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Dracula's Death
The first motion picture to ever feature the character of Dracula was Dracula's Death, a Hungarian silent film made in 1921. It was not based on Bram Stoker's novel, but rather it was an original story about a young woman, who encounters the famous vampire during her stay at a mental asylum. The movie, just like so many others from the silent film era, is considered lost. Luckily, a prose adaptation was published in 1924, which has survived in its entirety. We present an English translation of this novelization, with stunning new illustrations by Jozsef Svab. This publication also features The Devil Flew Away, a comprehensive essay on the history of Dracula's Death.
86 pages, Paperback
Published February 27, 2021
About the author
Laszlo Tamasfi
11 books1 follower Laszlo Tamasfi is a horror author and translator. His comics include Invisible Hands (American Gothic Press, 2017) and The Observatory (Caliber Comics, 2018).
He also runs Strangers From Nowhere, a small press specializing in illustrated paperbacks. His latest book is an English translation of Dracula's Death, a novelization based on the 1921 Hungarian silent film.
Laszlo was born and raised in Hungary, and now lives in Chicago.
He also runs Strangers From Nowhere, a small press specializing in illustrated paperbacks. His latest book is an English translation of Dracula's Death, a novelization based on the 1921 Hungarian silent film.
Laszlo was born and raised in Hungary, and now lives in Chicago.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
April 12, 2021
There is something truly special about this book.
Simply put, it's an English translation of the novelization of the 1921 silent film Dracula's Death. Well at least the first 54 pages are. I was hypnotized by this tale- I could just picture it as a silent B&W movie in my head as I read. A huge added extra are the amazing illustrations.
I'm a HUGE old school horror movie person so this book hit all the right notes for me. So I really enjoyed the first half of this book.
The last part of the book is a smartly written and engaging essay of the history of the movie. I enjoyed this too.
I'm going to go a step further and say that Tamasfi's essay proves beyond a doubt, why we all need
to preserve both print and film for future generations. I was impressed with the thoughtfulness and energy that was put into this whole book.
I was provided a print copy from Tamasfi / Strangers from Nowhere in exchange for my honest review.
Simply put, it's an English translation of the novelization of the 1921 silent film Dracula's Death. Well at least the first 54 pages are. I was hypnotized by this tale- I could just picture it as a silent B&W movie in my head as I read. A huge added extra are the amazing illustrations.
I'm a HUGE old school horror movie person so this book hit all the right notes for me. So I really enjoyed the first half of this book.
The last part of the book is a smartly written and engaging essay of the history of the movie. I enjoyed this too.
I'm going to go a step further and say that Tamasfi's essay proves beyond a doubt, why we all need
to preserve both print and film for future generations. I was impressed with the thoughtfulness and energy that was put into this whole book.
I was provided a print copy from Tamasfi / Strangers from Nowhere in exchange for my honest review.
July 19, 2021
Dracula’s Death is a retelling of a Hungarian silent film that has been lost to time. The author has meticulously researched this film as well as the novelization of the story. He has translated the tale from Hungarian and it’s a gem of a story. This is not your standard Dracula tale. This one involves a mental asylum, a young girl in love but sad due to her father’s impending death, and a lot of creepy inmates of that asylum. The heroine is a sweet character and I found myself rooting for her throughout the story.
The story is evocative and well-told. The descriptions are lovely and this reader was transported to the snowy mountains of Europe just reading the prose. The illustrations are also lovely and amazing. Even the cover of the book is delicious. I very much enjoyed this story and appreciate the efforts made by the author to translate this to English as otherwise, it wouldn’t be available for us here to enjoy.
After the story—which is very creepy and exciting—the author shares his research into the film. He translates many articles that were published during the time the film was being made as well as publicity ads during the era of the release of this silent film. Photos are also shared that bring this movie to life. It’s sad that its been lost to the annals of time, but wow—good job to Mr. Tamasfi for his work in bringing it to us—as well as the articles about it—and the Mr. Svab for his wonderful illustrations.
If you like horror or Dracula tales, this one shouldn’t be missed as it’s a different take on a popular character and suitably creepy. If you’re a film buff—silent or talkies—this is a great resource for a missing piece of film history.
