A TRIP TO THE CELLAR PLUS CHRISTOPHER LEE ON CUSHING AND HAMMER FILMS

 

I WONDER HOW MANY of you remember this, clip that I shared at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE TODAY??? Clever editing and timing using footage of Peter Cushing from the 1963 film, 'The Man Who Finally Died' which also starred actor Stanley Baker . . 

#ChristopherLee SATURDAY! Here is a shot you don't often see, from a contact sheet of many from this day during the production. Director Freddie Francis, with producer Aida Young with Christopher Lee during the making of '#DraculahasRisenfromtheGrave' at Pinewood. Francis had just finished '#TortureGarden' with #PeterCushing for Amicus, and four episodes of the tv series, 'The Man in the Suitcase'! What a variety! Hmmm.. those were the days 😊

AND FINALLY TODAY, another #WATCHWITHCUSHING! Here is a great clip from the people at #Cinemax 😊 #ChristopherLee shares some memories of working with #PeterCushing and the fun he and Peter had working for #Hammerfilms. As you probably know both he and Peter were CAST in 22 films though not always appearing in scenes together, I wonder which film do YOU think stands as their best collaboration and WHY??? 

YOU MIGHT FIND this little list helpful! The 22 films are : Hamlet (1948) .. no scenes together, Moulin Rogue (1952) .. no scenes together, The Curse of Frankenstein (1957), Dracula (1958) The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959), The Mummy (1959), The Gorgon (1964), Dr Terror's House of Horror's (1965), The Skull (1965), She (1965), Night of the Big Heat (1967), Scream and Scream Again (1967)... no scenes together, One More Time (1970) ... no scenes together, The House that Dripped Blood (1971) ... no scenes together, I, Monster (1971), Dracula AD 1972 (1972), Horror Express (1972), The Creeping Flesh (1973), Nothing But the Night (1973), The Satanic Rites of Dracula ( 1973), Arabian Adventure (1979).. no scenes together, The House of the Long Shadows (1983)

ME? I will go between Horror Express and maybe The Creeping Flesh! Why? I am not quite sure, I have a theory🤔🤔 ... but at the Facebook Fan Page, I am asking maybe you can tell me? 😉 - Marcus

The FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE open to EVERYONE. Come and JOIN US! HERE!

PCASUK CHRISTMAS COMPETITION NUMBER FOUR NOW LIVE WITH BUMPER PRIZE!

PCASUK CHRISTMAS COMPETITION 4#! IS NOW LIVE at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FACEBOOK PAGE HERE! You can ONLY enter the COMPETITION THERE! A reminder . .  these competitions are open to everyone... whoever, wherever you are! 

THIS PRIZE comprises of SEVEN DVD's... 1) Sherlock Holmes! A box set of FOUR episodes on dvd of #PeterCushing's BBC series from 1968. Included is 'The Hound of the Baskervilles', though by many to be the best tv adaption of the #Doyle story. Each episode comes in it's own case with sleeve. These are believed to be the only remaining episodes from the Cushing 16 episode series, as it was standard practice at the time for the #BBC to wipe tapes and reuse them. Win this competition, and they are yours!

2) 'The Amicus Vault of Horrors'! (region 0) Directed and produced by Donald Fearney, this 146 minute documentary has to be the most comprehensive doc on the history of Amicus films. Narrated by Roy Hudd and featuring interviews with Milton Subotsky, John Carson, #DavidWarner #LindaHayden and many others, you'll find masses of rare footage, rare stills and publicity material, with a script by John Hamilton and editing by Jim Groom, this fear feast leaves no Amicus stone, unturned! 

3) 'The Legend of Hammer Vampires' (region 0) Narrated by Edward (Kiss of the Vampire' & 'Phantom of the Opera' De Souza, directed and produced by Donald Fearney, this 96 minutes of exclusive interviews with many of the key personalities, along with unseen footage and rare stills, that cover the entire history of Hammer's Vampire films and the Dracula franchise. All sales stocks of this documentary are now gone . .. WIN your copy HERE!

WE HAVE TWO batches of this PRIZE for you to WIN. All you have to do is answer the COMPETITION FOUR QUESTION below, send your ANSWER to us, as usual VIA the #PCAS #Facebook MESSAGE BUTTON ONLY! If your answer is correct, it will be dropped into the hat and fingers crossed, pulled out as a WINNER on January 2nd 2020! Good Luck!

COMPETITION QUESTION: Peter Cushing first played the character of Van Helsing, in Hammer films first 'DRACULA' film in 1958... also known as 'The Horror of Dracula'. This was also Christopher Lee's first performance for Hammer as Dracula... for many the climax of the film, is the dramatic slaying of the Count, with Cushing's Van Helsing crossing TWO CANDLE STICKS, forcing Dracula into the light of the rising sun! Cushing is on record to have actually suggested the 'candle stick' idea on the set, during the filming . ..
but he has also given credit to ANOTHER feature film, where he believes he FIRST saw the 'crossed candle sticks' idea used.

