Herbert West
Encyclopedia
Herbert West is a fictional character created by H. P. Lovecraft
for his short story
"Herbert West—Reanimator
", first published in 1922. There have been several adaptations of the story including Herbert West as played by Jeffrey Combs
in the 1985
Re-Animator
movie and its two sequels, Bride of Re-Animator
and Beyond Re-Animator
.
In Lovecraft's tale, Herbert West was ostracized by his fellow medical students because he believed he could overcome death and had only one friend: the unnamed narrator of the story. After a series of successful experiments Herbert West is eventually torn to pieces by his own experiments.
film Re-Animator
and its sequels, starring Jeffrey Combs
as Dr. West. These films transplant the character into the modern day (1980s-2000s) rather than the Prohibition
era and changes his hair from Lovecraft's specified blond to brown, but otherwise the character remains unchanged. The film is also set over a fairly short period of time where West and Cain are still medical students, whereas the short story played out over the span of decades from the years of medical students, practising doctors, war-time physicians and eventually retirement. In the first two films the equivalent of West's nameless companion is Dr. Dan Cain, who finds himself embroiled in West's experiments.
A pornographic parody, entitled Re-Penetrator also exists.
H. P. Lovecraft
Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
for his short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
"Herbert West—Reanimator
Herbert West--Reanimator
"Herbert West—Reanimator" is a short story by American horror fiction writer H. P. Lovecraft. It was written between October 1921 and June 1922. It was first serialized in February through July 1922 in the amateur publication Home Brew...
", first published in 1922. There have been several adaptations of the story including Herbert West as played by Jeffrey Combs
Jeffrey Combs
Jeffrey Alan Combs is an American actor known for his horror film roles and his appearances playing a number of characters in the Star Trek franchise.-Early life:...
in the 1985
1985 in film
-Events:* 3 December - Roger Moore steps down from the role of James Bond after twelve years and seven films. He is replaced by Timothy Dalton.* The Academy Award for Best Picture was won by Out Of Africa, while the highest grossing film was Back to the Future.* Bliss wins AFI Award for best Movie...
Re-Animator
Re-Animator
Re-Animator is a 1985 American science fiction horror film based on the H. P. Lovecraft story "Herbert West–Reanimator." Directed by Stuart Gordon, it was the first film in the Re-Animator series. The film has since become a cult film, driven by fans of Jeffrey Combs and H. P...
movie and its two sequels, Bride of Re-Animator
Bride of Re-Animator
Bride of Re-Animator is an American horror film released in 1990. It was directed by Brian Yuzna and was written by Yuzna, Rick Fry and Woody Keith. H. P. Lovecraft wrote the original series of stories, titled Herbert West–Reanimator, from which the characters were derived. The plot roughly...
and Beyond Re-Animator
Beyond Re-Animator
Beyond Re-Animator is a horror film, directed by Brian Yuzna. It is the second sequel to Re-Animator. The film premiered on the Sci-Fi Channel . This showing was cut to a TV-PG rating...
.
Summary
Herbert West is the inventor of a special solution that when injected into a main artery of a recently deceased person causes the body's mechanical, living functions to return. However, most subjects that have undergone the "re-animation" process have turned violent and, after failed attempts to return to their own graves, have terrorized the communities into which they were reanimated.In Lovecraft's tale, Herbert West was ostracized by his fellow medical students because he believed he could overcome death and had only one friend: the unnamed narrator of the story. After a series of successful experiments Herbert West is eventually torn to pieces by his own experiments.
Re-Animator films
The character of Herbert West returned to popular media in the Stuart GordonStuart Gordon
After the University of Wisconsin demanded future theatrical productions by Screw Theater be overseen by a University Professor, Gordon cut his University ties to form Broom Street Theater. Its first production, the new translation of the risque Lysistrata, premiered in May 1969. Gordon is...
film Re-Animator
Re-Animator
Re-Animator is a 1985 American science fiction horror film based on the H. P. Lovecraft story "Herbert West–Reanimator." Directed by Stuart Gordon, it was the first film in the Re-Animator series. The film has since become a cult film, driven by fans of Jeffrey Combs and H. P...
