54 YEARS AGO, this month Hammer films, 'SHE' starring #PeterCushing,
Ursula Andress, Christopher Lee and Bernard Cribbins opened in the UK on April 18th 1965!
At the time of the opening Andress was billed as the most 'Beautiful
Woman In the World'...maybe. Our PCAS album today, features Ursula in
the role Ayesha, 'She Who Must Be Obeyed!' in the movie. These three
posed 'on set' shots were taken by the studio photographer and quickly
sent to the press publicity office... though few made it into
the newspapers and magazines, which is a shame considering how amazing
she looks. Blessed with a beauty that the camera loved, it was Hammer
make up artist, Roy Ashton's job, to devise a whole series of make up's
that turned Ursula into a woman of several hundred years old...and dust!
How do you rate Andress with the many other attractive actresses who
starred in Hammer / Cushing films?
HERE IS A PCAS feature and a pretty comprehensive guide to the various SHE cinema adaptions over the years and a GALLERY including #PeterCushing's role of Holly in Hammer films 1965 production! JUST CLICK HERE!
ANOTHER TRIP DOWN memory lane this week, examining a
film that, although not strictly a horror picture, has become one of my all-time
favourite Cushing roles. More than that it’s a film that represents what can be
described as a ‘by-gon’e age of fiction, both literary and cinematically, that
of the ‘Boys Own’ style adventure story. Produced in 1965, She was one of Hammer films most expensive productions and
certainly one of their most lavish. Featuring an all-star cast, including ex-bond
girl Ursula Andress as the title character, it’s a bold move for the studio and
one that demonstrates that they really could compete with the big boys and
weren’t just up to making horror pictures. I saw She during my early teens, when I became fascinated with the
science fiction and fantasy of the Victorian age and of course the wonderful
films of the 50’s and 60’s based on these works.
FROM THE EARLY
1950’s all the way to the mid 1970’s, there was a slew of science fiction,
fantasy and adventure styled films based on the works of classic Victorian
writers and adapted as period pieces. Amongst these were the works of such
noted authors as H.G Welles, Jules Verne. Arthur Conan Doyle and the subject of
todays piece H. Rider Haggard. These films were extravagant adventure films,
with often fantastic set designs and equally superb casts. Amongst these films
include such classics as Journey to the
Centre of the Earth (1959), The Time
Machine (1960), First Men in the Moon
(1964), At The Earth’s Core (1976)
and The Lost World (1960).
DURING MY OBSESSION with this fascinating sub-genre I saw all of these and more,
including films like Walt Disney’s wonderful adaptation of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. The latter is still one of my
favourite films and James Masons portrayal is evident of the quality that was
brought to this kind of film. It’s a genre that has, somewhat sadly, faded into
the past. Partly this is due to the more dynamic difference between children’s
and adult cinema, with family films now being dominated primarily by the
Superhero genre. Also it can be connected to the dated colonial subtext of many
of these films and their respective novels (though not all 20,000 Leagues is a wonderful piece of anti-colonial literature,
with Nemo waging war against ‘that hated nation’).
MANY OF THESE FILMS helped me discovered the brilliant
novels behind them and She is no
exception. When I was first getting into Hammer, I purchased Marcus Hearn and
Alan Barnes wonderful The Hammer Story, as
something of a go-to guide. My Mother was fascinated upon discovering She was a Hammer film, it being
something of a minor favourite of hers. That Christmas (along with The Reptile and Dracula: Prince of Darkness)
I RECEIVEDSHE as a gift and we watched it that boxing day. In my mind it’s
still the perfect Boxing Day film, the mix of old fashioned adventure and pure
wonder making great mid-afternoon viewing. Immediately I fell in love with
Cushing’s portrayal of the character of Major Holly and the wonderful sincerity
he brought to the role. When embarking on an exchange trip to Spain, I was
inspired enough by the film to purchase the novel and well, I can safely say it’s
a book that changed my life.
I HAVE SOMETHING of a theory that books read during ones formative years, if of significant quality will leave a lasting impression. Rider Haggard's She did that for me. Whilst certainly dated and having some….bizarre concepts (She herself being so beautiful that anyone who looks at her immediately falls in love- an idea thankfully scrapped in hammers film version) it’s still a wonderfully powerful exercise in fantasy. I have so many memories connected to that novel, reading it on the plane out loud to a friend and suddenly noticing that all the aisles surrounding me had gone quiet. Listening? Or wondering what the weird kid was doing reading out loud? I guess I’ll never know!
