CALLING ALL MODEL MAKERS AND FIGURE COLLECTORS : THE PROFESSOR!

NEWS: AS YOU WILL SEE from the short promo posted above, work is well under way in the creation of #THEPROFESSOR model kit. The character is based on the amazing monthly 'must get' comic art book that's hitting the newsstands and comic shops in Italy, THE PROFESSOR! Working on the figure is ace sculptor, ROBERTO DE MEO with colour work and painting of the model carefully created by the talented and skillful eye of DAVIDE DECINA.

WE WERE VERY PLEASED to have prize copies of the last issue of THE PROFESSOR in a PCAS Competition a few weeks ago. NOW the very likeness of Peter Cushing is being captured and enhanced in what will soon be a 1/6 cm scale model kit in resin. 

THE MODEL KIT WILL be a LIMITED EDITION, only a small number available for purchase. But, for those of you who would like to scoop one up, for your very own, we will give any news, as soon as we hear of it's availability.

MEANWHILE... issue FOUR 'SIRENA' of #THEPROFESSOR hits the stands from MAY 1st 2017. We have an exclusive peep at the cover below. MORE images and details about the model kit, in our expanded feature at the website now... Many thanks as always to Andrea Corbetta and Davide Decina!

PLEASE COME JOIN US AT OUR OFFICIAL FACEBOOK FAN PAGE 

BY CLICKING RIGHT : HERE

#MONSTERMONDAY: CHRISTOPHER LEE'S BILAI FROM HAMMER FILMS SHE

#MONSTERMONDAY: Today our candidate for MM is Billali (Christopher Lee), from Hammer's adventure film She 1965, Ayesha's fanatical priest (Ursula Andress), who wants immortality for himself, believing it is his due after his years of selfless service.

#MONSTERMONDAY: Billai (Christopher Lee) attempts to enter the blue flames himself and become immortal from Hammer's She (1965)

 

Principal photography of She commenced in southern Israel's Negev Desert on 24 August 1964, with scenes also shot at MGM's Elstree Studios in London when Hammer's Bray Studios proved to be too small for the project. It was the most expensive film Hammer had made up until that time, but upon release it was a hit both in North America and in Europe. Somewhat different to the Gothic horrors Hammer were producing at the time, over the years it has mixed reviews from fans. Are you a fan of the film?

 

FRANKENSTEIN FRIDAY CONNECTION : GIF FEATURES AND VINTAGE LOBBY CARDS

Action Cushing: Baron Frankenstein (Peter Cushing) swinging into action from Hammer's THE EVIL OF FRANKENSTEIN (1964)…. Peter loved doing his own stunts, but he did get scorched while filming this scene…. #FrankensteinFriday

MORE on THE EVIL OF FRANKENSTEIN and it's female co stars KATY WILDE and CARON GARDNER HERE  and VERONICA CARLSON in FRANKENSTEIN MUST BE DESTROYED : HERE 

GALLERY AND FEATURE ON  'THE EVIL OF FRANEKNSTEIN ' HERE

FRANKENSTEINFRIDAY: A poor ol smouldering Freddie Jones gets gets the 'flaming sheaf of papers' in the face treatment from Peter Cushing's, nastier than usual Baron Frankenstein in Hammer films, knock out 'FRANKENSTEIN MUST BE DESTROYED' (1969) Tis a pity they spend the whole film trying to retrieve these sacred notes, only for the Baron to set fire to them...and then drop and forget them... in the climax of the film!

MORE ON FRANKENSTEIN MUST BE DESTROYED HERE

OUR FACEBOOK FAN PAGE IS : HERE

BLAZES! IT'S FOUR FABULOUS FIERY FINALES ON BONFIRE NIGHT!

Blazes and heaven to murgatroyed! What's all this? Bonfire Night in the UK...that's what! The cats are hiding, the dogs are howling and the smell of eggy fireworks and sooty smoke will fill the air for days! Pretty much what it must have felt and smelt like on quite a few Peter Cushing films back in the day... Here are FOUR blazing finishes to FOUR Peter Cushing films. I am sure you'll have no problem naming them. BUT how many more explosive and flaming endings to PC's films can you think of? Answers later on the FACEBOOK FAN PAGE ... after I put out the cat...

THE SHANE BRIANT 'FRANKENSTEIN AND THE MONSTER FROM HELL' Q AND A': YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED!

The WINNING entries and questions...and the best of, from our 'Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell: Shane Briant Q and A! Congratulations to our lucky winners and many thinks to everyone who entered, to Shane for taking part, Hammer films, and everyone at Fetch!

Part two of our Shane Briant 'Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell' Q and A will be a THE HORROR CHANNEL facebook page shortly :)

You can now order your copy of the UNCUT, three disc blu ray / dvd of 'Frankenstein and the monster from Hell' starring Peter Cushing, Shane Briant, Madeline Smith and Dave Prowse... just by clicking this link! (http://amzn.to/1i51bHI) We will be posting a review of this UK release at this blog later today at the blog!

