Riggs
- Linda Rogers Phipps' Maid
- Paul Barselou Riggs (uncredited)
- Buddy Mason Mr. Phipps
More from Jacques Tourneur
More films directed by Jacques Tourneur, best-rated first: Out of the Past, Cat People, Nightfall and War-Gods of the Deep.
The Comedy of Terrors Plot Summary
What happens in The Comedy of Terrors from start to finish, spoilers included, with a timeline of 13 key events. The opening is below; the full summary is a 3-minute read.
Spoilers ahead
In the New England town of New Gilead in the late 19th century, a scheming funeral parlor life lies at the heart of a grim tale. Waldo Trumbull, Vincent Price, is an unscrupulous drunkard who has taken over the business from his former partner, Amos Hinchley Boris Karloff. Trumbull’s marriage to Hinchley’s daughter, Amaryllis Joyce Jameson, is strained and unhappy, fed by loud arguments and threats. To shore up his operation, Trumbull hires a former fugitive, the cunning picklock Felix Gillie Peter Lorre, as his unreliable assistant. Together they run a sham operation that proudly tows the line between respectability and murder, reusing the firm’s sole coffin to save money while quietly killing wealthy residents to up the funeral business.
Full summary
The whole story of The Comedy of Terrors, scene by scene
The Comedy of Terrors Trailers & Videos
The trailer of The Comedy of Terrors.
How Well Do You Know The Comedy of Terrors?
9 questions about the story, each with a hint if you get stuck. Pick an answer to see whether you were right.
Question 1 of 9
- Question 1: not answered
- Question 2: not answered
- Question 3: not answered
- Question 4: not answered
- Question 5: not answered
- Question 6: not answered
- Question 7: not answered
- Question 8: not answered
- Question 9: not answered
Which actor portrays the scheming funeral‑parlor owner Waldo Trumbull?
The Comedy of Terrors Also Known As
17 alternative titles, including “La comedia de los terrores” and “The Graveside Story”.
- Also known as
-
- La comedia de los terrores
- The Graveside Story
- Il clan del terrore
- La comedia de los horrores
- Ruhe Sanft GmbH
- Le Croque-mort s'en mêle
- Poskromienie złoczyńcy
- Liget går amok
- La comedia de terror
- 恐怖喜剧
- Комедия ужасов
- Farsa Trágica
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- 공포의 코미디
- Комедія жахів
- La comèdia dels horrors
- Komedi i skräck
- Komedie plná hrůz
Seen The Comedy of Terrors?
Movies Like The Comedy of Terrors
Films with a similar story, tone or audience, including The Old Dark House, Revenge of the Dead and Funny Man.
The Comedy of Terrors FAQ: Cast, Runtime & Release Date
Runtime, release date, director, cast and post-credit scenes of The Comedy of Terrors, each answered in a sentence.
How long is The Comedy of Terrors?
The Comedy of Terrors runs 1 hour 24 minutes (84 minutes).
When was The Comedy of Terrors released?
The Comedy of Terrors was released on December 25, 1963.
Who directed The Comedy of Terrors?
The Comedy of Terrors was directed by Jacques Tourneur.
More films by Jacques Tourneur Who is in the cast of The Comedy of Terrors?
The Comedy of Terrors stars Vincent Price as Waldo Trumbull, Joyce Jameson as Amaryllis Trumbull and Boris Karloff as Amos Hinchley, among 18 credited actors.
Does The Comedy of Terrors have a post-credit scene?
No. The Comedy of Terrors has no extra scene during or after the credits.
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