and its sequels, starring Jeffrey Combs
Jeffrey Combs
Jeffrey Alan Combs is an American actor known for his horror film roles and his appearances playing a number of characters in the Star Trek franchise.-Early life:...
as Dr. West. These films transplant the character into the modern day (1980s-2000s) rather than the Prohibition
Prohibition in the United States
Prohibition in the United States was a national ban on the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol, in place from 1920 to 1933. The ban was mandated by the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution, and the Volstead Act set down the rules for enforcing the ban, as well as defining which...
era and changes his hair from Lovecraft's specified blond to brown, but otherwise the character remains unchanged. The film is also set over a fairly short period of time where West and Cain are still medical students, whereas the short story played out over the span of decades from the years of medical students, practising doctors, war-time physicians and eventually retirement. In the first two films the equivalent of West's nameless companion is Dr. Dan Cain, who finds himself embroiled in West's experiments.
A pornographic parody, entitled Re-Penetrator also exists.
Other appearances
- West is a main character in the Zenescope Entertainment comic Chronicles of Doctor Herbert West, essentially a modern retelling of the Lovecraftian novel in which the hidden narrator is now Megan, who is his lover and girlfriend while in his college years, and his obsession with death is now explained as the byproduct of a childhood trauma: while going to Church with his devout family, he saw his mother and sister run over by a bus. He renounces the idea of an immortal soul reaching a heavenly afterlife, swearing he'll find a way to bring back his loved ones. It appears to currently be on hiatus.
- The online flash game Deanimator is based on H. P. Lovecraft's original character.
- The SplatterhouseSplatterhouseis a beat 'em up arcade game developed and published by Namco. It is also subsequently the title of the entire series of games released in home console and personal computer formats....
video game series features a mad scientist called "Dr. Henry West", owner of "West Mansion", the setting for the series. This Dr. West was also conducting experiments to resurrect the dead. - The character of Herbert West has had brief cameo appearances in Kim NewmanKim NewmanKim Newman is an English journalist, film critic, and fiction writer. Recurring interests visible in his work include film history and horror fiction—both of which he attributes to seeing Tod Browning's Dracula at the age of eleven—and alternate fictional versions of history...
's Anno Dracula seriesAnno Dracula seriesThe Anno Dracula series by Kim Newman—named after Anno Dracula , the series' first novel—is a work of fantasy depicting an alternate history in which the heroes of Bram Stoker's novel Dracula fail to stop Count Dracula's conquest of Great Britain, resulting in a world where vampires are common and...
novels The Bloody Red BaronThe Bloody Red BaronThe Bloody Red Baron is a 1995 novel by British author Kim Newman. It is the second book in the Anno Dracula series and takes place thirty years after the former.-Plot:...
and Dracula Cha Cha Cha, serving as a colleague of Dr. MoreauThe Island of Doctor MoreauThe Island of Doctor Moreau is an 1896 science fiction novel written by H. G. Wells. It is told from the point of view of a man named Edward Prendick who is shipwrecked, rescued by a passing boat, and then left at the ship's destination by the crew along with the ship's cargo of exotic animals...
, Jakob Ten BrinckenAlrauneAlraune is a novel by German novelist Hanns Heinz Ewers published in 1911. It is also the name of the female lead character.-Legend:...
, and Doctor Septimus PretoriusDoctor Septimus PretoriusSeptimus Pretorius is a fictional character who appears in the Universal film Bride of Frankenstein . He is played by British stage and film actor Ernest Thesiger. Some sources claim he was originally to have been played by Bela Lugosi or Claude Rains...
. - West is featured in the Dynamite EntertainmentDynamite EntertainmentDynamite Entertainment is an American comic book company that primarily publishes licensed franchises of adaptations of other media. These include adaptations of film properties such as Army of Darkness, Terminator and RoboCop, literary properties such as Zorro, Dracula, Sherlock Holmes, Alice in...
comic miniseries Army of Darkness vs. Re-AnimatorArmy of Darkness (comics)Army of Darkness comics are based on the film of the same name published originally by Dark Horse Comics, and later by Dynamite Entertainment who initially published them through Devil's Due Publishing....
