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Thanks for staying up a bit later than usual with me for this one-of-a-kind film! #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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COBRA WOMAN’s afterlife is remarkable. AFI notes that modern sources cite its wonderfully outrageous story as an inspiration to novelist Gore Vidal and Charles Ludlam, founder of the Ridiculous Theatrical Company. Not bad for 70 minutes of Technicolor insanity! #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Underground filmmaker Jack Smith adored Maria Montez and turned her into an artistic icon. His celebration of her extravagant artificiality helped COBRA WOMAN influence later avant-garde, queer and camp cinema. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Universal gave Lon Chaney an unusual assignment in COBRA WOMAN: virtually no dialogue. Instead of Larry Talbot agonizing over becoming a werewolf, Hava communicates almost entirely through expression and physical presence. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Critics in 1944 knew exactly what kind of movie this was. NY Times critic Bosley Crowther treated COBRA WOMAN less like a plausible drama and more like an extravagant comic-strip adventure. Hard to argue with that. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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One of COBRA WOMAN’s screenwriters was Richard Brooks. He later became the acclaimed writer-director of Blackboard Jungle, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Elmer Gantry and In Cold Blood. Quite a resume! #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Mary Nash, who plays the twins’ grandmother, the Queen, had already played another formidable society matriarch: Katharine Hepburn’s mother in The Philadelphia Story (1940). #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Ben mentioned this briefly before the film, COBRA WOMAN was directed by Robert Siodmak, who became one of film noir’s great directors. His later films include The Killers, The Spiral Staircase and Criss Cross. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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WWII soon interrupted Sabu’s Hollywood career. He became a U.S. citizen in 1944 and served in the Army Air Forces as a tail gunner, earning the Distinguished Flying Cross. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Sabu, who plays Kado, was born in Mysore, India. He became an international star while still a teenager in films including Elephant Boy and the spectacular 1940 version of The Thief of Bagdad. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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The fantastic sets were overseen by art directors John B. Goodman and Alexander Golitzen. Golitzen would become one of Universal’s most important production designers. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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The visual excess was the point. UCLA’s archive describes COBRA WOMAN in terms of lush Technicolor, ornate sets and lavish jeweled costumes—the sort of escapist spectacle Universal offered wartime audiences. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Here it comes: Naja’s gloriously extravagant *Cobra Dance*. This sequence became one of the defining moments of Maria Montez’s career and a major reason COBRA WOMAN developed such a devoted camp following. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Those gloriously extravagant gowns were designed by Vera West, Universal’s longtime costume designer. Few movies ever gave a costume designer more permission to ignore the phrase “too much.” #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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This is genuine three-strip-era Technicolor. Natalie Kalmus, the influential Technicolor color consultant whose name appears on many classic color films, served as color consultant. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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COBRA WOMAN wastes no time: it runs only about 70 minutes. Apparently evil twins, kidnapping, romance, palace intrigue, volcanoes and cobra dancing don't require three hours. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Although released in May 1944, COBRA WOMAN had been filmed nearly a year earlier. Production began April 19, 1943 and continued through late June. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Montez practically willed herself into stardom. She arrived in New York in 1939 with little acting experience, landed a Universal contract and enthusiastically cultivated her own publicity—including her own fan club. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Despite Hollywood’s exotic marketing, Maria Montez really was Caribbean. She was born María África Gracia Vidal in Barahona, Dominican Republic, in 1912. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Yes, that really IS the Wolf Man. Lon Chaney Jr. plays Hava, the imposing mute who abducts Tollea. In the credits he’s billed simply as “Lon Chaney.” #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Maria Montez became known as “The Queen of Technicolor,” thanks to Universal’s lavish color adventures, extravagant costumes and her larger-than-life screen presence. #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Maria Montez does double duty here, playing both the sweet-natured Tollea and her evil twin Naja. Good Maria vs. Evil Maria—what more could you want?! #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Time for COBRA WOMAN! (but first a Speedy Gonzales short) #TCMParty #CobraWoman ^JW

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Join us in two hours! You do NOT want to miss the cobra dance of doom! #TCMParty ^JW

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TCM Party @tcmparty.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Tomorrow on @tcmtv.bsky.social: Daytime - Monsieur and Madame Primetime - #SOTM: Ricardo Montalbán #TCMParty ^JW

Ricardo Montalbán and Shelly Winters in LET NO MAN WRITE MY EPITAPH (1960)

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Tomorrow on @tcmtv.bsky.social: Primetime - Hispanic Heritage Month #TCMParty ^JW

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Join us tomorrow night at 9:45pE for our watch party of COBRA WOMAN (1944) #TCMParty ^JW

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You're absolutely correct! ^JW

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here's some examples, the Reddit link is especially excellent in comparing 4 separate versions! www.reddit.com/r/theshining... #TCMParty #TheShining ^JW

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Tomorrow on @tcmtv.bsky.social: Primetime - Two-for-One w/Adam Shankman #TCMParty ^JW

Michel Serrault and Ugo Tognazzi in LA CAGE AUX FOLLES (1978)

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Here’s a still from the German version “Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today” There’s probably more online but clips seem to be rare ^PG #TheShining #TCMParty

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I do that a lot! Our old cable system had a reminder function, I miss it ^PG

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It’s not even that kind of roadblock 🤷🏻‍♀️ Where Danger Lives is one of the most fatalistic of noirs ^PG #TCMParty

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Absolutely diabolically gross ^PG

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Every so often, I try again with GASLIGHT and I just can’t do it. Angela Lansbury is perfect but Boyer makes my skin crawwwwlll when he says my name ^PG #TCMParty

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it really is two separate films (kinda like STRIPES), recording to watch later ^JW

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that was fun (and creepy!) Join us this Sunday evening for our watch-party of COBRA WOMAN! #TCMParty #TheShining ^JW

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Kubrick never gives us a simple on-screen explanation for what the photograph means. Is Jack being absorbed into the Overlook's history? Was he somehow always there? Is time repeating? #TCMParty #TheShining ^JW

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Look closely at the date beneath the photograph: "Overlook Hotel — July 4th Ball — 1921." And there's Jack, standing right in the middle. #TCMParty #TheShining ^JW

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After the film had already opened in New York and Los Angeles, Kubrick decided the hospital scene was unnecessary and ordered it physically removed from prints. #TCMParty #TheShining ^JW

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The theatrical release originally continued beyond what you're about to see. Kubrick initially included a hospital epilogue with Wendy, Danny and Ullman. #TCMParty #TheShining ^JW

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