The story is evocative and well-told. The descriptions are lovely and this reader was transported to the snowy mountains of Europe just reading the prose. The illustrations are also lovely and amazing. Even the cover of the book is delicious. I very much enjoyed this story and appreciate the efforts made by the author to translate this to English as otherwise, it wouldn’t be available for us here to enjoy.
After the story—which is very creepy and exciting—the author shares his research into the film. He translates many articles that were published during the time the film was being made as well as publicity ads during the era of the release of this silent film. Photos are also shared that bring this movie to life. It’s sad that its been lost to the annals of time, but wow—good job to Mr. Tamasfi for his work in bringing it to us—as well as the articles about it—and the Mr. Svab for his wonderful illustrations.
If you like horror or Dracula tales, this one shouldn’t be missed as it’s a different take on a popular character and suitably creepy. If you’re a film buff—silent or talkies—this is a great resource for a missing piece of film history.
May 4, 2022
This was rather magical
May 14, 2021
This short book makes for a wonderful quick read. If you love silent horror cinema or even weird melodrama, you’ll probably love this century old novelization of a long lost five-reel film. Reading it really does conjure up an old silent movie in your head. In fact, the movie you create in your mind might actually be better than the real, now lost film. The second half of the book is a long essay about the film’s making and release, and it’s quite good: very strong academic-level research. To top it off the book has some wonderful illustrations. If the description sounds at all interesting to you, I’m absolutely sure you’ll love this book.
October 4, 2023
The illustrated English translation of the 1924 prose adaptation of the apparently lost 1921 Hungarian silent movie ‘Dracula’s Death’ - the first film to ever feature Dracula himself (altho not based on the original story of Stoker classic).
Although this is a very short book and the story is rather unremarkable, its value lies in its importance to European film history and that only by a quirk of bureaucratic fate did the story get preserved at all.
Like over 90% of silent films in Hungary, the film itself is lost forever. What we are left with is this fun novelisation of the story—believed to be true to the film—and an insightful essay which discusses the place of the film’s director, its groundbreaking set development and the preserved promotional articles of time—many of which conflict each other in the details, reveal pre-screening spoilers or are poorly researched (the one mentioning H G Wells as the author of the English novel of Dracula amused me most).
It’s a great little book, with a strange, but magical little story and an insightful essay that belongs on the shelves of any film or horror fan.
Although this is a very short book and the story is rather unremarkable, its value lies in its importance to European film history and that only by a quirk of bureaucratic fate did the story get preserved at all.
Like over 90% of silent films in Hungary, the film itself is lost forever. What we are left with is this fun novelisation of the story—believed to be true to the film—and an insightful essay which discusses the place of the film’s director, its groundbreaking set development and the preserved promotional articles of time—many of which conflict each other in the details, reveal pre-screening spoilers or are poorly researched (the one mentioning H G Wells as the author of the English novel of Dracula amused me most).
It’s a great little book, with a strange, but magical little story and an insightful essay that belongs on the shelves of any film or horror fan.
August 22, 2022
Can you name the first motion picture to feature Dracula? If you said Nosferatu, guess again, then read Dracula’s Death by Laszlo Tamasfi. This fascinating book provides great insights into the very first Dracula movie, a 1921 Hungarian film made one year before F.W. Murnau’s classic.
Like Lon Chaney’s London After Midnight, Dracula’s Death is considered a lost film, but Laszlo reconstructs the story and the backstory in absorbing detail, with illustrations by Jozsef Svab based on the original cast members.
For fans of silent cinema and the history of horror movies, this is an essential read.
Like Lon Chaney’s London After Midnight, Dracula’s Death is considered a lost film, but Laszlo reconstructs the story and the backstory in absorbing detail, with illustrations by Jozsef Svab based on the original cast members.
For fans of silent cinema and the history of horror movies, this is an essential read.
April 20, 2026
This is a really fun little book. I'm thankful a translation of this missing film's novelization exists. What the story lacks is made up for in the thoroughly researched essay which follows.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews