HOUSE OF MYSTERY-1934-Asia 1913-An unscrupulous archaeologist John Prendergast (Clay Clement) kills a monkey at a sacred temple. The head honcho puts a curse on him but he mocks them and uses a whip on the head guy, who summons a gorilla to kill Prendegast. However with the help of a "Hidi" dancing girl Chandra (Laya Joy aka Joyzelle Joyner; also in JUST IMAGINE) he escapes and flees with some treasures and the girl.
20 years later The Potters, an absent minded professor (Harry C. Bradley) and shrewish wife (Mary Foy) who backed the expedition Prendegast headed, hire Jack Armstrong (Ed Lowry in his only feature film) to get the treasure back when they suspect Prendegast is living in a mansion in the suburbs. Prendergast agrees to meet the backers at his house to discuss a settlement. He's now a dying cripple because of the curse but agrees to give everyone their share if they agree to live with him for one week in his house. After they hold a seance people start dying at the hands of a gorilla prowling around the house. Prendegast says it's all because of the curse. A cloddish police chief (Irving Bacon) thinks otherwise. This old haunted house horror comedy/mystery (with unintentional humor) is unexciting but I liked the twist with the character of the dumb plumber. George “Gabby” Hayes is also in it.
Director William Nigh had been an actor in silent films and producer who directed over a 100 films but is most remembered today for making the 5 “Mr. Wong” Monogram series of films with Boris Karloff. He also directed Karloff in a 5th Monogram movie THE APE which along with HOUSE OF MYSTERY are credited as being based on the same play, “The Ape” by Adam Shirk. Nigh also made BLACK DRAGONS with Bela Lugosi in 1942.
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