Showing posts with label van helsing.. Show all posts
Showing posts with label van helsing.. Show all posts

Sunday 24 May 2020

HAMMER DRACULA TRAILER FOR GEEKS AND ANORAKS! CAN YOU SPOT THE EXTRA??



#ISOLATIONENTERTAINMENT #WatchWithCushing2020! The THEATRICAL trailer for Hammer films 'Dracula' 1958, is something most #Hammerfilms, #PeterCushing and #ChristopherLee fans will know very well indeed, from countless viewings of what has to be one of best #FantasyCinema trailers ever! The trailer was the same throughout it's release in 1959, other than in the US it where it was called 'Horror of Dracula', but the expected different voice overs for the trailer narration, the dubbing languages and a changed the title also, a few snips here and there maybe for censorship, were all standard. 



BUT IN THIS version, there is something that appears, that wasn't seen anywhere else... not even in the actual full film!! It's very quick, fleeting . . an 'extension' but it's there! Question is, can you spot it? There is a terrific competition being launched here at Facebook PCASUK Fan Page on Tuesday, with a fabulous prize! 🙂 😉 This should... whet your whistle 😉 Have fun, stay safe and look after each other 😉 - Marcus

Friday 9 November 2018

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRAM STOKER : BORN TODAY NOVEMBER 8TH 1847


BORN TODAY November 8th 1847 in Clontarf, Dublin, Republic of Ireland… BRAM STOKER, creator of Dracula and a hundred thousand nightmares! Happy Birthday, Mr Stoker!!!


Thursday 17 May 2018

VALUE OF AD DRACULA CINEMA POSTER EXPECTED TO BRING IN FRIGHTENING BIDS!


NEWS: Are you a COLLECTOR? Have any original stills from Hammer or Cushing films? Maybe a cinema poster or two? IF you have a mint copy of Hammer films DRACULA AD 1972 UK quad poster . . you might be sitting on a little mint! According to the press release on the London Odeon BFI IMAX FILM and MEMORABILIA AUCTION taking place on JUNE 28th this year, one of their lots is this very poster and they are expecting the hammer (!!) to go down on at least, EIGHT THOUSAND POUNDS for the lucky bidder who wins it. PCAS also actually owns an original item of this poster too. It was purchased from cinema poster and stills trader Greg Edwards back in 1980. I actually bought the poster for the collection as part of a double purchase deal... a quad of THE BRIDES of DRACULA cost £40...but the DRACULA AD one cost.... £18!!!!


FOR MANY YEARS the AD 1972 memorabilia had very little value, along with the Satanic Rites of Dracula, but times have changed. A quad featuring bot AD and the 1970 film TROG has been sold many times for anywhere from £100 to £300 UK pounds..but it's RARE you get to see the poster from then film's original release. SO...do YOU own any Cushing / Lee / Hammer posters and have you ever purchased an expensive Cushing memorabilia item??

READ the SOURCE NEW item on this : HERE!
 


IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us reach all lovers of Peter Cushing's work AND Help Keep The Memory Alive!

Thursday 22 February 2018

FREE HI RES HAMMER FILMS CONTACT SHEET : COLLECTORS WEDNESDAY!


#PETERCUSHING #COLLECTORS Wednesday! OK This week I am sharing a rare black and white CONTACT SHEET from Hammer films 1973, The Satanic Rites of Dracula. As usual, this is our FREE weekly full hi res upload, as seen on our our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE  available for you today, for you to download. These NINETEEN exposures from the  Hammer films on set stills cameraman, feature shots taken during the shooting of two scenes from the film, the Vampire's in the Cellar scene, with Joanna Lumley and Valerie Van Ost and Van Helsing visiting Professor Julian Keeley played by Peter Cushing and Freddie Jones.


 HI RES CONTACT SHEET ABOVE: RIGHT CLICK AND COPY!

WHAT IS A CONTACT SHEET? A contact sheet is a positive print of all the negative images from one film, made by a contact printing process so that all the images are the same size as the negative. A contact sheet is a useful way of seeing which are the best images on a film so you can decide which ones to make enlargements from. During the production the unit photographer was responsible for capturing thousands of still shots while the movie cameras were running. Some of the photos would offer a different angle to the motion picture camera. In other cases, the photographer would stand next to a movie camera operator. And some of the shots would be behind the scenes with actors and directors. After the final production still shots were taken each day, the roles of film negatives were placed on contact sheets (created by laying the negatives on a piece of printing paper and exposing them to light to create a set of mini prints the same as the film frames) (IMAGE) The contact sheets were then forwarded to the publicity department. The Publicity Department could then view the full roll of 36 images at one time with a “ring” or magnifying glass. Publicity Department –The Publicity Department was, among other things, responsible for generating early publicity about a film, including providing information to magazines and publications. In addition, they were responsible for providing the Advertising Department with information necessary to create the film’s promotional materials. The publicity department would review the contact sheets and select images for specific purposes, such as creating a key set, keeping track and providing exclusive images to magazines and publications, and sending the advertising department information necessary to begin preparation of promotional materials.


