TWO AMAZING CUSHING IMAGES PLUS FLESH AND THE FIENDS COMING BLU RAY VIA KINO

A POST I SHARED TODAY at the which became very popular with almost a THOUSAND LIKES, is this colour photograph of Peter Cushing, in his home at Whitstable in 1974. Until today, it was very rarely seen . .  thanks to your shares at the 'fan page' now everyone has the pleasure of seeing it!

I LOVE IT WHEN friends and followers, send in artwork of PC. This one was sent by George T, of the very talented artist Colin J Fenwick . . posted on New Years Eve I believe, Colin wanted to share it at midnight I guess, though explained the pattern on Cushing neck tie took him hours longer! Many identified the character captured in the artwork portrate, as Peter Cushing as Doctor Know, from the 1959 film ''THE FLESH AND THE FIENDS' a not so well know film or role of Cushing's, and has been quite a find, if when fans have managed to source a good dvd. THANKFULLY, KINO have NEW 2K REMASTERS OF BOTH CUTS OF THE FILM and have set a release for this early this year, which will be quite the treat, I am sure! As soon as I have any details, I will of course, let you know!  can get to see it.- Marcus

THE LONG AND SHORT OF WAITING FOR AD 72 AND SATANIC PLUS GIFS FROM AMICUS HAMMER AND KNOX

WE JABBER on and on about these two Peter Cushing / Christopher Lee Hammer films . . . just type the titles into google images, and you'll discover a virtual digital archive, masses of our posts from the last six years! Why? Well, despite both of these late Hammer films, being out of favor and fashion for the best part of 40 odd years . . . I have a great fondness for the idea of Van Helsing and Dracula locked into a modern day dramatic ding dong, on my doorstep... rather than, some Gothic castle , in fictional Olde Worlde Karlsbad? Even though it's chosen location of London, is long gone, along with the loon and flapping flared denims and bat winged shirt collars . . . that era too, is now something locked into the past. Both would make an excellent package for Cushing, Lee and Hammer fans alike.

Our Feature and behind the scenes gallery on 
The Satanic Rites of Dracula can be found : HERE!

YOU WANT EXTRAS??? There is a MASS of material available... even if the likes of the cheapest cheapskates of distributors, there are several cast members who are still breathing, for use in those, oh so lazy talking head interviews. The bottom line for any distributor, even the cheapest is, will it SELL? Warner Brothers proved a point, last year when they released probably the smartest looking Hammer film box set ever! . . . .Clean, remastered, region free, Hammer films starring their two biggest stars SELL...even without extra features. The Warner box set, set a standard and fans purchased the lot! So how about it? . . . Would you BUY??

#SILENTBUTDEADLYWEDNESDAY: Herbert Lom in Amicus films, ASYLUM (1972) as Dr. Byron in the story "Mannikins of Horror" . .. it's a neat story, and the 'mini Lom' was a nice touch too. Cushing's story 'The Weird Tailor', was based on a Robert Bloch's story from Karloff's 'Thriller' TV series (1961) . . . these are probably the strongest stories of the bunch maybe? Not counting Cushing's 'Poetic Justice' in 'Tales from the Crypt' . .. of all the portmanteau stories in the Amicus films...do you have TWO FAVORITES??? Tell us why

#SILENTBUTDEADLYWEDNESDAY!: I LOVE THIS SHOT from DRACULA AD 1972 . . . not unlike the 1934 Lon Chaney Jr Universal film, 'SON OF DRACULA', where Dracula turning up under a 'non de plume' as something so ridiculously obvious as ALUCARD, hits every member of the cinema audience  . . . but no one ON the screen. Here our learned Professor, burning the night oil pours over this  anagram . . .and BANG, the LIGHT BULB moment! Cushing just about manages to carry this one off, thanks to that chilling look into the eyes of his ancestor . . .Well, come on. It would have been a very short film, had Van Helsing cottoned-on in the first reel . . .

#SILENTBUTDEADLYWEDNESDAY! . . .AND FINALLY, a request from PAM D.D of this knock out shot from Cushing's performance ad Dr Robert Knox in 'FLESH AND THE FIENDS' (1960). A little girl in the street begs alms from Dr. Knox (Peter Cushing). tells her that he doesn't have any money with him, but if she will step over to his house he will give her some. The little girl politely declines the offer, saying, "Oh, no, you might be Dr. Knox." The unspoken response is a wonderful of example of Peter Cushing's acting skill saying so much with just a look, no words needed.

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A FILM WITH A STELLAR cast with actors Donald Pleasence & George Rose as Buke and Hare, Billie Whitelaw & Hammer regular George Woodbridge. As per our last post, this is another film crying out of a blu-ray release as it considered by many to be the one of the finest films made about Dr. Robert Knox.

