The Brute Man is a 1946 American horror thriller film starring Rondo Hatton as the Creeper, a murderer seeking revenge against the people he holds responsible for the disfigurement of his face. Directed by Jean Yarbrough, the film features Tom Neal and Jan Wiley as a married pair of friends the Creeper blames for his deformities. Jane Adams also stars as a blind pianist for whom the Creeper tries to raise money for an operation to restore her vision.
Theatrical release poster
The origin of the Creeper in The Brute Man is in part inspired by the real-life story of actor Rondo Hatton, who suffered from acromegaly.
The villain character Lothar from The Rocketeer (1991) was made to resemble that of Rondo Hatton in The Brute Man.
The Brute Man was featured in a seventh-season episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000, in which the film was watched and mocked by Mike Nelson and his two robot friends, Crow T. Robot and Tom Servo.
Rondo Hatton was an American journalist and actor. After writing for The Tampa Tribune, Hatton found a career in film due to his unique facial features, which were the result of acromegaly. He headlined horror films with Universal Studios near the end of his life, earning him a reputation as a cult icon.
Hatton's acromegalic features made him a Hollywood horror film icon