SADLY THOUGH, as grand and as wonderful as Hammers
film version is, it simply couldn’t compete with the epic vistas presented in
the novel. For the most part when reading there was very little I visualised
from the film. I pictured a different woman to Ursula Andress (it may be sacrilege
but I always found her portrayal a little stilted), the Balali of the novel is
a kindly old man and so Christopher Lee was out too. All except Cushing. I’ve
no idea if he read the book, though I suspect he did but he nails Rider
Haggards portrayal instantly. Holly
is the narrator and in many ways the main character of the novel and despite having
slightly less to do in the film Cushing still manages to bring across the same sincerity
and honesty that made him such a wonderful character.
ANOTHER SUNDAY CUSHING DOUBLE BILL RETURNS NEXT WEEK: JOIN US!
DID YOU MISS CALLUM MCKELVIE'S SUNDAY CUSHING FEATURE LAST WEEK ON BRIDES OF DRACULA??? NO PROBLEM! THE CLIPS, GIFS AND RARE STILLS GALLERY ARE RIGHT HERE JUST CLICK THESE BLUE WORDS!
#CUSHINGFEMMEFATALES FRIDAY! Here is
PETER CUSHING on THIS IS YOUR LIFE from 1990. And VERY happy and humble he LOOKS too! It's interesting how many women there are and the women, connected to Cushing who actually
appear on the show. Even though some of Cushing's closest actress
friends were then living away from the UK, where the show was recorded,
they are absent from the recording . . Long time friend and college
INGRID PITT is missing and siting drinking coffee, just outside London! A show like this, that ploughs into the public
and private life of the subject on display, can be a sensitive and quite
political exercise. Although, Cushing reacts as though it's all a BIG
surprise, he did know the show was happening. He wasn't over the moon
about appearing, so the handling of guests, was the responsibility of a
trusted and close 'associate'. We can presume, those choices were behind
the participating guests...and why Christopher Lee is NOT in the
studio.
THIS CUSHING FEMME FATALE FEATURE is PART ONE of a TWO PART feature, a little peep at the actresses he also knew Peter in their private lives too! MORE to come in Part TWO next FRIDAY! ENJOY!!
THIS upload has been added to the NEW PCAS YOUTUBE CHANNEL library and taken from the old PCAS YOUTUBE CHANNEL, where it was shared five years ago . . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e96Mf...
YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I LOVE this magazine. We have covered various pieces on it over the last few months and thought it was about time, we honored it with a PCAS COMPETITION too! We done competitions with Warner Brothers, Hammer films too, Lionsgate, various actors and directors too. Even full scale legitimate publishers. So it is a real treat to find an affordable magazine, edited and written by someone, who loves what he does. MUCH of this chap you can find on this site elsewhere! DARIO LAVIA editor of CINEFICCION has donated FOUR issues of the LATEST edition of the magazine. PACKED as usual, full of great stuff. THIS issue features MUCH about the history of WEREWOLVES and WOLFMEN on the big screen ...and elsewhere! There is a fabulous colour feature too. If you liked the AUTOBIOGRAPHY editions he did on Cushing, Lee, Price, Karloff and others, you will LOVE the concept behind the regular editions.
CINEFICCION is written in SPANISH. And for all Spanish speaking fans of the Horror and Fantasy genre, THAT is a WONDERFUL asset! IF only the UK had a magazine THIS professional produced! PCAS since the beginning, has always been an INTERNATIONAL society. There are many many followers of this website and our other social internet sites from all over the world. Before we closed our PCAS Facebook Fan Page, it was always a thrill to meet Cushing Fans from just about everywhere! We STILL DO have a Russian PCAS website!
THAT IS WHY it's always a honor to be friends and fellow fans of Peter's work and help OTHER too!
HERE IS HOW YOU CAN WIN A COPY! BELOW are FOUR different GIFS from films that featured a WEREWOLF or WOLFMAN. NAME THE FILM and give us the actor who PLAYED them in our GIF! HERE THEY ARE . . .