YOUR TASK: NAME THAT FILM 😃😉

A) Laurel and Hardy meet Dracula? B) The A to Z of Vampire Killing? C) Home Hobbies: Making Candles? D) Berkley Square? E) Candle Square? F) Candle Shoe?

CHOOSE your answer and send it to us as your entry ONLY using the PCAS Facebook Message Button ONLY!

Have Fun and Good Luck 😉
Marcus

IT'S A BIRTHDAY WISH FOR BRAM AND IS HOLLYWOOD PUPPETEERING THE DEAD?

BORN TODAY November 8th 1847 in Clontarf, Dublin, Republic of #Ireland… we mark the BIRTHDAY of  #BRAMSTOKER, creator of #Dracula and a hundred thousand nightmares! #HappyBirthday, Mr Stoker!!!

BACK IN 2016, for some it was an act too hard to accept. #PeterCushing's Grand Moff Tarkin featured nearly 20 years since his passing, kind of live and kicking courtesy of mega bucks CGI, presented on the big screen in the #StarWars epic, Rogue One. In a cinematic series where the footing is firmly rooted on a fantasy and other worldly canvas, those who wanted to embrace could. This week #Hollywood has announced the arrival of another CGI resurrection, in #JamesDean. Dean will be recreated in an action drama entitled #FindingJack through a mixture of old footage and computer-generated creations projected over stand-ins, as a secondary character called Rogan. The producer Anton Ernst said he will try to keep Dean's “legacy firmly intact”.

AND AS IN  the case of Peter Cushing, the 'estate' or family are on board. “We feel very honoured that his family supports us,” he said. “The family views this as his fourth movie, a movie he never got to make. We do not intend to let his fans down.” says Antin Ernst. Zelda Williams, daughter of the late actor and comedian #RobinWilliams, accused the producers of “puppeteering the dead” while #LordoftheRings actor #ElijahWood tweeted a simple “NOPE” in response to the news, while #Avengers star #ChrisEvans wrote: “This is awful... the complete lack of understanding here is shameful.”

 

OVER AT THE FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE we are asking what your opinion on this?! . .. Should the Cushing Tarkin CGI appearance be seen as an interesting 'one-off' and a good try, totally necessary to help embellish and tell the story of Rogue One . . Is this a CGI trick too far, bringing James Dean, once more to the big screen??

BARBARA SHELLEY IN GORGON MAKE UP : THE FILM FATES OF CUSHING AND CENTENARY OF SHERLOCK'S NIGEL STOCK

FOLLOWING ON from the rare behind the scenes clips we shared with you last week...here's a question for you, again concerning Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee's Hammer film the 1964 'THE GORGON' . .. it's known that actress Barbara Shelley who played Megaera's 'other side' Carla Hoffman, was quite happy to also play the make up laden, three pound head-dressed Gorgon Megaera too! She also stated she wasn't afraid of 'snakes' if they had to be used in the head-dress too! It was Shelley's contractual commitment to other work, that prevented her from playing the role. The whole planning and design of the Gorgon make up had taken much longer than planned.. she HAD to leave and move on to other work.

BUT LOOKING at her in the make up, makes you wonder . . what kind of Gorgon do you think she would have made on the screen. A point that is often made on the hit miss results of the big reveal and drama of the ending of the film... has been, would it have been easier to except the dual identity, if The Gorgon DID look a little like her other identity played by Shelley.... Over at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE, we've asked what do YOU think?

THE MANY FILM FATES OF PETER CUSHING . . . in his own words, text from his second autobiography 'Peter Cushing: Past Forgetting' 1988, Weidenfeld & Nicholson. Cushing had many a dramatic ending for some of his roles, not as many as his good friend, Christopher Lee though 😮😃 . . AGAIN, over at our Facebook PCASUK Fan Page, we are asking . . which PC character 'bow-out' do you find the most interesting, dramatic, emotional? - Marcus

A HEADS UP! a VERY popular series that kicked off  when PCASUK first came to FACEBOOK, 'The Twenty Two  Screen Deaths of Peter Cushing', wrapped through lack of time, quite sometime ago. For those  who enjoyed these posts, you'll be pleased, maybe . . to hear we are  picking up where we left off, in just a few days time 😀😃 Look out for additions to the series soon . .

TODAY ALSO MARKS the Centenary of the birthday of actor, NIGEL STOCK! Stock, played a superb Watson in the BBC 'Sherlock Holmes' television series of the 60's, with Peter Cushing as Holmes. Sadly, Stock left us in 1986, aged 66. The marking of remembering Stock today, is being well supported with comments and opinions at the PCASUK Facebook Fan Page. .  

#CHRISTOPHERLEESATURDAY! Ok... The last time two of these people were on screen together, the set up was quite different...there was a table then too, but the 'lady' was the meal 😮What film was that? Who are the two sitting at the table and name THIS film too! Btw.. we posted the little insert photograph a few weeks ago, but no one then could site where that strange photograph car from...well, today you just might find the answer 😉 At the PCASUK Facebook Fan Page we are suggesting to Lee fans, they SHOULD now nail this quite quickly . . yes? -Marcus

#THROWBACKTHURSDAY: WATCH THE LEGEND OF THE SEVEN GOLDEN VAMPIRES !

