Starring: Bela Lugosi, Duke Mitchell, Sammy Petrillo

Martin and Lewis knock-offs run amok on an island with gorillas and Bela Lugosi

Deservedly one of the crown jewels of lowbrow cinema, Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla (1952) debuts at Nitehawk in a brand new scan from the original camera negative. This cult classic stars Duke Mitchell and Sammy Petrillo as a bargain basement Martin and Lewis trapped on a tropical island. Sammy Petrillo inhabits every nuance and tic of Jerry Lewis’s insanity, creating an indelible performance that still stuns decades later. Featuring Bela Lugosi in one of his last great roles as a mad scientist bent on revenge, Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla is as funny or funnier than any Martin and Lewis movie.

Followed by an after party in Trees Lounge with a DJ set by renowned Brooklyn rock ‘n’ roller Andy Maltz. Author Dave Abramson will sell and sign copies of his new book, Your Time Is Now: The Sammy Petrillo Story (Feral House).