The Thing That Couldn't Die

The Thing That Couldn't Die is a 1958 American horror film about an evil, undead warlock (Robin Hughes) who plots to use the residents of a California ranch to reunite his severed head with his body so that he can return to life. The film costarred William Reynolds and Carolyn Kearney.

Plot Summary
Gideon Drew (Hughes) is a powerful warlock who is sentenced to death in 1579. The judge orders that his head be buried separately from his body.Some 400 years later, budding psychic Jessica (Kearney) uses a dowsing rod to locate a well site on her Aunt's ranch. Instead of water, workers find an old box from 1579. Gordon (Reynolds) thinks that it could be a valuable relic once owned by Sir Francis Drake, but when he leaves to summon a local archaeologist, the greedy ranch hands break into the box. Inside they find Gideon's head, which hypnotizes Mike (Charles Hovath) into killing the ranch foreman.

Gideon needs his body to come back to life, and Mike tells him about Jessica's talent for finding things, but she is unknowingly protected from his mind control by an amulet she's wearing. Instead, Gideon hypnotizes Linda (Andrea Martin), a guest at the ranch, and sends Mike off to be killed in a gun battle with the police. Linda is unable to get the amulet away from Jessica, but when Jessica gives it to Gordon for study, Linda brings her Gideon's head. This time Jessica is easily hypnotized by Gideon and agrees to lead the search for his coffin.

The group finds the body, and Jessica attaches Gideon's head, bringing him back to life. Unfortunately, the first person he attacks is Gordon, who still has the amulet. Gideon and the amulet fall back into the coffin, and he is destroyed for good.