There audio drops a few times in this print, but the moments of silence don't last long and the movie is easy to follow regardless.
Originally completed in 1959 under the title The Black Door (it was then changed to The Head That Wouldn't Die), it was not released until May 3, 1962, where failure to add the copyright notice resulted in the film entering the public domain.
An uncut, 35 mm print was used in the Special Edition release by Synapse Films in 2002. Running 85 minutes, this version features more of the stripper catfight, as well as some extra gore.
In December 2015, Shout! Factory released a Blu-ray edition of the uncut film, with a high-definition transfer taken from the negative.