Showing posts with label behind the scenes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label behind the scenes. Show all posts

Monday 22 June 2020

BEHIND THE SCENES ON HAMMER FILMS FRANKENSTEIN 1968



WELL. . . . YES, the sound is somewhat distorted, the visual a bit fuzzy... but here is a rare look onto the set of Peter Cushing's Hammer film, 'Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed' back in 1968. There's some interview with Cushing and Veronica Carlson, and others... plus great sequences of the actual shooting!


BUT I AM SURE the BBC has some crisp and shiny original footage of this in their vaults, that licence payers paid for with the trusted belief that Aunty Beeb would store and look after it, for resources, repeat screenings and cinema archivists to watch and study.... Yes, right.... put another film can on the bonfire Aunty and take care that you don't choke on that lolly and cash sandwich! Enjoy what's left everybody 😉 - Marcus

Friday 5 June 2020

VAMPIRE HUNTERS : HAMMER FILMS : VAN HELSING TO KRONOS WHEN IT WAS ALL CHANGE!


#HAMMERFILMS #VAMPIREHUNTERS : HAMMER were quite brave and sometimes successful, if a little too late when they moved with times . . a tweak and change with style was something they also tried with their vampires and vampire hunters. One of the best and most imaginative was '#CaptainKronos : Vampire Hunter'.. with very entertaining side kick Grost and charm and sassy attitude from #CarlineMunro, it looked like a game changer, but sadly not to be. A real loss, me thinks ☹️😕 Over at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE I am asking if everyone would rate this film and some of its qualities alongside #PeterCushing's #VanHelsing and a film like, 'The Brides of #Dracula' .. or no?? - Marcus









Thursday 28 May 2020

COME WIN COME ONE COME ALL AND BAG YOUR BLU RAYS IN CUSHING BIRTHDAY BUMPER PRIZE COMP!


PETER CUSHING Celebration Competition 2020! You can ONLY enter this PCASUK Competition at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE BY USING THE MESSAGE BUTTON 😉 Here is the QUESTION! The lovely gimme PRIZE! Your OPPORTUNITY! Now it's over to YOU! Good Luck Everyone! - Marcus



JUST CLICK HERE!

Wednesday 30 October 2019

BEHIND THE SCENES ON CLASSIC HAMMER VAMPIRE FILM ALMOST 50 THIS MONTH PLUS PHOTO CONTACT SHEETS!

 

THIS MONTH 'OCTOBER 2019' marks the 49th anniversary of a Peter Cushing Hammer film, that kind of shook up the 'adult' content of his future 'horror films', for Hammer. 'The Vampire Lovers' is a neat short clip of raw footage, unedited and very entertaining, from a BBC film programme that featured the making of the film in 1970. This was shared here quite a long time ago, so certainly worth a re-airing today! Peter is seen very relaxed, having a giggle about an actor he spotted on the train, who was quite the character... and liked... a glass, or two.. or three. Director Roy Ward Baker, ever the pro, arranges shots, lighting and motivation . . there is a charming shot of Ingrid Pitt too, in this her first leading role and third film. You can't help but notice the huge difference between Cushing's character voice and authority .. and that of the softest, sweetest gentleman, chatting while having his hair stylds by the lovely Pearl Tipaldi, the production hair-dresser. Enjoy!


'THE VAMPIRE LOVERS' was released in the UK on October 4th 1970, making a star of it's lead, #IngridPitt. For the future, she would always be known as a #ScreamQueen, playing a vampire in her next film for Amicus, 'The House That Dripped Blood' and 'vampire with a twist' in Hammer's #CountessDracula' also in 1971. The film did well at the box office. Cushing was almost supporting with actors Douglas Wilmer and George Cole along with love interests of Jon Finch and #MadelineSmith and #KateOMara, pulling together a script based on Sheridan Le Fanu's classic vampire tale, 'Carmilla'.