BLOCH, STEVENSON AND A LITTLE HELP FROM SAMMY : 'A TALENT TO TERRIFY' PART FOUR

The appeal of Hammer horror extended across the globe, earning Lee and Cushing fans in all walks of life. One such fan was Sammy Davis, Jr., who pulled his weight on the set of One More Time (1970) by compelling director Jerry Lewis to bring the two actors in for a cameo appearance.

 

The loosely plotted and non-too-amusing sequel to Salt and Pepper (1968) focused on the continued adventures of nightclub owners Charles Salt (Davis, Jr.) and Christopher Pepper (Peter Lawford).  The addition of a sight gag involving the sudden – and poorly covered – appearance of Count Dracula (Lee) and Baron Frankenstein (Cushing) in a rather impoverished-looking “mad lab” set no doubt baffled the film’s target audience.  In any event, Lee and Cushing appear to have had fun filming their cameo and working with the gifted Davis, Jr. Next up, Lee and Cushing returned to Amicus for another anthology.  Lee had originally been slated to appear opposite Cushing in the “Man Who Collected Poe” segment of Torture Garden (1967), but Columbia wanted an American star – so Jack Palance got the gig instead.

Cinerama, the distributors of The House That Dripped Blood, were only too happy to have the reigning British kings of horror on board.  The screenplay was penned by Robert Bloch and dealt with a house with an unfortunate past, which is at the center of an investigation into the disappearance of ham horror star Paul Henderson (a terrific Jon Pertwee, playing a role originally ear-marked for Vincent Price).

Lee and Cushing would not share any screen time, as they occupied separate segments, but both actors were at the top of their game here.  Lee is by turns imposing, frightening, despicable and moving as the ice-cold father of an angelic little girl (Chloe Franks, who very nearly steals the show) who is not everything she appears to be.

 

Cushing brings an air of melancholy to his role as a retired stock broker who falls under the spell of a statue of Salome.  The sadness radiating from Cushing could be attributed to his ongoing panic over the deteriorating health of his beloved Helen.  The actor was reluctant to face facts, but she was not to be by his side for much longer.

The film was another hit for Amicus, thanks in large part to an admittedly tacky title which would prove to be the bane of director Peter Duffell’s existence; it wasn’t subtle (even if the film itself was – you’ll note, there isn’t a drop of blood in the film itself) but it helped to put people in the seats.

Lee and Cushing would round out 1970 by reteaming for another Amicus production.  On the face of it, I, Monster was more typical of Hammer than Amicus: it was period-set and would tell only one story.  The adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s venerable “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” would remain true to the source material – and to Subotsky’s overall credo with regards to downplaying graphic shock effects.

Full Interview with Stephen Weeks Here

Sadly, the film would be overrun with bad luck.  Peter Duffell elected to pass on the picture, fearing becoming typecast as a genre director, and Lee would recommend the young (21 at the time of filming) filmmaker Stephen Weeks on the strength of his short film 1917 (1970), which had impressed the actor.  Weeks would prove ill-equipped to cope with Subotsky’s dialogue-heavy script or the additional baggage of a half-baked 3D process with which the producer decided to burden the production.  Thoughts of 3D exhibition dried up part of the way into filming, but the damage was already done – the material would prove awkward and difficult to cut together, and the film would pretty much just lie there… bereft of life, despite some interesting art direction and a brilliant central performance from Lee.

 

As Lee has often said, it makes very little sense that Subotsky saw fit to write the most faithful adaptation of Stevenson’s novella, only to change the names of the central character(s) while leaving all the other names intact.  Whatever the thinking was, the moniker I, Monster would prove to be off-putting for many viewers and the film would slide into relative obscurity.  This is to be regretted because, at the very least, the film is worth seeing for Lee’s performance.  He is tremendously effective as the repressed Dr. Marlowe, who transforms into the free-spirited and vicious Mr. Blake.  Lee seizes every opportunity available to him, making this one of his most memorable characterizations.

Cushing, sadly, is squandered in a dull supporting role.  His performance as the stuffy lawyer Utterson is professional, but the role gives him no opportunity for shading or nuance.  Worse still, he is forced to share several scenes with the amateurish Mike Raven, a disc jockey turned actor who was making an open bid for horror stardom at that time.  The film would prove to be a relatively minor footnote in the Amicus canon, but a life-changing event was in the works for Cushing – and from that point on, life, as he knew it, would hold precious little meaning.

Next Time: FOSSILS, FINGERS AND THE COUNT IS BACK! 

'A Talent To Terrify : The Twenty Two Films Of Peter Cushing And Christopher Lee' is written by Troy Howarth with Artwork and Images by Marcus Brooks. 

DRACULA AD 1972 : PETER CUSHING STEPHANIE BEACHAM CHRISTOPHER LEE PUBLICITY SHOT

One of the rare ones, from a set of three poses of Peter as Van Helsing, Christopher Lee as Count Dracula and Stephanie Beacham as Jessica Van Helsing in a quickie on set publicity shot from Hammer Films 'Dracula AD 1972' (Hammer Films. Alan Gibson)