# Why is the Frankenstein's head squared-off? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 15, 2011, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523 "2011-06-15T03:29:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/1 "2011-06-15T03:29:36Z")
(Referring to the _monster_, of course, and the 1931-onward Universal Studios version, specifically) Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been familiar with the explanation by Frankenstein makeup artist Jack Pierce: > [@](#): > > “I did three months of research in anatomy, surgery, criminology, ancient and modern burial customs, and electrodynamics. My anatomical studies taught me that there are six ways a surgeon can cut the skull in order to take out or put in a brain. I figured that Frankenstein, who was a scientist but no practising surgeon, would take the simplest surgical way. He would cut the top of the skull off straight across like a pot lid, hinge it, pop the brain in, and then clamp it on tight. That’s the reason I decided to make the Monster’s head square and flat like a shoe box and dig that big scar across his forehead with the metal clamps holding it together.” The thing is, I’ve never understood how that translates to a monster with a _square_ skull, rather than just like, say, the monster from [Young](http://artsblog.ocregister.com/files/2007/08/youngfrank21.jpg) [Frankenstein](http://img.timeinc.net/time/daily/2007/0711/young_frankenstein_1106.jpg), with a dome-ish cranium. Am I missing something in the proper visualization of the skull-hinges, or is there some additional information that Pierce was glossing over? Can anyone help me out with this question of such prime importance? (And yes, I probably should have saved this for Halloween. Ah, well.) ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/2 "2011-06-15T03:31:14Z")
Keeps forgetting to duck going through doorways. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![nivlac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/3bc359/32.png) [@nivlac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nivlac)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/3 "2011-06-15T08:10:41Z")
From Jack Pierce’s explanation, it appears that he viewed the top of the head like a box lid that can be lifted to insert a brain, and box lids are invariably flat. Besides, you must admit that it gives Frankie a more monstery look. ---
**Author:** ![NineToTheSky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5a626/32.png) [@NineToTheSky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NineToTheSky)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 8:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/4 "2011-06-15T08:33:41Z")
Or, perhaps, it just looked weird enough and wasn’t too hard to create. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/5 "2011-06-15T08:43:51Z")
My guess is that when the good doctor put the top back on the skull, he wasn’t picky about making sure it was the original lid. The squareness is an effect of the curvatures not matching up very well. Look at [this pic](http://www.solarnavigator.net/mythology/mythology_images/Frankenstein_monster_Boris_Karloff.jpg) of Frank and note the bulge in his forehead - could be an ill-fitting match between the top of the skull and the rest of the cranium. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/6 "2011-06-15T11:03:28Z")
I grew up reading Pierce’s explanation in _Famous Monsters of Filmland_, and never realy understood it either. I suspect that it’s after-the-fact rationalizing. What came first was the desire for that unnatural squared-off head, which both made him look odd and effectively increased his height (along with other tricks, like the thick-soled boots). I’d like to note that Pierce himself may not be the originator of the idea. 1.)In the movie **Gods and Monsters** , ian mcKellen, as James Whale, claims that _he_ came up with the iconic look, and made a sketch of it (which Brendan Fraser ends up with at the end of the movie). I don’t know how much truth there is to that assertion. McKellen’s line “He had a squared head like a big beef tin. You’d just open it up and pop it in.” has stayed with me. 2.) In one of the publicity stills for the Edison 1910 version of **Frankenstein** , the monster (played by Charles Ogle) looks suspiciously as if he has a squared-off head(!): [http://images.search.yahoo.com/images/view?back=http%3A%2F%2Fimages.search.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%2Fimages%3F\_adv\_prop%3Dimage%26va%3D1910%2Bfrankenstein%26fr%3Dyfp-t-404&w=261&h=313&imgurl=1.bp.blogspot.com%2F\_Y32nBaee2kw%2FSf5GtzntuxI%2FAAAAAAAAAQg%2Flux4BZg7T8g%2Fs400%2Ffrankensteinogle1%255B1%255D.gif&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fsilent-volume.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F05%2Ffrankenstein-1910.html&size=122KB&name=Silent+Volume%3A+F...&p=1910+frankenstein&oid=99680327b4fcde810e105d3d100bca33&fr2=&no=21&tt=1880&sigr=120glgbef&sigi=134bscg56&sigb=12u66i64b&.crumb=xkf07DRmFD1](http://images.search.yahoo.com/images/view?back=http%3A%2F%2Fimages.search.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%2Fimages%3F_adv_prop%3Dimage%26va%3D1910%2Bfrankenstein%26fr%3Dyfp-t-404&w=261&h=313&imgurl=1.bp.blogspot.com%2F_Y32nBaee2kw%2FSf5GtzntuxI%2FAAAAAAAAAQg%2Flux4BZg7T8g%2Fs400%2Ffrankensteinogle1%255B1%255D.gif&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fsilent-volume.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F05%2Ffrankenstein-1910.html&size=122KB&name=Silent+Volume%3A+F...