THE CENSOR LAWS lost their grip, man in macs queued in the rain to see botts and bosom's compete with #blood and #fangs . . there was no turning back after this one. It provided a much needed zap to the now, slightly predictable Hammer presentations . . #vampires for Hammer would never be the same again. So it's Happy Birthday The Vampire Lovers Where does #TheVampiresLovers sit on your TOP TEN of Cushing #Hammerfilms ðŸ˜® ..


INCLUDED in this photo selection, I have reposted SIX rare contact / proof sheets of stills from the film, that were posted a while ago. Some really like and collect these, and have told me you missed them when first posted, so here they are again, for your pleasure!










Monday 9 September 2019

RARE BEHIND THE SCENES 'ON SET' FOOTAGE FROM HAMMER FILMS 'THE GORGON'


A REAL AND RARE TREAT! Here are some short GIFS taken from some very rare behind the scenes footage taken during the making of Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee's 1964 Hammer film Classic, THE GORGON. Director Terence Fisher had a real job on his hands. The script was fine and had the making of an original horror / romantic / thriller. The key to the drama was a creature that lived holed up in Castle Borski, who on certain evenings took to meeting visitors, not with a warm welcome, but a STARE that turned them into stone! The creature was Megaera, long thought to be a fantasy of Greek mythology. Not only was she real, but she also had a dual appearance and personality. This no doubt suited actress Barbara Shelley, who played the meek and sensitive Karl Hoffman, Megaera's 'other side', as whoever was to appear as Megaera, would have to endure a few weeks of experiments and painful head-dresses, while make up men and props department Roy Ashton and Phil Leakey tired to solve the problem of producing a convincing Gorgon, who floated on air, while snakes wriggled and writhed on her head! No easy, with such a small budget!

ABOVE we see actress and classical dancer, Prundence Hyman, who stepped up for the role. Fisher believed that someone who could move with grace, like a dancer, would be best suited for the role. Prudence had worked in film, theatre and ballet for many years and had almost retired from her long and quite distinguished career.But she rose to the challenge. Here we see make up artist fit Prudence with Haptic contact lenses, a make up device that Roy was probably if not certainly responsible for bringing into horror films at this time, his first use was in Hammer's 'The Curse of Frankenstein', it was another first in bringing together Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee on screen.




AFTER MANY EXPERIMENTS the solution of using a series of strings and pulleys, all controlled through a cable to a crank box, was used to make the snakes twitch! The head device weighed seven pounds, and was worn under the wild and thick black wig, much like a crash helmet! It took some rigging, was not reliable and took several takes to 'do its thing' on command, after the Gorgon floated on casters into shot, over a floor of thick dry ice. ABOVE here is Hammer's Phil Leakey carrying the crank box, Prudence marches from the make up room at Bray studios, and down the stairs to the castle set, carrying the cabling over her shoulder, ready for her '...Close Up, Mr Fisher!'


ABOVE ON THE SET Prudence Hymen hits her mark,the crew turn the cranks on the box, the snakes twitch, the wind blows and she makes her exit, not walking forward, but keeps her balance, even with the weight on her head as she is  pulled backwards over the floor of the Castle Borski set at Bray studios . .. and CUT!


PETER CUSHING IN COSTUME and Christopher Lee out, both on set at Bray studios, during the making of Hammer films, 'THE GORGON'
 

FINALLY, HERES IS Hammer films make up artist Roy Ashton in some VERY rare footage in his make up room at Bray studios, demonstrating some 'fangs' he made for a particular Baron, who was the only vamp to have actually got his fangs into Peter Cushing's Vampire Hunter, Van Helsing . .!

Friday 2 August 2019

'TWINS OF EVIL' RARE BEHIND THE SCENES GALLERY TWO


AS PROMISED HERE is ALBUM TWO of our PCASUK rare behind the scenes gallery from #HAMMERFILMS 1971 classic, 'TWINS OF EVIL'! Some interesting images here, many seen for the first time. NEXT WEEK it's our last album, but we are rolling out an entire gallery of colour transparencies. Cushing and the Collinson Twins along with lighting from Dick Bush and John Hough's direction, look amazing! JOIN US NEXT WEEK!


















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