Carla Lynde (Ingrid Pitt) is a vampire in "The Cloak" segment of the 1971 horror film "The House That Dripped Blood". The film consisted of four stories that each took place in the same old manor house at different times and when there were different people living in the house. The Cloak was first published as a short story in May, 1939.
Carla was a co-star of Paul Henderson (Jon Pertwee), in a vampire horror film set. The haunted manor house is being rented out to shoot a low budget horror film.
Paul decides to go shopping for a more realistic wardrobe than the cheap materials provided him by the set of the studio. In an antique costume shop he finds the perfect cloak. The problem is that the cloak does strange things when Paul puts it on. For example, he can't see himself in a mirror. Second, he has a strange cumpulsion to bite Carla in the neck. The last problem is that he has grown fangs and he can't seem to keep his feet on the ground. Paul had determined that when he wears the cloack at midnight, he has turned into a real life vampire.
When Paul tries to explain the cloak to Carla, she taunts him into wearing it in front of her in order to prove that there's nothing wrong with it. When the clock strikes midnight, Just as Carla predicted, nothing happens. However, Paul notices that he's only wearing the studio cape. Carla pulls out the real cape, drapes it around her shoulders, bares her own fangs, and goes after Paul. She tells him that she has been sent to turn Henderon into another vampire. Her comment is that the other vampires were so impressed with his work that they wanted him to be one of them. Carla flies toward a screaming Henderson and begins to turn him into a vampire.
Trivia[]
- Ingrid Pitt appeared as Camilla Karnstein in the 1970 Hammer Horror film "The Vampire Lovers".
- Ingrid Pitt appeared as Countess Elisabeth in the 1971 Hammer Horror film "Countess Dracula".
- Ingrid Pitt appeared as the Librarian in the 1973 British mystery horror film "The Wicker Man".
- Ingrid Pitt appeared as Queen Galleia of Atlantis in the 1974 series "Doctor Who: The Time Monster".
- Hammer studios owned a country manor house where they shot most of their horror movies. Over the years the manner house and stables were used as both Dracula’s and Frankenstein’s castle. The stables were often used for scenes in a village.
- Christopher Lee, became typecast portraying Dracula in seven different movies for Hammer Horror. In the early 1970s, he had a hard time getting non-monster parts as he also was known for playing Frankenstein’s Monster and the Mummy. Lee appeared in The House that Dripped blood be did not play the vampire as part of his campaign to start playing only human parts.
- The Henderson character can be compaired to Christopher Lee, who became typecast portraying Dracula in seven different movies for Hammer Horror. In the early 1970s, he had a hard time getting non-monster parts as he also was known for playing Frankenstein’s Monster and the Mummy. Lee appeared in The House that Dripped blood but did not play the vampire as part of his campaign to start playing only human parts.