&p=1910+frankenstein&oid=99680327b4fcde810e105d3d100bca33&fr2=&no=21&tt=1880&sigr=120glgbef&sigi=134bscg56&sigb=12u66i64b&.crumb=xkf07DRmFD1) That’s from the_Edison Kinescope_ in 1910. For many years this was one of the few images surviving from that film, which was thought to be lost. It’s been found, since, and you can watch it on YouTube. In the film, his head doesn’t seem so squared. But in 1931, the film was still lost, and if all they had to go by was this still, that might have provided the inspiration. In any case, the 1931 91910?) square head was quite a departure. Shelley’s book describes nothing like it. Stage treatments usually showed the Monster with a head of shaggy hair. That was true even of the Peggy Webling play the 1931 movie was _supposedly_ based on (it’s listed in the opening credits). It was true of the trial makeup they put on Bela Lugosi. Frankenstein movies made since the 1950s have generally dispensed with it. But that square head has become an icon. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/7 "2011-06-15T13:39:53Z")
I assumed it was because Karloff was just an average-sized man, and the monster was supposed to be some hulking bruter, thus the big shoes, and the prosthetic head, both of which increased his height, as Cal has mentioned. ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/8 "2011-06-15T16:21:53Z")
A few years back when I visited Universal Studios I noticed several pictures of the “Universal Monsters”. I was surprised to find out that their still copyrighted. You’ve got to admit the unusual appearance makes it easy to copyright. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/9 "2011-06-15T17:06:23Z")
It’s a little thing called _style_! ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/10 "2011-06-15T17:12:03Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > My guess is that when the good doctor put the top back on the skull, he wasn’t picky about making sure it was the original lid. The squareness is an effect of the curvatures not matching up very well. Look at [this pic](http://www.solarnavigator.net/mythology/mythology_images/Frankenstein_monster_Boris_Karloff.jpg) of Frank and note the bulge in his forehead - could be an ill-fitting match between the top of the skull and the rest of the cranium. I like this explanation. I don’t want to be thinking about the make-up artist’s craft while watching a film; I want to be convinced that I am seeing a man sewn together from parts of different bodies. FWIW, Karloff’s head doesn’t look as flat as those of the Halloween masks and parodies (e.g. Herman Munster) that it inspired. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/11 "2011-06-15T17:26:37Z")
What’s going on with those lids? Eyelids, I mean. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/12 "2011-06-15T17:27:42Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > FWIW, Karloff’s head doesn’t look as flat as those of the Halloween masks and parodies (e.g. Herman Munster) that it inspired. I think those were patterned after the Glenn Strange Frankie, whose head at least appeared to be a little flatter. ---
**Author:** ![Corner\_Case](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/corner_case/32/234_2.png) [@Corner\_Case](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Corner_Case)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/13 "2011-06-15T17:30:19Z")
The head you can attribute to refitting a skull, but that doesn’t explain the eyebrow ridge. The body would have to have already had that feature. … Dr. Frederick Frankenstein: For the experiment to be a success, all of the body parts must be enlarged. Inga: In other vords: his veins, his feet, his hands, his organs vould all have to be increased in size. Dr. Frederick Frankenstein: Exactly. Inga: He vould have an enormous schwanzstucker. Dr. Frederick Frankenstein: That goes without saying. Inga: Voof. Igor: He’s going to be very popular. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/14 "2011-06-15T17:54:19Z")
> [@Ellen\_Cherry](#): > > What’s going on with those lids? Eyelids, I mean. They built up Karloff’s eyelids with collodion. They wanted to have a heavy-lidded effect. Karloff wore a partial denture, and he took it out when playing the monster. That gave him a hollow-cheeked look. They played lots of tricks to alter his appearance from the normal human appearance. I understand that the makeup they put o him gave him a bluish cast, which was supposed to photograph as white. In some of the posters he’s got a flesh tone. At least one poster has everything sort of greenish, which might give the impression that he was green. That wasn’t Universal’s intent, but years later several people adopted the green coloration as standard. When I was a kid in the 1960s you were supposed to paint your Aurora model green, and a lot of the Universal licensed stuff showed Frankenstein as a green creature. but you never got that sense from the movies. ---
**Author:** ![Rocketeer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocketeer/32/4437_2.png) [@Rocketeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rocketeer)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/15 "2011-06-15T17:58:47Z")
David Skal, in The Monster Show, says that the squared-off head was intended to create a sort of tension between technology (rectilinearity) and nature, intended to indicate that the Monster is an unholy hybrid of both. And I’m far more ready to believe that Whale came up with the concept than Pierce. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-frankensteins-head-squared-off/585523/16 "2011-06-15T21:23:33Z")
> [@](#): > > Karloff wore a partial denture, and he took it out when playing the monster. That gave him a hollow-cheeked look. Ironic, since the one thing the Doctor got right with his creation was that it had perfect teeth.