, where he faces off against Ash WilliamsAsh WilliamsAshley J. "Ash" Williams is the protagonist in the Evil Dead horror film franchise, played by Bruce Campbell, and created by director Sam Raimi. Throughout the series, Ash has to face off against his loved ones inside an abandoned cabin as they are possessed by "deadites", the evil souls of the dead...
, hero of the Evil Dead film series. - West also makes a guest appearance in the comic Hack/SlashHACK/slashHack/Slash is an ongoing comic books series, launched from several one shots of the same name, published by Image Comics ....
in a crossover "Hack/Slash vs. Re-Animator" where the main heroine, Cassie HackCassie HackCassandra "Cassie" Hack is a fictional character that appears in the Hack/Slash comic books published by Devil's Due Publishing. The character first appears in Hack/Slash: Euthanized , and was created by writer and occasional penciller Tim Seeley.Seeley has repeatedly stated that Cassie is designed...
's father is an assistant to Herbert. During one of his experiments, he reanimates her mother the Lunch Lady, who almost starts a killing spree. However, with Cassie's help, he destroys and eventually disappears from Cassie and Vlad's sight. Its hinted that the government was now interested in his work. - West is also a character in the SwedishSwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Lovecraftian horror filmHorror filmHorror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
Kammaren. The scriptwriters did a Swedish take on the name and it became Herbert Vest. He was played by the Swedish actor Kaj Stenberg. - Herbert West has a main role in the parody musical A Shoggoth on the RoofA Shoggoth on the RoofA Shoggoth on the Roof is a parody musical of Fiddler on the Roof based on the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Published by the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society, it is credited to a member of the society who is referred to only as "He Who Must Not Be Named".There have been many legal difficulties in...
, published by the H. P. Lovecraft Historical SocietyH. P. Lovecraft Historical SocietyThe H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society or HPLHS is the organization that hosts Cthulhu Lives!, a group of live-action roleplayers for the Cthulhu Live version of Call of Cthulhu. Founded in Colorado in 1984, it is now based in Glendale, California...
. - The Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab has a perfume called "Herbert West" in its A Picnic in Arkham collection.
- "Herbert West" is the title of a 2007 song by UK band Heartwear Process.
- "Herbert West" is also the title of a 2008 song by US band Pipe Supply, named by Jiggly J. Slickwood as a tribute to the Re-Animator movies.
- Randy MilHolland's webcomic Something PositiveSomething PositiveSomething Positive or S*P is a webcomic by R. K. Milholland, which debuted on December 19, 2001. The comic is characterized by a cynical tone and off-beat humor, including its portrayals of geeks, gamers, and goths....
contains a musical adaptation of Herbert West in the "Out of Tune" storyline. - Herbert West is the Doctor that Mayor Harvey Dent sees in the BatmanBatmanBatman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
ElseworldsElseworldsElseworlds is the publication imprint for a group of comic books produced by DC Comics that take place outside the company's canon. According to its tagline: "In Elseworlds, heroes are taken from their usual settings and put into strange times and places — some that have existed, and others...
comic book series, "The Doom That Came To Gotham" - The Lovecraft-based animeAnimeis the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series DemonbaneDemonbaneis a series by Nitroplus with mecha and Cthulhu Mythos elements. Beginning as an eroge for the PC, it was ported into a PlayStation 2 non-eroge remake, a sequel visual novel, a prequel novel, a television anime adaptation and a conversion to manga...
reimagines Herbert West as a guitar-playing lunatic mad scientist. - West is a main character in the Japanese video game Operation DarknessOperation DarknessOperation Darkness is a tactical role-playing game for the Xbox 360 developed and published by Japanese studio Success on October 11, 2007 in Japan. A North American version was released on June 24, 2008 by Atlus...
, a WWII-era tactical-RPG/third-person shooter about an Allied special forces unit that possess supernatural abilities. West is the team medic. (In the English version of the game, West is renamed "Herbert East.") - West also made an appearance in Devil's Due Publishing's popular Hack/Slash Comic Book series, continuing his efforts to overcome death this time by experimenting on the supernatural killers known as "slashers" in the series.
- In the video game Obscure 2, the player picks up a keycard in the hospital belonging to a man named Herbert West.
- Herbert West is the main character in a novel by Audrey Driscoll entitled The Friendship of Mortals, published in e-book form in 2010.