Count Yorga, Vampire *** (1970, Robert Quarry, Roger Perry, Michael Murphy, Judith Lang, Michael Macready, Donna Anders) – Classic Movie Review 2833

Writer-director Bob Kelljan’s 1970 horror movie Count Yorga, Vampire is a contemporary version of the Dracula tale, neatly relocated to Los Angeles. Robert Quarry stars as the visiting Count Yorga who pesters the life out of some of the local young people there. It also stars Roger Perry as Dr James ‘Jim’ Hayes.

Michael Macready and Donna Anders play one young couple, Michael and Donna, and Michael Murphy and Judith Lang play another couple, Paul and Erica, who all become involved at a Los Angeles séance with Count Yorga, who been involved with Erica’s just-dead mother. Soon Erica is diagnosed by the doctor as having lost a lot of blood and is later found feasting on the family cat!

Kelljan’s movie, distributed by American International Pictures, is a cheaply made, eerie chiller, with ragged performances from a cast of mostly lesser known or unknown actors. But there’s a creepy atmosphere, the direction is smart, pacy and lively, and there is a tasty role for the admirably sleek Quarry to get his teeth into. He is excellent as Yorga, sinister and commanding, hitting the spot exactly as a suave bloodsucker.

At the time Quarry seemed to be Christopher Lee’s natural successor, but alas it never quite happened and he faded out as a star, his career curtailed by a serious car accident. However, he recovered and made a comeback in the mid-80s and carried on filming till 1999. He died on February 20 2009, aged 83. He made his film debut with a small role in Alfred Hitchcock’s Shadow of a Doubt (1943) at 17.

Also in the cast are Edward Walsh, Julie Conners, Paul Hansen, Sybil Scotford, Deborah Darnell, Erica Macready and Marsha Jordan.

It was a hit and there is a successful 1971 sequel called The Return of Count Yorga, also with Quarry.

© Derek Winnert 2015 Classic Movie Review 2833

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