I was so sad to hear of the passing of director Milton Moses Ginsberg, who directed many things but one which I hold very dear: 1973’s Werewolf of Washington, a political satire/monster movie starring Dean Stockwell as a White House press secretary who – unfortunately for everyone involved – is also a werewolf.
Because it’s Dean Stockwell, you know I know this movie backwards and forwards. (I wrote a little bit about it in the giant piece I wrote about Stockwell for House Next Door back in the day.)
Werewolf of Washington died on the vine. As they were filming, the Watergate scandal was unfolding. They would scramble to rewrite in order to keep up with the news cycle. “I am not a crook” happened. The Saturday Night Massacre happened. The movie is ABOUT the corruption in Washington, and they were basically co-creating the zeitgeist AS they were filming. But unfortunately, by the time it came out, nobody was in the mood for a werewolf movie with political commentary embedded in it. Everyone had LIVED Watergate. They weren’t at all in the mood for a satire on it.
The film has since been restored. Just last year, the Metrograph theatre – which was screening the film – hosted a conversation between Simon Abrams and myself about Werewolf of Washington . About 5 years ago, on break at Ebertfest, somehow Simon and I had discovered our shared love of the film – so this filmed conversation was a culmination of fandom for us!
Another special thing: Ginsberg read that first piece I wrote about Dean Stockwell, and reached out. We corresponded for a bit, and he told me some great backstage stories, including one about the “bowling alley scene”, which I had mentioned in that original piece. Then, after my conversation with Simon went up on the Metrograph site, Ginsberg sent me a lovely sincere email, thanking me for loving this film and for championing it so much over the years. I am so grateful for this correspondence.
Werewolf of Washington was basically a lost/forgotten film for many years. The failure of the film was a disappointment for all involved.
I’m so glad, then, that Ginsberg lived to see the day – decades later – when his unfairly-ignored film was revived and celebrated.
You can watch the conversation Simon and I had here. (There are other goodies on that page too: an essay by Ginsberg about the film and his career, and an interview with Ginsberg.) And see the film! It’s a great monster movie and an even better political satire.