Baker’s Log – A Quick Look: The Little Shop of Horrors (1960)

As a director, Roger Corman sometimes did things just to see if he could. Known for his speed, Corman decided to put himself to the test and shoot a picture in two days. That film was THE LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS (and it ultimately took two and 1/2 days shooting).

Perpetual loser Seymour comes up with a new hybrid plant, which quickly makes him a heralded genius of the botanical world -much to the delight of his boss, flower shop owner Muschnik. This gives Seymour the courage to begin a romantic relationship with co-worker Audrey (Jackie Joseph), after whom he has also named his new plant. But Audrey Jr. soon proves to be more of a handful than Seymour bargained for -when the talking plant develops an appetite for human flesh! Filmed for peanuts, but sporting a good cast (trivia nuts will note a young Jack Nicholson as a masochistic dental patient) and sharp script, the film became a hit. And, like so many weeds, it refused to die! In the early 70’s, a porno called PLEASE DON’T EAT MY MOTHER used the earlier film’s story as a frame-work. Then The Little Shop Of Horrors became a smash musical stage production. That, in turn, was adapted to the screen in the form of big-budgeted musical comedy THE LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS in the 1980’s! This new version, sporting an all-star cast and eye-popping special effects, was an even bigger hit than the original. It spawned a very short-lived Saturday morning cartoon show (seriously, I even caught the pilot first-run). Seems I’ve heard rumors of yet another film version of the play being in the works, and of course the play continues to be mounted by regional companies. That is one healthy plant. “Feed me!!”