Explore 'The House That Would Not Die' this Halloween

Screen veteran Barbara Stanwyck made a rare television movie in 1970, one that is perfect for Halloween howls and screams. The House That Would Not Die might not be a great movie, but it is great fun.

Historic Gettysburg, well known for its ghostly inhabitants, is the setting for a modest colonial home inherited by Ruth Bennett, more than ably portrayed by Stanwyck. Stanwyck sinks her teeth into the role, and one imagines she had a good time with the spooky shenanigans. Portraying niece Sara, Kitty Winn made her film debut with The House That Would Not Die, leading to an uneven career. An intense leading lady, perhaps her emoting is an acquired taste, but she is definitely not boring. Richard Egan and Michael Anderson Jr. are the other notable names among the cast.

When Bennett moves into The House That Would Not Die, she discovers an old Bible stashed in a secret compartment in a roll top desk. The name of the house’s original owner and his wife stand in contrast to a name that has been crossed out in ink. The mystery is compounded by ghostly happenings and the apparent possession of Sara and Egan’s character, Pat McGougal.

A director with an impressive name and an equally eclectic resume, John Llewellyn Moxey, helms The House That Would Not Die with gleeful mayhem, delivering thrills and chills with verve and style. One could fuel an entire evening of chills from the impressive array of films directed by John Llewellyn Moxey: The City of The Dead (1960) The Night Stalker (1972), The Strange and Deadly Occurrence (1974), Where Have All The People Gone (1974) and Nightmare in Badham County (1976) to name but a few.

The House That Would Not Die might be hard to find, but it is well worth the search, a great companion piece for Halloween fun.