Jack Hill's original title for Spider Baby was Cannibal Orgy, or the Maddest Story Ever Told. The film's ultimate distributor, David L. Hewitt, insisted on the retitling.

Spider Baby was shot in 12 days for a total budget of $65,000.

Producers Gil Lasky and Paul Monka parlayed their earnings from a real estate venture to finance the film.

Exteriors for Spider Baby were filmed on the Paramount Ranch in the San Fernando Valley.

The Victorian-era house that stood in for the Merrye mansion was located in the Highland Park section of Los Angeles and had been built in 1887 for California Superior Court Judge Paul Hatch.

Interiors for the film were shot at Alpha Omega Studio at 821 Glendale Avenue. The space had once been an automobile repair shop and its mechanic's pit would serve as Spider Baby's cannibal hold.

An Enterprise Car Rental office now stands where the Alpha Omega Studio once was.

Lon Chaney, Jr. loved the script for Spider Baby so much and so valued the chance to play comedy for a change that he abstained from alcohol during production.

Chaney received a total of $2,500 for his appearance in Spider Baby.

Sid Haig prepared for the role of Ralph Merrye by observing the movements of animals at the Los Angeles County Zoo.

In response to an article that appeared on this page, Sid Haig has informed us that his audition for "Spider Baby" was not inspired by James Caan's performance in "Lady In A Cage.

It was Haig's choice to shave his head for the film, and the look became the actor's trademark.

In an early scene in the film, actor Quinn Redeker unexpectedly rolled up the window of the automobile in which he was performing, revealing the reflection of the crew in the window glass.

Redeker also destroyed a prop rocking chair that was actually an antique belonging to Jack Hill's grandmother.

Jack Hill approximated the sound of a knife stabbing flesh by ripping adhesive tape off of a film canister.

The severed ear seen in the film was a prosthetic ear worn by art director Ray Storey's assistant, Mike McClusky.

During filming, Lon Chaney nicknamed Jill Banner "Cracker Ass" and Beverly Washburn "Bubble Butt."

Litigation related to the bankruptcy of the film's producers kept Spider Baby out of distribution until January of 1968.

Because it was shot in black and white, Spider Baby was placed on the bottom of a double bill with the full color biker flick Hell's Chosen Few (1968).

Distributor Dave Hewitt later released Spider Baby as The Liver Eaters for a Lon Chaney, Jr. double feature with his own Dr. Terror's Gallery of Horrors (1967), retitled The Blood Suckers.

Compiled by Richard Harland Smith

Sources:

Jack Hill audio commentary, Spider Baby DVD
Sid Haig interview, Psychotronic Video No. 3, by Gary Hertz, 1989
Jack Hill interview, Psychotronic Video No. 13 by Sean Axmaker, 1992
Spider Baby surviving cast interview, Filmfax No. 63-64, 1998