Key Set Creation - After a review by the publicity department, the better images were picked to become part of a key set. The selected images are numbered by placing an assigned number by the studio for that particular film, called the production number, and then a dash and the assigned individual still number. THIS is called the Production Code number.


ABOVE: Our Collectors Wednesday post from TWO weeks ago,  posted here and at our  PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.. It was a pretty cool concept, but was ultimately ruined by Facebbok  quashing the post...thanks facebook!

The selected stills were then printed and placed into the key set binder. The rejects are skipped over and left unnumbered. The negatives and contact sheets were then filed. These may be pulled at a later date when someone wants something different. By the end of the shooting, this 'key set' would normally be hundreds of the better still shots to be used in a variety of ways by the publicity department. The stills used in this 'key set' would have numbers put on the still to help the publicity department identify and keep up with the different stills. They were kept in large bound books that could be used at any time for reference.


Exclusive Use – Major magazines and publications would quite often want exclusive photos to do an article on the upcoming film. This was a tremendous way for the film to get FREE publicity. To accommodate them, the publicity department would put a hold on numerous stills and send over a group for the editor to choose from. Once the exclusives were picked, the tags would be removed from those images not selected so they could be used for other purposes



I BELIEVE, Tom Edwards was the stills photographer on Satanic Rites. He had a very good eye for a great shot, and worked on other Cushing Hammer films like, 'Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell'. As I have mentioned before, each cell, photograph here would make a great pic for your collection, printed off would look great in a frame, the high res would also make a great poster too. The majority of the shots on this contact sheet, have rarely been officially published, as often just one or two from this studio contact sheet would have been chosen for press packs and promotion. I hope you like what I have shared so far? Have fun 🙂 Marcus





REMEMBER! IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA

Monday 31 July 2017

#MONSTERMONDAY: PAUL TOOMBES: MAD ABOUT MADHOUSE!


#MONSTERMONDAY: It's a film that is not universally  liked, in a way some of the other Cushing films are or is held in affection like some of the portmanteau films of Amicus, but Amicus films MADHOUSE does have some pretty cool action and scare scenes, presented in the classic scare fashion. It's true there is nothing new in the film, BUT it's the performances of Cushing and Price, and a few red herrings that seal the deal on the climax of the movie, and the ultimate pay-off of who is the Doctor??? PAUL TOOMBES played by Price is we are lead to believe is a sore, washed up loser film star one minute and killer the next... He DOES have some issues, and well he actually did bump off one or two of the ladies..OR DID HE??? #MONSTERMONDAY!




VINCENT PRICE AND PETER CUSHING served up some great set pieces, all with more than a wink to both Prices and and Cushing's past horror films, the chemistry worked a charm with Vinnie and Cushing . .



AS A LITTLE EXTRA, here's is something as a complete contrast, to today's #MONSTER the beautiful Yvonne Monlaur with Peter Cushing on the red carpet, at the premier of The Brides of Dracula on July 4th 1960 . . . 



IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA 

Saturday 22 July 2017

NEWS: COVER ART : HAMMER HOUSE OF HORRORS BLU RAY COMPLETE SERIES BOX SET!


NEWS: The artwork for the upcoming Blu-ray of the classic TV series #HammerHouseOfHorror has been revealed. RELEASE DATE: 23rd October 2017 from Network. The complete series is featured for the first time in a stunning new High Definition restoration from the original film elements in its as-transmitted full-screen aspect ratio. A huge hit on its first #ITV transmission, #HammerHouseofHorror boasts a consistently high-caliber cast including #PeterCushing, #DianaDors, Denholm Elliott, #BrianCox and #SianPhillips.

















READ OUR REVIEW and  EYEBALL OUR GALLERY : HERE!




IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA  

Wednesday 3 May 2017

#TOOCOOLTUESDAY: BEHIND THE SCENES AS THE HAMMER PARTNERSHIP BOWS OUT


#TOOCOOLTUESDAY : Carrying on from our 'Satanic Rites' posts yesterday and prompted by several requests for more info on, this the last Christopher Lee / Peter Cushing Hammer Dracula film, we thought it would be interesting, to dig through our files and see what we could come up with, at short notice. Quite a bit, it turns out! So, here is a whip around the set at Elstree studios, with some rare images and the under pinning story of, Cushing and Lee's last stand off, as Vampire Hunter and the Lord of the Undead, Dracula.





