DONALD PLEASENCE CENTENARY: BORN 100 YEARS AGO TODAY!

BORN ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO TODAY!... Today marks the centenary birthday of actor Donald Pleasence on October 5th 1919. Born in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, England, he was the son of Alice (née Armitage) and Thomas Stanley Pleasence, a railway stationmaster.

TODAY, AFTER HIS PASSING... you can read all about Pleasence service during WW2, his capture as a prisoner of war, humbleness kept that under wraps for most of his life.. but he would talk and share about a fateful day and television broadcast, where both he and Peter Cushing received positive critical attention for their roles in the BBC version of Nineteen Eighty-Four (1954) from the novel by George Orwell. Pleasence played Syme, to Cushing's Winston Smith. BOTH terrified the British public! I could write much here about the amazing Pleasence career, the films, the TV and theatre.. but I have left plenty of space and thread, for everyone to do that, in this post at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE and leave that to you to share . . 😉

 DONALD PLEASENCE AS SYME IN THE BBC LIVE PRODUCTION OF '1984' IN 1954.

PLEASENCE IN the 1959 'FLESH AND THE FIENDS' as William Hare 

 A FULL FEATURE REVIEW WITH VINTAGE LOBBY CARD GALLERY! HERE!

AS JACK SEWARD in the 1979 version of 'DRACULA'

ABOVE: CUSHING AND PLEASENCE TOGETHER in 'Trial by Combat' 

DONALD PLEASENCE bumped along with Peter in several roles on the big screen, mostly co starring in films like 'The Flesh And The Fiends' 'Suspect' 'From Beyond The Grave' 'The Uncanny' 'Trial By Combat' and 'The Devil's Men'. In several of his roles, Pleasence was able to with little dialogue reach and un-nerve the audience, using something his actress daughter once referred to as 'Pleasencing' . . it worked. It ALWAYS worked.

TO DO DONALD PLEASENCE justice it would take several days, many, many posts to even scratch the surface of his amazing talent and presence. I am sure everyone here, can name three if not FIVE of their favourite Pleasence performances, because each one was different, a different character... but off screen, Donald was always one... charming, gentle and always entertaining... A VERY Happy Birthday Donald Pleasence... you are missed by many and celebrated by all who were entertained by your sensitivity and brilliant talent! 😉 - Marcus 

NEW THEMED DAY: HORRIBLE DEATH WEDNESDAY : GIFS DYING TO SHARE!

#HORRIBLEDEATHWEDNESDAY! All change.... Wednesday's have now switched from requested GIFS to a series of GIFS and POSTS of creatures, monsters, villains, and victims from the work of Peter Cushing. Here is a taster gallery for oday... So, expect the most 'Popular Poppin' Their Clogs' here now, every Wednesday 🙂 What is YOUR favorite Horrible Exit of Monster or Character from a Cushing films??? Come JOIN US at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE and tell us!

#HORRBLEDEATHWEDNESDAYS! How could forget this very Dorian Gray-ques finish to #HAMMERFILMS 'THE VAMPIRE LOVERS' (1970)? Following Peter Cushing's chopping of Camilla Karnstein's head (Ingrid Pitt), the oil portrait, aging from the beautiful vixen, to just bones! Very effective...and considerably cheaper than staging a while aging corpse from flesh and blood to ashes! 

#HORRIBLEDEATHWEDNESDAYS!: RICHARD JOHNSON as vampire,with Donald Pleasence and Anthony Valentine as Vampire Hunters, trying to 'put him to rest'! Britt Ekland, as the wife of Johnson looks on in despair. Vampire Lore, played for laughs!  It was producer / writer Milton Subotsky's ambition to one day make a horror film, for the 'kids'. He almost did it. 'THE MONSTER CLUB' sadly, falls a little between stools. An Amicus film, in everything but name, it has some nice touches but sometimes looks very dated and lame today. UNLESS you are a lover of that very sleezey patch between the end of the 70's and the beginning of the 80's.... punk was out, and novelty was in, thus effecting popular music. The 'Monster Club' of the title, looks the worst. Filling a film set with extras wearing rubber masks, even for the cheapest of Amicus films in the 60's is a long fall. The saving grace, is Vincent Price, Donald Pleasance, John Carradine, and a good cast, with two good stories. 'Young people', teens are a fickle lot, what seemed like a good idea as it was put on paper, was pass'e even before the ink was dry! 

#HORRIBLEDEATHWEDNESDAYS!: MICHAEL RIPPER, was often on the receiving end of bad luck in many of his films for Hammer films. But here, as Mipps in Hammer's 'Captain Clegg' (US Night Creatures) of once, he gets to off a baddie! The mute victim of Peter Cushing's pirate in disguise, Milton Reid, takes the bullet and dies...conveniently in the basement workshop of the local undertakers!  

#HORRIBLEDEATHWEDNESDAY! IT MUST have been a daunting task, facing the prospect of playing a lead male vampire in a Hammer film. Who could fill Christopher Lee's shoes? For sure, back in the day, when any Hammer film announced the release of a vampire film, that featured a COUNT, I am sure prospective botties on seats, thought of ONE COUNT, who sadly wasn't turning up for this gig!  It happened with David Peel a decade earlier in 'THE BRIDES OF DRACULA', and maybe with Damien Thomas as Count Karnstein, in Hammer's 'TWINS OF EVIL' (1971) Having said that, this was Thomas's first feature film, and he did quite a good job. Hammer's money men, thought him worthy of a proper 'Dracula-like' special effect aging death! An expensive process, back in the day...and here with only ONE cut away shot! No even Christopher Lee's death in 'HORROR OF DRACULA' (1958) had such confidence!

#HORRIBLEDEATHSWEDNESDAY!: AFTER 'THE ABOMINABLE DR PHIBES', was released in 1971, it started a trend for horror films, with imaginative death scenes! Vincent Price's 'THEATRE OF BLOOD' in 1973, the sequel to the first Phibes film, 'DR PHIBES RISES AGAIN' and Amicus films, 'MADHOUSE' in 1974, all benefited from scriptwriters burning the night oil, desperately trying to think of fiendish and amusing ways of killing off co stars. This Shish kebab shot, is a clever one! Killing two unfortunates, at the same time. Doctor Death strikes again!

'LA GRANDE BRETECHE' : ORSON WELLES GREAT MYSTERIES WITH PETER CUSHING SUSANNAH YORK : COMING SOON! 

 

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  .