"Man-Made Monster" launched Lon Chaney Jr.'s career as a star in horror films and the film's success directly led to his casting in the big budget role of his career, "The Wolfman."
Based on the story, "The Electric Man" which Universal had purchased for $3,300 in 1935 as a potential Boris Karloff / Bela Lugosi vehicle to be titled "The Man in the Cab." The studio, in the midst of a financial debacle at the time, shelved the project for over five years, assigning the re-write to George Waggner (working as "Joseph West") who re-tooled it as "The Human Robot."
Budgeted at a mere $86,000 on a 3-week shooting schedule. It was the cheapest feature film produced by Universal in 1941.
Dan McCormick (Lon Chaney Jr.) kills Dr. Paul Rigas (Lionel Atwill) with a jolt of electricity. In The Ghost of Frankenstein The Monster (Lon Chaney Jr.) kills Dr. Bohmer (Lionel Atwill) by pushing him into a control box electrocuting him.
Part of the original SHOCK THEATER package of 52 Universal titles released to television in 1957, followed a year later with SON OF SHOCK, which added 21 more features.
Shooting began December 9, 1940, released March 19, 1941.
This was intended to be another vehicle with Boris Karloff as the mad doctor, but was shelved and not filmed until 1941.