1940, with PRC's Sigmund Neufeld to star in the Poverty Row studio's first horror film. The shooting of the film began a little more than one week later. PRC was known for shooting its films quickly and cheaply, but for endowing them with a plentiful amount of horror, and The Devil Bat established this modus operandi. Current status Following its theatrical release, The Devil Bat fell into public domain and since the advent of home video, has been released in countless truncated, poorly edited video and DVD editions. In 1990, the film was restored from original 35mm elements by Bob Furmanek and released on laserdisc by Lumivision. In 2008, Furmanek supplied his original elements to Legend Films, which performed a new restoration and also created a computer-colorized version. Both the restored black-and-white and colorized versions were subsequently released on DVD. In 2013, The Devil Bat was released on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber under its Kino Classics label. Reception The film was re-released in 1945 on a double bill with Man Made Monster. The Los Angeles Times described the duo as "two of the scariest features on the market." In the book Poverty Row Horrors! (1993), Tom Weaver judges The Devil Bat as one of Lugosi's best films for the poverty row studios. Sequels PRC's 1946 film Devil Bat's Daughter starred Rosemary LaPlanche as Paul Carruthers's daughter. Neither Lugosi nor any other actors reprise their roles; Carruthers is an unseen character in the latter film. In contrast to the horror elements of the original, Devil Bat's Daughter was mainly a psychological thriller. In 2015 Indie filmmaker Ted Moehring directed the sequel Revenge of the Devil Bat, which stars Lynn Lowry, Ruby Larocca and veteran actors Gary Kent, John Link, Dick Dyszel, George Stover and Conrad Brooks. See also Bela Lugosi filmography References Further reading Weaver, Tom (1993). "The Devil Bat (PRC, 1940)" in Poverty Row Horrors! Monogram, PRC and Republic Horror Films of the Forties. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Co. . pp. 14–25. External links Review of film at You Call Yourself a Scientist The Devil Bats, a band influenced by the movie and Rock N Roll! IMDB link to Devil Bat's Daughter, a sequel of sorts 1940 horror films 1940 films 1940s science fiction horror films American black-and-white films American science fiction horror films Articles containing video clips Films directed by Jean Yarbrough Producers Releasing Corporation films American films