Did 1930s audiences find Universal's monster movies scary, or just fun to watch?

Research question: What did a 1930s movie-going crowd make of the Universal monster films, and did audiences of that time see them as scary or mainly as entertainment?

The records show that the 1935 film The Bride of Frankenstein included jokes and lively moments, which set it apart from the scarier original ¹. Only one verified fact is available, and it describes the films' tone rather than how audiences received them ¹. The verified facts therefore do not establish whether 1930s crowds found the Universal monster films frightening or mainly entertaining ¹.

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