Edward Quist, also known as Eddie the Mangler is a character in the 1980 horror film The Howling. He is portrayed by Star Trek veteran Robert Picardo.
History
Template:Spoiler Eddie Quist's early life and how he came to possess the curse (or gift in his mind) of lycanthropy is never fully delved into. It is likely that the condition was inherited seeing as his two younger siblings Marsha and T.C. also had the curse. At one point in their life, the Quists had been found by therapist and secretly fellow werewolf Dr. George Waggner. Waggner differed from the majority of his kind by being a reformist, believing that the old habits of preying on humans was a practice that could not fit in the modern world. He set up a secluded resort in the Tehachapi Mountains known as "The Colony", a place where others secretly suffering from lycanthropy could retreat from the outside world and learn to channel their energies and control their inherently violent impulses. The therapy of the Quist siblings however proved to be problematic, particularly for Eddie who was more than comfortable with the "old ways".
Eddie left the Colony and moved to Los Angeles, California, where he used his powers to rape and butcher women, earning him the nickname of "The Mangler". As his boldness grew, he began to stalk television news anchor Karen White, a weakness the LAPD decide to exploit to their advantage. Having set an appointment in a sleazy porno theatre, Eddie forced Karen to watch a snuff film while hiding behind her in the shadows and transforming. Karen turned around and screamed, prompting immediate action from the police who shot Eddie whilst in the act of assaulting Karen. A seemingly fatal bullet wound to the head incapacitated Eddie, but in truth he was in a dormant state as his demonic physiology regenerated the injury.
A few days later, Eddie escaped from the morgue and tracked Karen down who was now trying to recover from her ordeal in the Colony. There, he brutally murdered Karen's friend Terri Fisher while tape recording her screams after she had discovered the truth. Later, he confronted Karen, angrilly tearing out the bullet still lodged in his skull and graphically transforming in front of her. Before he could attack however, Karen threw acid on his face and escaped. The now disfigured Eddie was met by Terri's boyfriend Chris Dugan armed with a gun which unbeknownst to him, was loaded with silver bullets. Eddie taunted Chris and began to shapeshift. Chris fired his gun at Eddie's throat, finally ending the shocked serial killer's life. Template:Endspoilers
Personality
Eddie was a true sociopath who viewed himself as above the law of mere humans. He expressed to Karen during their first meeting that in his point of view, unlike him, ordinary people were nothing. This arrogance also manifested itself in his habit of taunting the police by leaving calling cards at his crime scenes in the form of yellow smiley face stickers. He clearly had a sadistic streak seeing as he delighted in terrifying and tormenting his victims before killing them.
Little else of his personality is explored in the film, though his apartment in Los Angeles was filled with drawings of landscapes in his former home and portraits of people in varying stages of werewolf transformation. His cabin in the colony had similar pictures, as well as an assortment of animal flesh and bones kept as trophies.
Quist differs from most movie werewolves by revelling in his powers instead of brooding over them. Whether or not his abilites are a danger to human life are totally immaterial to him.
Differences from the book
Template:Spoiler Quist's character differs a lot from the source in Gary Brandners novel on which the film is based on. In the book, his first name is Max and though he does sexually assault the leading heroine (albeit without police intervention), he is in no way connected to the werewolf community central to the story. Template:Endspoilers
External links
- Robert Picardo at IMDb
- The Howling at IMDb