ON NOVEMBER 13TH 1972, Peter Cushing began work  for Hammer films, on what would be , the last time he and Christopher Lee would lock horns, as Dracula and Van Helsing. In 'The Satanic Rites of Dracula' Cushing would be playing Lorrimer Van Helsing again, continuing the time-line from earlier in the year, when he had returned to fight the Undead Count in, Dracula AD 1972. During the shooting 'Satanic Rites' would be known to inquiring press and trade papers as 'Dracula is Dead and Well and Living In London', which needless to say, made Christopher Lee's eyebrows rise so high, as to permanently stick to to any castle ceiling. Well known for his less than enthusiastic opinion on the last four Hammer Dracula films, after Satanic was made and on release, Lee publically stated that the film was a non-event'.



PETER CUSHING'S FEE was £6,000, plus his accommodation at his favorite 'Brown's Hotel' in Mayfair, London. On top of this was a fee of £25 for his driver. Alan Gibson, barely out of his seat on directing and editing duties on Dracula AD 1972, returned. Michael Cole as Inspector Murray also returned, unfortunately Stephanie Beacham was unavailable to repeat her role as Jessica Van Helsing, so the role was taken by Joanna Lumley. There was also a reunion for Cushing with both Freddie Jones- Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed and William Franklyn - Fury At Smugglers Bay.



IN THE SATANIC RITES OF DRACULA, Van Helsing is on call once again following a lead from Inspector Murray, when several well established figures are found to be involved in a black mass at a well heeled country estate called Pelham House. It turns out, one of the magic sect is an old friend of van Helsing's, a Nobel-prize winning bio chemist by the name of Professor Julian Keeley (Freddie Jones). Van Helsing is on the trail and visits Keeley, to find him terrified, exhausted and hysterical. On enqueuing as to his work, which has clearly pushed over the edge with pressure, Keeley reveals he has developed an 'accelerated strain of bacillus petis - the bubonic plague! 



SOON AFTER THIS the supernatural element of the plot kicks in, as Murray and Jessica stumble upon a nest of vampire girls in the cellar at Pelham House, and the feverish work that Keeley has been burning the night oil preparing has been sponsored by a reclusive tycoon called, D. D. Denham



IN A KEY SCENE Van Helsing meets and confronts Denham, and exposes him as none other than Dracula! After a clever bit of business, with the Count, Van Helsing is bundled off to Pelham House. Here on the 23rd day of the 11th month, the Sabat of the Undead, Dracula will release the deadly plague and fulfill the Biblical prophecy of Armageddon.


CUSHING'S SCREEN TIME as with Dracula AD 1972 is limited, but what there is, has been carefully managed and distributed to provide the story with Hammer high points of drama and suspense. There is a superb exchange between Cushing and the damaged and babbling, cow - faced Julian Keeley, played in the key that only Freddie Jones can play, and frighteningly play well. Prof Keeley is totally under Dracula's power, prompting lines like, 'Evil and violence are the only two measures that hold any power. And nothing is too vile, nothing too dreadful'. Keeley drools. 'You need to feel the thrill of disgust, the beauty of obscenity' 



AFTER VAN HELSING'S, laboured and obvious, deciphering of the 'secret' behind Alucard's surname in Dracula AD 1972, Cushing's check list of anti vampire precautions and lore, is kept to a bare minium, although the items that can repel Dracula have now added a new twist and and one epic addition. The stand off with Denham and Van Helsing is one of the key points in the whole film, and as Cushing draws the pistol loaded with the silver bullet, you feel he means it! Lee looks powerful and majestically attractive. It is to Lee credit that at no time does his performance reveal even a hint, of his disillusion with the role.



IT IS CUSHING who gets the perhaps the best line in the film when facing William Franklyn's disbelieving  Colonel  Torrence, who asks Van Helsing if they are dealing with 'hobgoblins, witches and things that go bump in the night'. 'Hobgoblins are fantasy creatures of the nursery. As for witches they certainly exist, although 90 per cent of them are charlatans. Things DO go bump in the night. Quite often!'


AGAIN CUSHING  was responsible for rewriting Van Helsing's lines. One line he was particularity bothered by was when Van Helsing says that the vampire lives in mortal dread of silver. 'This bothers me,' he wrote on the script 'because Dracula wears a ring of silver!', but the reference stayed in the script, unchanged.


CUSHING CLIPPED a biblical quotation from a newspaper and pasted it onto his script. It read, 'Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. Romans XII, 21. 





IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us reach our 30K following total for Peter Cushing BIRTHDAY on MAY 26th 2017 AND Help Keep The Memory Alive!

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