The Creeper (film)
The Creeper is a 1948 American horror film directed by Jean Yarbrough. The film stars Onslow Stevens who plays a mad doctor whose serum turns a man into a catlike killer. Plot. Two scientists on an expedition to the West Indies discover a serum which changes humans into cats, or. at least, to catlike killers. One believes they should continue with their experiments and the other does not, which disagreement costs him his life. Several deaths occur before the first scientist is halted in his mad plans. Production. Between 1947 and 1951, Hollywood studios made almost no  horror films with "The Creeper" being the lone exception. It was developed under the working title "The Cat Man" and was in production from the beginning of March 1948 to the middle of the month. Release. "The Creeper" was distributed theatrically by Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corp. in September 1948. According to a March 1949 "Hollywood Reporter" article, radio writer Joseph Ruscoll sued Edward Small for using the title of Ruscoll's radio show, "The Creeper" for the film. The suit was settled for an undisclosed sum. Reception. From contemporary reviews, Dorothy Masters of "New York Daily News" described "The  Creeper" as the effort "is wasted in every phase, including story, performance and general production." and "To further the bafflement, perfectly innocent people are given sinister mien. Three murders and a couple of near-misses don't improve the tale."