Dracula!

Dracula
Monogram reissue of Aurora model

The vampire has been a popular movie monster for Hollywood, probably because a set of fangs cost less than heavy special effects makeup. Universal launched the American fascination with the undead in the 1931 film Dracula starring Bela Lugosi. It's been going strong ever since, but no one ever matched Bela's performance.

This reissue is the model that got me back into the hobby - it is simply a great composition. The unsung heroes of Aurora were the artists who designed their models: they weren't just statues of the monsters, they were works of art!

The fleshtone was of course mixed with a lot of white to get him really pale. I replaced the "false teeth" provided for Drac with fangs made of thin plastic...I've never been shy about modifying my models. In fact, back in the 60's there were official "customizing" contests for our monster models, so use your imagination. I lost one of the bats in some move or another, and I'll replace it eventually. The ring provided has always caused a problem, you can't slide it on the finger and many models you see are missing it. I used a "Dremel" tool to carve it out until it was thin enough to get on. Another detail I'm gonna have to fix: I noticed while watching the old movie recently that Drac had a white bow tie, but I painted mine black. Details, details.

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