#GIMMETHEGIFWEDNESDAY: IT'S DONALDS BIRTHDAY REMEMBERED AND PERTWEE AND PITT DO PRETENTION

REMEMBERING: Actor Donald Pleasence who was born today in 1919... Pleasence appeared alongside Peter Cushing in a surprising amount of titles. From the quite early on brilliant BBC production of '1984' to the not so brilliant 'The Devil's Men', 'Flesh and the Fiends', 'Trial By Combat' and 'From Beyond The Grave' In a very lengthy career, with many highlights, Pleasence was always entertaining, especially with nervous, evil obsessive characters. Pleasence is probably best know for his role of Dr. Sam Loomis in the 'Halloween' films...a role interestingly enough that Peter Cushing was originally approached to play....

#GIMMETHEGIFWEDNESDAY: Peter Cushing as the forensic surgeon of Tyburn films, Legend of the Werewolf, kisses the 'SILVER' top, of his favourite walking cane... he needs the silver for a better purpose....

 

#GIMMETHEGIFWEDNESDAY: TOMAS HILL from Sheffield, UK has requested this gif of JON PERTWEE and INGRID PITT from the Amicus film, 'The House That Dripped Blood' . . . what a pair of 'Theatricals'! Both Pertwee and Pitt enjoyed playing the roles of Paul Henderson and Carla Lind in what was intended to be 'the fun' story in the film, 'The Cloak'. Watching an interview with director Peter Duffell included in the extras of the DVD box set release, Duffell explained that he wasn't quite sure if the under-cranked shots in the story actually achieve the effect he was looking for. I think I agree with him. In two of producer Milton Subotsky's films that include a 'wacky-comedy story' The House that Dripped Blood' (1971) : The Cloak and 'The Monster Club' (1980) :  The Vampires, they are, in my opinion, the weakest stories of the bunch, and the comedy in very weak and pathetically pun filled'. Still, 'The Cloak' did give Pertwee the opportunity to exercise his comedy chops, a field in which he made his name, and it gave us the rare opportunity to see him and Ingrid work together.

#GIMMETHEGIFWEDNESDAY: Requested by Anne Price. The Nightmare sequence featured in 'The House That Dripped Blood' is one of the few stand out moments in the film. Cushing had played a similar scene for another Amicus film, The Skull back in 1965. Interestingly, here we can see the choices of two directors, shooting the illusion of a terrifying nightmare... both effectively use distorted angles, slow motion and dry ice. In The Skull Freddie Francis used different lenses, while director Peter Duffell here in this scene, uses the cheaper, but maybe more effective method of almost comic strip, 'Dutch Tilts'. It's the one scene that most often is remembered when you write to us about this Cushing film.

COME JOIN US ALONG WITH OVER 25,000 OTHER FOLLOWERS AT OUR FACEBOOK FAN PAGE: RIGHT HERE!