 

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  . . 

#GIMMETHEGIFWEDNESDAY: EYEBALLS VANISHING VAMPS BODY SNATCHERS AND TARKIN!

#Gimmethegifwednesday:(when you send in YOUR requests for clips and GIFS of your favorite Cushing shots or scenes!) FOR TOM PARRY: EYES RIGHT! This is a wonderful shot from Hammer films, The Revenge of Frankenstein (1958) with Peter Cushing returning as the Baron, assisted by Francis Mathews.These eyeballs were created by Les Bowie. Even though Hammer did not have a true resident effects department, Les Bowie was the man who would turn his hand, like make up artist Roy Ashton, to make the most incredible from the most basic every day, 'house-hold' items.

'Dracula ashes from talcum powder, fullers earth and sawdust!', or how about... 'Dracula's last breath supplied by a bicycle inner tube from a Tyre, deflated and inflated by blowing down a rubber tube from a tropical fish tank, hidden under Dracula's costume!' It certainly opens your EYES to what could be achievable, with some imagination and a box of bits and bobs. Bowie went on to establish his own very successful special effects department Bowie Films, which worked in tv and all manner of big blockbuster films through the 1960's and 70s.....

#GIMMETHEGIFWEDNESDAY:Like or not, which ever side you are on regarding the #TARKIN #CGI debate... there are a LOT of supporters, and here at PCAS we still get requests for info about almost everyday..This GIF has been requested by 'Tarkins Puppy' ..whoever that maybe?? . But, here it is, as requested... is a interesting shot of Cushing's CGI creation to ponder over...maybe?

#GIMMETHEGIFWEDNESDAY: Peter Cushing here as Van Helsing, giving the check of the vitals of one poor Bob, boyfriend of Caroline Munro's Laura, in 'just add four decades of watching, and eventually, you WILL like it' #DRACULAAD1972 . The character of BOB, is one of many that appears in a Hammer film, and vanishes or falls foul of a fate, that somehow falls through a plot hole. Bob is discovered in the graveyard of the desecrated St Bartok's church. He's a dead as a dodo, but how he got that way, isn't explained in the plot. But we donned our deerstalker, and not only found how Bob-bobbed-out, but also photographic evidence, how! See our panel below. Royston Harris, THIS is for you!

#GIMMETHEGIFWEDNESDAY: If you compile a list of what you would personally consider to be  five titles from the Peter Cushing filmography, chances are, if you have had the opportunity to see it, FLESH AND THE FIENDS (Mania USA) would be somewhere in that list. It IS a classic. With it's mini budget, produced in a time of many bigger and more expensively promoted movies doing the rounds, this film got passed over by the cinema going public, and slipped quietly away, until television threw it a afterlife-life line, it made regular appearances on late night and afternoon tv slots, and found the audiences that should have seen it back in the day. 

Startlingly dramatic, dark and emotive. The direction of the underappreciated John Gilling, brings out the best in Peter Cushing as Dr Knox, and a quite superb supporting cast of Donald Pleasence and George Rose as Burke and Hare, body-snatchers, Billy Whitelaw and Renne Houston. Even Melvyn Hayes, just three years after appearing in Curse of Frankenstein, manages to play a poor unfortunate, without resorting to scenery-chewing or cliches. Not seen it? It's still out there to purchase, very reasonably. We did try to share it with you at our YT channel, but Youtube threatened to tear our archive down, if we so much as uploaded a flicker of it. We do try. Go see now. THIS GIF was for NICOLAS JACOBS! Fast huh?

That's it for this week. REMEMBER if you would like to request a great Cushing GIF, choose a scene, shot  or moment that doesn't contain dialogue. GIF's by their nature are muted non audio short clips , that play in rotation.

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DR KNOX COMES A KNOCKING : ITS MONDAY!

THIS WEEK'S CANDIDATE for the ‪#‎monstermonday‬ crown is, infamous Scottish anatomist, zoologist, ethnologist and..surgeon, DR ROBERT KNOX. Peter Cushing played Knox to wonderful effect in the 1960, John Gilling film, 'Flesh and the Fiends' aka 'Mania'. He was very well supported by both Donald Pleasence and George Rose as the grave robbers and body snatchers, Burke and Hare.
'FLESH' is one of those rare jewels in the Cushing filmography, missed by many but is certainly worth catching, if you have not seen it. Gritty, grimy, squalid and a bit of a shocker for it's time... Cushing holds the emotive balance in his performance extremely well...right up the closing credits..that one is never really quite sure, if Knox was indeed the real MONSTER of the piece, after all... what do you think???

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