VINCENTENNIAL: THE FLY star David Hedison writes about Vincent Price

Article by David Hedison

The Vincentennial Vincent Price Film Festival kicks off May 19^th with a screening of the 1958 horror classic THE FLY at the Missouri History Museum. We invited David Hedison, who played that film’s title role to attend our event but his wife had scheduled a trip to San Francisco for his 85^th birthday the following day so he had to decline our invitation. He did however, kindly offer to write a testimonial about working with Vincent Price and that is presented for the first time here at We Are Movie Geeks

For the past fifty-two years of my life (ouch!) so many people have asked me the same question: “What was it like working with Vincent Price in THE FLY?” Truthfully I never did work with Vincent OR Herbert Marshall in that film since we all worked on different days during that fast 18 day shoot. I did, of course, meet him casually at the cast party, but it wasn’t until I was involved in the TV series Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea (or as I used to tell my friends – Voyage To The Bottom Of Your Career). It always got a laugh. One happy day Vincent was cast in The Deadly Dolls episode, and I couldn’t wait for him to walk in the door of the soundstage. I greeted him, laughed, shook his hand, shared a bawdy joke with him that I’d just heard. He gave me a big hug and said: “David, dear David, I watched you for awhile when you were filming your sequences on our film a few years ago, and I remember you as being SO earnest and serious!” I guess I was at the time. I took Andre de Lambre and his horrible predicament VERY seriously. Vincent, Richard Basehart, me, the cast and crew had an enjoyable, and happy six days with Vincent, and he was loved and admired by all. He invited Richard (with his wife Diana) and yours truly to his home for dinner. Vincent and his wife at the time, Mary, were brilliant cooks so you can just imagine the incredible feast served to us that evening. I saw Vincent socially many times after that. He was an incredible human being. I can honestly say that during all my years in Hollywood Vincent Price was definitely one of the highlights in my life. I miss him. Very much. But who knows………….maybe in the NEXT life?