“Meat is meat.” Where have you heard that before? Join your faithful Grue Crew – Doc Rotten, Chad Hunt, Bill Mulligan, and Jeff Mohr – as they relish the chance to dine out with Victor Buono in The Mad Butcher(1971). Pssst! Despite the title, he has a certificate of sanity prominently displayed on his wall.

Decades of Horror 1970s
Episode 209 – The Mad Butcher (1971)

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After being released from a mental hospital, Otto returns to his old job as a butcher. He tries to adjust to his new life, but after a bitter argument with his wife, he accidentally kills her. Fearing he will be sent back to the hospital, he grinds up her body and sells it as sausages. The popularity of his new sausage recipe necessitates that others find their way into his butcher’s display case.

• Directed by: Guido Zurli (as John Zurli)
• Writing Credits: Dick Randall (as Robert H. Oliver) & Dag Molin (screenplay); (story by) Charles Ross (as Karl Ross)
• Selected Cast:
  • Victor Buono as Otto Lehman
  • Franca Polesello as Berta Hensel
  • Brad Harris as Mike Lawrence
  • Dario Michaelis as Inspector Klaus
  • Karin Field as Hanna Lehman (as Karen Field)
  • Luca Sportelli as Karl Brunner
  • Hansi Linder as Frieda Ulm

If you are a fan of Victor Buono (Batman,1966-68; What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?, 1962; Hush…Hush, Sweet Charlotte, 1964), then we have the episode for you. The Mad Butcher (1971) is a unique beast of a film: a dark comedy in the vein of Sweeney Todd. It’s bizarre, clumsy, silly, yet oddly entertaining. And, well, “Meat is Meat,” yes? Check out what the Grue-Crew think of this often-overlooked nugget.

At the time of this writing, The Mad Butcher is available to stream from the Classic Horror Movie Channel and YouTube.

Gruesome Magazine’s Decades of Horror 1970s is part of the Decades of Horror two-week rotation with The Classic Era and the 1980s. In two weeks, the next episode, chosen by guest host Gregory Crosby, will be Countess Dracula (1971), another Hammer Film, directed by Peter Sasdy and starring Ingrid Pitt! Be there!

We want to hear from you – the coolest, grooviest fans: comment on the site or email the Decades of Horror 1970s podcast hosts at feedback@gruesomemagazine.com.