#THROWBACKTHURSDAY: There can't be many Peter Cushing or Hammer films fans...or haters of John Forbes Robertson's Dracula, that HAVEN'T seen, The Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires yet?. If you haven't, then this is your lucky day! Depending on how you like your vampires, or your Kung Fu, you maybe in for treat!.... Hammer films sadly, were sometimes a little like that 'almost trendy friend, who lived out-in-the-country'', who was just a little bit out of sync with the times. They did, 'Swinging London', when it's swing had ...well swung, dangled a bit and then died off, with their setting of Dracula AD 72. Jumped on the whole devil-possession thing, after The Exorcist impact had shocked, knocked out it's audience and left the door hanging off its hinges. And here sadly, when the Bruce Lee 'chop-sock and dragon craze' had blazed it's way across the world, and was already on the parody hit list.

BUT THERE IS A LOT to like about LEGEND. Sure, the special effects are a tiny bit on the Ed Wood side, but everyone shows up, kicks the living daylights out of one another and Cushing, looks great! Result! John Forbes Robertson is no Christopher Lee, but then who could be? He doesn't do any damage and his make up is very much in line with the tradition of how Asian cinema presents their idea of myth, lore and vampire legend.... So, don't knock it, punch, chop or bite it too hard! Had Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires, been released a good two years earlier, it would have been a smash . .. cash crash, Kung Fu cash cow! Hammer and co production buddies Shaw Brothers, must have been hopping mad that it wasn't!..A bit like the army of zombie vamps in the film I guess. I DO love em!

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT 'THE LEGEND OF THE SEVEN GOLDEN VAMPIRES' IN  OUR SPECIAL FEATURE ABOVE AT OUR WEBSITE: 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    

GIFS GALLERY: WE'VE HIT ANOTHER MILESTONE OVER AT FACEBOOK

THIS IS AMAZING! A HUGE thank you to everyone who visits and supports this Facebook Fan Page and who has joined us in the last SEVEN DAYS, since we announced reaching TWENTY TWO thousand followers!

THE PETER CUSHING Appreciation Society Facebook Fan Page now has Over 23 THOUSAND Friends and Followers! This, I hope you realise, has only been archived with your fantastic support, your likes, shares. The total was hit BEFORE my chat with Nick Digilio on WGN RADIO in the USA, yesterday. You may have spotted the change in the total, like I did on Wednesday. I thought there was a bug or a glitch in the facebook system...so we waited, to see if it changed. But no, it racked up 22 thousand last Wednesday, and THIS Wednesday this NEW total was reached. It's still climbing!

I GUESS THIS PROVES what we have always known... it isn't really a question of Peter Cushing's assured place in cinema history, this proof of his relevance... TODAY! You prove that, and not just here.... I'll leave you with this though... A tool I use to assist with managing the website and this page, is an 'ALERT' option on my google mail. So, if any news, feature or mention of Peter Cushing is made on the net, I get a notification in my mail, to let me know. Let me just say, SIX out SEVEN days, there are ALWAYS fifty to sixty notifications...in the morning! That is filled up again with NEW notifications after lunch! AS Peter said about Helen when she passed, 'She hasn't GONE anywhere, she is HERE!' I have to agree, Peter Cushing is very much alive and kicking...and not just here either!

COME AND BE  PART of the Society! The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society

Facebook Fan Page on FACEBOOK: JUST CLICK : HERE

BOBBING ZOMBIES AND KUNG FU VAMPIRES: ITS MONSTERMONDAY

MONDAY here at PCAS means one thing... ‪#‎monstermonday‬, our weekly spot where we celebrate the scary, sinister and down right terrifying Monsters and all things that creep, that have been featured in Peter Cushing's film and tv work.. TODAY here on the website and at our facebook page, we take a close look...not TOO close, at those fanged kung fu frighteners from Peter Cushing's 'The Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires'.

One of the great things about Cushing's 'THE LEGEND OF THE SEVEN GOLDEN VAMPIRES' is the 'double-monster' value. Not only do you get the Seven Deadly Kung Fu Vampires but also, The Zombies!

At first sight, the hoping bobbing skipping undead seem a very strange sight.. it's only after you see them on mass, doing their odd bob...like all things asian-horror, it starts to look more than a little slightly warped and psycho-twisted. A great idea, an interesting angle on Vampires, Dracula AND Kung Fu...and Peter Cushing as the all fighting, fearless, Van Helsing vampire hunter!

Here Hammer's Kung Fu Undead echo another famous 'zombie scene' from ten years before in 'THE PLAGUE OF THE ZOMBIES'. Again, the dead are awake and walking...this time in China and Van Helsing and Dracula are along for the ride too!