Eerie Missouri

It’s hard to picture Vincent Price anywhere other than a sinister laboratory or a skeleton-riddled haunted mansion. But there was a time he occupied stages and spotlights in St. Louis.

Born in St. Louis in 1911, Price was the youngest of four children and the son of the president of the National Candy Company. Price attended the Community School and St. Louis Country Day School and in 1919, he found himself in the audience for the inaugural production at The Muny, an outdoor theater in St. Louis’ picturesque Forest Park.

After attending Yale University, Price followed his own path to live theater and eventually the Silver Screen. For his debut film, “Service de Luxe,” Price returned to St. Louis on Nov. 4, 1938, to attend a special screening of his film at the iconic Fabulous Fox.

From that first screening in the Fabulous Fox to his last role in Tim Burton’s “Edward Scissorhands,” Price crafted a rich legacy that earned him the nickname “The King of Horror.”

Dr. Ramsay Wise, assistant teaching professor and film critical theory coordinator at the University of Missouri’s School of Visual Studies, described Price’s voice as “deep, elegant, erudite, rhythmic, sinister.” His acting style, Wise says, was, “theatrical, campy, aware of irony and dark humor, but always grounded in the reality of his characters.”

“While acknowledging the enormous and indelible impact of Bela Lagosi and Boris Karloff — given their overwhelmingly iconic portrayals of Frankenstein’s Monster and Dracula, respectively — I would nonetheless argue that Vincent Price is the most significant star of the horror genre,” Ramsay said. “If you think of the Western, you think John Wayne. Film Noir, Humphrey Bogart. Horror, Vincent Price.”

While the horror genre we know today has shifted dramatically from the Price era, Wise said The King of Horror’s influence still lingers in modern cinema.

“His legacy and influence are invariably there. Anyone working in the horror genre today knows Vincent Price, and if they don’t, there’s no excuse for it,” Wise said. “Guillermo del Toro absolutely knows the works of Price, and you can see it in his films and television projects.”

This St. Louis native permeated pop culture, as well. His voice and persona shaped Michael Jackson’s hit, “Thriller.” He popped up as a character on “Scooby Doo,” and was honored posthumously in “Elvira Meets Vincent Price,” a comic book that pairs Price’s ghost with the Mistress of the Dark.

In his later years, Price also hosted his own cooking show and collected fine art. And through it all, Price stayed true to his St. Louis upbringing, returning to The Muny to perform in “The American Way” in 1940, “Oliver!” in 1976 and “Damn Yankees” in 1978. Fans can also find his star on the St. Louis Walk of Fame at 6509 Delmar Blvd., University City, MO.

Kathryn Deters McDonald is a Missouri native, writer, author and lover of all things spooky, ooky and eerie. Salem, Shmalem. It’s all right here in The Spook-Me State.