NUMBER ONE
NUMBER TWO
NUMBER THREE
NUMBER FOUR
SEND YOUR ANSWERS to our EMAIL ADDRESS: petercushingpcas@gmail.com THIS OPPORTUNITY TO WIN is only open until FRIDAY 23th of MARCH 2018. COMPETITION CLOSES AT MIDNIGHT GMT that evening. WINNERS will be announced the following day here, during #CHRISTOPHERLEESATURDAY!GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!
THERE ARE TWO HAMMER FILM STARS who worked with PETER CUSHING and who are sharing
a birthday TODAY! John Van Eyssen who sadly passed BUT still very much with us is SHE
herself...URSULA ANDRESS. 'SHE' (1965) was the first film from Hammer to
be built around a female star. Tall and statuesque, Ursula Andress was a
perfect choice to play Ayesha, though in retrospect she claims to have
disliked the role.
ANDRESS HAS BEEN criticized by reviewers for her icy
demeanor and aloof detachment, but these characteristics proved
beneficial for playing the steely-eyed Ayesha. Costumed in a selection
of warm-colored, Grecian-styled gowns and gold jewelry, she glows
onscreen, partly due to the flattering, high-key lighting of
cinematographer Harry Waxman.
BORN IN SWITZERLAND to German parents, the exotic-looking beauty spoke with
an accent, which Hammer's producers found too distracting. Andress's
entire role was then re-voiced and dubbed over by an actress named
Monica Van Der Syl, who mimicked a slight Swiss accent so audiences did
not suspect the truth. John Richardson's lines were also dubbed in
post-production by the actor himself, perhaps to give his line readings
an added emphasis, since he tended to be overshadowed by Cushing and
Lee. Lee and Cushing appeared to enjoy working with Andress, and appearing in the film. Lee died with a nice touch and Cushing got to DANCE!
TODAY WE REMEMBER Hammer's first vampire hunter John Van Eyssen.Best known
for starring in Hammer's DRACULA /Horror Of Dracula as Jonathan Harker. Eyssen also starred in Hammer's QUATERMASS 2 and a early Terrence Fisher Hammer film
called The Four Sided Triangle in 1953. Van Eyssen did a great job of playing Harker, and went on to appear in only nine other feature films, then leave
his acting career in 1961 and become the head of the Grade Organisation
literary agency. He then left the business in 65 to take up a position
in the UK division of Columbia Pictures, eventually becoming Managing
Director in July 1969. Finally in 1970, he was promoted to Worldwide
Head of Production (ex-USA) and moved to New York.
#MOMENTOFTERRORMONDAY! IS ALWAYS a pleasure to post! We get to pick and edit, what is another classic moment from a Cushing film, and this one, might not be so well known as the Amicus and Hammer films shocking scenes, but it does do VERY well! LEGEND of the WEREWOLF has been
covered many time at our website, what was once our facebook page,
before THEY turned into a TERROR...and again on our PCAS You Tube
Channel today. On the theme of WEREWOLVES, it ALSO TIES IN well with our SPEEDY COMPETITION today too!
OVER THE YEARS, it has been gaining a lot of notice, more than
when it was made in 1975. Some of it may have to do with the fact that
this and THE GHOUL Cushing films from TYBURN FILMS ..still has not had a
legit release of dvd or Blu Ray. MANY MANY illegal and poor releases,
but we still await the arrival. Cushng is smashing, Rintoul as our
Werewolf is top dog and Ron Moody and Roy Castle make the film fun.
Until that release arrives, here is another clip, sharpened for the
TERROR factor!
#CHRISTOPHERLEESATURDAY!: So, it's official then? Despite the rumors . . Christopher Lee didn't live in his bath! WISE WORDS of Warning from Christopher Lee.
#CHRISTOPHERLEESATURDAY! The Meeting of Ages One a military men from the modern world and the other a high priest from an ancient civilisation . . Major Holly questions of the blind faith of Billali.
ON SET during the making of SHE, antics with Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. Lee here with a young daughter, Christina.
THIS IS a very neat scene. Two actors who by this time in 1965, had appeared in several films together and although at this time, they didn't spend much social time with each us when not engaged in a film, knew each others timings and methods. In this scene, which barely lasts two minutes, they have managed to convey to the viewer, the core values of the characters. All of which makes you wish, Hammer producers had found a bit more lolly, to have had more screen time with Cushing and Lee together . . .
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 .
