Development Development for
The Hideous Sun Demon began after the 1957 release of
The Astounding She-Monster, a science fiction film starring Clarke. In his contract for the film, Clarke was promised five percent of
She-Monster's profits in addition to his salary. Although Clarke later admitted that the film was poorly made, it was a financial success, with Clarke receiving a sizable sum from the film's box office returns. Inspired by its financial success, Clarke decided to direct his own low-budget science fiction film. According to Clarke, the film's plot was inspired by
Robert Louis Stevenson's
The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, which dealt with
multiple personalities. Clarke and co-writer/director Tom Boutross wrote the first draft of the screenplay (although some sources, including Clarke himself, say his friend Phil Hiner co-wrote the first draft), then-titled
Saurus or
Sauros, names taken from the
Latin word meaning "reptile". Other working titles for the film included
Strange Pursuit and
Terror in the Sun. Boutross, who is also credited as one of the film's co-directors, later edited films like
Rat Fink (1965),
A Man Called Dagger (1967) and 1974 hit
The Legend of Boggy Creek. The initial draft would feature an alternate plot, centering on an explorer and a female lawyer searching for
uranium in the country of
Guatemala. While there, they are stalked by a man who was mutated by experiments conducted on him by his scientist father, who is an expert in radiation, and when the young man is exposed to the sun, he transforms into a reptilian creature. The film's crew consisted of students from the
University of Southern California. Clarke pitched the story idea to Robin Kirkman, a student at USC, who liked the idea. The two men formed the production company Clarke-King Enterprises, and Kirkman worked as the film's associate producer. E.S. Seely, who later directed the 1961 film
Shangri-La, wrote the final draft of the film's screenplay, which was then rewritten by Doane R. Hoag who "polished the dialogue", according to Clarke. The film was initially budgeted at $10,000, but by the end of production, it had cost $50,000 in total. The film was Clarke's first and only effort as writer or director.
Casting Clarke, the film's director, writer and producer, also starred in the lead role of Dr. Gilbert McKenna. A veteran actor, he wanted his character to seem realistic and multi-dimensional, with both bad and good qualities. "I acted the part as if I wouldn't let anything get in my way", Clarke later recalled. The rest of the cast consisted mostly of aspiring actors and actresses from around USC, with additional characters played by Clarke's friends and family. Actress
Nan Peterson, in her acting debut, was cast in the role of Trudy Osborne because of her voluptuous figure, according to Clarke. Originally, singer Marilyn King of
The King Sisters, who was Clarke's sister-in-law, was cast for the role, but she dropped out due to her pregnancy at the time of production. King, however, did write and perform the song "Strange Pursuit", featured in the bar scene in the film, providing the vocals for Peterson's character. Peterson had previously worked as a
model for Catalina Bathing Suits and was touring nationwide as "Miss Vornado" for the Vornado air conditioning company. Xandra Conkling, who played the little girl who befriends McKenna in the film, was actually the daughter of Clarke's wife's sister. Pearl Driggs, who portrayed an old woman on the hospital roof, was Clarke's mother-in-law. A
radio announcer heard in the film was played by Clarke's sister-in-law's fiancé, and Clarke's nephew played a newsboy in the film.
Filming .
Principal photography for
The Hideous Sun Demon began in 1957, lasting over 12 consecutive weekends on rented equipment. At the time of production, Clarke was busy acting in other films during weekdays while the student film crew attended school. A decision to film during the weekends was made, since it was the only time that both Clarke and the crew were available. Shot on a low budget, cast and crew members were paid $25 per day. Cast members also provided their own clothing and make-up during production to cut down additional costs, as Peterson commented, "I had to do my own make-up, [and] use my own clothes ... it was a very low-budget film". The film was shot by three different cinematographers, all credited at the end of the film: John Morrill, who Clarke later stated shot at least half the film; Vilis Lapeniks, who also shot
Eegah and the 1966 horror film
Queen of Blood before working on bigger projects like ''
Newman's Law (1974), Capone (1975) and Kiss Daddy Goodbye'' (1981); and Stan Follis, in his only film credit.
The Hideous Sun Demon was one of the first to use practical locations during shooting. According to Clarke, "When we needed a scene in a bar, we went to
Santa Monica and asked a guy how much money he would charge to let us come in and shoot scenes in his bar". Editor and co-writer Tom Boutross stepped in as co-director in scenes that required Clarke to be on camera. McKenna's home in the film was located on Lafayette Boulevard in
Los Angeles, which is no longer standing. The four-story
rooming house was rented for five to six weekend days for $25 per day. The exterior shots of the house were filmed in a different location around Glendale Hill. A scene in the film where a transformed McKenna graphically crushes a rat with his bare hands was not in the script, and was improvised while on location. The effect was accomplished by placing
ketchup on the rat; Clarke would then gently squeeze the rat, making the ketchup ooze from his fingers. This scene was removed from prints that were released on television, but was later restored. Coastal scenes were filmed at Bass Rock and near Trancas, while other scenes were filmed near
Signal Hill. Additional coastal scenes were filmed in
Malibu. The film's climax was filmed around the area of the
Union Station train depot. The large gas tank, which stood over 300 feet tall, was made available to the cast and crew by the
Southern California Gas Company. Filming at this location proved to be a challenge, as the cast and crew had trouble communicating with each other, with Clarke attempting to direct the film crew while on top of the large structure. The title monster was designed by production designer Richard Cassarino, who created the suit for $500, and was built over a
diver's
wetsuit. Conditions inside the suit were very hot; combined with the humid weather, this caused Clarke, who performed his own stunts in the film, to sweat profusely. The original mask is currently owned by archivist and occasional actor
Bob Burns III. Cassarino later worked as production designer for the 1958 film
Hell Squad, and also was responsible for designing the sea creature costume in the science fiction film
Destination Inner Space (1966). == Release ==